Witches Network

    Back in the day, it was tough to find a witchy community. If you wanted to meet other witches, you would have to convince an innocent woman to sign the devil's book at your Saabat, or fly your broomstick one town over and join their coven. These complications of the past are no more! Now, one simple google search finds Mandragora Magika "A Worldwide Network for Traditional Initiatory Wicca, Witchcraft, Paganism, Witchy Stores, Blogs, YouTube Channels and more..."

Networking

    I stumbled on this website when I was looking for stories about local witches. I wanted to know if there were any witch groups in Fort Worth, and if so, what do they do? This website had the answer to my question, and more. The main purpose of this website is to connect witches to local covens and resources. You can search for a group by state, then by city. If you are starting your own coven, you can upload your contact information and a short description of your group for potential witches to reach out.

    The local coven in Fort Worth is called the "Magical Girl Society" and they are creating "an interconnected network of inspired women (LBT+ Inclusive) who are devout to servicing their communities, healing their bodies and minds, and putting their power and magic into creating a better world - one step at a time." I also found The Texas Local Council of the Covenant of the Goddess which is located in DFW, and they hold their Sabbats in Arlington. 

    It is very easy to fall down a rabbit hole with this website. It has many links to witchy groups websites, which link to coven websites, which link to classes, meetings, history, traditions, etc.

Other Features

    This website has many uses beyond just finding witch groups. They also have a shop where they sell witchy themed art prints, clothes, and accessories. They also provide an extensive list of recommended reading. The reading section stood out to me because of how many different topics they provide. They have readings on the history of witches, witches in the queer community, African witch traditions, and more. They also support small businesses by providing a list of witchy businesses by area.

    This website is a great resource for witches of any experience level. I find it so interesting how modern witches have continued to practice witchcraft. This website is a great example of how witchy communities have continued to thrive.

Witches and Zines

Magical Zines

I'm currently taking WRIT 20323: Intro to Multimedia Authoring: Collective Zine Making with Dr. Wenzel. In this class, we discuss the significance of zines. Zines are essentially self-published mini-magazines. Because they are self-published, they give insight into people and stories that wouldn't be released by major publishers. Zinesters (zine writers) often focus on themes of identity and social issues. You may be thinking, "What does this have to do with witches?" To that, I say surprisingly a lot. 

Though the term "zine" wasn't coined until the 1930s, witches are actually a large part of the history of zines. Some people claim that the writings on how to practice witchcraft created in the 1400s were the first zines. For example, pamphlets on healing, birth control, and herbs written and distributed by cunning folk would be considered zines. Of course, these were quickly followed by religious zines on how to catch witches (Alanna Stapleton 2024, Joe Beil Make a Zine, 2017). In his book Make A Zine, Joe Beil mentions that "Malleus Maleficarum" by our good friend Heinrich Kramer could be considered a zine.

Today, modern witches are still making zines. Witchy zines have grown in popularity over time and have created an entirely new sub-genre of zine. A quick search on Etsy for "witch zine" comes up with over 1,000 results. Many of these zines are guides on how to practice witchcraft in modern times. A lot of them discuss how witchcraft can connect to social issues and identities. For example, "F*** your Magic Antisemitism" by Ezra Rose (which you can download for free) looks at the history of witchcraft and Jewish beliefs. Also "A Pagan Anti-Capitalist Primer" By Alley Valkyrie And Rhyd Wildermuth talks about how paganism clashes with capitalism. 

I find it really interesting how people are still finding ways to practice witchcraft today. Though witchcraft has changed so much over time, these zinesters have the same goals witches did back in the 1400s, spreading knowledge about witchcraft.