{"id":19364,"date":"2019-03-01T01:10:04","date_gmt":"2019-03-01T06:10:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/paganpages.org\/content\/?p=20646"},"modified":"2019-02-26T11:06:23","modified_gmt":"2019-02-26T16:06:23","slug":"celebrating-the-old-ways-in-new-times-review-interview-with-gabiann-marin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/2019\/03\/01\/celebrating-the-old-ways-in-new-times-review-interview-with-gabiann-marin\/","title":{"rendered":"Celebrating The Old Ways in New Times Review & Interview with Gabiann Marin"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

March 2019 for Celebrating The Old Ways in New Times<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

March\n2019 for Celebrating The Old Ways in New Times<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Bright\nBlessings!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\ncannot tell you how excited I am that it is almost the Spring\nEquinox! To prepare, I assembled a precut garden box today, and have\nbeen diligently bagging up the dead leaves from last fall I spread\nover the garden beds I already have. I never buy mulch that way! Once\nthe thaw starts, I dig out the leaves, and just throw them away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While\nI joyously begin celebrating Spring at Imbolc, the fact I can see the\ngreen fingers of garden bulbs pushing up out of the earth reminds me\nthe growing season is set to begin very soon. I am buying seeds left\nand right, and soon, we will start stockpiling the pea gravel and\nsoil for the new garden bed!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nundesirable parts of things like cleanup, spending money on supplies,\nand lifting and carrying heavy things must be performed to benefit\nfrom the beauty of the victory garden we covet. I, for one, hate the\nsight of worms, and have ever since I was a child. I, however know\nthat without those blind wrigglers, my garden will not grow, and if I\ndon\u2019t see them, I know something is very wrong. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like\nthe garden, our lives are made up of all sorts of things. Things we\nlike, and things we dislike. More than that, we also like and dislike\nthings about specifically our own selves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turn\non the television, and you can almost always find a makeover show, or\nsome type of advertisement for a service or product that will\ncompletely transform you, supposedly getting rid of some aspect of\nyourself you loathe. Our culture supports that self-loathing, as they\nuse it as excuse to earn money from us. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now,\nI am not saying we ought to forego improving ourselves. What I am\nsaying is that all of us have something we CANNOT change about\nourselves that we imagine to be some monstrosity. Some hate the shape\nof their feet, the sound of their voice, the fact their hair is\nnaturally curly or straight. Some hate having an adams apple, and\nsome think their neck is too long or short. Some want to get rid of\nfreckles, or bleach their skin which they imagine is too dark. Almost\nall of us have demonized some aspect of ourselves we simply cannot\nhelp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But\nwe are not monstrosities in any way. We simply misunderstand these\nparts of ourselves, and radical self-acceptance is the only solution.\nWhat better time for that than the Spring Equinox, which is often\nused to get rid of the old and bring in the new? Instead of throwing\nout some part of ourselves, why not change our way of thinking\ninstead? \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This\nMonth\u2019s Review<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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To\nfit with this theme. I lucked into an interview with Gabiann Marin,\nauthor of the awesome book, Monsters and Creatures<\/strong>. I\nfound the book to be well written, well researched, and an easy read.\nOf course, she could not include ALL monsters and creatures from all\nof time in the book, but she packed in quite a lot into the neat 196\npages. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From\nthe Basilisk to Zombies, Marin draws readers into the fascinating\nworld of creatures, and provides more than just lore. She includes\nhistorical anecdotes, and education about real phenomenon. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I highly recommend the book, and it can be had through this link<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not\nonly was I fortunate enough to review this good book, but I got to\ninterview the amazing Gabiann Marin!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read\non!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nInterview<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saoirse\n– First, let me say, I was impressed with your book Monsters and\nCreatures. I never know what to expect from a reference book on\ncreatures- and I was thrilled because I found your book very well\nresearched.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\npacked so very much good information into it. How long did it take\nyou to gather all of that in formation, and what was the process for\nresearch you used? What background in research do you have, and what\nis your philosophy about educating your readers as an author? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabiann\n–<\/strong> Thank you.  The research part\nwas quite interesting.  I have grown up with many of the\ncreatures in the book in so far as I have loved and read mythology\nand fantasy and history since I was a small child.  In fact the\nvery first book I bought for myself (at the age of seven)  was\nThe natural history of the vampire by Anthony Masters and I still\nhave that book. So I guess it took a lifetime to gather all the\ninformation. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\ngreater challenge was how to get all the information I wanted to talk\nabout into such a small book.  I didn’t want it to just be a\ndictionary of fantastic beasts.  