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derlakernlins.bsky.social
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@derlakernlins.bsky.social
360 followers 360 following 920 posts
- editing an urban fantasy book about slutty dragons
- GM for @livefromtheapocalypse
- random fiber arts
- two children and a house wolf
- permacultist
- i block for AI
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derlakernlins.bsky.social
<incoherent screeching> @derlakernlins.bsky.social · 24d
Parenting.txt: "come on, not so loud, lets do the type of screaming we do in libraries."
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Niamh and Sebastian are city mice, but they like a bit of nature on vacation.

People are often surprised by Penny's outdoors skills, she grew up rural poor and experienced a lot of unfriendly nature.

Thomas could walk off into the woods and become a PCT cryptid quite happily

#AwesomeCharacters
charliedeltawrites.bsky.social Charlie Delta 🦊🐐 @charliedeltawrites.bsky.social · 5h
Tell me more about your #AwesomeCharacters

How does your character feel about nature?

Do they like the outdoors? Have good survival skills?

Or do they prefer the comforts and amenities of a city?

Some combination of both?

#WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts
November 26, 2025 at 2:44 AM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Still hating Dr Chase, always hating Dr Chase.

#WIPSnips #urbanfantasy #writingcommunity #writesky #booksky #amwriting #writingprompts
“Void existed before your work, of course,” Zhu said. “Long before.” Penny was almost too amazed at the concept to be irritated at the of course. But she was certainly not too amazed to realize that this was almost certainly the final nail on the coffin of Chase’s hatred of her. He’d fought to have his name removed from that project because he’d thought it wasn’t worth his time. “I’m very glad my work has been helpful at all. Thank you for bringing me here.” She eyed the molecule again. “You mentioned it uses whole blood product.” “It’s materially expensive to produce,” Graham acknowledged. “But not terribly complicated.” Alborez frowned at her. “Dr. Chase should have–” “Dr. Chase saved research and development documents in his downloads folder,” Penny said. Zhu snorted. “I’m afraid I’ve had to waste a good deal of time doing systems archaeology and unable to read up on this project.” Brooks silenced whatever Alborez was about to say with a raised hand. “Of course. Dr. Chase was a–” Penny would never know what Dr. Chase was beyond a sexist piece of shit with bad file management practices, because the light from the glass wall suddenly switched from dim and gray to a dull, sullen red. All heads turned toward it.
November 25, 2025 at 3:53 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Losing at chess but winning at dinner so I guess that's all right
Spaghetti with venison bolognese, a sprinkling of parmesan cheese, and a slice of homemade garlic bread
November 25, 2025 at 2:36 AM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
The debut of Penny's Arcane Crusader

...this snip is too long but that's ritual magic nerds for you.

#WIPSnips #urbanfantasy #writingcommunity #writesky #booksky #amwriting #writingprompts
Something moved behind her. The ground shook slightly under its great footfalls. Penny turned around and looked up into her own, carved visage. A colorless valkyrie, Penny’s twin in every detail, from the tiny acne scar that never faded from her forehead to the way her hair draped to her shoulders, stared back at her. Its eyes flashed amber, then red, then blue, then the brilliant, sheening white of the diamonds in Penny’s watch. “This, Vigil, is your Crusader,” Graham said. “Our first and finest weapon against our reincarnating enemy. Wounds given by our Arcane Crusaders will reappear across lifetimes, preventing dragons from attaining their full strength for generations. Here in the Pit they collect and store thaumic energy, allowing those Vigils who do not possess vast reserves of magical strength to cast spells like those of the greatest mages of all time. Through their eyes, we can detect the minutest disruptions and most occult origins of magic. And, due to the intricate and potent work of our own Judge Yanis Brooks, they can be veiled from the sight of most of Concord’s populace.” The Arcane Crusader knelt before Penny, a movement which took the top of its head just about level with Penny’s own, and held up its sword to her. Its eyes did not leave hers. Behind her, Graham said, “Vigil, accept your Crusader’s service and ascend to your place among the protectors of humanity.”
November 24, 2025 at 9:31 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Penny is as all or nothing about her long pin-straight blonde hair as she is about everything: it's either an extremely fancy up-do or its had a brush run through it twice and thrown in a ponytail. Its a war between her vanity and her impatience every morning.

