Paranormal Women’s Fiction
Fiction for women 40 and over who are all out of ducks to give!
As a woman over the age of 40, I can tell you with all certainty that the older I get, the less ducks I have to give. This is true for a lot of middle-aged women. I know, at least for me, I like some of the books I’m reading to reflect that. That is where paranormal women’s fiction comes in.
Growing older doesn’t mean we need to accept and settle for books that cut our age group out completely or, worse yet, turn us all into old hags and villains in the story. We’ve more than earned a space that has been carved out just for us and the real-life issues we’re going through. That is where Paranormal Women’s Fiction (PWF) comes in! It’s the perfect blending of paranormal (paranormal romance even) with women’s fiction.
Let’s do a deeper dive into the issues women are dealing with in midlife.
What is Paranormal Women’s Fiction?
What the duck is up with the all duck references?
That’s easy. Duck is a nod to the autocorrect feature on a phone for the word fuck.
Age is not just a ducking number:
Paranormal women’s fiction isn’t just about having a heroine who is 40 or over (some paranormal women’s fiction pwf is aimed at women 35 and older). There are many more ingredients that go into the midlife cocktail than simply age.
Empty Nest: the baby ducks are all grown and have flown away.
For women with children who have left home, the experience of an “empty nest” can be emotionally challenging. I can speak from experience. Empty nest can be strange to adjust to. Your house went from bursting at the seams to silent.
Divorce/Relationship issues: duck this mate for life BS.
Getting a divorce can be ducking horrible or ducking great (depending on your view). Not to mention, getting back into the dating scene can seem daunting and often overwhelming.
Maybe there isn’t a divorce happening but something else. Perhaps there are changes to sexy times with your partner. A very active sex life can suddenly have the brakes put on as both your and your partner age. Navigating those waters can be tricky.
And maybe the single life is for you, and you’re fine with it. To each duck their own. Perhaps you’re single but entering the shallow end of the dating pool. All these types of relationship statuses have a direct impact on your life and should be reflected in PWF books in some manner.
Getting older: the queen duck isn’t as young as she used to be.
Listen, I get it. Not everyone’s midlife situation is the ducking the same. But I think we can agree that middle age isn’t for the weak. There are days things hurt on me that I frankly didn’t even know I had. Does every middle-aged woman have aches and pains? No. Also, lucky witches! LOL1 But there are days I certainly feel as if I’m on the wrong side of 40.
Menopause: Hotter than ducking hell in here.
Menopause (you know, hot flashes, brain fog, and suddenly noticing your significant other can make soup sound crunchy). One second I’m hotter than hell, and the next, I’m shivering. One minute my mood is fine, and the next, I’m suddenly replaying reality crime shows in my head in the event I snap.
Work/carreer: ducking 9 to 5.
Women over 40 may be balancing demanding careers with caring for children and aging parents. Finding a healthy work-life balance can be challenging (read that as ducking impossible). Ageism, or discrimination based on age, isn’t unheard of for older women either. Also, I’m going to be honest here, the older we get, the more tempting it is to look at a boss or a job and say, “duck this crap.”
Finances: How am I going to ducking pay for this?
It can be very hard to find a way to make ends meet. Often middle age women find themselves supporting both their children and helping to support their parents. If a divorce has come into play it too can have an impact on finances.
Who the duck am I?
As women over 40 reach a new stage in life, they may find themselves questioning their personal identity and purpose. Also, personal note here…I walk into a room and can’t remember why I’m there, so how in the hell am I supposed to know who I am when I can’t even figure out why I’m somewhere?
Society: I can duck if I want to.
Society (okay, some random stranger on the internet) up and decides women over 40 can’t wear their hair a certain way or dress in clothes they like. That women over 40 should dress their age. Yeah, duck off, dude! We’re going to wear what we want, and if we want a side part, we’ll rock that shit!
Friendship: ducks of a feather don’t always flock together, but sometimes they do.
For various reasons, not everyone woman has a built-in support system of ride-or-die bitches willing to cut a person for you. It can be hard to navigate the waters of midlife on your own. Female friendships matter and can impact women’s lives greatly.
I know I have a set of ride-or-die bitches who would help me bury a body. I affectionately refer to them as my shovel sisters. But if anyone asks later, we didn’t do it and were totally not in the country when whenever happened occurred. (wink, wink–hey, look at that reality crime TV viewing paying off for me)
What is the Fab13, and what do they have to do with Paranormal Women’s Fiction?
When a group of thirteen of us (Fab13) came together to combine forces and bring attention to a genre that didn’t have a name yet, and was hard to find, we never dreamed it would explode into the popular literature category it has become. We were just tired of not seeing more of the issues we were going through as women 40 and over, and wanted to help others have an easier way to find books they could relate to. So, while we didn’t invent the genre, we shined a massive spotlight on it and helped get it on the map with vendors.
I’d be shit at writing an article about paranormal women’s fiction if I didn’t bring up the book Practical Magic. That is a gold standard for the genre. Were there other books out prior to Feb 2020 that checked the boxes of paranormal women’s fiction? Yes. The Fab13‘s goal was to help them find a category to call home. Not to pat myself on the back, but I think we did a damn good job and achieved our goal!
