It's been a while, so how about another announcement for THE LIBRARY OF THE UNDEAD. The anthology welcomes one of the greatest storytellers of our time, 7-time Bram Stoker Award-winning writer @garybraunbeck.bsky.social, with "ab aeternitate." More announcements soon!

A new sci-fi novel by @chuckpalahniuk.bsky.social called GALLERIA? Retro cover. Blue foredges. @sagapressbooks.bsky.social. January 19th, 2027. Yes please! people.com/chuck-palahn...

Below is my complete StokerCon schedule: 1. Nothing. I was asked to co-present one of the awards, but basically I'll just be there to hang out. This is the 10-year anniversary of the conference, and the first year my slate is empty. #stillrelevant

Use your mind. It's more powerful than anything artificial.

Mock covers always get me motivated to finish projects, so here's one I created for SEQUOIA. I'll be putting this one through a 4th draft polish this weekend to prep for beta readers.

Costa Rica residency paperwork will be filed tomorrow. Once I have the comprobante showing my en trámite (pending) status, no need to leave the country when my visa expires, unless I want to. No more "border runs." Next up: my official DIMEX (residency) card.

To celebrate finishing this latest draft of SEQUOIA (80,000 words), I finally framed a few Daniele Serra's. I've been meaning to display them for years.

9 chapters to re-revise / re-write on my novel SEQUOIA and the 3rd draft is done. 80,000 words. No commas, question marks, exclamation points, quotation marks, or other silly punctuation. Just periods, apostrophes, and a few hyphens holding it all together. Why not.

Lucky batch #13.

1. Your AI "writing" is horrible. 2. Your AI "editing" is de-evolving. 3. Your AI "artwork" is garbage. 4. Your AI "video" is destructive.

I love when one of my writing mentorees has an epiphany and then becomes a vessel as the story writes 20,000 words of itself over the weekend, the characters coming alive on their own. And then the sheer joy of sharing that experience with me over screens from half a world away.

One of the coolest, hardest-hitting albums to come out in a long time. Out now by @nin.com

@cgolden.bsky.social and @timlebbon.bsky.social have collaborated on a story for THE LIBRARY OF THE UNDEAD called "My Heart Is Cast in Stone." They previously collaborated on "Fault Lines" for the Bram Stoker Award-winning THE LIBRARY OF THE DEAD. Welcome back! About halfway there . . .

Everything is booked, so I'll see many of you at StokerCon this June in Pittsburgh.

What helps a book release? Pre-orders. These two anthologies arrive September 29th, but pre-ordering now helps everyone involved (and might secure future books). SOMETHING FOLLOWED US HOME, edited by @cynthiapelayo.bsky.social, and SILENT NIGHTMARES, co-edited by @chuckpalahniuk.bsky.social and me.

Do you use generative-AI to write or edit or "create" art in any sense? Let me know so I can unfollow and/or block you.

How about a few more announcements for THE LIBRARY OF THE UNDEAD. The anthology proudly welcomes new fiction by @aijiang.bsky.social, @joshmalerman.bsky.social, and John Skipp. This book will feature an insane line-up of incredible literary voices. More soon.

SILENT NIGHTMARES – Pre-Order Now Available! Simon & Schuster officially announced today, so here we go! Silent Nightmares: Haunting Stories to Be Told on the Longest Night of the Year, co-edited by Chuck Palahniuk and Michael Bailey, is now available for pre-order everywhere books are sold. A…

Simon & Schuster officially announced today, so here we go! SILENT NIGHTMARES: Haunting Stories to Be Told on the Longest Night of the Year, co-edited by @chuckpalahniuk.bsky.social and me, is now available for pre-order everywhere books are sold. September 29th from @sagapressbooks.bsky.social

Exciting book news to announce this Friday. You'll just have to wait. Well, at least I *think* it will be this Friday . . .

Today is the day to submit a short story for THE SHINING anthology, if so inclined. You have until midnight; otherwise, the doors to the OVERLOOK close.

How about a five more announcements for THE LIBRARY OF THE UNDEAD? The anthology will include all new fiction by @jamieflanagan.com, @ericlarocca.bsky.social, @lisamorton.bsky.social, @joycecaroloates.bsky.social, @haileypiperfights.bsky.social, along with the others listed on the cover. More soon!

47. What I now consider my "home" country welcomes my return today with a tremor.

Love you, mom. July 4th, 1946 - February 9th, 2026

Back in California for a while.

Pleased to receive a notice that my story "Superposition" is one of two runners up for the Science Gallery London Quantum Untangled micro-fiction competition, held in collaboration with the Arthur C. Clark Award.

ESOTERICA is now complete, a 115,000-word novel that spans 50 years, starting in 1979 (the year I was born). 50 chapters / 50 poems. The latest draft (4th?) is out to my agent.

