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Oisín McGann

@oisinmcgann.bsky.social

7K followers 2.3K following 11K posts

Over 30 years in commercial art and more than 20 as a published author – mostly children's and young adult. No hope of ever getting a proper job. Lifelong nerd who's concerned about climate change. No AI data scraping. He/Him. http://oisinmcgann.com/

oisinmcgann.com

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Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · Nov 9

I've had a lot of new followers joining this weeks, so short introduction: I'm an Irish writer and illustrator who's been working since the 90's and has published 47 books for different reading levels in a range of genres, including 14 novels. I also work in a range of different illustration styles.

The cover of the third book I did with Jason Byrne, the comedian. It's in a rough-lined cartoon style, the figures rendered in black and white. The title is 'The Accidental Adventures of Onion O'Brien: The Secret Scientist'. It's a sky-blue cover framed with white flashes, where Onion, a ten-year-old white boy with a black patch over his left eye in square-framed glasses, sits in a threatening, high-tech chair. In front of him, an old man in a suit with a scarred face is pointing at his own head.

The artwork for the cover of an anthology of climate change-themed short stories and cartoons that is also a writing resource. The style is realistic, digitally painted. Two teenagers are the main focus of montage; a dark-haired, brown-skinned girl with a notebook and a white boy with blond hair with a camera. Below them is a BMW SUV. In the bottom corners, a young fox on the left and a black girl with spiked hair and yellow and red water pistol on the right. In the background, looming over them, are the ruined stones walls of an old building. Right at the back, a boy is jumping off some collapsing wooden boards.

The cover artwork for the SFF anthology, Fight Like a Girl Volume 2. It's a simple, cartoon-style, brown-skinned, fantasy warrior woman holding a wicked-looking sword against a blue background. Around her, in the style of a game menu, are various tools and weapons.

The cover artwork for my book, The First Fire of Halloween, digitally painted. An athletic human figure with the head of a goat stands over a wide bonfire in a field. Behind him, on either side, are the weird golden eyes of a goat, with their slot-shaped pupils. The background is grassy ground and a dark, cloudy sky.

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val @trickycrayon.bsky.social · 6h

We are over 10 minutes now on coverage of the hostages being reunited with their families.

There was honestly a less than 30-second spot showing some of the buses coming in with Palestinians.

1700 people were held with no charges or convictions.

No happy videos of reunification there.

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Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 6h

Elon Musk (the X-owner and advocate of pre-emptive political violence) is funding the legal fees of his ally Tommy Robinson (the activist who last month platformed Musk's call for civil war in Britain)

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Tommy Robinson says Elon Musk is paying his legal costs as trial begins

Far-right activist is accused of refusing to comply with counter-terrorism police request at Channel tunnel

www.theguardian.com

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Peter Beaumont @petersbeaumont1.bsky.social · 20h

If you've never been to Gaza, you won't appreciate what the yellow line means. Basically Israel now holds most of Gaza's small but important agricultural land. Continued Israeli occupation, which I judge the likely outcome, makes Gaza even more unliveable and more dependent on outside goods.

AFP News Agency @en.afp.com · 20h

Gaza Strip: Israeli army has withdrawn to the 'yellow line'

AFP Infographic with map of the Gaza Strip showing the 'yellow line' where the Israeli army has withdrawn its forces as of October 10, according to US envoy Steve Witkoff

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jeffreyalexander07.bsky.social @jeffreyalexander07.bsky.social · 1d

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Sharrow 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🇮🇪🦄💙📚🎃 @sharrow.bsky.social · 8h

If you have a womb wear a close fitting respirator, tear gas can cause disruption to the menstral cycle, miscarriage and stillbirths.

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Juno Rylee Schultz @junoryleejournalism.com · 2d

“ hey western capitalism , how’s it going … oh “

SCHOOL DISTRICT OPENS PARKING LOT FOR HOMELESS STUDENTS TO SLEEP IN THEIR PARENTS' VEHICLES
KWTX

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Dan Kaszeta FRHistS @dankaszeta.bsky.social · 4d

Use only water or fresh air on tear gas or pepper spray.

No milk, vinegar, antacids, urine, etc. and especially not in eye.

Thank me later,

An actual expert

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Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · 8h

Dan here, fighting the long and lonely fight against well-meaning but crappy methods of counteracting tear gas.

Dan Kaszeta FRHistS @dankaszeta.bsky.social · 8h

Don’t use milk of magnesia FFS. Only water 🤦

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Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · 10h

Yes, the historical archive confirms that this was a common practice back in the 1900s.

bleary @bleary.off-the-records.com · 10h

If anyone needs me I will be in the museum, lying down next to the bog bodies.

Did people really memorize phone numbers before cell phones, or is that just a movie thing?
2? Questions
I was watching some old shows from the 90s and noticed people would just dial numbers from memory - like they'd call their friends or family without looking anything up.
Made me wonder if that was actually normal back then? Did people genuinely have all their important numbers memorized, or did most folks keep a little address book or written list nearby?

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Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · 8h

Better than a lot of methods.

Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · 9h

That’s starting to sound like work.

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RTÉ News @news.rte.ie · 9h

Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys has said the Occupied Territories Bill should include a ban on services as well as goods from Israeli settlements.

