By Rebecca MacPherson
Some writers don’t simply create stories. They create places.
They take a real location, weave legend into its history, and build a mythology so convincing that readers begin to feel they’ve walked those streets themselves. The town becomes as memorable as any character, and long after the final page, its secrets linger.
That’s exactly what Michigan-born author Dwight L. MacPherson has done with his Waadizi Cycle.
The first novel, Welcome to Waadizi, Michigan!, introduces readers to the mysterious Northern Michigan town tucked among the wooded hills surrounding Clam Lake. The newly released second novel, Return to Waadizi, Michigan!, pulls readers even deeper into Waadizi’s unsettling history, where ancient mysteries and small-town life collide in a slow-building tale of supernatural suspense. Both books are available on July 1 in eBook, paperback, and hardcover on Amazon.
MacPherson is an award-winning writer whose comic book work has appeared through DC Comics, Image Comics, IDW Publishing, and other publishers. After more than twenty years in comics, he and his wife, Rebecca, launched Hocus Pocus Comics, an independent publishing company based in Lakeland.
Their flagship title, The Imaginary Voyages of Edgar Allan Poe, won the 2019 Lakelander Made Award before receiving the prestigious Saturday Visiter Award from the Poe Society of Baltimore—an honor first awarded to Edgar Allan Poe in 1833. This year also marks another milestone with the release of THE BOX, the company’s ninth graphic novel in nine years.
MacPherson has long championed literacy through comics, participating in The Great American Teach In and speaking to classrooms across Florida about reading, storytelling, and the power of imagination. He believes stories have the power to spark curiosity, encourage imagination, and inspire lifelong readers, regardless of age.
Despite his success in comics, MacPherson felt there were stories that demanded a different canvas.
Encouraged by his wife to “write what you know,” he returned to the landscapes of his Michigan childhood and began building the world of Waadizi. What makes the series stand apart is its strong sense of place. Northern Michigan is more than simply a backdrop for the story; it becomes a character in its own right. The winding back roads, forgotten churches, dense forests, and quiet lake towns all contribute to an atmosphere where the ordinary and the extraordinary exist side by side. Readers often find themselves feeling as though they have visited Waadizi, even though the town exists only in the imagination.
For MacPherson, writing the series has also been something of a homecoming. Drawing on memories of growing up in Michigan, exploring old towns, and hearing local folklore, he has created a fictional community that feels remarkably authentic. The result is a setting that is both familiar and unsettling—a place readers may never want to visit, yet won’t be able to forget.
Critics and readers have compared his work to Rod Serling, Stephen King, and Shirley Jackson for its richly atmospheric storytelling, memorable small-town settings, and creeping sense of unease.
He is currently completing the third and final novel in the Waadizi Cycle, bringing the trilogy to its conclusion.
MacPherson will be signing copies of both Waadizi novels at Unbound Bookery in Lakeland on Saturday, July 25, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Readers are invited to stop by, meet the author, and pick up signed copies.
To learn more about Dwight and his writing journey, read his feature in Haven Magazine and visit:
https://www.havenmagazines.com/post/welcome-to-waadizi-michigan
Instagram: @dwight.macpherson