iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 4h

Yeah, that is basically what I've used Amazon for in recent years.

Brands
Likes McVitie's for imported biscuits

Departments
British Snacks

Product Preferences
Consistently repurchases favorite imported biscuits

010

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 4h

Success! Can't wait to try them with tea tomorrow.

A baking sheet with a silicone mat, holding 9 cookies. The two in front are spread with chocolate.

010

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 4h

"Mother, why do you keep getting up? 😾"

A photo of a very small grey cat curled up on a sofa, looking adorable.

110

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 4h

I scattered chocolate chips on a couple in the oven, so when I take the pan out I can smooth the melted chocolate over the surface, at least theoretically. Just about to go check ...

100

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 4h

Making my own digestives tonight! With the tariffs, it's become prohibitive to buy them from McVitie's (and there are no more resellers), so I'm giving this recipe a shot: www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/dige...

kingarthurbaking.com

Digestive Tea Biscuits

Tea biscuits, also known as digestive biscuits, are an easy-yet-sophisticated twist on a graham cracker and a tasty way to add fiber to your diet.

110

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 4h

You can always try to get it published first, then (if unsuccessful) tackle the free vs paywall question!

010

Reposted by Lena Cole

Dr Sam Hirst @romgothsam.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Engaging with an existing trope or plot pattern, isn't about simplicity or robot formulas. It's rather about an acknowledgement of the history of your field, a constant intertextual conversation with (or against) the meanings that have built up around certain tropes.

117823

Reposted by Lena Cole

Hannah Alexander Artwork @hannahartwork.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Moth 🔦 first picture in my October series!

A digital illustration of a giant moth fae with glowing yellow eyes clinging to a lighthouse. At it's base, a lighthouse keeper emerges from his house to investigate.

3188632711

Reposted by Lena Cole

Kara Jorgensen @authorkaraj.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

This a very timely reminder that in 2019 during Trump Administration 1.0, I presented a paper at Ithaca College about why queer historical romance is so important. I have the whole paper/presentation on my website if you'd like some more reasons as to why queer romance is so important now and always

karajorgensen.com

On Accuracy in Historical Romance

Back in April, I presented a paper at Ithaca College’s feminist pop culture conference From Pippi to Ripley on the issues surrounding the perceived “inaccuracies” in historical ro…

57737

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

For Arrow Collar Man: for Robert, a combo of queer community and someone in particular he can belong to (that man cannot be loverless); for Clarence, infinite fabric and infinite time to make gorgeous gowns for an audience to admire on him. #LitHodgePodge

171

Reposted by Lena Cole

Laura Vivanco @lauravivanco.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Cousin, Juliette (2026). "Austen Remapped: Diaspora, Race, and the Rewriting of Pride and Prejudice in Uzma Jalaluddin’s Ayesha at Last and Sonali Dev’s Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors." Persuasions : The Jane Austen Journal On-Line 46.2. Free to read online at:

jasna.org

Austen Remapped: Diaspora, Race, and the Rewriting of Pride and Prejudice in Uzma Jalaluddin’s Ayesha at Last and Sonali Dev’s Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors

032

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Arrow Collar Man! Now with summary and tropes+ on a handy graphic! 📚 books2read.com/b/mYP6MV #WriteSky 🌈💜

Graphic advertising Arrow Collar Man: A Novella. Summary: Robert Harper, member of turn-of-the-century New York's queer scene, recently served a stint at Sing Sing for a crime he didn't commit, and can't seem to get back on his feet. When his uncle pulls some strings to get him a job in an Albany department store, he has little choice but to comply. Certain that he's just going to closet himself for a few months and then return home, he never expects to lose his heart to someone he meets at work -- or to have his past tangle itself with his present. Tropes included: m/m romance, opposites attract, single POV, Edwardian drag, light dom/sub, unusual setting, J. C. Leyendecker.

