iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Making the best of this achy rainy Sunday! 📖 🖋️ I refuse to let the seasonal shift and October Slide end my writing and writing practice streak. 😤

Photo of Sam’s hand holding two books; a floral notebook with Ursula K. Le Guin’s book “Steering the Craft: a 21st century guide to sailing the sea of story. A pen amd white fountain pen rests on top.

060

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Damn, I’ve been writing fantasy and reading tarot cards for over 30 years now. Brb, turning to dust as I lament the inexorable passage of time.

Esmeralda from the Good Place— an intensely darkly dressed woman with long hair and a nose piercing declares:
“Lamenting the inexorable passage of time. Fire and blood!”

180

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

I have no idea who/where I plucked this from, but on this chilly autumnal Jersey morning:

A parody of an Animorphs book cover featuring Seinfeld’s George Costanza being gradually transfored into a bowl of soup.

The book’s title is “Soup Mode” with the flavore text “Shh. I’m shifting into…”

28237

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

This character I used to play in a stream, but I’ve shared writing about faer too: Oleander Morganstern (she/faer). Olea has severe arthritis & IBD, complicated by the fact that she is Sorta’ Dead (for Lore Reasons; check out her story on my Patreon!)— being resurrected in fantasy isn’t always fun…

Digital art of Oleander Morgenstern from WovenRealm, made by BlueBirdDraws. Oleander is a femme with pale somewhat grey skin, and long pale yellow hair. She’s posed as if casting a spell, with her raven topped cane in one gloved hand, her other hand raised to cast and ungloved to reveal her forearm is covered in shadow and ichor. She is crying tears of ichor, and one of her eyes has gone black with strange black lines crawling from it. She wears a black veil over her hair, and a beautiful blue gown that has glowing stars on it— it looks like the night sky.

Art by @AlexArtYouReady showing Oleander Morgenstern sitting in her wheelchair, with her Alaskan malamute service dog Ida pulling it. Oleander is small amd pale with long blonde yellow hair and a Victorian style gown of red and black. Her wheelchair is also loosely Victorian inspired, with a long open foot rest and ornate chair arms and cushions. A monogrammed O for Oleander is adorned on the wheels and Ida’s harness. A background of red and black nebulous stars fills the empty space.

151

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Meet Aevalon (they/them)! Born with an innate healing power, Aevalon was severely ill in their teens. After, they developed an “arcane siphon disorder” that causes what they heal to be absorbed by & manifested in them. It’s caused scarring & lingering complications of injuries & illness absorbed.

Picrew image with art by Maria Blowers. Shows a pale green skinned person smiling. They have two facial scars, one down their right eye another across the same eye and nose. Light blue eyes, short cropped black hair. They are set before an ocean or lake background.

A pencil sketch by Sam of “Aevalon the Night Bird”, a person with short hair, elf-like ears, and many old scars on their face and arms.

141

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Meet Some of my Disabled & Chronically Ill Characters! This is Rüni (they/them); they have a digestive disease that is really Crohn’s disease (like me!). They also get an injury to their back at 17 that causes arthritis & chronic pain in their spine (mirrors my ankylosing spondylitis, Dx’d at 17).

Art by Samazkama of an elf-like character with light brown skin and freckles, yellow eyes, and white-blonde near luminous hair. They hold a long staff with a cluster of leaves at the end, and wear a green and yellow cap-sleeved tunic over a white shirt with brown trousers and white boots. Yellow flowers are around their right wrist.

1143

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

New Pen Day! 🖋️ I was using my spouse’s fountain pen to see if they write comfortably in my arthritic hand, and I was enjoying it so much I treated myself to a basic pen of my own that I thought was pretty! :3 I’m still handwriting SO MUCH lately, it’s been great. ☺️

Photo of a notebook with a pale pink and white fountain pen.