I’m a writer and the power of\nall these creatures are in their stories and I wanted to be able to\nshare that… Give a context of these creatures in history and\npsychology and society.  <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\nhave been a professional writer for a long time as well as an\nacademic, so I read widely and have a pretty varied interest and\nabundant curiosity in just about everything – so I\nfind researching information pretty easy. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nprocess for this book was really to decide what monsters and\ncreatures I wanted to include.  The publisher was pretty adamant\nthe popular ones were included… Which I agreed with… But\nI was also intent on introducing readers to more unusual and lesser\nknown creatures and tell their stories too. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saoirse\n– What made you decide to write about this topic, specifically? This\nappears more like a long-term interest in these beings turned into a\ngood book to share what you have learned with others. Am I right? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabiann<\/strong>\n– Yes.  I love animals and the natural world and am fascinated\nin how we, as humans, connect to and understand nature. \nI have always believed the stories of monsters and creatures are some\nof the most potent and informative ways that we express our love and\nfear of the world around us. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saoirse\n– As I am Pagan, I know a lot of people who embrace belief in human\nconnection with supernatural beings. One friend said these\n“creatures” may be nothing more than manifestation of\nspirit people perceive so well, they mistake them for flesh! While we\nknow about logical explanations like- manatees can be mistaken for\nmermaids, etc- what is your take on the theory my friend presented? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabiann\n– I have a rather unique perspective on people’s belief systems and\nhow they engage with the mystical, the natural and the\nsupernatural… And that is that however someone perceives these\ncreatures – as real or imagined, as pyschological manifestations\nor as historical creatures… They are probably right. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\nmanifest our understanding of the world and ourselves through the\nstories we tell and that shapes how we treat each other and the world\naround us.  Spirit reaches us through story, symbol and\nmyth.  <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If\nyour friend perceives spirit as a unicorn or a dragon.. Then\nthat is how spirit presents itself to her.  She is using these\nstories exactly how they were meant to be used – for her to step\nbeyond the human condition and understand the world beyond herself. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saoirse\n– I want to know all about you! Tell me about your writing in\ngeneral, and beyond that, YOU in general? What made you decide to\nwrite? What else are you good at? What projects are you working on,\nand what else is in the workings? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabiann\n<\/strong>– That’s a big topic… Where\ndo I start? <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\nsuppose I have always been a writer, I wrote my first short story at\nthe age of eight and won my first literary prize when I was\nfourteen.  I became a professional writer when I started\nUniversity.  I was originally going to be a vet but ended up at\nthe last minute studying writing instead. My mum was surprisingly OK\nwith this!  <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\nstarted my professional writing life writing film and theatre reviews\nand then actual plays.  I worked as a corporate copywriter for a\nfew years but realised it was a bit soul destroying so shifted over\nand became a writer for charities and causes I believed in… Like\nAmnesty International, The Wilderness Society and Greenpeace.  <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\nalso wrote for Australian television for a few years but it was a\nhard road back then with very little Australian content being made.\nSo in 2000 I began writing children’s books.  In 2003 I\nwrote a book for young readers about a child in Australian\nImmigration detention called A True Person, which won a few\ninternational awards but most importantly was the first book in\nAustralia to tackle that issue.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\nstill write social justice material in fiction form but moved into\nediting and writing non fiction after leaving an academic job in\n2016.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently\nI am dividing my time between teaching writing and film at\nUniversity, while editing and writing non-fiction, original and\nadapted film scripts and completing a fantasy fiction book about\nMedusa.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saoirse\n– Tell me about your personal spiritual path, and if it influenced\nyour work on this topic.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabiann<\/strong>\n– I am Wicca and have been since I was quite young, however I am\nmore a pagan in the classic sense, in that I believe there is a\nnatural force which guides the world and creates and determines\nlife. I believe we need to understand and respect this\nforce… Which currently as a global entity we are not doing.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

