"An Arabian Night-mare and Others" by Fitz-James O'Brien, edited by @jpirish.bsky.social, published by @swanriverpress.bsky.social in 2025. As the first volume of "The Collected Speculative Works", this book gathers O’Brien’s earliest weird tales, originally published between 1848 and 1854. 1/3

Delighted with the latest goodies from @swanriverpress.bsky.social

Of course we know from experience how massively difficult it is to run a non-fiction print journal. We've got one called THE GREEN BOOK that features commentaries, articles, and reviews on Irish Gothic, Supernatural and Fantastic literature. New readers welcome: swanriverpress.ie/the-green-bo...

Fitz-James O’Brien short stories from Swan River Press. These are my first books by this author or from this press, and I’m pleased by the quality of the books. I’m far too tardy learning of this Irish #scifi writer! #booksky #Ireland #smallpress

A review of the third volume of our Collected Speculative Works of Fitz-James O'Brien. suptales.blogspot.com/2025/06/what...

Check out this outstanding review for the FJOB @swanriverpress.bsky.social collected speculative writings. www.popmatters.com/fitz-james-o...

Our next book will be off to the printer soon. It'll be a little while before we announce it. If you don't want to miss out, be sure you're subscribed to our newsletter. swanriverpress.ie/newsletter/

Fun fact. Fitz-James O'Brien, the 19c Irish-American writer of weird fiction, wrote a short story comedy about horse racing at the Curragh Derby called "Carrying Weight". @swanriverpress.bsky.social

I've never been enamoured with "small" or "micro" press as designations of meaning. Size doesn't matter. Swan River Press is an independent press. Our work is of the highest quality and spec. We are funded directly by our readership. You can read more about us here. swanriverpress.ie/about-2/

John and Abigail Adams processed the run-up to the War of Independence in their correspondence. “The Adams team was crossing a Rubicon together,” writes Joseph J. Ellis in @washingtonpost.com. “They were not just writing letters to each other; they were writing to posterity—which is to say, us.”

People seem to be enjoying our most recent book, actually a series: the Collected Speculative Works of Irish author Fitz-James O'Brien. “O’Brien’s early death undoubtedly deprived us of some masterful tales of strangeness and terror.” – H. P. Lovecraft swanriverpress.ie/srp-title/co...

About once every other year, or so, I try to tackle this novel. It is complex, gothic, and philosophical (published in 1804). Every time I can't get through ch. 3, until today. Now I'm cruising.

Teddy and I on a quick drive into Bridgeport. Love this little guy.

There's a new review up for our COLLECTED SPECULATIVE WORKS of Fitz-James O'Brien: “Fascinating, elegantly written, quite enjoyable stuff.” – Hellnotes hellnotes.com/book-review-...

Amazing period 3 for the Stars. This was my first playoff game to attend in person, it was one for the ages. @dallasstarshistory.bsky.social #stanleycupplayoffs

Don't know a lot about this writer, but I found these online and could not resist. All three volumes in fine condition.

Get to spend some time this weekend in the newest @philosophynow.bsky.social magazine. Issue 167: what does it mean to be human?

Next deep dig into classic goth short stories. @swanriverpress.bsky.social Just picked this out of print title up off a used book site.

I am going to spend some time today digging into this story collection from @helengrantsays.bsky.social I bought early last year. You can see why @swanriverpress.bsky.social editions are such high quality. These books rival Arkham House publications in terms of quality and appearance.

It's that time of the year when Elizabeth turns our yard into a oversized flower garden.

Something to add to my Fitz-James O'Brien collection. A French edition of his stories from the 1950s. And no, I don't speak French. @swanriverpress.bsky.social

If you're at #EasterCon come and check out @swanriverpress.bsky.social in the dealers' room - they have freebies!

Today we showcase v3 of the Collected Speculative Fiction of Fitz-James O'Brien from @swanriverpress.bsky.social This volume will contain his strongest works. The cover image is from the title story, "What Was It?" This was the first FJOB story I ever read. Highly engaging and philosophical.

Hope it’s going well. The Fitz-James O’Brien set is superb. A significant investment for me, and in an author I knew little of, but I’m so glad I took the plunge!

All set for @easterconuk.bsky.social

Showcase #2 on volume 2 of the Collected Speculative Works of Fitz-James O'Brien by @swanriverpress.bsky.social: The Diamond Lens and Others (1855-1858). This volume will contain more of the genre pieces that SRP is used to publishing. Although we took a broad definition of speculative fiction.

