Ava Morgyn grew up falling in love with all the wrong characters in all the wrong stories, then studied English Writing & Rhetoric at St. Edward's University. She is a lover of witchcraft, tarot, and powerful women with bad reputations, and she currently resides in Houston with her family, surrounded by antiques and dog hair. When not at her laptop spinning darkly hypnotic tales, she writes for her blog on child loss, hunts for vintage treasures, and reads the darkest books she can find. She is the USA Today bestselling author of the adult novel The Witches of Bone Hill as well as the young adult novels Resurrection Girls and The Salt in Our Blood. Her latest novel is The Bane Witch and she recently talked with Daryl Maxwell for the LAPL Blog.
What was your inspiration for The Bane Witch?
My inspiration for The Bane Witch came from several different places. I have long been fascinated by stories of famous female poisoners in history, such as Giulia Tofana of Italy, who developed her own poison in the seventeenth century to sell to clients who needed to rid themselves of abusive husbands. And I also had begun considering a premise centered around female assassins after watching several series and movies featuring such characters. With time, I began to wonder if I could make it magical somehow because I love writing fiction with paranormal and fantastical themes. And that's when I decided to make them deadly witches.
Are Piers, Henry, Myrtle, Emil, Regis, or any of the other characters in the novel inspired by or based on specific individuals?
None of my characters are based on real people. Of course, I take inspiration from everywhere, and certainly there are touches of myself and people I know and characters I admire in other books and in film present in my characters in this story. But I think it comes out in a less direct, more cultivated way. My magpie brain collects tidbits from all over and tucks them away in a feral nest inside my skull. Then, later, when I'm writing, I can just pull shiny, dazzling things from that assortment of motley details to weave into my story and characters.
How did the novel evolve and change as you wrote and revised it? Are there any characters or scenes that were lost in the process that you wish had made it to the published version?
I don't think anything major was cut in editing. On the contrary, it's more that I have to thread stuff in to round out all the thin spots where I didn't quite say enough in the first pass. But if I could, I would write a whole separate book of all the bane witches' backstories and the marks they've taken down. It was so fun to get to do some of that here, and I could have gone on for pages and pages.
Did you have to do any research involving plants and poisons prior to writing The Bane Witch? If so, how long did it take you to do the research and write The Bane Witch?
I did have to do quite a bit of poisonous plant research. Fortunately, I find plants fascinating, so it was all fun for me. I did a minimal amount of research up front, honing in on pokeweed as Piers' early childhood plant of choice because I needed to know that for the opening scenes. But the rest of my research is typically conducted while I'm drafting. And I had the added benefit of having a son studying botany in the Adirondacks, who I could call at all hours and ask random questions. Altogether, it probably took me about six to eight months to write The Bane Witch and pass it off to my editor.
What was the most interesting or surprising thing that you learned during your research?
One of my favorite research tidbits, which I didn't even get to include in the story, is the manchineel tree. It grows in Florida and has a sap so toxic that if you stand under it when it rains, your skin can blister! Likewise, giant hogweed has scarred people who tried to pull it with their bare hands, and the smoke can kill if you burn it. I think what's the most disturbing about some of these deadly plants is just how ubiquitous they are and how unassuming they can look. The destroying angel mushrooms I write about in The Bane Witch are quite lackluster in appearance. There isn't anything significant about them except how very fatal they are.
What was your inspiration for the venery and the magic they possess?
I wanted the Bane witches to be organized into something like a cross between a witch's coven and a wolf's hunting pack. Of course, wolf packs are mostly just family groups. Women have often found their strength in numbers. This can be seen in the story of Giulia Tofana, whom I mentioned earlier. In part, it was the unspoken agreement between women that allowed her to operate for so long undetected. She didn't speak of her clients, and the women in the communities she served didn't speak of her. That created a circle of protection for all of them. And I think this is something women are keenly and instinctively aware of. So certainly, these witches who are carrying out dangerous, illegal work would need a network of support. And where are they going to get that? Not from the culture that has made their work necessary in the first place. They're going to have to get it from each other.