190

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

ICYMI, part one of four of my high fantasy short story “Like Them” is up on my free Patreon! Speaker Maebeth has a special first assignment for a pair of apprentices to prove themself. It’s all TOTALLY above board. Yup. www.patreon.com/TheAilingWit...

“They both have many merits. And they both have many more shortcomings.” Solvae was silent a moment more before she added, casually, “I really don’t think either would be a right choice just yet. They need more time.”

Maebeth was quiet for a long time and the pair watched the apprentices some more. When the clumsy blonde fighter accidentally smacked themself on the face with the bo staff and their nose began to bleed, they only laughed at themself heartily whilst their severe companion practically, but with great concern and care, produced a handkerchief and held it to her friend’s face. Solvae risked a sidewise glance towards the Speaker, whose lake green eyes had narrowed and darkened at the sight they took in.

“Rüni is nothing like them, not where it matters,” Solvae offered with the faintest trace of reassurance. A thundercloud swept across his face.

“I should hope not— for their sake,” the anger turned sour as his lips curled, “and yours.”

011

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Coming this Friday to my (free!) Patreon! Part One of my chonky short story about my cinnamon roll Rüni; set in my original fantasy setting, you’ll meet some major figures in Rüni’s life in Firstree as an Apprentice Warden of ’the Gathering’. Patreon.com/theAilingWitch

Yellow text on a background of a tree’s interior rings of a dark brown wood. Text reads:

A TALE FROM THE WORLD OF EDDARA
Like Them
Part I: Sparring
Patreon.com/ The Ailing Witch

145

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Pls admire this old map I drew of my fantasy world awhile back! Had to pull it out for these Rüni stories and wanted to reshare. 😘 If you like fantasy stuff inspired heavily by things like the Dark Crystal, Zelda, & Shadow of the Colossus, you may like the stories set in my world of Eddara!

An image of a hand drawn map on a fake parchment background. It's labeled "Eddara". It's a large single continent with a large river bisecting it running NE-SW. there are many small islands in the north and some slightly larger ones in the south. A deep River canyon is marked on the north east. Small drawings indicating terrain such as mountains, forest, plains, jungle, tundra, desert, marsh.

Circles and squares note cities and towns.

It's pretty clearly inspired by JRR Tolkien's maps.

1237

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Really hoping to make some writing progress today! Have a lil peek, as a treat. 😘 Hoping to share it in full next month! 👀 I actually first started this story as just an exercise in implicit world building and easing up on my lore info dumps in narratives; I hope you’ll enjoy the journey!

“I have a… very special assignment for you— and your Apprentices. Both of them.”

Solvae could not contain her startled reaction before she cleared it.

“Already? Don’t you think they are too young, still?” After a breath Solvae added, “Speaker.”

Maebeth only smiled his bemusement.

“They are not much younger than we were on our first assignment.”

“That was different,” Solvae snapped back.

“Be that as it may,” Maebeth allowed with a sigh, “we will have need of an extra set of hands soon enough. I want us to begin training those hands appropriately now— there will be no space for error on the road ahead.”

Solvae pursed her lips, but nodded in understanding that Maebeth cared not at all about. He needed only her obedience. Maebeth smiled as Solvae seethed.

“You and your apprentices will go to the town of Emberhorn. They are suffering a severe outbreak of Lichen Fever. It is a great opportunity to mend some fences, as it were.” Solvae’s eyes narrowed and Maebeth shook his head with a casual shrug, “It seems naturally occurring, to the extent such things can be, of course. That’s why it is such a good experience for your wards to undergo. A true test. Unless, of course, you already have a clear preference for one?”

051

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

With #AltText. Quote post & reply to MA posts as much as possible! I will not turn off any reposts to avoid missing any needs I can boost. Sadly, reposting is pretty much all I have the spoons for lately with this pain & flare, but I will try! We can still be here for each other— we have to be.

