cryptids – New World Witchery – The Search for American Traditional Witchcraft

The Folk Magician’s Notebook – July 2026

Release the Kraken!

Summary: We head to the seaside this month as we look at the lunar forecast, check our cards, hang up some kelp to tell us the weather, learn why the sea is salty, and meet a mythical denizen of the deep.

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We highly recommend that you find an almanac or lunar-oriented datebook to help you with planning out your own magical year. Some we can recommend:

You can find a transcript of this episode at our Transcripts page.

Sections

Lunar Forecast – Our monthly rundown of lunar astrological information
In the Cards – Divination through cartomancy, tarot, and folk methods. This month: The Jack of Diamonds, the Three of Cups, and plant-based weather divination.
A Witch’s Words – Proverbs, folklore, and book reviews. This month: two stories of how the seas got salty and reviews of folkloric graphic novels (The Girl from the Sea, The Magic Fish, and The Cautionary Fables & Fairytales series).
Materia Magica – Magical artifacts and crafts. This month: the Mermaid’s Purse.
Creature Corner – Folkloric creatures, beings, and entities. This month: The Kraken
Listener Feedback – We read and respond to your questions and comments! If you have one you’d like to submit, mail us at ⁠compassandkey@gmail.com⁠ or ⁠newworldwitcherypodcast@gmail.com⁠

Check out Cory’s book, ⁠New World Witchery: A Trove of North American Folk Magic⁠! (also available from ⁠Amazon⁠). Also check out our collaborative book, ⁠Conjuring the Commonplace: A Guide to Everyday Enchantment and Junk Drawer Magic⁠ (⁠1000Volt Press⁠) (also available from ⁠Amazon⁠). If you are interested in playing card divination, you can check out our ⁠Cartomancy post⁠ or pick up Cory’s book, ⁠54 Devils⁠.

Image via Cory Thomas Hutcheson (CC 2.0)

Keep in touch and follow us through our ⁠Find Us⁠ page!

Promos and Music:

Title and closing music are “Runaround (AM Radio),” by Aaron Solomon, and is licensed from ⁠Audio Socket⁠. (License #1273). Additional incidental music Kevin Macleod and Daniel Birch, from Free Music Archive and used under a CC 2.0 license.

Sound effects from ⁠Freesound.org ⁠and in the Public Domain. Additional “rooster” sound effect from Darina Evstafeva from ⁠Pixabay⁠.

Please consider supporting us by purchasing our promotional items in the ⁠New World Witchery Threadless⁠ shop or by joining our ⁠Patreon⁠ supporters.

If you like us AND you like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, you will love our new show: ⁠Myth Taken: A Buffy the Vampire Slayer Podcast⁠, now available through all the podcatchers! You can also check out Cory’s folklore show, ⁠Chasing Foxfire⁠, where he explores the intersection of folklore and topics like history, medicine, science, nature, literature, pop culture, and more!

The Folk Magician’s Notebook – June 2026

A beetle in a bottle…

A Beetle in a Bottle

Summary: Our monthly notebook is back featuring card readings, a lunar forecast, a story of a scary big toe, some magic with bottled beetles, and more!

Please check out our Patreon page! You can help support the show for as little as a dollar a month, and get some awesome rewards at the same time. Even if you can’t give, spread the word and let others know, and maybe we can make New World Witchery even better than it is now.

Producers for this show:

Blake at Crossed Crow Books, Kayla, Anna, Elle, Victoria & Keifel of 1000 Volt Press, Lauren, Sierra, Lisa, Mark, Kels, Benjamin, MissV/Vee, Donna, Pretty Poisons Witch, Heather, Jonathan, Christopher, Ralph of the Holle’s Haven Podcast, Jamie, Catherine, Achija Branvin Sionach, AthenaBeth, and Conjured Cardea! Our sincere thanks to everyone supporting us!

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We highly recommend that you find an almanac or lunar-oriented datebook to help you with planning out your own magical year. Some we can recommend:

You can find a transcript of this episode at our Transcripts page.

