I'm putting out previously unreleased episodes onto the podcast Patreon feed - these are FREE to watch and available to everyone. patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast In this episode, @collinarmstrong.bsky.social discusses his novel Polybius, based on an old video game urban legend from the 1980s.

#Kindle deals are here! Nothing over $2.99 w/ works by @timlebbon.bsky.social, @sgj.bsky.social, @emotrophywife.bsky.social, @collinarmstrong.bsky.social, @stephenking.bsky.social, @gradyhendrix.bsky.social, @kevinblucia.bsky.social, @brianmcwriter.bsky.social & more! #ad #booksky amzn.to/3Kj4Uoq

#booksky #horrorsky #videogames If you're looking for a new read & love urban legend-themed horror, pick up an ebook of POYLBIUS for $1.99 from shops including @bookshop.org @barnesandnoble.com & more. This is the lowest price the book has hit - if you've been on the fence, now's your chance!

Just learned my book is being hosted on a pirate site calling itself Classy Reads. I'm simultaneously annoyed & honored.

#horror #horrorsky It's Friday, so how about a terrifying PSA featuring an outstanding Donald Pleasance voiceover? www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNPM...

#BookSky #ReaderSky #horror #SciFi #writing An interview I had with F(r)iction - part of The Brink Literacy Project - about some of the whys, hows, & what-ifs behind POLYBIUS just went live! frictionlit.org/an-interview...

I just wrote a passage for this new book that was either deeply upsetting, and I feel bad about it... ...or I feel like I didn't write it well, and feel bad about that. I can't tell yet, and it'd kind of driving me crazy.

This is basically one of my NY resolutions and so far, it's going OK. I need less IRL doom. And I'd to rebuild at least some of my attention span.

People say, "Don't read reviews of your work." Generally I don't, but this bot should not be ignored. If you have that place on your house, too, maybe you ought to pick up a copy of POLYBIUS.

Weekend read is done! Turns out it was set in the county I grew up in. #polybius by Collin Armstrong. This would be a good read for any of my gamer friends that like a little horror/SiFi in their life

Great to see POLYBIUS among the 2025 staff picks at the Santa Barbara Public Library. If you aren't using your public library, it's a new year - resolve to support one of the most important public institutions we have! @sbplibrary.bsky.social catalog.sbplibrary.org?browseCatego...

If you dig unconventional thrillers, check out Amos Poe, who passed on the 25th. He was a leader in the no-wave movement & across his films - including docs & dramas - that ethos yielded fascinating results. SUBWAY RIDERS & ALPHABET CITY are good entry points. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amos_Poe

The kids wanted to make a movie over holiday break, & there's only one kind of movie we make in this house hold. In this scene my youngest is *a little* upset that there isn't a dog for him to pet.

POLYBIUS is one of thousands of awesome books on sale during the @barnesandnoble.com Book Haul event - the hardcover is currently half off! If you're sitting on some holiday gift cards or cash and you're looking for some retro-horror thrills, stop reading this and go now!!!

Thrilled to see POLYBIUS among the Booklist Editors' Choice 2025: Adult Audiobooks selections! Some truly amazing titles on that list, and Rachanee Lumayno's narration definitely deserves the recognition. www.booklistonline.com/Booklist-Edi...

That's the vibe right there!

Some recent non-writing, non-video stuff. Shadowboxes from scrap wood + broken toys. Frame and stretcher for an old painting from a family member + two completely unscientific, untested acoustic panels also from scrap.

If someone's posted a video of a record being pressed, there's a 100% chance I'm going to watch it at least twice. Uniquely satisfying. Just something I've learned about myself since coming back to social media.

Started reading Collin Armstrong's "Polybius." amzn.to/4nVIrzW 📖🕹️🪙 Only 36 pages in, but I've got a good feeling' about this one. And a bad feeling. And a #StrangerThings-y feeling... #books #reading #horror #ComingOfAge #VideoGames #BookSky

#booksky As a constant user of our libraries here in LA, this warms my heart on - what is for us, at least - a cold December day. Thanks to the Farmington Community Library in Michigan for recommending POLYBIUS, & for providing access to amazing books across all genres! youtu.be/08ISm1TdSnI?...

#booksky #shortfiction #horrorsky My regular spooky reads for the holidays. James's writing is both comforting & deeply unsettling, a blend I love. People on holidays stumbling into supernaturally-tinged, historical mysteries they shouldn't chase after but do anyway? Yes, please.

The family escaped to Joshua Tree for a few of days before the holidays hit. Not bringing along a better still camera will haunt me - until next time. I've been off socials for a bit but not without good reason, a *pair* of new projects are on their way for 2027!!! I'll share more on both soon...

RIP, Udo www.slantmagazine.com/film/udo-kie...

New insult to life itself just dropped

#music #musicsky Today's Wendy Carlos's birthday. If you're a fan of electronic & ambient music & don't know her story, you should! Switched on Bach was probably her most impactful album; I learned about her thru her film scores. Can't go wrong with any of it. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wendy_C...

