iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 22h

🎃🦇Horror friends, check out Blair's Very Special Halloweenie Newsletter! A whole big list of spooky reads (and she was super nice about including Halfsoul even though it's not out yet).🦇🎃 🩸📚💀

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 22h

Ruin a book by adding a word: The Seedless Grapes of Wrath

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Vincent Lore 🏳️‍⚧️ @vincentlore.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

#TBBChat Relationships, I guess, platonic and romantic and familial and everything in between. Never really thought about it before.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

That's so true. Believing they are doing good and saving the world is what enables people (and monsters) to become truly ruthless.

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Monsters and Maidens Publishing @monstersandmaidens.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

I think there’s always something compelling in witnessing a person fully in their element doing what they’re passionate about, even if the activity doesn’t normally interest you. I just like playing with weird activities. #TBBChat #Writing #Writesky #BookBazaar26

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

Competency is especially great in books, because you get to dive into the head of someone who knows what they're doing.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

That's hard to answer. I love Afya's redemption arc & I also enjoyed writing Jo's transition into a character with baggage in the 2nd Strawberry Circle book. There's also the MC of a yet unpublished fantasy novel, who tends to go wrong spectacularly, yet always manages to get back on her feet.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

Thank you, #TBBChat! Halfsoul is one of six vampire projects on #BookBazaar26, which will launch on October 29th. If something caught your interest, give it a follow to stay up to date on the campaign and receive a free short story: www.backerkit.com/call_to_acti...

backerkit.com

Start an Epic Journey with Halfsoul!

From Susanne Schmidt - Start an Epic Journey with Halfsoul!

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

#TBBChat Q5: Afya saves An-Yin's life when they first meet. Which causes a dilemma for An-Yin: On Ulong-Dan, vampires must be killed on sight. Feeling honor-bound by his blood-debt, An-Yin ignores the law at a huge cost to himself, because he wants to still be able to look at himself in the mirror.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

#TBBChat Q4: You can't always tell who is the true monster by outward appearances. Afya is a vampire who can't always control her hunger, but there are human characters in Halfsoul who act far more monstrously.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

#TBBChat Q3: I usually talk a lot about Afya, the vampire MC of Halfsoul, but there's also An-Yin, the secondary MC, who is very much human. An-Yin has to make choices that don't have right or wrong answers. His views clash with society's expectations, and he struggles to balance both.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

#TBBChat Q2: Our struggles and failures, and how people try to overcome them. I enjoy writing characters who have gone wrong somewhere, who have a dark side or a secret, and are trying to be good people despite it.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

#TBBChat Q1: I write monsters that seem human on the surface, but then suddenly there's this disconnect where they reveal they have an aspect to their thinking that's alien to the human characters in the story. They represent what happens when individuals break with society's rules and expectations.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

Hi #TBBChat, I'm Susanne and I write Horror and Fantasy. My vampire novel Halfsoul is part of #BookBazaar26.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Obligatory post as I have put on a Halloween playlist while writing the penultimate chapter of the Strawberry Circle series: Bad Grains is an awesome October read. Best place to buy: sharkiatwrites.itch.io/badgrains Or get it from a retailer of your choice: books2read.com/badgrains 💙📚👀🩸📚💀

Arrow graphic. Goosebumps meets German Folklore. Bad Grains by Susanne Schmidt
"She haunts the fields, she takes the young, the grain devil thrives in brightest sun..."
- cozy autumn vibes for spooky season
- goosebumps meets brother's grimm
- the only possible ally is the most annoying boy on the planet
- halloween takes a dark turn...
-...but don't worry, Jo is an avid horror reader!
- supportive grandma

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

#BookBazaar26 has 6 vampire projects this year, and Halfsoul is one of them. For more, check out: - Lovely Terrors curated by Talli L Morgan - The Brotherhood of Blood by JS Living - Queer Vampire Bonanza by Niranjan - Melt: Refrain by Subvertebra - May Day by Josie Jaffrey www.the-book-bazaar.com

the-book-bazaar.com

The Book Bazaar - A Group Crowdfunding Project for Authors

Indie authors, small publishers, and book enthusiasts take notice! The Book Bazaar is coming October 29th, 2026.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Woot woot! Halfsoul has gained its 50th Backerkit follower as of today!!! 🎉🎉🎉 (But there is always room for more. Start Your epic journey over here: www.backerkit.com/call_to_acti...) 💙📚👀🪐📚🩸

Launching soon on Backerkit: Halfsoul by Susanne Schmidt (cover also by Susanne Schmidt, drawn in Clip Studio Paint). Launching Oct. 29th 2026

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Indie Book Spotlight @bookspotlight.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Get this amazing deal of October-themed reads that’ll last you until next year! 93 books by 78 authors for just $69! Less than a dollar a book! itch.io/b/3904/chill...

