T.A. Moore's Blog, page 14

State of the TAM - 12 Jan

What’s Up

I promised you all a cover reveal and here it is!

Drumroll please…

Dirty Work, the first book in the Dirty Deeds romantic suspense series, will be coming March 4 (pre-order link soon!).

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Sorry the newsletter is running a little late this week! I was going to do it last night, BUT Jax had his first Bronze Good Citizen training class and when I got home I was wrecked. Jax, however, had an amazing time! He ate some of the other dogs treats, he kissed a lot of people, he did most of what they wanted him to do eventually! We did some recall work which went great!

…except for the fact he recalled to someone who wasn’t me!

Free Audio Chapter of the Week

‘Shift Plan’ by TA Moore is a Night Shift short story and a prequel to Split Shift. Find out more about who Kit Marlow was before he joined the Night Shift, and how he became the man Cade Deacon gets to meet in the books!

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Written by TA Moore
Narrated by Michael Fell

Listen Now

If you prefer to read rather than listen, you can get Shift Plan in mobi and epub on the website.

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Look at him! Majestic!

This is cool!

Cllr Robert Nemeth @robert_nemethA bee brick - now compulsory in Brighton & Hove on new buildings after I raised issue at Council. Big victory.

January 11th 2022

3,063 Retweets31,402 Likes

They are VERY SWEET! A friend of mine in the US used to have one. She was a big love.

I am a sucker for a good mash-up!

Must Read of the Week

This is amazing. They were able to extract DNA from World War II postcards and use it to establish genealogy. I mean, none of know what went on with Renc, Ron, and Dina now, but the science is just fascinating. DEFINITELY full of narrative potential as well.

Scientists Settled a Century-Old Family Drama Using DNA From Postcards 

Swiss forensic geneticists analyzed DNA recovered from postage stamps dating back to World War I and solved a century-old paternity puzzle.

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In 1885, Xaver, a young Austrian blacksmith, left home to make it big. After finding a new job abroad, Xaver, a gentile, fell in love with Dina, the 17-year-old Catholic-Jewish daughter of his boss. He was subsequently fired. But that was just the beginning of this family drama.

TDina ran away from home to be with Xaver and found lodging and work in the home of Ron, a 30-year-old Jewish factory owner. In 1887, she gave birth to a son, named Renc, believed to be fathered by Ron. Renc received Jewish rituals and was baptized in a Catholic church. 

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So many perms!

And wow. Miami Vice is the American Midsummer Murders.

The Sting @TSting18Being on Miami Vice used to be a rite of passage for any young actor and these lot ended up doing pretty well for themselves. This clip features the recipients of 13 SAG Awards, 12 Emmy's, 9 Golden Globes, 9 MTV Movie Awards, 5 Oscars, 3 BAFTAs, 1 Tony and a Sour Apple award

January 4th 2022

2,756 Retweets11,119 Likes#Mindfulness from Murlough @NationalTrustNI 💚\nWaves impressive with the high winds, and gorgeous Winter afternoon light. ","username":"Lewis_Derv","name":"Dearbhail UíLughaidh","date":"Thu Jan 06 18:17:16 +0000 2022","photos":[{"img_url":"https://cdn.substack.com/image/upload...Dearbhail UíLughaidh @Lewis_DervMini #Mindfulness from Murlough @NationalTrustNI 💚Waves impressive with the high winds, and gorgeous Winter afternoon light.

January 6th 2022

3 Retweets11 Likes

State of the TAM- 4th January

What’s Up

Has there been time for anything to be up yet?

This is the first REAL LIFE day of 2020. I’ve barely got my feet under me here. (I do actually hope to have a 2022 Plan for the Year by next week, but I need to wait for some updates :D).

I should have a Cover Reveal and a pre-order link for my next book for you next week as well! I’m really excited to see what everyone thinks!

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Oh! And popped back up from the bottom to say that I’m booked in to attend the UK Meet next…no! this!….September! So I’m wicked excited! I’ve booked to get my lashes dyed and everything!

Pupdate of the Week

He is beauty, he is grace…Well…maybe not!

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Awww, that’s not fair. Look at this beautiful boy!

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I am not sure ‘wounded’ is how to describe that. If yer man got up from that that’s a story in itself. It goes right through!

Figen @TheFigenArmor of a soldier wounded by a cannonball at the battle of Waterloo in 1815.

January 3rd 2022

4,187 Retweets28,138 LikesShout out of the Week

I will probably never write a rock star romance, but I do enjoy them. It’s the excess of the life of a rock star, the blend of talent and dissolution. What do you get the person who has everything? Can one person REALLY fit into the world and be all they want? (I mean, yeah! Usually :D But still!).

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When Jeff Pine rents a cabin in the hometown he’s been avoiding for fifteen years, he just wants some time away from his rock 'n roll world to figure out his life. Instead he runs into his former BFF—and the inspiration for dozens of love songs—on the first day.

