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William "My Gray" Shunn

@shunn.net
592 followers 557 following 784 posts

Writer • Puzzlemaker • Hugo/Nebula Nominee • Author of THE ACCIDENTAL TERRORIST • That Manuscript Format Guy • @sbsolver.com • @tylogr.am • NYC • He/him/Bill • lnk.bio/shunn

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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 14/09/2026
In creating word puzzles, I love stumbling across weird phenomena like the fact that “airworthy” and “Rita Hayworth” share the same eight constituent letters. (Yes, this is technically a @tylogr.am spoiler, but that puzzle isn’t scheduled until 2033 so hopefully you’ll have forgotten this by then.)
tylogr.am
TYLOGRAM - The Diabolical Sliding Word Puzzle Challenge
Tylogram is the diabolical sliding word puzzle challenge where you make words from a set of eight letters, then slide tiles to maximize your score! Find the pangram and earn ranks like Master Wordsmit...
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Alchemical: A Literary Journal of the Speculative @alchemicaljournal.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Alchemical is now open for submissions! We seek short fiction (1,000 to 5,000 words of speculative-literary fiction), as well as essays (on the craft of writing or the magic of writing), one-shot graphic narratives, and cover art. No submission fees. www.alchemicaljournal.com/submissions
alchemicaljournal.com
Submissions | alchemicaljournal
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 13/09/2026
I can only assume this “sandwich” was created by an entity that is familiar with the concept but has never actually eaten one.
Toasted sliced white bread with vegan mayonnaise applied.A separate container of sandwich fillings, including vegan bacon, shredded lettuce, sliced tomato, and sliced avocado. Sort of a DIY sandwich kit, really.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 13/09/2026
I ordered a vegan BLT with jalapeños and a side of fries, as I have on previous occasions. I assume AI fulfilled my order this time because here is how it arrived.
A container of french fries topped with jalapeños. What’s up with that?
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 11/09/2026
An unpublished horror story I wrote in February 2002, trying to capture the awfulness of 9/11 and its aftermath. Every trigger warnings applies. shunn.substack.com/p/the-two-to...
shunn.substack.com
The Two Towers
What really happened on 9/11? Louisa Thorne, Intrepid Girl Reporter, gets to the bottom of a story no one will want to publish. Horror fiction.
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Reposted by William "My Gray" Shunn
Peter Anthony Holder @paholder.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
From The StuphFile Program, a 30-second YouTube clip from a longer interview with Bill Shunn @shunn.net an author and puzzle maker. He is the creator of the bi-weekly game, Tylogram, plus, he’s the creator of The Spelling Bee Solver
youtube.com
Bill Shunn - Tylogram
YouTube video by Peter Anthony Holder
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 08/09/2026
Hey, look, it's really happening! My story collection SCOURING THE DEEP SKIES is coming out from Fairwood Press next year! fairwoodpress.com/forthcoming....
fairwoodpress.com
Forthcoming
FORTHCOMING in 2027: ​ Jonathan Lethem, James Patrick Kelly, & John Kessel:  NINETY PERCENT OF EVERYTHING James Van Pelt:   SLOW DANCE AT THE HIGH SCHOOL AND OTHER IMAGININGS LaShawn M....
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 04/09/2026
Eventually but not without a fight.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 04/09/2026
Thinking back on the freelance jobs I’ve worked, I’m pretty sure I was fired from one for insisting they actually pay me on time according to the contract we had signed.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 04/09/2026
...but then I made some needed corrections to those tracks manually. I've heard some of the SD tracks that have been cleaned up with AI tools, with live instruments added, but I find generating "new" SD tracks indefensible.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 04/09/2026
This is true. As a writer, any kind of generative AI gets my hackles up instinctively, and yet there are functions I have few or no qualms about employing myself. For instance, I used some AI tools a few months back to separate the vocals and drums out from a track I recorded back in the '80s...
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 03/09/2026
How do we feel about the kids using AI to clean up old tapes likes “The Second Arrangement”?
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 31/08/2026
Hello, and thanks for playing! The country was Canada (The Toronto Star).
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 25/08/2026
More of the silly, dangerous games young missionaries play in lieu of just making out. shunn.substack.com/p/the-fast-a...
shunn.substack.com
The Fast and the Felonious
Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t screech off in someone else’s car every once in a while, you might just miss it.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 19/08/2026
Oh, I kill myself sometimes.
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Scott Edelman @scottedelman.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
Happy birthday to @shunn.net, the writer behind what's come to be known the “Shunn format." Join us for durian ice cream on an episode of Eating the Fantastic and discover how his post-Clarion home life was haunted by Ray Bradbury — plus much more. www.scottedelman.com/2023/06/02/w...
Bill across the table from me holding up a crispy mushroom on the end of his fork.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 14/08/2026
Thanks!
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 14/08/2026
On a memorable night in 1987, two cocky young missionaries snatch defeat from the overstuffed jaws of victory. A favorite outtake from my memoir. dogb.us/gluttons
dogb.us
Gluttons for Punishment
In an epic self-own, two young Mormon missionaries snatch agonizing defeat from the jaws of victory. And then must eat every last crumb of it.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 09/08/2026
I’m not sure what gave us the right, but we cut a hole in the roof of the world and clambered through it into a realm of birds and ballads and lost frisbees. A poem for the summer of ’81. dogb.us/tower
dogb.us
Tower of Daedalus
I’m not sure what gave us the right, but we cut a hole in the roof of the world and clambered through it into a realm of birds and ballads and lost frisbees. A poem for the summer of ’81.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 03/08/2026
On forty years of Rush concerts, and some of the odd memories that brings back. shunn.substack.com/p/our-memori...
shunn.substack.com
Our Memories Remind Us, Maybe Mine Is Not So Bad
The 1975 Rush song “Making Memories” is about learning to embrace life as a touring band. In New York City tonight, I'll embrace a lifetime of memories from the audience side.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 15/07/2026
Close-up photo of a black plastic name tag affixed to the breast pocket of a charcoal suit. In white letters mimicking the look of a Mormon missionary tag, the name tag reads:

ELDER HEISENBERG
The Accidental Terrorist
Confessions of a Reluctant Missionary

A caption above the name tag reads:

I AM THE ONE WHO KNOCKS. (But only to tell you about this terrific book I hope you’ll read.)

Below the tag, in small letters:

A Memoir by William Shunn
#accidentalterrorist
www.accidentalterrorist.com
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 15/07/2026
It stopped working a few years ago after an ImageMagick upgrade, but I’m happy to report that I’ve finally gotten my Accidental Terrorist Missionary Name Tag Generator working again. www.shunn.net/nt/10/1/Heis...
shunn.net
Make Your Own Missionary Name Tag | William Shunn
The official site for Hugo and Nebula Award nominated science fiction writer William Shunn. Contains stories, essays, games, and deconstructions of Mormon theology.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 15/07/2026
Among the absurdities of modern life: Carefully placing a seat protector in an airport restroom only to have the automatic flush mechanism whisk it away before you can be seated.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 14/07/2026
A new post about manuscript formatting and submission. dogb.us/withholding
dogb.us
Withholding Personally Identifiable Information
Many writers feel unsafe putting their real names and contact information on their manuscript submissions. Is there any way around this requirement?
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Reposted by William "My Gray" Shunn
Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani @mayor.nyc.gov · 14/07/2026
This morning in Biddeford, Maine, a 26-year-old man said goodbye to his wife and daughter and left for work. Moments later he was dead, shot in the head by ICE agents, the second man ICE has killed in six days. ICE is killing our neighbors. ICE cannot be reformed. Abolish ICE.
10706503120329
William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 08/07/2026
I’m happy to be able to share this story about my friend David Mills, the hardest-working poet I know. His extraordinary books BONEYARN and UNHIRED HANDS give voices to enslaved people who died and were buried in Manhattan, the Bronx, and points north. andscape.com/features/dav...
andscape.com
David Mills’ poetry excavates American history - Andscape
Poet David Mills' newest book, Unhired Hands, is a unique historical fiction inspired by his visits to New York City's African Burial Ground.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 06/07/2026
When XTC contemplate an interstellar tour, are they making plans for Rigel?
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 06/07/2026
When XTC contemplate a heavy meal, are they making plans for Di-Gel?
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 04/07/2026
I’ll take it.
New York Times crossword puzzle result: “You finished a Saturday puzzle in 8:47.”
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 30/06/2026
Yes, I apostatized on my own -- not for lack of trying to provoke a bishop's court to convene! There's plenty of uncomfortable interaction with higher-ups in my book, but the only court is civil.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 30/06/2026
I just read Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground for the first time, and wow, do I feel seen in the most discomfiting way.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 28/06/2026
I’ll check it out! I do know how the screwdriver fits into Bernie’s story.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 28/06/2026
Wordle 1,835 5/6* ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟩 ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟩 ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟩 ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Yeesh
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Michael Ian Black @michaelianblack.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
I remember it well!
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 16/05/2026
Did you get it? Did you think French-style plurals?
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 14/05/2026
New on Substack! In which, ten years ago, I throw a @michaelianblack.bsky.social watch party, while concealing the party’s true purpose from my guests. dogb.us/private
dogb.us
The Night I Risked Private Humiliation
Ten years ago tonight, the standup comedy special “Michael Ian Black: Noted Expert” debuted on Epix. I had spent the previous six months wondering if I would be in it.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 12/05/2026
