iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Today's AI-generated scam-the-author e-mail informed me that I have a "a severe operational vulnerability causing an aggressive Cross-Traffic Algorithm Leak". Good gracious. I shall have to call a plumber.

Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

Someone apparently took This Princess Kills Monsters to Disneyland. I hope they had a nice time.

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Goodreads Giveaway -- 15 copies of This Knight Topples Empires are available! www.goodreads.com/giveaway/ent...

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

PW review of This Knight Topples Empires: “[The] deadpan tone, humorous magic system, and playful fairy tale logic keep the episodic quest buoyant... the affectionate sibling dynamic and heartfelt handling of Jules’s queerness anchor the mayhem. This irreverent, inclusive fantasy is sure to charm.”

Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

My next book comes out in two months! www.amazon.com/This-Knight-...

Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Today's revisions turned out to be dealing with all the things I mentioned in chapter 2 that were supposed to come back but never did.

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

Edinburgh Fringe is over and done with, and that means it’s time for THE RY FRINGE AWARDS for the best shows seen by Ry. I decided this year that I would have some rules why not. So:

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

Two extremely different fantasy books topped my list of favorite books this month: DEALING WITH DRAGONS by Patricia C. Wrede THE WORKS OF VERMIN by Hiron Ennes ryhermanwrites.wordpress.com/2026/08/31/f...

Favorite Books — August 2026

Two extremely different fantasy books topped my list this month: DEALING WITH DRAGONS by Patricia C. Wrede Cimorene is everything a princess is not supposed to be: headstrong, tomboyish, smart &#82…

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

Going to a five-hour long Dutch language production of Angels in America may be the most pretentious-sounding thing I've ever done.

Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

I know scammers are targeting everyone, but why is there a whole industry set up to scam authors? I can't post "finished writing chapter 9 today" without 50 bots offering to send my chapter to 300,000,000,000 people for a modest fee. Do bakers and stonemasons have to put up with this kind of crap?

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

This week, I Heart SapphFic is featuring books set in Massachusetts -- and my book Love Bites is included! iheartsapphfic.com/2026/07/27/2...

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

That many-times-debunked "half of traditionally published books sell fewer than 12 copies!" statistic is making the internet rounds again like some kind of unkillable zombie and I hate it so much.

Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

BRAIN: You need to write a scene where the main character becomes reconciled to the death of her father. ME: You're right. How should that happen? Where do I put it? BRAIN: I'm really here to come up with ideas, not deal with the details. ME: THAT IS NOT REMOTELY HOW THIS IS SUPPOSED TO WORK.

Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 21/07/2026

My fifth book, This Fairy Stabs Everyone, is ON THE WAY! (... eventually. My fourth book, This Knight Topples Empires, isn't even out yet and won't be until November, but still. ON THE WAY!) @stormliteraryagency

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

I've got no idea why, but this has been my most productive writing week ever. 9000 words. (And yeah, I know there are people who do that regularly, but I do *not*. 3500 is closer to my usual weekly count at the moment.) Maybe I should be trapped at home with a horrible racking cough more often!

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

40,000 words in on current Work In Progress! Half to four elevenths of the way there.

Marie Sotiriou @mariesotiriou.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Reposted by Ry Herman

Go read This Princess Kills Monsters by Ry Herman! It’s a mashup fairytale retelling which pokes fun at society’s strict and outdated gender norms, roles, and rules. Funny, witty, clever, heartwarming, action packed, feminist, and very queer. The perfect distraction from the chaos in the world🌈

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

This Friday I have interview on the Booktails Podcast! We'll dig into This Princess Kills Monsters, play fairytale madlibs, and drink a magic potion: The Lake Melilot. To make your own, use true love’s first kiss and: Blue Curaçao & vodka (or lemonade for a mocktail), pineapple juice, & guava juice

Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 24/05/2026

Lesson learned -- do NOT put fresh chives in the blender.

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

Cover reveal for my upcoming book This Knight Topples Empires! In a raucous, tongue-in-cheek spin on a Romanian fairy tale, a knight attempts to thwart an invasion, save the most beautiful woman in the world, and finally get away from their sisters. ARCs are available by request on NetGalley.

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

Sighting of the Book of the Month club edition of This Princess Kills Monsters in the wild - this one from Pittsburgh!

Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 20/03/2026

I think the audiobook of This Princess Kills Monsters is on sale right now. Certainly on Apple Books, but I guess maybe also on Amazon. books.apple.com/us/audiobook... What tipped me off:

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Reposted by Ry Herman

oldstompinggrounds.bsky.social @oldstompinggrounds.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

@hollygodarkly.wandering.shop.ap.brid.gy Have you read This Princess Kills Monsters by @ryherman.bsky.social Absolutely incredible homage to fairy tales

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

The French language edition of This Princess Kills Monsters comes out today!

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 01/03/2026

There were a whole lot of books I enjoyed this past month: ryhermanwrites.wordpress.com/2026/03/01/f... THE POET EMPRESS by Shen Tao GREEK LESSONS by Kang Han TAPPING THE DREAM TREE by Charles de Lint THE HUNGRY GODS by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Favorite Books — February 2026

Once again, there are no books I specifically want to highlight, but a whole lot of books I very much enjoyed this past month: THE POET EMPRESS by Shen Tao, GREEK LESSONS by Kang Han, TAPPING THE D…

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

I would like to write a cookbook which contains a few different ways to prepare every recipe solely so I could call it Bay Leaf It Or Not.

