Big And Bookish

Book placed next to a candle and moss.

THE BEWITCHING is out today. A tale of supernatural suspense across time, from Mexico in 1908 to Massachusetts in the 1990s.
"In Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s sure hands, every uncovered secret is fraught with intrigue and creeping horror.”—Tananarive Due
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/760756...

Actively Anti-Racist Readers’ Advisory Services Learn tangible skills to help build enthusiasm for reading and strategies for diversifying your materials.

Did you miss the February session of "Actively Anti-Racist Readers' Advisory Services"? If you did, you're in luck! It's coming your way again this August 20-21 and registration is open right now! @raforall.bsky.social and I hope to see you there. elearning.ala.org/local/catalo...

The cover image for the novel The Ballad of the Bone Road by A.C. Wise. The cover depicts a white hand with black nails holding a pomegranate, surrounded by red and white peonies. There are tiny skulls in the pomegranate.

My upcoming novel, Ballad of the Bone Road is now officially available for preorder! If you're so inclined, there are several options at the link below.

linktr.ee/acwise

Exclusive Interview: "Skin" Author Kathe Koja ... . Exclusive Interview: "Skin" Author Kathe Koja \ In which she talks about this new version of her 1993 queer body horror/weird fiction novel.

Excellent interview with @kkoja.bsky.social below! Her iconic novel SKIN was re-released yesterday by Meerkat Press. If you haven’t read it, I highly recommend picking up a copy. SKIN is immersive, unnerving, and remarkably brutal. One of my favorite books ever!

paulsemel.com/exclusive-in...

Email sent from IMLS to state librarians reads: "Pursuant to 20 USC § 9134 and your obligations under the Grant Award Guidance and Statement of Assurances and Certifications, please provide IMLS with the following information: Whether and how federal taxpayer dollars provided to you under the Grants to States program have been used, or are still being used, to subsidize programs that conflict with government policy as found below: Executive Order 14151, Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing, and Executive Order 14253, Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History, and Executive Orders 13899 and 14188, Combating Anti-Semitism and Additional Measures To Combat Anti-Semitism, and Executive Order 14168, Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government, and Executive Order 14202, Eradicating Anti-Christian Bias, and Executive Order 14190, Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling, and How federal taxpayer dollars provided to you under the Grants to States program are being used to facilitate access to resources that cultivate an educated and informed American citizenry, and How you plan to involve your agencies in the upcoming celebration of the 250th anniversary of the United States of America? Kindly provide this information by Monday, May 5, 2025 to stateprograms@imls.gov with the subject line “Response to IMLS Request for Information.” IMLS appreciates your dedication to serving the American public."

While you're distracted by a SCOTUS case about inclusive books in schools, the new leader at the IMLS is demanding that state librarians share what their grant money is being used for.

I told you this would happen, and here it is.

Washington State Passes Bill To Cover 12-Month Hormone Therapy Stockpiles “The bill will alleviate a lot of suffering,” one Republican lawmaker said.

1. A major bill protecting trans people just passed in Washington.

It makes insurers cover 12-month supplies of HRT which can be obtained at pharmacies, allowing trans people to stockpile medication to outlast supply disruptions.

The latest from S. Baum.

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Washington State Library loses $3.9 million in federal funding, impacting several libraries statewide The federal funding cut represented about one-third of the state library's annual budget of $12 million.

The libraries most impacted by the federal funding being cut are rural and special services like BOOKS FOR BLIND PEOPLE!! Because ghouls are in charge.

I'm thrilled to have a story in the upcoming issue of Weird Horror, which will be available this summer!

Sofia Ajram, Part One (Video Version) | This Is Horror Get more from This Is Horror on Patreon

Today's treat on This Is Horror Podcast Patreon is the first part of my conversation with Sofia Ajram (@sofiaajram.bsky.social) in video form.

www.patreon.com/posts/125798...

YouTube video by Saturday Night Live Lesbian Period Drama - SNL

I've got an article coming out in the next issue of DIVA! 🙀
I turn the SNL sketch 'Lesbian Period Drama' into sapphic trope bingo, and talk a little bit about my forthcoming book, THE UNLIKELY PURSUIT OF MARY BENNET 🌷

Cover of Dark Crescent by Lyndsey Croal - "Lyrical and evocative." - Joanne Harris. The cover features blue and gold illustrations of different Scottish folklore creatures, in the sea below, and land above. Cover art by Jenni Coutts.