Facepalm.

Park naturalist Carter Rhodes is a cinnamon roll dressed like a lumberjack. Fame and fortune don’t turn his head, but the snarky little nerd who followed him around as a kid? The guy who makes him laugh when he’s grieving and relax when he overextends himself? Not the rock star, but Jeff? That guy has a chance.

Jeff has always known Carter is it for him, but he’s facing a tour with increasingly hostile bandmates, a looming album deadline, and the suspicion that their label is up to no good. Can he find the courage—and the time—to write a true love song with Carter?

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I’m just gonna admit that this made me cackle quietly to myself on the sofa. So…I shared!

Tim X. Price @timxpricePlease note that Disney’s depiction of Winnie the Pooh is still under copyright. It’s the character from the books that entered the public domain.Red shirt on the bear, artists beware. If nude he be, your Pooh is free.

January 3rd 2022

27,618 Retweets171,737 LikesFree Audio Chapter of the Week

Starting next week….’Shift Plan’ by TA Moore and narrated by Michael Fell.

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‘Shift PLan’ by TA Moore is a Night Shift short story and a prequel to Shift Work. Find out more about who Kit Marlow was before he joined the Night Shift, and how he became the man Cade Deacon gets to meet in Shift Work. You can read now or listen from next week!

All three of the Night Shift books are available in audiobook format now on Audible! I’m beyond thrilled my Michael Fell’s work, so please do check them out!

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I think we can all see ourselves in Juanita the Armadillo.

Cincinnati Zoo @CincinnatiZooAnyone else already giving up on their New Year's resolutions? In case you aren't sure what you're looking at, Juanita the armadillo is napping in her exercise wheel.

January 3rd 2022

2,888 Retweets20,781 LikesMust Read of the Week

I love this. The combination of internet sleuthing, semi-mythical childhood recollection, and inexplicable cloak and dagger secrecy that permeates the search just captures the attention despite the relatively low stakes. Mind you, that’s a significantly creepy cartoon!

How an Internet Obsession Resurrected a Creepy, Long-Lost Sesame Street Cartoon

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When Jon Armond was about six years old, he was traumatized by something he saw on Sesame Street. It happened sometime in the mid-1970s: He was watching the show in his living room, surrounded by bad wallpaper and shag carpeting, and in between segments with Mr. Hooper and Cookie Monster, a bizarre cartoon suddenly appeared. Jon remembers it starting with a little girl lying in her bedroom. A crack in her wall morphs into the shapes of different animals: a camel, a hen, a monkey. She then encounters “the crack monster,” a splintery crack that resembles a snarling face.

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I have followed Little Tunny and Salad since Salad first mooched up onto the doorstep. Little Tunny is just THE BEST person and did so much for all those kitties. PLUS L’il Breakfast Sandwich is a precious, wobbly bean!

@itslittletunny Salad the biblically-correct-angel momma cat is here to make sure your 2022 is pawsitive and purrfect. \n\nMy first piece of the new year! ","username":"MaximumSips","name":"Max","date":"Tue Jan 04 00:11:45 +0000 2022","photos":[{"img_url":"https://pbs.substack.com/media/FIN4Gp...Max @MaximumSips@itslittletunny Salad the biblically-correct-angel momma cat is here to make sure your 2022 is pawsitive and purrfect. My first piece of the new year!

January 4th 2022

94 Retweets659 Likesnationaltrust.org.uk/features/walks….\n📸 Caspar Daniël Diederik of STORYTRAVELERS ","username":"NationalTrustNI","name":"National Trust NI","date":"Tue Jan 04 08:18:00 +0000 2022","photos":[{"img_url":"https://pbs.substack.com/media/FHVRm3...National Trust NI @NationalTrustNISee the Giant's Causeway in a new light as you approach the world-famous stones from a different angle. Enjoy a winter walk along the clifftop trails and see out our 12 Walks of Christmas on the Causeway Coast. nationaltrust.org.uk/features/walks….📸 Caspar Daniël Diederik of STORYTRAVELERS

January 4th 2022

1 Retweet9 Likes

Look, I’ve been a coeliac for a while and it’s been literal years since I ate wheat. And yet I think I’d break that streak for that stained glass cookie. Just one! I could ride that out.

Dr Ella Hawkins @EllaMcHawk2021: a biscuit (cookie) retrospective. 🍪Thys 🧵 beginneth wyth these illuminated manuscript morsels. All painted by hand and flavoured with orange, cardamom & vanilla. (1/?)

December 29th 2021

5,025 Retweets21,584 Likes

State of the TAM - 28 Dec

What’s Up?

A short newsletter this week, because post-Christmas exhaustion has set in! Plus my friends just left for the ferry home, so I’m a wee bit maudlin.

STILL!

We had a lovely Christmas! We went to the Ulster Folk Park, walked a LOT, and ate enough that the walking made no difference! Basically all you can ask of a Christmas! Oh and I had my Big Editorial Meeting and I’ll share a bit about that in the New Year!

So some pictures!

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a.image2.image-link.image2-825-728 { display: inline; padding-bottom: 113.32417582417582%; padding-bottom: min(113.32417582417582%, 825px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-825-728 img { max-width: 728px; max-height: 825px; } Last, but not least, the Writing Staffie is keeping an eye out for the New Year…no sign yet!Must Read of the Year…since there’s not much left!

Is this out-of-season Christmassy? I don’t think so! Not necessarily!

I have fig stories popping up in my feeds lately. Why? Because I was DETERMINED to try something new at Christmas this year - cheese stuffed figs wrapped in prosciutto. Except could I find a freaking fig anywhere? I could NOT!

That was frustrating, BUT my friends have assured me that I wouldn’t have cared for it anyhow.

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One of my favorite walkways in the world spans a beautiful fig in the village of Falealupo on the island of Savai’i, Samoa, formerly Western Samoa. My colleague the ethnobotanist Paul Cox invited me to visit this island in 1994 at a critical juncture in its history. The 16 tribal chiefs were at a crossroads. The Western Samoan government required villages to build cement schools because their former palm-thatch construction could not withstand the frequent monsoons. But the cost of a school was over $50,000, and Savai’i did not have a cash economy. Samoans are incredibly supportive of their children and wanted the best possible education for them, but their livelihood was based on harvesting fish from the sea and fruits from the jungle. An Asian logging company offered to harvest the island’s timber in exchange for enough funds to build a new school. The chiefs were uneasy because their entire existence over many generations relied on the forest, and even their ancestors were part of this ecosystem, returning to earth as flying foxes in the canopy.

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Sirena Mars @StuckOnMarssI wanna marry this girl

December 11th 2021

35,133 Retweets239,933 Likes

Flash State of the TAM - 27 September

I had a lovely Christmas! Lots of plans for the New Year! For now, though…

Check out the Christmas Deal on Dreamspinner Press! Liar, Liar by TA Moore ebook is FREE, today only! (Free Sale Ends 12.27.2021 at 11:59pm Eastern US Time)

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Just another day at the office. 

For some people that means spreadsheets, and for others it’s stitching endless hems. For Jacob Archer a day at the office is stealing proprietary information from a bioengineering firm for a paranoid software billionaire. He’s a liar and a thief, parlaying a glib tongue and a facile conscience into a lucrative career. He just has one rule—never get involved with a mark. 

Well, had one rule. To be fair, though, Simon Ramsey is dark, dangerous, and has shoulders like a Greek statue. Besides, it’s not as though Jacob’s even really stealing from Simon… just his boss and his brother-in-law. Simon didn’t buy that excuse either after he caught Jacob breaking into the company’s computer network. 

That would have been that—one messy breakup, one ticket to Bali booked—but it turns out that the stolen information is worth more than Jacob thought. With his life—and his ribs—threatened, Jacob needs Simon to help him out. Or maybe he just needs Simon.

Get a Free Ebook (DEC 27 ONLY)

State of the TAM - 14th Dec

What’s Up?

A short newsletter this week! Jax, while fine now, had a barfy night. Ended up me running him to the emergency vet, at which point he perked up right up and was all ‘Darling! Kisses, new friend?’. So he’s dandy this morning, and I’m absolutely wrecked.

So FIRST OF ALL…

Congrats to Andi Lee! Her book Risky Business, the follow up to Mischief Maker, is out today! The first stop of her blog tour is at my website so check it out! We have a chat with the REAL power behind the typewriter, Oona Ferret Lee! Also enter a raffle!

Blog Tour

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Sitting pretty! As you can see, he’s feeling much better than last night.

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Veterinarian Dane Vincent is used to being unlucky in love. That’s why his crush on new friend Ben is No Big Deal. He’s more than happy to swoop to Ben’s rescue when he brings a ferret into his practice. It’s what friends do—and vets.

Ben Clifford came to Lockstone for a new job and a fresh start. He didn’t expect to make friends, never mind a tightknit group of them. They’re all wacky and wonderful, and he fits right in, something he’s never done before. They even support him when he finds a ferret at work and decides to keep the cute little bundle of joy.

There’s just one tiny problem. Ben’s house doesn’t allow pets.

Moving into Dane’s spare room is meant to be temporary, but the more time he spends with him, the less he wants to leave. They connect on a level he’s never experienced before, and slowly but surely, the feelings of friendship Ben has for Dane morph into something deeper.

The question is… does he have the courage to act on them?

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Tammy is NOT a traditional Irish name :D In case you were wondering.

Aoife 🇮🇪 @aoinifhA thread about Irish first-names 👐🧵🇮🇪The way I see it, there are 3 kinds of Irish names👇1) Irish language names 2) Anglicised Irish names3) Irishized names of non-Irish originLet’s look at each of those types, and chat about a select few examples, etc 🤔…

December 14th 2021

556 Retweets2,791 Likes

In what I can only describe as the universe’s endless spite, substack has moved all the widgets I use the most to the little spillover … in the corner. I frankly deserve better and I am probably going to develop carpal tunnel from the extra wrist action.

Must Read of the Week

The ORANGE ORDER? Who doesn’t know about the Orange Order? Even if you aren’t in Ireland - in which case you definitely know about the Orange Men, even if only to panic curse at the eerie sound of flute bands heralding road closures - surely you’ve seen at least one example of us setting buses on fire.

Secret. Secret, my arse.

The Molly Maguires on the other hand are awesome!

Eight Secret Societies You Might Not KnowThe popularity of these secret clubs peaked in the 18th and 19th centuries. a.image2.image-link.image2-827-728 { display: inline; padding-bottom: 113.5989010989011%; padding-bottom: min(113.5989010989011%, 827px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-827-728 img { max-width: 728px; max-height: 827px; }

By their very name, secret societies inspire curiosity, fascination and distrust. When the Washington Post broke the story last month that Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia spent his final hours in the company of members of a secret society for elite hunters, people instantly wanted to know more about the group.

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Oh my, this is so beautiful!

Gveanel @gveanelWinter Book ❄️📖Finished YCH book CrystalbrookAussies on DeviantART

December 12th 2021

168 Retweets1,487 Likes

No audio this week. Sorry guys. Just too frazzled to put it together. After Christmas!

I am REALLY looking forward to this.

State of the TAM

What’s Up

It has been a windy/wet/hailing day here by turns! Jax has spent the day glued to me, except when I stuck my head outside to see if the decorations were still attached to the house. It has been pretty bad! Apparently it’s going to roll over into tomorrow, but with luck I can talk the pupper into taking a walk in the morning!

#StormBarra captured by the @IrishLights team carrying out lighthouse maintenance 50m above raging seas. ","username":"philipbromwell","name":"Philip Bromwell","date":"Tue Dec 07 17:49:30 +0000 2021","photos":[{"img_url":"https://cdn.substack.com/image/upload...Philip Bromwell @philipbromwellFastnet and furious. A breathtaking view of #StormBarra captured by the @IrishLights team carrying out lighthouse maintenance 50m above raging seas.

December 7th 2021

82 Retweets334 Likes

I am skipping the audiobook this week since I am wrecked AND I’ve got my booster tomorrow which has me on edge (I am terrified of needles. I have tried to kick the dentist before). It’ll be back soon though!

Pupdate of the Week

Jax went over to Bangor on Sunday to help collect for his fellow Staffies. He was adorable and enjoyed all the fuss.

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Then he headed over to Mount Stewart to help dig up a Christmas Tree :D (Kidding! I do not Real Tree after one year vacuuming up so many pine needles I could only assume that goblins were coming in at night with extra ones).

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This is cool. I love the interstitial places that people created to fill the gap between what existed and what they wanted to exist.

10 Interesting Mythical Places a.image2.image-link.image2-330-620 { display: inline; padding-bottom: 53.2258064516129%; padding-bottom: min(53.2258064516129%, 330px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-330-620 img { max-width: 620px; max-height: 330px; } 01 Norumbega a.image2.image-link.image2-300-300 { display: inline; padding-bottom: 100%; padding-bottom: min(100%, 300px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-300-300 img { max-width: 300px; max-height: 300px; }

First showing up on a map by Girolamo Verrazano in 1529, Norumbega was purported to be a Viking settlement located in the northeast of North America. However, the legend didn’t really gain traction until the stories of a British sailor named David Ingram made it back to England. He claimed to have been a guest in a fantastical city in New England, the gem-encrusted, golden-walled city of Norumbega. Thanks to his imprecise directions, as well as the fact it most likely never existed, expeditions sent to locate the fabled city failed spectacularly.

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Stuart Neill @SaintlyStuartNewtownards street art 😍

December 4th 2021

7 Likes

It’s amazing how ominous this comes out.

And now not ominious this one is :D

Look at this! How amazing is Santa Ranger! He manages to pull off that skintight jammies look!

Spider-Ken ART COMMISIONS OPEN 🏳️‍🌈 @DailyPowrRangrsApparently this is from the Power Rangers RPG game and an official character in it. Santa Ranger

December 7th 2021

2,461 Retweets11,792 Likes

And I’m not Christmas alllll the time. Sometimes I’m adorable Reaper Kitty sketches :D

Vampira🦇 @DraculasswifeArt by Randy Ortiz.

December 6th 2021

632 Retweets3,389 Likes

State of the TAM - 30th November

What’s Up?

It is BALTIC over here, folks! Wet. Rainy. I sleep in a nest of duvet and puppy! Getting up is not easy!

Writing this a bit later than usual because Rhys Ford sent me a FEAST of fish and chips and gluten-free chicken burgers. So I’m fending off a food coma with a long stick, and you’ll all need to bear with me.

Hex Work is out. A independent book out making a way in the world for itself.

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You can also catch up with Jonah in the blog tour short story here! I will dress it up for the site in a couple of weeks if you’d rather have it in epub.

The Night Shift audiobook series is NEARLY complete and will be OUT SO SOON! Like, for December. So I’m going to be thrilled to get that all out to you. Stay tuned for next week :D

Pupdate of the Week

I buy this dog SO MANY toys! He has a BAG of doggie toys from Santa that are hidden in my wardrobe so they will be a surprise. Yet he’s never loved anything as much as he loves this scabby old ball he found after Storm Arwen had been through!

a.image2.image-link.image2-1159-728 { display: inline; padding-bottom: 159.2032967032967%; padding-bottom: min(159.2032967032967%, 1159px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-1159-728 img { max-width: 728px; max-height: 1159px; } Free Audio Chapter of the Week a.image2.image-link.image2-862-728 { display: inline; padding-bottom: 118.4065934065934%; padding-bottom: min(118.4065934065934%, 862px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-862-728 img { max-width: 728px; max-height: 862px; }

‘First Shift’ by TA Moore is a Night Shift short story and a prequel to Shift Work. Find out more about who Kit Marlow was before he joined the Night Shift, and how he became the man Cade Deacon gets to meet in Shift Work.

Written by TA Moore
Narrated by Michael Fell

Enjoy the Epilogue!

Listen Now

This is just the coolest thing. I have found some funky little bits and pieces on the shore, but nothing as neat as this. A kiss from the river.

Lara Maiklem Mudlarking (London Mudlark) @LondonMudlarkManufacturers started putting their names onto bricks in the 19th c and there are piles of them on the foreshore. I like looking for for the broken ones that create random words and added ‘can’ to my collection last week, to go with ‘this’, ‘and’ and a kiss from the river ‘x’

November 30th 2021

14 Retweets316 LikesBook Recommendation of the Week

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Ever since ghostwriter Jason Burke ended up in loco parentis for his orphaned niece, Mallory, he’s been trying. He goes to parent/teacher events, and he makes packed lunches, so he definitely didn’t mean to forget about Christmas. He just hasn’t celebrated it since he left home under a cloud years ago.

Put on the spot, Jason makes the snap decision to take Mallory to see where he and her father spent their Christmases as kids. The last thing he expects is to run into Tommy, his ex—ex-best friend, ex-boyfriend—who is still living in town… and working as a sheriff’s deputy.

It’s hard to avoid someone in a small town—and maybe Jason doesn’t want to. He got Mallory a Christmas, and maybe now it’s time to get himself a Christmas boyfriend. But first, he owes Tommy some explanations.

A story from the Dreamspinner Press 2017 Advent Calendar "Stocking Stuffers."

Buy Now

THIS! Look at it! I love Wonder Woman and Greek myth and all that anyhow? But just the flock of attack peacocks? Who could turn away from that?

@Philjimeneznyc \n\nWonder Woman : Historia #1 out now ","username":"CoolComicArt","name":"Cool Comic Art","date":"Tue Nov 30 17:00:52 +0000 2021","photos":[{"img_url":"https://pbs.substack.com/media/FFdPay...Cool Comic Art @CoolComicArtPhil Jimenez, this was worth the wait. Truly great artwork that will stand the test of time is always worth the wait. @Philjimeneznyc Wonder Woman : Historia #1 out now

November 30th 2021

59 Retweets292 LikesMust Read of the Week

I have to admit that I will invoke the Rule of Cool on this one. If I wanna write about hobo code, I’ll write about it. I do what I like! I have actually always wanted to do an Urban Fantasy hobo thing. Don’t know when I’ll get around to it since I have some series to get finished, before I bring in more :D But one day!

Everything You Thought You Knew About ‘Hobo Code’ Is Wrong

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Connecticut Shorty caught her first ride in the porch of a grainer—the slender, metal cutout on a grain-filled train car—traveling about 200 miles across Northern California, from Dunsmuir to Roseville. It was 1993, and Shorty, then 51, was learning how to hop freight trains from a man known as Road Hog USA. He was a hobo, part of an American tradition that emerged after the Civil War: transient laborers who rode the rails and found short-term work along the way.

Read Now

To tie into the mudlark bricks from earlier…look at these! How awesome are they?

Dr Ella Hawkins @EllaMcHawkNot a collection of mudlarking finds from the foreshore of the Thames. Biscuits. 🍪

November 29th 2021

788 Retweets7,039 Likes

Scroll up. There’s a whole thread about how Jon Rosenthal should be allowed to do a rom-com and it is VERY convincing. However, I’m picking this entry to link to, because SERIOUSLY.

@suleikhasnyder Oooh, yes please!!! ","username":"Tracy_Pierceall","name":"Tracy Pierceall ❤📚🧵","date":"Tue Nov 30 04:20:11 +0000 2021","photos":[{"img_url":"https://pbs.substack.com/media/FFahU1...Tracy Pierceall ❤📚🧵 @Tracy_Pierceall@suleikhasnyder Oooh, yes please!!!

November 30th 2021

7 Likes

More shops should do book trees. They are just cool!

justmelmax A post shared by Mel Max (@justmelmax)

I love this. Pigeons, shifty little sods. (One Christmas my boss left the window to our office open due to a terrible smell from somewhere below and a pigeon got in. Then it invited its pigeon friends and they had some sort of godawful Pigeon Christmas party in there. One came back and laid eggs in what was frankly the worst nest you’ve ever seen. We tried to feed her seeds and grains and little bits of wholewheat scones. She was, ‘Screw you! Give me gutter chips or give me death!’.)

Isa // Witchy Aesthetics @SecondlinaBirdfeed Unsolved.

November 29th 2021

57 Retweets567 Likes

State of the TAM: 23 November

What’s Up

Hex Work is Out Today!

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The blog tour is still going on! So check out Reading Reality today for the next stop in the tour and to follow along with the exclusive short story!

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It was a very dramatic photo! He was actually looking at a cow :D

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I mean! S’only fair I go with my own this week, right? :D

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My name is Jonah Carrow, and it’s been 300 days since I laid a hex.

OK, Jonah Carrow isn’t actually an alcoholic. But there’s no support group of lapsed hex-slingers in Jerusalem, so he’s got to make do. He goes for the bad coffee and the reminder that he just has to take normal one day at a time.

Unfortunately, his past isn’t willing to go down without a fight.

A chance encounter with a desperate Deborah Seddon, and a warning that ‘they’re watching’, pulls Jonah back into the world he’d tried to leave behind. Now he has to navigate ghosts, curses, and the hottest bad idea warlock he’s ever met…all without a single hex to his name.

But nobody ever said normal was easy. Not to Jonah anyhow.

Buy Now

Free Audio Chapter of the Week a.image2.image-link.image2-862-1456 { padding-bottom: 59.2032967032967%; padding-bottom: min(59.2032967032967%, 862px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-862-1456 img { max-width: 1456px; max-height: 862px; }

‘First Shift’ by TA Moore is a Night Shift short story and a prequel to Shift Work. Find out more about who Kit Marlow was before he joined the Night Shift, and how he became the man Cade Deacon gets to meet in Shift Work.

Written by TA Moore
Narrated by Michael Fell

Enjoy Chapter Seven!

Listen Now

I mean, immediately. Take her advice.

Zoraida Córdova 🌙 @zlikeinzorroAuthor, if you’re reading this. DIVORCE HIM.

Stephanie Insley Hershinow @S_Insley_H

Your daily Be Mad at an Anonymous Stranger. https://t.co/JPJvdTeAVg

November 23rd 2021

63 Retweets463 LikesMust Read of the Week

I am SOMEWHAT concerned that campervan just took out a sheep. Nevertheless this is an interesting read!

Campervans were big around here during the lockdown. One of neighbors rents one regularly for trips, and the place he rents them from has been struggling to find any to buy to keep up with demand. Another neighbor bought a caravan, which he and his wife seem to enjoy…but dear lord, I’d never have the confidence to drive that anywhere! It’s HUGE!

(I did consider it myself. The idea of throwing some clothes and Jax into a little house on wheels and taking off on a weekend up to the North Coast is really appealing. Also WICKED expensive considering I’ve no idea whether I could drive it or not!)

A hidden pandemic of buyer’s remorse is sweeping undetected through Irish homes

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Roadtrips in Ireland are done at a very sedentary pace.

A hidden pandemic of buyer’s remorse has been sweeping undetected through homes in Ireland and Britain. Victims include those who gave in to the temptation to impulse buy a robot hoover, a treadmill or an expensive ice cream maker during lockdown.

A recent survey of 4,000 adults in Britain found that nine in ten indulged themselves in “non-essential” lockdown “treats”, and many of them are now suffering regret.

Read More

Daniel @danielcalmdown0Cat boyfriends I started long ago and finally finished 🐈‍⬛♥️🐈

November 22nd 2021

1,043 Retweets4,759 Likes

I love this.

But wait!

There are more!

It’s coming! But will they manage to come up with a song as aggressively earworming as ‘Throw a Coin to Your Witcher’?

Look! Look at this clever cat!

What's Wrong With Your Cat? @WwwYourCat

November 22nd 2021

2,957 Retweets14,928 Likes

State of the TAM - 16 Nov

What’s Up

It’s not been a bad week, but nothing much has happened really!

I’ve got Hex Work by TA Moore set up on Kobo, Barnes and Noble, and Apple. So if you prefer those retailers to Amazon, pre-order away :D The blog tour will be starting soon too—with exclusive content and prizes!—so don’t miss that.

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I am getting my flu jab and hopefully covid booster tomorrow. Luckily it’s just around the corner from me, so no trips up to Belfast this time! I will let you know next week how it went…and, you know, probably whine copiously about it on social media if I feel bad!

Getting moderna this time, I believe!

Pupdate of the Week a.image2.image-link.image2-1092-1456 { padding-bottom: 75%; padding-bottom: min(75%, 1092px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-1092-1456 img { max-width: 1456px; max-height: 1092px; } a.image2.image-link.image2-1092-1456 { padding-bottom: 75%; padding-bottom: min(75%, 1092px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-1092-1456 img { max-width: 1456px; max-height: 1092px; }

Jax is enjoying autumn at Mount Stewart!

Book Recommendation of the Week

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My name is Jonah Carrow, and it’s been 300 days since I laid a hex.

OK, Jonah Carrow isn’t actually an alcoholic. But there’s no support group of lapsed hex-slingers in Jerusalem, so he’s got to make do. He goes for the bad coffee and the reminder that he just has to take normal one day at a time.

Unfortunately, his past isn’t willing to go down without a fight.

A chance encounter with a desperate Deborah Seddon, and a warning that ‘they’re watching’, pulls Jonah back into the world he’d tried to leave behind. Now he has to navigate ghosts, curses, and the hottest bad idea warlock he’s ever met…all without a single hex to his name.

But nobody ever said normal was easy. Not to Jonah anyhow.

Pre-Order

Free Audio Chapter of the Week a.image2.image-link.image2-862-1456 { padding-bottom: 59.2032967032967%; padding-bottom: min(59.2032967032967%, 862px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-862-1456 img { max-width: 1456px; max-height: 862px; }

‘First Shift’ by TA Moore is a Night Shift short story and a prequel to Shift Work. Find out more about who Kit Marlow was before he joined the Night Shift, and how he became the man Cade Deacon gets to meet in Shift Work.

Written by TA Moore
Narrated by Michael Fell

Enjoy Chapter Six!

Listen Now

Sometimes. These last few months definitely :D

Oded Rechavi 🦉 @OdedRechaviHow your email finds me

November 13th 2021

7,030 Retweets45,313 LikesMust Read of the Week

History is cool :D

a.image2.image-link.image2-404-616 { padding-bottom: 65.55555555555556%; padding-bottom: min(65.55555555555556%, 403.8222222222222px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-404-616 img { max-width: 616px; max-height: 403.8222222222222px; } The Greatest Unsolved Heist in Irish HistoryScandal, conspiracy, and cover-ups in the theft of the “Irish Crown Jewels” from Dublin Castle.

Spoiler alert: The Irish Crown Jewels have never been found.

Dublin, 1907.

Arthur Vicars was 45 years old in July 1907, just a few weeks from his birthday. His entire life at the time was wrapped up in his job as Ulster King of Arms. This put him in charge of the rules and regulations regarding heraldry and family trees—a very important position in early-20th-century Ireland: He was the arbiter of inheritance. “Most land, power, and wealth were vested in the hands of the aristocracy,” says William Derham, a curator at Dublin Castle, “and the question of who was the legitimate heir to an estate and a title carried with it the question of who would inherit a great deal of money,” in addition to a seat in Parliament. Vicars, from his spacious office in Dublin Castle, was well paid, well respected, and passionate about heraldic history and genealogy.

Read More

I am really looking forward to this and the Witcher.

chuck 🍂 @charlubbyautumn mood

November 13th 2021

8,099 Retweets34,612 Likes

This is breath-takingly touching.

S. Bear Bergman @sbearbergmanOh hello, all of the Internet that has now also seen me half naked. If you liked the essay, it may interest you to know that I have also written a number of books: S. Bear Bergman | Arsenal Pulp PressArsenal Pulp Press is a book publisher in Vancouver, Canada with over 300 titles currently in print, which include literary fiction and nonfiction; cultural and gender studies; LGBT and multicultural literature; cookbooks, including vegan; alternative crafts; graphic novels; visual arts; and books i…arsenalpulp.com

November 14th 2021

46 Retweets728 Likes

State of the TAM - 9th Nov

What’s Up

November is a weird month. Some people still have their Halloween decorations out, the pumpkins slowly collapsing in on themselves, and others have Christmas decorations out already. I get to see them all taking Jax on his daily mooch. The pumpkins have started to look like gummy old men!

Nanowrimo is going well. I am more or less on target (500 more to write today!)