021

Reposted by Lena Cole

Kate Strasdin @katestrasdin.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

The gossamer muslin used to create early c19th gowns was sometimes described as ‘woven wind’, an amazing description for the lightweight fabric. Here it has been embroidered with wool and I can only imagine the challenges that came with such stitching. C1815 #NGVMelbourne #FashionHistory 🗃️🪡

Back view of a fine white muslin empire line evening dress with a high gathered section centre back and floral wool embroidery at the hem

Front view of the c1815 empire line white muslin evening dress with small embroidered sprigs across the front and a deeper band of wool embroidery around the hem

Fabric detail of the white muslin dress showing the small sprigs of coloured wool embroidery

Fabric detail from the c1815 white muslin dress showing a larger wool embroidered motif from the hem

1022045

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Gaston trying to kill the Beast at the end of Beauty and the Beast, out on the castle roof in the dark and the rain. I believe I was four when I saw that in the theater ...

010

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I don't think I can divide these two concepts! I write historical fiction and a) it's inherently an escape from the modern world by virtue of ... not being that, and b) I reflect a LOT of reality of that historical setting, while c) not necessarily grappling with the darkest realities.

120

Reposted by Lena Cole

Ange | Author A. M. Shilling @gunsmile.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

That's why I aim for character interactions first. Bringing up backstory topics naturally in dialogue is my main technique. I once read advice that suggested using dialogue instead of explaining something in narration, which I find particularly useful, even if I don't follow it all the time.

061

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I know where they're going to go in the future, so I can seed e.g. the fear that will motivate them next time, the character they'll end up with later ... without really worrying about it now.

010

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Premature of me to answer this when I haven't written them yet, but I've picked up on side characters in bk 1 that make me go, hmm, there's scope for a story here. That's then influenced how I've continued to write them later in the book - they get stronger, appear more, have unfinished arcs.

110

Reposted by Lena Cole

Kira of the Wind (Erika McCorkle) @kiraofthewind.com · 04/10/2026

Repeating what other people said. I used to struggle with this, too, because I wanted to show EVERYTHING. The reader doesn't care. They don't want to see everything. Just go to the next scene. Or if it's within a scene, just a single sentence moving everything along with suffice.

131

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I've largely gone with self-pub out of necessity. 😅 Agents generally say "no novellas" and indie pubs that do them are usually going more literary. Mary M is ... tricky. I do plan to take another run at trad once I'm done with my current project, though!

030

Reposted by Lena Cole

𝑾𝒓𝒆𝒚 🇵🇷 🏳️‍🌈✍️🤖🚀 @wreybies.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Give the villain/antagonist a defensible argument. We can hate Thanos’ methods all we want, but he has a salient point - When resources are limited, growth cannot be unlimited. “But he could have snapped and made that not true.” Yes, and then there’s no story to tell, now is there?

151

Reposted by Lena Cole

Rob MacWolf, Werewolf Hitchhiker @robmacwolf.thevoice.dog · 04/10/2026

I'd like to once again remind you for #BannedBooksWeek that Huckleberry Finn and Animal Farm don't need you to go out of your way to read them. Instead, support a book, and author, who a ban can actually hurt.

3150101

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Yes, that's what I mean. It was a whole thing because the AO3 tag is "coming untouched" and people were like see, this proves that she's a Real AO3 User and didn't just go there for feedback etc. I took a screencap because I was like, hey wait!

"Fuck you."
Ilya laughed. "Hey, remember when you shot your load for like no reason at all?" Hollander glared at him, but lya could tell he was trying not to laugh. "Oh my god. Go to hell" "Amazing trick."
"Your cab must be out there, right?"

010

Reposted by Lena Cole

Tom Cox @dj-acid-reflux.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I don't deny that dogs can sometimes be quite lovely but what I will say is I don't trust their opinions. If a cat recommended me an album it had bought, I'd totally check it out. If a dog did the same, I'd promise to listen to the album, out of politeness, with no intention of actually doing so

3451861

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Finished reading Heated Rivalry, and tbh my main thought is still something I noticed 30% of the way in, namely: it was a Whole Thing that Reid was supposed to have said "coming untouched" and it was a sign of her unfamiliarity with Real Gay Sex Culture, but that phrase does not occur in the book???

