MaA – And thank you!

AM – Please tell us a little more about yourself.

MaA – Ah well, I’m a father and husband and son and brother, and an earth scientist and Wiccan. I work in environmental science and have founded several websites for writers. I was born in Chile and raised in Panama and now live in Texas.

AM – How did “Earth & Magick” come about?

MaA – I just found out about Wicca several years ago and was delighted to find that there was so much more to it than prancing naked beneath the stars, although that is fun too.  I have always strongly felt the pull of earth and want to explore the relationship between earth science and earth spirituality. This blog/podcast is my way to do that.

AM – What is it that keeps you and your blog going?

MaA – Sheer cussedness.

AM – What do you do when you get low on inspiration for new posts?

MaA – No such thing as being low on inspiration. The study of our earth is a vast field and I have lived an ‘interesting’ life. There’s always an idea for another ‘cast.

AM – I see from your blog that you have been taken on as a student by a local coven.  Tell us about it.

MaA – I am and will always be grateful to Blackberry Circle for being a public teaching coven, and for taking on this hard-headed scientist as a student.  I really needed some way to express my spirituality and they have provided it.

Blackberry Circle is a teaching Circle that holds open rituals.  They are few, but have touched Many.  And there is a need; people routinely travel for an hour or more to attend an open ritual.  I wish more Circles were open and out there for seekers to find.

AM – I also noticed on your site that you are a poet.  Would you care to share a few lines of poetry with us?

MaA – Oooh! Really?!  Okay. No need to twist any harder…

No Slave Girl

i would not make
a good slave-girl
chained naked
at the foot of your bed

i am too large
and too hairy
for your pleasure

i will not watch wide-eyed
while you prance and posture
to impress me…
your muscles squirming
like ferrets mating
beneath your skin

i will not wake you
with hot kisses
to your privates

i am too toothy for that

AM – What do you think is the most important piece of advice that you would give a beginning Pagan blogger?

MaA – Never give up and whatever you do, stay away from dark side (ie that ridiculous Redmond operating system). And, there’s no need to buy pricey software or hardware to get started. Take a look at my blog; I recently posted a list of what you need to get started.

One thing more; we are blessed with an abundance of great Pagan bloggers and podcasters to learn from. DO that; learn from them, and let them know how much you appreciate them.

Them, not me. I’m not there yet.

AM – Thank you for joining us today Meical! Good luck with your blog, “Earth & Magick,” and best of luck with your training and other endeavors.

Angie – Thanks Hoi Sum!  It is a little different to be on this side of the interview I might add.

Hoi Sum – Could you please tell us a little bit more about yourself Angie and when you started blogging?

Angie – Well, to start with I am 27 years old (28 on Feb. 25^th) and married to a really wonderful man.  We do not have any children, but our two small dogs keep us busy enough.  I work full time and own a web hosting and design firm on the side.  I am also a professional artist and do cover art for Changeling Press (as Kassandra Thrace).  In August of 2009 I founded the Pagan Writers Community (PWC).  It has been growing like crazy ever since, keeping me very very busy.

I have been blogging on and off since I started on my own Pagan path in 2004.  Since I am very easily distracted (oooh, shiney!!), I have never had a blog last very long.  In September of last year I made it my goal to blog a little something every day.  During National Novel Writing Month in November my novel took over and my blog lost its way again.  I have recently picked it back up again and transferred it from Blogger to my own site.  Using WordPress I was able to import all of my old posts, but it is taking a while to get them all categorized.  Pretty soon they will all be there.

Hoi Sum – What do you feel is the purpose of your blog? What would you like your readers to come away with after reading your blog posts?

Angie – In all honesty, the purpose of my blog is to discipline myself to write every day and document my spiritual path.  Beyond that, I share my writing, art and beliefs.  I actually have a reminder set up on my MS Outlook to pop up every day and remind me.  It is something that I take very seriously, but try to have fun doing at the same time.

If readers learn something new about me or themselves after reading one of my posts, then I feel that I have done my job.

Hoi Sum – How do you decide what to put on your blog and what topics to discuss?

Angie – Generally, life decides for me what I am going to talk about.  Things that are happening in my life and what I have brought away from my studies are the main source of inspiration for my posts.  As I broaden my horizons and seek publication of my fiction and non-fiction works, it is possible that this could change, hopefully for the better.