Graphic for the Chills, Thrills & Kills October Itchio Sale. 93 books for $69. A VERY BIG AND SPOOKY BUNDLE of creepy and cosy reads perfect for this year’s Hallowe’en Season! Hosted by Indie Book Spotlight.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Whiteout has a doll made from plums coming to life (in what's hopefully a nightmare). Rotten Roots features a building that's...a bit too alive. And Halfsoul has a monster that lives in a doll. OK, maybe I'm just creeped out by dolls.🤣 Do you have a favorite horror story involving inanimate objects?

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Ooops, I've been writing all day and nearly forgot, but here's today's #IndieSpooktoberBingo: No. 20 "Inanimate object comes to life." T.Kingfisher's The Hollow Places has one of my favorite horror scenes involving a stuffed otter. My own books also have a few objects like that.🤔 💙📚👀🩸📚💀

Indie Spooktober Bingo No. 20 Inanimate object comes to life. Shows the cover of The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher.

Indie Spooktober Bingo
Oct 1 - 31st 2026
1. blood in the water
2. unsettling phone call
3. the pet is fine
4. I can see dead people
5. spell gone wrong
6. vampire boyfriend/girlfriend
7. humans are the real monsters
8. cozy coffee shop (checked)
9. too-sweet character
10. the forbidden place
11. disconcerting fog
12. cursed inheritance
13. Free (checked)
14. door that shouldn't be opened
15. first day at work
16. forest chase scene
17. recent death in the family
18. unsavory employer (checked)
19. moved to a new town
20. inanimate object comes to life
21. haunted building
22. last day at work (checked)
23. the monster is hiding among us
24. near-death experience
25. caught in a storm (checked)

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

I love how each of them is also a completely different approach to vampires than the others.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

This one terrifies me. It can't be mid. It has to wrap up eight books. Neatly. While punching you in the gut. At least, that would be ideal. I guess I'm going to have to take it slow, figure it out. It doesn't have to be perfect on the first try. Just almost perfect...eventually. #amwriting

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Apart from the Strawberry Circle, I've been writing on another series since around 2019. It's a bit of a crazy passion project. 8 books. 690k+ words. Endless rewrites. Last night, I finished the second-to-last chapter. So now I'm staring at the last chapter. Usually, blank pages don't scare me.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Today's #IndieSpooktober Bingo is No. 13 - A free for all! Do you have a spooky book you love? Or a spooky story you have written? QP, show it off! My pick of the day is Lambent by @tdcloud.bsky.social. A lovely story about a fox god and a lantern spirit. Bittersweet and dreamy. 💙📚👀 🩸📚💀

Indie Spooktober Bingo No. 13 FREE, showing the cover of Lambent by T.D. Cloud

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Linn Foster/Silver 🐺 Follow BYMMS on Backerkit! @linnfoster.com · 06/10/2026

22 days away from launch! Be sure to follow the campaign if you want to know when it goes live -- and read ch. 01 for free!

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

🔦Shining a light on the Chills, Thrills, and Kills Bundle today. If you've been following my #IndieSpooktoberBingo posts, you might be wondering where you can find amazing indie reads for Halloween. And the answer is: Here, right here! itch.io/b/3904/chill... #booksky #horrorsky

Chills, Thrills, and Kills Bundle
A very big and spooky bundle for this year's Hallowe'en season!
October '26, $69 for 93 books, only on itch.io

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Anyway, you know what book fits the description even more perfectly? The Last Lunar Witch by @sfhenne.bsky.social. The MC works as a baker at a sentient cozy coffee shop that chooses its own staff. You've also got a book that fits? Play bingo with me! QP your (self-)recs or quote a #wip.

cozy coffee shop shows the cover of the last lunar witch by s.f. henne

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

#IndieSpooktoberBingo time! Today's number: 8 - Cozy Coffee Shop I can't remember the name of the book that immediately came to mind for today. Maybe one of you can? It's about a cult that's being run out of a cupcake shop with an "motherly" owner who turns out to be pure evil? 💙📚👀🩸📚💀 1/2

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

More good news for the day: I've breached 30k words on #StrawberryCircle 4. Nearing the final showdown.

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Talli 🎃 Shattered City OUT NOW @tallimorgan.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

SHATTERED CITY releases TOMORROW!!! 😱 This is your last chance to pre-order the ebook at a discount! Grab it from itch: silvercrescentpress.itch.io and everywhere else: books2read.com/cos-shattered-city

Shattered City (City of Silver, book 2) releases tomorrow!

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

I don't write enough reviews, but I will say I hugely enjoyed Hunt Monsters Do Magic And Fall In Love. A perfect read for October.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

We're somehow at 46 followers. So, yes, I owe you some snippets. I'll get to those this week. But also, can we get to 50??? #booksky

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Play along, QP your (self-)recs or quote a #wip.