110

Reposted by Lena Cole

The Whimsical Muse @whimsicalmuse.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Autumn is essentially a gothic spring.

6622107

Reposted by Lena Cole

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Saturday morning, and that means it's Mary Marchbanks time! Chapter 10: In which Mary spends the morning with her aunt and her aunt's companion, and observes them both. marymarchbanks.wordpress.com/2026/10/03/c... 🌈💜 #WriteSky

A graphic with a picture of a young woman in 1830s dress, a City of London street, and the words "Mary Marchbanks: Historical fantasy, gothic drama, sapphic romance".

012

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

012

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

I am very pleased to say that Arrow Collar Man is now up on nearly all platforms! Historical m/m romance set in upstate New York ca. 1905, and the Leyendecker references are deliberate and relevant! 📚 books2read.com/u/mYP6MV

The cover of Arrow Collar Man: A Novella by Lena Cole, with two young men from period advertisements in suits and casual hats standing next to each other.

031

Reposted by Lena Cole

Ladz ❄️🖤🩸 @ladzwriting.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

hello!! agender here, and I write grotesque fantasy and horror my latest is an F/F/F Polish folk horror retelling of Carmilla about a lady of the house, the maid trying to rob her, and the vampire in the basement 📚 books2read.com/ourcrimsoncage ✒️ ladz-merch.square.site/product/-fir...

A ghostly foggy home

6 logos sit in the upper corner, top row being Amazon, Apple Books, Itch, and the bottom row being Kobo, Smashwords, and payhip

OUT NOW in ebook & paperback

a series of torn papers with the following text on each one:

gothic folk horror
HEA (horribly ever after)
1850s Poland
fuck/marry/kill
menstruation
toxic lesbian vampires

The cover of OUR CRIMSON CAGE by Ladz. It features a witchy woman hovering her hands over a flaming skull

12012

Reposted by Lena Cole

Yaoi Lowenthal @flawedhowl.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Every so often I see people praising a Joyce Carol Oates tweet, which makes me worried until about two days later, when people are in uproar over a different Joyce Carol Oates tweet, causing me to sigh with relief as the cosmic balance is restored

041

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Squeaking under the wire of #SapphicSeptember is my latest newsletter: buttondown.com/lenacole/arc... Contains a roundup of this month's Mary Marchbanks chapters and links to where Arrow Collar Man's been released! 🌈💜

buttondown.com

Out in the World

I sort of didn’t realize it was slipping by until suddenly tomorrow is October … One thing I’ve been spending quite a bit of time on this month is a...

000

Reposted by Lena Cole

Jenny with a Green Ribbon Around Her Neck @readingtheend.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

I remember when Heated Rivalry came out, my sister and I were explaining the book series to my brother-in-law, and he was like, "well, hey, that's kind of neat! almost like an MCU thing, where the world keeps expanding book by book and you get to know all these different characters"

2362

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

This is what I love most about Patricia Veryan's Jewelled Men and Eloisa James's Desperate Duchesses! Not villains, technically, but guys who've been serving antagonistic or antiheroic roles so far - and their books are the best in the series.

170

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Forcing myself to do the hard work of getting Arrow Collar Man up on the different platforms this evening. Managed Amazon but am getting stymied on other sites ...

000

Reposted by Lena Cole

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

marymarchbanks.wordpress.com/2026/09/26/c... - in which Mary is pestered by a charming gentleman in company, and comes to a decision regarding Mr. Blackstone's offer of magic lessons.

A graphic that reads "Mary Marchbanks: Historical fantasy, gothic drama, sapphic romance"

022

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

marymarchbanks.wordpress.com/2026/09/26/c... - in which Mary is pestered by a charming gentleman in company, and comes to a decision regarding Mr. Blackstone's offer of magic lessons.

022

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Thank you! I think it will - just knowing where exactly the story will go and what foreshadowing/character notes should be on the page from word one is so helpful. Thinking my process in the future should always be to skip the beginning and come back later ...