Hoi Sum – How do you market your blog, and what is the best marketing advice to give a new blogger?

Angie – I market my blog in a couple ways that are easy and cost effective.  The main way is to exchange banner links with other bloggers.  NetworkedBlogs on Facebook is a good resource because it allows you to connect with other blogs and adds your posts on your FB wall if you choose.  I am also set up with Feedburner, which syndicates my RSS feeds.

The best way that I personally have found to market my blog is to sponsor freebies on other blogs.  I had the most people ever on my site when I donated Angelique Art prints for Mrs. B’s 31 Days of Halloween.  You will also see more of my work available during Mrs. B’s Retro Food Month.  I can’t get enough of her site and love her creative ideas!

Hoi Sum – Do you have any special features on your blog?

Angie – Right now I am working through “The New Complete Book of Tarot” and posting about my own Tarot journey along the way.  I am also getting ready to post a writing challenge for the month of February.  You will also see the occasional quotation or piece of my artwork.

Hoi Sum – Do you have any other websites or blogs that you author?

Angie – The short answer to that question is yes.  I have too many sites to list (web designer – hello?) that are in all stages of construction, but I will hit on the big ones.  Enchantress-E Design is my design site focused mostly towards the Pagan and metaphysical community.  Mroczka Design is my site for local business customers.  Angelique Art is my professional artist site, which is in the middle of a huge renovation.  I am also the designer for both of the PWC websites, Pagan Writers Community and Pagan Writers Network.

Hoi Sum – What is your Pagan background and how do you incorporate your Paganism into your writing?

Angie – My Pagan path officially started when I met my first mentor in 2004.  Since then he went and married me.  I am a member of the Family Wiccan Traditions International (FWTI) and have been since 2006.  I serve on their Executive Board of Directors, facilitating communication between the members and staff (aka web design).  I am also training through their Degree Seeker program working on my third degree.  My family coven is called the Family of the Healing Waters.

To me Paganism is not a religion, but a lifestyle.  It is a way of looking at yourself as part of the Divine and seeing everything and everyone around you as holy.  Everything I write is part of me and that makes it part of my path.

Hoi Sum – I see some amazing artwork on your blog and the images say they are by you. How exciting to be an artist and a writer! How do you incorporate your artwork into your blog and is your artwork influenced by your Paganism as well?

Angie – Thank you!  Yes, that is my work and I am very proud of it!!  Sometimes I just run out of words or the Artist Muse will take over.  I like to post what I am working on to get the opinions of others or to just release them to the world.

I would have to say that my artwork, like my writing, is very influenced by my beliefs.  I just look at things so much differently now than I did before.  I really see them now.

Hoi Sum – Do you have any future plans or changes coming to the Angelique Mroczka blog/website?

Angie – No big plans to change the site, but I do plan to do a big revision on the short story I was working on last October, The Samhain Surprise.  The changes to that and other short stories should be hitting my site in March.

Hoi Sum – Thank you for joining me today Angie!  Your blog is truly amazing and l love all your artwork and writing! Good luck with your blog and keep up the good work!  Blessings, Hoi Sum

JJ – Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to share with the PWC readers.

AM – Please tell us a little more about yourself.

JJ – I am a creative stay & work at home mom.  I live on the West coast of Canada with my husband and our 2 year old son.  We live a natural lifestyle, eat organic and do our best to have a small impact on nature.

AM – How did “Chasing Domestic Bliss” come about?

JJ – A few months after giving birth to my son I realized just how isolated you can feel when at home with an infant.  Since I’m not a terrific socializer I thought a blog would be a great way to honour my creative spirit, share and meet with other like minds and document our lives.  (I love reality t.v. and am quite a voyeur as well)

AM – What is it that keeps you and your blog going?

JJ – I am interested in many things.  I write about most of them on my blog.  I never suffer from boredom, usually I have so many things I want to do I can’t keep them straight.  That helps me stay engaged in life and motivated to get them all done.  The cycles of the seasons and the moon also renew me and help me put things in perspective.

AM – What do you do when you get low on inspiration for new posts?

