O'Gaea's Tips for Writing about Wicca

HOW TO WRITE ABOUT WICCA

The Religion and its Followers
* Wicca is the name of a religion and should always be capitalized. When the words "witch" or "witchcraft" are used sociologically, use a small w: I read a study of Central American witchcraft or Villagers believe witches cursed the cows. But when you're using Witchcraft as a synonym for Wicca, capitalize it; and when by "Witch" you mean someone who is Wiccan or Pagan, capitalize it too. More and more people claim Witchcraft as their religion; or He has been a Witch since his teens.
* Male Witches are called ... Witches; male Wiccans are called ... Wiccans. A warlock (small-w) is an oathbreaker.
* The adjective "Wiccan" is always capitalized. The word does not have a secular form corresponding to small-c catholic, and always refers to the religion of Wicca or its followers. (To call Wiccans "the Wicca" is archaic, and that form should only be used if you're quoting someone who says it.)

Deities
* Capitalize the word "Goddess" as you do "God." One of the Sabbat is named after the goddess Ostara; but Ostara is the Goddess of Spring.
* Wiccans worship a Goddess and a God, not a goddess and a god. But some Wiccans worship many goddesses and gods. The difference is in the first case, "Goddess" and "God" are names, and in the second they're not.

Traditions (denomonations) and Covens
* Names of Traditions (denominations; and this word is capitalized to indicate that it doesn't mean "customs") should be capitalized even if they're not named after a founder. It may be obvious to capitalized Gardnerian or Alexandrian, but names like Eclectic and Adventure should be capitalized too. After all, we capitalized Methodist even though there was no Rev. Method.
* The word "coven" should be capitalized when it's part of a name: Campsight Coven, or the Coven of the Silver Midnight, but not when it isn't: The coven I work with is small.
* It is not necessary to say "the Campsight Coven" any more than it's necessary to say "the St. Mary's Church."

Services and Clergy
* A Wiccan service is called a "Circle," and the word is capitalized to distinguish it from a non-religious gathering. Our circle of friends worships together in a Circle. ("Circle" may also be part of the name of a Wiccan group, and as such is capitalized: Our coven/study group is called Coyote Circle.
* Religious titles like "priestess" and "priest" should be capitalized when they refer to a specific cleric, but usually not otherwise: She is the Priestess of Campsight Coven; but He has been a priest for 20 years.
* Wicca's formal titles for fully-ordained clergy are "Lady" and "Lord," and are used only with names: This is Lady O'Gaea, but He is the coven's priest, not He is the coven's Lord. (Lady and Lord, used without names, are titles reserved to our Goddess and God.)

Other Neo-Pagan and Heathen Religions
Wicca is not the only Neo-Pagan religion, so here are some tips for writing about a couple of the others. The first thing you should know is that ... not all modern Pagans call themselves Pagan!

Heathens

* Northern religions and their followers generally prefer to be called Heathen rather than Pagan. The same rules for capitalization apply: one may hold a heathen attitude, but the one who holds it is a Heathen.
* The word "Heathenry" is comparable to the word "Paganism," and should be capitalized when it refers to one or more Heathen religions.
* The words Asatru and Vanatru (Norse Pagan religions), Asatruar and Vanatruar (one or more followers of Asatru or Vanatru), are also always capitalized.
* Heathens meet in "kindreds" and "troths," and those words should be capitalized when they refer to specific religious groups: The Kindred met on Saturday to pledge a troth.
* Heathen gatherings are called blots (rhymes with "boats" and means "blessings") and sumbels. These too are capitalized when they refer to specific gatherings: Saturday's Blot follows the usual form for blots; or Last weekend's Sumbel was the most moving sumbel I've ever attended.

Other Neo-Pagans
* The word "Pagan" should always be capitalized when it refers to one or more specific religions or a follower of Wicca or Druidry, with or without the (capitalized) prefix Neo-. Drums may pound out pagan rhythms, but you hear them at a Pagan gathering.
* The words Druid(s), Druidism, and Druidry should always be capitalized. "Druidic" may be used with a small d according to the rules above.
* For Druids, words like "Grove" and "Circle" and "Nemeton" should be capitalized when they refer to actual groups: The Grove meets in the grove.