#AwesomeCharacters

1/
charliedeltawrites.bsky.social Charlie Delta 🦊🐐 @charliedeltawrites.bsky.social · 2d
Tell me more about your #AwesomeCharacters

Here's an appearance one that I don't think we've talked about yet: What does your character's hair look like?

Do they have hair? Long or short? What color? How do they usually wear it? Is it important to them?

#WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts
November 24, 2025 at 1:53 AM
Reposted by <incoherent screeching>
scarlettohairdye.bsky.social
I have two things I would really like people to internalize about the fashion industry/garment manufacturing, and they are:

1. Mass manufactured clothes are only ever intended to fit "good enough," and;

2. Everything you wear was made by actual human people.
November 23, 2025 at 9:42 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Multinational instead of global.

Also, Riley is secretly my favorite Owens.

#WIPSnips #urbanfantasy #writingcommunity #writesky #booksky #amwriting #writingprompts
Riley followed Thomas to the car park, clearly wanting to continue their conversation. “So what’s the plan for TPI?” Thomas gave his brother a gimlet stare. “The fuck do you mean, what’s the plan for TPI?” “I know you have one. A whole corporation of mages! Dad’s gonna flip!” “Dude,” Thomas was briefly at a loss for words. “Dude. TPI is a multinational. They got crazy resources. Us? On a good day we’re forty guys and a Tacoma with a 50 cal mounted to the back of it.” Riley scowled. “It’s an F-250,” he muttered, crossing his arms sullenly and leaning against his car. “Not a Tacoma. I buy American.”
November 23, 2025 at 7:49 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
In case you were wondering how much of a cartoon character of myself I've become, I spent most of this train ride to philly winding a ball of yarn.

Shockingly no one has elected to sit next to me.
November 22, 2025 at 11:04 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Hey! Do you wanna run a game with us for charity? Its fun and cool to do! This is the only time of year we do open casting/gm calls, so if you've been interested in working with us, nows the time!
livefromtheapocalypse.com 🌆Live From The Apocalypse🌆 | TTRPGs For Charity @livefromtheapocalypse.com · 5d
Iiiit's that time again! From 12/12 to 12/23 we'll be streaming one game a night to raise money for @medicalaidpal.bsky.social, and to do that we're looking for guest storytellers! Please fill out this form if you're interested, priority given to marginalized storytellers! forms.gle/YmPx327vBKJn...
12 Games of Haz-mas GM Sign-Ups!
Hello friends! A few years ago now, we had a silly little idea to do a big fundraising push during the holidays. The goal is to stream one game a night on the channel for twelve days and obviously tha...
forms.gle
November 22, 2025 at 2:55 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Who just breaks into an antique shop in the middle of the day? Hooligans and rowdies!

#WIPSNIPS #urbanfantasy #writingcommunity #writesky #booksky #amwriting #writingprompts
“You don’t have real wards?” Harker asked as they drove. He was so proud of this little car, Niamh usually made sure to compliment it, but she wasn’t able to focus right now and frankly the question pissed her off. “It’s a shop,” Niamh said. “I can’t be melting customer’s faces if I forget to turn them off in the morning. And it hadn’t ever been necessary.” The police were already there when they pulled up. A neighbor had seen it happen and was trying to give details to the cops. Niamh went up and identified herself as the shop owner. “They must have been waiting for you to leave,” the officer said. “Did you notice anything out of the ordinary when you left? Any cars out of place?” “No.” Niamh looked at the scattering of glass. The brick hadn’t just shattered the window but destroyed the display of cut crystal goblets and fine china. It had taken Kimmy hours of work to get it looking that nice. And now it was rubble. There were boot prints in the porcelain-dust, but in the era of mass-manufacture, Niamh knew better than to think this gave them an edge.
November 22, 2025 at 1:24 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Niamh is touch starved and feels awkward about it

Sebastian is aloof except with Ellis

Thomas is very comfortable with touch, he'll put his arm around a buddy's shoulders without thinking about it

Penny uses violent touch to sublimate and ignore her need for gentle or affectionate touch
charliedeltawrites.bsky.social Charlie Delta 🦊🐐 @charliedeltawrites.bsky.social · 4d
Tell me more about your #AwesomeCharacters

How does your character feel about physical touch?

