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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Random novel ideas that pop into my brainhole at 3am. 🤔 #writesky #amwriting

Random novel ideas that pop into your head at 3am: Today, Malcolm killed magick.
In doing so, he became the most hated man alive.
They would curse his name. Call him a murderer, a madman, a villain. Spit in his face. He couldn't blame them.
He took something from every person on Earth, but he saved them too.
Humanity would never forgive him.

John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

I thought I'd vomited WELL all over my #WIP. Not as bad as I thought. Here's the opening to chapter 5 of my #histfantsy joint SLAVES OF GOD. #WIPSnips #amwriting #writesky

The #WIPSnips word for September 29th is WELL. Here's a snippet from my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD: At the far edge of Lafayette County, well south of Purity, where no road reached and no map dared speak the truth, the land gave way to the sea.
Not the kind in poems.
Not the kind sung in shanties.
These waters knew how to kill.
Tides dragged men into the brine without malice or mercy. The muddy coast swallowed ships whole if they dared sail too close. Winds howled, not to frighten but foretell.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Surprisingly I don't have payment, but this snippet captures that vibe. Reverend Copeland gotta get paid too. #WIPSnips #amwriting #histfantasy #writesky

The #WIPSnips word for September 18th is PAYMENT. Here's a snipped from my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD and is all about vibes: Cope could’ve preached ‘til sundown and not a soul would’ve stirred. But his silver tongue had already loosened their purses, spilling copper and silver, half pennies and dimes. And before anyone questioned how deep into their pockets they dug, the collection basket runneth over.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

It's been a minute, but I'm channeling my old graphic designer days and working on the book cover for my #histfantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD. I'm feeling these fonts. #amwriting #writesky

The words SLAVES OF GOD and JOHN BRYANT on a parchment background. The title for my upcoming historical fantasy novel.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

Davis Brown warns Adelia of the dangers of traveling Lafayette County at night. #WIPSnips #amwriting #histfantasy #writesky

The #WIPSnips word for August 8th is MELODY. Here's a snippet from my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD: “Highwaymen?” Adelia folded her arms. “Now you’re just trying to scare me.”
“Sometimes a healthy dose of fear keeps you alive. If we run into any, they’re gonna slit my throat without a second thought. Sell off Wink and Jairus to the first bastard with coin to spare. But you…” He paused, letting his words dangle like an unfinished melody. “They’ll have a lot worse in mind for you.”
She knew what he meant.
Even in New York, vulnerable women fell prey to men rich with ego, drunk with power, blind to consequence. But Adelia learned to swallow her fear, especially from men like her father.
“I’ll rest easier knowing you’ve got my well-being in mind.”

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

Nanyamka makes her first appearance in my #histfantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD #WIPSnips #writesky 📚

The #WIPSnips word for July 19th is DIVINE. Here's a snippet from my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD: At the far edge of Lafayette County, well south of Purity, where no road reached and no map dared speak the truth, the land gave way to the sea.
Not the kind in poems.
Not the kind sung in shanties.
These waters knew how to kill.
Tides dragged men into the brine without malice or mercy. The muddy coast swallowed ships whole if they dared sail too close. Winds howled, not to frighten but foretell.
Then something new happened.
Like some divine hand meant to intervene, then forgot what came next, the sky opened and spat Nanyamka into the sea.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

My #histfantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD is set in the rural American south, so humid summers are a way of life. 🥵 #WIPSnips #writesky #amwriting 📚

The #WIPSnips word for July 8th is HUMID. Here's a snippet from my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD: The church held more souls than it ever meant to hold. It cradled the humidity, sweating through the walls and into the pews
More like punishment than penance.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

For my #histfantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD, I'm switching things up & using African proverbs for chapter titles. Chapter 1 kicks off with this gem. #WIPSnips #amwriting #writesky

The #WIPSnips word for July 3rd is OUT. I'm using African proverbs for chapter titles, and here's the title for chapter 1 of my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD: "I pointed out to you the stars and all you saw was the tip of my finger."

