By Keith Grayeb

Hot take alert: Natasha Alterici is the real deal.  I did help Kickstart Heathen, but that is not the reason I am claiming this.  Nay, I am taking this take because Heathen Volume #1 is a stunning celebration of self-identity and acceptance… and also because Alterici once let patrons color her dinosaur prints with crayons at a Convention.  She did not even get mad if you colored outside of the lines.  In fact, if I learned anything from Heathen it is that some people may prefer to color outside of the lines and that is okay.  It is also okay to color inside the lines, on the lines, on the table, on yourself and even on other people if they are also okay with it.  The only wrong way to color is to tell someone else that they are coloring incorrectly.  Why am I still talking about coloring you ask?  It is because Alterici employs Heathen and its tale of the shunned Viking warrior, Aydis, to teach the same lesson about love (much more effectively, I might add).