Your weekly Oblique Strategy.

I wrote a Big Idea post on John Scalzi's blog to celebrate the release of my novel. It's about perverse incentives, blowback, and desire paths. And it's short, so it won't take you long to read. whatever.scalzi.com/2026/02/17/t...

The best thing about Crusader Kings 3 is that having no idea how to play it is a perfect simulation of being an incompetent ruler.

A lovely little review of The Halter that popped up last night. openlettersreview.com/posts/vkra23...

PSA: a lot of people asked for an ebook edition — and we’ve been able to put one together! And with hyperlinks, of course.

If I had known this video was going to be public, I would have dragged my bookshelf behind me for more writer cred. I have dozens of them, I promise.

This looks familiar.

Explore the world’s darkest surrogate-reality feeds in search of the lost.🔍 For fans of READY PLAYER ONE and RABBITS, THE HALTER by @darbymcdevitt.bsky.social introduces a charismatic detective and a cast of endearing misfits lost in brittle fantasies. Buy your copy at any retailer near you!

I had the great pleasure of talking to Jon and Sagar about game narratives and the challenges of crafting them. If you enjoy this discussion, tune into more, and check out the accompanying book "The Game Narrative Kaleidoscope".

Your Oblique Strategy for the week!

A lovely write-up of The Halter by the good folks at LTAC. ❤️

To the 50-ish people who showed up at my book launch last night, thank you! I had a great time, good conversations, and excellent drinks. A special shout-out to Joie De Livres for hosting it. A bookstore with class, verve, and swagger. 😘

Your weekly Oblique Strategy!

Read an excerpt of THE HALTER by @darbymcdevitt.bsky.social! thenerddaily.com/the-halter-b...

Today’s the day! The Halter is out, available in physical, digital, or audio book! If you read it and you like it, consider leaving a review on the platform where you purchased it. It really helps! www.simonandschuster.ca/books/The-Ha...

Do people use the term Hypertext anymore? It was on the lips of every academic I studied with in the late 90s, but I don't think I've heard it uttered sincerely in over 20 years.

A lovely write up of The Halter over at bookstr. bookstr.com/article/welc...

Download the free Buzz Books Spring Summer edition and read an excerpt of THE HALTER by @darbymcdevitt.bsky.social! www.buzz.publishersmarketplace.com/download-edi...

Your oblique strategy for the week:

Love may be a worldwide phenomenon but the word for it sure isn’t. A video in which I take a shot at saying “I love you” in every Scandinavian language (and even Greenlandic and Sámi), past and present, and review the strange history of how we say this. More detailed version: youtu.be/Pc6jEV0wxaI

❄️ Update: The GAME NARRATIVE KALEIDOSCOPE ❄️ will be published soon - we just sent a proof to the authors. 400 pages - 100k+ words - 118 authors - including the writers from several well-beloved games and major franchises. If you want to be notified when it releases, you can add your name below!

Feb 18, a special cocktail to go with my novel. This one they’re calling Friend-On-The-Rocks.

Montreal friends, I'll be hosting a book-launch for my novel, The Halter, at an incredible bookstore-cafe on St-Laurent, Joie de Livres ... Feb 18. lnkd.in/eRDjUwSX The first 30 people to pre-order the book through Joie de Livres will get a free glass of wine and some nibbles! Stop by and say hi!

Happy #BuzzBooksOfficial Day! @buzzbooksofficial.bsky.social So honored that our upcoming release, THE HALTER by Darby McDevitt (02/17) is included in this year's Official Spring/Summer Selections! Pre-order your copy of THE HALTER by (@darbymcdevitt.bsky.social) from any retailer now!

“I wish my Ph.D. in Scandinavian Studies felt more relevant.”

I talked to @emolinsky.bsky.social about the process and challenge of building imaginary worlds in video games and novels. Have a listen! www.imaginaryworldspodcast.org Imaginary Worlds is a lovely podcast that covers Science Fiction and Fantasy and everything in between.

