Storm Constantine (12 October 1956 – 14 January 2021) was a British science fiction and fantasy author, primarily known for her Wraeththu series, which began as one trilogy but has spawned many subsequent works.

Beginning in the 1980s, Constantine's short stories appeared in dozens of genre fiction magazines and anthologies. She authored over 30 published novels and non-fiction books (often examining issues of sex and gender), and numerous other publications, including grimoires. Her debut novel, The Enchantments of Flesh and Spirit, was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award for Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror. Subsequent work was nominated for the BSFA Award, the British Fantasy Award, the Locus Award and the Otherwise Award.

In addition to her work as a writer, Constantine headed Immanion Press, an independent publishing company she founded in 2003 to publish her own back catalogue and works by other niche writers.

Early life

Constantine was born on 12 October 1956 in Stafford, Staffordshire.

Education and early career

Constantine attended Stafford Girls' High School, then attended Stafford Art College from 1971 to 1972, though she left before completing her degree, frustrated with the institution's disdain for figurative art.

Her primary day job was at Stafford's public library.

Writing

Wraeththu

Constantine began her serious writing career by writing a novel which became the Wraeththu Chronicles and included The Enchantments of Flesh and Spirit, The Bewitchments of Love and Hate, and The Fulfillments of Fate and Desire. Working as a librarian at the time, she decided to focus on writing when she came to the following realization: "This is it for the rest of my life. I've got to do something about it." Constantine had been working with the concept and characters of Wraeththu since the late 1970s.

In 1993, Tor released the trilogy in omnibus format in the United States. The trilogy developed a cult following, particularly in the Goth subculture and among those interested in fiction tackling alternative sexuality.

Beginning with the initial trilogy, and continuing on to subsequent novels, novellas, and short stories, the Wraeththu stories follow the rise of a race of hermaphrodites / androgynes transformed from humans. This new race takes possession of a world decline, a slow apocalypse, and then rebuilds the world into something better.</blockquote>

The structure and plot of the Wraeththu Chronicles revolves around three characters: Pellaz ("Pell"), Swift, and Calanthe ("Cal"), who are (in that order) the first-person narrators. Their intertwining stories begin with Cal meeting Pell and whisking him away to a town where he is incepted and becomes har. Eventually the couple, deeply in love, encounter Swift, a Wraeththu child living in the home of a high-ranking tribal leader. Shortly after their visit, Pell is killed. All is not as it seems, however, and Pell is "reborn" and becomes the Tigron of Immanion, ruler the Gelaming tribe. Swift's narrative, a coming-of-age story, tells the tale of what happened after Pell and Cal left, and then what happened when Cal returned, devastated by the loss of Pell. In the third book, set a couple of decades later, Cal pieces together the shattered memories of his life and embarks on a quest to reunite with Pell, who, as he has learned, is alive. At the end of the book, Cal arrives in Immanion and claims Pell once again as his own. Pell has already bonded with another har and sired. And although the other har is angry, by the finale, the three hara become joint rulers of the Gelaming and by extension the Wraeththu race.

In subsequent works, including a trilogy intersecting with the first, several novels, and many short stories, Constantine further developed Wraeththu, in particular their evolution into fully realized, androgynous beings. After beginning their lives as rebellious teenagers and subsequently inheriting the world, they must take responsibility. In a 2016 interview, Constantine reflected: a convention held in Stafford for fans of Wraeththu and related fiction and topics. Subsequently, Constantine participated in numerous conventions, including Lunacon and Dragon Con in the United States, plus many others in the United Kingdom.

Constantine was accepting of fan fiction, and once she began to read what her fans had written, actively encouraged it.

Immanion Press

right|thumb|Storm Constantine, photographed in Bonn, Germany, where in 2005 she was the guest of honour at Feencon.

Constantine founded Immanion Press in 2003, an option that became commercially viable with the arrival of affordable and efficient print-on-demand services.

Publications

Wraeththu

Wraeththu Chronicles

Individual volumes
  1. The Enchantments of Flesh and Spirit (1987; German translation published by Zauberfeder Verlag in 2006, revised edition published by Immanion Press, 2003)
  2. The Bewitchments of Love and Hate (1988; revised edition published by Immanion Press, 2007)
  3. The Fulfilments of Fate and Desire (1989; revised edition published by Immanion Press, 2018)
Omnibus
  • Wraeththu (1993)

Wraeththu Histories

  1. The Wraiths of Will and Pleasure (2003)
  2. The Shades of Time and Memory (2004)
  3. The Ghosts of Blood and Innocence (2005)

Alba Sulh sequence

  1. The Hienama: A Story of the Sulh (2005)
  2. Student of Kyme (2008)
  3. The Moonshawl (2014)

Short fiction collections

  • Blood, the Phoenix and a Rose: An Alchymical Triptych (2016)
  • A Raven Bound with Lilies: Stories of the Wraeththu Mythos (2017)

Grimoire Dehara

  • Grimoire Dehara: Kaimana (2011, with Gabriel Strange, illustrated by Olga Bosserdt)
  • Grimoire Dehara: Ulani (2016, with Taylor Ellwood)
  • Grimoire Dehara: Nahir Nuri (2017, with Taylor Ellwood)

Works outlining the practice of ritual magic based on the Wraeththu world.