Are they fans of a handshake, hug, pat on the back, etc?

Do they prefer to keep their distance?

Does it matter how close they are to the other person?

#WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts
November 22, 2025 at 12:28 AM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
"Hey what'd you get up to over the weekend, Penny?"

"Oh. You know. Normal stuff."

#WIPSnips #urbanfantasy #writingcommunity #writesky #booksky #amwriting #writingprompts
The warehouse smelled like a butcher’s shop as Penny set up her summoning circle. Lamb bones and viscera, piled in heaps in the cardinal directions, steamed slightly in the cool, autumn air, as did the bucket of blood with which she painted arcane symbols on the walls and floor. She blended suet and blood together in a small mortar and painted lines of thick, sticky fat across her cheeks, her forehead, and her arms. She snapped open an Elizabeth Arden compact mirror to look over her work and nodded, satisfied. She looked like a freak. She looked like herself.
November 21, 2025 at 2:02 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Reskeet with a time you looked cool

(Jackson, Wy rocks)
White girl in Orioles pride hat and plaid overshirt holding a cup of coffee atop Grand Teton
November 21, 2025 at 12:34 AM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Sandy explains the plan to her uncle Thomas, who is not a complicated man/dragon/ness.

#WIPSNIPS #urbanfantasy #writingcommunity #writesky #booksky #amwriting
“You all are gonna use the meeting as an opportunity to jump the wolves and steal their whole shipment of Brimstone, which is some kinda fucked up magic drug making the rounds. Either we destroy the shipment entirely or we do the drugs ourselves and become super-powerful psychonaut warriors and rip apart the enemy with our bare hands.” Thomas grinned. “See? You get me.” “It’s not exactly complicated,” Sandy said. Thomas sighed. He stood up and looked around for a rag to clean off his hands so he could get to work on the technical’s gun. “I think that’s part of the problem. It’s too simple. They want it to be some big complicated comeback and it’s not. I think some of ‘em are afraid I’m gonna force drugs down their throats like a villain in an after school special.”
November 20, 2025 at 12:57 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Everybody mostly looks human, but Niamh and Thomas are dragons and Sebastian is a psychic vampire. And then there's Penny. She's just vibing and trying not to get eaten.

#urbanfantasy #awesomecharacters
charliedeltawrites.bsky.social Charlie Delta 🦊🐐 @charliedeltawrites.bsky.social · 6d
Tell me more about your #AwesomeCharacters

Are your characters human?

If not, tell me a little about what they are!

If so, are there any non-human species they interact with regularly? Tell me a bit about them and the type of relationship they have!

#WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts
November 20, 2025 at 2:27 AM
Reposted by <incoherent screeching>
charliedeltawrites.bsky.social
Tell me more about your #AwesomeCharacters

Are your characters human?

If not, tell me a little about what they are!

If so, are there any non-human species they interact with regularly? Tell me a bit about them and the type of relationship they have!

#WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts
November 19, 2025 at 10:46 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Three is the magic number of dragons that balance the scales against the collected might of the Vigiles Draconi

#WIPSnips #urbanfantasy #writingcommunity #writesky #booksky #amwriting #writingprompts
How the fuck did she handle shit like this before the NDA’s emotional smoothing effect? It wasn’t like her life hadn’t been stressful before. She took a deep breath and tried to tune back in, right as Clarence Denver from the Archives spoke up. “The Augur and the Weaponsmith are considered a stable pairing,” he said. He was a dark skinned man with short, white hair and a hairline that had long ago receded. Penny was pretty sure he’d look twenty years younger if he’d just shave his head, but men could be so weird about that. Focus, Merritt. “I disagree,” Duetero said. “They are indicated in a great number of significant events.” Denver gave her a slow, respectful nod. “They’re almost always significantly older than most dragons are before those events occur, and they don’t lash out until they are destabilized, either by Vigiles Draconi action or by the presence of a third dragon.”
November 19, 2025 at 12:20 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
"Opposite" instead of "retrograde."

