iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

The most fun doodles I've ever dun gone doodled

Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

Local Files Club @localfiles.club · 16/08/2026

We're looking for more audiodrama reviewers—writers, podcasters, video makers, bloggers, social media posters, etc.—to add to our outreach list. Want copies of future Local Files Club releases to listen to and cover? Reply here or DM! #audiodramasunday #audiodrama #fictionpodcast

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

Introduce yourself as what almost killed you: "Hi, I'm a faulty dynamic rope in a 180ft deep pit cave and the resident colony of swarming bats after 8:00pm EST."

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

OneBGS - Bethesda Game Studios Union @bethesdaunion.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Without game developers, there are no video games. Join us across nine cities next Tuesday, August 18th, as we rally for the rights of workers in the games industry. All allies welcome - when we fight boss battles together, WE WIN! ✊ Details: actionnetwork.org/event_campai...

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

Local Files Club @localfiles.club · 07/08/2026

It's Bandcamp Friday! Bandcamp waives their cut on this very special day! It's the perfect day to pick up any Local Files Club releases that you're missing from your collection, including our brand new release, Alleyoop (Extended Edition). Check out our Bandcamp: localfilesclub.bandcamp.com

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

Bonus rough model of the little fellow

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

If you like grabbing niche exo-biology aquatic rover audio dramas on Itch - then today's your lucky day: localfilesclub.itch.io/salt-bloom

localfilesclub.itch.io

Salt Bloom by Local Files Club

A sci-fi mini-epic

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

Very very stoked for this and the little Hyper Light Drifter in my heart is dancing

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

Adam Cecil @fakeadamcecil.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

back on the blog grind writing a few bits and pieces for @ear-wax-magazine.bsky.social on music and audiodrama. im in the first issue, out today, talking about how Robyn stole my bit of writing erotically charged poetry about Adam Driver. www.earwaxmag.com/ear-wax-news...

earwaxmag.com

EAR•WAX Newsletter 001 | July 2026

In This Issue: * Welcome to EAR•WAX! Jeff wrote an editorial on AI. It’ll be the first and last time we talk about it in detail. * Who would you choose as your dream sperm donor? Adam Cecil writes ...

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

Dropped a new ambient Robot Shrine video! This time it's a cozy campfire in Niivim Marsh - no music this go round - just wood burning and some estuarine burbles and crickets. youtu.be/v5KMVbJhPvQ

youtu.be

Midnight Campfire Ambience at Marshland Robot Shrine - No Ai/Music

YouTube video by Robot Shrines

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

It's me ole birthday again - looking back on 37, the coolest thing I made was a walking/floating/taking robot come to life and I'm pretty happy about that. Enjoy this dark and grainy and mysterious photo from a sunroom I long to return to. localfilesclub.bandcamp.com/album/salt-b...

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

United Videogame Workers-CWA @videogameworkers.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

Always remember that to CEOs, you aren't fans or employees. You're tallies on the ledger, and they will cut you the moment it benefits them. Don't let your favorite games be gutted! Organize!

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

ً @zan.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

dreamcast forever 🌀

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

Anna Megill @annamegill.com · 27/06/2026

Writers and NDs, here's a peek at the flow for a major scene in Cyberpunk 2077

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Just had a short story drop in the latest online edition of Waxing & Waning mag: free to read! I'm definitely in my lonely-robot-era of storytelling. www.waxingandwaning.org/issue-17/all...

waxingandwaning.org

“All the Sun Touches Turns to Steam” by Justin Hellstrom (_fiction_) – Waxing & Waning: A Literary Journal

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

Brandon Sheffield @brandon.insertcredit.com · 10/06/2026

1/3 of the game industry has lost their job in the last two years. Ubisoft closed two more studios today. Everyone is out of work. To that end I'm starting a new bundle to benefit a layoffs hardship fund. Game devs: please consider submitting your PAID games to the bundle, which will launch in July.

itch.io

Game industry hardship fund

A game jam from 2026-06-10 to 2026-06-24 hosted by Necrosoft Games. PREMISE: The game industry has a problem. Too many people are out of work (reports say 33% of the industry lost their jobs in the la...

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

Jeff VanderMeer @jeffvandermeer.bsky.social · 07/06/2026

Trad publishing still very much alive, with great editors. Being patient and strategic is still smart. If book verifiably esoteric (not just bad) or you again have some expert opinion / proof is good, self pub or small press great option. Many writers write multiple books before one is publishable

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

TAFCON — The Audio Fiction Convention @tafcon.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

You heard it here first - if you're not getting eaten by lizards you should snag a TAFCON digital ticket!

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

Welcome back - here is an artist illustration of a giant late cretaceous octopus Nanaimoteuthis haggarti all the paleonerds were losing it over a few months ago. Could be the largest invertebrate ever (19 meters long!)

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

Anyone interested in audio fiction should for sure snag a ticket: I'll be lost in the Olympics probably recording sounds and getting eaten by lizards, but everyone else should hop on over to this.

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

Never gave a shout that I got a literary agent! Super excited about the work we've done on my new novel and seeing where it ends up. www.newleafliterary.com/people/justi...

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 25/05/2026

More flower eating spaceship with a flappy bird wip

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 16/05/2026

Thank ya kindly - if I dont release them onto the internet it makes my head explode. I heard that's bad for sleep.

