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Dito Abbott

@ditoabbott.bsky.social
87 followers 69 following 113 posts

Author, Illustrator, Adventurer, Lover of Cheese

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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Finished my cover for Breachfall! Couldn’t have done it without Kirk Douponce’s incredible work on my first two books. He’s a genius (which is why his schedule is jammed full and I was on my own for this one). Holy smokes, I learned a lot about Photoshop this week.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
Colored the stormgut for Breachfall’s cover! I wanted to push my ability to show battle damage. That led to trying some new ideas with blending colors and scratches.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Illustrated a stormgut for Breachfall’s cover. I love this part of the process. Tightening the edit, drawing characters…it’s all coming together!
Drawing of a spider-like creature carrying a knight.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
Sorting my rig for my first NZ show! This Saturday, Aug 1, at Wolfbrook Arena in Christchurch, the Garden City Mid-Winter Christmas Makete is going down from 10-6.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
Unboxed Debunked’s new metal poster. My daughter felt I needed to dial up my presentation’s epicness. Gearing up for my first live event in New Zealand on August 1! #yaauthor #yasteampunk #adventurenovel #yascifi #bookish
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
I officially have a Southern Hemisphere banner for live events down here! You know I’m a grizzled show vet because I’m even more excited about the sweet tube mailer the banner came in, which is waaay heavier duty than the one I use in the US. Such a good tube.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
Back in Christchurch, reflecting on an EPIC Phoenix Fan Fusion! #phoenixfanfusion #yaauthor #authorlife #thankyou #bookish
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
THE PROPHECY IS FULFILLED. Anyone strolling past my comic-con booth hears me yell, “Indiana Jones meets Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy!” IT FINALLY HAPPENED. Visit me at Booth B822 for the final day of Phoenix Fan Fusion to revel in fortune and glory.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
Another Bucket List project off the list: a wooden version of my Terravenum map. Took ages to figure out, but turned out pretty sweet. #fantasymap #glowforge #yafantasy #bookish
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
More fun in the workshop today. Always a great day when Drog drops in! I’ve been cranking hard on Book 3, it’s been fun to take a break from typing to explore Terravenum through other mediums. Only a couple of weeks until Phoenix Fan Fusion, so I’m swinging for the fences. #yasteampunk #steampunk
Illustration of Drog, a robot dog from the Terravenum Chrinicles, burned into a piece of leather
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
My sister and I are having a blast. We dialed in our engraving and are working on relicing. The goal is to create maps that look like Sir Quidby took them on an expedition. #fantasymap #yafantasy #steampunk #scifi #bookish
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 16/05/2026
After hundreds of hours of illustrating and years of dreaming, today I finally engraved my Terravenum map in leather. Woohoo! This was a tricky bugger to pull off but it worked even better than I’d hoped. So rad! #fantasymap #bookish #yasteampunk
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
I’m a light-hearted guy, but I love writing villains. In Debunked, Skhaar the Annhilator was my favorite POV to write, and in Thugwallop, the Fury King was my jam. I don’t know why. It’s probably related to my affinity for Don Karnage, leader of the sky pirates in Tale Spin. #steampunk #bookish
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 10/05/2026
Headed to the USA for Phoenix Fan Fusion, so I had to take Jawgernaut down. But first, I tested her motors & light rig. Jawgernaut appears in Book 3 (Breachfall), which I’m editing now. After how fun this build has been, her role got beefed up! #airship #yasteampunk #steampunk #yafantasy #bookish
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
Bucket List Project: Redrawing my novel’s map to engrave it in leather. Not sure what I’m doing, but we are swinging for the fences. #fantasymap #yasteampunk #steampunk #yascifi #bookish
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Today is my four year anniversary of publishing my first book. We packed incredible adventures into four years. I exhibited at a bunch of live events, met hundreds (thousands?) of readers, and loads of new friends. Here's to many more years of sketchy science, lovable lunatics, and epic adventure!