In which Thomas discovers he's switchier than he'd thought.

#WIPSnips #urbanfantasy #writingcommunity #writesky #booksky #amwriting #writingprompts
Thomas narrowed his eyes. She looked back at him, all guileless and perky and tits. Man, was he ever noticing the tits. “What happened to ‘mutual submission?’” Kimmy laughed and admitted, “A lot of things get a lot easier if you just bend over for me, dragon,” That was so opposite to how he usually did things that it was honestly a little intriguing.
November 18, 2025 at 12:05 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Aaahahahahahaaaa I get to run a #D&D game at MAGFest this year I'm going to do some deeply stupid shit and its gonna rock
November 18, 2025 at 3:03 AM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
I wouldn't think you'd need to do much to discourage hanging out in a magic prison, dude, but you've got some weird folks in that organization.

#WIPSnips #writingcommunity #urbanfantasy #amwriting #writingprompts
Dr. Graham stopped at the executive elevator. A key-pad beeped tinnily when he presented his badge, and then again, more musically, when he presented his watch. “We’ll need to get you a badge for this,” Graham said, gesturing for her to also press her watch against the keypad. “But I took care of your watch update earlier. If you’re taking over Goldbrick you’ll need it. But let me actively discourage you from spending time in the Pit: we don’t encourage casual visits for a reason. Many of the inmates are highly dangerous, we need to limit their interactions with outside consciousnesses. And that was before Julian’s mistake.”
November 17, 2025 at 3:03 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
WHAT A TWIST OCCURS
oleandercraw.bsky.social Oleander Craw @oleandercraw.bsky.social · 8d
Chapter 4 of THE WARDS WILL FALL is live!

Maxwell gets a look at the RITD's secret project that Ivan has been working on and the enormity of the responsibility he's been tasked with.

Read (or listen) for free. New chapters release every Monday.

www.oleandercraw.com/chapter-list/
The elevator came to a shuddering halt. Ivan rattled the elevator door open. The workshop was a large circular room, ringed with arching doorways that led out to a circular balcony on all sides like a lighthouse. Tall workbenches slabbed with soapstone were reminiscent of the school chemistry labs from Maxwell’s childhood. But in the middle of the room, space had been cleared for an enormous device constructed of concentric circles of laminated paper and an inner spindle of brass. “This the RITD project?” Maxwell asked. Ivan nodded. He took a seat at one of the lab stools. “It’s a field generator. In theory it should produce a warding field that hyssil can’t enter. We haven’t tried using it yet though—it’s only a prototype. And it requires a seer to operate it.” “A seer can’t use theurgy though,” Maxwell said. “What would you need me for?”
November 17, 2025 at 12:38 PM
Reposted by <incoherent screeching>
unfortunatalie.bsky.social
trying to switch off the AI bloatware that has been pinned to the top of every single menu in every single app
A business woman in a grey skirt suit, pointing a rifle at a boxy 90s PC
April 26, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Reposted by <incoherent screeching>
julietemckenna.bsky.social
Do read this. NB Current anti-trans rhetoric is absolutely recycled 80s anti-gay venom. I remember it clearly. Now, as a cis het parent, 40 years monogamous, extending rights and respect to people who aren't like me, has had zero impact on my rights. Seeing my LGBTQ+ friends happy has been great.
November 14, 2025 at 8:48 AM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Really good CEU on financial social work in vulnerable communities spoiled by instructors cheerful use of chatgpt and generative ai for supplemental materials.
November 14, 2025 at 9:20 PM
derlakernlins.bsky.social
Surprise 4 day weekend due to last minute childcare cancelations threw off all of my routines for the week. It's Thursday? Already? How??
November 13, 2025 at 7:44 PM