If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you already know I’m constantly inspired by my environment. I live in a part of Appalachia where fireflies synchronize, the fog drifts and caresses like a timeworn quilt laid by weathered hands, and cicadas emerge by the millions every seventeen years. I live in a temperate rainforest, steeped in magic and teeming with life.

I started a mini-series on Haints Naturalism on my Instagram account (handle @megpalmerwrites) featuring tips and tidbits about likely haint lairs, what to do if a haint has possibly possessed a friend, and how to spot mystical emissaries from another dimension. To give you a little taste, here are some photos I’ve taken while hiking in and around the Knoxville area and the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.

This is a likely haint lair. Dark, creepy, alluring to the curious. The best way to capture sunlight is through water. Also, this is clearly just magical. By now, it should be obvious that this is another possible haint lair. By all means, explore … but have your practiced method for confusing the haints on hand!Here, I’ve captured a possible portal to the spiritual dimension. You can tell by the multi-layered, gossamer rainbow webs.

If you love the moody allure of my photos, you’ll probably like Haints! It’ll be available toward the end of next month (hopefully.) I got round two of proofs at my fingertips as we speak. Guess I better get back to work.