Misc.

  • Wraeththu: From Enchantment to Fulfilment (tabletop role-playing game) (with Gabriel Strange and Lydia Wood, 2005)
  • Wraeththu: The Picture Book (photography based on Wraeththu books) (2007)

Artemis

  • The Monstrous Regiment (1991)
  • Aleph (1991)

Grigori Trilogy

  • Stalking Tender Prey (1995)
  • Scenting Hallowed Blood (1996)
  • Stealing Sacred Fire (1997)

Magravandias

Novels

  1. Sea Dragon Heir (1998)
  2. The Crown of Silence (2000)
  3. The Way of Light (2001)

Novella

  • "The Thorn Boy" (1999)

Standalone novels

  • Hermetech (1991)
  • Burying the Shadow (1992)
  • Sign for the Sacred (1993)
  • Calenture (1994)
  • Thin Air (1999)
  • Silverheart (with Michael Moorcock) (2000)
  • Breathe, My Shadow (2019)

Collections

  • Three Heralds of the Storm (chapbook, 1997)
  • The Oracle Lips (1999)
  • Mythophidia (2008)
  • Mythangelus (2009)
  • Mytholumina (2010)
  • Mythanimus (2011)
  • Splinters of Truth (2016)
  • Mythumbra (2018)
  • A Raven Bound with Lilies: Stories of the Wraeththu Mythos (2017)

Anthologies edited by

  • Paragenesis: Stories of the Dawn of Wraeththu (2010) (with Wendy Darling)
  • Para Imminence: Stories of the Future of Wraeththu (2012) (with Wendy Darling)
  • Para Kindred: Enigmas of Wraeththu (2014) (with Wendy Darling)
  • Night's Nieces: The Legacy of Tanith Lee (2015)
  • Dark in the Day (2016) (with Paul Houghton)
  • Para Animalia: Creatures of Wraeththu (2016) (with Wendy Darling)
  • The Darkest Midnight in December: Ghost Stories for the Winter Season (2017)
  • Songs to Earth and Sky: Stories of the Seasons (2017)
  • Para Spectral: Hauntings of Wraeththu (2018) (with Wendy Darling)
  • Para Mort: Wraeththu Tales of Love and Death (2020) (with Wendy Darling)

Contributor

List of anthologies in which Constantine's works have appeared.

  • Digital Dreams (1990)
  • Dante's Disciples (1991)
  • Women of Wonder, the Contemporary Years: Science Fiction by Women from the 1970s to the 1990s (1995)
  • The Crow: Shattered Lives and Broken Dreams (1999)
  • The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror (2001)
  • Lacrymata: Deathwing, A Warhammer 40,000 anthology (1990)
  • The Mammoth Book of Vampire Stories by Women (2001)
  • Ravens in the Library: Magic in the Bard's Name (2009)
  • Magic: An Anthology of the Esoteric and Arcane (2012)
  • Obsession: Tales of Irresistible Desire (2012)
  • Blood Sisters: Vampire Stories by Women (audiobook, 2015)
  • Dreams from the Witch House: Female Voices of Lovecraftian Horror (2016)
  • Sirens and Other Daemon Lovers: Magical Tales of Love and Seduction (2002)
  • Black Thorn, White Rose (2007)

Non-fiction books

  • The Inward Revolution (with Deborah Benstead) (1998)
  • Bast and Sekhmet: Eyes of Ra (with Elouise Coquio) (1999)
  • Egyptian Birth Signs: The Secrets of the Ancient Egyptian Horoscope (2002)
  • Sekhem Heka: A Natural Healing and Self Development System (2008)
  • What a Long Strange Trip It's Been: Wilderness Tips for World of Warcraft (2011)
  • Whatnots & Curios: A Selection of Articles and Reviews (2015)
  • SHE: Primal Meetings with the Dark Goddess (2019) (with Andrew Collins)

Grimoires

  • Coming Forth By Day: A System of Khematic Magic (2019)

References

  • Official site
  • Dreams of Dark Angels (author blog)
  • Immanion Press
  • Forever Wraeththu (fan fiction portal)