New Agey Peeps?

I actually did try that for my novel a couple years ago. Sadly, life and all of its ickiness kept me from really getting into it (read: I got maybe 2k words and wrote nothing else for the rest of the month.) And it's not so much that the *entire* point of the book dealt with religion or spirituality, but it was set in a type of prehistoric time frame (think Clan of the Cave Bear and you'd have it about right), and I'd *planned* on having a good bit of the earth religions in the story as part of the setting.

I'm still on the fence about this year, though.

2009: Jewels of Corus: Valeisha 13,426/50,000
2008: FellBlade 263/50,000
2007: Primordial Dawn: Rise of Morning 1,756/50,000
2006: The Life and Times of Annie Price 50,611/50,000
2005: Acheron Rising 10,289/50,000

I'm asatru pagan, and I love reading about and studying ancient paganism, especially Celtic and Norse cultures, stories and way of life. I'm going to try and incorporate some of this into my writing, even if the novel isn't solely about a religious theme.

ive had an idea, actually a few, that wouldn't be specifically christian or pagan but would take aspects of both (depending on the character) to write a sort of commentary on religion through fiction (think marion zimmer bradley like but from a more christian perspective), i am a christian though, but ever since i have been interested in religion in general i have at least attempted to study (though not practice) aspects of paganism/mystic religion/nature worship religion/etc. ; from my experience its always a bit hard though and disappointing that to learn from other people a lot of the time you have to subscribe to the belief before they will talk to you.. one time someone thought i wanted to blend religions when i just wanted to learn and they got mad at me when they found out and stopped talking to me.. =\ since then i've had to rely on websites and books..

I'm going to write a pagan story. It's called My Life as a Teenage Witch which is quite polaristic in its title but sounds better than 'My Life as a Teenage Pagan' in my opinion---but the title may change. It's going to be the first hand account of a girl who's switched schools and lifestyles and how she deals with everything (from the cheer squad hating on her, the ensemble choir going after her because of her voice and who knows what else). It's tecnically a young adult type of book, but it fits under this genre.

NANO 09: My Life as a Teenage Witch
NANO 08: Lost Heir of Braelynn (13221k)
NANO 07:Emerald Moon (12567k)
NANO 05: Pen's Dreamscape (52k)
NANO 04: Other Side of the Sun (51k)
NANO 03: Light of Allayna (8k)
http://a-barone.blogspot.com

I'm still really exploring religion, but I would definitely classify myself as a New Age person. I have a few ideas of how I'd go about a New Age novel, but I'm definitely not ready to write one yet (I'm either going to do a scifi thriller or a young adult). I tried writing one two years ago, and got to about 14000 words before it fizzled out. My last novel (not a NaNoWriMo) included an angel, but it only had one really religiou scene.

Right now, I'm sticking to writing meditations, and maybe next year I'll be ready for the novel.

The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy has this to say on the subject
of flying.

There is an art, it says, or rather, a knack to flying.
The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and
miss.

I'm writing a story similar. These kids are way into chaos magick. It's like The Craft, only they act real, and Nancy doesn't go insane, and there's guys involved. Okay it's nothing like The Craft. But still. And there's other things that happen, plus some romantic stuff and yeah, I haven't planned it out much.

So many words, so precious little time.
ML Columbus, Ohio

Erm, one of my MCs is a medium with definite links to the pagan/New Age side of things. The rest of the novel deals with spirits, demons and other things that just might go bump in the night. The thing is that I'm also pretty deeply rooted in these ways of life, so I think that my worldview always influences the novels I work on. There are always some ideas and concepts present from, say, mythology and the like. I think that this year will have it all become more obvious than I'm used to writing, though.

hope is more than a postponed disappointment.

Kind of New Age here, not very anymore. But I think my novel will certainly have elements of magic and is influenced by "Illusions".

T. Bread Sandwich
And all that.

I'm pagan-ish, and I am typically unable to write anything that doesn't involve something pagan-ish or new-age-ish.

My story this year involves a boy raised by a pair of Wise Women, who becomes a renowned cartomancer (hence the title). In addition, the chapters are going to be structured around the Major Arcana, so that the MC's story loosely mirrors the Fool's Journey. I think it should be interesting to write... and hopefully ultimately interesting to read.

NaNo 2009:

Merry Meet!
15 year old Witch, been one in this life since the day I was born, and for several past lives~
Practicing the Faery Tradition, descendent of the O'Donovan Clan
My name is Mary!

I am writing my novel on a New Age spiritual subject, though I have yet to completely concreate the idea yet

"It is a human's anger that drives them to become another creature... it is a fae's anger that drives them to become human"

New Age specifically? No, not really, but I'm definitely aiming for the stars with I Don't Believe. Throughout the course of the book, I incorporate over twenty different religions in the plotline, over 70 deities, and approximately 100+ magical creatures and people of myth that are found within the different legends of the religions. I start with roman catholicism and then fade into Wicca/Druidism and sort of leapfrog back and forth between taoism, buddhism and confucism for a few chapters after that. The sheer amount of research going into this is fantastic, and the research document is probably longer than the actual novel will be.

