(Gaining witch-hood isn’t as easy as you think)
Have you ever wondered what it takes to become a witch? Perhaps you have visions of flying through the air on a broom, making sacks of gold appear at your feet, or turning hated enemies into frogs.
Well, I’m here to tell you the process isn’t easy. At least, not in my new MG fantasy novel, The Adventures of Stanley Delacourt: Book I of Hartlandia. Also, turning people into frogs is a big no-no . . . sorry! The good news is that both boys and girls can become witches (there are no warlocks in my universe!). But you need an iron will to do it.
The following is an outtake, or section that didn’t quite make it into the book. It gives a little more detail about how one becomes a witch . . . if you think you’ve got what it takes!
Is it worth the sacrifice?
“Because Sophie wasn’t a ‘natural born,’ she’d have to be initiated into the Craft. And not just into a coven, either. She would need to be trained as a full-on witch.
Sophie and her friends, Stanley and Will, learned this at a festival many years ago. There, they’d met a traveling witch. He had a fairy perched on his shoulder, and the group stood together discussing magic for quite some time.
“So the coven oversees your studies, yes. The applicant (he pointed to Sophie, who stepped back a little), you’re called the novice, see? After your year-and-a-day studies is up, you go into the wilderness for three days. That’s when you have your magical awakening, yes. It’s a mystical communion with the universe that makes you a witch, and grants you immortality.” Stanley remembered how the eyes of him and his friends had bulged. Gaining eternal life sure sounded great!
“But many times,” the traveler continued, “the novice isn’t meant to be a witch, no no, and returns from their quest disappointed.”
“And hungry!” the fairy added.
“What do you mean, hungry?” asked Will. “You mean you can’t eat during the wilderness trip?”
The witch and fairy shook their heads back and forth simultaneously.
“Three whole days without food?” exclaimed Stanley.
Two synchronized nods.
Afterwards, Sophie told Stanley that she made up her mind then and there never to become a witch. Mostly because the ritual that involved not-eating sounded unpleasant.”
Stay tuned for more!
Does the ordinary mortal girl Sophie become a witch? What might that mean for the kingdom, Hartlandia? You’ll just have to read the book (due out this summer) to learn more. But you can read the entire first chapter of The Adventures of Stanley Delacourt for free!
Do you think you could become a witch in the way I’ve described? Could you make the sacrifice if it meant living forever, and having untold powers? Tell me in the comments!
(Top image by plaisanter~)