JJ – Usually I read, take a walk with my son and a camera or look back over old posts that I can elaborate on.  I also find that the other blogs I read are a huge inspiration.  We feed each other creatively.

AM – I see from your blog that you are a reader.  What are you reading right now?  What are you favorite genres?

JJ – Right now I’m reading two books.  “A Year In Provence” by Peter Mayle and “Feeding the Whole Family” by Cynthia Lair.  Both have a food theme but in different ways; cookbook and memoir.  I read almost every genre: biographies, fantasy, literature, non-fiction.  I have lots of books waiting on the shelf so that I can keep things fresh.

AM – From looking back on your blog, I also see that you are a crafter.  What kinds of things do you like to make?

JJ – My education was in Fine Arts and I focused on fibre work.  Embroidery, quilting, and working in mixed media.  I craft for our home making things like pillows and decorations.  I also craft useful things like my tarot card bag and altar cloths.  The most recent finished project that I did is a Waldorf style doll for my son’s Yule present.

AM – What do you think is the most important piece of advice that you would give a beginning Pagan blogger?

JJ – Take time to develop your voice and try not to follow “fads.”  I find that sometimes you read something fun on a blog and then everyone starts doing that too.  It’s not wrong but take a moment to consider if that is really something that you identify with and if it’s not skip it.  You may gain followers more slowly but you’ll be authentic and readers respond to that most or at least that is what I look for as a reader of blogs.

AM – Thank you for joining us today Jen!  Good luck with your blog, “Chasing Domestic Bliss,” and best wishes for a safe and prosperous 2010.

PD –  I am happy to be here! Thank you for this opportunity and the work you have been doing to give exposure to different Pagan Writers, both online and in print.

AM – Please tell us a little more about yourself.

PD –  Well I am the husband to a wonderful and loving wife. And a father to two beautiful young girls. One who is ten and the other is six and is being raised in the Wiccan Faith. So it is the experience I have gained in raising my daughters that I try to put into words with Pagan Dad.

AM – How did “Pagan Dad” come about?

PD – Well about three years ago I heard about this thing called blogging. So I figured, I like to write and maybe I could make some money. After brainstorming on topics to blog about it came down to a political blog or a parenting blog (both with Pagan overtones). Taking what seemed to be the easy road I chose parenting and here I am.

AM – What is it that keeps you and your blog going?

PD –  The comments and emails from my readers. Just when I start to think that maybe I am just talking to myself, a reader will get in touch with me and tell me how much one of my articles meant to them or how well it worked when they did what I suggested. It’s these little things that let me know I must be doing something right.

AM – What do you do when you get low on inspiration for new posts?

PD -  Ah yes the bane of any blogger, what do I talk about next? I do a lot of reading and trolling the internet and I keep a journal of different ideas that come to me as I read articles. But it does help that so much of my blog is centered around the Sabbats, keeps me on topic.

AM – Yule is coming and I have already noticed you have posted some recipes and decorating tips on “Pagan Dad”.  What else do you have in store for us this month?

PD -  Well there will be more recipes of course and different kid-friendly crafts. I will have stories for the children about Yule and I plan on starting back up my weekly posts on mythology stories for kids and a “God of the Week”.

AM – What is “The Stronger and More Spiritual Pagan Family”?

PD – This was a perk for my readers, in the form of a separate newsletter. A lot of the blogs I was reading at the time had done thirty-one days to improve some part of your life, whether it was a better blog or to fix your finances. But I felt that thirty-one days was to long to fix one’s family so I condensed it to twenty-one days. Over these twenty-one days I talked about things from just Listening to your Family to Building a Family Code of Ethics to Honoring the Ancestors (both living and dead).

AM – What was your inspiration for writing this first book?  Do you have any more planned?

PD – When I finished The Stronger and More Spiritual Pagan Family newsletter, I had a few requests to be able to buy this newsletter in print form, so I made some edits added a little more material and put it up for sale. As of right now I don’t have any more planned for print, but there is an ebook available to subscribers of my blog, titled “Introducing Children to Ritual”.

AM – Where can people go to pick up a copy of “The Stronger and More Spiritual Pagan Family”?

