I've tried to explain my reasons as best I can here. I don't think I did anything terrible by leaving. And, yes, I *know* it cut off big avenues for "growth" and "discoverability" & took me away (in a few sad ways) from the Substack community. But that was my choice. www.tom-cox.com/important-th...

I suspect Lemmy had been drinking (and other stuff) for so long he’d got used to functioning in a variously twisted state. I know I did :)

... This was all directly in the aftermath of him walking off an episode of Never Mind The Buzzcocks, in disgust at the meanness of the then hosts, which I thought was totally heroic. He also told me he refused the scripted ad libs he was offered on the show. Just the ultimate rock star, all round.

Whistler's Mother, watching Grandpa Simpson on the telly, with my dad's cat on his knee: a painting by my dad. www.tom-cox.com/the-cat-who-...

Important advice from my dad for anyone who finds themselves being attacked by a badger. www.tom-cox.com/31-notes-i-h...

This cow and I had weeks of face-to-face discussions and zoom calls about the cover photo for its innovative psychedelic debut LP and rejected many images which less perfectionist humans and cattle might have considered pretty fucking great but I think we finally nailed it.

IMPORTANT: When transporting a giant puffball mushroom you have recently foraged, it is absolutely crucial that you ensure the mushroom is firmly strapped into the passenger seat of your car to guard against sharp braking and potential whiplash.

A new short story by me. www.tom-cox.com/richards-exi...

Another memory of this interview is my amazement that he managed to read loads of books while knocking back spirits. Me: "Do you really have no trouble concentrating on reading while you're drinking?" Lemmy: "None at all. And I have no trouble concentrating on drinking while I'm reading either."

Found the gate that leads to winter.

I remember all too little of the interviews I did with rock stars when I was briefly employed as the music critic for a national newspaper, but there is this.

The dawn chorus is so sweet in April but by this time of year it’s just six drunk rooks arguing in a dead tree.

I have been finding an unusually large number of interdimensional portals on my walks recently. I am calling this one ‘Mystical Bridge Of The Shy Pissing Troll’.

One of my grandmothers used to walk like her sideboard.

Important advice from my dad for anyone who finds themselves being attacked by a badger. www.tom-cox.com/31-notes-i-h...

Badgers run like old, neglected footstools who have suddenly discovered their own sentience.

A new short story by me. www.tom-cox.com/richards-exi...

Correct! Those previous covers were HORRIBLE. And I had zero control over them.

And this one, if I remember right, was the first where you had more control over the cover? Previous books had stock cat pictures, whereas here The Bear got to be the star, in all his sorrowful splendour. (Said previous books were later reprinted with different, better covers).

I got some excellent post! Thank you, @dj-acid-reflux.bsky.social, I shall enjoy these (once I've finished Everything Will Swallow You, that is)

A bargain: these are two of the very best TC books imho

You’re absolutely right. Thank you. Which reminds me of the never-to-be-bettered review of War Horse. medium.com/the-hairpin/...

Because of the piddling royalty payment I receive for this book every six months (just over half a tank of petrol for a VW Polo) I forget it's done very well. Just found out today that its lifetime sales are nearly 42,000. I've written far better books since but I'm still extremely proud of it.

Re-upping this review. AI would never generate a review as good as this.

If anyone else in the UK would like a package just like this, for £10.99 plus £6 p&p, please give me shout at [email protected] (I have four sets left).

Much as I like Pride & Prejudice I find it impossible to deny that this is the greatest review of it of all time.

Recommend reading Tom's work. It's a light in a very disturbing world 😶‍🌫️

One of the better photos I have taken of a sheep staring at me insouciantly moments after it has set fire to the world.

My inbox is a love and hate rollercoaster right now. It's literally "Well done for leaving Substack!" or "How dare you leave Substack and take my adored Substack subscription over to an independent platform?" every five minutes. Who knew the mere act of continuing to write could be so divisive?

Some interdimensional portals I found on walks yesterday and today.

I've written a new (very silly) short story and uploaded it on my new site today. The full thing is behind a paywall. But for £2 per month (or £20 per year) you can read it, plus get access to 100s of 1000s of other words by me: www.tom-cox.com/richards-exi...

I'm so tired of "whimsical", as used to describe any writing that isn't wholly dark and humourless. It's become such a lazy and fashionable word. We live in dark times, but that means we need writing that makes us laugh more than ever. "Whimsical", to me, often feels like a way to undermine that.

Summer 2025 in the UK, a time of unity and euphoria.

Every time I walk through a village or town & see English flags - which is every time I walk through a village or town in England right now - I wonder why no other European flags make me think instantly of racism and threats of violence, but also "England has remarkably shit ugly flags, doesn't it?"

I'll delete this thread when I'm out of my personal supply (which is v small and the result of me having to cancel a few events due to illness a week or so ago).

... The Guardian's review of the book was positive and all but the one in the link will tell you much much more accurately what the book is. I meant to add that I'm happy to personalise each copy. And I'll also throw in one of the postcards my dad just had made of these... bsky.app/profile/dj-a...

I have just a small pile of first edition hardbacks here which I can sell signed to anyone (in the UK) who emails me at [email protected] in time. All of you will also receive one of these handmade bookmarks made by my mum, Jo. Review (for info): thinkaboutreading.wordpress.com/2025/09/28/e...

This below chest-height footpath-portal is entitled, "what, through there?"

One of the better photos I have taken of a sheep staring at me insouciantly moments after it has set fire to the world.

This book isn't for everybody and I wouldn't want it to be but short-bodied, tailless amphibian vertebrates fucking LOVE it and that makes me happy.

I have been finding an unusually large number of interdimensional portals on my walks recently. I am calling this one ‘Mystical Bridge Of The Shy Pissing Troll’.

Bloody hell, it totally is. www.tom-cox.com/robot-2/

Richard's Woodward and Bernstein fan fiction needs a publisher.

I liked the views there so much, I had a go at sketching a couple, one of which is from the photo above. Unusually for me, I was actually quite pleased with his they turned out.

Beautiful! I love me some natural framing. Reminds me of this picture I took on Shetland years ago.

My copy of @dj-acid-reflux.bsky.social arrived in the US, and I accidentally acquired a pet tree frog by putting a random coconut on my deck. He/she moved in within hours. It's been a good couple of weeks!

I have just a small pile of first edition hardbacks here which I can sell signed to anyone (in the UK) who emails me at [email protected] in time. All of you will also receive one of these handmade bookmarks made by my mum, Jo. Review (for info): thinkaboutreading.wordpress.com/2025/09/28/e...

Be sure!