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

Auntie Yemaya rules the waters, so sailors are careful not to anger the Queen of the Sea. 🌊 #WIPSnips #amwriting #histfantasy

The #WIPSnips word for June 29th is WATER. Here's the opening lines to chapter 5 of my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD: At the far edge of Lafayette County, well south of Purity, where no road reached and no map dared speak the truth, the land gave way to the sea.
Not the kind in poems.
Not the kind sung in shanties.
These waters knew how to kill.
Tides dragged men into the brine without malice or mercy. The muddy coast swallowed ships whole if they dared sail too close. Winds howled, not to frighten but foretell.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 28/06/2026

Dang! I missed this one, but had to join the party with a trek through the swamp. #WIPSnips #amwriting #histfantasy

The #WIPSnips word for June 27th is ROOT. Here's a snippet from my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD: "Each step sank deep. Ankle-deep. Sometimes more. She waded through the muck anyway, favoring her right leg. Bleeding down the left. One hand to her ribs.
Trees grew close together here, bowed under moss and time. Roots curled, vanishing beneath the dark water and silt, like they tried to escape whatever tethered them to this dead place."

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Thomas looks for New Laveau to the north. Or south, maybe? Nobody can say for sure. #WIPSnips #writesky #amwriting #histfantasy

The #WIPSnips word for May 8th is NORTH. Here's a snipped from my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD:

Rumors of New Laveau, a town of free folk and runaways, spread like whiskey at a wedding. Somewhere up north. Folks said maybe as far up as Canada. Others swore the path led down south, near Mexico. But that’s the trouble with rumors. No sense in believing if they ain’t got some truth to them.
Thomas believed.
He said the place scared folks because it threatened their way of life. How Lafayette County worked. Hell, the whole damned country. So they called New Laveau make-believe. A fantasy. A bold-faced lie.
Did their damnedest to make sure others thought so too.
Beat it out of them if need be.
Thomas never shut up about it though. Promised he’d lead Wink there some day. Lead everyone there.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

The sound of open-mouthed chewing always grosses me out. No way I could sit at a dinner table with Davis. 🍽️ #WIPSnips #writesky #amwriting #histfantasy

The #WIPSnips word for April 24th is HUNGRY. Here's a snippet from my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD:
Go on ‘n get you somethin’ to eat,” Jairus said.
Wink stared off into the woods, half expecting the hare staring back.
“Nah, I ain’t hungry.”
“You sure? Ain’t like we gonna come across meat again any time soon. Best take it while we can.”
“My stomach don’t feel right, is all. You go on ‘head.”
Out the corner of his eye, Wink watched Davis eat.
More like devour.
Grunted as he chewed.
Like a hungry dog who fancied itself a wolf, he picked the bones clean, leaving no trace of cartilage or marrow.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Just another Sunday in Lafayette County. Heat is a way of life down south. 🥵 #WIPSnips #amwriting #writesky

The #WIPSnips word of the day is "heat." Here's a snippet from my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD: This time of year, Lafayette County burned with the kind of fury only Southern summers could summon. It left tempers short, conversations shorter, and provoked even the most God-fearing into swearing under their breaths.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

Everyone knows Anansi the Spider, but did you know he had six sons? 🕷️ Like their father, they weave chaos and disorder into the world, and now they set their sights on the American South in the early 1800s. #amwriting #histfantasy #afrofantasy #writesky #WIPSnips

The #WIPSnips word for April 6th is "rampant." Here's a snippet from my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD: As easily as a summer rain fell from dark clouds or morning fog rose from a valley, six ancient souls stepped through a tear in the world and onto the shores of the New World.
Afirika knew them as Damu ya Buibui, Blood of the Spider.
Brothers.
Their father gave them free rein to roam the world. To influence mortals. To weave chaos into their lives. Chaos ran rampant in their wake. So long as their deeds didn’t interfere with his plans, he let them run amok.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