PD -  It is being published over at lulu.com. http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/the-stronger-and-more-spiritual-pagan-family/5607361

AM – Now you are also active in the Family Wiccan Traditions International.  Who are they and what do you do with FWTI?

PD – FWTI is a great organization dedicated to the idea that one’s Family is and should be your first and most important coven. With them I am the Family Coven Weaver. Which is a fancy way to say that I am there to help Member Family Covens build and strengthen their Family Spirituality and their Family Covens.

AM – What do you think is the most important piece of advice that you would give a beginning Pagan blogger?

PD –  Other then to write quality content in large quantities? Stick with it and be true to yourselves. If you write from the heart and be personable then you will attract an audience. People tend to like authentic people.

AM – Thank you for taking some time out of your schedule to join us today Patrick!  We wish you continued success with “Pagan Dad”, “The Stronger and More Spiritual Pagan Family” and future endeavors.

MB – Thank you so much for having me. I’m honored to have been asked to participate!

AM – Please tell us a little more about yourself.

MB – I am a stay-at-home mom of three kids, married to a wonderful guy and living in Central NJ. I was raised in Texas and still have a great love for it. I’ve been “officially” a Pagan for about 9 years or so, but I feel like I’ve been working towards finding that path my entire life. I currently share my home with 3 cats and a bunny. I’m lucky enough to be “out of the broom closet” and have great support from my friends and family.

AM – Now, blogging is something that I personally really struggle with.  How did “Confessions of a Pagan Soccer Mom” come about?

MB – Since I’ve had a computer, I’ve kept some sort of web page or blog.  It started off as a group for parents of kids with disabilities.  For a while I kept (no laughing please!) a fan site for the band INXS, which was so fun. When I decided to start being open about my religious choices, I started Confessions of a Pagan Soccer Mom.  I never thought in a million years anyone would actually want to read it!

AM – What is it that keeps you and your blog going?

MB – I really love making connections with people, and the blog has given me a way to get to know people all over the world. I’ve talked to people from many different countries, of many different religions, from grandmothers to college students and everything in between.  What really keeps me on track is when someone contacts me privately to ask my advice on something, or to say that my blog has inspired them in some way.  It’s so humbling and touching.

AM – What do you do when you get low on inspiration for new posts?

MB – Oh, that’s easy! I just pick up my camera and wait for my cat, Tanner to do something strange! My “Where the Hell is Tanner” posts are always one of the most commented on, and the simplest ones to make!

AM – I also see on your blog that you are an avid reader.  What kinds of books do you like to read?

MB – I will read almost anything, but my favorites are biographies and paranormal romances.  If there’s a vampire or a werewolf involved, I’m in! I also love anything by or about Jane Goodall, who’s one of my favorite people.

AM – What do you think is the most important piece of advice that you would give a beginning Pagan blogger?

MB – Oh, this is a harder question than I’d thought! I guess I would advise new bloggers to be true to themselves and at the same time, try to keep a sense of humor and stay positive. I really think people like to read a blog from someone who tries to look on the bright side of things. You can catch more flies with honey, as the old saying goes.

AM – Last question, I see that you have your Mrs. B’s 31 Days of Halloween coming up.  Can you tell us about that and how to participate?

MB – Sure!  This is the second year I’m doing a month long celebration of Halloween/Samhain.  There will be giveaways every single day of October.  Most of the prizes have been donated from artists and crafters from Etsy and other such shops.  I love featuring all the wonderful artists that I stumble across all year!  There will also be guest bloggers from all over sharing their takes on recipes, Halloween, Samhain rituals and sharing “how to’s” for seasonal crafts. This year I’ve also started a “Haunted Walking Tour” where I will feature a blogger every day who has decorated their blog for the season.  So much of the event is dedicated to introducing wonderful bloggers to each other.  I’m hoping to enforce a sense of community among the people who take the time to read my own blog.

Anyone can participate by stopping by the blog any time during October!  The giveaways are open to anyone (though some are limited to shipping in the US). If anyone would like to participate in another way, they can simply send me a message via my contact form that’s located under the header on my blog.

AM – Thank you so much for your time Mrs. B!  Good luck with your blog, “Confessions of a Pagan Soccer Mom,” and your upcoming 31 Days of Halloween.

MB – Thank you for having me!