Every great hero — or dare I say, even great villain — has an intriguing origin story. From Batman’s tragic loss to the Wicked Witch of the West’s mistreatment over something as simple as being green, it’s the dark and twisty parts of their past that shape them into the characters we love — or love to hate.

So, in that vein, I thought I’d share the origin story of my book, The Old Crones Club.

In a previous post, I talked about my “why” for writing this book. But the idea itself came together in the summer of 2021. The world was finally opening up again after COVID lockdowns, and I suddenly had time on my hands after being made redundant earlier that year. I wanted a break — time to recover, have fun, and maybe travel.

But international travel was still complicated, so I set my sights on something simpler: island hopping in Greece. I imagined each island with its own charm, promising the kind of epic adventure I’d been craving after 18 months of isolation. To ease into the trip, I booked a retreat on the island of Skyros. It promised writing classes, life coaching, kayaking... and a few more quirky surprises I wouldn’t discover until I got there.

I joined the writing group with some trepidation — I hadn’t been to an in-person event in ages — but I needn’t have worried. It was an eclectic, fascinating mix: first-time writers, an opera singer, and even an accountant (me). I also signed up for a kayaking course, where we paddled around Skyros’ bays each morning, singing sea shanties to the rocks, led by the amazing Suzie Self.

When I wasn’t scribbling notes, kayaking, or pining for my new boyfriend back home (reader, I married him), I attended meetings with the support group I’d been assigned to. Each day, we gathered to share whatever was on our minds — stories, pain, joy — anything and everything. I was the youngest in the group, surrounded by women aged 40 to 60: fun, complex, and endlessly interesting.

Over the two weeks, I heard so many stories of lives layered with history, heartbreak, and hope. Many of the women were still carrying pain from the past, and they had come to Skyros to untangle and heal. They were my inspiration for The Old Crones Club (and I do hope they’re not offended by the name — it’s absolutely a club I aspire to join).

And on the last day of our writing class, I began my story about a group of wicked witches who form a support group to share their own tangled tales.