So… while you were probably thinking I’d finally found my lane with Woven Arcana and those embroidery patterns that help us compost self-help crap one French knot at a time, I’ve gone and sprouted an entirely new creative limb.
Because apparently one way to process my existential mess wasn’t enough.
I’m launching Poisonous Pen Publishing – a deliciously dangerous side project where I’ve invented an entire literary genre called botanical noir.
And before you panic that I’m abandoning my needles for a typewriter, let me be clear: Woven Arcana isn’t going anywhere
Those deadly flower patterns that help us stitch our way through toxic positivity? Still happening. Still using belladonna and foxglove as metaphors for refusing to be palatable.
But here’s the thing about creativity at our age – it doesn’t stay in neat little boxes, does it?
Picture this: You’re stitching a particularly stubborn oleander pattern while your mind wanders to what would happen if that same deadly beauty became the centerpiece of a murder mystery. Or maybe you’re embroidering those thorny roses while imagining a protagonist who’s learned to bloom in toxic soil, just like we have.
That’s where Willow Ashwood was born.
She’s the literary sister to every poisonous flower I’ve ever stitched – a woman who’s discovered that her most untamed qualities aren’t flaws to be corrected, they’re adaptations that have kept her alive.
She’s got a zero-BS acolyte, travels from the shadowy gardens of Switzerland to the wild botanical preserves of Canada, and faces the toughest challenge of all: reinventing herself when facing your past feels like threading a needle in the dark.
I’m inviting you to tend both gardens with me.
The embroidery patterns will keep coming – because we still need to stitch our way through whatever limiting beliefs are currently composting in our creative soil.
But now you also get to join a secret literary speakeasy where you’ll discover that botanical noir isn’t just a genre I invented – it’s a whole philosophy about women who refuse to apologize for taking up space.
Your invitation includes:
- Immediate access to Chapter 1 of Willow’s debut mystery
- The chance to influence where Willow processes her existential crises (because even fictional women need good restaurant recommendations)
- Eight months of behind-the-scenes chaos as we launch something that’s never existed before
Both projects serve the same mission: helping women over 40 bloom exactly as they’re supposed to, with thorns, toxins, and all.
Founder, Poisonous Pen Publishing & Woven Arcana
Creator of Botanical Noir & Embroidery That Composts Self-Help Crap
P.S. Know another woman who’d appreciate deadly botanical fiction served alongside subversive embroidery? The garden gate is always open to kindred spirits. Forward this email so they can sign up with this link ↓
https://purdeypenrose.kit.com/willow