Mother and child in the woods
Why I wrote A Winter's Sleep (repost)
Hi, friends. I’m busy prepping for the Chattanooga Zine Fest, and rather than rush to get this month’s Folklore Friday ready, I’m sharing this post from two years ago instead. It seems fitting.
I don’t often write about motherhood, here or anywhere. Writing has more often than not been a way to pursue my own interests outside the demands of parenting, a way of strengthening my identity beyond that of caregiver as someone who grew up in a parentified role.
Parenthood isn’t a top category of my ‘target audience’. Also not everyone relates to parenthood or wants to be a parent. That’s perfectly fine, and if that’s you I want you to know you are always welcome in The Purple Vale.
But this post seems fitting now because school is winding down and in this house, we are transitioning to summer rhythms. I’ve already dropped IG like a hot potato and it feels so good to have my attention less fragmented. I know I’ll need that in the weeks ahead. My kids need and deserve a parent battling as few distractions as possible, and in a world on fire I will do what I can for them, always.
So. On to my story. (Did I mention it is a fairy tale?!) Thanks for being here, and I hope you enjoy it.
Fear of the unknown. Mystery. The wild. The fairy tale forest or wood1 is all these things.
What does all this have to do with motherhood?
A couple of years ago, I wanted to write a fairy tale featuring a character I related to deeply. Not the blushing maiden, hoping for love, nor the matronly woman commanding gatherings and resources, nor the ancient crone, wizened and wiser with years. I wanted to capture the time of entering motherhood as a child enters the world.
The young woman in her first act begins her second2. Fairy tale mothers abound of all ages and kinds, but something drew me to this vulnerable stage of life.
And so A Winter’s Sleep was born.
It’s a love story to those bewildering, fragile months of early parenthood, but that isn’t all.
It’s about a couple in the throes of change, torn apart by great forces. The love story of the first act grows, breaks, mends.
It’s about the (super)natural world, folkloric figures, seasonal lore, and the forest.
And it’s about how all of these things are connected.
I have always loved forests, both in ‘real life’ and in stories, for their capacity for magic and discovery, their beauty and their wildness. If that doesn’t describe embarking into new relationship realms or watching them grow with life’s sudden expansion, I’m not sure what does.
You’ve probably already read A Winter’s Sleep, since you’re here. :) If not, the link is below. (Pssst, it’s free everywhere but Amazon.)
And now I do the thing all authors must, even though we hate it–I ask you to leave a review of my books.
This isn’t just for AWS, of course. You would make my day/week/month by leaving a review of any of my books you’ve read, if you’ve yet to do so.
No matter where you downloaded your copy from, would you please leave a review on Amazon? This helps more readers find A Winter’s Sleep. You can do so here.
Thank you so much!
Just wanted to affirm that motherhood isn’t for everyone and that’s perfectly good! There are a multitude of ways to be a woman.