"Hard Time Killin' Floor Blues" Skip James The haunting sound of Delta blues in a minor open-tuning. youtu.be/UNftrsCMiQs?...

Portrait of Six Guys as a Young Band. Sneaky Thieves, Seattle, 2006 sneakythieves.bandcamp.com

🚨⚠️ Release Date Disclosure! ⚠️🚨 TRAILER: VIDEO EVIDENCE, see below. Please watch, assimilate and share. DESIGNATION: TR-49 GENRE: NARRATIVE DEDUCTION / AUDIO_DRAMA DATE: 21st JANUARY PLATFORMS: iOS / PC / Mac / Deck This is what we know, so far.

Their messaging is so fucking incoherent. Maduro was an illegitimate leader who lost in 2024, which is why we're replacing him with his VP instead of the person who won in 2024. We did this to stop fentanyl, which is why he's indicted for cocaine. We're also occupying Venezuela via Zoom call.

“Sometimes it Snows in April” Prince youtu.be/ikZgBhSMSUM?...

Happy Holidays to all! Get ready for a banger 2026! Lots of good things happening.

“Please Do Not Go” Violent Femmes youtu.be/4J5kjxdsxBA?...

#ACDay is here! Join us in the celebrations of the #AssassinsCreed franchise and community! Throughout the day we are going to share all the activities and content prepared by the community for the occasion! And don't forget our Assassin's Creed Trivia Stream later today at 8:00 pm CET!

“Waterfalls” Paul McCartney youtu.be/YbvdQBz65tM?...

❄️ ’Tis the season to celebrate with Sierra On-Line’s 1986 "A Computer Christmas." ❄️ Thanks to #softwarepreservation, this retro holiday classic is now a perennial gift for new generations of holiday revelers. 🦌🎄 See all the animated sequences ⤵️ archive.org/details/sier... #TechHistory #retrogaming

Interested in game-writing? In early 2026 we'll be publishing a kaleidoscope: short articles by 100+ game writers - experts, freelancers, and juniors - about the craft. ~1/3 of them are in: multiple bangers, from some very famous names and games. Sign up to be notified when it's ready here:

The first review of my novel, "The Halter", from Publisher's Weekly ... and it's a treat: "McDevitt shines in his sci-fi noir debut ... a gripping and twisty mystery" Pre-order now and read it in February! www.publishersweekly.com/9798895150887

You know what you're doing today? Watching a top quality version of "The Decline of Western Civilization" on YouTube, that's what. youtu.be/gYK1NGpUZXY?...

Introduce (date) yourself with five concerts you attended. Prince The Cure Deerhoof Sleater-Kinney Prince

Made it to season 5 of “On Cinema at the Cinema” before I realized that Gregg Turkington is Neil Hamburger. 30 years of laughs suddenly collapsed into a joyous singularity.

Expelled! is 40% off in the @adventurex.bsky.social sale this week, but in case that's still too dear, you should at least take a minute to enjoy the opening theme.

Happy to announce that my debut novel, The Halter, is now available for preorder. You’ll find it at all major online outlets, but if you can pre-order it from an indie shop near you, please support your local folks instead. www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Ha...

D’Angelo's gone?? 😩 Voodoo was one of the soundtracks to my early 20s, goddamn. R.I.P and, as ever, fuck cancer. youtu.be/8fNtipp5RLs?...

RIP to a man who made art at his own pace, in his own time. youtu.be/FzKo5twEKIw?...

"His body is vigorous. His mind is childish. His soul has been almost completely neglected."

“Springtime” Allison Russell youtu.be/EF6VjYqoBQQ?...

Little thread of talks about writing and interactive narrative I've done, so I can pin it here: First up - Sparkling Dialogue from Adventure X; how to make interactive conversations that have flow and meaning to them www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vRf...

"Funtime" Iggy Pop youtu.be/DDYatCwJvCA?...