I can't wait to write the chapter where William (my MC) stumbles upon a satanic cult's ritual, though. A skinny blonde teenager who wears a rosary meeting the Devil himself? Oh, the hilarity!

~Cassie

Not quite new age - Im writing about the druids and their fight for survival and continuance during and after the Roman invasion in Briton - Im still not sure of the exact plotline yet.

stormy x

Lost the plot already!

I'm writing about an Eclectic Pagan. Her father is Native American and her mother is from a family of Traditional Witchcraft. She tries to find her place in the pagan community, but because she isn't one of the major traditions, she is scorned for being "fluffy".

Lost my idea. Starting over.

Sheena, that sounds really cool! Being "fluffy" is an interesting concept in the Pagan world. I've struggled with it a lot, as I find that a lot of Wicca books are fairly fluffy (love spells, money spells, and feel-good stuff with a lack of real-life applicable information). So I'm interested to see what your take on it is.

Anjirika, I recognize you from here last year. How's it going? =D

My book will deal with pagan themes. Well, I'm calling it Pagan YA, so I guess those themes are pretty important. My main character scryes pieces of obsidian and discovers "truths" but she can't actually see the future. She basically (without knowing it) worships Persephone, but she'll discover that as the book progresses. Who knows, maybe she'll end up a full-fledged witch by the end! (My plots develops as I write, so. I don't know yet!)

thewonderelf,

What I've experienced in the pagan community is that people like to use fluffy as a word to scorn anyone who is different. They believed my father was fluffy. He's a Native American influence, and not wiccan. A lot of the people who follow the craft from their own families that date back to before wicca think that wicca is fluffy. There's always the people from the specific traditions who think that the eclectic pagans are fluffy. The point is supposed to be the ability to find whatever fits what you personally believe, but when everyone is scorned for believing something different, it takes away some of the most beneficial parts of the pagan community.

Lost my idea. Starting over.

Sheena,

I totally agree. Wicca was basically invented in the 1950s, and because of that a lot of so-called hereditary Witches get offended. But my take has always been, so what? Being old doesn't make it better! And Wicca works well for a lot of people, which makes it valid. No one should judge anyone else's beliefs, especially in the pagan community, especially because one of the beautiful things about paganism is how eclectic it allows you to be. (Of course, there are also two schools of Wicca that tend not to get along, in my experience...the old school and the more new age Wiccans.)

The problem I have is with books, not people. Llewellyn puts out soooo maaaaaany books, and has these obnoxious contracts where authors have to put a ridiculous number of books out a year, and because of that, the content suffers. Right now I think the market is flooded with "fluffy" books. Most of them have no substance, and books by the same author often say a lot of the same stuff. Of course there's nothing wrong with love spells and money spells, etc., but many books stop there, and don't take spirituality any further than that. And I think that's a shame, because you can learn so much about yourself through exploring your spirituality and learning from it. But, sadly, most (Wicca) books don't challenge the reader! (I say Wicca because I've read a lot more Wicca books than other pagan-type religious books and I don't want make generalizations about things I don't know about!)

I agree. When I go to the bookstore, I find a LOAD of books that contain no information of value, and that I'm pretty sure cannot help ANYONE along their spiritual journey. It can be very difficult to sift through all of the useless titles in order to find books that are challenging and meaningful. And yes, Llewellyn is a huge culprit (certainly not the only one, and I am in no way saying that Llewellyn doesn't put out anything good).

As for people accusing other people of being fluffy... One of the things that made me a pagan was that I sought my own spiritual path, rather than subscribing to the doctrine that was fed to me by someone else. To me, that's what paganism is all about, is taking on the responsibility for your own spiritual growth and development and seeking truth on your own. As a result, there are truly as many pagan traditions as there are pagans. In word, pagans profess to respect the validity of the religious beliefs of others, but in practice, many pagans are just as judgmental of each other as non-pagans are of pagans!

NaNo 2009:

part of the reason the books on the shelves contain very little of value is because the tweens who are looking for something in their lives supposedly WANT nothing more than spells and charms they can use. They supposedly WANT to not know the rules for using those spells and supposedly WANT to be blindsided when their selfish use of magic comes to bite them in the ass. They want all the knowledge of how to do things, but none of the knowledge of how to be responsible about it. It's like learning how to drive a car without learning the rules of the road. If you don't stop at a red light, you're likely to get hit by oncoming traffic. Magic is the same way. Publishers, however, believe that tweens don't want to know that.

I really do feel sorry for the kids that fall into the spell books trap.

As for the fluffy stuff, I'm just hoping that more people will open their eyes to how judgemental they can be. I used to be bad about judging wiccans, especially the ones who converted from christianity, until I saw some people judging the otherkin. It was ugly, and I stopped doing it myself. Everyone has the right to find their own path and walk it without grief. I want other people to see that.

Of course, I can't write a book without fantasy HAPPENING, so I don't think my book will do much good for that cause lol

Lost my idea. Starting over.