Sections

Lunar Forecast – Our monthly rundown of lunar astrological information
In the Cards – Divination through cartomancy, tarot, and folk methods. This month: The Queen of Diamonds, the Eight of Wands, and the Walking Boy
A Witch’s Words – Proverbs, folklore, and book reviews. This month: “The Big Toe” adapted from Alvin Schwartz and a review of Polish Folk Magic by Joanna Tarnawksa
Materia Magica – Magical artifacts and crafts. This month: Blasting Rods
Creature Corner – Folkloric creatures, beings, and entities. This month: Doppelsaugerin
Listener Feedback – We read and respond to your questions and comments! If you have one you’d like to submit, mail us at ⁠compassandkey@gmail.com⁠ or ⁠newworldwitcherypodcast@gmail.com⁠

Image via Cory Thomas Hutcheson (CC 2.0)

Keep in touch and follow us through our ⁠Find Us⁠ page!

Promos and Music:

Sound effects from ⁠Freesound.org ⁠and in the Public Domain. Additional “rooster” sound effect from Darina Evstafeva from ⁠Pixabay⁠.

Please consider supporting us by purchasing our promotional items in the ⁠New World Witchery Threadless⁠ shop or by joining our ⁠Patreon⁠ supporters.

The Folk Magician’s Notebook – May 2026

I like big books and I cannot lie…

I Like Big Books and I Cannot Lie

Summary: A little late and a slightly abbreviated Notebook for you this month, looking at our new and full moons, some deceptive cards, and a lot of magical books!

Producers for this show:

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Sources

We highly recommend that you find an almanac or lunar-oriented datebook to help you with planning out your own magical year. Some we can recommend:

The Witches Almanac

Llewellyn’s Astrological Pocket Planner

Writual Planner

Or your local Farmer’s Almanac!

You can find a transcript of this episode at our Transcripts page.

Sections

Lunar Forecast – Our monthly rundown of lunar astrological information
In the Cards – Divination through cartomancy, tarot, and folk methods. This month: The Seven of Diamonds, the Five of Swords, and the Red Book Game
A Witch’s Words – Proverbs, folklore, and book reviews. This month: “Cornelius Agrippa, A Ballad” by Robert Southey, and a review of The Art of the Grimoire, by Owen Davies
Materia Magica – Magical artifacts and crafts. This month: The Sixth and Seventh Books of Moses
Creature Corner – Folkloric creatures, beings, and entities. This month: Kyorinrin
Listener Feedback – We read and respond to your questions and comments! If you have one you’d like to submit, mail us at ⁠compassandkey@gmail.com⁠ or ⁠newworldwitcherypodcast@gmail.com⁠

Image via Cory Thomas Hutcheson (CC 2.0)

Keep in touch and follow us through our ⁠Find Us⁠ page!

Promos and Music:

Sound effects from ⁠Freesound.org ⁠and in the Public Domain. Additional “rooster” sound effect from Darina Evstafeva from ⁠Pixabay⁠.

Please consider supporting us by purchasing our promotional items in the ⁠New World Witchery Threadless⁠ shop or by joining our ⁠Patreon⁠ supporters.

The Folk Magician’s Notebook – April 2026

Making Fools of us All

Summary: This time around we are looking at the Lyrid meteors, a “pocket” of lunar magic, the Jokers and the Fools of cartomancy, telling a tale about a very windy house, and chasing down devils and fearsome critters, among other things!

Producers for this show:

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Download (right click to save): The Folk Magician’s Notebook-April 2026

Sources

We highly recommend that you find an almanac or lunar-oriented datebook to help you with planning out your own magical year. Some we can recommend:

The Witches Almanac

Llewellyn’s Astrological Pocket Planner

Writual Planner

Or your local Farmer’s Almanac!

You can find a transcript of this episode at our Transcripts page.