Bluesky Social
Today: Update
v1.130 is live!
Want to follow someone for their posts but not their reposts? Now you can — turn on "Hide reposts in feeds" for any account you follow.
We also added thread numbering:
Posts in a thread are numbered automatically, so you don't have to do it yourself. You can turn this on in Settings → Beta Features.
Version 1.130.0 • 87.3 MB

053

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

Short story sneak peak while I work on my editing! 💫 Full story will be up on my Patreon (always FREE!) soon, if not this weekend then early in the week. 👀 I plan to write a series about this character and others connected to them… this is the character from the sketch I shared recently!

The suns had long since dipped fully beyond the horizon, and still Ayla had not returned.
Rüni tried not to let their worries grow too wild, but it was difficult when Ayla was officially over a full day late. No one could know what her Trial was exactly, of course, but Rüni tried to find some comfort in the knowledge that Keeper Solvae had gone with her— surely their shared mentor and guardian would never let anything terrible happen to Ayla.

Still, it was hard for Rüni to stop their thoughts from straying to Apprentice Hawthorn's Trial, just a month ago. His Keeper had gone with him to be a witness as well, just as Solvae went with Ayla. Neither of them had returned.

Rüni continued their furtive pacing as the crickets that sang from among the first roots of
the world failed to soothe their heart. They did not want to dwell on the worst possible outcomes for Ayla— usually, their incessant optimism was something Ayla would discourage. Yet, before they had their last kiss farewell four nights ago, Ayla had been so insistent:

Don t you worry about me, Rüni. If you get worried, then I'll really be in trouble!

Ayla had tried so hard to keep Rüni's spirits up before she left. Rüni sorely wanted to honor that wish of their beloved's... but as the moons, stars, and halo of the world shone brighter and brighter in the ever darkening sky, the young Gatherer's heart only sank with the light of the suns.

193

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

Quick doodle of an OC for some stories I’m working out! Their name is Rüni, and they are a total cutie.

Pen portrait drawing of a cartoon style character with long elf ears, a long side braid, and a wavy fringe that covers their right eye. They have mant freckles with a friendly smile.

0132

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

Weird how getting into a habit of free writing daily actually does help with your inspiration. I’ve also been doing actual writing exercises for the first time since college— doing the ones in Ursula K. Le Guin’s Steering the Craft… Highly recommend to fellow fiction writers!

Photo of the book cover for “Steering the Craft: a 21st Century Guide to Sailing the Sea of Story”
It is a grey hued cover with images of lines that suggest flipping pages.

1110

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

New notebooks are the best. 🤩 This one’s gonna be for my nonfiction writing: essay drafts, poem analysis, notes and annotations for books I’m reading, personal book and poem reviews, etc.!

Image of a journal book cover with a fancy lookin’ gilded 16th century Persian inspired art on the cover. It depicts two deer (or similar animal) beneath a flowering tree.

Photo of the journal opened, showing a dark burnt gold ribbon to mark the place, and lightly lined pages.

060

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

I have a new notebook coming today, and I wants it. (Either gonna be used for my free journaling, or used to write drafts of my essays and lit analyses while I read!)

Disney’s Snow White with her nose and face pressed up against a dirty window as she tries to peer inside. Captioned text near her face simply reads “Pakidge”

070

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

Been reading this breathtaking book of poems by Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha (@thellpsx.bsky.social). I have made pages soggy with my tears of disabled grief & comfort. I cannot recommend it highly enough & I am not even finished. It has been some time since someone’s words struck me so hard.

A photo of the book cover for “The Way Disabled People Love Each Other: Poems” by Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha. The book’s cover is shades of pinks amd reds with the silhouettes of two people facing each other. Images of flowers are integrated into the varying colors.

46320

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

Popped an old Oleander short story up on my (100% free) Patreon! I’ve just been feeling nostalgic for this snob with resting lich face (😏), and figured a lot of you probably haven’t seen it or met faer before! Wanna see my 5+ year old writing? 😅 ⛓️ www.patreon.com/posts/162506...

