A Not-So-Secret Project: An Update on the State of the Misha

Hello, beautiful creatures, and welcome to 2019! By now, any New Year’s hangovers have subsided into distant, painful memories, which means that whatever anguish and dread you still feel is an existential state, rather than a temporary condition. Even so, I hope that 2019 finds you healthy, happy, and with a renewed vigor for all your endeavors.

Oh, how am I doing? Thanks for asking! I know it’s been quiet around these parts lately, for which I offer my rueful apologies; I’ve been remarkably busy, but that’s utterly failed to be reflected in my output here. I’ve been banging away on what I’ve been calling my Super-Secret Project, which has utterly co-opted every bit of time, mental processing power, and creative energy I have. I realized that I haven’t posted here in a hot minute, though, so I wanted to check in and let you all know that I’m still kicking.¹

And just what is that Super-Secret Project, you ask? Well, honestly, it’s not especially secret: I wrote a book!

Who’s releasing the book?

The book will be published by the lovely folks at Llewellyn, whose belief in the proposal and the manuscript has been one of the sustaining lights of the past few months. I’m especially blessed to be working with my editor Heather Greene, who has fielded both my chaotically-worded emails and my socially awkward real-time personality with aplomb and grace. (If you think my blog posts come across like I’m an overcaffeinated magic-and-pop-culture nerd with a pachinko machine for a brain, trust me, you haven’t seen the half of it. Heather actually has me listed in her contacts as “Misha Magdalene, glam-prog-punk space witch monarch” on the basis of our first phone call.)

When’s it coming out?

I’m currently revising the manuscript, which means the book will likely be released about a year from now.

What’s it called, and what’s it about?

Sadly, dear ones, that’s still TOP SECRET EYES ONLY intel. What I can say is that no one who’s read my blog to any depth will be surprised in the slightest.

Why write a book, when you have a blog?

Some time ago, I complained on Facebook that my blog posts were getting more and more wordy, and the redoubtable John Beckett responded that, if your word count is much more than 1,200 words, you’re writing something, but it’s not a blog post. As time went on, it became increasingly apparent that I had things I wanted to say which required more space to stretch out and develop than the blog format really allows for. That’s the short answer.

The longer answer… well, ironically enough, it’s in the book.

A lot of things are in the book, some of which will be passingly familiar to readers, but most of which are new and, I hope, of sufficient interest to keep you engaged, entertained, and perhaps even moved. In a very real way, my whole life as a witch, a devotee, a magical practitioner, and a scholar has led up to the writing of this book.

I’m incredibly proud of the end result, and I can’t wait to share it with you all.

Until next time, dear ones, may your 2019 be better than 2018 or 2017, and much better than 2016. ♥

1. Also, my meanie-face editor won’t buy me dinner at PantheaCon unless I post a couple of times between now and the con. (Just kidding! My editor is a doll.)