110

Reposted by Lena Cole

derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

It's great to see tailoring accommodate such extreme movement today. This level of tailoring was a bit more common in the past, as you can see in old films featuring Fred Astaire or Gene Kelly, but many modern suits will lift off the wearer's neck even when they're just walking.

328165112143

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

This is great! It's actually making me think about coming up with a prompt game to focus on use of historical settings and detail, and taking the time to work out how to make it more interactive/promote engagement between people taking part ...

140

Reposted by Lena Cole

Khonri 🫜🎃 @khonri.com · 23/09/2026

I'm testing out using Leaflet and decided to make an opinion piece on prompt games that apparently became the equivalent of nearly 66 bluesky posts. I hope you like proper long-form Khonri, because this is more my element.

khonri.leaflet.pub

so you want to run a prompt game?

a tired person's thoughts on hosting community engagement bait

156022

Reposted by Lena Cole

Ada Lovelace Day @adalovelaceday.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Ada Lovelace Day is coming up soon, on Tuesday 13 October, so if you're celebrating in any way, please add your event to our calendar. If it's a private/internal event, you can set it to 'private'. Add your event: findingada.com/worldwide-ev... What's on: findingada.com/worldwide-ev...

The Ada Lovelace Day Indie Event roundel.

210141

Reposted by Lena Cole

Tuatha @tuatha.ie · 22/09/2026

The Autumn Equinox is upon us. A time of balance between night and day. Evidence of the importance of the equinox can be found at Cairn T, one of the Neolithic passage tombs that crown the hills around Loughcrew, Meath, Ireland. Its passageway is aligned to the equinox sunrise. #Ireland #Equinox

An aerial view of the complex on Carnbane East with the great mound of stone covering Cairn T, at Loughcrew

Light falling on a stone engraved with megalithic art in Cairn T, Loughcrew Cairns.

116445

Reposted by Lena Cole

Mass Observation Archive @massobsarchive.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Remember this iconic cardigan? Well PhD researcher Neve from @manchester.ac.uk has written us an excellent blog post looking at this, and lots of other creative submissions, to our 1988 directive on clothes and personal appearance! massobs.org.uk/2026/09/21/e... #skystorians

Photograph of the back of a cardigan, with the wearer standing with their back to the camera. Across the back of the cardigan are white lines that look like yarn or string, there are then four kittens playing with the yarn. The bottom of the cardigan has a black and white border with white mice running along it.

0144

Reposted by Lena Cole

Kate Strasdin @katestrasdin.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

This feels like a quietly appropriate approach to autumn dressing, a loose early #1880s ‘at home’ kind of gown in reddy brown challis, a lightweight blend of wool & silk. The Watteau pleat at the back & panels at the front are embroidered with pale forget-me-nots #newcanaanmuseum #FashionHistory 🗃️🪡

Partial view of the back of a reddish brown loose gown of challis. It has a high collar, slightly puffed sleeves at the shoulder and a broad pleat centre back embroidered with small pale flowers

Full length view of the red brown early 1880s at home gown. Long sleeved, with high collar. The floral embroidery continues down centre panels and around the collar, cuffs and pockets

417131

Reposted by Lena Cole

Kate Strasdin @katestrasdin.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Printed leaves become appliquéd leaves the higher up the dress they travel. Blurry pastels become more defined and the edges frame the shoulders, finished with a pale pink bow. Pierre Balmain, 1954 #V_and_A #FashionHistory 🗃️🪡

Back view of a form fitting pastel shaded silk strapless dress with a pale pink sash and appliquéd bodice

Front view of the pastel leaf Balmain dress with the pink silk sash which covers one side of the bodice. It has a draped ruched front to the skirt

Partial view of Balmain’s mid 1950s pastel coloured leaf dress which shows part of the silk bow and the way that the leaves were appliquéd around the bodice

The original sketch of the Balmain dress shown here in a different colour way with a pink stole

612223

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

I know what you mean, but boy, I would really like to read or watch this1

010

Lena Cole @lenacole.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Finally rewriting the beginning of A Run of Better Fortune, and it feels very good to replace the original first chapter with something much more immediate and full of characterization. I've got a good feeling about this book! #WritingCommunity

270