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Icy Sedgwick

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Home Protection the Folklore Way: Apotropaic Magic

February 6, 2021 by Icy Sedgwick 6 Comments

Home protection now involves tech, but in earlier times, people resorted to magical means. Click here to learn more about their methods...

People have tried to deter malevolent spirits over the centuries. From planting rowan trees by their door to keep witches out, to hanging horseshoes above the door to keep evil out, people have used a range of protective devices. Known as apotropaic magic, these items were their first line of home protection defence against both […]

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Filed Under: Folklore Tagged With: #FolkloreThursday, folklore, home protection, houses, protection

What do interesting houses say about your characters?

September 4, 2016 by Icy Sedgwick 5 Comments

Interesting houses reveal just as much about your characters as what they say and do. So how can you use these settings to best effect?

Houses can be an absolutely central part of any story. Hell, they even form a sub-genre of their own through the haunted house story! But are houses just the locations through which your characters move? Are they nothing more than sets? Or can you actually use houses as part of your character design? Can houses […]

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Filed Under: Writing Tips Tagged With: #mondayblogs, 52 dates for writers, houses, inspiration, location, setting, write tip, writing ideas, writing tips

#FridayFlash – Doll’s House

March 27, 2015 by Icy Sedgwick 12 Comments

There’s a house at the bottom of my street, a really ramshackle old place. The doors and shutters hang from crooked hinges, and paint peels from the battered old boards like it can’t wait to jump ship and find another house to cling to. It’s the kind of house that everyone avoids, except on Halloween, […]

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Filed Under: Flash Fiction Tagged With: doll's house, free fiction, friday flash, ghosts, haunted houses, houses, paranormal, supernatural

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Who is Icy Sedgwick?

icy sedgwick

Icy is a folklore blogger and host of the Fabulous Folklore podcast. She is based in the north east of England, where she was born and raised amid the folk tales and legends of Tyneside and Northumberland. Icy is fascinated by history, cinema, art, and the occult, and griffins will always be her favourite mythical beast. She also writes dark fantasy novellas, Gothic short stories and the occasional weird Western, and she holds a PhD in Film Studies!

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