We welcome Devin Miller, author of “Smells of Brine, Witching” in The Future Fire #66, for a mini-interview.
TFF: What does “Smells of Brine, Witching” mean to you?
Devin Miller: We tend to think of things that change and decay as sad, wasted things. What forests teach us is that decaying things are food, homes, an essential part of creation and regeneration. What beaches teach us is that when water wears a stone down, it does get smaller but it also gets smooth and beautiful. This is one of my favorite metaphors for writing: unwritten ideas and unfinished stories aren't wasted, they're just compost for future writing. And compost is a form of transformation, and therefore magical.
TFF: Is it the double nature of fungi that makes them such a suitable witchcraft ingredient, in your opinion?
DM: I think they're a suitable witchcraft ingredient because they are themselves witches. Saprobic fungi feed on dead organic matter, break it down and transform it, which is pretty much what a witch does stirring her cauldron.
TFF: What are you working on next?
DM: I've got lots of short fiction to revise; I've particularly been meaning to get to the one about a road trip with a sea-wife.
Extract
Quiet have I lived at the border between
woods and sea. Here where shorebirds scurry, forage,
where wrens, juncoes make busy life in tree homes,
here have I breathed salt.
Reminder: You can comment on any of the writing or art in this issue at http://press.futurefire.net/2023/07/new-issue-202366.html.
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