#booksky #horrorsky Looking to horrify someone special this holiday season? POLYBiUS is a Booksellers' Pick for the Bookshop.org 2025 Holiday Gift Guide! bookshop.org/info/2025-gi...

#booksky #horrorsky It's October! If it's '80s horror vibes you're after, look no further...

Pulp was the plan!!!

#booksky #music If you haven't read POLYBIUS yet or you want some spooky season vibes, this is a score for the book created as a fan project by the Electric Supply Station. Perfectly captures the mood & it blows my mind that the book inspired something so cool... soundcloud.com/user-8037698...

If anyone wonders what it's like to be a working writing these days... thewalrus.ca/the-publishi...

Don’t take it from me… 🕹️💀🕹️

I know it's August, but it's also practically October. Start stocking up on horror media now, people!!!

#glitchart #videoart #videobending DV cam's attract screen filtered through a bent Extron video amp, then various Andrei Jay apps, into a feedback loop. atmospheric loop #15 by BloodPixelHero -- freesound.org/s/565554/ -- License: Attribution 4.0

#glitchart #videoart #videobending #circuitbending #analog #videosynthesis A bunch of PXL + VSERPI + feedback + video bending experiments rolled into one clip. Excuse the aspect ratio crimes. Bach's Prelude in C [Chiptune] by Beetlemuse -- freesound.org/s/668630/ -- License: Attribution 4.0

When I was writing my take on the POLYBIUS legend, the vintage photos of arcades that @catdespira.bsky.social featured on her website were hugely inspirational. Here's a review, by her, of a much earlier novel that might've contributed to the legend's rise over the years.

Nice breakdown of elements that are often connected to the POLYBIUS legend, plus a comprehensive list of appearances made in different media...

#glitchart #videoart #videobending DARK GRIME 5 Footage shot at a public garden, used to create feedback loops on a Roland Edirol V4, bent with a Director's Cut analog / digital converter. MemoryMoon_shining-organ_grab-filtha.wav by suonho -- freesound.org/s/28091/ -- License: Attribution 4.0

#horrorsky #booksky Christopher Lee reading M.R. James’ A Warning to the Curious is spooky + oddly soothing. youtu.be/yUSbAWyswN0?...

I spent last night on my favorite stretch of Santa Monica Blvd, visiting Cinefile Video (bought a bunch of kickass vintage studio wear they'd acquired in an estate sale) and seeing the rare big-screen presentation of a Kiyoshi Kurosawa film...

#booksky #horror #horrorsky What an incredible recommendation for POLYBIUS from The Pamphleteer - it not only picks up on the vibes I was aiming for, but some of the larger context as well. pamphleteer.co/post/the-wee...

#videoart #glitchart #videobending #circuitbending TEST FLIGHT Stock footage run thru a Roland Edirol V4 and circuit bent with an unbranded video enhancer. Audio from Freesound.org... arp-blips.wav by earthpages -- freesound.org/s/649090/ -- License: Attribution NonCommercial 4.0

I've been researching another game, Cube Quest by Simutrek (the first game with 3D polygons and arguably the main inspiration for the Polybius urban legend). I just looked up Simutrek's founder, Noah Anglin, and found his obituary. In an incredible coincidence, today would've been his birthday.

#booksky @gamespot.com recently posted on gaming-related books, including the fascinating-sounding A BETTER PARADISE (missed the podcast, I'll wait for the book which releases in Oct), highlighting other titles in the space including POLYBIUS! www.gamespot.com/articles/dan...

#glitchart #videoart What started as footage I captured of Space Harrier on the #turbografx16 is now... this, whatever it is, thanks to a circuit-bent Vidicraft Vidmate, Andrei Jay's Temporal Mesh program, and Signal Culture's WeaverMA app.

And they're all easily available at Target.

#booksky Summer reads, beach reads, whatever you call them, grabbing new books on vacation has been a tradition since I was young. POLYBIUS is an ode to the pulpy thrillers I'd pluck from spinning metal racks in random gift shops to read in the car, at the beach, in bed at night.

#booksky #authorvisit #library I'll be virtually chatting POLYBIUS at the Swarthmore Public Library next Monday, June 23rd at 7p EST. Stop by and help support their awesome Author Visit program! You can register here: delcolibraries.libcal.com/event/14562944

#booksky I didn't come home with pictures to share. For once, I put my phone & the small army of cameras I travel with away. As someone who isn't comfortable in crowds or that motivated to socialize, StokerCon was a bit of a revelation. I met the *nicest* people, including a few personal heroes.

Given that it's based on an urban legend about a mysterious arcade game that makes people psychotic, you'd expect Collin Armstrong's novel "Polybius" to be a horror story. But as he says in this exclusive interview, it's a coming-of-age one as well. paulsemel.com/exclusive-in... 📖🕹️🪙