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

I just cant leave these little robots alone.

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

Robot Shrines is out now! An hour and a half of ambient music / rain / robots / and a marshland shrine. Behold my answer to all those low effort “ambislop” videos on YouTube. Made in Blender & Unreal, it’s a blast to play this like a game in order to record the video. youtu.be/MzpMFhKo0w4?...

youtu.be

Robot Shrine M93 | Niivim Marsh Rain Ambient Music

YouTube video by Robot Shrines

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

Dropped an early video of my upcoming ambient Youtube channel: Robot Shrines I got tired of all the low-effort Ambislop on YT and decided to make something with camera changes, bird spawns, and a playable character :) Will hit Youtube next week! www.patreon.com/posts/robot-...

patreon.com

Robot Shrine M93: Niivim Marsh/Mid-Morning Rain / Ambient Music Video to Sleep, Study, Relax, and Explore to | Justin Hellstrom

Robot Shrine M93: Niivim Marsh/Mid-Morning Rain / Ambient Music Video to Sleep, Study, Relax, and Explore to by Justin Hellstrom on Patreon. Join Justin Hellstrom's community for exclusive content and...

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

I too am sad I wont be running through the rain with a giant calzone over my head this year.

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Getting close to finishing the first video! More channel details to come next week. Stay recalcitrant out there :)

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

It's Free Flash Fiction Friday: got a 250 word fantasy thing I did for a competition last year. It's got a horse, a knight & a mysterious box. I made a video with some neat music that would taken you longer to listen to than it would to read the story. www.patreon.com/posts/hippoc...

patreon.com

Hippocrene Crown - Flash Fic 01 | Justin Hellstrom

Hippocrene Crown - Flash Fic 01 by Justin Hellstrom on Patreon. Join Justin Hellstrom's community for exclusive content and updates.

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

Local Files Club @localfiles.club · 17/04/2026

Our second crossover with the Sleep With Me podcast is out now! Listen to Scooter's very sleepy edition of Salt Bloom over on the Sleep With Me feed, and keep an eye out for a unique release on Bandcamp in the coming weeks. 👀 www.sleepwithmepodcast.com/1434-salt-bl...

sleepwithmepodcast.com

1434 – Salt Bloom | Crossover – Sleep With Me

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 20/03/2026

A fun SXSW poster I made while trapped in the liminal hellscape of Austin airport's South Terminal

Two dudes in a halved bull costume taking a smlke break

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

Never posted the full trailer for Salt Bloom here! Follow a curious oceanic probe on a lifeless ocean world. An hour long audiodrama + OST + artbook over at Local Files Club on Bandcamp: localfilesclub.bandcamp.com/album/salt-b...

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

Not at GDC:: but will be at SXSW & Podcast Movement this weekend. Come say hi and chat about robots, robot sounds, all the sounds.

Writer and sound designer wearing a shirt printed with his oceanic robot audiodrama cover

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

Put an ant in his apartment. Put another ant in his apartment. Put two more ants in his apartment. When he looks for more cut the power. Another ant. Another ant. Another ant.

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

It's Bandcamp Friday: which means 100% of sales go right to artists and labels! Help us spawn more robots, tea and audiodrama over at localfilesclub.bandcamp.com (I made it lime green with some symbols from Marathon, because hooray the game is finally out too!)

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

Local Files Club @localfiles.club · 06/03/2026

It's Bandcamp Friday! The friday that Bandcamp waives their fees and 100% of your purchase goes to the artists and labels. If you haven't bought your copy of Salt Bloom or Ms. Shipton's Travelling Tea Shop yet, today is the day. Find them both on Bandcamp: localfilesclub.bandcamp.com

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 01/03/2026

Woot woot woot - beep beep boop - thanks for tunin in 🌊🤖

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

Bob Raymonda @bobbys-snacks.bsky.social · 01/03/2026

I followed my heart & listened to lots of new stuff & was particularly thrilled by @scratchybananas.bsky.social's #SALTBLOOM & @oldermodal.bsky.social's #MRSSHIPTONSTRAVELINGTEASHOP. Really love the direct to consumer approach from @localfiles.club. Will have much more to say next week. Love y'all.

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Justin Hellstrom @scratchybananas.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

Ay it is tough to let everything go and rest as long as you need, but its the only thing that I've found to work - or be sustainable for my psyche

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

Nathalie Lawhead @alienmelon.bsky.social · 14/02/2026

omg thank you thank you thank you everyone!! 🙏😭 the game made enough to pay for the Steam listing. “she danced in the wind like a holographic dream before the world died” is coming to Steam! 🎉✨

a screenshot showing the game making over 100 dollars

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

Nathan Grayson @nathangrayson.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

I’m sure a certain subset of online shitheads is ecstatic right now, but what happened to highguard — and the many people who worked on it — is tragic. we can’t keep making games like this. a more sustainable approach is literally the only way forward

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Reposted by Justin Hellstrom

Matthew Cheney @melikhovo.bsky.social · 08/02/2026

To counter AI slop writers, we need louder celebrations of the oddball writers of two weird books that each took 20 years to write, the hermits refusing to publish except via mimeographed zines, the typewriter poets, playwrights for dollhouses, short story writers who sew words into vegan vellum...

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