Wednesday, September 30, 2015

My Favorite Part of ASC - by Lilly Derway

Lilly watched the whole convention through her lens!
Deborah Harkness and Jennifer Ikeda in a 'huddle'!
Today's guest post is from Lilly Derway - the awesome photographer from AllSoulsCon!  When we asked her to do a piece from her perspective, we didn't expect this story, but we are honored to share it with her permission.  Thank you, Lilly!
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My Favorite Part of AllSoulsCon
By Lilly Derway

When I wasn't going crazy trying to capture every photograph I could, I got the chance to sit and listen to Deb & Jen (Harkness & Ikeda).  They talked about their favorite characters in the trilogy. I listened to a few things they said about the characters they loved.  I then thought about the characters that I loved.

My first favorite is in A Discovery of Witches and it’s Diana. She went out of her way to be different — to not be the same as her family.  She wanted to be a scholar, a professor, an educator.... anything BUT a witch.  She went as far as not using her gifts or her powers.  She even felt bad if she did use it and and kept track of how many times she slipped.  She wanted to be herself, NOT a witch. A witch who followed the footsteps of all of the family members before her. I always figured it was the loss of her parents that might have played a part in it. They used their power, but yet they still died.  I think Diana, having lost presence her mother and father, allowed me connect with her character.

I had a loss.  My father left my mother before I was born.  My mother had to work herself to the core to raise our family.  In turn, I, along with my sister and brother (twins) were a "latch-key” kids.  It was a very nontraditional family at the time.  In those days, being a single mom, and divorced was a HUGE red flag.  I was always set aside and told, "you look & act just like your father."  I always thought of it as a bad thing.  Growing up was tough for me, but I somehow knew the separation was good for our family.  I could see the scars my father left on my mother.  They were always brushed aside, and called "accidents."  My father was abusive — physically and mentally.

It was because of my father that my brother turned out to be a special-needs child.  He beat up my mother when she was in labor with the twins.  The neighbors called the police.  I’m at a point now where I’m able to joke and say “he is the normal one in the family,” — he is!  Mentally, he will always range from 4-9 years old, but that doesn’t matter to me.  He loves superheroes!  He is bilingual in Spanish and English.  He is always happy, and he is my joy and happiness.  I didn’t get the real story until I was 13 years old.  But as a child, I always felt the loss of someone I never knew.  Even though he biologically is my father, he was never part of our family.  I will never know the exact reasons he left, but he abandoned all of us.  As I grew older, I figured it was a good thing he was gone.

When I read the book(s)—specifically about Diana, I bonded with her.  She got to know her parents a little bit, but didn’t get the fullness of them being in her life growing up.  That was her rebellion.  Not being a witch or using her power.  I know that we later find out she was spellbound, but she didn’t know all the facts or the truth as to why they were gone.  She discovered some of it on her own.  She sought out, and found the pictures of her parents showing how they were killed and left.   That was hard for her.

After she met Matthew, she came out of the “witch closet" in a way.  Her power was emerging and she didn’t know why.  She felt more confused.  She was always and independent woman, then Matthew came along and she felt a bond and attraction with him.  She then grew into who she really was — a witch.  She became my hero!  In a weird way, I felt her pain, suffering, and confusion.
 
Every reader of these books come from different places, upbringings, families, areas, and situations. Everyone takes different things from the book/series.  Everyone connects with them in different ways — this was mine.  I figured, I am who I am.  Why should all the stories and hardships from the past become a constant chip on my shoulder?  So I made a choice! I went to school for medical, photography & art.  I became a medical assistant and then went on to learn more about photography and art than ever before. I do photography, paint and draw as my creative release.  I worked at the Hoag Cancer Center in Newport Beach for 7 years.  I had a hard time dealing with the loss of so many patients. When you administer chemotherapy treatment to help people fight their cancer, you grow attached to them. When it became a hardship to get to work on Mondays (the signing of death certificates), that’s when my husband and I started a cleaning company. I did it because a lot of my patients/friends needed cleaning, and understanding of their circumstances.

I later started my photography sessions and painted as a release. I did several murals and did photography for a lot of my patients/friends. They wanted photographs of the before and after. One session when they were in treatment, and one when they fully recovered after the new hair grew in. We all go through struggles in life, and the documentation in photography gave them the ability to show friends and family the journey.

When Shadow of Night and The Book of Life were released,  I found a second favorite character in Jack.  It was during this time that I had to fight for my life while he fought for his.

I was in a coma for almost for 3 1/2 weeks and almost died. The doctors gave me a 4% chance of living. I then came out of my 'mind cloud' after I had been in the hospital ICU for five months. When I woke up, and I had no clue why I was in the hospital.  I saw myself in a mirror — I was missing 1/3 of my skull.  The team of doctors assigned to me came in and they were all so happy!  I was out of my 'mind rebellion and escape.'  They said it was something in our minds that help us to cope with the barrier of being in pain or fighting for life. They said some people regain the memories, I still have not. I still don’t remember the accident or what happened. It’s incredible to me that I wouldn’t remember any of it.

This is why my fight correlated with Jack's. He had to fight to be a kid, a teen, then an adult. He almost died of a sickness, then was saved by Father H and turned into a vampire. He then had to fight a new fight (the Blood Rage).  It was hard for him to put his head in the right place, and not act out in the rage that was inside of his blood. He fought like a warrior against it!  He had his ups and downs but never wanted to be in the blood rage.  Matthew was his guidance.  Matthew was able to fight the blood rage, but still struggled with it.  But Jack had it worse.  Jack made the decision to take charge of his life with the knowledge that he was a "big brother" to Rebecca and Philip, and a "son" to Diana and Matthew.  This knowledge helped him fight it.

The Book of Life is not just about the book being made by all pieces of the three united (vampires, witches & daemons).  It’s about the union between the three types of creatures, without segregation. In the past it was revealed that the three did have relationships in life, were united in love, and it eventually resulted in children.   It emphasizes a mix.  A mix that should occur, and not be shunned.  It was all hidden until Diana got to be on the counsel.  With The Book of Life being literally within her, it opened up new life, and new beginnings for all of them.

I also relate to this series because of me being Spanish & Mexican and my husband being French & Italian.  It was a big NO in my family!  But I stepped right into it, marrying my high school sweetheart.  That was 27 years ago!  Now it's different and more accepted.  Deb Harkness made such a BEAUTIFUL and CREATIVE trilogy of books. They opened our hearts and our minds!

