Asher Elbein
@asherelbein.bsky.social
Freelance writing about the wild, old and dead. Bylines in NatGeo, SciAm, The New York Times, Texas Monthly, and many other places. Repped by @desir.ee at Looking Glass Literary (fiction) and @benglishhh.bsky.social at Transatlantic (nonfiction)
Pinned
Ghost Days — ASHER ELBEIN
Southern Appalachia, 1900. Cast out by tragedy and strange magic, Anna O’Brien wanders the countryside on her wooden leg: living by her wits, settling spirits for her work, and never, ever looking ba...
www.asherelbein.com
Black Friday sale! I've found one last box of GHOST DAYS, my Appalachian historical folklore/horror illustrated by @tiffanyturrill.bsky.social, hiding at my parents' house. That means there's just 35 books left before the print run sells out completely (!!) and this weekend they're $10 each!
I had a piece a while back that never ran about different historical indigenous relationships with birds, one of which was a really interesting history of Icelandic waterfowl management. Some of the folks at the publication were uncomfortable calling Icelanders indigenous. But they are!
the Falklanders are, indeed, the indigenous people of the Falklands. It doesn't matter whether your ancestors arrived in the 18th century, like them, the 13th century, like the Maori, or about 10,000 years ago like people reaching the Americas for the first time.
I think the disconnect is that people learn about colonialism (even if it's just "babby's first colonialism) quite soon these days, and for a few decades even! So the idea that Earth genuinely had actual bona-fide Terra Nullius as late as the 18th century seems like bullshit!
December 2, 2025 at 3:09 AM
I had a piece a while back that never ran about different historical indigenous relationships with birds, one of which was a really interesting history of Icelandic waterfowl management. Some of the folks at the publication were uncomfortable calling Icelanders indigenous. But they are!
Reposted by Asher Elbein
This week, Netflix will drop a western with Lena Headey and Gillian Anderson as warring matriarchs of opposing clans. Not a one of the dozens of media writers I follow online has ever mentioned this show, and yet its three-week-old trailer has over 1M views. Make it make sense.
The Abandons | Official Trailer | Netflix
YouTube video by Netflix
youtu.be
December 1, 2025 at 9:27 PM
This week, Netflix will drop a western with Lena Headey and Gillian Anderson as warring matriarchs of opposing clans. Not a one of the dozens of media writers I follow online has ever mentioned this show, and yet its three-week-old trailer has over 1M views. Make it make sense.
Reposted by Asher Elbein
2026 is shaping up to be incredibly busy. I have two books to finish: a history of Texas paleontology for UT Press, and another unannounced (👀) nonfiction book project. Plus research for another (likewise exciting 👀).
And somewhere in there, I desperately want to finish my 2/3rds completed novel.
And somewhere in there, I desperately want to finish my 2/3rds completed novel.
November 21, 2025 at 1:55 PM
2026 is shaping up to be incredibly busy. I have two books to finish: a history of Texas paleontology for UT Press, and another unannounced (👀) nonfiction book project. Plus research for another (likewise exciting 👀).
And somewhere in there, I desperately want to finish my 2/3rds completed novel.
And somewhere in there, I desperately want to finish my 2/3rds completed novel.
Reposted by Asher Elbein
For NatGeo, I also wrote about the sssurprising sssocial lives of ssseveral ssserpent ssspecies
Caught on the RattleCam: a most unexpected snake behavior
For a long time, scientists didn’t think snakes needed each other. New research proves that wrong.