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

It's unfortunately Monday, but that also means #IndieSpooktoberBingo is back! Today's number: 21 - Last Day at Work BestGhost by @cjdaleywrites.bsky.social has ghost hunters Sean and Devon explore a haunted mansion that may just make them famous - but not like they were hoping. 💙📚👀🩸📚💀

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Steve Hugh Westenra 🕷️🧛‍♂️🏳️‍⚧️📚✒️ @stevewestenra.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

The Erstwhile Tyler Kyle is still #onsale for October! Going to try and share something every day and see if . . . actually promoting my work helps people know it exists (wild, I know) 😅 Queer horror, on sale!: books2read.com/u/boB9YL steve-westenra.itch.io/the-erstwhil... #indiehorror #booksky

"I glance back at the blackened windows of the hotel office. Inside, an electronic device blinks off-on-off-on like a flickering modem light. Something about this struggling machine on an island technologically trapped in the 1850s compels me. I stand in front of the window, press my palm to the glass. I stare inside, and though I can’t place why, for only a moment, it’s like someone’s staring back. Like the machine is an eye—blinking, assessing, watching.
The breeze ripples against Three Wolf Moon. It could be Echo Island’s breath, a deep exhale after years holding it all in." - The Erstwhile Tyler Kyle

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

When you can't remember the name of the magic flower you yourself came up with in your fantasy novel. 😅

static.klipy.com

Visible Confusion Man

Alt: Visible Confusion Man

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Artemis Quinn 🏳️‍⚧️🎨📚 undead & thriving 🦇👻😱 @vampireantihero.com · 01/10/2026

Happy release day! A forward by @vanessaperrywrites.bsky.social And stories from me, as well as @aldbera.bsky.social @rachaelrainerivers.bsky.social @tinapickles.bsky.social @jeremyiswriting.bsky.social and more! Check it out! www.amazon.com/dp/B0HKKGBXCF/ books2read.com/u/bxKnlJ #AQpromo

A book cover that shows death on the front stair looking up at the roof of a goth mansion, where a dragon is breathing fire and a spaceship is crashed into the roof

It says

Uncanny and Uncouth
A speculative fiction anthology
7 authors
10 stories
multiple genres
gothic elements
forward by Vanessa Perry

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Indie Book Spotlight @bookspotlight.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

We’re at just five sales on this great bundle! Help get some eyes on this incredible deal! 93 books by 78 indie authors! You save 75% of what it would cost to get these books individually! Go! Go! ☠️🎃👻🧙‍♀️🕯️😈

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Thea O'Ryan Files @theaoryanfiles.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Calling writers: Dark Ages is accepting submissions for dark folk stories around the fall of Rome. Pay 8 cents/6 pence per word; closes October 18, 2000-4000 words. More info at: blog.flametreepublishing.com/fantasy-goth...

flametreepublishing.com

Home - Flame Tree Publishing

Flame Tree Publishing: The Fine Art of Reading. The Art of Fine Gifts. Art calendars, luxury notebooks, beautiful and challenging fiction, from living tradition to speculative storytelling

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K Lykkebo 🖤 Fantasy author @karenlykkebo.com · 03/10/2026

It is SPOOKY SEASON! And you can get a whole lot of amazing spooky, eerie, chilly books to get you through this (cozy) moody season. Check out this massive bundle full of great reads. 93 books - $69 A goddamn steal! itch.io/b/3904/chill... 📚💙

promo banner for itchio bundle chills, thrills & kills. Orange theme, little ghosts around a haunted mansion.

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K Lykkebo 🖤 Fantasy author @karenlykkebo.com · 02/10/2026

Spooky season is here!! Later in the month my spooky books are on sale on all platforms but we're starting early on itch! Go get spooky 🎃👻 itch.io/s/202134/spo...

itch.io

Spooktober Sale ! by Author K Lykkebo

A bundle by Author K Lykkebo, 3.12€ for Now, and the Hour of Death, Drowned Hearts, Dirt You Shall Become

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

If you're an author or artist in the EU and your business is negatively affected by the PPWR and EPR (the new packaging laws) this is the petition to sign!

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

#Spooktober the 2nd. Indie Book Bingo Time! Today's number: 25 Caught in a storm Murder at Spindle Manor by Morgan Stang has character trapped in a haunted manor during a storm with a monster and a murderer on the loose. Play bingo with me, add your (self-)recs or quote from a #wip! 💙📚👀🩸📚💀

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Play #IndieSpooktoberBingo with me! QP with an indie book (your own or someone else's), or a quote from a #wip. Today's number: 18 (unsavory employer) The Necromancer's Apprentice by @bevtwomey.bsky.social Georgie works for a necromancer, who has a literal skeleton in his closet. 💙📚👀 🩸📚💀

Indie Spooktober Bingo Rules Quote repost with your bingo card and the story/book you’d like to recommend. The same story can be used on two squares max. Try for a full house, an X, or every square along the edge. Readers: Try to fill the card with works from indie authors. Small press is also fine. Help other readers find new authors and awesome stories! If you need recommendations, check out the stories other players are posting. Writers: You can use your own books, or quote from your WIPs! You can write something new just for the bingo! You can absolutely also recommend someone else’s book/story as a reader.

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Ruth Miranda @ruthmiranda.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

#indiespooktoberbingo Today's number:18 - unsavory employer @trudieskies.readindiefantasy.com The Chosen One Con Both Max and Lyle work for terribly horrible people...

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Susanne Schmidt @sharkiatwrites.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

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