A writer is always willing something into existence, which is probably why I’m interested in witches and witchcraft and have been exploring it a lot lately.

Lois, in The Mage of Motor Avenue series, doesn’t call herself a witch, but that’s what she is.

I always felt like it was awkward and artificial to divide magical humans into groups based on gender – men are wizards and women are witches – so I just removed that from the series. Lois thinks of herself as a mage because she dislikes wizards in general and doesn’t want to be lumped in among them, but it’s nothing to do with gender.

I liked that solution for Lois and her series, but in my current work-in-progress (follow along with the Naked Writing posts), I wasn’t so concerned about gendered language and concepts. I wanted the (as-yet-unnamed) narrator to be a witch, specifically a witch, and specifically a witch who comes into her power at middle age.

This is because despite all the propaganda against it, I find being a woman in middle age the most powerful experience of my life and I want to celebrate that life stage with readers.

Jennifer Lawler has been a writer-editor for more than twenty-five years and has published more than forty novels and nonfiction books. She is the founder of the online education company Club Ed LLC.