Sections

Lunar Forecast – Our monthly rundown of lunar astrological information
In the Cards – Divination through cartomancy, tarot, and folk methods. This month: Jokers, the Fool, and Graphomancy
A Witch’s Words – Proverbs, folklore, and book reviews. This month: “The House of the Wind” and a review of The Witches’ Devil by Roger J. Horne
Materia Magica – Magical artifacts and crafts. This month: Hag Stones
Creature Corner – Folkloric creatures, beings, and entities. This month: The Hodag
Listener Feedback – We read and respond to your questions and comments! If you have one you’d like to submit, mail us at ⁠compassandkey@gmail.com⁠ or ⁠newworldwitcherypodcast@gmail.com⁠

Image via Cory Thomas Hutcheson (CC 2.0)

Keep in touch and follow us through our ⁠Find Us⁠ page!

Promos and Music:

Sound effects from ⁠Freesound.org ⁠and in the Public Domain. Additional “rooster” sound effect from Darina Evstafeva from ⁠Pixabay⁠.

Please consider supporting us by purchasing our promotional items in the ⁠New World Witchery Threadless⁠ shop or by joining our ⁠Patreon⁠ supporters.

The Folk Magician’s Notebook – March 2026

Letters and Numbers

Mad as a March Hare

Summary: We spring forward by looking at blood moons, rabbits’ feet, jackalopes, witch-hares, and more!

Producers for this show:

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Download (right click to save): The Folk Magician’s Notebook-March 2026

Sources

We highly recommend that you find an almanac or lunar-oriented datebook to help you with planning out your own magical year. Some we can recommend:

The Witches Almanac

Llewellyn’s Astrological Pocket Planner

Writual Planner

Or your local Farmer’s Almanac!

You can find a transcript of this episode at our Transcripts page.

Sections

Lunar Forecast – Our monthly rundown of lunar astrological information
In the Cards – Divination through cartomancy, tarot, and folk methods. This month: The Jack of Clubs, the Page of Pentacles, and Folk Palmistry (with nods to Vance Randolph’s Ozark Magic & Folklore)
A Witch’s Words – Proverbs, folklore, and book reviews. This month: “The Dartmoor Witch-Hare” and a review of Fate or Fortune by Icy Sedgwick
Materia Magica – Magical artifacts and crafts. This month: Lucky Rabbits’ Feet
Creature Corner – Folkloric creatures, beings, and entities. This month: Jackalopes (with information from Jan Brunvand’s American Folklore: An Encyclopedia)
Listener Email – We read and respond to your questions! If you have one you’d like to submit, mail us at ⁠compassandkey@gmail.com⁠ or ⁠newworldwitcherypodcast@gmail.com⁠

Image via Cory Thomas Hutcheson (CC 2.0)

Keep in touch and follow us through our ⁠Find Us⁠ page!

Promos and Music:

Sound effects from ⁠Freesound.org ⁠and in the Public Domain. Additional “rooster” sound effect from Darina Evstafeva from ⁠Pixabay⁠.

Please consider supporting us by purchasing our promotional items in the ⁠New World Witchery Threadless⁠ shop or by joining our ⁠Patreon⁠ supporters.

The Folk Magician’s Notebook – February 2026

Letters and Numbers

Summary: We jump into the shortest month with talk of candles, cards, magic books, hobby horses, and…rat letters?

Producers for this show:

Play:

Stream: The Folk Magician’s Notebook-February 2026

Download (right click to save): The Folk Magician’s Notebook – February 2026

Sources

We highly recommend that you find an almanac or lunar-oriented datebook to help you with planning out your own magical year. Some we can recommend:

The Witches Almanac

Llewellyn’s Astrological Pocket Planner

Writual Planner

Or your local Farmer’s Almanac!

You can find a transcript of this episode at our Transcripts page.

