Gold thread and needle or sewing machine
Cotton batting
1/2 cup each:
dried lavender
mugwort
rose petals
lemon balm
chamomile
valerian root
3 drops lavender essential oil
3 drops lemon essential oil
2 drops rosemary essential oil
Small spike of quartz crystal
Mix herbs together in a bowl, focusing on your desire to encourage deep slumber and to work with your Higher Self while asleep. Focus on the nature of dreams, how they can solve problems, and ask that this energy infuse the herbs and bring out their natural magical tendencies. Add drops of essential oil and mix again. Place quartz spike in the middle of the herbs and set aside (in a bottle with a lid if you are going to wait to finish this charm).
Place cloth pieces together, wrong sides out, and sew to form a pouch (use a 3/8” seam allowance), leaving on side open. Iron seams open, then reverse so pouch is right side out.
Fill halfway with cotton batting. Add herb mixture and crystal, then pack with rest of cotton batting. Sew the end shut.
Place this inside your pillowcase at night and, before you go to bed, focus on some thought you’d like to explore in the dream-state, then go to sleep as usual. Write down your dreams when you wake up and eventually, you should see them responding to your requests.
You can recharge this pillow by adding two drops each of lavender oil, lemon oil, and rosemary oil when the fragrance starts to fade.
Remember: It is up to us to solve our own problems, but we can call on the power of our Higher Self when we need help, or when we seek more information on a subject. Eventually, through focus and determination, we can enter the Dream-Time and learn to hear our inner guidance when we’re awake, not just during our sleep.
Bright Blessings and Sweet Dreams,
the Painted Panther
Yasmine Galenorn
The Back Story of Murder Under a Mystic Moon
In the Pacific Northwest, we have a lot of local legends—many of which predate colonization times. The legend of Sasquatch (or Bigfoot as he is also known), has always fascinated me. Sightings and legends regarding the creature exist long before white settlers came to this area. Sasquatch has roots in Native American lore. I actually know several people who have caught a glimpse of him, and over on the Olympic Peninsula, I’ve sensed him out there.
So when I first thought about what I wanted out of this book, I started to play with the idea of what Bigfoot might be. I thought, what if there are variations on Sasquatch? What if I let Bigfoot remain the enigma he is, but create a cousin for him?
There’s certainly enough wild space around here for him to exist. The mountains here are volatile, and the energy wild and primal. We live in a volcanic area, and the Cascades are still quite active. Mount St. Helens blew her top in 1980—I was here for that, and Mt. Rainier is considered one of the most potentially deadly volcanoes in the lower 48 states.
At the same time that I was playing with thoughts about Sasquatch and the wild untamed mountains we live around, the more I began thinking about history of the area. The geological history. The history of the land. The history of the Native Americans who lived here first. The history of everything that has gone into making the Pacific Northwest what it is.
At one point the thought struck me, what if there’s a Watcher? A lore-keeper who acts as an historian and keeps track of everything that happens in the area? What if Sasquatch has a gentle cousin who is a peaceful guardian, whose only job is to record events? What if he slumbers in the mountains, waking only when something big happens?
Then what if some greedy idiot, skeptical of the Watcher, tries to use this legend as a weapon, not realizing that the Watcher actually exists? I began expanding on the idea.
What if the actions of this person enmeshes the Watcher in events he’s supposed to be standing outside of? Would he become vulnerable, once yanked out of his protective and elusive state? And given his importance, and his gentle nature, it made sense that he would have guardians that would naturally rise to his defense. And thus the Warriors of the Mountain were born.
I played with all these ideas as the plot began to gel.
The Klakatat Monster is actually named after an area in Washington—the Klickitat Valley (mostly because I love the sound of the name). I took poetic license with some of the descriptions of the caverns. Cave systems around here usually aren’t the limestone wonders like I described, but as a fantasy/paranormal novelist, that’s my prerogative. Writers enhance and bend reality. We make it real, yet give it a touch of fantasy to bring shivers and chills to the reader.
In the end, Murder Under a Mystic Moon actually became an anthem for the area in which I live. My environment affects me. It touches every aspect of my life, my work, my world view. This area is still untamed and powerful, and I love it so much that I have to weave it into my stories—to make the setting a character in itself. That’s one reason I write regionally-based series. I know the energy here. I know the land. And I like bringing it to life for my readers.
So, does the Klakatat Monster exist? Well, only within the confines of this book. Does Sasquatch exist? I believe so, but that’s something you’ll have to decide for yourself. (But come visit the area before you say no… the energy—Sasquatch’s energy—is so engrained in the mountains here that I think… perhaps… you might just change your mind).
Biography
New York Times, Publishers Weekly, and USA Today bestselling author Yasmine Galenorn writes urban fantasy and paranormal romance, and is the author of almost fifty books, including the Otherworld Series, the Whisper Hollow Series, the new Fury Unbound Series, and many more. She’s also written nonfiction metaphysical books. She is the 2011 Career Achievement Award Winner in Urban Fantasy, given by RT Magazine.
Yasmine has been in the Craft since 1980, is a shamanic witch and High Priestess. She describes her life as a blend of teacups and tattoos. She lives in Kirkland WA with her husband Samwise and their cats. Yasmine can be reached via her website at Galenorn.com.
Indie Releases Currently Available:
Bewitching Bedlam Series:
Bewitching Bedlam
Maudlin’s Mayhem
Blood Music
Blood Vengeance
Tiger Tails
Fury Unbound Series:
Fury Rising
Fury’s Magic
Fury Awakened
Fury Calling
Otherworld Series:
Moon Shimmers
Earthbound
Otherworld Tales: Volume One
Tales From Otherworld: Collection One
Men of Otherworld: Collection One
Men of Otherworld: Collection Two
Moon Swept: Otherworld Tales of First Love
For the rest of the Otherworld Series, see Website
Chintz ‘n China Series:
Ghost of a Chance
Legend of the Jade Dragon
Murder Under a Mystic Moon
A Harvest of Bones
One Hex of a Wedding
Holiday Spirits
Bath and Body Series (originally under the name India Ink):
Scent to Her Grave
A Blush With Death
Glossed and Found
Misc. Short Stories/Anthologies:
Mist and Shadows: Short Tales From Dark Haunts
Once Upon a Kiss (short story: Princess Charming)
Silver Belles (short story: The Longest Night)
Once Upon a Curse (short story: Bones)
Night Shivers (an Indigo Court novella)
Magickal Nonfiction:
Embracing the Moon
Tarot Journeys
For all other series, as well as upcoming work, see Website
e Galenorn, Murder Under a Mystic Moon
Murder Under a Mystic Moon Page 27
