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.
Happy May, all! Candidly, I’ve been laid low by a pretty rough bout of illness for the past week or so, interrupting my work-flow pretty severely, but I’m on the mend now and couldn’t let Talebones’ Second Birthday go by without sending you all a hello!
Talebones was soft-launched in May 2023, and the journey since then has been truly dizzying. Whether you’ve been with me from the start or you’ve only just jumped onboard, I’m so glad you’re here, and so honored that you’re willing to spend your time and energy with me and my tales!
In this missive I’ve got our usual round-up, along with a few fun little perks in honor of Talebones’ turning two. You won’t want to miss it!
Ready? Let’s go!
✨ First, A Quick Word From Our Sponsor… ✨
Work With Me! - Looking for an editor, beta reader, proofreader, or copywriter? Look no further! Check out my Work With Me page for rates and services. Don’t see something that works for you? Reach out via email or DM—I’m happy to discuss. Let’s make your projects sing!
Shop My Books! - Explore my self-published works, both ebook and paperback, available from various retailers!
Visit the Gift Shop! - Grab a piece of Talebones swag or a Ferris Island souvenir for your very own! Mugs, tees, hats, sweatshirts, and more, updated seasonally!
And now, back to Talebones Tuesday…
Round-Up!
In case you missed it…
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…
ARCHIVE HIGHLIGHT (free to read!):
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 May 18th to be included in the next issue!)
Get ready for Ivy & Ixos!
The impending ebook release of my coming-of-age magical realism novella, Ivy & Ixos, is getting real, real close!
Some info about this novella:
Ivy & Ixos was my first-ever serial on Substack, published starting in June 2023. It’s a 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!
Talebones Turns Two! 🎉
As of this week, Talebones is officially two years old!
When I started this fiction newsletter, I really didn’t have much of a plan. All I knew was that I was tired of my fiction efforts taking up space on my hard drive, my desk, my closets, my brain…unshared. I was tired of getting rejections from short fiction publishers with nothing to show for it. I was healing from my shattered childhood expectations about what “being a writer” means these days, my dreams of traditional publishing feeling insurmountable. I was looking for a new path, built from the ground up.
It is truly impossible to explain how wild this journey has been, or to properly thank you all for your contributions to the ongoing story this newsletter has told since spring of 2023. Without you all—every single one of you—I have no idea where I would be right now. And that’s a fact.
In the spirit of celebration, here are a few things I’d like to offer as a heartfelt thank you:
My First Post - For pure nostalgia’s sake, here’s the first missive I ever sent out to my subscribers! This was back when I was calling these posts “the Weekly”, a fore-runner to what would become Talebones Tuesday. Fun to see how different it was back then, and how I truly had no idea what was coming!
A Thing Must Be Loved - Out from behind a paywall for the month of May, this unusual horror short story about a parking garage attendant, an otherworldly threat, and an unlikely role was the first full tale I ever posted to Talebones! Before Substack I had shopped it around to several publishers with no success, so I decided to throw it out to my audience here and see if anyone would like it. Since then, I’ve been so grateful that it found its audience! This one is FREE TO READ through the end of May 2025!
And finally…
Let’s have a TALEBONES COMP GIVEAWAY!
Simply comment on this post to be eligible to win a one-month comp to Talebones, which unlocks ALL fiction and exclusive resources and gives you discounts on products in the Gift Shop as well as hiring me for editing/consulting services! (Learn more about paid perks here.)
I will randomly draw THREE winners and announce them in the next Talebones Tuesday post, on May 20th! Winners will also be notified via email.
(NOTE: Each commenter is only eligible for one entry; multiple comments won’t give you multiple entries in the metaphorical hat. 😉)
Interested In Going Deeper?
Talebones is kept afloat by a beautiful and diverse tapestry of support, from my freelance day job as a writer and editor to purchases of books and merch AND the bountiful generosity of my paid subscribers!
You can become a Talebones Councilmember for $3.75/month or $45/year (or go above and beyond as a Founding Member) to gain access to ALL online Talebones fiction past and present, exclusive resources, discounts to merch/products and freelance/consulting services, and more!
Learn more about each tier’s perks here.
Upgrade now to be part of the Talebones story in 2025!
Thank you for reading!
As always, THANK YOU for taking time out of your day to read my little missives, engage with my stories, or even silently cheer me on. Your presence here is appreciated more than you know. I am so grateful to say that I am doing the thing I always wanted to do: writing my stories down and sharing them with an audience. To me, that is more than enough.
While it would be tempting on an anniversary like this to say that I’ve got “big plans” for the future of Talebones, I’m not sure that’s the best way to put it. My plans are quite modest, really, but no less profound to me: to keep showing up, keep digging deep, and keep learning and growing and honing my skills. I would be honored if you would continue to join me as we go.
May the merry month of May treat you kindly, and see you next time!
Have a truly beautiful week!
Your grateful storyteller,
Happy stackversary! You're officially in the terrible twos. ;)
What a fabulous anniversary … hoping you’re feeling better, well enough for cake and other anniversary treats!