Sections

Lunar Forecast – Our monthly rundown of lunar astrological information
In the Cards – Divination through cartomancy, tarot, and folk methods. This month: Pythagorean Numerology (with recommendations for The Book of English Magic by Philip Carr-Gomm and Richard Heygate)
A Witch’s Words – Proverbs, folklore, and book reviews. This month: “⁠The Book of Cyprianus” and a review of ⁠Grimoires by Owen Davies⁠
Materia Magica – Magical artifacts and crafts. This month: Rat Letters (with nods to Via Hedera)
Creature Corner – Folkloric creatures, beings, and entities. This month: Mari Lwyd (with a recommendation to look at Mara Starling‘s work)
Listener Email – We read and respond to your questions! If you have one you’d like to submit, mail us at ⁠compassandkey@gmail.com⁠ or ⁠newworldwitcherypodcast@gmail.com⁠

Check out Cory’s book, ⁠New World Witchery: A Trove of North American Folk Magic⁠! (also available from ⁠Amazon⁠). We also have a new book, ⁠Conjuring the Commonplace: A Guide to Everyday Enchantment and Junk Drawer Magic⁠ (⁠1000Volt Press⁠) (also available from ⁠Amazon⁠). If you are interested in playing card divination, you can check out our ⁠Cartomancy post⁠ or pick up Cory’s book, ⁠54 Devils⁠.

Image via Cory Thomas Hutcheson (CC 2.0)

Keep in touch and follow us through our ⁠Find Us⁠ page!

Promos and Music:

Sound effects from ⁠Freesound.org ⁠and in the Public Domain. Additional “rooster” sound effect from Darina Evstafeva from ⁠Pixabay⁠.

Please consider supporting us by purchasing our promotional items in the ⁠New World Witchery Threadless⁠ shop or by joining our ⁠Patreon⁠ supporters.

The Folk Magician’s Notebook – January 2026

New Year, New Notebook

Summary: We’re back with some familiar magical advice and some new segments to add more magic to your year!

Producers for this show:

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Stream: The Folk Magician’s Notebook-January 2026

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Sources

We highly recommend that you find an almanac or lunar-oriented datebook to help you with planning out your own magical year. Some we can recommend:

The Witches Almanac

Llewellyn’s Astrological Pocket Planner

Writual Planner

Or your local Farmer’s Almanac!

You can find a transcript of this episode at our Transcripts page.

Sections

Lunar Forecast – Our monthly rundown of lunar astrological information
In the Cards – Divination through cartomancy, tarot, and folk methods. This month: glossolalia (speaking in tongues)
A Witch’s Words – Proverbs, folklore, and book reviews. This month: “⁠The Witch of Treva⁠” and a review of ⁠Cunning Folk⁠ by ⁠Tabitha Stanmore⁠
Materia Magica – Magical artifacts and crafts. This month: Incantation bowls
Creature Corner – Folkloric creatures, beings, and entities. This month: Tomte and nisse (with recommendations to read ⁠Linda Raedisch⁠ and ⁠Claude Lecouteux⁠)
Listener Email – We read and respond to your questions! If you have one you’d like to submit, mail us at ⁠compassandkey@gmail.com⁠ or ⁠newworldwitcherypodcast@gmail.com⁠

Image via Cory Thomas Hutcheson (CC 2.0)

Keep in touch and follow us through our ⁠Find Us⁠ page!

Promos and Music:

Sound effects from ⁠Freesound.org ⁠and in the Public Domain. Additional “rooster” sound effect from Darina Evstafeva from ⁠Pixabay⁠.

Please consider supporting us by purchasing our promotional items in the ⁠New World Witchery Threadless⁠ shop or by joining our ⁠Patreon⁠ supporters.

Episode 193 – Summer Camp Cryptids with Bones

Cory interviews Bones from the Cursed and Hex Files podcasts about working with witchcraft and the paranormal and how those pieces fit together with cryptids and other fearsome critters as well.

Summary:

Sing the songs of summer (or scream the screams of summer camp spooky stories) as you gather around the campfire for this one. Cory interviews Bones from the Cursed and Hex Files podcasts about working with witchcraft and the paranormal and how those pieces fit together with cryptids and other fearsome critters as well.

