The Old Witches Home

by Avian Swansong 

Not all old witches live in the woods – some of them live in a retirement village. Some of them live at THE OLD WITCHES HOME.

Set in a small town in the Western Catskills, this cozy senior fantasy opens with Maya, Maple and Birdie, founders of THE OLD WITCHES HOME, preparing for the Summer Solstice Festival, the annual fundraising event that brings together townspeople and witches to dance the Spiral Dance, celebrate nature and make magic.

A threat to their plans emerges when an unscrupulous land developer, Benjamin Huffstickler, a distant relative of Lightning, the flamboyant witch who inherited the land and bequeathed it to his friends, convinces Lightning’s brother to contest the will. He wants to turn the land into a weekend resort for city visitors.

Not only do the witches need to fight Huffstickler, but a mysterious illness has imprisoned many residents in their own minds, singing show tunes, playing with farm animals and trying to escape spreadsheet prison cells. The surviving residents, with their walkers, their hearing aids and their failing memories, are on their own.

Maya, Maple and Birdie need to use magic, ritual and sacrifice to save their homes and heal their friends. But will it be enough? Can old witches still make magic?

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In THE OLD WITCHES HOME, Avian Swansong depicts an astonishing community with elders who see the world differently, a place where magic is real, and social justice is more than a dream. Maya, Maple and Birdie tackle aging, community conflict, and falling in love. At THE OLD WITCHES HOME, another world is truly possible.

About the Author

Avian Swansong is a lifelong witch, guardian of the amazing cat, Opus, and author of The Old Witches Home. She has recently retired from her day job and now spends her time dreaming about a world of justice, community and magic. Her stories have been published in Catskills Literary Journal. Committed to reclaiming a healthy planet, she nourishes her soul each summer at Witch Camp, at home with others who were wild and strange in their youth and still don’t want to conform.