Deb and the story were big factors in my recovery.  I was only out of the hospital for a week, but I still managed to go on a drive to La Jolla to meet her.  My husband drove — and scolded me the whole way, but I HAD TO MEET HER!  A friend got me and my husband front row seats!  Deb knew I had difficulty reading because of my double vision after the accident.  She then surprised me and gave me the audiobooks!  I was finally able to finish The Book of Life by listening while I  followed along in the physical book.  When we met, she gave me the BIGGEST HUG!  I was in tears when she gave me the gift.  Those books also helped me have a great recovery after my skull was put back together.  Those books nursed me back to be the fighter that I am!  They reminded me not to dwell on all the negative, but to embrace the positive!   Now I have my eyesight back through the help of a neuro-ophthalmologist.  I have to wear glasses now, but who cares?!  I CAN READ!  The stories that Deb wrote were the the life-line I needed to encourage me to keep going, and make me stronger.  I will always love her.  She became my friend, and a person to look up to.

I hope I didn’t bore or scare you with my story!  But the moment of listening to Deb and Jen talk about their favorite characters was one of my favorite memories of the convention!  I made my way back into photography with all different kinds of sessions, but this convention was one of my biggest days out, because I had more fun than anything!

Here are some pictures of my bumpy road & journey, and the recovery back to my life. 


The signing at La Jolla (Book of Life release)
At AllSoulsCon - September 12th, 2015

I LOVE YOU ALL!
XOXO Lilly
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We love you back!

See the photos Lilly took at AllSoulsCon here: AllSoulsCon Photos



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Tuesday, September 29, 2015

From Richard Armitage to ASC - A Fan Experience!

A promotional 'poster' from Armitage4Clairmont
This is from someone we are now proud to call a friend!  She came down all the way from Alaska to to have an AST experience via this convention!  She found the All Souls Trilogy ironically enough from another entirely different/separate fandom (we'll take a bit of responsibility for this one—she stumbled upon some of the pictures & videos from our other venture.)  Hey!  We'll take it!  Our first love has always been the books, and we are happy that someone new got to experience the brilliance of the All Souls Trilogy no matter how they stumbled upon it!
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The Armitage Effect
By Donna Barrington

For fans, it seems all roads potentially lead to Richard Armitage. For me, the All Souls Trilogy was a side trip into an alternate realm, being led there by dogging said Armitage’s every potential role, interest or appearance (yes, I am obsessed.)  I stumbled upon the trilogy oddly enough through the Daemons’ handful of Armitage4Clairmont promotional materials and YouTube videos.  Who the hell is Matthew Clairmont, and why is Richard perfect for the role?  These were questions posed, and the answers were supplied!  I didn’t expect to be so mesmerized or so gob smacked by the absolute brilliance of these books.  Enchanted?  Yes, Ms. Harkness, you have woven quite a spell.

I dove into the deep end, swimming through the nuanced words, imaginative turns of phrase, tantalizing history, and brilliant scholarship of the author. She brought a new and fresh perspective to storylines as old as the hills. My Armitage-centric world expanded to include not only what I came to agree was the “perfect” role, but I found myself loving these books for their own merit.  From my early years as a vampire-loving weirdo and a card-carrying member of the Count Dracula Society, dreaming of imaginary make-out sessions with Christopher Lee and Jonathan Frid, (I hasten to add this was at least twenty years before the word Goth would be commonly applied to a group of black-wearing wannabes), I have, in the sixth decade of my life, firmly and proudly re-embraced the title of “fan girl” (or “fan woman”).

The All Souls Convention came at an opportune moment for me. I was bored out of my gourd, drinking too much wine, bemoaning the loss of my sparkling youth. There it was - like a shining path to redemption, a chance to reawaken something exciting, fun and most of all, out of the ordinary. I was willing to fly thousands of miles, attend an event where I knew no one, a newbie fan with arguably the weakest grasp of the Trilogy. The Convention was everything I hoped it would be and more. I made friends. I found inspiration and a renewed sense of self. Like Bilbo Baggins, I had gone on an adventure!

I am still mad as a Hatter for Richard Armitage. My madness now extends to the All Souls Trilogy, which has even provided inspiration for this year’s Halloween costume. Thank you, Ms. Harkness, organizers and Daemons for expanding my universe. I will definitely see you next year! Gratitude!

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We'll see you next year, Donna!  :)  We are definitely doing dinner again!
We hope to see the rest of you at AllSoulsCon 2016 as well!



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Monday, September 28, 2015

AllSoulsCon: Our Fan-Girl Experience!

It's done!  The first Annual AllSoulsCon has come and gone, and wow what an experience!  This is a recap of the convention from our point of view, and we will have more perspectives on this great event in the coming days!  First, we had to actually get there!  One of us from Chicago, one from Dallas, one from Seattle.   We all arrived with zero incident and had no idea what to expect from the first ever AllSoulsCon.

The iconic Theme Building at LAX
Welcome to Los Angeles!  Well, there are distinct differences between Los Angeles and the cities we came from.  All major U.S. cities each have their own energy and personality.  Los Angeles' vibe is a bit hard to describe, but perhaps this picture will say it all:

Approx. 10ft tall robot spotted walking at LAX baggage claim.  Errrr...ok!
It's taken us several days (more like a couple of weeks) to get ourselves back in the swing of everyday life.  We finally we had time to sit down and parse out what went on on that whirl-wind day.
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Written on our behalf by the Scheming Daemon:

Still not totally back to the land of the living but this Con-zombie will attempt to do a daemonic recap of our adventures - fan-girl style!

The Sofitel, Los Angeles - where we stayed, and where the event was held.
Friday night we checked in with our hosts Laura and Karen. These women were so kind, genuine and wonderful to work with (spoiler: we are sooo going to do this again!)  We staked out the ballroom, visited for a bit, and then ventured out into the neighborhood (Beverly Hills!  What?!).  We had a fabulous dinner at AGO with old friends and new.  The food was outstanding and our waiter was a delightfully flirtatious Italian gentleman of a certain age.   I'll just say it - Friday night turned into a middle school-style slumber party!  Lots of giggling, and we barely slept (probably nerves!)  We were up way past a time that is appropriate for people presenting a panel the next morning.  There was no hair braiding, though... ;)

The best hosts ever!  Karen Mendez and Laura Ventura.  Photo/Lilly Derway
Saturday morning came quickly.  Then it hit us. . . .OMG. OMG.  OMG. WE WERE TO BE THE FIRST PANEL OF THE FIRST ANNUAL ALL SOULS CON.  WHAT A PRIVILEGE AND THRILL!  WHAT A TERRIFYING THOUGHT!  OK, NO TIME TO BE NERVOUS!  HERE WE GO!

