WORLD WEAVER PRESS
  • Home
    • Start Something New
  • Books
    • All Books >
      • Beyond the Glass Slipper
      • Bite Somebody
      • Bite Somebody Else
      • Black Pearl Dreaming
      • Cassandra Complex
      • Causality Loop
      • Clockwork, Curses, and Coal
      • Continuum
      • Corvidae
      • Cursed: Wickedly Fun Stories
      • Dream Eater
      • Equus
      • Fae
      • Falling of the Moon
      • Far Orbit
      • Far Orbit Apogee
      • Fractured Days
      • Frozen Fairy Tales
      • Glass and Gardens: Solarpunk Summers
      • Glass and Gardens: Solarpunk Winters
      • Grandmother Paradox
      • Grimm, Grit, and Gasoline
      • Haunted Housewives
      • Heir to the Lamp
      • He Sees You When He's Creepin': Tales of Krampus
      • Into the Moonless Night
      • Jack Jetstark's Intergalactic Freakshow
      • King of Ash and Bones (ebook)
      • Krampusnacht
      • Last Dream of Her Mortal Soul
      • Meddlers of Moonshine
      • Mothers of Enchantment
      • Mrs Claus
      • Multispecies Cities
      • Murder in the Generative Kitchen
      • Recognize Fascism
      • Scarecrow
      • Sirens
      • Shards of History
      • Shattered Fates
      • Skull and Pestle
      • Solarpunk (Translation)
      • Solomon's Bell
      • SonofaWitch!
      • Speculative Story Bites
      • Trenchcoats, Towers, and Trolls
      • Weredog Whisperer
      • Wolves and Witches
    • Anthologies and Collections
    • Novels
    • Novellas
    • Fairy Tale
    • Fantasy
    • Romance
    • Science Fiction
    • Urban/Contemporary Fantasy
    • Young Adult SFF
  • Blog
  • About
    • Anthologists
    • Authors
    • Editors
    • FAQ
  • Contact
    • Submit: Anthologies
    • Free Review Copies
  • Press / Publicity
  • Newsletter Signup
  • Privacy Policy
  • Store

WORLD WEAVER PRESS

Rhonda Parrish on Mrs. Claus

11/29/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture
If you look up Santa Claus the top Google result is Wikipedia (because of course it is). Now, we all know that Wikipedia is a good place to begin research and a terrible place to end it, but it’s perfect for the point I want to make, so stay with me.

In the opening section of the Wikipedia page for Santa Claus it talks about all the various names he’s known by and then moves on to explain how he’s known for bringing gifts to good children on Christmas Eve. From there it speaks of how the myth of Santa Claus began with a merging of a Greek bishop named Saint Nicholas, the Dutch figure of Sinterklaas and Britain’s Father Christmas. Further, it talks about how he also has a lot in common with the Pagan god Wodan. The second paragraph about Santa talks about his physical appearance and how that has changed over the years. There is a final paragraph which offers more details about how Santa classifies kids as ‘naughty’ or ‘nice’, says ho ho ho a lot and lives with elves who make toys which he delivers with a magical sleigh and eight flying reindeer.

The opening section of Mrs. Claus’ Wikipedia page, however, is a single paragraph. It says she’s also known to go by ‘Mother Christmas,’ is the wife of Santa Claus (also known as Father Christmas), mentions she’s been referred to as Mary, Jessica, Layla and Martha and then includes one other sentence. That sentence?

“She is known for making cookies with the elves, caring for the reindeer, and preparing toys with her husband.”

I discovered all this after watching an advertisement, of all things. In 2016, Marks & Spencer had a holiday ad all about Mrs. Claus. It showed her as a woman with a life independent of Santa. Like her husband, she helped children, but she did it with a totally different style than him. No reindeer or sleighs for her. No way. This Mrs. Claus rode a snowmobile and flew a helicopter!

I adored that portrayal of Mrs. Claus and it made me realise that I hadn’t seen many portrayals of her at all and those I had were usually a rotund woman dressed like Granny (of Tweetie Bird & Granny fame). Then I started Googling and my disappointment grew.

I wanted to read stories about Mrs. Claus. Not tales where she merely makes cookies with the elves, cares for the reindeer and prepares toys with her husband, but stories where she is the star. Stories where she has agency, and personality and—like the Mrs. Claus from the Marks & Spencer ad—secrets from Santa. I had a difficult time finding those stories and so I decided to compile an anthology full of them. It’s sort of like the anthologist version of the famous quote by Toni Morrison, “If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.”

This is that anthology. I’m excited about the myriad ways it portrays Mrs. Claus—a hero, a villain, a homebody, a spacefarer, an ass kicker, a motivator. It lets her step into the spotlight (sometimes alongside her husband, sometimes alone) and really begin to be more than just Santa’s companion.

You may not approve of all the interpretations of Mrs. Claus contained within these pages, but I hope you’ll find one or two (or more!) that really speak to you.

Find a copy at:

Barnes and Noble
iBookstore
Kobo
World Weaver Press
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    World Weaver Press

    Publishing fantasy, paranormal, and science fiction.

    About WWP
    Books
    Authors
    Contact

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    March 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    March 2013
    January 2013
    October 2012
    July 2012
    May 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012

    Tweets by @WorldWeaver_wwp
World Weaver Press | Books | About | Contact | Blog | Press

© 2012-2022 World Weaver Press
  • Home
    • Start Something New
  • Books
    • All Books >
      • Beyond the Glass Slipper
      • Bite Somebody
      • Bite Somebody Else
      • Black Pearl Dreaming
      • Cassandra Complex
      • Causality Loop
      • Clockwork, Curses, and Coal
      • Continuum
      • Corvidae
      • Cursed: Wickedly Fun Stories
      • Dream Eater
      • Equus
      • Fae
      • Falling of the Moon
      • Far Orbit
      • Far Orbit Apogee
      • Fractured Days
      • Frozen Fairy Tales
      • Glass and Gardens: Solarpunk Summers
      • Glass and Gardens: Solarpunk Winters
      • Grandmother Paradox
      • Grimm, Grit, and Gasoline
      • Haunted Housewives
      • Heir to the Lamp
      • He Sees You When He's Creepin': Tales of Krampus
      • Into the Moonless Night
      • Jack Jetstark's Intergalactic Freakshow
      • King of Ash and Bones (ebook)
      • Krampusnacht
      • Last Dream of Her Mortal Soul
      • Meddlers of Moonshine
      • Mothers of Enchantment
      • Mrs Claus
      • Multispecies Cities
      • Murder in the Generative Kitchen
      • Recognize Fascism
      • Scarecrow
      • Sirens
      • Shards of History
      • Shattered Fates
      • Skull and Pestle
      • Solarpunk (Translation)
      • Solomon's Bell
      • SonofaWitch!
      • Speculative Story Bites
      • Trenchcoats, Towers, and Trolls
      • Weredog Whisperer
      • Wolves and Witches
    • Anthologies and Collections
    • Novels
    • Novellas
    • Fairy Tale
    • Fantasy
    • Romance
    • Science Fiction
    • Urban/Contemporary Fantasy
    • Young Adult SFF
  • Blog
  • About
    • Anthologists
    • Authors
    • Editors
    • FAQ
  • Contact
    • Submit: Anthologies
    • Free Review Copies
  • Press / Publicity
  • Newsletter Signup
  • Privacy Policy
  • Store