Elliott & Thompson rediscovers the seasons with Wiccan priestess Beattie

Elliott & Thompson has secured The Wheel of the Year: A Nurturing Guide to Rediscovering Nature’s Seasons and Cycles by Dr Rebecca Beattie. 

Sarah Rigby, publishing director, acquired world rights from Michael Alcock at Johnson & Alcock. The Wheel of the Year will be published in October 2022. 

The Wheel of the Year celebrates eight key moments within the changing seasons, from solstices to equinoxes and  cross quarter days-in-between. It is "alive with what is happening in the natural world", offering tools and rituals to mark each seasonal festival. Beattie hopes to connect readers "to the wheel of their own life as well, allowing them to chart the turning of their personal seasons alongside these wider cycles".

Beattie has been practising solitary witchcraft for 20 years and has been an initiate of the Gardnerian Wiccan tradition for 15 years. She is an "expert guide to the power of these seasonal rhythms". 

"I’ve long been intrigued by the ways in which our folklore and folk song connect so directly to the natural world," Rigby commented. "So it’s been fascinating to see the Wheel of the Year – celebrating our solstices and equinoxes and those moments in between – rising into our collective consciousness in recent times. With such a keen interest in ritual, wild magic and seasonal tradition on- and off-line, I was thrilled to find the perfect author for this new project in Rebecca Beattie: a Wiccan priestess with a PhD in Creative Writing." 

Beattie added: "I have long wanted to write this book, but was seeking the perfect home for it, which I have found in Elliott and Thompson. I am thrilled to have such a marvellous collaboration with Sarah Rigby and Michael Alcock and their respective teams. I hope the book will shed some light on the beauty and benefits of celebrating the year with nature as its focus and its inspiration – and show that our relationship with nature is at source a symbiotic one that enriches our lives."