Lot's of Bram Stoker Award Preliminary Ballot information floating around, and I'm glad to see so many familiar faces and works I recommended. I can't highlight everyone, but wanted to point out 1st-timer Lukas Hassel for his screenplay: House of Abraham. Excellent work, my friend.

Night blossom . . .

Back from 'Murica with this heavy beast. TSA had some fun swabbing this after it confused their scanners. Making a better world, one pissed-off de-evolved human at a time!

I visited 3 major bookstores while in California (and 2 airport bookstores), and all were sold out of THE BUFFALO HUNTER HUNTER by Stephen Graham Jones, although they knew the book and were awaiting more copies. This makes me very happy.

"The End" (although I never add that to the end of a novel manuscript because it's never quite 'the end' now is it?)

Favorite book read in 2025 (the last I'll finish this year) goes to JAMES by Percival Everett. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award (and others), and rightfully so. This should be required reading and will probably be banned in the States if not already.

YOU, HUMAN, Vol. 2 fans, you can show some love for the anthology and its contributors here. bsfa.co.uk

My latest novel, ESOTERICA, looks like it will end up around 120,000 words, my longest so far. I have a few final chapters to polish for this latest draft, then marinating over the holidays, then a final edit before sending it out into the world.

A gift to myself this year (and to celebrate recent achievements), is applying for permanent residency in Costa Rica after preparing all the necessary paperwork while in California later this month. It's time. I'm sick of the Divided States of America.

FOREVER VELVETEEN releases tomorrow in hardcover. A sequel to The Velveteen Rabbit written by yours truly, illustrated by Vincent Chong. Order now and have it before Christmas. nettirw.com/2025/12/01/f...

FOREVER VELVETEEN – AVAILABLE DEC. 2ND! The Velveteen Rabbit lives on! Margery Williams’ classic tale continues with a tender exploration of resilience, identity, and the enduring power of love. FOREVER VELVETEEN, a direct sequel written by Michael Bailey and illustrated by Vincent Chong, captures…

As writers and editors, we are ignored until creating something that attracts the attention of many, and suddenly we are either everyone's best friend or further ignored and shaded.

HOUSE OF ABRAHAM is now streaming. This is a psychological thriller written and starring my friend Lukas Hassel (host of the show I'm working on), and it is excellent!

FOREVER VELVETEEN, a sequel to THE VELVETEEN RABBIT, will be available December 2nd, 2025. Written by yours truly and illustrated by @vincentchong.bsky.social. Hardcover only.

You will be missed, Baker & Taylor (book distributor founded in 1828, serving libraries for nearly 2 centuries). Your loss basically leaves us with Amazon and Ingram. If only there were, you know, multi-billionaires who could chip in and keep things flowing. If only books mattered . . .

Thank you, current U.S. Administration, for changing the Affordable Care Act, which now means my health insurance (on a worse plan than before) will be close to double in 2026 what I paid in 2025. And thank you, California, for requiring me to have health insurance, lest I be penalized.

There are new guidelines for VIEWS FROM THE OVERLOOK (the anthology tie-in to @stephenking.bsky.social's THE SHINING). As @jamieflanagan.com puts it: "Listen. Learn. Adapt." Now includes a 24-hour open window, no cap in submissions, and more names revealed. jamieflanagan.com/guidelines-2

I posted about the recently announced anthology tie-in to Stephen King's THE SHINING (edited by @jamieflanagan.com) and mentioned it includes someone who shares my name. To clarify, it's me (some asked). Want to be a part of it? Check out @chuckpalahniuk.bsky.social's newsletter for more info.

Congratulations to @jamieflanagan.com and everyone involved with this anthology rooted in Stephen King's THE SHINING. Chelsea Cain, Johnny Compton, Mike Flanagan, Christopher Golden, Justina Ireland, Ai Jiang, Alma Katsu, Brian Keene, Daniel Knauf, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Chuck Palahniuk, and me.

ANTHOLOGY BIBLIOGRAPHY Written Backwards is perhaps best known for its anthologies (along with publishing unique collections, novels, and other unique books), so below is a complete bibliography in order of release. These books have received numerous accolades over the years and have, more…

Silent me means a busy me, but here's an update on a not-so-silent project, SILENT NIGHTMARES, co-edited with Chuck Palahniuk for Saga Press, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. This incredible anthology will include illustrations by @orionzangaraart.bsky.social, so here's a teaser.

IT'S THE END IF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT (current book I'm reading, and also the state of the planet), but my copy is bound UPSIDE-DOWN! Is this by design, or did the printer know I like things a little backward? Anyone else see the same?

The first two volumes of YOU, HUMAN return to regular eBook prices soon, so you have the rest of this weekend to snag them discounted. Lots of copies moving, which is always nice and supports future books.