When you interview a Heathen or Neo-Pagan, please check with her or him about the capitalization and protocols s/he and any group involved observe.

WHAT TO ASK A WITCH
Questions to Get Your Interview Started

    A lot of people are still influenced by Hollywood images of Witches (and now, Wiccans), ranging from B-movies to modern sit-coms. None of them present an accurate picture of Wicca or other Neo-Pagan religions. Most of the popular images come from the old idea that Witches are Satanic. We're not, and most of us don't know anything about Devil-worship, so it's inappropriate to ask us.
    Instead, ask us about what we do believe.

* Ask us about the Goddess, who is all that is eternal and generative.
* Ask us about the God, who is all that dies and is reborn.
* Ask us whether we see all goddesses as aspects of one Goddess (and all gods as aspects of one God), or understand each named deity as a distinct entity.
* Ask us about the five sacred Elements: Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and Spirit.
* Ask us about our beliefs in life after death, about the Summerland, and about reincarnation.
* Ask us about our Altar Tools -- what they are, what they're for, how they're consecrated.
* Ask us about how our Circles are conducted.
* Ask us about magic and the ethical laws that guide our spell-casting.
* Ask us how we feel about the "Macbethy hag" image of Witches. (Ask Heathens how they feel about the Neo-Nazi image of Odinism, and Druids about the "sacrificing virgins" images they have to cope with.)
* Ask us how we feel about being identified as New Age.
* Divination isn't a tenet of Wicca, but most of us practice it in one or more ways. When you ask us what form of divination we use, remember to ask us what we use it for. (Hint;: if we could spread the cards, read the tea-leaves, or cast the Runes to get tomorrow's winning lottery numbers, you'd have heard about it by now!)

    Don't bother asking us about storybook or Hollywood Witches, 'cause that's not who we are. Ask some of these questions, though, and our responses will be meaningful and informative -- and so will your interview.

Who to Ask
    Would you ask a pre-teen to tell you about Catholicism or Presbyterianism? Would you ask someone who's just converted to tell you about Judaism? Maybe; but would you take their answers as representative of that faith's theology and practice? Probably not.
    In fact, you'd be more likely to interview a long-time congregant, who's familiar with the way things work at this church or synagogue. You'd be more likely to interview the pastor or priest or rabbi if you wanted to get the skinny about the tenets of the faith, or its history, or the difference among its denominations.
    So it should be when you're writing about Wicca and other Neo-Pagan religions. Ask about your subject's credentials. How experienced are they, and in what ways?
    Wicca is one of few religions that accepts solitary practice as legitimate. Wicca is also one of few religions that has no central authority, so literally anyone can call themselves a Wiccan, and excuse their inexperience by saying they're solitary. Such people are certainly qualified to talk about what they do, but can they talk about coven work or a Tradition's perspective or about the local Pagan community? Probably not!
    Look for the community's elders. If there is a public group, contact its leaders and ask to speak with someone who is not only experienced in their own Pagan faith, but may know something about other Pagan religions as well. Such elders do exist, and many are willing to share what they know.
    If you are interviewing an author, find out what their practical experience is. There are people who write about Wicca without ever having cast a solitary Circle or worked with a coven, much less led one; there are people who write about Wicca without having been initiated or contributing to Pagan community in any way. These people may have something interesting to say, but it's important that you hear it in the context of their experience.

Which Witch (or Druid or Heathen) to Ask
    When I'm trying to find someone, my first recourse is to type their name into my search engine. If that doesn't produce helpful results, or to double-check something I've heard about a particular Tradition, or about the use of a Tool or how often one herb or another is actually used, I go to the Witchvox website. Listings there include stores, groups, individuals, and clergy -- and it's all neatly organized by state. Not all legitimate groups are listed there, but they do make an effort to keep the flakes out.
    Groups (I use Yahoo, but there are, of course, others) are an auxiliary source of information, but again, anyone can start one, and people on line aren't always who they say they are.
    If you want your story or paper to be a good one, you'll take a few extra minutes to verify the information you get. And we'll all appreciate it.