'Folk-lore straddles the boundary between actual living things that can be seen, touched and trapped, and the vague territory of things that are glimpsed or half-seen and never caught.' - Nigel Pennick, Folk-lore of East Anglia & Adjoining Counties

The witch walks the woods for wonder. Walks as listening to the land. She moves towards mystery. Moves towards green communion. Her footsteps are an artefact of magical intent. – #EmilyCBanting, 1982 #WitchSky

Wicken Fen, the most magical place to be still. I sat in one of the hides for a very long time listening to the wind stir the reeds and watching the dragonflies.

Lovely visit to the East Anglian Folklore Centre @shuckhappens.bsky.social yesterday! Enjoyed the corn dolly exhibition, faerie furniture, & beautiful art & crafts. As well as so many books! I could read away days here! It's so special to have a home for local lore to be shared & protected.

Do not pander. Do not dumb down. Do not make your voice less magical. Trust your audience to be smarter than you. Trust them to be as curious as fuck. Never blame anyone for the tepid, lazy choices you make in your work.

Evening sunlight shining on Dunnottar Castle. Such an incredible place, perched on the rocks in the North Sea. It feels like it belongs more to the elements than to people.

Faerie bridge, Isle of Skye. It is said visiting this bridge at night will take you into Faerieland. Also where the faerie wife of a MacLeod Clan chief left him, & gifted him the faerie flag which is now displayed in Dunvegan Castle. A quiet, soothing place of crossings, meetings and partings.

Struggling to pick a name for my main character, then realising that I have to name all the other characters as well 🙃 And, even worse, give the story a title...

View of the Pap of Glencoe from Eilean Munde, the burial island. Very poignant visit. My guide called it a 'sleeping place' because of how undisturbed it is, but the wild berries, flowers and trees are not sleeping at all. They are quietly thriving, blanketing those resting beneath them.

Gearr Aonach and Aonach Dubh, Glencoe. 10:45pm, when it was just me, wild deer and owl calls. When the night creatures get their lands back. When rainclouds whispered over the mountains.

Ring of Brodgar, Orkney. A truly enchanted place. The stones felt warm and quietly alive, like they were glad to be visited. I loved standing beside them with my eyes closed and feeling the wind. A small moment to pause and be part of earth, lichen, and sea air. #StandingStoneSunday

Never ceases to amaze me how camping can simultaneously be the absolute worst & totally incredible. No, I did not like dragging myself out of my tent to try & sleep in the car because of a hayfever attack at 3am, but seeing the waning moon shine over the mountains accompanied by owl hoots? Worth it.

Great car boot sale book find today! Great addition to my shelf. I love stories from the Northern Isles.

Stages of running a writing workshop: Pre-workshop: 'What if no-one signs up?!' 'Oh eek, people signed up! Now I have to do something!' During workshop: 'Omg what am I doing no-one is gonna get anything out of this!' After workshop: 'Oh yay, everyone wrote something & had a good time, phew!'

7 Ways to Minimise GenAI in Your Life—and why it matters. “It's a small, daily way of refusing a reality imposed on us--a rehearsal for larger disobedience.” New post up at my Ghost blog: allysonshaw.ghost.io/7-ways-to-mi... #GenAI #AI #Ghost #Blogging #Refusal #ChatGPT #Writing

When you start writing something new, but then an unfinished story from years ago pops back up & now you don't know what to work on first 🙃

Being from East Anglia, I was excited to discover this folklore centre. It's vital to have physical space to preserve & share our heritage, & sad that it's so difficult right now. Donated, & I hope they receive the support they need. www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding...

Good for him! Glad to see this issue getting some attention in the news. I've been seeing more and more of these stone stacks everywhere, & it's sad to see the harm they cause to natural landscapes, habitats, and historic features. What happened to 'leave no trace'? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Started writing a new short story today & was shocked that my plan didn't tell me how to begin 😆 Sure, it contains everything that happens, but not the exact details. Those have to come out in the writing. As a longtime pantser this is new to me!

In Japanese folklore, the okuri inu (sending off dog) is a spirit which follows lone travellers at night. If they trip, it will attack them. To survive, you must make the trip look deliberate and sit down to take a rest. The okuri inu will wait… #FolkloreThursday Image: Okuri-Inu by Ryūkansai

Old mill pool at the meeting of 2 burns, a favourite haunt for kelpies & water horses. ‘I’m feared o’ the road ayont the glen, I’m sweir to pass the place Whaur the water’s rinnin’, for a’ fowk ken There’s a kelpie sits at the fit o’ the den, And there’s them that’s seen his face.' - Violet Jacob.

Saw a girl throw a snowball tonight & when I asked her not to she said 'it wasn't me, there's a ghost!' Now I want to write a story about a haunted ice rink. It's perfect - no-one would notice a temperature drop to signal paranormal activity 😆 ⛸️

Re-reading my journal from 2011 for a project I'm working on. I miss being a hyper teenager who stayed up late talking shit on MSN, making rubbish for dA & cuddling her dogs. Then cycled 6 miles to work the next morning on like 2 hours sleep & sang cheerily all the way. Like girl, how u alive.

Thrilled to be running a creative writing workshop at the Mill of Benholm next month! Join us for woodland walks, folklore, and countryside history. And delicious cake from the Mill Cafe! Saturday 12 July, 3:30pm - 5pm. More info & booking: millofbenholm.scot/events/creat...

Created my account and had no idea what to post. After years of being exhausted by & hiding from social media, I need to re-learn what I used to love about it. If those things even still exist. Let's see how this goes. Expect folklore, semi-coherent writing rambles, & snail photos ✌️