We were actually on stage while this was taken, but here is everyone we got to have a great conversation with! 
Our table is the one on the far right.  The three empty seats are ours!  Photo/Lilly Derway
We opened with a passage from ADOW and off we went. After our first impressions of Matthew, we immediately found kin-ship with the audience!  These are our people!  This is our tribe.  We broke down our analysis by book and then the categories of family, friends, and the persona Matthew took on in the particular book we were covering.

Screen shot of a portion of the outline we sometimes ignored worked from!
The Maven daemon put Oprah to shame with that mike!  From where we were sitting, she was awesome to watch. The best thing of all is that this wasn't a lecture.  It it was a conversation!  It flew by so fast - we realized afterwards that we didn't get to do a thorough job on ADoW, barely touched on SoN, and never mind BoL, which was hastily summarized to a conclusion.   Hamish and Ysabeau were hot topics!   But it was such a blur we're still trying to fill each others memory gaps.  I did say something about Matthew "needing a quarter for the clue bus" but the context escapes me!  Like I said, a total BLUR!

The Maven Daemon at work!  Photo/Lilly Derway
After our whirlwind panel, Thomas Gunter/Gallowglass actually came up to me and told me "you guys were f*cking awesome!"  He is in the process of reading the books, and he loved our panel.  He also said that he loved the Daemons (because, why wouldn't you?!  Ok, ok...but honestly, there is no room for humility when this guy says something like that!  You'd be a bit boastful too!)   He was such a nice person - with a bit of an edge.  He may not look like everyone's Gallowglass but he certainly channeled his spirit!  Our Vampire Daemon did pet his tattoo, though.  Can you blame her?

Vampire Daemon pets...er admires Thomas' tattoo.  Photo/Lilly Derway
The music segment was great and tons of fun - Professor Gilbert has tentatively agreed to do a post for the Domain, so watch this space!   The yoga interludes were also fun and relaxing - not to mention Goddess centered.  We loved Margaux, and needed the centering breaks - there was so much crazy energy bouncing around the ballroom - and it was all good!  This daemon must have been an amusing sight trying to go through the poses in spike heels and a pencil skirt - but I did bow out before it shifted to NSFW territory (eek!).

The musicians pose with Corra! Corra artwork by FetchGoodyAlsop - Photo/Lilly Derway
Deb was not in the house for our first panel ever – maybe it was the Goddess at work (imagine the extra pressure!).  She couldn’t find her keys and was running quite late.  Apparently, Deb watched the live stream while she was searching for them.  She finally came in 10 minutes into the Elizabethan music show (we didn't notice!), and afterwards, as the Vampire Daemon put it, “pretty much strangled us.” Apparently, she made a beeline for me, tackled me at the breakfast bar and gave me a big rocking hug. “I saw you on my T.V..  You guys were sooo good. Thank you so much.  It was wonderful.”  A huge sigh of relief from me. “We didn’t embarrass you or screw up too bad?” I had to bite my tongue to keep from channeling Sally Fields at the Oscars!  I was stunned in the best way.  Then she headed straight for the Vampire Daemon and Maven Daemon at the table.  Again, with the big, long hugs!   She was holding onto Vampire Daemon's hands and kept petting Maven Daemon's arm.  She's always been very warm and genuine with us, but we were of really shocked by the new level of affection!  It was crazy.  Talk about our Daemon godmother!  We could tell the whole event thrilled her.   We are glad she got to see how much her fans truly adore her!

Jennifer Ikeda was our lunch companion, and it was her birthday!  Thanks to a heads-up by Laura, we came prepared with the gift of a Daemon shirt, and made her one of our own.  Yes, she is now an honorary Daemon!  She came, she saw, she got the t-shirt!   And there was cake!  She is so, so sweet...and a Star Trek: TNG fan!  She was truly overwhelmed by the fact that people would want to meet her because of her audio book work.  What a lovely lady!

Jennifer Ikeda, you are now an honorary Daemon.  Photo/Lilly Derway
Any doubt that this woman is a daemon of epic proportions?
Jennifer Ikeda treated us to a reading from ADOW and a glimpse into the process of making an audio book.  It's a very solitary and intense experience.  There's a ton of preparation involved including as many as three read throughs, and lots of margin notes tracking the shifting voices (it's not always clear who's speaking).  In fact, TBOL was recorded in only three marathon sessions because the timetable was so compressed!  The most poignant moment of this segment was Deb and Jennifer's first face to face meeting. There were lots of sighs and a few tears.

Deborah & Jennifer's first face-to-face meeting! Photo/Lilly Derway
Deb did a big Q&A – Yours truly played hostess with the microphone - so no notes, but we did record it, so there will be a daemonic transcription at some point!  These are the high points news-wise:  Deb’s progressing slowly but surely with both the BBC pre-production and writing but no real details to report on either.  There’s a mix of old and new characters in what she’s writing but she described it as "tender green shoots."  Her exact words: "I am writing about people you know."

Deb's Q&A panel.  Photo/Lilly Derway
There was a lot of 'meet and greet' during the signing.  Our dear author informed us that sometimes the Daemons’ idea of simple and everyone else's are totally different – we’re still trying to work out what that means!   I'm happy to report that Jennifer Ikeda is Baldwin-friendly!  There were some disappointed Baldwin naysayers in the audience when she announced that.  Ah, well.  We did get to do a little mutual Baldwin-swooning during the signing!

Getting some of our giveaway stash signed for Daemon 'Prize Central', and chatting w/ Deb.  Photo/Lilly Derway
It was a night for lots of connecting, hugs, and overall good feelings – it was soul-nourishing, truth be told.  Hopefully we will see you next year!

A shot of our convention badges before they got packed away for our journey home.
Badge artwork by FetchGoodyAlsop
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Huge thanks goes to the producers of AllSoulsCon, Laura and Karen for having so much faith in us.  More perhaps, than we did in ourselves.  :)  Thank you Lilly, for all of the great photos of the event and dedicating your time/talent to ensuring that fans everywhere got a glimpse of the day.  It was so wonderful meeting all of you!  Thank you, Deborah Harkness, Jennifer Ikeda, Thomas Gunter, Margaux Permuttall, Isaias Garcia, Professor Adam Gilbert of USC & accompanying musicians, in-person, and online attendees for making us feel at home and ensuring everyone in attendance had an absolute blast.

Til next time,
feed your daemons!