Digital art of Oleander Morgenstern by @BlueBirdsDraws on a starry black and red sky background. She is a very pale woman with long wavy yellow hair half up in a bun with a red hair piece visible. She wears an elegant red and black gown: the sleeves are translucent red, the bodice is a modest halter top of black lace over red, and the skirt is a full length, gathered skirt. One pale hands rests on an ornate black walking cane with a raven’s head as the grip.

051

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

I sat outside for coffee this morning! My favorite time of year is May when the neighbor’s tree blossoms. 🌸

Photo angled upward of a verdant tree with small pale pink flourishing. Another tree with small white buds not yet fully bloomed is right behind it with a clear blue sky above.

3172

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

Started to knit a scarf for a friend! It’s fucking freezing here today so it seems a thematic distraction from the world. Haven’t been on as much lately; need to really ration taking on stress and anxiety lately. It’s been triggering really shitty Crohn’s flares (pun absolutely intended).

Photo of Sam’s knitting on a needle. It’s a ribbed rectangle of about five inches long. It’s in a light violet that changed to light blue.

0110

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

Happy ace day to my fellow ace cuties! 🖤🩶🤍💜 [Obligatory “this meme is a joke” Note, as many aces including me still have sex for many reasons, which are all totes valid. Take any divisional BS elsewhere and trip on rocks while you’re at it. 😤 I just like this meme, deal with it. 😌]

Meme with a cartoon chocolate cake labeled “kinks & fetishes” with a hand labeled “aces” cutting a slice that is labeled “sex”. The Ace Hand then takes the entire cake while like the Sex Slice.

0182

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

My first attempt at using alcohol markers to color my sketches! I am very insecure about my drawing, so pls be nice. Character (Elmira) is for a campaign with some friends I play online!

Hand drawing of Elmira, a young white woman with pointed ears and patches of snake scales across her skin. She leans against a table full of empty bottles and glasses, and cheerfully winks with a tankard in hand. The initials and word “E.K. Rulz” [sic] are carved into the table.
Elmira has dark green hair in a high ponytail, snakey fangs with one broken. She wears pinks and browns, with thigh high brown boots.

393

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

My older sister was literally a colorist at a major fashion company for awhile, maybe it runs in the family! If only my spouse would take it so we can stop arguing over colors of things when he is so clearly wrong. 😏 www.keithcirkel.co.uk/whats-my-jnd...

Your AEoK JND
0.0044

Okay this is genuinely impressive. You're well below the standard JND of 0.02. The ClE should be sending you a job offer. Or at least a certificate.

140

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 01/03/2026

I’ve been using my dice tray as a yarn bowl, and now Charlie has discovered she loves knocking them BOTH out to go chasing them. Troublemaker.

Charlie, a small cat with grey-brown fur with stripes on her face and sides. She is laying down being cute on a white piece of clothing.

291

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

Knitting WIP Update! Did not get NEARLY enough knitting done during the storm because I ended up flaring so badly (definitely jinxed myself). Not gonna finish in time for my friend’s birthday 😔

Photo of a knitting project on long cable needles. It’s an asymmetrical shawl in garter stitch making a sort of crescent shape. It’s in a gradient yarn of shades of pink, purple, and blue.

040

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 21/02/2026

Knitting WIP! Didn’t get as much as I wanted done yesterday, but its a sunny new day and I’m hoping to get a lot more done! Aiming to finish it next mid-week.

Photo of Sam’s knitting WIP laid out on a couch cushion. It’s an asymmetrical shawl almost forming a fat crescent shape, in blue, purple, and pink bi pride colors.

1110

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

Been working on this asymmetrical shawl in bi pride colors for a birthday surprise for a friend! Let’s see if I can finish it by next week so I can get it out in time…

A photo of Sam’s knitting WIP on a pile of blankets (which secretly has a cat under it). The knitting is a big crescent shaped piece in thick pink, purple, and blue stripes. It’s roughly two feet long so far.