When one of the big bads in your #histfantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD is Anansi, you gotta research how spider webs are built. #amwriting #afrofantasy #writesky 📚🕷️

Diagram of a spider web with the title, "Spider Web Anatomy." It shows the structure of a spider web, calling out spiral lines, radial lines, and drag lines. From Nebraska Game & Parks.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 26/03/2026

Right?! One my characters is prone to spouting Bible verses. ZeroGPT claims this passage from Psalm 23 KJV is AI-generated. 😖

Screenshot of an AI detector showing the pasted text is AI-generated. The text is from Psalm 23 in the KJV Bible: “He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 21/03/2026

Reverend Copeland is feeling guilty, but doesn't let on. He plays his part well. #WIPSnips #writesky #amwriting #histfantasy #afrofantasy

The #WIPSnips word for March 21st is "wake." Here's a snippet from my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD:
“I ain’t one to speak ill of the dead,” Betty said, wiping away the tearful facade of grief into her handkerchief, “but can’t say I didn’t see this comin’.”
“Did the best he knew how, Sister Betty.”
“You ain’t the one who found him, Reverend. Face all twisted up like that. ‘Best he knew how’ still got him dead.”
Cope couldn’t stop staring at the grave marker.
Reverend, please. Tell her to turn me loose.
Zeke’s last words crawled beneath his skin. A chill gripped his spine like icy fingers, leaving a trail of goose pimples in its wake.
“Seen more folks end up like Zeke than I care to remember, Sister Betty. He’s in the Lord’s hands now. Best not throw stones on hallowed ground.”

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

Dayo goes from newborn to massive proportions in moments. Hyena's aren't supposed to do that! #WIPSnips #amwriting #histfantasy #afrofantasy #writesky

The #WIPSnips word of the day is "beam." Here's a snippet from my historical fantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD:
The little thing blinked.
Yipped and yawned.
Licked its short and fine black fur clean of fluid.
It wobbled on four tiny legs, then bones snapped and lengthened. Newborn fur gave way to a course tan coat speckled by dark brown spots. Paws stretched and joints shifted with cracks and pops. It grew and grew until its shoulders brushed against the tiny shack’s low beams.
Broad jaws opened wide, revealing teeth made for tearing carcasses and crushing bones.
The beast crept forward, ducking under the doorway.
The men retreated, step after ginger step. They had no name for such a creature.
Nanyamka did.
Dayo.
Laughter spilled from the hyena's throat.
A sound that turned bravado into fear.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

It's #amwri̇ti̇ng day! In chapter 7 of my #histfantasy joint SLAVES OF GOD, Anansi's 6 sons, Damu ya Buinui (Blood of the Spider), step through a tear in the world and set foot on the shores of the American South in the early 1800s. #afrofantasy Oh, the drama!

Anansi the spider sits in the center of a web while surrounded by six smaller spiders, his six sons.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

Had a visit from writer's block over the weekend so I spent some time working on a book bio for SLAVES OF GOD. It's pretty generic, but it's only a first pass. More to come. What's your book bio? #writesky #authorsky #writingcommunity

A rough pass a the book bio for my urban fantasy joint, SLAVES OF GOD: Slaves of God is a Southern Gothic historical fantasy rooted in the early American frontier, where enslaved people, con men, and old gods collide, for readers of Toni Morrison, Colson Whitehead, and Octavia Butler who crave brutal honesty, moral reckoning, and a story that refuses to let them look away.

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John Boo-ryant 🎃👻 @johnbryantwrites.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

I ain't siding with AI-authors, but use AI detectors with a grain of salt. One of my characters, Reverend Copeland, is prone to spouting Bible verses. ZeroGPT thinks this passage from Psalm 23 KJV is AI-generated. 🤔🤖 #amwriting #histfantasy #afrofantasy