Tomorrow is my book birthday. Ashes & Stones, my creative nonfiction book about women persecuted as witches in Scotland, was published three years ago.

I began writing and researching the book over eight years ago. When I started the work, few people were talking about the history of witch hunts in Scotland, even though #witchythings were riding the capitalist zeitgeist. The witchwave was in full swing, with #instagramwitch influencer culture booming.

Trad publishing is always slow. It comes for trends after they have peaked and are near consumer exhaustion. My book was picked up during the feeding frenzy for witch books.

The sites I mapped and uncovered—sometimes literally—are now well known to Scottish tour guides. Stories uncovered during the countless hours combing through tedious old privy council records and emailing archeologists and other experts are now repeated as if they have always been common knowledge. Social media has made this possible, and we live in a time where citing your sources no longer matters.

I have never had a baby, but writing a book feels like having a baby—except this one gestated for over five years. And then I handed the baby over to strangers to do with it what they will. So maybe it’s not the best analogy.

But let’s go with it. A three year old might be able play with other children, take turns, and understand sharing, but my book came into a world where this isn’t encouraged. I set her on her way into a selfish, antisocial world, to be judged by the money she could make for others rather than for what she was.

Sometimes I still have pangs of grief about that rather than feelings of joyful achievement. BUT she is three! With thousands of readers (tens of thousands, perhaps). She can now also run and jump—into the hands of other readers who have been waiting to find her.

🧁 Celebrate with me. Here are some ideas:

• If you are really feeling generous and have read the book, why not leave a review on one of the big sites that collect that kind of thing?
• Why not check it out from your library or purchase it? Both of these matter—I get paid when these things happen.
• If your library doesn’t have Ashes & Stones, why not request it?
• If you know someone who would like my book, tell them about it!
• If you are in Scotland, visit one of the sites I mention in the book. Leave a non-material offering. There are too many things littering our sacred sites. Instead, leave a song, words of remembrance or a prayer. If you light a candle, take it with you when you leave.
• Also—as the ribbon on top—consider how we consume media. Things are getting tough out there for creatives. I know many of you reading this are in the same boat. Our work is being stolen. Business models that once supported us now turn to influencers to make culture. Our work is disseminated in ways that don’t benefit us, and there is nothing we can do about it. For instance, did you know that authors are not paid (at least not trad published authors) when you read the book on Kindle Unlimited or listen the audio book on Audible or Spotify? Even buying a used copy—great for the environment—means the author sees none of the money changing hands.

Thank you for being part of this wild journey. If you are interested in my next project, check out the Kickstarter campaign for my novel Widdershins.