Your biography says you grew up "falling in love with all the wrong characters in all the wrong stories." Can you explain that a bit? Which "wrong" characters in which "wrong" stories?
Well, I grew up in the eighties when there was a wave of fantasy books and films coming out. And I grew up in a conservative, Christian household—two, in fact, because my parents divorced early. And I was fed a cultural diet of Disney princess movies and bible stories and the like. But at the same time, I was watching Madonna on MTV, and I was falling in love with The Dark Crystal and The Last Unicorn, and I was learning about women like Anne Boleyn and Queen Elizabeth I in history. And I had this habit of rooting for the villains in these stories, who were often women who either intentionally or unintentionally challenged cultural norms and gender stereotypes. For me, they were women who demonstrated a broader range of emotion and experience than I was being told women could expect to have. And in general, ideas of fantasy and magic, and witchcraft were being heavily discouraged and demonized around me. It was the era of Satanic panic, after all. And yet, fantasy was thriving, and I was really finding myself in these stories and characters that I was being told were bad for one reason or another. And I had a very early soft spot for the witches, who in many of these stories were cast as the villains. But I never quite saw them that way.
Where are your favorite places to hunt for vintage treasures? What was your latest find?
I love so much that you asked this. My favorite place to find vintage is in the thrift stores because I love a bargain, and I love the thrill of the hunt. But I also frequent antique and vintage stores when I can. The prices are often still very fair, and it's supporting small businesses! The last finds that I listed in my Etsy shop include an eighties prom dress in hot pink taffeta and a handmade clown costume from the seventies. My last personal find was a disco polyester dress in a Scottish print from the sixties. I love pretty much anything mid-century or with a witchy flair, and the weirder, the better, in my opinion.
Your biography also says that you currently live in Houston, Texas. Do you have any favorite places? A hidden gem that someone visiting should not miss but would only learn about from a resident?
This city is packed with gems! Houston is enormous and so culturally diverse. You can never get bored here. I highly recommend a stop by Body Mind & Soul or Thorn & Moon Apothecary for fun, magical finds. Also, Agora for coffee, Aga's for the best Indian and Pakistani food, and Lei Low for drinks. And if you can come in the fall and head out to the Texas Renaissance Festival for a day, I promise it will not disappoint.
Do you have a favorite witch portrayal in a novel, television series, or motion picture?
I have so many! I love the aunts in Practical Magic—both the book and the movie. I love Meryl Streep as the Witch in Into the Woods. And I have long been a fan of Morgaine in The Mists of Avalon. But I also loved Circe in the novel of the same name by Madeline Miller, and Abitha in Slewfoot by Brom. And I have a few favorite witch movies like The VVitch, The Love Witch, and You Won’t Be Alone.
A least favorite? (I realize that you may not want to address this one, and if that is the case, please don't. But I also realize it might be so bad that it could be fun to answer.)?
You know, the Disney witches of my childhood are probably best captured here, but only because they were trying so hard to convince us that these strong, independent, ambitious women who held leadership roles in their communities were bad, usually by making them old, obnoxious, or particularly murderous. I have since learned that being older as a woman is a blessing, not a curse. That being labeled "obnoxious" usually just means you are outspoken and sure of yourself. And that if you are feeling murderous, it is probably because someone knowingly and egregiously crossed a boundary they shouldn't have.
If The Bane Witch was going to be adapted into a film or television series, who would your dream cast be?
I'm never very good at this question because I am terrible with names. But I have considered that Florence Pugh or Elisabeth Moss would make an excellent Piers. And someone recently suggested Kathy Bates for the role of Aunt Myrtle, which I now can't unsee because she's perfect.
The ending of The Bane Witch seems open to telling more stories about the venery and the Bane witches. Is The Bane Witch the first of a series?