Hey there elfie! Can I call you elfie? ^_^ It's going great. ^_^ How's it going with you? My book is going to be the anti-fluff book. My MC is as down to earth pagan as you can get....

and Sheena....you're so right about the trap of so called 'spell books' in fact the best book on spells that I've ever read is called 'Before You Cast A Spell' and it deals with intention and will and all the ACTUAL stuff behind things. I can't remember the author but you should check it out...

....and you know I think that all us newage pagan people should set up a way for us to swap stories at the end....good pagan fiction is hard to find afterall.

NANO 09: My Life as a Teenage Witch
NANO 08: Lost Heir of Braelynn (13221k)
NANO 07:Emerald Moon (12567k)
NANO 05: Pen's Dreamscape (52k)
NANO 04: Other Side of the Sun (51k)
NANO 03: Light of Allayna (8k)
http://a-barone.blogspot.com

Hello all! I am a practicing pagan and psychic and writing a book on my experience as an aura reader. I'm aiming for it to be more metaphysical/selfhelp than fiction. I hope not to qualify as fluff but if llewellyn wants to publish it i'm not opposed LOL

Not for NaNo, but I'm writing a middle grade novel about a twelve-year-old girl from a Pagan family dealing with a religious-motivated hate crime. I'm 23,000 words in and trying to knock the thing out this month so I'm free to NaNo next month.

http://swdooley.blogspot.com

NaNo 08 -- LIVVIE OWEN LIVED HERE (Feiwel and Friends, 2010)
NaNo 07 -- JOY, HOPE, AND OTHER LOST CAUSES (in revision)

Doesn't sound fluffy to me, woolandwings. LLewelyn also publishes memoirs and fiction, if I'm not mistaken. Those aren't really as fluffy. It's just the instructional books that have the problem.

anjirika, I completely support the idea of all of us swapping novels. And after December, I'll finally be free to read for myself!

Lost my idea. Starting over.

Thx for the feedback I appreciate it!

Awesome! ^_^

NANO 09: My Life as a Teenage Witch
NANO 08: Lost Heir of Braelynn (13221k)
NANO 07:Emerald Moon (12567k)
NANO 05: Pen's Dreamscape (52k)
NANO 04: Other Side of the Sun (51k)
NANO 03: Light of Allayna (8k)

NANO 09: My Life as a Teenage Witch
NANO 08: Lost Heir of Braelynn (13221k)
NANO 07:Emerald Moon (12567k)
NANO 05: Pen's Dreamscape (52k)
NANO 04: Other Side of the Sun (51k)
NANO 03: Light of Allayna (8k)
http://a-barone.blogspot.com

Yesssss, we should totally all set up a Pagan novel swap after the month ends! I'm handwriting mine, so that will give me some motivation to type it up quickly after November rather than letting it sit around for a few years, haha.

Also, I'm friending those of you that I haven't yet so I can track your progress. =D

Anyone interested in doing sprints or anything once November starts? I'd be happy to organize something; I've got AIM and MSN. Nanomail me your s/n if you like!

And Anj (can I call you Anj?) you can call me elfie if you want, haha.^^

Yes Elfie, you can call me Anji, ^_^ And it's nice to see that I'm not the only crazy who is going to handwrite my novel. ^_^ And I would so be interested doing sprints via MSN you can find me at storygal141@hotmail.com just tell me who you are and I'll know who you are.

NANO 09: My Life as a Teenage Witch
NANO 08: Lost Heir of Braelynn (13221k)
NANO 07:Emerald Moon (12567k)
NANO 05: Pen's Dreamscape (52k)
NANO 04: Other Side of the Sun (51k)
NANO 03: Light of Allayna (8k)
http://a-barone.blogspot.com

I'm planning on writing a story somewhat like the Celestine Prophesy in that my character finds someone to guide her on path to spirituality. I'm mostly a humanist myself with some pagan/wiccan beliefs in there. Last year I attempted a novel set in England in the 800s, sort of Arthurian with some celtic/pagan influences. But I didn't finish it.

Since I'm still exploring my own spirituality, I thought maybe writing a book about it would solidify some things for myself.

naturalave--I am sure that writing your book will help with your own spiritual path.
Best of luck to ya!

NANO 09: My Life as a Teenage Witch
NANO 08: Lost Heir of Braelynn (13221k)
NANO 07:Emerald Moon (12567k)
NANO 05: Pen's Dreamscape (52k)
NANO 04: Other Side of the Sun (51k)
NANO 03: Light of Allayna (8k)
http://a-barone.blogspot.com

I would consider myself "new age"-- I think.

I believe I will be writing something to do with Wicca more than likely. Still kind of working on a plot (I know I'm running out of time, haha).

I'm having a bit of a plot crisis myself, actually. I've now got two scenarios/premises, and I should do some pre-writing to figure out which one I want to use, but I just got like 10 YA books out of the library to read for research. SO hopefully I will be able to figure out where I want to go based on those books. u__u