In the magical Wheel of the Year that charts the dance of the seasons, the next celebration in the southern hemisphere is Imbolc, which marks the turning of the Wheel from the cold and dark of winter to the first signs of spring – although thanks to climate change, the signs of spring came early
In the magical Wheel of the Year that charts the dance of the seasons, the next celebration in the northern hemisphere is Lughnasadh, which marks the turning of the Wheel from the heat and joy of summer to the harvest energy of autumn. This cross-quarter day falls on August 6 in the US this year, and
June has been a strange, unsettling month, of high tension, of long overdue attention on black lives mattering, and of educating ourselves to learn more, do more and be better. Award-winning journalist Reni Eddo-Lodge’s book Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race (34 of 52) is a searing, illuminating, absolutely necessary examination
Today, June 21, is the winter solstice in Australia, and I just had an interesting chat with an American friend about the fact that we (and others in the southern hemisphere) celebrate Yule and midwinter now, so far away from Christmas, which is so intrinsically linked to midwinter in popular culture. Many people in the
Congratulations to the amazing artist and creative Lorena Carrington, such a wonderfully worthy winner of the Award for Inspiration and Contribution to Australian Fairy Tale Culture, announced today at the Australian Fairy Tale Society Conference. I adore Lorena’s own book, Wiser Than Evening, and her collaborative projects with Kate Forsyth, the beautifully illustrated books Vasilisa the
I’m having a wonderful time at the Australian Fairy Tale Society Conference, listening to wonderful presenters including amazing author Kate Forsyth and wonderful glass artist Spike Deane. I even survived speaking about The Swan Maiden, and was so touched by the lovely response. I made a little presentation about the faery tale elements in a lot of
Yule : Winter Solstice : Rebirth The winter solstice falls around June 21 or 22 in the southern hemisphere – this year it is on June 21 – and around December 21 or 22 in the northern hemisphere – you can check the timing for you here. It’s the longest night and the shortest day
Litha : Summer Solstice : Fruition The summer solstice falls around June 20 or 21 in the northern hemisphere – this month it occurs on June 20 – and December 21 - 22 in the southern hemisphere. (Check your times here...) It’s the longest day and the shortest night of the year, with the sun
What Is Your Favourite Faery Tale? We will be discussing that and a whole lot more at the Australian Fairy Tale Society Conference, which starts this Friday night, June 5, and runs for three days – and for the first time it will be online, so people from anywhere in the world can attend! Although
Book-A-Week – May books read May was a month for extraordinary books. Blackbirds Sing by Aiki Flinthart and Phosphorescence by Julia Baird are two of my favourites this year, but the rest were awesome too! I loved the novelisation of The Rise of Skywalker by Rae Carson (26 of 52). I listened to the audiobook (narrated by
Bookings are now open for the 2020 virtual conference of the Australian Fairy Tale Society! This year’s theme is Magic Mirrors: the Seen and the Unseen. Schedule for the conference at the bottom of this post. This will be a conference unlike any other because we will be able to have people from all over Australia
I’m honoured (and, to be honest, a little shocked) to have been nominated for the AFTS Award for Inspiration and Contribution to Australian Fairy Tale Culture for my new book The Swan Maiden, alongside amazing artist Lorena Carrington and my all-time favourite author Juliet Marillier. Lorena exhibits her gorgeous artwork, created the lovely book Wiser Than Evening, and
Samhain : First Day of Winter : Death Samhain, the festival of the ancestors and the dead that marks the beginning of winter, falls in early May in the southern hemisphere and early November in the northern hemisphere – and on October 31 in popular culture, where it is celebrated as Halloween. This year in
Beltane : First Day of Summer : Growth Beltane, the festival of love and fertility that marks the end of spring and the start of the heat and energy of summer, falls in early November in the southern hemisphere, and early May in the northern hemisphere. In 2020 it falls on May 4 or May 5 in the
Book-A-Week – April books read April was a strange month for everyone. Like many I’ve been struggling a little to write, and for a while I was having trouble focusing on books too. But when social media got too much, I retreated to my book shelves, and devoured a bunch of books – so many
I can’t even remember how I stumbled across English author Menna van Praag’s first novel, The House At the End of Hope Street, but I bought it in hardback not long after its release in 2013, and really loved it. Since then I’ve read her other four magical realism novels as soon as they came
The online launch of The Swan Maiden is on now! You can buy the ebook and paperback from Amazon here. You can buy the ebook from other retailers here. Or you can buy the book from me and I will sign it and post it out to you, complete with a pretty bookmark, and a free
Book-A-Week – March books read As I get ready for the online launch of The Swan Maiden on April 1, it’s no surprise that my March was filled with faery tales, and faery tale-inspired books. Although first I had to read and re-read my book a few times (11 of 52), ha ha! Then I
Lucy Cavendish is a writer and a witch and an oracle reader and creator, and a surfer and a nature lover. We first met in the nineties in magazine circles, as we’ve both been journalists and editors, but we reconnected in 2002 when I interviewed her about her gorgeous Oracle Tarot deck. Since then we’ve
You’re invited to a Faery Tale Launch Party – online of course, in these strange new socially distanced times. It’s all happening HERE – bookmark the link, or click Going to get notifications. K. A. Last is launching Chasing Neve, her Snow White reimagining, and I’m launching my original Australian faery tale The Swan Maiden.