060

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 15/02/2026

I love me a simple seed/moss stitch!

Photo of a pink knit scarf all crumpled up while a black cat wrapped in a blue blanket rests her head on the scarf. Its in a simple seed stitch pattern.

140

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

Just boosting for, y’know, reasons. My red yarn is arriving today, I am pumped to try out the pattern! Fuck ICE. 🔥🧊🔥

A screenshot from Needle and Skein’s linked Ravelry page for the Melt the ICE hat pattern:

“All proceeds from the sale of this pattern go to the immigrant aid agencies who will distribute the funds to those impacted by the actions of ICE.”

093

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 08/02/2026

Been working on knitting a hat for a friend! Pushing my arthritic hands with the DK weight yarn; it’s been 7 years since I could use it— maybe that med is finally working after all!!! 🥹 I also haven’t made a hat flat yet, I always make them in the round.

Photo of a 3 knit/3 purl ribbed knitting in progress on a cable needle. A tape measure shows 3” of progress. The yarn is a sort of mottled green, yellow, blue, and white color that has a nice aesthetic effect.

2550

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 24/01/2026

Art & joy are still important in the face of cruelty. Especially the art & joy of those silenced by the cruel. 💜 So, please enjoy this queer-ass blanket I knit with my arthritic lil hands, and that I have barely gotten to enjoy because our jealous cat, Ezri, has claimed it as her own. 😅

A photo of Ezri, a black cat with greenish eyes, with her cute little cat-face resting on a pile of folds within the nonbinary pride colored knit blanket Sam made.

0215

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

I finished knitting my nonbinary pride blanket! 🧶✨ It’s my first blanket, and it’s so warm! I’m so glad I finished it in time for the snow storm this weekend. 💛🤍💜🖤

Photo of Sam’s finished knit blanket, a large nonbinary pride flag colored piece that goes vertically: yellow, white, violet, black, violet, white, yellow.

3652

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 17/01/2026

No new pictures;where’s your head at?

Black and white photo of a blonde woman with giant cat eye framed sunglasses who is clearly cooler than any of us as she smokes a cigarette and holds a sign saying:

“The french aristocracy never saw it coming either.”

0134

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

Afternoon Project: Cleaning, restringing, and adjusting the default slippy pegs for my little 19-string harp! Still not feeling well enough to sit at my lever harp for practice, but if I can level this one up a bit I can practice certain songs (and do my drills, bleh) far easier. 😌 (Old pic!)

Photo of Sam’s small brown wooden 19-string harp on the floor in front of their roughly twice larger 22-string lever harp. You can see the small harps strings are in weirdo nonstandard green and white colors.

070

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 10/01/2026

Art is resistance. Gonna try to get a new post up on my Patreon today! I had a friend read through a little overview document about my novel WIP, which is a queer- & disabled-led reimagining of “Tristan & Iseult” set in my own high fantasy world… Keep an eye out! Patreon.com/TheAilingWitch

A parchment background graphic with elegant black fonts. The right side has a graphic of a sword pointed down with a bird atop the hilt and pommel, its wings outstretched.

Main text reads:
The Champion & The Night Bird
A Chivalric Romantic Fantasy Inspired by
"Tristan & Iseult"

Featuring:
- Agender and Sapphic Leading Protagonists
- Disabled & Chronically Ill Protagonist
- Love vs Duty
- An Epic Journey
- Rival Families at War

Vibes:
- The Princess Bride
- Romeo & Juliet
- The Silmarillion

Small note in upper right reads Patreon.com/ TheAilingWitch

051

Sam Wise Masks @theailingwitch.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

Nonbinary pride flag blanket update! 🧶✨ I need to buy yarn for the second half’s full stripe repeat; it’ll be a nice big cozy blanket to snuggle on the couch with the spouse and cats! 💛🤍💜🖤

A knit blanket on circular needles in thick stripes of yellow, white, purple, and black.

2516