All\nof my work has, in some way, reflected my belief that people are part\nof – not in conflict with – the natural world.  And the natural\nworld is actually supernatural, in that it contains spirit as well as\nmaterial things.  This is hardly controversial, as literally\neveryone in the known history of humankind has believed a\nversion of this – yet for some reason mankind have been\nintent on focusing on the differences in this belief and killing each\nother over how we individually choose to understand and express that\nspiritual essence .  To me spirit is nature herself…\nEverything in it is amazing.  It contains things which we are\nonly just beginning to understand. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\ndon’t follow any organized religion because I believe that most of\nthem limit us into hatred and division with both ourselves and the\nother beings we share this planet with.  But I have a huge\nrespect for most religious people who are just trying to find ways to\nconnect with the bigger sense of power around them.  I believe\nthat when we are in contact with the natural world… Go beyond\nthe realms of mankind’s selfishness, greed and violence, we\ncan connect to that<\/em> spirit. But\nhonestly I do not think we as humans are the most important things on\nthis planet.  Not the single or indeed the main focus of any\nspiritual force which may exist.  The trees and the rocks and\nthe mountains have watched us rise and they will watch us fall. \nCreatures we can barely imagine have roamed this earth thousands of\nyears before we were even conceived of.. And other creatures\nwill no doubt walk across our fossilized bones.  And that is a\ngood thing.  Nature is immortal. So the smallness and pettiness\nof humanity and our need to find meaning and place has always\nunderpinned my work.  As well as a commitment to kindness,\njustice and understanding … Towards each other and all\nbeings. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saoirse\n– Have you had any personal encounters with creatures or spirits you\nwould like to share?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabiann<\/strong>\n– I think there is magic in the world, and spirit… particularly\nanimal spirits, can help you find your way to that magic.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When\nI was in my twenties I had a very hard time. As I believe most\nyoung women in their twenties do in a world that is constantly\ntelling us that as females we are simply not good enough, pretty\nenough, smart\nenough. Then one night I had this amazing dream of two tigers who\nembraced me when I thought they were going to rip me apart. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\nwoke up realizing that I was worthy and strong and loved.  I\nstill believe today they were manifestations of spirit telling me to\nstop worrying about all the silliness around me and understand that\nmy purpose… the purpose for all of us,  was simply to\nbe a good person. Once I realized that, life became much clearer\nfor me and I was able to follow a path that wasn’t so concerned about\nwhether I fitted in with the very narrow ideology of being a\ncompliant, acceptable, quiet woman. Which I certainly am\nnot!  And rather tell stories and be part of the world in a way\nthat expanded, not limited my and other creatures existence.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\nam still very spiritual and have engaged with spirit in many ways\nsince then.  But I remember that dream so clearly even now. \nIt’s why I became a pagan and a feminist. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monsters\nand Creatures, as well as its companion book – Gods and\nGoddesses, was written as an introduction into the history of\nhumankind’s need to use story and myth to understand the world. \nThey are small books but I hope they pack a punch and give people a\nbit of an insight into what unites us – which is story… and what\ndefines us – which is how we understand the world around us.  <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

They\nare both written to be fun, informative and easy to read and I\nreally hope people engage with them.  Our continuing fascination\nwith supernatural creatures is one of the many things that unite us\nas people.  And sharing these stories is the best way to create\nconnections between us across time and cultures.  <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\nam happy to engage with readers but have a limited social media\nprofile as I find the online world to be somewhat mean-spirited and\nfocused on conflict.  I have a facebook authors page and an\nAmazon Author’s page through which I am happy to engage with those\nwanting more information about me.  <\/em>\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If\nyou are interested in getting a copy of any of my books they are\nwidely available through Amazon as well as most good book stores.  <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saoirse\n– What is your FAVORITE Monster\/Creature you included in your book,\nand why? Any encounters, dreams, or visions of\/with it\/them?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabiann<\/strong>\n– This is a bit like asking me to choose a favourite child! <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

All\nof them are my favourite in different ways. I love the more unusual\nones like the Japanese Yokai because they are just so quirky and,\nalthough they can be a bit nasty, they are essentially just really\ncool, interesting little creatures who don’t bother anyone and just\nhang about doing their own thing. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Researching\nthe book I found the bird-like creatures the most fascinating as\nthey were probably the ones I knew the least about. Again they are\nusually positive, kind creatures who help rather than harm us. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

But\nI guess if I had to pick a favourite it would have to be Medusa. She\nresonates about the power of women and her story is one of injustice.\nShe was never a monster, just someone who was trying to live her\nlife. She only harmed those who attacked her and she was a victim of\none of the most heinous and cowardly acts in all of mythology. It is\nimpossible, I think, to see the story of Medusa as anything but a\nparable about male violence against women and the hatred of the\nestablished patriarchy of strong independent females. For that reason\nshe probably resonates the strongest. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\nam actually writing a fiction book about her – its a crime caper\ncomedy believe it or not!  <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more information on Gabiann Marin Visit:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabiann\u2019s Linkedin Profile<\/a>
Her Author Page on Facebook<\/a> you can follow.