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Friday, September 25, 2015

AllSoulsCon: A Fan's Perspective

We're so pleased to present a guest post about AllSoulsCon from author, Nicole Evelina!

Her Bio:
"I’m an American author who writes under the pen name Nicole Evelina. My specialties are historical fiction and contemporary romantic comedies that might be romance or women’s fiction.

 I am one of only six authors who studied with #1 New York Times best-selling author Deborah Harkness at Hedgebrook as part of a Master Class in historical creative writing at Hedgebrook in Washington state. I spent 15 years researching Arthurian legend, Celtic Britain and the various peoples, cultures and religious practices that shaped the country after the withdrawal of Rome. I’ve even traveled to England twice to visit some of the places in my Guinevere trilogy. Along the way, I’ve consulted with internationally acclaimed author and historian Geoffrey Ashe, as well as Arthurian/Glastonbury expert Jaime George, the man who helped Marion Zimmer Bradley research The Mists of Avalon.

 I’m also a proud member of and book reviewer for the The Historical Novel Society, and Sirens (a group supporting women in fantasy writing), and the Romance Writers of America. I’m also a member of the St. Louis Writer’s Guild, Women Writing the West and the Women’s Fiction Writers Association.

When I’m not writing, you can find me reading, playing with my spoiled twin Burmese cats or in my day job as an internal communications (PR) supervisor. But that just pays the bills. To my core, I am a writer, and with a little bit of luck, someday soon I’ll be able to call myself a full-time novelist."
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All Souls Convention: A Fan’s Perspective
by Nicole Evelina

First of all, thanks to Valerie for inviting me to do this guest post. It’s going to be a very fangirly article, so be forewarned…

AllSoulsCon was my very first fan convention. I flew from St. Louis, Missouri, to LA to be there – there’s no way I would have missed it. Besides being a huge fan of the series (I took up rowing after reading A Discovery of Witches), it was an extra special day for me because in March 2014, I was one of six authors chosen to spend a week learning from Deb Harkness at a writing retreat at Hedgebrook in Washington state. I saw Deb last August when she was on tour for Book of Life, but I hadn’t seen any of my fellow writers since the retreat. At the convention, four of us got together in person, and the other two participated virtually. It was a mini-reunion for us with each other and with our mentor, a true dream come true.

It was nice to have this be a fairly small event. I didn’t count attendees, but I would estimate about 100, each grouped into tables of eight named for locations in the book. (I was at New College with some wonderful people. Hi to Rebecca and my other new friends!) Most of the people were women, but there were a few brave men.

The first major panel was “Matthew Clairmont: Dream Date or Hot Mess?” The title alone should give you an idea how much fun we had. There was a fair amount of swooning (mostly over Matthew, but also Hamish and Gallowglass), and even some booing when one woman admitted to having a thing for Baldwin. (I know, right?) But all kidding aside, several of the fans gave insightful analysis into the characters, how they interacted and how they grew and changed throughout the series. I think my favorite was the woman who talked about Hamish being able to “peel back the layers of the Matthew onion” to show us the vulnerabilities he would rather hide. For record: I thought Matthew was a hot mess for most of the series – I was afraid of him and afraid he would harm Diana. He kind of won me over by the end of book one, but I didn’t start fully trusting him until into the third book.

Next up was the Renaissance music workshop, “The Music of Matthew and Diana’s Wedding.” I’m a huge Medieval and Renaissance music fan so this was really cool. But the musicians went the extra mile, picking music that specifically fit with events in Shadow of Night and that Matthew and Diana might have heard in an Elizabethan court. They also look the time to explain the meaning/time period usage of each song, as well as interesting things about their period-accurate instruments. So it was not only fun, but educational.

The last session before lunch was with audio book narrator Jennifer Ikeda, who voiced all three books in the trilogy. I’m a huge audio book junkie so I found everything she said fascinating. She told us about her research process, how she thinks about a character and prepares pronunciation before a read. The biggest shocker to me was that she read Book of Life in four days. I think it took me that long to read it in my head, much less out loud! And she read straight through, switching characters as she went, which just blows my mind. I always imagined they recorded each character separately and then edited them together. If that wasn’t enough, she demonstrated it by doing a live reading. It was surreal to watch her go from Diana to Matthew and back again like it was nothing. Talk about a talented lady!

Deb Harkness & Jennifer Ikeda
I loved the yoga stretches with Margaux Permutt between sessions. I was wearing a dress, so I wasn’t sure how I’d be able to participate, but she made sure the poses were simple and doable by everyone, even those who couldn’t rise from their chairs. Someone said Margaux was like a real-life Amira and I completely agree. She really made the poses go beyond movement and breathing and tied them into the books, and the themes, symbolism and mysticism that attracted me to the series. She gets it. If I lived in LA, I would totally take a class from her.

Whoever’s idea it was to have a wine tasting with lunch – I could kiss you!

After lunch we had the big Q&A with Deb. I loved that she started off with a list of things she didn’t have answers for (TV show air dates/casting/what she’s writing next) so that everyone knew not to ask. God love her. She was very free with what she could say and very kind and patient with the fans. She answered questions about how certain elements made it into the books, who her favorite character is (Philippe), writing and teaching, and even talked about the X-Files references in the books (I’m not a fan, so that went totally over my head). My favorite line? “Being smart is sexier than not being smart.” No truer words have ever been spoken, Deb.

The final event was the book signing and photo ops. I spent most of my time with Jennifer Ikeda talking audio books because I had another opportunity to talk with Deb. And boy was I nervous to meet Thomas Gunter (a.k.a Gallowglass)! He is one handsome man, and incredibly sweet on top of it. I can’t say I ever had a clear mental image of Gallowglass, so he’ll do just fine in my book!

Pictured here with Thomas Gunter (aka 'Gallowglass')
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention what a wonderful venue the Sofitel Los Angeles was. Not only did it fit in with the French theme, the food and drinks were beyond amazing, the rooms were clean and comfortable and the service was impeccable. As someone whose day job is in marketing, I’m really impressed with the way they have infused their high-quality brand into every aspect of a guest’s stay, from the valets and bellmen to the servers in the restaurant, and the uniforms and interior design. Tres chic to say the least!

Last, but certainly not least, thank you so much to our convention hosts/organizers, volunteers and all the special guests. You made this fan very, very happy.  I’m not sure if I can make the one next year (assuming there is one), but you’ve certainly got me for future events. I can’t wait to watch it grow and continue to blossom with the love we all have for Deb and her books.

—————
Thank you, Nicole!