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
POV: You’re building an airship from your YA steampunk novel with your Dad, just added lights, and accidentally made an EPIC shipwreck scene. Jawgernaut is far more sinister than we anticipated. #airship #steampunk #yafantasy #yaauthor #bookish
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Wiring Jawgernaut’s motors. Pull the lever, Kronk!
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 19/04/2026
Jawgernaut has teeth! Dad and I implanted 112 shark teeth to give this sweet lady the smile she deserves. We’ve been looking forward to this for weeks! Stoked:) #airship #steampunk #yafantasy #bookish #yaauthor
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
I'm exhibiting at Phoenix Fan Fusion 2026 from June 5-7! Stoked to return to my comic-con roots. Fan Fusion 2022 was the first live event I exhibited at, and holy cow, we've put a few miles under the airship since then! Lots of travel and creative logistics to figure out. Excited for the show!
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
Dusting off my original arrows-and-pointy-things graphic while Debunked is on sale. I once found someone using this image as an example of What Not To Do in their article about how to make arrows-and-pointy-things graphics. I heartily disagree and hereby double down.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
I always take screenshots when my books move up the charts during a sale, but this one was special because my daughter Z LOVES the Hunger Games series, so I banked major Dad Points.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
If your Kindle needs more airships, crackpot inventions, lost explorers, and joy, I've got good news for you...(link in comments)
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 29/11/2025
San Francisco Fan Expo Day 2! Great show and cosplay is on point. If you’re in the area, drop by Booth A409 and say hi
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 19/11/2025
THUGWALLOP IS AVAILABLE ON MY WEBSITE! Holy smokes. A lot of work went into being able to write that sentence:)
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
Prepping, packaging, and relicing books and maps. The Fountain Hills Craft fair this weekend is my only Arizona show, so stop by if you can! Today I finished art for Thugwallop’s book box. This thing is a ton of work. But it’s turning out killer. Thugwallop paperbacks are in and look PHENOMENAL!
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 08/11/2025
Back in Phoenix! Boxes of books and illustrations await, ready to be packaged and reliced. I made a Spinal Tap Stonehenge error when I ordered Thugwallop’s desktop banner. This thing is so lightweight, if anyone sneezes, it’s going to fly off my table. Super cute, though:)
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
New Stamp Day! With every new book in the series, I design new rubber stamps specific to the story for book packaging. Stoked with how these guys came out. As always, the stamps make more sense when you’ve read the novel. The lady at the stamp shop had a lot of questions for me.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 31/10/2025
Halloween is a US-thing, but a few houses in Christchurch gave out candy. Grateful for a rad night with my ladies. Z was Dr. Who. J was Mira from KPDH. I was Temu Spider-Man.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 31/10/2025
Cover reveal for “Thugwallop; Volume Two of the Terravenum Chronicles”!
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 17/10/2025
It's late and I'm going to bed, but I just want to say that today I saw the first draft of Thugwallop's cover and y'all aren't ready. Stoked.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
I love following along on maps as I read. For Debunked, I drew a full Terravenum world map. For my follow up novel, Thugwallop, I wanted to zoom in for a close-up view of places in the story, including Easter eggs. There's going to be a lot of coffee-staining in the near future!
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 08/10/2025
Formatting an interior map for Thugwallop. I'm always surprised at how much I need to pump the contrast up to look good in print. The Terravenum world map took me a year to illustrate, but it's proved one of the most important creative efforts I've ever done.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
Illustrating more potential cover art for Thugwallop. When I originally conceived of the Spires of Dubious Wisdom, the hermits lived in outhouse-sized shacks. When I wrote the scenes, I discovered they have a lot more room (and possibly hot tubs?).
