Patti first discovered contemporary Paganism in 1987, and has studied a number of different magical and occult systems, including Wicca. She got her first Tarot deck as a gift in 1988, and has been reading cards ever since. She is an initiated third-degree High Priestess, and is the founder of the Stone Circle tradition, a Neo-Celtic coven. Patti is an advanced-level Reiki practitioner, and is licensed Pagan clergy in the state of Ohio. She is also active in the planning of her local Pagan Pride Day.
Her freelance work has appeared in a number of Pagan publications, including Gaea's Cauldron, Llewellyn's 2007 and 2008 Herbal Almanacs and 2012 Sabbat Almanac, and Pagan Parenting. Patti is the author of a middle-grade novel about teenage witches, Summer's Ashes (2007 Keene Publishing).
Experience:
Patti Wigington has over twenty years of experience in studying modern Pagan belief systems. She works as an educator in the Pagan community, and in 2008, formed her own group, Clan of the Stone Circle.
Patti says:
When I first discovered Paganism, I was nineteen and unsure of what direction my life was headed. A friend introduced me to a Wiccan he knew, and I realized that there was an entire community of people out there who believed the same things I did. Fortunately, I was raised by parents who encouraged me to question and learn, so it wasn't that much of a leap to become involved in Wicca, and by default, the larger Pagan movement. As I got older and expanded my network of friends, I learned more and more. Becoming Pagan seemed like a natural progression of things. I've become more and more involved in my local Pagan community, and I'm pleased that more and more people are becoming open to earth-based faiths.
Media Contacts:
Email Patti for comments on Wicca and Paganism, interviews, book reviews, and other commentary.
From Patti Wigington:
Want to Post My Articles On Your Website? I'd love for you to share information with other readers! However, all articles on this site are the property of the New York Times Company. I personally am not able to grant reprint permission because About.com/NYT owns the publishing rights to my content. This means you can't re-publish it without their permission. To request permission, use the Reprint Request Form.
If you operate a small website or blog, and would like to share my articles with your readers at no charge, you may do the following: post the first one or two paragraphs of the article, followed by a link that says, "Read More", which must link to the original url of the article. Be sure to include the title of the article and name of the author (Patti Wigington).
To cite articles on this page for a report or paper, use the following attribution: "Patti Wigington, http://paganwiccan.about.com/[COMPLETE_URL]".
For other questions regarding reprints, email me.

