iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 31/08/2026

My flash fiction, “The Tick Tick Tick of Today and Tomorrow’s Smoky Promise," appears in Unfurled: An Anthology of Trans and Genderqueer Voices. My story is about possibly breaking through procrastination. books2read.com/u/b5eEy7 #FlashFiction #Anthology […] [Original post on c.im]

Image of the cover of the book Unfurled: an anthology of trans and genderqueer voices. Edited by Marion Lougheed and Brett McTavish. Featured author: Shantell Powell.

The cover is black with a lilac-coloured splat design.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 31/08/2026

Anyone know how I can fix my Steam? It started giving me a bunch of question marks instead of text. I'm guessing something's fuckered with my fonts. I'm using a Mac. #fedihelp #Steam

Screen capture from the store on Steam showing boxed question marks instead of purchase options.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 25/07/2026

It's officially official. My debut book has been announced: Land's Sake is a short story collection full of deconstructed fairytales, folktales, and terrors. I had fun writing it. You'll have fun reading it. inkedingray.com/blog #CanLit #bookstodon […] [Original post on c.im]

Inked in Gray
ACQUISITION ANNOUNCEMENT
Land's Sake by Shantell Powell
Trespass on a land where trees are haunted and an anxious boy stacks wood until his hands bleed. Visit a time and a place where grandmothers are powerful and children learn to wield magic.
Where a woman finds a delicious recipe to thwart misogynists, inhabitants of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch dream of ice and snow, and honey is indistinguishable from ectoplasm.
Where salmon appear in thin air backlit by the aurora, a child-stealing monster creeps out from the sea, and a robotic polar bear terrorizes a post-apocalyptic Arctic wasteland. Where a gay raven does crimes, and a witch finds a way for her city to be returned to the people and animals from which it was stolen.
Fairytales, folklores, and terrors intertwine in a world of deconstructed fairytales, folktales, and terrors.
Release Date Coming Soon

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 15/07/2026

I've had to take my rescue inhaler despite being in filtered air and wearing a mask. Air quality continues to worsen.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 15/07/2026

I am filled with dread. I've never seen it this bad before. #ClimateDiary #ClimateCatastrophe

AQI past the purple and into the puce. AQI of 364. Seriously polluted.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 15/07/2026

I haven't seen any news stories about the actual fires in northern Ontario & what is happening to First Nations communities. As far as I can tell, no state of emergency has been issued even though several communities have been destroyed. We have the world's worst air […] [Original post on c.im]

A screen grab from an air quality app showing the current air quality of Kitchener in the purple zone. Severely polluted with an AQI of 209 and a temperature of 29 Celsius.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 13/07/2026

#ScribesAndMakers π2026.07.13 — Has a bear ever featured in your work? If so, what sort of bear? Polar bears feature in two of my stories: "If You Go Into the North Today" in the Why Aren't You Dead Yet? Disability in Dystopia anthology "The Old Woman Who Became a […] [Original post on c.im]

Watercolour painting of a polar bear swimming beneath ice floes. An Arctic char swims past in the foreground.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 27/06/2026

Plant folks, what is this volunteer growing in one of my planters? #PlantID #WhatIsThis #plants

A plant with leaves something like a maple's but this isn't a tree.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 10/06/2026

I didn't think it was coming out until next month, but my story Thumbing to Sugar Daddy Oberon has been published in Summer of Sci-Fi & Fantasy volume 5. amzn.to/3QuiI6c #Bookstodon #faeries #anthology #CanLit #SpeculativeFiction

Edited by Dustin Bilyk
FICTION FROM
Gustavo Bondoni
D.M. Ritzlin
Paula Hammond
Lex Chamberlin
Susan L Lin
PLUS
MANY
MORE
Summer of SciFi & Fantasy
Volume Five

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 27/05/2026

Hey, look what arrived today! The absolute filthiest, wrongest story I've ever written is in the Monsterfck anthology. If you'd like a copy of this salacious collection of abject naughtiness, here's where to get it. incisionpress.com/product/monsterfck […] [Original post on c.im]

I'm wearing a pink floral dress and am hiding my face behind a copy of Monsterf#ck: an anthology of queer & trans dark desires. The book cover shows a curvy, tattooed femme being caressed by squid tentacles and octopus arms.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 22/05/2026

It's world goth day. I don't look the same way I did in my goth heyday, but I'm still goth AF on the inside. #WorldGothDay

Low-effort elder goth in a grey dress with an octopus motif and a dark green and purple crocheted shawl. Hair is silver with purple, blue, and green lowlights.

High-effort younger goth dressed all in black. Pothole stockings, army boots, asymmetrical skirt, and a top dripping in chains. Hair is long and black and makeup is on point.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 21/05/2026

While out walking yesterday, I happened across a haunted gothic birdhouse.

