Interview with Lisa Marie Basile on 'The Magical Writing Grimoire'
Photo: Lisa Marie Basile
BY JOANNA C. VALENTE
I interviewed writer and editor Lisa Marie Basile, whose work often intersects with magic and wellness. Following the release of Light Magic for Dark Times (Quarto/Fair Winds Press, 2018), Basile’s second book focusing on magic, The Magical Writing Grimoire, is coming out in 2020 and can be preordered here. Basile and I discussed ritual and writing and now merging both has helped her process trauma.
What prompted you to write a book about ritual and writing? As a writer, it might seem like an obvious choice to some, but I'm curious what you are hoping to aim and inspire with the project.
I've always encountered ritual and transformation in my writing, especially as a poet. Even when I wasn't doing it purposefully. I suppose it started with my 2014 chapbook war/lock, in which I wrote was an essentially one long spell-poem to cast someone (really, an era) out of my body through language. And of course, in editing Luna Luna, our core mission is to make space for both the luminous and the shadow — primarily through writing. After writing Nympholepsy (my collection of poetry co-authored with Alyssa Morhardt-Goldstein), which is about saying goodbye to a toxic time in my life, I felt a sort of exorcism take place.
Then in my book Light Magic for Dark Times, I included a chapter on writing magic (which I LOVED writing). As a writer whose work is geared toward memory and trauma recovery, whether it's about trauma recovery or chronic illness, it felt natural for me to think of a full-length book that could introduce writing as a magical and healing tool for people who may or may not be writers. My editor asked if I wanted to do a follow-up to Light Magic and a book about intentional writing was the only thing I wanted to write. It's my life. My everything. My whole being.
I hope that the book offers people a chance to create their own ritualistic writing practice — to heal themselves. To find autonomy. To reclaim their stories. To find magic in nature and intuition and dreams. To write their own spells and to create poetry of manifestation and intentionality. It's for writers, non-writers, witches, and non-witches alike. All I ask is that people dive in with an open mind and make space for personal transformation.
What was the process of this book like? How was it different than your others?
This book is sort of a culmination of everything I love — it's got musings and quotes from poets and writers (because, ahem, me). It's got loads of rituals and practices based in writing. It's got writing prompts and meditations. And it looks at several different writing approaches that have been used through time, like automatic writing, for example. It's still accessible and inclusive, of course (because I believe one shouldn't have to feel like they're not permitted to create a magical life), but it's a deeper dive into the shadow self. A deeper dive into self-exploration. Unlike Light Magic, for example, it's longer, more in-depth, and there's more a focus on the long-term development of a writing/journaling craft as a healing tool — rather than only including short, easy rituals and practices. That said, a reader could still open any page and dive in at any point!
How has writing helped you grow as a person and artist?
Writing saved my life. When I was in foster care, I would skip classes or sit in the library during my lunch break and write long, weird books. I didn't have many friends because the new town I was in was very unwelcoming (they'd all known each other since birth and I was the new weird kid). My self-isolation was probably unhealthy and sad, but I needed my book-world. They were my friends. And my characters gave me a voice when I was literally at the physical and emotional whim of not only the state of New Jersey, but my foster parents' wishes to keep me.
As I got older, I realized writing helped me rewrite my narrative, undo deep knots of shame, and create the future I wanted for myself. And I don't only mean by publishing — but by simply writing in a diary.
What are some of your practices and rituals as a witch?
I am a very secular person, very much inspired by the archetype of the witch. I don't have one kind of practice, and I don't practice in a traditional way. Rather, I focus my practice on eclectic practices that feel intuitive. I listen to my dreams. I meditate in nature. I do automatic writing to get in touch with my shadow self. I notice synchronicities. I light a candle a few times a week and meditate over a tarot card. I journal about my dreams. I set intentions while cooking (kitchen witchery! I'm Sicilian after all). My rituals are not elaborate, but they are consistent, mine, and accessible. This is important to me because I have a chronic illness and my body is often easily fatigued or simply worn out and I need easy and powerful ritual routines to feel grounded and joyous.
How do witchcraft and art intersect for you?
To me, the artist is a witch. We create something of nothing. We transform fear, pain, and hope into beauty, into something tangible. The witch transmutes and directs energy — for change, for results, for transformation. And so do we, as artists. We are inextricably linked in our ability, desire, and innate pull to do this, and to, hopefully, help people along the way.
Lisa Marie Basile is the founding creative director of Luna Luna Magazine--a digital diary of literature and magical living. She is the author of "Light Magic for Dark Times," a modern collection of inspired rituals and daily practices, as well as the forthcoming book, "The Magical Writing Grimoire: Use the Word as Your Wand for Magic, Manifestation & Ritual." She's written for Refinery 29, The New York Times, Self, Chakrubs, Marie Claire, Narratively, Catapult, Sabat Magazine, Healthline, Bust, Hello Giggles, Grimoire Magazine, and more. Lisa Marie has taught writing and ritual workshops at HausWitch in Salem, MA, Manhattanville College, and Pace University. She earned a Masters's degree in Writing from The New School and studied literature and psychology as an undergraduate at Pace University.
Joanna C. Valente is a human who lives in Brooklyn, New York. They are the author of Sirs & Madams, The Gods Are Dead, Marys of the Sea, Sexting Ghosts, Xenos, No(body), #Survivor, (forthcoming, The Operating System), and is the editor of A Shadow Map: Writing by Survivors of Sexual Assault. They received their MFA in writing at Sarah Lawrence College. Joanna is the founder of Yes Poetry and the senior managing editor for Luna Luna Magazine. Some of their writing has appeared in The Rumpus, Them, Brooklyn Magazine, BUST, and elsewhere. Joanna also leads workshops at Brooklyn Poets. joannavalente.com / Twitter: @joannasaid / IG: joannacvalente / FB: joannacvalente