The recipe for brewing up the perfect PWF novel:
While we aren’t all going through the same things, and you may even have some issues not listed above, there are enough overlapping issues older women are dealing with that they should be reflected in some of the paranormal fiction and paranormal romance books that are available on the market today.
Think about it. A witch having a hot flash? What could possibly happen? Inheriting a home from a deceased relative only to find out it’s haunted by the very same relative. Jumping back into the dating scene only to find out you’re on a date with a werewolf. These themes and more can be found in the amazing world of PWF.
Now that you’re well-versed in Paranormal Women’s Fiction, it’s time to dive into the ducking waters and give it a try! Don’t worry. I’m here to help guide you. I’ve compiled a lit of the best paranormal women’s fiction books to get you started!
Where to start on your Paranormal Women’s Fiction journey!
Cloudy with a Chance of Witchcraft by Mandy M. Roth
Visit the town of Grimm Cove in Mandy M. Roth’s paranormal women’s fiction series (Grimm Cove). It starts off with Cloudy with a Chance of Witchcraft. Join Poppy as she deals with an empty nest, a divorce, inheriting a hunted house, a crazy succu-witch, and rekindling a once-thought-lost romance with a man who just happens to be a wolf-shifter.
Top 13 Paranormal Women’s Fiction Books (Fab13 PWF):
Looking for more fantastic paranormal women’s fiction reads? Check out books by the Fab13. With amazing series like Grimm Cove, Forty Proof, Premonition Pointe, Glimmer Lake, Leveling Up, Order of Magic, Betwixt & Between, Good to the Last Death, First Fangs Club, Marina at Midlife, From the Ashes, Midlife Mulligans, Crows Feet Coven you’re sure to find something you love!
Let it All Burn (From the Ashes) Denise Grover Swank
- Cloudy with a Chance of Witchcraft (Grimm Cove) by Mandy M. Roth
- Magical Midlife Meeting (Leveling Up) by K.F. Breene
- Second Chance Magic (Order of Magic) by Michelle M. Pillow
- Suddenly Psychic (Glimmer Lake) by Elizabeth Hunter
- Midlife Bounty Hunter (Forty Proof) by Shannon Mayer
- Witching for Grace (Premonition Pointe) by Deanna Chase
- It’s a Wonderful Midlife Crisis (Good to the Last Death) by Robyn Peterman
- Wrong Side of Forty (Marina at Midlife) by Jana Deleon
- Let it All Burn (From the Ashes) Denise Grover Swank
- Betwixt (Betwixt & Between) by Darynda Jones
- Halfway There (Midlife Mulligans) by Eve Langlais
- Writing Wrongs (Crow’s Feet Coven) by Christine Gael
-
Cloudy with a Chance of Witchcraft (Grimm Cove) by Mandy M. Roth
- Roth, Mandy M. (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 360 Pages - 02/15/2020 (Publication Date) - Independently published (Publisher)
Sucks to Be Me (First Fangs Club) by Kristen Painter
- Painter, Kristen (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 380 Pages - 02/18/2020 (Publication Date) - Kristen Painter (Publisher)
Magical Midlife Meeting (Leveling Up) by K.F. Breene
- Breene, K.F. (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 300 Pages - 02/18/2020 (Publication Date) - Independently published (Publisher)
Second Chance Magic (Order of Magic) by Michelle M. Pillow
- Pillow, Michelle M. (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 300 Pages - 02/15/2020 (Publication Date) - Raven Books, The (Publisher)
Suddenly Psychic (Glimmer Lake) by Elizabeth Hunter
- Hunter, Elizabeth (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 322 Pages - 02/17/2020 (Publication Date) - Recurve Press, LLC (Publisher)
Midlife Bounty Hunter (Forty Proof) by Shannon Mayer
- Mayer, Shannon (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 338 Pages - 04/30/2020 (Publication Date) - Independently published (Publisher)
Witching for Grace (Premonition Pointe) by Deanna Chase
- Chase, Deanna (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 278 Pages - 02/17/2020 (Publication Date) - Bayou Moon Publishing (Publisher)
It’s a Wonderful Midlife Crisis (Good to the Last Death) by Robyn Peterman
- Peterman, Robyn (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 392 Pages - 02/19/2020 (Publication Date) - Independently published (Publisher)
Wrong Side of Forty (Marina at Midlife) by Jana Deleon
- DeLeon, Jana (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 326 Pages - 02/18/2020 (Publication Date) - Jana DeLeon (Publisher)
Let it All Burn (From the Ashes) Denise Grover Swank
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Peterman, Robyn (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 394 Pages - 02/16/2020 (Publication Date) - Robyn Peterman (Publisher)
Betwixt (Betwixt & Between) by Darynda Jones
- Jones, Darynda (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 254 Pages - 02/18/2020 (Publication Date) - Darynda Jones (Publisher)
Halfway There (Midlife Mulligans) by Eve Langlais
- Langlais, Eve (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 368 Pages - 02/10/2020 (Publication Date) - Eve Langlais (Publisher)
Writing Wrongs (Crow’s Feet Coven) by Christine Gael
- Gael, Christine (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 250 Pages - 03/02/2020 (Publication Date) - Independently published (Publisher)
