Welcome to another Author Spotlight! These spotlights showcase authors’ (predominantly women and people of color) writing talents and published works. As you may or may not know, I do theme weeks of prominent holidays/events throughout the year on my site. Every time I do these I always feature other authors (usual ones of color and women). And for Latinx/Hispanic Heritage Month, I am trying to feature authors with Latinx and/or Hispanic backgrounds. So without further ado, let’s get on with the Author Spotlight!
About the Author:
Natalie “La Brujita Del Jardin” Garcia is a Latina Publicist, Marketing Expert, Author, Writer, and Spoken-Word Poet. Her writing focuses on healing, self-love, and spiritual manifestation. She specializes in creating manifesting rituals and guiding women with busy lifestyles who yearn to channel and awaken their own cosmic magic.
Natalie uses the power of words and affirmations as a form of spiritual guidance for mental & emotional stability. Her intention is to help others become more self-aware, heal traumas, & remove creative blockages. As a publicist and marketing expert, she has worked with many entrepreneurs & creatives in the fashion, beauty, and entertainment industries.
La Brujita has successfully empowered individuals to increase their manifesting marketing powers, gain creative confidence, and follow their intuition. Her first published book “Cósmica” is a collection of mystical poems, mantras, & magical rituals inspired by her own mental and emotional healing journey. The cosmically-acclaimed poetry book has been embraced with love and received stellar reviews by manifesting Latinas everywhere. Natalie continues to lend her magical knowledge of spells, rituals, and marketing strategies to help a new generation of modern witches, entrepreneurs, and creatives navigate their manifesting journey and personal growth with love.
As a first-generation Mexican-American, Natalie wishes to change the mainstream Latina narrative by expressing her unique multi-dimensionality through her writing and professional work. She was born in the San Fernando Valley and raised by unconventional free-spirited immigrant parents who migrated from Mexico in the 1970s. At an early age, they exposed her to metaphysical practices such as curanderismo, herbalism, astrology, and cosmic manifestation.
Despite her parent’s generational traumas, language barriers, internalized fights against assimilation, and oppression, they were focused on achieving their American Dreams. Their drive and eclectic approach to manifesting gave Natalie the encouragement to explore her own spiritual journey and learn to dream bigger. Her love of magic and witchcraft manifested early in her childhood when she would watch her mother’s intuitive friend perform healing and cleansing rituals for Latinos in the community in the back of her
Godmother’s clothing boutique.
She also credits her mother for passing down a deep faith in herbal medicine and a strong devotion in creating holistic remedies. This brew of passion inspired Natalie to expand her research and combine Wiccan spells, rituals & plant medicine to help her and others manifest more intentionally. On her bewitching journey, she has also learned to reprogram her mindset & restore her confidence with her writing and magical rituals. She hopes to guide others to do the same.
What and when started your love for writing?
My love for writing developed at a very young age. I have vivid memories of being 2- or 3-years old reading books with my dad. Back then my dad didn’t really know how to read in English because he came to this country when was in his teens and dropped out of school to work on the farm fields then later in a factory. So instead, he would make up dramatic and whimsical stories based on the pictures in these books. I was fascinated mainly by his amazing story telling, never thinking that he was making any of these stories up.
As I got older and learned to read, I realized my dad made up the stories I was so captivated by. I was of course upset for being so gullible, but now that I am older, I learned to appreciate these fond memories and I love my dad for doing what he could to entertain me. Of course, that naturally inspired the story teller in me and writing became a way of expression because I always felt like an outsider in the real world. Writing helped me express my thoughts and desires without anyone judging me. I had dairies growing up and I would write poems and notes to myself. I never shared any of my writing with anyone until I got older because I never thought I could do this as a profession.
Of all of the book genres, what drew you to write about yours?