Her Amazon Author Page<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nSabbat<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The\nSabbat this month is Spring Equinox, known by many Pagans as Ostara.\nMany take Bede and the Grimm\u2019s word for it that Ostara was a\nGermanic goddess who had a hare as companion and eggs were auspicious\nto her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately,\nno evidence that this was a goddess exists in imagery or writings\nprior to Bede.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But\nsince writings can be lost, and many passed traditions on orally,\nthere is a chance this is true. It may also be true that Xtianity\nabsorbed the Pagan rites to Ostara in their Easter practices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One thing that is NOT true is the ridiculous meme claiming Ishtar was the goddess Ostara because the name is similar to Easter. Ishtar was never venerated in the British Isles, and ancient British pagans had no knowledge of her whatsoever. Xtians converting British Pagans did not adapt Middle Eastern Pagan practice either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If\nOstara was a goddess, she was, as Grimm, and Bede say, Germanic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both\nOstara and Easter are celebrated with the new life of the Earth, and\nnew spiritual life for worshippers in mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But\nwhile Xtians think of it as their god rising from the grave, and\nPagans think of it in earth based terms, another way to look at it is\nrebirth of way of thinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New\nLife<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier\nin the article, I spoke of the things we loathe about ourselves that\nare things we cannot control.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Examples\nI shared were of physical things we might not like, but have no\nability to change. Other examples include things such as the presence\nof depression that is being treated as well as possible, but is a\nlifelong condition, memory problems after stroke, inability to digest\na favorite food anymore, inability due to medical reasons to have\nkids, or even being divorced when you did not choose to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My\nchallenge this time is to think of that thing which you cannot\nchange- and forgive yourself for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Believe\nme, I do not say this lightly, as I have things I am upset with\nmyself for. I say things like \u201cI am sorry for the way I am\u201d and\n\u201cI wish you did not have to deal with the fact I have X problem.\u201d\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This\nis perhaps the least productive thing we do as human beings. In\nessence, we punish ourselves for something we have no control over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\nmake ourselves out to be guilty, when in fact, if we could change\nwhatever it is we hate about ourselves, we absolutely would.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So,\nthe self-loathing stops. Now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s\ngoing to take a conscious effort to undo your counter productive way\nof thinking about yourself, and replacing that with forgiveness, and\namping up the self-love, and it\u2019s one a one time, \u201cfling a spell\nand forget it\u201d thing. It will take a different amount of time for\neach person, and you may have to tweak the working to suit yourself. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\nwant you to know that you are a perfect reflection of the creator,\nand what WE think of as flaws are sometimes just things our culture\nspits at. We have to train our minds to resist this cultural\npoisoning, which is basically abuse, and VERY toxic. We have to\nsometimes be the goddess or the father god for ourselves, and know\nbetter than the crap we are told.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This\nworking entails giving a gift to yourself. You are worth it! This is\ndone in parts. How far apart you space the parts is up to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nWorking<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To\nstart, get a plain white candle and a small receptacle to burn paper\nin. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Get\npaper, and writing materials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Part\n1<\/em>– You are going to sit down and write a letter to yourself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\nare going to make it as long as you like. Go into great detail about\nthe thing you loathe about yourself and go ahead and cry out how much\nyou wish you could change things. It is okay to type and print out\nthe letter if you\u2019d prefer not to hand write it. Include in the\nletter why you understand you can\u2019t change this. Say all you want\nto about it and how you feel about it. Just get it all out. You don\u2019t\neven have to have one sitting be the whole letter. It can be as long\nor as short of a letter as you want. It can even be just a paragraph\nor less long.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Part\n2<\/em>– Then you are going to write your goal for changing thinking.