Are you a folklore enthusiast looking for your next read? Do you enjoy nautical horrors and nature being weird? 👀 Dark Crescent comes out in just 2 months, dark seasonal tales inspired by Scottish folklore...! With a beautiful cover by @jennicoutts.bsky.social✨ 🌙🌊 www.goodreads.com/book/show/22...

a collage of 38 books from trans sff authors on itchio participating in the sff trans visbility book bundle.

a clipart vaporwave style graphic of a nighttime cityscape with sparkling stars and a full moon. it says" itchio sff trans book bundle! 30+ authors - 3/28 to 3/31"

Today is the last day for the SFF Trans Visibility bundle on itchio. 32 authors/38 books/$40

As of now, we have surpassed my goal of $2k by 229% 🥹. I'm so grateful for everyone supporting these authors and would love to see one final push if you have the bandwidth to share!

itch.io/b/2927/sff-b...

Still 2 weeks left to get my most recent novels in audio for super cheap!

🫀 ALL THE HEARTS YOU EAT: "Stephen King's IT for a new generation" - Delilah S. Dawson

⚡A LIGHT MOST HATEFUL: "a fully-formed goddess of a novel" - Clay McLeod Chapman

hi again, cis folks!

the comment period for the proposed rule to remove trans care from the ACA as an essential health benefit is open til april 11.

context & guidance in the thread below. it doesn’t have to be hard; you can do it waiting for coffee.

13 days left, as of this post. please comment.

Cold Eternity: A Chilling Space Horror Book Review 26/03/2025 S A Barnes, the reigning queen of cosmic horror, is back with Cold Eternity a gripping story that merges cosmic fear, political machinations

Cold Eternity: A Chilling Space Horror Book Review

gnofhorror.com/cold-eternit...

There’s a really simple, fool-proof way not to embarrass yourself by overgeneralising about a genre, and it’s basically this: Unless you read it regularly, assume you don’t know enough about it to speak with authority about what it IS or SHOULD be.

It’s a really easy to follow rule, AND YET.

Their Monstrous Hearts by Yigit Turhan

I don't recall posting this one, but I've ordered it so I probably did. But, if I did, here it is again because it's great. #collectiondevelopment bookshop.org/a/4013/97807...

Cover of The King Must Die.

I’m absolutely thrilled to reveal the cover of THE KING MUST DIE, my new science fantasy novel about found family, revolution, and second chances. The incredible artist, Eleonor Piteira, included so many little details from the book!

Out from @sagapressbooks.bsky.social this October!

Mae Murray: Horror on "the Helplessness of "Poverty" Women in Horror Month 2025, #5

New #WiHM #womeninhorrormonth interview with @maeisafraid.bsky.social Very thoughtful discussion of her debut novel I'm Sorry If I Scared You open.substack.com/pub/christin...

I knew a Holocaust survivor who talked about the importance of notetaking under authoritarianism, to track what normal was and how it shifted. Here's that 🧵 with respect to disability, itself a canary in the fascist coal mine: www.disability-rights-watch.com/2025/02/09/w...

lol we will set them aside for you! One-week pick-up window, then they go back in circulation in our “special collection” (aka the garbage)

My library has a “chocolate bandit” - someone keeps stuffing Cadbury chocolate bars between books. We find them in all the general fiction shelves at all times of day. So far no books have been damaged. Amusing mischief maker or devious rascal? #librarysky

For any last-minute Hugo nominations: This lil' Nebula finalist is *also* eligible for the Best Novella category in the Hugos.

Would you like your own batch of Light from Uncommon Stars inspired macarons?! Good news! I'm hosting another bookish macaron giveaway during the month of March! This is an effort to raise funds for transgenderlawcenter.org 🩵🩷🤍
#booksky #scifibooks #transbooks #TRR2025 #lightfromuncommonstars

Huge stacks of books by women

My book cover! -Sadie Hartmann Bram Stoker Awards® Winning Author of 1o1 Horror Books to Read Before You're Murdered FERAL AND HYSTERICAL MOTHER HORROR's ULTIMATE READING GUIDE TO DARK AND DISTURBING FICTION BY WOMEN

Feral & Hysterical
Mother Horror’s Ultimate
Reading Guide to Dark and Disturbing Fiction by Women is available for pre-order and releases in 5 months! Original essays and full page artwork, almost 300 recommendations, curated into reading lists by themes, vibes & aesthetics 🖤🫶🏼

Oh, Insta isn't showing the preview? here you gooooooo