A gothic-looking birdhouse with four entries, faded grey paint, and very pointy roofs

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 15/05/2026

Sometimes it's nice to have a cup of tea.

A mug of tea with cream. Words from a computer monitor are reflected within: they read "the game."

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 16/04/2026

I've been gradually replacing my Jehovah's Witness library. I use the books for research, as I'm writing religious horror based on JW beliefs. I lent my books to a prof over twenty years ago and he never returned them. Here are some of my favourite illustrations from […] [Original post on c.im]

A bearded angel with folded white wings appears to be attacked by a variety of birds of prey while a sun burns huge behind him.

Men holding reins cruelly tight make their strangely-clean horses run through a river of blood. The horses eyes are all rolling so you can see the whites. They look like they'd rather be anywhere else.

An old white man God in white robes and a golden crown and cape holds hands with a Bride of Frankenstein-looking lady who looks young enough to be his granddaughter.

Bearded angels line up to receive golden bowls from an angel with the head of a lion. Serious furry vibes.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 15/04/2026

I keep seeing joyous trans folks showing life before and after HRT and I'm envious. Y'all look so happy! My befores and afters with HRT show me going from young and fit to old and sickly. At least the hormones got rid of some of the worst effects of menopause.

Before HRT. Wiry and muscular. Prepped to hike the Inca Trail

After HRT. So puffy and bloated I look more than halfway through a pregnancy.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 04/04/2026

I'm seeing reports of Covid outbreaks all around the province, and I still can't find a pharmacy carrying the Covid vaccine.

Ralph Wiggum from The Simpsons chuckles then says, "I'm in danger."

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 19/03/2026

I saw this outside an education building while out walking. Seems apt.

An upside down Canadian flag blows in the wind at about a quarter mast. It's next to a school board building.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 27/02/2026

zomg guys! I just received a second creation grant for my Jehovah's Witness speculative short story collection. Thanks to @augurmag for believing in my project. *hyperventilates* #WritingCommunity #Author #ExJW #AmWritingSFF

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 26/02/2026

Hey Waterloo region folks! What are you doing Friday, March 6? How about you come check out Loud Library? I'll be reading a stoner horror-comedy short story. Whoopsie Daisy Drinks from 7-9 @WaterlooEvents #KitchenerIsBitchener #Kitchener #OpenMic #CanLit

Local fiction | Poetry | Nonfiction
Loud Library Reading series
Featuring writers from southern Ontario *
Friday March 6th 7PM - 9PM
1 Victoria street South,
Kitchener
Whoopsie Daisy Drinks
Entry by donation
($5 suggested)
Donated funds split between readers!
*3 open mic spots left! DM us to read:
@LoudLibraryReadingSeries on Instagram

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 17/02/2026

Oh my gosh! Just found out today I got a creation grant to work on my speculative short story collection. The stories will be based on my interpretation of what the world would be like if Jehovah's Witness teachings were literally true. The answer: very fucking weird […] [Original post on c.im]

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 16/02/2026

Letter to my dead grandmother. I wrote over top of each line twice, then photographed it on top of a quilt she made. My phone thinks it can understand the text, so I copied its translation and pasted it in the picture's description.

A handwritten note on lined paper, filled with densely packed text that appears to be largely illegible. The note is placed on a floral patterned fabric background.

krathegisneshoes too resnetintbites onengeotofere
sten, esgobliterdeoborer tats otelat, sdates
et hane platpgtt erottate oreted ue
iesnocatonevinneose Reas Hennet dationthaon

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 03/02/2026

A watercolour painting I made six years ago. I don't paint much these days. I write, instead. #watercolor #watercolour #landscape #winter #ArtistsOnMastodon

A watercolor painting of a winter landscape featuring a winding stream through a snowy scene. Bare trees line the bank, and the background showcases soft hills with a muted color palette. The snow is collapsing into the water.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 29/01/2026

This is what the CN Tower looked like in 1973. Now it's surrounded by condos. I don't know who the photographer is. #toronto #CNTower #1970s

A rather empty-looking expanse of land with the unfinished CN Tower wearing a crane like a hat.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 24/01/2026

The time I did my typography assignment with cookies. Broadway vs Thorne's Fat Face typefaces. The cookies were not worth eating (bubblegum-flavoured icing sheets on digestive biscuits). #typography

The image features a set of pink cookies decorated with black icing letters arranged to spell "Oh Hi Ma." The cookies are round and placed on a wooden surface. The letters on the left side are in Broadway typeface. On the right they're Thorne's Fat Face typeface.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 01/01/2026

Not sure how it happened, but two publications I was in last year have the exact same cover art. a.co/d/7SApflZ and a.co/d/dRX4c5U #Publishing #Bookstodon #WritingCommunity

Cover art for Rainy Weather days, May 2025. Art depicts two silhouetted figures on balconies against a fiery background. The figures appear to be sharing a colourful paisley dialogue through art.