Liz Loveland @lizlgenealogy.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

Reposted by Ry Herman

After a meetup last weekend at a new-to-me bookstore-cafe, my latest “browsing” resulted in getting this by @ryherman.bsky.social . I finished it yesterday and it was a delight to read. #BookSky #AmReading

Print copy of the book This Princess Kills Monsters (with the tagline “The misadventures of a fairy-tale stepsister”) by Ry Herman, sitting on a laptop keyboard. The cover is filled with a colorful illustration of a silhouetted figure brandishing a sword on a bridge, facing off against silhouetted monsters, with a castle in a cliff in the background and a dragon flying past the castle.

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Reposted by Ry Herman

lgbtqawooo sloth month @spherewolf.bsky.social · 18/02/2026

finished the audiobook of This Princess Kills Monsters yesterday. it was delightful! I enjoyed the fairy tale references (even though I didn't understand some of them), the consistency of the main character's personality traits, the humor, and the great job the narrator did with Scottish accents! 🌈📚

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 13/02/2026

Thanks to the works of Sigrid Undset and Xenophon, I now have every single letter of the alphabet represented by the author names on my bookshelf. This makes me obscurely happy.

Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 03/02/2026

The cover for the French language edition of This Princess Kills Monsters!

River @riversong85.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

Reposted by Ry Herman

This Princess Kills Monsters by Ry Herman is based on The Twelve Huntmen but incorporates many different fairytale characters. It's an amazing adaptation of a classic fairytale. #booksky #fairytale #fantasy #cleanromance #LGBT

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 01/02/2026

There’s no specific book I want to single out as the best of the month, but there were a whole bunch I very much liked, including: ryhermanwrites.wordpress.com/2026/02/01/f... SLOW GODS by Claire North WE COULD BE RATS by Emily Austin ASUNDER by Kerstin Hall

Favorite Books — January 2026

There’s no specific book I want to single out this month, but a whole bunch I very much liked, including: SLOW GODS by Claire North, WE COULD BE RATS by Emily Austin, ASUNDER by Kerstin Hall,…

FemmeComplex @femmecomplex.bsky.social · 01/02/2026

Reposted by Ry Herman

The world is insane and sometimes we all need some escapism. Check out "This Princess Kills Monsters" by @ryherman.bsky.social for an entertaining and inclusive story that takes the best parts of classic fairy tales and twists them into a clever and engaging critique of what we think we know. 💜

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

Another sighting of This Princess Kills Monsters in the wild! This one from Olympia, Washington courtesy of Ruth Apter!

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Shocker is a little scared ngl @shockersatm.bsky.social · 24/01/2026

People should read more books ngl Shoutout to "This Princess Kills Monsters" a banger fairy tale book I found lying around in my library Hilarious dialogue and gay (bi) main character, I think this one was basically made for me specifically

A snippet of text from the book "This Princess Kills Monsters" by Ry Herman. The text reads, "She narrowed her eyes, trying to determine whether or not I was being sarcastic. I showed her a sweet smile. I considered giving her the appellation Giant Fucking Asshole Yvonne. But that, I decided, would be too mean.
I went with Snotface Yvonne instead."

Another snippet of text from the same book.
The text reads, "Then I burst out laughing.
'Oh, my goodness!' I said, gasping for breath. 'Should I promise I'll safeguard your unwedded virtue?'
'Stop it.' Sam was blushing, his pale cheeks turning a deep red. 'It isn't that funny. It's just that we've not so much as had dinner together, and I didn't think—'
'This situation doesn't seem funny to you? At all?' I flung a dramatic hand to my forehead. 'A snowstorm forced them together, and there was only...one...bed! What were they to do?'"

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 24/01/2026

This Princess Kills Monsters has officially earned out its advance!

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

So, it turns out that a hot water bottle is basically an artificial cat.

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Reposted by Ry Herman

Siri / Jen / Buckets @bucketsjen.bsky.social · 10/01/2026

I read "This Princess Kills Monsters" by Ry Herman, audiobook narrated by Kristin Sieh. A queer fairytale adventure that is brimming with references to stories both popular and more obscure! Such a delightful novel.

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Reposted by Ry Herman

Fred Morlan @flagrantstats.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

Recent reading: @ryherman.bsky.social ‘s three novels - This Princess Kills Monsters, Love Bites, and Bleeding Hearts. Dropped fives on them all. All three are great spins on fairy tales/vampire stories. If you’re a Christopher Moore fan, I think there’s some overlap here.

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

It’s January 1, and that can only mean one thing… THE RY AWARDS, given to the best books read by Ry in the previous year! ryhermanwrites.wordpress.com/2026/01/01/t... It’s the most ignored, least prestigious literary award in the entire world, and it starts as always with Ry’s favorite genre –

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Ry Herman @ryherman.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

There’s no single book I’m going to highlight for December, but a number of books I very much liked. ryhermanwrites.wordpress.com/2026/01/01/f... THE INCANDESCENT by Emily Tesh THE NIGHT WATCHMAN by Louise Erdrich THIS BRUTAL MOON by Bethany Jacobs THE WARDEN by Daniel M. Ford

Favorite Books — December 2025

There’s no single book I’m going to highlight for December, but a number of books I very much liked: THE INCANDESCENT by Emily Tesh, THE NIGHT WATCHMAN by Louise Erdrich, THIS BRUTAL MO…