So the wait is finally over! My copies of the speculative fiction of Fitz-James O'Brien finally arrived from Dublin, Ireland. I will showcase v1 today: An Arabian Night-mare and Others (1848-1854). @swanriverpress.bsky.social pays attention to the littlest details. Check out their other books

Weird book mail! From @swanriverpress.bsky.social, a small but mighty Irish indie! #BookSky #WeirdFiction

Going through some recent arrivals here, and I realized that the last week and a bit have been heavy on Irish writers, writing about ghosts and skeletons and suchlike. For instance I just unwrapped these, the Complete Speculative Works of Fitz-James O'Brien, from @swanriverpress.bsky.social :

One hundred years ago today, a book about a bright-eyed Midwesterner, a mysterious millionaire, and the glittering social set of East and West Egg, Long Island, landed in bookstores. Borne back ceaselessly to its depths, we will never run out of ways to read and interpret The Great Gatsby.

Just received the most beautiful books I've ever gotten from @swanriverpress.bsky.social — and everything they print is gorgeous — but the 3-volume Fitz-James O'Brien is in a class by itself Something beautiful to keep the darkness at bay while a mad orange god king moans and gibbers on his throne

O'Brien was also a playwright. His most successful play was A Gentleman from Ireland, a Shakespeare esque comedy of errors and mistaken identity. I have a performance copy of the play. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find copies of his other plays. swanriverpress.ie/srp-title/co...

In 1855 Edward Hayes edited a collection of Irish poetry, The Ballads of Ireland. O'Brien had three poems included in this prestigious collection. It not too late to grab a copy of FJOB collected speculative writings. Limited to 300 copies. @swanriverpress.ie swanriverpress.ie/srp-title/co...

For those unfamiliar with O'Brien, here is an article from the publisher with some information about his life, his work, and the story of how this set of books was published. swanriverpress.ie/2025/03/publ...

Thanks for your support, hope you enjoy the volumes!

Arrived from @swanriverpress.bsky.social today!

Swan River Press has published an impressive three-volume Collected Speculative Works of Fitz-James O'Brien. You can read my review of the books here: johnrichardkenny.com/2025/04/01/b...

In case you missed it, I wrote a short article on publishing our recent three-volume set of the collected speculative works of Fitz-James O'Brien. swanriverpress.ie/2025/03/publ...

An amazing dramatic monolog of O'Brien's amazing short story "What Was It? A Mystery" www.youtube.com/live/wwero3P...

It's easy enough to learn more about Fitz-James O'Brien and his contributions to genre literature. We just published him. swanriverpress.ie/srp-title/co...

This is Ferdinand Huszti Howarth's illustration for the classic tale "WHAT WAS IT?", included in a posthumous collection by Fitz-James O'Brien entitled The Diamond Lens and Other Stories (1932). Have you read the story? What did you think? What, exactly, was it? swanriverpress.ie/srp-title/co...

You can hear this great story live online tomorrow night (Fri 28) at 8pm (UK) here youtube.com/live/wwero3P... [for me, i reckon it was a juvenile horla]

Packing up the last pre-orders of the Collected Speculative Works of Fitz-James O'Brien. If you want one of the limited hardback sets, there are some still available: swanriverpress.ie/srp-title/co...

What Was It? and Others (1858-1864) showcases Fitz-James O’Brien’s finest speculative fiction. These stories demonstrate his mastery of the genre and his ability to craft unsettling, imaginative narratives that have endured through time. swanriverpress.ie/srp-title/co...

“Fitz-James O’Brien is the most important figure after Poe & before Lovecraft.” – Jessica Amanda Salmonson The Diamond Lens & Others (1855-1858) collects tales & poems of the outré & macabre—fantastical spirits, monomania, nightmare hallucinations, & dark fantasy. swanriverpress.ie/srp-title/co...

“O’Brien’s early death deprived us of some masterful tales of strangeness and terror.” – Lovecraft This volume gathers O’Brien’s earliest work: writings that delve into liminal spaces, nightmares, wild fantasies, and the unsettling theme of mental deterioration. swanriverpress.ie/srp-title/co...

Always exciting when the new editions from @libraryofamerica.bsky.social start arriving. Margaret Fuller Collected Writings.

One of O'Brien's unusual tales was called "From Hand to Mouth" published in The NY Picayune from Mar to May 1858. This classic is an early version of surreal fiction. Set in NY, the narrator goes through a bizarre experience in a strange hotel that has hands, ears, eyes, and noses on the walls.

This limited, hardback, three-volume set of the collected speculative works of Fitz-James O’Brien is not only the most complete collection now available, but also the first Irish edition. It highlights FJOB's importance in the development of fantastical literature. swanriverpress.ie/2025/03/publ...