I have always loved this weird and wonderful piece of medieval marginal art. She is cranky, aggressive, and ready to pull out hearts and saw off legs. I know I shouldn't like her so much, but on frustrating days (like paying the taxes), I feel a kindred spirit of Don't mess with me if you […]
There are moments in writing that feel so spontaneous that it is hard to believe they have come from oneself but instead are descended in the form of a writerly-grace. When Jane Yolen and I wrote Except the Queen, we began by separately creating characters, each with their voice and chapters, intuitively stitching them together
One Does Not Say No to Baba Yaga Read More »
Probably because my status has shifted from mother to um…crone (even though I don't have the long white braid wrapped around my head like a secret ninja whip — wouldn't that be cool? )…I have been rediscovering with a new found pleasure all those story variants of the old woman who went to hell and
To Hell with a Handbag. Read More »
I had one of those remarkable encounters while reading Kate Atkinson's Case Histories, who was describing in almost identical words an idea I had explored years ago in a poem. It is an ambiguous moment in motherhood, knitting power and love in a fierce and consuming way. It's awful really, selfish as it expresses a desire
The Hungry Mother: Kate Atkinson and Baba Yaga Read More »
