...solstice

In folklore, the Oak king and the Holly King beautifully personify the summer and the winter. Locked in an endless battle, the shift in power between the two kings causes the constant shift in the light and dark that we’d recognise as the seasons’ perpetuating cycle. It’s a story that feels fable/fairy tale like. But I loved it, and I think it’s worth sharing. Particularly since the Summer Solstice was observed this past weekend – June 20^th.

Owing to Lockdown, I had more time to contemplate the longest day of the year than usual, spending time in my garden’s festooning sunlight with family around me - all social distancing adhered to, of course.

The sun used to be considered the greatest strength, and was greeted on the longest day of the year to celebrate.

Bonfires were lit to represent the fiery aspects of the sun. People would jump over or through the fires for good luck, and dance around them to raise energy. To this day, to anyone acknowledging Pagan or Wiccan traditions, it’s a day of inner power and brightness.

The traditional observations of the seasons have recently taken on a new importance to me, owing to research I’ve been doing for THE BLOOD DRAGON’s sequel.

I’ve hinted, whispered and teased the importance of the sun and the moon in THE BLOOD DRAGON. An importance that I only intend to intensify in the sequel I’ve recently returned to writing. Much of the magick and the mystique in my books stems from the sun and the moon. They’re characters in their own rights, worshiped by the witches, guarded and protected by my main character. They’re responsible for controlling so much in the world, most notably the light and the dark, and therefore the seasons.

THE BLOOD DRAGON is set in a world of darkness, long depraved of the sun and moon’s precious light. And so, the luxury of observing the seasons has long been lost to the people, as have the traditions of celebration.

The seasons, like the folklore of the Oak King and the Holly King suggests, are of course a constant shifting between the sun and the moon, causing the days to shorten and lengthen into what we know as Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter.


I’ve been enjoying adapting existing traditions to suit my story and creating my own magickal variations of seasonal festivals.

I love it when the fantastical is founded in fact!

To the Wiccans and the Pagans, the solar events that mark out the year were celebrated as festivals known as Ostra (Spring Equinox), Litha (Summer Solstice), Mabon (Autumn Equinox), Yule (Winter Solstice).

Mine will likely be referred to the same way.

I’d forgotten how enjoyable the research behind writing could be. My process has always been exploring and creating in equal parts as I write, and I usually find myself greatly influenced by what I discover along the way.

Who knows, next year when the restrictions of Covid no longer rule over us, I might be hosting a Summer Solstice party and applying some of these old traditions to our gaiety.

~Zuzu 🖋

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