You can find Nicole Evelina online here:
www.NicoleEvelina.com
Goodreads: Nicole Evelina
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Wednesday, September 23, 2015

A Ridiculously Random Recap! Post-ASC

Ah, the Ridiculously Random Recap!  Why the name?  Because it's a recap.  And it's random (ridiculously so).  There is no rhyme, reason or rationale, reference its recurring release.  Also, alliterations are almost always adored by able, yet addled daemons!

We have a few things to wrap-up post-ASC, in case you missed it on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram ...etc and elsewhere!

Welcome to Issue 5!  This the after-con edition! We've been recovering con-zombies, so it's taken us a while to get back to our regular (non) schedule.  We figure that once we get the con madness out of our systems, we'll be humming along as usual!  In this issue, we are covering from the 4th of September 2015, through today.  We'll also have a look ahead of what is going on in the All Souls Universe from today and beyond!  Deborah Harkness events will be listed on the bottom of this post. 

1. Fandom News  

Corra at the 2015 AllSoulsCon - artwork by FetchGoodyAlsop/Photo by Lilly Derway

•  Seems like everyone is shaking the con-zombie off of themselves, so there's been a little lull in activity in the fandom!  However, it's read-along season!
  1. Ashmole782 & The All Souls Podcast both promise read-along like activity in the near future! They both have busy operations with other fandoms, so patience is in order.   Keep an eye out!  We have one going in The All Souls Gathering. We are sure others are going on in other segments of this fandom!  Check your favorite AST haunts! 
  2. Download the All Souls Real Time Reading calendar by The Tenth Knot 


  • AllSoulsCon pass-holders: Video of ASC is now available for ASC ticket holders;  ASC pass-holders check your emails! Also, the producers asked us to remind our audience who happen to be recipients of the email, to please refrain from sharing the information or email with non pass-holders!  The live-stream turned out to have been illegally shared by more than a few people, thus taking money from the foundation for whom AllSoulsCon was raising money - The Bodley's American Friends.  It's not cool; it's stealing.  Please don't be that person!  The recorded live-stream will be available as an on-demand rental for non-ticket holders very soon! 
  •  
    •  Here's what's going on in the Daemons' world:

    Congratulations, Maria!
    a.  Our ASC giveaway – winner Maria Trumbach!  Congrats, Maria!
    b.  Aurora Consurgens
    c.  ASC – our perspective and others coming soon!
    d.  Matthew Tribute video:  An Homage to Matthew Clairmont
    e.  Daemon ADOW reading guide - need a refresher for your read-along? This may help!
    f.  Join us in The All Souls Gathering We’ll take it from the top with A Discovery of  Witches, but we’ll be taking it slow so we can have a thorough discussion! There are a variety of topics to explore including a section guest hosted by the All Souls Con: Matthew panel continuation, ASC 2016 Wishlist, etc.  Don't be shy!  Come talk to us!

    2. Other Points of Interest Around the Web

    •  Missed the Con?  Wonder about the venue?  Here is a video tour of the Sofitel, Los Angeles in Beverly Hills

    Video by GoSeeWrite

    •  Cool things fans did in preparation for AllSoulsCon:

    Awesome AST inspired nails!
    KatLovingLondon (on Twitter and IG) gets ready for ASC with amazing AST inspired nails!
    https://www.pinterest.com/pin/290622982182820761/


    3. Author/Series News

    •  Deb finally meets Jennifer Ikeda!

    A shot from AllSoulsCon - Deborah Harkness meets Jennifer Ikeda for the 1st time! - Photo/Lilly Derway

    •  New foreign covers revealed!

    From left to right: the Portuguese and Czech and an edition of The Book of Life from Taiwan

    The Portuguese cover for EM BUSCA DO LIVRO DA VIDA, their edition of THE BOOK OF LIFE. Available 7 September 2015.  The Czech edition of THE BOOK OF LIFE, is coming in November 2015!  The Taiwan edition is coming soon.

    • Upcoming Deborah Harkness events:

    Tuesday, October 27th at 7:00 pm
    A Gathering of Witches
    Harvard Book Store
    1256 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge MA 02138

    Wednesday, October 28th at 8:00pm
    NYC Halloween Event
    SAVE THE DATE
    Brooklyn, NY.
    Friday, October 30th at 6:15pm Nashville Public Library
    615 Church St, Nashville TN 37219
    Find Tickets/Tickets available:
    nashvillepubliclibrary.org

    Sunday, November 8th at 6:00 pm in MST Jean Cocteau Cinema
    418 Montezuma Ave, Santa Fe, NM 87501
    Find Tickets/Tickets available:
    www.jeancocteaucinema.com 

    Do you know of anything going on in the fandom that you'd like to see included in these recaps?  Please contact us!  If you are the owner of a website, group, or page, and you'd like to relay something to the All Souls Community, we are talking to you!  We love to hear about new events, story related items, or articles as long as it has to do with the All Souls Trilogy!  Do you like our regular features/posts? Subscribe to Daemons Domain!

    Until the next randomly released recap,
    feed your daemons...



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    Monday, September 21, 2015

    Weekly Geek! Matthew & Mabon

    Happy Mabon!  This installment of the Weekly Geek is a continuation of the exploration of names. This week we are covering one of the many names of our favorite vampire: Matthew!  
    "We give all of our children many names when they are reborn to us.   But Matthew was the name he came to us with, and he wanted to keep it.   Christianity was very new then, and Philippe thought it might be useful if our son were named after an evangelist.” ADOW p 323.

    With that single quote, Ysabeau served up a hearty snack for these Daemons!

    We all know "Names are important" is an All Souls Trilogy mantra.  Our hero's name is no exception.  First things first: "Matthew" means "gift of God" and can ultimately be traced back to Hebrew.  More specifically, Matthew takes his name from one of the Apostles and the author of the first Gospel.  Matthew the apostle also went by the name Levi.  He is only mentioned five times in the New Testament.  According to some traditions, he traveled to Ethiopia as an evangelist, spreading the teachings of Jesus.  Little detail is known about his life and it is unclear as to who achieved his martyrdom.  Is any of this starting to sound familiar?

    In the Catholic tradition, St. Matthew is the patron saint (i.e. protector) of bankers, most likely because he was a tax collector.  His feast day is September 21st.


    St. Matthew
    Soooooo, our Matthew is the namesake of an apostle with a murky history (reminds us of Matthew Roydon).  Undoubtedly, our Matthew has also offered protection to a certain copper-haired vampire/banker on the battlefield on multiple occasions.  Part of Matthew's mission is to teach creature unity and tolerance (just the job for an evangelist!)