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 22/09/2025
Editors have given me the green light to announce Book Two is titled: “Thugwallop”. If that changes, this conversation never happened. Finishing up artwork assets for Thugwallop’s cover. This is “Delver’, a submersible who plays a role in the story. Designed with a puffer fish in mind.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 07/09/2025
Alpha readers are editing Book Two. I've already made a bunch of touch-ups, per my wife's suggestions. She has this strange need for stories to "make sense" and "be coherent". Pshh. Whatever. Meanwhile, I'm working on back matter for the book. Specifically, a character and terms glossary.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 04/09/2025
The title of this book alone earns a re-post.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 04/09/2025
It turns out I accidentally wrote two books instead of one. Book Two is out to alpha readers now (I need to add a few chapters to Book Three)! My daughter is reading it and her gentle encouragements soothe my bruised ego.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 01/09/2025
Confession: When I spell the word "queue", I just close my eyes and hope for the best. Another word I hit with momentum so I don't end up questioning my sanity: "occasionally" Word that used to trip me up, but now I'm freaking amazing at spelling: "Annihilator".
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Reposted by Dito Abbott
Fiction Fans Podcast @fictionfanspod.bsky.social · 06/08/2025
We’re celebrating our 200th (!!!) episode by talking about one of @lillyscribe.bsky.social’s favorite books: THE GREAT GATSBY by F. Scott Fitzgerald, featuring special guest @krystlematar.bsky.social ! Listen to our (very long) conversation here: linktr.ee/fictionfanspod #booksky 💙📚
linktr.ee
Fiction Fans | Instagram, Facebook, TikTok | Linktree
View fictionfanspod’s Linktree to discover and stream music from top platforms like YouTube, Spotify here. Your next favorite track is just a click away!
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 03/08/2025
First draft of Book 2 is DONE at 149,113 words! Book 1 started at 134,000 and ended at 104,500. My goal is to have this book ready when I fly to the USA for a mini-tour in November. There's a lot of work in front of me. Revisions, beta readers, cover art, ARCs, and formatting. Time to level up.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 27/07/2025
Stumbled across the greatest Free Little (it's bigger on the inside) Library ever today in Hamner Springs.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
Checked my author dashboard and was delighted that a 10 year old and 44 year old both enjoyed Debunked. Crossed 140,000 words on Book 2 today. Rounding third base and ready to slide into the basket for a touchdown. Did I sports right? Flying V! Knuckle Puck!
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 13/05/2025
Ten years ago, I wrote: 100% of chimichangas are ordered because people want to say the word "chimichanga". This has never been more true than it is today.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 06/05/2025
Me, at the start of every writing session: "Ugh, this is getting too complicated. No more POVs." Me, five minutes later: "This washer woman's story MUST be told!"
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 05/04/2025
Raptor in the Australia Museum. If I were in charge of posing an exhibit, I would make the raptor look as inept a hunter as possible, too. Referencing clutz raptors is my secret Writing Side Quest. Did Garrillus the Unread lose money investing in a clutz raptor racing league? Why, yes he did.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 04/04/2025
Reader art! I love seeing how my characters look in other people’s minds. I try to leave room in my descriptions for readers to fill in the blanks. Nikos did an incredible job with Pascal and Layla. He is writing and illustrating his own book, too, when he isn’t busy making my day. Cheers!
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 26/03/2025
Making audiobooks is hard work and expensive. I recorded my entire first book and haven't edited a second of it because the process burnt me out. But holy smokes, I'm sick of AI. No thanks, ACX. Maybe someday as a cheap version AFTER I release a human one.
ACX invitation to create AI audiobook
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 12/03/2025
Terry didn't just astound me with his voice. He challenged me with his mind. Granny Weatherwax and Mightily Oats arguing about faith. Death, temporarily mortal, lamenting the passage of time. Vimes' theory of socioeconomic unfairness. Every story a life lesson. Legend.
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Dito Abbott @ditoabbott.bsky.social · 11/03/2025
Stoked with how these posters came out! Poster Ninja did a fantastic job. As an experiment, compared heavy card stock and a fascinating synthetic metallic paper. Ended up liking them both for different reasons (metallic paper has smoooooooth color gradient, card stock feels lovely in fingers).
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