I am writing feverishly to finish my new novel, The Road Unsalted, by my birthday, which is two-and-a-half weeks away. That will truly be a celebration for me.

T.R.U. takes place in Carding, Vermont, a village located in the Corvus Valley. Corvus is the species name for the bird family that includes crows, ravens, blue jays and magpies.

My choice of Corvus is rather serendipitous, or at least it seemed so at the time. My husband has a longtime fascination with these intriguing birds, and happened to talk about them at the same time I was searching for a place for Carding on my internal map of Vermont.

As usually happens when you foster an awareness of a creature or a trend or an event, you begin to notice its presence more and more. Now I sit up a bit more in my car when I see crows. I pay close attention when I hear a “Caw” off in the distance.  I’m currently reading my second book on crows. And because I have a lifelong passion for folklore, I’ve started looking for traditional crow stories.

So far, there’s not much to pick from or be inspired by, for that matter. Which means, of course, I have the opportunity to create my own because with so many crows—one of the species, like gray squirrels and pigeons, that succeed because of human intervention—there is an abundance of untold stories.

Stay tuned for Crow Stories. And while I think of it on this first day of May, I wish all the blessings of Beltane to you for the coming season.