    But wait!  There's more!

    "Notes and Queries asked me accusingly why I had bothered to go and get it if I wasn’t even going to look at it; my to-do list was equally full of reproach. I ripped it off the top of the pad, crumpled it up, and tossed it into the wicker basket under the desk. “‘Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof,’” I muttered under my breath."   ADOW p 31.

    Diana quotes Matthew 6:34 after her meeting with the elusive, reclusive Professor Clairmont, as he kills her productivity for the day!  And now the biggest non-coincidence of them all:  Matthew and Diana first meet on St Matthew's feast day September 21st ... which also happens to be Mabon Eve.

    As all these little coincidences pile up, a question magically appears on the white table:  Just how much did Philippe know when the decision was made to have Matthew keep his name?  Inquiring daemons want to know!

    Here's some reading:
    St. Matthew
    The Name Matthew in the Bible
    All About Mabon and the Autumn Equinox
    Six Ways To Celebrate The Pagan Autumnal Equinox
    Mabon: Where Did it Come From?

    Happy Mabon! (how do I pronounce 'Mabon', you ask?  Answer here: Mabon)

    Feed your daemons, friends!
    Til next time...



    P.S. If you have something you'd like us to explore on Weekly Geek, contact us! You may find your curiosities addressed on one of our future geekly posts!  If you enjoy our Weekly Geeks and/or our other regular features, you can subscribe and have our posts come straight to your inbox.  No spam, promise!  No post, no email.  Simple as that, and you can unsubscribe at any time!

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    Thursday, September 10, 2015

    Aurora Consurgens: A Relationship Roadmap

    Conjunction - an artist's interpretation.  Picture © Sage Reynolds 
    "I am hot and dry Sol and you Luna are cold and moist. When we couple and come together (...) I will, with flattery take your soul from you." ~Aurora Consurgens

    We are going to categorize this as a "Daemon Flashback," mainly because we were feeling nostalgic about the beginnings of our adventures as AST enthusiasts and our early 'awakenings' to the depth and patterns in the All Souls Trilogy.  We were recently discussing going to AllSoulsCon (we head to LA tomorrow!) and what a wild ride the culmination of our activities has taken us on! From Salem MA, to Austin TX, to Seattle WA and now to Los Angeles.  We love traveling to meet with each other!   If you count the book signing events we've been to individually, the mileage will add up even more!  More importantly, we've learned a lot about ourselves, our interactions with others, and our personal capabilities.  Who knew we'd be doing what we are now?!  Regardless, we are grateful for every bit of it.  This is the coolest obsession hobby anyone could've asked for.  We've made lots of friends - and we found each other!  Ok, enough memory lane for now, we'll get to the point! ;)

    Being that we were early adopters of the series—meaning we were the unfortunate souls that waited months and years (2 years between SON and TBOL) between each installment—we've had plenty of time to contemplate and discuss the words in each book.  Prior to us being online publicly, we were just your average über fans who loved to bounce theories at each other.  We suppose these sessions count as early archetypes of our Weekly Geek series!  Today's post is a flashback based on some of these theories from October, 2012 (<—Eek! We've been obsessing fan-girling analyzing this for a weirdly long amount of time!).  Shadow of Night was released earlier that year.

    The question that was brought up (like Diana, it always seems to start with a question!) was this: "What is the significance of the Aurora Consurgens in this story?"  It's verses are constantly referred to in ADOW, mentioned in SON, and touched upon in TBOL (although, at this point we hadn't read book 3 yet.  It didn't exist).  After suspecting for a while, we came to the conclusion that they were there purposefully - mainly to give the reader a signal of things to come.  We are not big subscribers to the notion of coincidences especially with this series (although we grudgingly admit that they do happen!)  So how does the Aurora Consurgens play into this story?  We broke it down in pieces, categorized by the verses used throughout.  Keep in mind, our conclusions have not been author-confirmed, but collectively they do make a lot of eerie sense!  It may be a bit long, but hang in there!  Your "third eye" may open to a few things!  Here we go. . .

    When we examined the lines of Godfrey's copy of the Aurora Consurgens featured in The All Souls Trilogy, we noticed a few things.  We explored everything in pieces and tried to fit clues together; not unlike Diana with her white table!

     From Chapter 21 of A Discovery of Witches:
    There were two illuminations—just as Matthew had promised—that weren’t included in any known copy of Aurora Consurgens. Both appeared in the final parable, devoted to the chemical wedding of gold and silver. The first accompanied words spoken by the female principle in alchemical change. Often represented as a queen dressed in white with emblems of the moon to show her association with silver, she had been transformed by Bourgot into a beautiful, terrifying creature with silvery snakes instead of hair, her face shadowed like a moon eclipsed by the sun. Silently I read the accompanying text, translating the Latin into English: “Turn to me with all your heart. Do not refuse me because I am dark and shadowed. The fire of the sun has altered me. The seas have encompassed me. The earth has been corrupted because of my work. Night fell over the earth when I sank into the miry deep, and my substance was hidden.”The Moon Queen held a star in one outstretched palm. “From the depths of the water I cried out to you, and from the depths of the earth I will call to those who pass by me,” I continued. “Watch for me. See me. And if you find another who is like me, I will give him the morning star.” My lips formed the words, and Bourgot’s illumination bought the text to life in the Moon Queen’s expression that showed both her fear of rejection and her shy pride. 
    1.  How the Moon Queen relates to Diana:

    "Turn to me with all your heart. Do not refuse me because I am dark and shadowed. The fire of the sun has altered me. The seas have encompassed me. The earth has been corrupted because of my work. Night fell over the earth when I sank into the miry deep, and my substance was hidden.”

    Triple moon symbol depicting the phases
     •    The above passage establishes her as the moon. “Dark and shadowed” refers to the phases of the moon (when the “crescent moon” is visible, the rest is dark and shadowed) The fire of the sun alters her because she is reflective of the sun's light based on their relative positions. The seas have encompassed her; that refers to the tides and the moon's influence on it. The earth has been corrupted 'because of her work': the tides rise and fall and rock erosion results.  Night falls over the earth in the miry deep and her substance is hidden when she is in the  “dark" phase or "new moon".  The moon can also be interpreted as the “Goddess”. The Moon Goddess is a triple aspect entity representing the Maiden (waxing crescent), the Mother (full moon), and the Crone (waning crescent).