It wasn't intended to be, but I am open to the idea of developing another book in this world, possibly through the eyes of another one of the bane witches. I think there are so many stories to tell there. For me, it's just very important that it feels right and that the inspiration is flowing. I would never want to force it and give readers something less than what they deserve. But I'm toying with ideas.
What's currently on your nightstand?
Right now, it's A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik and Liber Null & Psychonaut: The Practice of Chaos Magic by Peter J. Carroll.
Can you name your top five favorite or most influential authors?
This is always so hard for me to narrow down, especially since I'm more of a favorite book person than a favorite author person. But I'll say Margaret Atwood, Alice Hoffman, Chuck Wendig, Eve Chase, and Rachel Harrison.
What was your favorite book when you were a child?
Howliday Inn by James Howe really started it all, and I loved Superfudge by Judy Blume. I think I still have my original copy of that, and Charlotte's Web. And I was obsessed with Greek mythology, which I devoured in any book whenever I got the chance.
Was there a book you felt you needed to hide from your parents?
I always credit my parents with never taking a book out of my hands, but the truth is that if they had known what I was reading half the time, they definitely would have. That said, I really believe that being allowed the freedom to read whatever my whims dictated did so much to develop my character and imagination. Because I read above my grade level, the books that interested me were often more mature than I was. But I never felt harmed by anything I read. I didn't hide my books because it didn't occur to me that I should. I was reading Poe as an elementary student, and authors like V.C. Andrews and Stephen King in middle school. At the same time, I was also picking up Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, and the Bronte sisters' Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre.
Is there a book you've faked reading?
I was the weird kid who often loved the books I had to read for school. But I do recall DNFing A Tale of Two Cities even though it was a school assignment. And I did the same with one of Shakespeare's plays a few years later, though I couldn't tell you which one. We'd already read two or three of them by that point, and I am a restless reader. My tastes change often.
Can you name a book you've bought for the cover?
I buy books for the cover all the time! I am such a sucker for beautiful artwork, and these cover designers just keep turning them out. But I am rarely disappointed. I think my most recent for-the-cover purchase was The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo, which was brilliant, I have to say.
Is there a book that changed your life?
There are a few. Namely, a collection of Edgar Allan Poe’s short stories I had as a kid, The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, and The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley. And Wuthering Heights is still my favorite love story, twisted as it is.
Can you name a book for which you are an evangelist (and you think everyone should read)?
Books I can’t shut up about include Vanity Fair, The Red Tent, Vita Nostra, Social Creature, The Secret History, and Bunny. But really there are far too many to name.
Is there a book you would most want to read again for the first time?
The Handmaid’s Tale or Cat’s Eye by Margaret Atwood. Her voice is breathtaking.
What is the last piece of art (music, movies, TV, more traditional art forms) that you've experienced or that has impacted you?
Nosferatu, the film, was grotesquely beautiful, which is a striking intersection to arrive at. And I don't think I could ever watch the series Succession too many times.
What is your idea of THE perfect day (where you could go anywhere/meet with anyone)?
It would be unharried and would involve strong coffee, a stroll through beautiful woods like in the Pacific Northwest, very comfortable clothes, and delicious food that I don't have to cook myself.
What is the question that you're always hoping you'll be asked, but never have been?
I always want to be asked about my daughter who passed away. Not necessarily literally, because it makes people uncomfortable, and I can't always talk about her without crying. But theoretically, because I never get to hear or say her name enough anymore. And that is so hard as a parent.
What is your answer?
My answer is that her name is Evelyn. And she lived eighteen spectacular years. And she, like her brother and sister, is the best thing I've ever created. I miss her every agonizing day. And she would be so, so proud of this book.
What are you working on now?
I have another standalone novel about witches coming out in winter 2026 called Only Spell Deep, and it's full of dark magic, very flawed characters, haunting secrets, and deadly stakes. And I'm polishing up a couple of proposals that I'm so excited to write, but can't say much about yet.
