Dorothy Morrison
Dubbed by Publishers Weekly as “a witch to watch,” Dorothy Morrison has garnered numerous awards for her writing, including the 1999 COVR Visionary Award for Best General Interest Book (awarded for Everyday Magic), the 2000 COVR Visionary Award – Best Biographical Memoirs (awarded for In Praise of the Crone: A Celebration of Feminine Maturity), and the 2008 COVR Visionary Award – Best Wicca/Paganism Book (awarded for Utterly Wicked).
Morrison’s other works – The Craft, The Craft Companion, Bud Blossom and Leaf, Yule, The Whimsical Tarot, Enchantments of the Heart, Magical Needlework, Everyday Tarot Magic, Everyday Moon Magic, Everyday Sun Magic (the highly anticipated fourth book in the Everyday Magic Series) – have consistently won her the high praise of readers and critics from all walks of life.
Born on May 6, 1955 in Columbus, Texas, to a law enforcement officer and his wife, Morrison’s maternal lineage includes: William the Conqueror, Robert the Bruce of Scotland, a Kentucky governor, the first Poet Laureate of Texas, and a charter member of the Texas Rangers. Raised Catholic, she attended parochial school and, at one time, even entertained the idea of becoming a nun. This was, of course, a short-lived plan. When the Pope decided that birth control was a heinous crime against humanity, she simply could not support his reasoning and begged her parents to allow her to attend a public high school. Her parents conceded to her desire, and she graduated from Columbus High School in 1973. It was at this point that her mother introduced her to the Tarot. Morrison then moved to Houston, where she was introduced to Wicca.
Eventually, Morrison moved to California where she furthered her studies in Wicca, and from there to Missouri. While in Missouri, she discovered archery, and during her second year on the circuit, held three state championship titles. During that time, her writing career began to bud. In addition to writing for journals and quarterlies such as The Crone Chronicles, Circle Network News, and numerous other Pagan publications, she joined the staff of several bow hunting magazines.
A constant advocate for the protection and proper care of both wildlife and domestic animals, Morrison served as Administrator of two Humane Society animal shelters for several years. Upon the release of her first book – and the discovery that she was a Witch – Morrison was summarily dismissed from the Humane Society. Though initially an unexpected hardship, this allowed Morrison to pursue her writing career full time.
Morrison currently lives in Virginia with her husband, Mark, and their black lab, Dixie. A Third Degree Wiccan High Priestess of the Georgian Tradition, she founded the Coven of the Crystal Garden in 1986, and spent many years teaching the Craft to students in eight states and in Australia. Not one to rest on her laurels, Morrison holds a voracious tour schedule, and is currently ensconced in the studies of the RavenMyst Circle Tradition as a Second Degree Initiate.
Dorothy Morrison can be found on the web at: