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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna

@ce-mckenna.bsky.social
985 followers 822 following 504 posts

Find my essays, short stories, and an occasional novel @ cemckenna.com

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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
I get that I complain about Microsoft Word A LOT, but come on. It’s such an old software and they can’t do anything right. This is basic shit. We do not need to default to zero-based numbering guys. WTAF.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Ok a lot is happening, but do yourself a favor. Go into the kitchen. Make yourself mint tea. Steep for 4 minutes. Now, add hot chocolate. Now, add half-and-half. Boom! You got yourself a hot mint chocolate extravaganzaaaaaaaaaa.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Fall colors over the Blue River on our daily walk. #colorado
Autumn leaves on either side of a river
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Could @netflix.com’s recommendation algo be THAT GREAT if it didn’t send me an email to tell me there’s a new season of Party Down?? No. No it cannot.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Ooooo eat sooooo much butter!
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
My scrivener file for KIRST was the first thing to upload. I got it onto my old work laptop. And thankfully, Scrivener allows multiple apps on the same user key. Saved 🥹 I didn’t get home from Denver til 6pm. Worked until 2am. And she’s ready, in all her misandrist vampire glory, to be read.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I had an old work computer that was connected to my iCloud acct, which hadn’t been backed up in years because I refused to pay for it (😅). I increased storage to 6TB, rebooted my old laptop, and hoped it would connect to the internet. It did.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
The closest Apple Store was an hour and 15 minutes away and had no appointments til Friday. So I drove to a MicroCenter and hour and 30 away. The 24 year old tried turning up the brightness, restarting, external monitor. Then told me it would be 5 business days. Then I realized…
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Yesterday, an author’s nightmare: I geared up to do the final push on revision for my manuscript, which is due to my editor tomorrow. I opened my MacBook and…Black screen of death. Reboot in safe mode. Brightness up. External monitor. Nothing.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
www.sfgate.com/local/articl...
sfgate.com
SF's AI-run store is losing money fast. After a visit, I'm not surprised.
SFGATE's Drew Magary visited Andon Market and all he got was a lousy soda.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
your story start coming together like sinews in a regenerative body after being torn apart by a shark-like female vampire who only hunts men but of course she’s fighting another immortal on the streets of Amsterdam, hence the regenerative thing.” How come no one says THAT? It’s way more accurate.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Everyone says, “Write the ending of your book so you’ll know the beginning.” But so far, no one has ever said to me, “Write the ending of your book because it’ll catapult you into a revision process that will take up all your free time and keep you up at night but it will make you SO HAPPY to see
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Truly. Double wow. And on top of the insult, it turns out an ai-narrated voice on top of an ai-generated script with ai-generated “art” is INCREDIBLY BORING. Who’dathunkit
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
That said, I am incredibly disappointed in the festival’s choice to show an AI-generated film about Longmont alongside these human stories. It was especially strange to see it shown directly after a movie about water rights and human-driven climate change.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Attending the #Boulder Histories Film Festival is such a treat. There have been some standout stories told, especially about Oscar White, a man who escaped slavery and moved to Goss Grove, about the history of irrigation, about the renovation of #Chautauqua’s auditorium, and Frozen Dead Guy Days.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Enshittification is what’s happening with products and market dynamics. Ensloppification is what’s happening to the output. Enfuckedification is what’s happening to society. Encuntification is what’s happening to my personality, watching all this go down.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
I hope he had SUCH A GOOD TIME at Burning Man. I’m sure he loves that barter system and pitching in for the common good. That is, as long as it goes away as soon as his vacation is over.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Sophomore Bio was my first period class at Boulder High. The classroom had one of those bulky gray TVs with a VCR built in, stored in a recessed, open drawer in the cabinets and only ever pulled out to watch frog anatomy videos. Our bio teacher was silent, except when he sobbed into his hand.
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Reposted by Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna
Elle Cordova @ellecordova.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
I am the very model of a modern day typographer A font take on the tune “Modern Major General” by Gilbert & Sullivan #typography #fonts #graphicdesign
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
#Colorado might be sunny all the time, but we can still do #Gothic. What kind of #horror story would you set here?
St. Catherine’s Chapel on the Rock, in front of the Rocky Mountains with foliage in front
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
5 months, give or take. I don’t mind it, just need to remind myself that I’m more fun than I am serious :)
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Putting it aside for too long 😂
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
I’m in an MFA program, so beta readers are built-in!
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Yesterday, I finished my first draft of my second novel (75,667 words). It changes locations in the last two chapters. The vampire rules start differently than they end. The tone completely shifts halfway through. But I got the skeleton down. Now, the muscles and skin are growing. It’s alive!
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Let’s play Spot The Elk!
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
One of my favorite things about chairing the Historic Preservation Advisory Board for Boulder County is getting updates from the women working on the Latine and Chicano history project, centered on Las Barracas just outside Longmont. Oral histories, migrant stories, community bonding…it’s stellar
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Lol no. There was a news article in the independent
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
ChatGPT, Grok, Claude, and Cursor are all down this morning. It’s the only morning I’m a little excited to open LinkedIn
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
ON FIRE AND UNDER WATER will be up for Best Anthology at #Bouchercon in Calgary this October, and one of my fellow short story writers is also up for Best Short Story. Pretty amazing!
Two books of On Fire and Under Water on sale at the Boulder Bookstore
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Today’s vibes. Autumnal showers and the best TV show ever made.
Two mountain peaks in the gore range covered by cloudy skies in front of a wet road and a fir treeThe Tv show Twin Peaks on a television on top of a red cabinet
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
My favorite part of getting out of tech, other than the newly alleviated anxiety and guilt, is that I only now use LinkedIn to stalk people my friends find annoying.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
The video from the Nepal-Tibet border crossing will come up in your feeds today. Before it plays, I need to warn you: I have never seen something so raw and heartbreaking in my life. I burst into tears, thinking of the people running from that onslaught. Consider whether you need to watch it.
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Reposted by Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna
NPR @npr.org · 26/08/2026
The disaster is linked to climate change, with experts noting the region's vulnerability to extreme weather. n.pr/4cvl1On
n.pr
8 dead, hundreds missing as Nepal avalanche triggers flash floods
The disaster is linked to climate change, with experts noting the region's vulnerability to extreme weather.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
My heart is with Nepal.🇳🇵
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Do you feel ashamed, imagining the spines of old books ripped from their pages to feed your data monster? Do you ever think of the birds that used to live where those data centers are being built? The ones that emit a constant, high-pitched thrum. Do you ever think, “Oh. Fuck.” Cus you should.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
So what, you get $5mil as the first engineer for the sale of your AI startup? How do you look your friends in the eye? The ones who got laid off when their boss decided their brains were disposable. Aren’t you embarrassed to tell your therapist that chatGPT already diagnosed you with depression?
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
This is exactly the vibe I needed tonight.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Every morning, I walk along the Blue River, which begins near Quandary Peak and flows north until it meets the Colorado in Kremmling. It’s low, like my hope. In the age of climate crises, how do we keep from despairing? I have some ideas. cemckennaauthor.substack.com/p/postcard-f...
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Furious is Killing Eve + Epstein + Luigi Mangione and it is the perfect TV show for 2026.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Onion Article: Guy Who Sucks at Being a Person Sees Huge Potential in AI
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Manifesting Kate O’Flynn playing Lynette in a movie version of FINAL GIRL SUPPORT GROUP. www.esquire.com/entertainmen...
esquire.com
On ‘Widow’s Bay,’ Is There Anything Kate O’Flynn Can’t Do?
The British actress tells us how she seamlessly switches from comedy to horror to action hero on the Apple TV series.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Mt. Audubon is bare. There is no glacier there. I am in mourning.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
THE FINAL GIRL SUPPORT GROUP by @gradyhendrix.bsky.social : An un-put-downable, fast-as-a-rapid Friday read.
The Final Girl Support Group book by Grady Hendrix, held up in front of a mountain and blue sky with clouds
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
I hold a lot of deep-seated beliefs about the world, and one is that you should pretty much always get your feet wet in any body of mountain water if you have the chance.
Feet with pink nail polish on in a creek, standing in rocks
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Sometimes, when I’m feeling stuck, I ride my motorcycle over Swan Mountain to Breckenridge and sit in their beautiful, quiet library.
Library window with two bookcases and a laptop computer
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
And those are some damn good reasons to pat myself on the back and fix up a margarita, because isn’t having your work read, ideas considered, and creativity respected all that we’re looking for, anyway?
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Celebrate your rejections. Yesterday, I was rejected by a publishing open call (16 months elapsed since I submitted), an agent (only 5 weeks on that one), and a screenwriting fellowship (1 month). But in that time, my work was read, my ideas considered, and my creativity respected.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
My second novel’s vampire is consuming my brain. Must feed her something new. Everyone I know who’s read it says that Dungeon Crawler is particularly tasty. Have at it. 🥢🧠
A photo of a book in front of the Rocky Mountains
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
Having every Lyft driver have to open the door of the Tesla Model 3s because none of the doors seem capable of opening from the inside by a normal human passenger with 26 years of car-driving experience realllllllly makes me hate Elon even more than I did already.
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Caitlin Eliza (C.E.) McKenna @ce-mckenna.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
When Facebook first launched, my computer-sci dad told me that if something was free, it meant I was the product. It was feeding on me. I didn’t listen because I was having too much fun with my friends. “Convenience is death,” he said. “Death is inevitable,” I said. openai.com/index/testin...
openai.com
Testing ads in ChatGPT
OpenAI begins testing ads in ChatGPT to support free access, with clear labeling, answer independence, strong privacy protections, and user control.
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