OTB should include ban on services, says Humphreys

Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys has said the Occupied Territories Bill should include a ban on services as well as goods from Israeli settlements.

www.rte.ie

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Andrew D Thaler @drandrewthaler.bsky.social · 18h

You don't have to judge Columbus by the standards of today. His tenure as governor of Hispaniola was so horrific that he was dragged back to Spain in chains to answer for his many crimes.

Plus he never set foot on any land that would ever be a part of the United States of America.

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Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · 9h

That’s a good tactic.

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Joe Noonan @joenoonan.bsky.social · 15d

2003: Michael D with Catherine Connolly (and her two sons out of pic) in a protest against the disastrous war on Iraq.

📸 Joe Shaughnessy #Áras25

Michael D with Catherine Connolly (and her two sons) in a protest against the disastrous war on Iraq.

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The Washington Post @washingtonpost.com · 9h

Breaking news: The Washington Post joined the New York Times, CNN and the Atlantic in refusing to sign the Defense Department’s restrictive new press policy, citing First Amendment concerns.

Prominent news outlets reject Pentagon rules before signing deadline

The Washington Post and other major news outlets have refused to sign the Defense Department’s restrictive new press policy, citing First Amendment concerns.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Rachel Maddow @maddow.msnbc.com · 9h

"After the warning, neighbors showed up and formed a human chain outside the church to guide parishioners home. NBC Chicago found more organizers doing the same for the beginning of the 6 p.m. mass..."

www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/c...

Chicago priest urges parishioners to leave mass with caution after ICE agents reported nearby

Chicago's Rogers Park community remained vigilant after reports of federal agents near a Catholic church during Sunday mass.

www.nbcchicago.com

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Dieselbrain @dieselbrain.bsky.social · 9h

This is "debanking", and its a problem that has plagued sex workers for decades. It isnt right when its targetting sex workers and its not right when its targetting game devs and creators either.

Give paypros and your givt reps your grievances and demand that debanking of adult content stop

Ana Valens | 🔞 | Comms Open @acvalens.net · 9h

Per Reddit: Steam adult developer in the UK is sitting on a USD equivalent of six figures, can’t find a bank to take his money because the developer creates adult games

www.reddit.com/r/UKPersonal...

r/UKPersonalFinance
3 hr. ago
Previous-Camera1641

I develop adult video games on Steam. I can't find a bank that will actually let me withdraw my money from Steam. Can I get some advice?
Game has sold quite well on Steam. I've got almost £90,000 ready to withdraw after Steam's cut + VAT taken off.

However, it's been 2 months now and I can't find ANY bank in the UK who will let me withdraw my money from Steam.

I've been banned/refused/unable to get a business account with:

Wise
Revolut
Monzo
Monese
Chase
Starling
Nationwide
Halifax
Barclays
Lloyds
RBS

It always comes down to, "Where did you get this money from?"

"It's coming from games I sell on Steam."

"Can we see the store page?"

"Sure."

"I'm sorry, we can't do business with you at this time."

It keeps coming down to a commercial decision purely because I make adult content.

What the hell am I supposed to do? I've pretty much exhausted the whole banking system. I just want to be able to be paid for products I've sold.

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ashley ray @theashleyray.bsky.social · 12h

i’m not here to tell the @amlibraryassoc.bsky.social what to do, but they must know if they put out a coffee table book of all the read posters, people would buy that

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Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · 9h

The children’s book industry has been misjudging reading levels for decades. It doesn’t pay well, so it’s populated by book lovers – keen readers who produce books for the kids they were: the most capable readers. But those were the minority. The majority read at a lower level, and still do.

Rachel Feder @rachelfeder.bsky.social · 16h

Tell me your most unhinged literary opinion, as a little treat

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Krassensteins @krassenstein.bsky.social · 11h

This is great

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Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · 10h

Those were the days.

Scary Mary Branscombe @marypcbuk.bsky.social · 10h

I look at books and movies where the climax is 'press or insiders reveal the true horror that's going on and *that stops it* as so quaint and naive these days

☠️deadward niedermurder☠️ @niedermeyer.online · 13h

journalism is dying for economic, technological, and cultural reasons, but most of all it's dying because the bad guys can't even be bothered to hide their dastardly deeds anymore, because nothing happens when they are revealed

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Eric L. Robinson @uticaeric.bsky.social · 10h

Etch this into stone at every public policy MA program in America:

dcthings.bsky.social @dcthings.bsky.social · 11h

Genuinely embarrassing that no senior leaders I interact with actually read anything (yes this also applies to Biden appointees). No one responds to emails, no one reads past two sentences, no one does anything. The rest of the Pentagon follows along.

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Jonathan Calder @lordbonkers.bsky.social · 12h

Confusion reigned as the police tried to round up the Santas, arresting many official Santas in the process. A crowd of more than 2000 called for the release of Santa and pressed in on the police, later surrounding the district Police HQ, before being dispersed.

Anti-Trump tactics in Portland recall the opposition to Poland's Communist regime

The Frogs of Portland challenging Trump's goons and their occupation of the city remind me of the tactics adopted by the opposition of the ...

liberalengland.blogspot.com

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