\nYou are going to have to really think about what thinking you need to\ndiscard, but also what thinking you need to replace it with. Then,\nyou need to decide what action after the change of thinking you are\ngoing to take. Be as detailed or as vague as asking your goddess or\ngod for guidance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Part\n3<\/em>– Have your initial letter, and then your other papers which\nlist your goals and planned changes, have your receptacle to burn in\n, and light the candle. You can do this at your altar if you want to,\nbut you can even do this outdoors, or over the kitchen sink, or stove\nif you prefer. Do this at the place where you are most comfortable\nburning papers. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read\nyour letter aloud to yourself. Let it all sink in, and as you are\nreading, feel how crucial it is you let this self-loathing go. Then\nread the second papers, and truly tell yourself that you are going to\nlay aside the old way of thinking, and start the new way of thinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When\nyou have read it all, take one more sheet of paper, and write out a\nvery short summary of everything on the papers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Burn\nthe papers, keeping the summary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As\nthe papers burn say, \u201cOut with the old, in with the new, I am the\ngoddess\/god, and I am whole and perfect. So Mote It Be.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once\nthe papers have burned, release the ashes to the wind, and let your\ncandle burn all the way down. Clean your area up, and place your\nsummary somewhere you can look at it to remind yourself of all the\nthings you wrote. Because, remember, this is a long-term change, not\nsomething you are going to release and forget. We have to make\nconscious efforts to transform, most especially our way of thinking.\nThere is no \u201cputting it out there to the Universe to manifest\u201d.\nWe are going to do this ourselves, for a permanent change. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Part\n4- Gift yourself something representing the change you are making. If\nyou hate your feet, get regular pedicures or start wearing shoes you\nreally love but thought you could not wear on \u201cthose\u201d feet. If\nyou are upset you did not reach a goal, and the opportunity is gone,\ncelebrate a goal you DID make. If you are upset you have a chronic\ncondition that is never going to go away, pamper yourself somehow and\nreassure yourself you are not to blame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blessed\nSpring, and New Beginnings!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blessed Be!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monsters and Creatures: Discover Beasts from Lore and Legends (The Supernatural Series) on Amazon<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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***<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

About\nthe Author:<\/strong>\n \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Saoirse<\/strong> is\na recovered Catholic.  I was called to the Old Ways at age 11,\nbut I thought I was just fascinated with folklore. At age 19, I was\ncalled again, but I thought I was just a history buff, and could not\nexplain the soul yearnings I got when I saw images of the Standing\nStones in the Motherland. At age 29, I crossed over into New Age\nstudies, and finally Wicca a couple years later. My name is Saoirse,\npronounced like (Sare) and (Shah) Gaelic for freedom. The gods I\nserve are Odin and Nerthus. I speak with Freyja , Norder, and Thunor\nas well. The Bawon has been with me since I was a small child, and\nRangda has been with me since the days I was still Catholic. I\nreceived my 0 and 1 Degree in an Eclectic Wiccan tradition, and my\nElder is Lord Shadow. We practice in Columbus, Ohio. I am currently\nfocusing more on my personal growth, and working towards a Second and\nThird Degree with Shadow. I received a writing degree from Otterbein\nUniversity back in 2000. I have written arts columns for the s\nCouncil in Westerville. I give private tarot readings and can be\nreached through my Facebook<\/a> page Tarot\nwith Saoirse<\/a>. You can, also, join me on my Youtube\nChannel<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

March 2019 for Celebrating The Old Ways in New Times March 2019 for Celebrating The Old Ways in New Times Bright Blessings! I cannot tell you how excited I am that it is almost the Spring Equinox! To prepare, I assembled a precut garden box today, and have been diligently bagging up the dead leaves from last fall I spread over the garden beds I already have. I never buy mulch that way! Once the thaw starts, I dig out the leaves, and just throw them away. While I joyously begin celebrating Spring at Imbolc, the fact I can see the green fingers of garden bulbs pushing up out of the earth reminds me the growing season is set to begin very soon. I am buying seeds left and right, and soon, we will start stockpiling the pea gravel and soil for the new garden bed! The undesirable parts of things like cleanup, spending money on supplies, and lifting and carrying heavy things must be performed to benefit from the beauty of the victory garden we covet. I, for one, hate the sight of worms, and have ever since I was a child. I, however know that without