Producers for this show:

Abby, Achija Branvin Sionach, AromaG’s Botanica, AthenaBeth, Bagga Marsh, Benjamin, Breanna, Carol, Carole, Catherine, Christopher, ConjuredCardea, Daniel, Dave, Don, Donna, Erin, Griffin, Heather, Jen Rue of Rue & Hyssop, Jess, Jodi, John, Jonathan at the ModernSouthernPolytheist, Kristopher, Matthew Venus, Minimiel, Montine of Book of My Shadows, , Nikki, Payton, Sara, Scarlet Pirate, Staci, Stephanie, Ralph from the Holle’s Haven Podcast, Violet, and WisdomQueen (if we missed you this episode, we’ll make sure you’re in the next one!). Big thanks to everyone supporting us!

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Play: Episode 193 – Summer Camp Cryptids with Bones

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Our guest Bones is the host of both the Hex Files and Cursed podcasts. Check them out for more spooky, supernatural fun mixed with a little witchery for good measure!

If you’re looking for some good campfire stories, Cory recommends the “Spooky” series collected by S.E. Schlosser (as well as the classic Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz). He’d also recommend checking out Chasing American Monsters, by Jason Offutt, if you’re interested in cryptids, too.

You can now buy Cory’s book, New World Witchery: A Trove of North American Folk Magic! (also available from Amazon)

Image via author (CC 2.0)

If you have feedback you’d like to share, email us at compassandkey@gmail.com or newworldwitcherypodcast@gmail.com or leave a comment at the website: www.newworldwitchery.com . We’d love to hear from you!

Don’t forget to follow us at Twitter! And check out our Facebook page! For those who are interested, we are also on TikTok now. You can follow us on Instagram (main account, or you can follow Laine as well) or check out our new YouTube channel with back episodes of the podcast and new “Everyday Magic” videos, too (as well as most of our contest announcements)! Have something you want to say? Leave us a voice mail on our official NWW hotline: (442) 999-4824 (that’s 442-99-WITCH, if it helps).

Promos and Music:

Title and closing music are “Woman Blues,” by Paul Avgerinos, and is licensed from Audio Socket. Incidental music is “Brushed Bells Leaving Home,” by Daniel Birch (Free Music Archive).

Please consider supporting us by purchasing our promotional items in the New World Witchery Threadless shop or by joining our Patreon supporters.

If you like us AND you like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, you will love our new show: Myth Taken: A Buffy the Vampire Slayer Podcast, now available through all the podcatchers!

Please think about checking out our Audible Trial program. Visit Audibletrial.com/newworldwitchery to get your free trial of Audible, where you can download over 180,000 titles (including some narrated by Cory). Your purchases help support this show, and there’s no obligation to continue after the free trial

Special Episode – Camp Splitfoot – Junior

Summary: We begin our annual All Hallows Read tradition by visiting our local campsite, Camp Splitfoot. Tonight, we hear the tale of “Junior,” inspired by a local legend from author Victoria Raschke.

Please check out our Patreon page! You can help support the show for as little as a dollar a month, and get some awesome rewards at the same time. Even if you can’t give, spread the word and let others know, and maybe we can make New World Witchery even better than it is now.

Producers for this show: Heather, WisdomQueen, Jennifer, Jen Rue of Rue & Hyssop, Little Wren, Khristopher, Tanner, Fergus from Queer as Folk Magic, Achija of Spellbound Bookbinding, Johnathan at the ModernSouthernPolytheist, Catherine, Payton, Carole, Stephanie, Kat, Breanna, Staci, Montine, Vic from the Distelfink Sippschaft of Urglaawe, Moma Sarah at ConjuredCardea, Jody, AthenaBeth, Bo, Scarlet Pirate, Tim, Leslie, Sherry, Jenna, Jess, Laura, Abbi, Nicole, & Clever Kim’s Curios (if we missed you this episode, we’ll make sure you’re in the next one!). Big thanks to everyone supporting us!

Cover image of Special Episode - Camp Splitfoot - Campfire Tales

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We begin our annual All Hallows Read with the theme of campfire tales in 2020. Our first tale is a story called “Junior,” inspired by a local legend shared with us by author Victoria Raschke. You can also hear an interview with Victoria in our previous episode.

