"What did you do this afternoon, Tam?" Oh, just wrote and recorded an instrumental Metal track for a fictional band. 🤘😎 #Nerdlings

Describe your wargaming energy in 3 words?! “Fails to achieve objectives.”

Creeping into everything like black mould. Meta AI now in WhatsApp

So: all 25 of my novels, 30+ short stories, a bunch of reviews (?), essays and academic articles & books. More than 70 items all told. Bloody hell.

I remember watching this when it was a kids cartoon…

No one told me that the German editions of the Dark Future books have some of the most bodacious covers ever made!

Could this be the weekend that you start a new life of adventure as a magazine reader? Reject pixels, embrace paper and, maybe, discover your new favourite tabletop game shop.wyrd.science

From a poetry collection by Mary Oliver, where after a hundred poems showcasing gentle observations on nature and animals, she hits you with this

Farming isn’t just business – it’s heritage, food security, and survival. So why is the government treating farmers like just another tax target? J.J. Jackson reports 🚜 eastangliabylines.co.uk/farming/farm...

Microplastics hinder plant photosynthesis, study finds, threatening millions with starvation

Ack! I am remiss in failing to mention @sadiehartmann.bsky.social and @raforall.bsky.social who are both female horror writers (non-fiction) and cornerstones of the genre.

Want to read a book but can’t afford to buy it? ❌ don’t pirate/steal it ✅ join your local library and borrow the book for FREE. If the library doesn’t have the book you want, ask if they can buy it. You get to read. Authors get paid. Libraries stay open. ✨ Triple win ✨ #BookSky #Library

On this International Women's Day, may all your fondest dreams and cleverest plans be realized.

DuckDuckGo just gave me an “AI” assisted search results summary for the first time, so into the bin with that. Over to Ecosia I guess?

For World Book Day a perennial recommendation from me; The Folly of the World by Jesse Bullington.

First gig of the year tonight, out seeing Lowen and Zakk Sabbath. #metal bandcamp.com?show=788

Start the week with some metal. Year of the Cobra’s self titled third album wrings every bit of heaviness from the duo’s bass and drums to produce some excellent doom metal. #metalmonday #doommetal yearofthecobra.bandcamp.com/album/year-o...

Hey! Don't forget *NOT* to use the iOS Patreon app to buy things or subscribe to memberships because the app store now has a 30% fee which either the creator is covering themselves or is increasing the price on whatever you're buying (patreon emailed me today to tell me I could choose which)

This month I’ll mostly be painting Word Bearers #marchonmacragge And one Ultramarine

Black Library Book Club to watch and Word Bearers to paint

Every major UK newspaper - left, right, broadsheet, tabloid - is running a front page campaign against copyright carveouts for AI training. I can't remember the last time any political cause had such broad support, let alone one so anti-big tech and so economically consequential.

Last day! Support Waterstones - save money!

The AI consultation closes tomorrow - if you haven't already, please use these resources to write to your MP today. It will take five minutes.

Well, I guess I won't be buying Miniature Wargames any more...

It’s how I got in. Good luck to anyone giving it a go.

Great time yesterday at Warhammer World’s Age of Sigmar Spearhead Quest Night. Came away with two losses for the Sons of Behemat, but had lots of fun; thanks to two opponents who couldn’t have been more patient with a first timer.

Problematic.

I'm a guest of @elizabethstjohn.bsky.social on her blog, talking about the inspiration for my new book, Murder in Anglo-Saxon England, and outlining some of the more outrageous stories: elizabethjstjohn.com/guest-author...

Geophys think they've found a Roman villa. Someone is gonna have to break it to them...

I gotta admit, seeing this level of open corruption goes a long way towards explaining why the Imperial stormtroopers' gear in Star Wars turned out to be completely useless the first time some stone-age teddy bears started throwing hands.

THE CROWDFUND FOR NEW EDGE SWORD & SORCERY 2025 IS LIVE Three issues - a Sword & Planet special - a New Jirel of Joiry story... The more re-posts this gets, the more bonus stories will be added to this year's issues! Go here to learn more and back the magazine: www.backerkit.com/c/projects/b...

"First of all, some of the things I say will be incorrect."

Would you be able to help us and our neighbours with a sign or share? The council have behaved appallingly with this. www.change.org/p/save-the-m...

we are depriving generations of kids of the formative experience of stumbling upon some weird horny sci-fi or fantasy book that was absolutely not written for them, which is the kind of thing that makes reading feel exhilarating, like you are unlocking the grownup world’s fun secrets

Excellent #bookpost today as the first of Black Library’s two Dark Coil omnibuses has arrived. Hard to boil down a summary of one of the stories let alone do justice to the omnibus, suffice to say that Peter Fehervari’s take on 40K is exceptional and unique.

Hello friends - just a friendly notice that THE BLACKTONGUE THIEF and BETWEEN TWO FIRES are only 2.99 today (February 9) on Kindle.

This week's challenge is to use a pencil until you find a secret. This may take a while.

It’s a bloody cold morning to be on the farm, and the Midlands haven’t had it as bad as some. The picture doesn’t really do the enclosing fog justice.

#wip Contrast has taken surprisingly well to an old Catachan painted in tribute to Adair of @writervh.bsky.social’s Deathworlder and Igor Kieryluk’s cover art.

On Feb 7, Bandcamp will be donating 100% of our proceeds to MusiCares to provide emergency aid for artists in need, partnering with A2IM, WIN, Harman, Lagunitas, Roland, Shure, Victrola, and Women in Music to amplify the effort. Mark your calendar & spread the word. bit.ly/4gt9ka4

Hard to recommend The Metal Show enough. Some of my favourite songs albums and bands of the last two years have come through following it. Go listen to Castle Rat’s Into The Realm #metal

I make $20 every six monthsish on the combined streams of all four of my albums on all streaming sites. At Bandcamp I make about $10 every time I sell an album, physical or download. Use Spotify if you want, but if you like living artists making a living, buy something from them where they get paid.

UK writers: if you haven't yet responded to the government's AI consultation (& don't feel like giving away your copyright), the @alcs-uk.bsky.social have produced some really helpful advice ⤵️ www.alcs.co.uk/news/your-ri...

Another one down.

A little bit of horror arrived today.

New #WriterBeware blog post: a look at the UK's proposed change to copyright to allow AI companies to train on creative works without permission, with writers' only remedy being to opt out--and why you should care, even if you're not a UK citizen writerbeware.blog/2025/01/31/t...

Things have sped up so much over the last few years, but I AM THE LAW: HOW JUDGE DREDD PREDICTED OUR FUTURE is available to buy, if you want to see how we arrived here linktr.ee/molcher