www.nationalgeographic.com
November 21, 2025 at 1:06 PM
For NatGeo, I also wrote about the sssurprising sssocial lives of ssseveral ssserpent ssspecies
Reposted by Asher Elbein
I wrote a number of short paleontology pieces for the @nytimes.com this year. But I probably had the most fun writing about the (scientific) resurrection of Nanotyrannus, a piece that began with me laughing with incredulous delight in a coffeeshop and then came together with lightning speed
The Case of the Tiny Tyrannosaurus Might Have Been Cracked
www.nytimes.com
November 21, 2025 at 1:02 PM
I wrote a number of short paleontology pieces for the @nytimes.com this year. But I probably had the most fun writing about the (scientific) resurrection of Nanotyrannus, a piece that began with me laughing with incredulous delight in a coffeeshop and then came together with lightning speed
Reposted by Asher Elbein
This year I also went to France for my first overseas reporting trip and made the cover (!) of Scientific American! It's a story about a long-rolling argument over a set of 2.1 billion-year-old African specimens, and the vexing question of when and how complex life arose at all.
These Enigmatic ‘Fossils’ Could Rewrite the History of Life on Earth
Controversial evidence hints that complex life might have emerged hundreds of millions of years earlier than previously thought—and possibly more than once
www.scientificamerican.com
November 21, 2025 at 12:59 PM
This year I also went to France for my first overseas reporting trip and made the cover (!) of Scientific American! It's a story about a long-rolling argument over a set of 2.1 billion-year-old African specimens, and the vexing question of when and how complex life arose at all.
Reposted by Asher Elbein
I was thrilled to come back to @defector.com to write about "Alligator Alcatraz," the vicious folklore of "gator bait," and the long history of white supremacists trying to recruit alligators as enforcers of racial terror
Why Do Fascists Dream Of Alligators? | Defector
In June, Florida’s attorney general James Uthmeier extolled the benefits of the concentration camp they were rushing to build in the wetlands of the Big Cypress Nature Reserve, west of Miami and just ...
defector.com
November 21, 2025 at 12:51 PM
I was thrilled to come back to @defector.com to write about "Alligator Alcatraz," the vicious folklore of "gator bait," and the long history of white supremacists trying to recruit alligators as enforcers of racial terror
Reposted by Asher Elbein
For @texasmonthly.bsky.social I detailed my deep love of (and futile quest for) Central Texas' most secretive lizard
The Two-Foot-Long Texas Lizard That’s Nearly Impossible to Find
After encountering the large but elusive reptile a few years ago, I was determined to find one again.
www.texasmonthly.com
November 21, 2025 at 12:49 PM
For @texasmonthly.bsky.social I detailed my deep love of (and futile quest for) Central Texas' most secretive lizard
Reposted by Asher Elbein
For @quantamagazine.bsky.social, I wrote about an incredible arctic expedition, the deep blackness under the polar ice, and the mind-bending limits of photosynthesis among the organisms that live there
How Does Life Happen When There’s Barely Any Light? | Quanta Magazine
Under the sea ice during the Arctic’s pitch-black polar night, cells power photosynthesis on the lowest light levels ever observed in nature.
www.quantamagazine.org
November 21, 2025 at 12:45 PM
For @quantamagazine.bsky.social, I wrote about an incredible arctic expedition, the deep blackness under the polar ice, and the mind-bending limits of photosynthesis among the organisms that live there
Reposted by Asher Elbein
Recently finished up my last freelance work of the year before moving on to a mad sprint of book writing, so —rather earlier than usual — it's time for my year in review! Here, in no particular order, are the features I'm proudest of.
November 21, 2025 at 12:45 PM
Recently finished up my last freelance work of the year before moving on to a mad sprint of book writing, so —rather earlier than usual — it's time for my year in review! Here, in no particular order, are the features I'm proudest of.
The funny thing about the Falklands is that they're the only time the British found an actual Terra Nullis to colonize, the only sapient natives of which were a particularly hardy kind of caracara
every time Argentineans post their little crybully rants about the Falklands it's a reminder of the mentality that resulted in their incompetent fascist junta getting hundreds of their own conscript soldiers killed in an unprovoked invasion.