those blind wrigglers, my garden will not grow, and if I don\u2019t see them, I know something is very wrong. Like the garden, our lives are made up of all sorts of things. Things we like, and things we dislike. More than that, we also like and dislike things about specifically our own selves. Turn on the television, and you can almost always find a makeover show, or some type of advertisement for a service or product that will completely transform you, supposedly getting rid of some aspect of yourself you loathe. Our culture supports that self-loathing, as they use it as excuse to earn money from us. Now, I am not saying we ought to forego improving ourselves. What I am saying is that all of us have something we CANNOT change about ourselves that we imagine to be some monstrosity. Some hate the shape of their feet, the sound of their voice, the fact their hair is naturally curly or straight. Some hate having an adams apple, and some think their neck is too long or short. Some want to get rid of freckles, or bleach their skin which they imagine is too dark. Almost all of us have demonized some aspect of ourselves we simply cannot help. But we are not monstrosities in any way. We simply misunderstand these parts of ourselves, and radical self-acceptance is the only solution. What better time for that than the Spring Equinox, which is often used to get rid of the old and bring in the new? Instead of throwing out some part of ourselves, why not change our way of thinking instead? This Month\u2019s Review To fit with this theme. I lucked into an interview with Gabiann Marin, author of the awesome book, Monsters and Creatures. I found the book to be well written, well researched, and an easy read. Of course, she could not include ALL monsters and creatures from all of time in the book, but she packed in quite a lot into the neat 196 pages. From the Basilisk to Zombies, Marin draws readers into the fascinating world of creatures, and provides more than just lore. She includes historical anecdotes, and education about real phenomenon. I highly recommend the book, and it can be had through this link. Not only was I fortunate enough to review this good book, but I got to interview the amazing Gabiann Marin! Read on! The Interview Saoirse – First, let me say, I was impressed with your book Monsters and Creatures. I never know what to expect from a reference book on creatures- and I was thrilled because I found your book very well researched. You packed so very much good information into it. How long did it take you to gather all of that in formation, and what was the process for research you used? What background in research do you have, and what is your philosophy about educating your readers as an author?  Gabiann – Thank you.  The research part was quite interesting.  I have grown up with many of the creatures in the book in so far as I have loved and read mythology and fantasy and history since I was a small child.  In fact the very first book I bought for myself (at the age of seven)  was The natural history of the vampire by Anthony Masters and I still have that book. So I guess it took a lifetime to gather all the information.  The greater challenge was how to get all the information I wanted to talk about into such a small book.  I didn’t want it to just be a dictionary of fantastic beasts.  I’m a writer and the power of all these creatures are in their stories and I wanted to be able to share that… Give a context of these creatures in history and psychology and society.   I have been a professional writer for a long time as well as an academic, so I read widely and have a pretty varied interest and abundant curiosity in just about everything – so I find researching information pretty easy.  The process for this book was really to decide what monsters and creatures I wanted to include.  The publisher was pretty adamant the popular ones were included… Which I agreed with… But I was also intent on introducing readers to more unusual and lesser known creatures and tell their stories too.  Saoirse – What made you decide to write about this topic, specifically? This appears more like a long-term interest in these beings turned into a good book to share what you have learned with others. Am I right?  Gabiann – Yes.  I love animals and the natural world and am fascinated in how we, as humans, connect to and understand nature.  I have always believed the stories of monsters and creatures are some of the most potent and informative ways that we express our love and fear of the world around us.  Saoirse – As I am Pagan, I know a lot of people who embrace belief in human connection with supernatural beings. One friend said these “creatures” may be nothing more than manifestation of spirit people perceive so well, they mistake them for flesh! While we know about logical explanations like- manatees can be mistaken for mermaids, etc- what is your take on the theory my friend presented?  Gabiann – I have a rather unique perspective on people’s belief systems and how they engage with the mystical, the natural and the supernatural… And that is that however someone perceives these creatures – as real or imagined, as pyschological manifestations or as historical creatures… They are probably right.  We manifest our understanding of the world and ourselves through the stories we tell and that shapes how we treat each other and the world around us.  