Writing the Broomstick

In our third episode, Katrina and Genny dive into the different witchy “types” that might resemble your fantasy protagonist or secondary character. We also show the difference between a witch type (good) and a witch stereotype (bad)—although, we do toss around the word archetype in there willy-nilly.

Genny’s dog, Hazel, serenades us throughout the episode with her sultry Lauren Bacall bark, while Katrina reveals that she records with her head in a padded box. Throughout the episode, we sprinkle some serious love and devotion to Deborah Harkness and her character Diana Bishop from the All Souls series.

Witches come in all shapes and sizes, and their powers manifest in a variety of beautiful ways. We hope that by the end of this episode our listeners get a better sense of the rich diversity within the witchy community and that there is so much more to this practice than black cats, pentagrams, and an obsession with Stevie Nicks’s wardrobe. 

When writing about your witch character, for the love of god do your research, but don’t feel compelled to stick within these categories. 

We explore these types of witches, but rest assured, there are MANY MORE:

1.  Traditional/Folk Witch
2.  Kitchen Witch
3.  Elemental Witch
4.  Hedge/Green Witch
5.  Wiccan
6.  Celestial/Cosmic Witch
7.  Hoodoo Witch
8.  Eclectic Witch

Here are some of the materials we looked at for this episode:

Honeybell, Fae (2010). Cunning Folk and Wizards in Early Modern England. University of Warwarick, Coventry. 

• https://wiccaliving.com/wiccan-traditions-wicca-forms/
• https://variety.com/2020/film/news/how-hollywood-has-failed-black-witches-1234819770/
• https://medium.com/@ioannis.tsiokos/hoodoo-vs-voodoo-c9da8d5c193b

★  ★  ★

Let us know what you thought of our episode! You can reach us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or email [email protected].

Hey! Do you like Celtic folklore, YA urban fantasy, AND free stuff? Read the first three chapters of Katrina’s debut novel, “The Wise One”.

And, if you want to see what Genny’s reading lately, check out her Goodreads review page.

In our second episode, Katrina gives us the low-down on self-publishing for fantasy writers and Genny maintains her cheerleader status for traditional publishing. We go through the pros and cons of both forms of publishing, and Katrina waits patiently for Genny to finish singing.

Also, when discussing the film adaptation of The Martian by Andy Weir, we get a little too flustered about Matt Damon.

Here’s a spoiler: Whichever way you decide to publish your book, perseverance and dedication are key. Never give up, never surrender!

DISCLAIMER: The audio still isn't flawless at this point...but we're nearly pros by episode 3, so bear with us!

★  ★  ★

Let us know what you thought of our episode! You can reach us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or email [email protected].

Hey! Do you like Celtic folklore, YA urban fantasy, AND free stuff? Read the first three chapters of Katrina’s debut novel, “The Wise One”.

And, if you want to see what Genny’s reading lately, check out her Goodreads review page.

In our very first episode, we take a look at the books that inspired us in our worldbuilding and writing. We thought it would be a piece of cake to name all the books that helped us create our own fantasy worlds, but it turned out to be quite difficult. The result: Apparently Genny is super into Greek mythology and Katrina is obsessed with Irish folklore. 

If you get nothing else from this episode, hopefully you're inspired to broaden your horizons and realize that when it comes to fantasy, there are no books you SHOULD read. It is a genre of absolute freedom, and with that said, the only thing we recommend is to go out there and find what it is that gets your creative juices flowing. 

If you'd like a little guidance on where to start looking for world-building inspiration, here's our list plus a few extras!

• Introduction to Mythology: Contemporary Approaches to Classical and World Myths by Eva M. Thury and Margaret K. Devinney
• The Odyssey by Homer
• The Theogony by Hesiod
• Faery Tale: One Woman's Search for Enchantment in a Modern World by Signe Pike
• Old Ways, Old Secrets of Pagan Ireland by Jo Kerrigan
• Enchantment of the Faerie Realm by Ted Andrews
• Earth, Air, Fire and Water by Scott Cunningham
• Myths & Folklore of Ireland by Jeremiah Curtin
• The Element Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures by John Matthews
• 185 Tips on World Building by Randy Ellefson
• Fantasy World-Building: A Guide to Developing Mythic Worlds and Legendary Creatures by Mark Nelson
• On Writing and Worldbuilding: Volume I by Timothy Hickson
• Worldbuilding for Fantasy Fans and Authors by M. D. Presley 
• The Planet Construction Kit by Mark Rosenfelder

DISCLAIMER: As our first episode ever, there are some audio kinks...but we're nearly pros by episode 3, so bear with us!

★  ★  ★

Let us know what you thought of our episode! You can reach us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or email [email protected].

Hey! Do you like Celtic folklore, YA urban fantasy, AND free stuff? Read the first three chapters of Katrina’s debut novel, “The Wise One”.

And, if you want to see what Genny’s reading lately, check out her Goodreads review page.