I want to write all genres and I know that’s a very ambitious goal. However, for my first book I really wanted to focus on my mental health and emotional healing journey. I’ve gone through a lot of traumas and I reached a point where I made the choice to heal and embrace the shadows within in order to grow and evolve. Spiritually I was called to write COSMICA a poetry book filled with empowering mantras, reflective poems, and healing rituals. Mainly the book was a tool I was creating for me to use when I had anxiety attacks, PTSD and depressive episodes. They were become quite frequent leading to the pandemic and then even during! Writing was a ritual that helped me stay balanced. I would sit there and cry while I wrote a lot of these poems. It was very healing and it exposed a lot of me. Ultimately on the journey of writing my first book I learned to love myself in every light and shadow within me.
If you could meet your favorite Latinx/Hispanic author, who would it be and why?
I would’ve loved to have met Frida Kahlo although she wasn’t an author, her writing/quotes were just as empowering as her art and they really resonated with me. She is also a multi-dimensional artist that I view as an inspiration that helped me express my own multi-dimensional creativity. I love being a poet and writing poetry, but I have a lot of other artistic talents that I would love to develop and showcase. I feel like society wants us to just focus on one thing and develop it very well, but the truth is we are all so multi-talented and we shouldn’t allow ourselves to get boxed in.
How has your Latinx/Hispanic background and culture shaped what you write and how you write?
I am a daughter of immigrants so I hold my culture and heritage really close to my heart. I grew up speaking both English and Spanish because it was important for my family to not forget our native language and still communicate with our elders, but also speak English so the next generation (my siblings and I) could take up space in industries normally people like us were not represented.
I made the conscious decision to write in both languages because I always felt like that’s how I communicated with my family and it’s very authentic to me. I wouldn’t necessarily call it bilingual; I would say it’s more Spanglish because my writing weaves both languages seamlessly as one language. I know there’s a whole generation and group of Latinx children out there who appreciate this and hopefully not feel ashamed for speaking/reading and writing in Spanglish because we were definitely scolded for doing this from both the American side and Latino side.
What book do you think everyone should read is based (or inspired by) around Latinx/
Hispanic culture?
Plant Witchery by Juliet Diaz! She is one of my favorite authors and the one of the brujitas who inspired me to write. When I read her book, she made me feel seen and also feel like I could write my own book too. Her book really touches on the ancestorial connection we have not just to our past relatives, but with Mother Nature as well.
It touches on ancient practices and traditions, and the spiritual connections and powers we have within. Juliet is a pioneer in the Brujita community and is decolonizing spiritual practices that were looked at dark practices due to colonization and religious conquest. I love my Latinx heritage, but I will always carry in me my Indigenous connection and practices. This book makes me feel like I can do that through my own writing and daily practices.
What makes your book(s)/writing special?
I really focus on tapping into my own magic and writing from my own emotional experiences. I am that person that if everyone is picking the blue or red pill then I am picking the green or rainbow pill. It’s just how I am I like to create new things because life needs to be more than just two choices.
I love to write about magic, empowerment and transformation. We are constantly evolving as spirits so why not write about it! One thing about my book is that I want readers to just open it and allow the universe to guide them. There is no beginning or end, just close your eyes, open the book and jump into the COSMICA Universe!
So…what are you working on now?
So much I cannot wrap my mind around everything! I am developing my own lifestyle manifestation brand, LA BRUJITA DEL JARDIN for modern brujitas, entrepreneurs and creatives. The brand focuses on creative products that will help individuals tap into their own magic, manifest more intentionally, ground with nature and overall, just embrace their own uniqueness.
I plan to write more books and create more art. I am currently working on two books.
I’m also a publicist and marketing expert so I am building a network with my partner and fellow writer to mentor other Latinas and Women of color to grow their personal brands or build their businesses more effectively. We strive to grow and add to the community. Community is so important to me coming from a big Mexican family I think it is something that will always be embedded in my DNA.
I am also working on just enjoying the present moment and life! Allowing myself to have days where I just rest or cry, or dance and feel. I am learning how important it is for my writing and creativity to have these free days and moments to reset.
Natalie, you were a beautiful and wonderful soul to meet and understand. I know your writings will take you far. And that book cover is everything! To get in contact or connect with her through:
Thank you all for reading and remember:
Live. Love. Laugh.
