Spring Season Wrap-Up (and what's new for Summer!)
Talebones Tuesday
Greetings, Talebones Readers!
This weekly(ish) digest is the way I communicate with my readers to let them know what’s been going on around the Talebones landscape, along with any housekeeping to be aware of.
Here at Talebones, our publication schedule is seasonal. And we’ve officially reached the end of our Spring Season 2025! The big goals for this season centered mainly on getting my latest book published and into the world—and I’m SO GLAD to say that we made it!!
In this issue of Talebones Tuesday we’ll take a peek back at the season before we bid it farewell, give a quick round-up of all the fiction posted during the last three months, and look forward to what’s coming up!
Let’s get started!
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And now, back to Talebones Tuesday…
Round-Up!
In case you missed it…
Here are ALL the tales from SPRING SEASON 2025!
Hyperfocus - a forum-horror flash fiction
The Last Confession of Penelope Foote - on the morning of her execution, a convicted murderer in a frontier town poised on the edge of change tells the local sheriff an impossible tale
Kittens, Torches, and Quakes - a collection of five unsettling 100-word stories, along with prompts so you can try some yourself!
The Keeper - in this dark maritime short story, a lonely lighthouse keeper receives an unexpected message that changes everything…
Limbs (two-part short story) - in this horror/mystery, Olivia Holt hikes out into the backwoods to find any trace of her missing twin sister—an eccentric cryptozoologist—and discovers more than she bargained for on the unmarked trail into the heart of the woods…
The Lake - while renewing his fishing license, Hank Hollister talks about one of Ferris Island’s best—and most mysterious—local fishing spots
TiF Interview - Late last week I was honored to be interviewed live by
for her fiction-focused newsletter, Top in Fiction! You can check out the replay in which we chat writing process, Ferris Island’s origins, some future plans, and more!ARCHIVE HIGHLIGHT (currently free to read, but catch it soon before its back behind the paywall!):
A Thing Must Be Loved (FREE for May 2025!) - a parking garage attendant is caught up in an otherworldly threat and an unlikely role.
New around here? Most of our speculative fiction takes place on a haunted island in Washington State called Ferris Island. Check out the landing page to see which stories are currently available to read here online, along with other info and resources!
We also have stories of various genres set elsewhere, listed here.
TALESTACK NEWS is a twice-monthly bulletin of Substack fiction news where I collate as many announcements, projects, submissions opportunities, community endeavors, and generally cool things as I can gather. Check out the most recent issue here! (And if you’re a writer on the platform, check out the submission guidelines and email your news to talestack.editor@gmail.com by June 1st to be included in the next issue!)
Do you have your copy of Ivy & Ixos?!
This novella is currently available for purchase here:
Amazon: Kindle ebook and paperback
Are you a Talebones Councilmember (either paid OR comp)? You are eligible to purchase a signed paperback directly from me! Simply send an email to ferrisislandwa@gmail.com to claim your copy.
Have you already read this book? Please leave a review! It’s one of the BEST ways to support indie authors! (And thank you! ♥)
Some info about this story:
Ivy & Ixos was my first-ever serial on Substack, published starting in June 2023. It’s a magical realism tale of mystery, adventure, and family secrets through the eyes of a ten-year-old girl who would go on to feature in several more of my Ferris Island Tales.
While this novella is not written expressly for children, it’s definitely gentler (read: less horror-focused) than my other work and could easily be enjoyed by folks both young-in-age and young-at-heart!
Curious? Read the first chapter FOR FREE!
Ready to spend the summer on Ferris Island?
If you enjoyed Ivy & Ixos and you’d like to see more stories in Ivy’s world…
..then you just might like our upcoming serialized novella, coming this Summer!
Ivy On The Trail
Genre: Adventure/Suspense/Supernatural
Length: TBD (episodic novella)
Start Date: June 6th
End Date: TBD
Synopsis: It’s summer on Ferris Island, Washington. Now freshly sixteen, Ivy Cole is thrilled to finally be old enough to volunteer as a staff trainee at the Fort Ferris State Park where she spent happy summers as a camper. Side by side with her friend Bailey, she can’t wait to balance new responsibilities with summer fun in the sun, until some strange events in the acres of dark woods threaten the safety of staff and campers alike…events that have an eerie similarity to scars in the island’s past.
Ivy’s blossoming connection with Ferris Island and its hidden supernatural denizens puts her in a prime position to step in, but can she really help?
Or is the evil lurking in the summer woods too powerful for her to face on her own?
—
I’m SO EXCITED to bring Ivy back for another long-form adventure!
For those who are newer to Talebones: Ivy’s story began at ten years old with my first-ever serial, Ivy & Ixos (now published!) and has continued in one-off short stories and limited serials here and there ever since.
While they are often interconnected, I always try to make my stories stand alone as much as possible so that anyone can enjoy them no matter where they jump into the Ferris Island Tales. You don’t need to read Ivy & Ixos—or any other stories—to enjoy this one coming up.
But if you want to catch up with more stories about Ivy and her friends ahead of this serial, you can find them here (these are listed in chronological order):
The Last Resort - two kids on the cusp of high school explore an old hotel with dark corners and an even darker secret (this story is currently behind the paywall and can also be found in The Orchard Hounds short story collection)
The Uninvited Guest - 2023 Hallowe’en Special! - when Ivy and her friends attend their first high school party, they find out that someone there has an unusual agenda
The New Kid (three-part short) - Jake Masoe is a newcomer to Ferris Island with a troubled past, hoping to leave his horrible memories behind. But on a haunted island, it’s tough to truly pass unnoticed for long…
Her First Halloween - 2024 Hallowe’en Special! - Ivy and her friends get together for a quiet Hallowe’en movie night, until they are surprised by an unexpected knock on the door
Again, none of these stories (or Ivy & Ixos) are necessary to read before this summer’s serial begins. But they might add some fun extra context for those who like to go deeper!
NOTE: I’m still in the outlining phase for this new story and I’m not sure exactly how many episodes it will end up being, but as soon as I do I’ll update the projected number of episodes on the Table of Contents page.
Pack your bug spray, clean socks, and a tent that doesn’t leak…
Let’s go camping!
Interested In Going Deeper?
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Learn more about each tier’s perks here.
Upgrade now to be part of the Talebones story in 2025!
Thank you for reading!
I can’t believe we’re looking at another Summer Season on Talebones already! After the intensity of our last serial, I’m looking forward to tagging along with Ivy and her friends and embarking on something a bit more adventure-filled. Will there be thrills and even a few scares? You never know! Ferris Island always has some tricks up her sleeve. ;)
In the coming days I’ll be doing some admin, updating the site for Summer. Our merch launch is coming up soon, so keep your eyes peeled for some seasonal souvenirs! And if you have any questions about this serial or the upcoming season, please feel free to drop them in the comments below where I’ll be lurkin’.
As always, THANK YOU for making Talebones the best platform I could ever ask for to share my fiction! I’m more grateful than I can say, and I look forward to gathering around the campfire with you soon.
Have a truly beautiful week!
Your grateful storyteller,
Just picked up a copy of Ivy and Ixos since I missed the serial the first time around. Really looking forward to a summer camp setting in the next one!
Yep, let's go camping... looking forward to Episode 1 to start my summer! This will be another great serial I'm sure, and a welcome distraction from other things! Thanks S.E.