And last but not least, don’t forget about the blog tour for Hex Work! Starting on the 22nd November! I’ve an exclusive short story and will have prizes!

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Jax loves a puppucino, but he’s not tidy eating them!

I know! I know! They’re not good for him, but he’d had a bit of a scare when someone set fireworks off (on the 8th November! What are the asshats celebrating, huh?) so I needed to distract him for a wee bit.

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Free Audio Chapter of the Week a.image2.image-link.image2-862-1456 { padding-bottom: 59.2032967032967%; padding-bottom: min(59.2032967032967%, 862px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-862-1456 img { max-width: 1456px; max-height: 862px; }

‘First Shift’ by TA Moore is a Night Shift short story and a prequel to Shift Work. Find out more about who Kit Marlow was before he joined the Night Shift, and how he became the man Cade Deacon gets to meet in Shift Work.

Written by TA Moore
Narrated by Michael Fell

Enjoy Chapter Five!

Listen Now

My reaction to the asshats that were letting fireworks off last night. I was not amused.

#writingstaffie","username":"tamoorewrites","name":"TA Moore","date":"Mon Nov 08 18:10:49 +0000 2021","photos":[],"quoted_tweet":{},"retweet_count":0,"like_count":4,"expanded_url":{},"video_url":null}">TA Moore @tamoorewritesFor whatever small brained asshole is STILL letting off fireworks on the 8th NOV? I don’t know what you’re celebrating, but I suggest Stick It Up Your Hole Day next and leave the rest of us in peace? No love from the #writingstaffie

November 8th 2021

4 LikesReccomendation of the Week

I have no idea if I am getting any seasonal stories written this year, but I still love to see them starting to appear. Plus, I like the cover on this!

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Maddox

I’m not a fan of Christmas. I’m happy to stay up in my mountain cabin and let the silly season pass me by. But when a friend asks for a favor, I can’t say no. Now I’m stuck in my cabin during a snowstorm, trapped with the most beautiful man I’ve ever met—who can’t wait to get away. He just might break my heart when he goes.

Ravi

I’m racing to get home for the birth of my goddaughter when mechanical troubles force my plane’s emergency landing. There are no beds at the inn due to a horrendous storm, but a friend says she knows a guy who won’t mind putting me up until the bad weather passes. Now I’m trapped with that man, and I must decide if I stay, hiding from the rest of the world, or go and face my past to earn a shot at my happily ever after.

Pre-Order Now

I love watching birds of prey walk! Hawk legs are nearly as funny as owl legs.

Avian Face-Tool 🇮🇪 🇪🇺 @BeakmooThe trousers on this lad.

November 6th 2021

773 Retweets9,082 LikesMust Read of the Week

I love the idea of this? My Big Daft Dream is to take the Orient Express some time and pretend I’m an Agatha Christie character. I loved going over to Paris on the Eurostar, too, although I’m not sure if that’s still going to work after Brexit and all that mess.

Some day maybe I’ll do a big train journey on a trip to America and hang out in the dining car :D

a.image2.image-link.image2-819-1456 { padding-bottom: 56.25%; padding-bottom: min(56.25%, 819px); width: 100%; height: 0; } a.image2.image-link.image2-819-1456 img { max-width: 1456px; max-height: 819px; } The Return of the American Rail Dining Car

Changes at Amtrak may revive the beloved tradition of enjoying chicken cordon bleu and Moroccan beef with chickpea salad with fellow travelers  

In August 2005, I rode an Amtrak overnight train from Chicago to Schenectady, New York: the Lake Shore Limited. I spent the night seated at a table in the lounge car waiting for 6:30 a.m. — breakfast time — with three other lone travelers.

There was a Brooklyn-Irish merchant marine who kept bragging about his flings in port; a middle-aged man in a Chicago Cubs jersey and cap who told grisly tales from his years in a street gang, back when he was “the leader of a thousand men”; and a retired civil servant from Harlem, who initially approached the table to tell the man in the Cubs cap that his stories were “terrorizing” an Amish family seated two rows away. “I’m from the street too and I’m not impressed,” he said, though he was impressed with the merchant marine’s duffle bag of whiskey nips, so he took a seat and a drink. The Amish family and a few other nervous eavesdroppers eventually left and soon we were barking at each other around a single table in an otherwise empty car, hushing only when the porter came through, until dawn filtered in and the track lights turned off.

Read More

I find this series of videos reviewing ferries to places I will probably never go rather meditative.

charlemagne tha gourd @grnpointerThe House of Faberge made 52 "Imperial" eggs as Easter gifts for Tsars Alexander III and Nicholas II to give to their wives and moms. 46 of these survive. I will rank all 46 Imperial Faberge eggs.

November 6th 2021

23,958 Retweets116,308 Likes

This is like magic.

Nerd Girl Says @Rachael_ConradThe sound that I made

November 6th 2021

54,778 Retweets344,292 Likes