Spirit reaches us through story, symbol and myth.   If your friend perceives spirit as a unicorn or a dragon.. Then that is how spirit presents itself to her.  She is using these stories exactly how they were meant to be used – for her to step beyond the human condition and understand the world beyond herself.  Saoirse – I want to know all about you! Tell me about your writing in general, and beyond that, YOU in general? What made you decide to write? What else are you good at? What projects are you working on, and what else is in the workings?  Gabiann – That’s a big topic… Where do I start?  I suppose I have always been a writer, I wrote my first short story at the age of eight and won my first literary prize when I was fourteen.  I became a professional writer when I started University.  I was originally going to be a vet but ended up at the last minute studying writing instead. My mum was surprisingly OK with this!   I started my professional writing life writing film and theatre reviews and then actual plays.  I worked as a corporate copywriter for a few years but realised it was a bit soul destroying so shifted over and became a writer for charities and causes I believed in… Like Amnesty International, The Wilderness Society and Greenpeace.   I also wrote for Australian television for a few years but it was a hard road back then with very little Australian content being made. So in 2000 I began writing children’s books.  In 2003 I wrote a book for young readers about a child in Australian Immigration detention called A True Person, which won a few international awards but most importantly was the first book in Australia to tackle that issue. I still write social justice material in fiction form but moved into editing and writing non fiction after leaving an academic job in 2016. Currently I am dividing my time between teaching writing and film at University, while editing and writing non-fiction, original and adapted film scripts and completing a fantasy fiction book about Medusa. Saoirse – Tell me about your personal spiritual path, and if it influenced your work on this topic. Gabiann – I am Wicca and have been since I was quite young, however I am more a pagan in the classic sense, in that I believe there is a natural force which guides the world and creates and determines life. I believe we need to understand and respect this force… Which currently as a global entity we are not doing. All of my work has, in some way, reflected my belief that people are part of – not in conflict with – the natural world.  And the natural world is actually supernatural, in that it contains spirit as well as material things.  This is hardly controversial, as literally everyone in the known history of humankind has believed a version of this – yet for some reason mankind have been intent on focusing on the differences in this belief and killing each other over how we individually choose to understand and express that spiritual essence .  To me spirit is nature herself… Everything in it is amazing.  It contains things which we are only just beginning to understand.  I don’t follow any organized religion because I believe that most of them limit us into hatred and division with both ourselves and the other beings we share this planet with.  But I have a huge respect for most religious people who are just trying to find ways to connect with the bigger sense of power around them.  I believe that when we are in contact with the natural world… Go beyond the realms of mankind’s selfishness, greed and violence, we can connect to that spirit. But honestly I do not think we as humans are the most important things on this planet.  Not the single or indeed the main focus of any spiritual force which may exist.  The trees and the rocks and the mountains have watched us rise and they will watch us fall.  Creatures we can barely imagine have roamed this earth thousands of years before we were even conceived of.. And other creatures will no doubt walk across our fossilized bones.  And that is a good thing.  Nature is immortal. So the smallness and pettiness of humanity and our need to find meaning and place has always underpinned my work.  As well as a commitment to kindness, justice and understanding … Towards each other and all beings.  Saoirse – Have you had any personal encounters with creatures or spirits you would like to share? Gabiann – I think there is magic in the world, and spirit… particularly animal spirits, can help you find your way to that magic. When I was in my twenties I had a very hard time. As I believe most young women in their twenties do in a world that is constantly telling us that as females we are simply not good enough, pretty enough, smart enough. Then one night I had this amazing dream of two tigers who embraced me when…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":211,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":1,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19364","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19364","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/211"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19364"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19364\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19364"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19364"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19364"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}