Introducing The Witch's Patron (+ Star-Powered Paracosm stickers back in stock!)
Do you like seafaring sapphics? What about paintbrush-wielding witches? Well, do I have a story for you!
Last week I wrote about my struggle to stay on top of my creative projects. In that post I argued that it’s important to give our creative brains permission to play when we’re trying to balance the things we want to work on with the things we need to work on. Sometimes making self-indulgent nonsense is the life raft we need when we find ourselves drowning in the responsibilities of our creative careers.
That said, messing around in self-indulgent nonsense is like taking morphine for a stab wound: yes, it helps you feel better for a little while but it won’t stop the bleeding.
And so, with a nervous breakdown waiting in the wings, I emerged from my Wistfeld-fueled fugue state with a bit of much-needed clarity. I realized that something had to give: I needed to pivot.
In order to free up a bit of space in both my schedule and my brain, I decided to put Starborn Legacy on hiatus. The rush to churn out and post at least 1,500 words each week had left me feeling not only exhausted, but also like I was doing the story a serious disservice. Starborn Legacy is a complicated story that deserves a lot more focus than I’m able to give it right now, and I hate how much it’s suffered from me having to rush through it.
That said, I’m still part of the Wattpad Creators program so I’ve gotta post something, which is why I’ve decided to resurrect a technically complete manuscript to take Starborn Legacy’s place in my weekly posting rotation: The Witch’s Patron.
I say the manuscript is “technically complete” because it’s finished enough. I actually won NaNoWriMo 2016 with it. Back then, I revised the story and sent it out to a couple beta readers who came back to me with a lot of great feedback. But at that time I was too focused on finishing books two and three in the Starborn Series trilogy, so I tucked the book away for a later date. I took a stab at rewriting it when I attended SFU’s The Writer’s Studio program in 2019, but I wound up getting distracted by my idea for what eventually became The Many Ghosts of Magni Lamont. (In fact, an excerpt of the The Witch’s Patron actually appears in emerge19, the program’s student anthology from that year!) So many pivots!
In a lot of ways, it would have made more sense to use this story for the Creator’s program from the very beginning, but I had this vague plan of re-writing it completely in a more contemporary setting. And heck, maybe I still will some day! But until then, here’s what you can expect from this new sapphic fantasy web-serial:
When desperate circumstances lead Noori—dutiful daughter and harbor master-in-training—to the door of the mysterious art witch, Keizsa, she only means to strike a deal with the paint-wielding sorceress. Instead, she winds up caught in the middle of a powerful witches' feud. Does a human like Noori stand a chance against curses, spells, and a witch's rage? Or is she just the woman to end this enchanted quarrel once and for all?
The prologue and first two chapters are already posted and ready to read for free exclusively on Wattpad! Be sure to add it to your library or check back for new chapters each week.
ALSO!
After running out of stock on the first version of the Star-Powered Paracosm sticker, I’m happy to announce that v.2 has arrived and is ready shine in all its holographic glory from your laptop, water bottle, or anywhere else you wanna stick it!
This limited edition design is available for purchase in my shop or by visiting my studio at The Beaumont.