Authors & Teachers at On Black Wings
Ryan Smith he/they
Ryan Smith has been a practicing Pagan since his teens with over fifteen years of experience in inclusive and anti-racist Heathen spirituality. He is the author of The Way of Fire & Ice: The Living Tradition of Norse Paganism and Spinning Wyrd: A Journey Through the Nordic Mysteries, has contributed to Bringing Race to the Table: Exploring Racism in the Pagan Community and No Pasaran: Antifascist Dispatches from a World in Crisis anthologies, and been published at Huginn's Heathen Hof, Patheos Pagans, and Truthout, and presented talks and rituals at Pantheacon, the Gathering Paths presented by Between the Veils, Hexenfest, and Many Gods West. Ryan regularly writes at onblackwings.com and is currently producing a Heathen podcast, the Wayward Wanderer, which is available at wherever you get your podcasts. He has a PhD in modern economic & social history and can be found online at Facebook, Mastodon, Instagram, and Patreon.
Sophia Fate-Changer they/them
Author of The Language of Fire & Ice, a Beginners Guide to the Elder Futhark, Sophia has been a practitioner of Norse Paganism for 20 years, and has dedicated much of that time cultivating radically inclusive / anti-racist Heathen practice alongside Ryan Smith. They are published in Pagan Consent Culture, an anthology that includes their essay on consent within Heathenry, a founding member of Between the Veils (BTV), and work a full-time artist specializing in Heathen sigil design and creating sacred objects for pagan practitioners. Sophia has volunteered time to developing progressive community agreements for BTV, Hexenfest, and has advised in other smaller projects. Identifying as a mixed person of color, nonbinary, and a Runewalker, they strive to make their classes and teaching accessible to all.
Ravensong she/her
Ravensong is a heathen, oracle, animist, and Reclaiming witch. She was born, raised, and lives on the tribal lands of the Haudenosaunee, Osage, Shawnee, and Lenape along the three rivers that thread their way through Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her magic is rooted in runes, sigils, sounds, silence, spirits, plants, foods, and fibers. She is a licensed professional counselor and clinical supervisor by trade, and her calling is to be a facilitator of healing and a warrior for the rights and well-being of all peoples. Ravensong has been teaching and facilitating in various local pagan communities (Spiritways CUUPS, Reclaiming Pittsburgh, Spiralheart Witchcamp) for 20 years and is grateful to be a part of the Fire and Ice teaching collective.