December 2, 2025 at 1:52 AM
The funny thing about the Falklands is that they're the only time the British found an actual Terra Nullis to colonize, the only sapient natives of which were a particularly hardy kind of caracara
Reposted by Asher Elbein
Think there's an article to be written on the fact that "Everyone is valid" has ended up reifying a lot of straightforwardly conservative positions about queerness under the guise of open-mindedness. A lot of the political solidarity de-emphasized for a very individualist view
December 2, 2025 at 1:24 AM
Think there's an article to be written on the fact that "Everyone is valid" has ended up reifying a lot of straightforwardly conservative positions about queerness under the guise of open-mindedness. A lot of the political solidarity de-emphasized for a very individualist view
Reposted by Asher Elbein
I only ever watched the first season of STRANGER THINGS and didn't care for it, but whenever I see stuff from it now I'm like "They're STILL doing The Upside-Down? They have no other stories?" X-FILES coulda knocked that whole series out in a two-parter sold on VHS at Suncoast in the mall for $29.99
December 2, 2025 at 1:15 AM
I only ever watched the first season of STRANGER THINGS and didn't care for it, but whenever I see stuff from it now I'm like "They're STILL doing The Upside-Down? They have no other stories?" X-FILES coulda knocked that whole series out in a two-parter sold on VHS at Suncoast in the mall for $29.99
Reposted by Asher Elbein
Reposted by Asher Elbein
Passed a roadside vintage vehicle place in Central Texas today that, for the last several years, has had an old Cesna painted TRUMP in the front. It has now been joined by a reader board saying "IDOLIZING A POLITICIAN IS LIKE FALLING IN LOVE WITH A STRIPPER"
So somebody's in their feelings
So somebody's in their feelings
December 1, 2025 at 11:37 PM
Passed a roadside vintage vehicle place in Central Texas today that, for the last several years, has had an old Cesna painted TRUMP in the front. It has now been joined by a reader board saying "IDOLIZING A POLITICIAN IS LIKE FALLING IN LOVE WITH A STRIPPER"
So somebody's in their feelings
So somebody's in their feelings
Lovely, eerie cover of the classic coal-gothic song "The Ballad of Springhill." Anyone know other songs about coal mining that fit this mold? (16 Tons is the obvious one.)
The Ballad of Springhill
YouTube video by Screaming Orphans - Topic
www.youtube.com
December 2, 2025 at 12:34 AM
Lovely, eerie cover of the classic coal-gothic song "The Ballad of Springhill." Anyone know other songs about coal mining that fit this mold? (16 Tons is the obvious one.)
Reposted by Asher Elbein
Hey, so, I've been fired. Now that I'm unemployed like the other half of Bluesky, if anyone knows of work for a writer, reporter, or nonprofit grants manager, I'd be much obliged. You all know where to find me.
December 1, 2025 at 10:50 PM
Hey, so, I've been fired. Now that I'm unemployed like the other half of Bluesky, if anyone knows of work for a writer, reporter, or nonprofit grants manager, I'd be much obliged. You all know where to find me.
Passed a roadside vintage vehicle place in Central Texas today that, for the last several years, has had an old Cesna painted TRUMP in the front. It has now been joined by a reader board saying "IDOLIZING A POLITICIAN IS LIKE FALLING IN LOVE WITH A STRIPPER"
So somebody's in their feelings
So somebody's in their feelings
December 1, 2025 at 11:37 PM
Passed a roadside vintage vehicle place in Central Texas today that, for the last several years, has had an old Cesna painted TRUMP in the front. It has now been joined by a reader board saying "IDOLIZING A POLITICIAN IS LIKE FALLING IN LOVE WITH A STRIPPER"
So somebody's in their feelings
So somebody's in their feelings
Reposted by Asher Elbein
18 books left! They're going fast. 👀
My book GHOST DAYS is a lushly illustrated love letter to Appalachian folklore, witchcraft, and pulpy paranormal adventure. It's got incredible @tiffanyturrill.bsky.social art, and a wandering witch I *love* writing.
On sale now for over 50% off! There's only 35 books left...
On sale now for over 50% off! There's only 35 books left...