    Her hidden substance and her sinking into the miry deep can also refer to her time in oubliette.  In La Pierre, her substance was so hidden, that Satu — a very powerful witch — couldn't even figure out what was going on.  Replace the word substance with "power" and think of how Diana was spellbound by her parents.  If you'll recall, they told her the story about the "shadowed man" in the oubliette to help her remember and release her magic.

     "From the depths of the water I cried out to you, and from the depths of the earth I will call to those who pass by me,”

    •    The above—we believe — are featured in ADOW as the witch water and the oubliette scenes (chap 23 and chap 29-31, respectively).

    "Moon Queen’s expression that showed both her fear of rejection and her shy pride."

    •    Chapter33/ADOW - In this scene, we catch these key phrases that mirror the above:
    • Matthew’s pale face was turned up to me, his eyes full of wonder. When our gazes connected, he smiled.
      It was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. There was a surge of desire, strong and visceral, and a rush of pride that he was mine.
    • “Are you afraid of me?” I asked, my body still hovering.
      “No,” he said.

    "Watch for me. See me. And if you find another who is like me, I will give him the morning star.”

    image A
    •    The Morning star is the ball of energy that Diana gave to Matthew in ADOW.  Wow!  What a leap, right?  Well, let us explain our reasoning; we came to this conclusion because of the pentacle (see image A).  It's a star-shaped representation of the elements + Diana (her spirit/the Goddess), and a common pagan symbol.  In ADOW, the object that represents all of the elements + Diana's spirit/Goddess is the sphere of energy featured in chap 33 (in the orchard in Madison).  The ball also shimmered like the "Morning Star."  It made sense to us! Going back and reading the actual passage made it pretty clear to these daemons.

    The following is the scene in mirrors the giving of the Morning Star (Also Chapter 33/same scene):
    I lowered my feet until they floated a few inches above the ground and held out my hand, palm upturned. My mind’s eye filled with the image of my own energy: a shifting mass of silver and gold, green and blue, shimmering like a morning star. I scooped some of it up, watching as it rolled from my heart through my shoulder and arm.
    A pulsing, swirling ball of sky, sea, earth, and fire sat in my palm. The ancient philosophers would have called it a microcosm—a little world that contained fragments of me as well as the larger universe.
    “For you,” I said, voice hollow. My fingers tipped toward him.
    Matthew caught the ball as it fell. It moved like quicksilver, molding itself to his cold flesh. My energy came to a quivering rest in the scoop of his hand.
    “What is it?” he asked, distracted from his urge to hunt by the gleaming substance.
    “Me,” I said simply. Matthew fixed his attention on my face, his pupils engulfing the gray-green irises in a wave of black. “You won’t hurt me. I won’t hurt you either.”
    2. How the Sun King relates to Matthew
    The second unique illumination came on the next page and accompanied the words spoken by the male principle, the golden Sun King. The hair on my neck rose at Bourgot’s depiction of a heavy stone sarcophagus, its lid open just enough to reveal a golden body lying within. The king’s eyes were closed peacefully, and there was a look of hope on his face as if he were dreaming of his release. “I will rise now and go about the city. In its streets I will seek out a pure woman to marry,” I read, “her face beautiful, her body more beautiful, her raiment most beautiful. She will roll away the stone from the entrance of my tomb and give me the wings of a dove so that I might fly with her to the heavens to live forever and be at rest.” The passage reminded me of Matthew’s badge from Bethany and Lazarus’s tiny silver coffin. I reached for the Bible.
     "...will roll away the stone from the entrance of my tomb and give me the wings of a dove so that I might fly with her to the heavens to live forever and be at rest.” 

    •    The Scene in St. Lucien at the church, where Matthew confesses his sins to Diana; namely his suicide and the mercy killing of Philippe.  His guilt for his 'sins' was his 'tomb'.  If you remember in early ADOW he used his coffin-shaped ampulla from Lazarus as a modern reminder to himself of his past misdeeds, essentially keeping him prisoner in his 'tomb'.  The feather Matthew picks up from the dove that flew overhead symbolizes “The wings of a dove”.  The dove represents him starting to free himself from grief/guilt, and being able to turn to Diana and love her with his whole heart and whole life.  Going back to the Moon Queen’s passage, the first line reads, “Turn to me with all of your heart.”  In Christianity, a dove symbolizes hope and peace (since we went with paganism for Diana, we thought we should turn to the bible for Matthew).  The dove is a also a symbol of the Holy Spirit and the soul.

    Diana mentions the feather from the dove in this next quote from the Shadow of Night:

    Chap 10/SON
    A long white feather from the dove’s wing drifted and curled on the currents of air, landing on the pavement before us. Matthew bent to pick it up, his expression puzzled as he held it before him.“I’ve never seen a white dove in the church before.” Matthew looked to the half dome of the apse where the same bird hovered over Christ’s head.“It’s a sign of of resurrection and hope. Witches believe in signs, you know.” I closed his hands around the feather. I kissed him lightly on the forehead and turned to leave. Perhaps now that he had shared his memories, he could find peace.

    And finally, this piece of Aurora Consurgens:

    “I will rise now and go about the city. In its streets I will seek out a pure woman to marry,” I read, “her face beautiful, her body more beautiful, her raiment most beautiful. ...."

    •    This scene is reflected by Diana's and Matthew's actual marriage in San Lucien. It was held "in the streets" (if you remember they walked to the village from Sept Tours for the wedding), and her "raiment" (definition: apparel, clothing).  Our conclusion is that “her raiment most beautiful” is  actually "La Robe."  They sought each other out in the streets of St. Lucien:

    Chap 12/SON:
    I faltered as we came to the church. The entire village had assembled outside its doors, along with the priest. I searched for Matthew and found him standing at the top of the short flight of stairs. Through the transparent veil, I could feel his regard. Like sun and moon, we were unconcerned at this moment with time, distance, and difference. All that mattered was our position relative to each other.


    •    This phrase: "Like sun and moon, we were unconcerned at this moment with time, distance, and difference." was a key indicator that these unique verses in Godfrey’s copy (fictional verses) of the Aurora Consurgens are about Diana and Matthew, and the clues Ms. Harkness plants for us explain how.

    That, dear readers, is as far as we got on that particular tangent!  Did we blow your mind a little?  Well, don't feel bad.  Ours are continually blown when we come across things like this!  These hidden gems and mysteries keep these books fun!  There are other verses we've yet to break down, but we hope to eventually explore them with you!

    On the subject of exploring things with you -  those of you that will be at AllSoulsCon on Saturday, we cannot wait to meet you all in person!  We are excited to finally get to put faces with names!  For those of you streaming online, we'll be seeing you too!  By the way, tickets will be available until tomorrow morning!  It's not too late!  Virtual pass holders, do not forget our exclusive giveaway! It's meant for true All Souls Trilogy fans!  That giveaway will run throughout the weekend until the evening of the 14th of September!

