Bound by Nature

Some stories begin at a desk. This one begins on a trail.

Bound by Nature is part bookbinding guide, part nature journal, part invitation - to slow down, step outside, and let the mountains give you your first line.

Inside, you will learn to hand-stitch your own Coptic-bound journal using one of the oldest bookbinding techniques in the world, then fill its first pages with the story only you can tell.

Guided by the folklore of the Cherokee - including the Yunwi Tsunsdi, the Little People who have watched over these hollows since long before the trails had names - three writing prompts will lead you somewhere you didn't expect to go.

You don't need experience. You need a willingness to escape the urgency the world imposes on us - and return to a time when being at leisure to enjoy the small things in life was enough. The sounds of our landscape. The fragrance of the foliage. The warmth of the sun beaming on your skin.

The mountains have been waiting to tell you something. This is where you write it down.

Created by Nita Lipan - published fantasy author, educator, and founder of The Rising, a free arts initiative for teens in Western North Carolina.