Ghost Days — ASHER ELBEIN
Southern Appalachia, 1900. Cast out by tragedy and strange magic, Anna O’Brien wanders the countryside on her wooden leg: living by her wits, settling spirits for her work, and never, ever looking ba...
www.asherelbein.com
November 30, 2025 at 11:46 AM
18 books left! They're going fast. 👀
Reposted by Asher Elbein
a surprisingly cogent case that the trump administration is significantly tied to the sinaloa cartel and especially their cryptocurrency fueled money laundering operation
I got to thinking: "What if it's not about the contradiction between the Hernandez pardon and the air strikes, but about the consistency between them?"
As President of Honduras, he used the power of the government to go after certain cartels—primarily the rivals of the Sinaloa Cartel, with whom he
As President of Honduras, he used the power of the government to go after certain cartels—primarily the rivals of the Sinaloa Cartel, with whom he
November 30, 2025 at 11:38 PM
a surprisingly cogent case that the trump administration is significantly tied to the sinaloa cartel and especially their cryptocurrency fueled money laundering operation
Reposted by Asher Elbein
fuck it, for the people in the back:
the jeff bezos owned washington post is the outlet responsible for making sure the primary complaint about AI was water. this may have been in part because jeff knew it was bullshit, so when amzn gets blowback they can easily prove their water footprint is small
the jeff bezos owned washington post is the outlet responsible for making sure the primary complaint about AI was water. this may have been in part because jeff knew it was bullshit, so when amzn gets blowback they can easily prove their water footprint is small
not to be conspiratorial but the outlet that successfully pushed this line and made it the primary complaint was wapo
December 1, 2025 at 1:44 AM
fuck it, for the people in the back:
the jeff bezos owned washington post is the outlet responsible for making sure the primary complaint about AI was water. this may have been in part because jeff knew it was bullshit, so when amzn gets blowback they can easily prove their water footprint is small
the jeff bezos owned washington post is the outlet responsible for making sure the primary complaint about AI was water. this may have been in part because jeff knew it was bullshit, so when amzn gets blowback they can easily prove their water footprint is small
Reposted by Asher Elbein
presented without comment
December 1, 2025 at 2:28 AM
presented without comment
Reposted by Asher Elbein
(Don't want a hardcover? PDFs of GHOST DAYS and IN THE SNOW, THE JUNGLE are also on sale for just 3$, which means you can grab this fully illustrated short story collection AND its followup novella for just $6. It's a steal.)
www.asherelbein.com/store
www.asherelbein.com/store
November 28, 2025 at 3:40 PM
(Don't want a hardcover? PDFs of GHOST DAYS and IN THE SNOW, THE JUNGLE are also on sale for just 3$, which means you can grab this fully illustrated short story collection AND its followup novella for just $6. It's a steal.)
www.asherelbein.com/store
www.asherelbein.com/store
Reposted by Asher Elbein
Who is GHOST DAYS for? Folks who like clever, steadfast witches; folk tales; spooky stories with a historical flavor; and adventures edged with melancholy. It's a bit Hellboy, a bit The Witcher, and still very much its own thing.
I'm really proud of it.
www.asherelbein.com/store/ghost-...
I'm really proud of it.
www.asherelbein.com/store/ghost-...
November 28, 2025 at 2:21 PM
Who is GHOST DAYS for? Folks who like clever, steadfast witches; folk tales; spooky stories with a historical flavor; and adventures edged with melancholy. It's a bit Hellboy, a bit The Witcher, and still very much its own thing.
I'm really proud of it.
www.asherelbein.com/store/ghost-...
I'm really proud of it.
www.asherelbein.com/store/ghost-...
Reposted by Asher Elbein
can we recognize how the TA handled the entire incident thoughtfully and flawlessly, not that they should have to. but the contrast between their behavior and the student’s is night and day
November 30, 2025 at 11:39 PM
can we recognize how the TA handled the entire incident thoughtfully and flawlessly, not that they should have to. but the contrast between their behavior and the student’s is night and day