In a recent interview with Literary Hub, Ashley Woo revealed that the two‑story timber home on Salem Harbor, built in 1668 for sea captain John Turner, served as a key visual and thematic inspiration for her debut novel Wildwood. The house’s dark wood and numerous gables echo the First Period architecture that haunted the early colonies, Woo said.
Woo cites Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1850 novel The House of the Seven Gables, which itself was born from Hawthorne’s guilt over his ancestor’s role in the 1691 Salem Witch Trials. Hawthorne’s story follows the cursed Pyncheon family, whose greed and abuse of power lead to a generational curse. Woo notes that the themes of human character, greed, and social decay in Hawthorne’s work resonate in her own narrative.
Growing up in Massachusetts, Woo frequently visited Salem’s Witch Dungeon Museum, where reenactments of Abigail Williams accusing Sarah Good and the pressing of Giles Corey left a lasting impression. She says these experiences fueled her fascination with how fear of the “other” can be used to divide and control.
Salem’s modern efforts to atone for its past—such as the 1697 fasting and prayer, the 1711 reparations act, and the 1957 formal apology—also influence Woo’s portrayal of redemption. In Wildwood, a woman inherits an estate in rural New England and uncovers dark secrets beneath the floors, mirroring the town’s journey from hysteria to healing.
Woo’s novel, described as a “dark tale with whispers of a witch,” examines wealth, inheritance, and ancestral sin while questioning who truly owns the land. She believes the story’s lessons about acknowledging history and choosing empathy over power are as relevant today as they were in Hawthorne’s time.