    Until after AllSoulsCon,
    Feed your daemons!



    P.S. We took the original document that we compiled in 2012 (not as detailed as it is here), and made .PDF version that you can download/print to look at at your leisure (instead of searching for this post later)!  It contains the original bad grammar, terrible formatting, and budding daemonosity all packed for your amusement in one document!  Enjoy! :D

    P.P.S. Did you have a question for us?  Contact us!  If you enjoy our posts and features, you can subscribe and have our posts come straight to your inbox!

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    Monday, September 7, 2015

    Countdown to AllSoulsCon!

    Our whimsical guess as to what a modern creature publication might look like!

    As most of you know, we are going to be at ASC!  We've also been honored by being selected to present the fan panel this year!  The subject, Matthew Clairmont: Dream date, or a hot mess?  Well, we suppose it depends what you are looking for in a man who happens to be a vampire!  There's much to talk about, and we would love to chat with you about it at AllSoulsConSo what do you think?  Do you find Matthew Clairmont an ideal mate?  Get yourself a pass (virtual or actual), and let's discuss this!

    It's not too late to buy your tickets to AllSoulsCon*.  You can purchase them up to the morning of the 12th of September (9 am, Pacific).  If you haven't heard of it, AllSoulsCon is a one-day nonprofit convention celebrating Deborah Harkness‘s masterpiece, All Souls Trilogy.  You can go in person, or stream live from anywhere!  To all of you who cannot attend in person, that's ok!  We know for a fact that there will be exclusive features and prizes just for the people steaming online!  We heard a whisper that Deborah Harkness will be offering her own foreign editions of the Trilogy (signed!)  We Daemons will also be offering a chance at a prize package to all virtual attendees!


    Up for grabs:
    * 1 signed copy of Diana's commonplace book - signed by Deborah Harkness
    * 1 Daemons Domain Exclusive "Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know" T-Shirt - click to see the close-up of the front/back
    * 1 All Souls Trilogy Board Game!  You won't find it in the game aisle! - Click to see the close-up front/back
    * A collection of AST SWAG! - Sarah's antenna witch topper, a set of 6 alchemical buttons, 1 ouroboros mirror!

    Online Passholders - Instructions:
    1. AllSoulsCon will provide you with a password to the AllSoulsCon Online area of their site after the purchase of your online pass.
    2. The link to this giveaway is on that page (look under 'online contest sponsored by Daemons Domain') - follow that link.
    3. Use the same password you used to access the AllSoulsCon online page to enter our giveaway page!  Voilà!  You are there!
    4. Follow the instructions on Rafflecoptor as you would any other giveaway!  Terms and conditions will be listed on the giveaway page 
    You have to be in it to win it! (ok, we know...we know.  That's corny.  But it's still true!).  This will be the very last of our 2015 summer giveaways (whew! We need a little break!), but keep an eye out...Halloween is coming!

    Anyway...we know that attendance is not always possible and/or practical with schedules, airline/hotel/rental car prices etc.  We had the same concerns, but we were very fortunate that the stars just happened to align in our favor this year.  But please know that we DO understand, and we hope this exclusive prize for virtual attendees will dampen the woe of not actually being there!  So get your online pass, and we'll virtually see you soon!  Or if the stars align for you, go ahead and get a pass, show up, and we'll actually see you soon!

    *Purchase tickets: Purchase tickets for AllSoulsCon



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    Friday, September 4, 2015

    Weekly Geek! Diana - Names are Important.

    This installment of our Weekly Geek comes from our "Names are Important" file.  It's probably one of the most important in our file and belongs to our protagonist: Diana Bishop.

    The name "Diana" is most likely derived from an old Indo-European root meaning "heavenly, divine," related to dyeus.  In the Persian language Diana means "supplier (messenger) of beneficence & wellness."  As a given name, it has been regularly used since the Renaissance - Diana (mythology).

    We are going to explore this daemons interpretation of it all - she blames this particular rabbit hole on Roman magic!  Going forward beyond this blog post, feel free to explore your own different theories and/or interpretations.  The important thing is the journey...not the destination!  Onward!

    Diana Goddess of the Hunt by the Fountainbleu School

    Diana was a Roman goddess of the moon, hunting, forests, and childbirth.  She was often identified with the Greek goddess Artemis.  The fact that our Diana takes her name from the Roman iteration of the Goddess is especially intriguing within the confines of our story.  On the surface, it may seem that Diana was chosen merely because it is a more common popular feminine name, but you know us daemons - always digging deeper!

    The Goddess Diana by Guillaume Seignac
    The interesting thing about the Romans is that while they never discounted the existence of magic, they tended to downplay the role of it in religious and cultural life. One scholar, Peter Veltri, looks to ancient Roman law, which characterized magical rituals as rather brutal/violent practices and something that should be restricted. “The Roman emperors tried to suppress the ‘other’ sciences, such as magic practices and astrology, because these allegedly attempted to undermine the imperial claim to be the sole authority and interpreter of history."  This daemon is not surprised that one theory for the suppression of magic boils down to control, order, and power with the Romans (paterfamilias, anyone?)  Another scholar, Justin Meggitt examines the record and presents this simple conclusion: your everyday Roman was skeptical about magic.

    Diana of Versailles 2nd century Roman
    In a way, Diana's attitude towards the magic in her life at the beginning of her journey is much like that of the Romans; something to be kept in a box.  It was to be controlled or summarily dismissed. To give it worth could result in a disastrous disruption of her orderly and contained life (we saw how that worked out in The Book of Life, while she wrestled with her fear in the Bodleian in her final pursuit of Ashmole 782).  The parallels are really uncanny!

    Diana and Kallisto by Rubens
    For further exploration, peruse the following:

    Roman Magic: Control in an Uncertain World
    Magic in Ancient Rome
    Did Magic Matter? The Saliency of Magic in the Early Roman Empire

     Feed your daemons :-)



    P.S.  If you are a virtual participant of AllSoulsCon, don't forget to enter our exclusive giveaway!

    P.P.S. If you have something you'd like us to explore on Weekly Geek, contact us! You may find your curiosities addressed on one of our future geekly posts!  If you enjoy our Weekly Geeks and/or our other regular features, you can subscribe and have our posts come straight to your inbox! No spam, we promise!  No post, no email.  Simple as that, and you can unsubscribe at any time!

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