Cover art for Heathentide Orphans 2025 anthology published by Nonbinary Review. Art depicts two silhouetted figures on balconies against a fiery background. The figures appear to be sharing a colourful paisley dialogue through art.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 01/01/2026

Happy New Year's Day from me and birthday boy. He turns six tomorrow. #chinchilla

I'm smiling at the camera while an adorable chinchilla peeks out from the collar of my tshirt.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 26/12/2025

#WordWeavers Dec 26: If you had a personal muse, what would they be like? I don't have a muse, but I do have a chinchilla who's with me most times I write. He's basically the coauthor of the essays, books, short stories, and poems I wrote over the past five years.

A chocolate brown chinchilla on an orange blanket between two pumpkins.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 16/12/2025

And to prove it wasn't a one-off, here's a poem I wrote around the same time. I like the way I shaped it like a tree.

Bird

Bird
Agonised, hurt
Dying, crying, wondering
Death just struck him.
Bird.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 16/12/2025

I found my first published piece of fiction. I wrote this when I was 11 or 12, and it was published in a collection of stuff written by school kids. This is what happens when you grow up watching Old Yeller and reading Black Beauty. #writing #WritingCommunity #fiction

Lost Hope
The donkey trudged along, his sad eyes begging for mercy.
He longed for a lighter load. His owner was cruel, unmerciful.
He felt a sharp, slicing pain and knew the whip was near.

The donkey, now nameless, vaguely remembered his dam. She was a pale grey place to drown his sorrows and seek protection. The
whip sliced again.

The donkey snorted, barely protesting, and this time the familiar pain was striking his head. It shocked him. Now filled with
weariness he sank to the ground, unaware of the numerous damages that were caused by the whip. Gradually the donkey just could not stand it anymore and he closed his eyes for the last time.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 15/12/2025

One of my best friends shared this with me years ago. I share it now in her memory.

An image of a peaceful river accompanied by this inspirational text:

The human anus can stretch up to 7 inches without taking damage.

A raccoon can squeeze through holes as tight as 4 inches, meaning you can take almost 2 raccoons up your ass.

Believe in yourself.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 10/12/2025

Who used old-school curlers today? I did.

I'm wearing a heavily-textured granny square crocheted sweater and my hair is all big, loose curls.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 10/12/2025

On Saturday, Strong Women Strange Worlds is hosting a day of writerly festivities. I'll be running a MadLibs session with one of my stories at 10:00 EST. It's free and fun. Come and play! strongwomenstrangeworlds.weebly.com #WritingCommunity #MadLibs #Bookstodon

Graphic gives an example of a Mad Lib and lists two sessions at 10:00 and 3:00 EST. December 13, 10-4 EST for year-end holiday extravaganza.

MadLibs part 1 featuring Justine Manzano, Raven Oak, Lindsay Duncan, Adeena Mignogna, and Shantell Powell. Hosted by Kate Pope.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 09/12/2025

This is apparently the face I make while reading suggestions which "improve" my writing. One of the suggestions makes it seem like a teacher's eyebrows are walking away rather than the teacher walking away. The workshopper also seems to have a thing for adverbs and […] [Original post on c.im]

I'm making the same sort of face as though I smelled a rancid fart.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 06/12/2025

[Severed bird wings on a sidewalk] Lucifer was a pigeon, and today, cast down from the heavens, he lost his wings. #VultureCulture #pigeon #wings #predation

The severed wings of a pigeon lie on a sidewalk.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 02/12/2025

Though it's been about twenty years since I last worked in radio, and though the technology has changed, I still feel at home in a recording studio. #SoundStudio #VocalRecording

I'm in a small recording studio at the Kitchener public library. Years ago, I used an analogue sound board. Now I'm using GarageBand on a Mac.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 01/12/2025

I even tried using hair curlers today: something I haven't done for myself, ever. The last time someone put curlers in my hair was the 70s. Not sure what I think.

A person with gray hair styled in pink foam rollers is looking at the camera, wearing glasses and a gray t-shirt.

A person with curly, shoulder-length hair featuring shades of gray, blond, and purple smiles at the camera while wearing a gray t-shirt. The curls on one side are a bit much. The other side doesn't look like it put in a proper effort.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 30/11/2025

This was my leopard gecko Apollo. He was a good boy.

A yellow leopard gecko looks at the camera. He has freckles and beautiful eyes.

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Shantell Powell @shanmonster.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 26/11/2025

Ever since menopause, I sleep poorly. I'm tired all the time. Believe it or not, this was a good night's sleep for me. I managed eight hours between all the waking up.

Apple Watch sleep tracker showing ten wake-up moments throughout the night for a total of 2 hours 55 minutes awake.

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