New on Substack! In 2015 I was faced with the sudden opportunity to fulfill a long-standing narcissistic fantasy. Would I triumph or would I utterly choke? dogb.us/public
dogb.us
The Night I Beat Public Intoxication
No, I wasn’t drunk that night. But faced with the chance to fulfill a longstanding secret fantasy, I got by with a little help from my friends.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 06/05/2026
Check out the latest fab newsletter from @scarequotes.com, which delves into memorable moviegoing experiences. buttondown.com/scarequotes/...
buttondown.com
Absolute cinema!
“Is it any good? Let's find out together!” I couldn’t resist that line at the end of an email from the Hollywood Theatre. So a couple of weeks ago my wife...
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 22/04/2026
If you’re near Brooklyn this Saturday, come out to Bay Ridge for a fun event! I’ll be reading from an unpublished short story, and you’ll be reading from your favorite book. shunn.substack.com/p/saturday-a...
shunn.substack.com
Saturday, April 25: Book Karaoke in Brooklyn
This newly revived series at the BookMark Shoppe in Bay Ridge asks audience members to come prepared to read passage from a favorite book.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 14/04/2026
Excellent thoughts on movies and meditation. buttondown.com/scarequotes/...
buttondown.com
I can't stand the quiet!
On Peter Hujar's Day, mindfulness, and the art of paying attention. How learning to meditate taught me to let movies be boring — and why that's a gift.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 01/04/2026
Today’s the day! For the first time in 38 years, hear “The Wenatchee Rap” the way it was always meant to be heard. Restored audio and thoroughly annotated lyrics. It’s funny, it’s sincere, it's cryptic, it’s cringe. dogb.us/eighteen
dogb.us
The Eighteen Rapping Missionaries You Were Warned About
It’s April Fools’ but don’t you call us counterfeit, ’cuz we’re eighteen illin’ missionaries ready to spit. Presenting the remixed and annotated “Wenatchee Rap.”
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 31/03/2026
As leaders of an LDS mission zone in 1988, my companion and I decided we wanted to do something different with our group than just play another long day of basketball. What we made instead would soon be heard on contraband cassette players all over the mission. dogb.us/thatswhy
dogb.us
And That’s Why We’re Doin’ the Wenatchee Rap
On a sunny day in 1988, eighteen young Mormon missionaries invaded a recording studio in central Washington state. You won’t believe how things “rapped” up!
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 27/03/2026
If i put up my averages, it wouldn’t look *quite* so lopsided…
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 27/03/2026
When I couldn’t quite make sense of the top left corner, I went straight to the bottom right to work on the revealer.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 26/03/2026
I didn’t even realize it, but a week ago I set a personal record for a Thursday crossword. @nytimes.com @nytgames.bsky.social
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 23/03/2026
New at Substack: What happens when an irresistible absolutism meets an immovable belief? One or the other is going to bend. dogb.us/father
dogb.us
“I’m Like My Father That Way”
My father always spoke his mind, especially when there was nothing good to gain from it. I didn’t realize I’d inherited the trait until his funeral.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 22/03/2026
Die Hard or Raiders might be my highest. Attack the Block and Shaun of the Dead and In the Loop are probably somewhere close behind, but I’ve only recently started tracking consistently on Letterboxd.
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 22/03/2026
A good rewatch! Another interesting statistic would be the number of non-unique movies watched. For instance, I think I’ve seen Unforgiven … three times?
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 21/03/2026
How many movies have you seen in your lifetime? How many would you like to? My friend @scarequotes.com has some answers.
buttondown.com
Mr. 3000
As of the moment I click "publish," I've seen 2,994 unique films in my life, according to Letterboxd. (Tonight Nadja becomes 2,995.) different Nadja, still a...
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William "My Gray" Shunn @shunn.net · 14/03/2026
What fantastic memories! It's amazing how Bowie meant so many different things to so many people.
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