Huge thanks to everyone who participated in our recent surveys, including the one where many of our tales this year will come from! We’ll have announcements of contest winners soon!

You can now also pre-order Cory’s forthcoming book, New World Witchery: A Trove of North American Folk Magic!

We’re also working with the Wylde Faun candle company to offer a special discount to our supporters! You can buy anything from their catalog and get 20% off by using the code “NewWorldWitch” at checkout!

Image by Cory Thomas Hutcheson.

If you have feedback you’d like to share, email us or leave a comment. We’d love to hear from you! Don’t forget to follow us at Twitter! And check out our Facebook page! For those who are interested, we also now have a page on Pinterest you might like, called “The Olde Broom.” You can follow us on Instagram or check out our new YouTube channel with back episodes of the podcast and new “Everyday Magic” videos, too (as well as most of our contest announcements)! Have something you want to say? Leave us a voice mail on our official NWW hotline: (442) 999-4824 (that’s 442-99-WITCH, if it helps).

Promos & Music

Music for this episode includes works by Colin Scudder, Nicole Reynolds, and Paul Avgernos, and is licensed from Audio Socket.

Please consider supporting us by purchasing our promotional items in the New World Witchery Threadless shop or by joining our Patreon supporters. If you like us AND you like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, you will love our new show: Myth Taken: A Buffy the Vampire Slayer Podcast, now available through all the podcatchers! Please think about checking out our Audible Trial program. Visit Audibletrial.com/newworldwitchery to get your free trial of Audible, where you can download over 180,000 titles (including some narrated by Cory). Your purchases help support this show, and there’s no obligation to continue after the free trial

Episode 111 – Magical Travel

Summary:

We cover magical travel from a few different angles in this episode, including protection while traveling, bringing magical supplies with you when you’re on the road, and folklore about traveling.

Please check out our Patreon page! You can help support the show for as little as a dollar a month, and get some awesome rewards at the same time. Even if you can’t give, spread the word and let others know, and maybe we can make New World Witchery even better than it is now.

Producers for this show: Corvus, Diana Garino, Renee Odders, Ye Olde Magic Shoppe, Raven Dark Moon, The Witches View Podcast, Sarah, Molly, Corvus, Catherine, AthenaBeth, Jen Rue of Rue & Hyssop, Little Wren, Jessica, Victoria, Daniel, Plum Deluxe Teas, Johnathan at the ModernSouthernPolytheist, Montine, Achija of Spellbound Bookbinding, and Hazel (if we missed you this episode, we’ll make sure you’re in the next one!). Big thanks to everyone supporting us!

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If you like the theme of this episode, you might want to check out our page with all of our Travel-related episodes, too.

We both mention Cunningham’s Earth, Air, Fire, & Water and Earth Power.

Some of the lore mentioned can be found at S.E. Schlosser’s AmericanFolklore.net site, the AtlasObscura site, and in the books under the Weird US imprint. Make sure to check your local bookstores as well for regional folklore materials (look under Dewey Decimals 390 and 398).

Cory also brings up some folklore about travel superstitions you can find in Vance Randolph’s Ozark Magic & Folklore, Patrick Gainer’s Witches, Ghosts, & Signs, and the Foxfire series.

Laine mentions the groups MUFON and BFRO, both in connection with finding sites for strange occurances like UFOs and Bigfoot.

We mention our excursion on June 3rd to see the ancient magical artifacts exhibit at the Penn Museum and we’d love for you to join us! You can find out about it in our Special Update post on it, or check out the Facebook Event page. We’ll also have a cemetery tour/ghost walk that afternoon!

If you have feedback you’d like to share, email us or leave a comment. We’d love to hear from you!

Don’t forget to follow us at Twitter! And check out our Facebook page! For those who are interested, we also now have a page on Pinterest you might like, called “The Olde Broom.” Have something you want to say? Leave us a voice mail on our official NWW hotline: (442) 999-4824 (that’s 442-99-WITCH, if it helps).

Promos & Music

Title and closing music is “Homebound,” by Bluesboy Jag, and is used under license from Magnatune.