Melissa Burkart
@mwithpen.bsky.social
1.5K followers 570 following 1.2K posts
Possible sea witch living by the Maine coast. Spec fic/fantasy writer of flash fiction, novels, and everything in between. Perpetually Exhausted Parent™. Forever a theater kid. Bi/demi she/her. melissaburkart.com
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mwithpen.bsky.social
THE WILD GARDEN

When Q leaves her (murder) garden to help a heist, everything she thought she knew about herself begins to unravel. She must choose between the lie of peace and the lure of human connection

#SFF #A #LGBT #Q #QuestPit
A worn wooden door in an age-stained wooden wall, overgrown with ivy and other plants. Photo by Viktor Mogilat
mwithpen.bsky.social
I am so sad they’re closing permanently in December 😭😭😭
Reposted by Melissa Burkart
bookshop.org
Can’t decide what to buy on Prime Day?

Try: absolutely nothing, and then go support indie bookstores instead 📚
mwithpen.bsky.social
They are not allowed to cancel your flight. I forbid it!
Reposted by Melissa Burkart
jensmind.bsky.social
Happy Sunday. Replace your outrage with good works. That is all.
mwithpen.bsky.social
I’m away with my now-8-y/o for a birthday weekend trip and I get a photo of the 4 y/o on his balance bike. Wearing his sister’s unicorn helmet (“Mommy lets me wear it!” No, kid. No, I do not. But at least he’s wearing one?). And platypus socks. And ducky Crocs

This child is a whole vibe 🤣
mwithpen.bsky.social
…I’m not sure I’d do that for my kids…
mwithpen.bsky.social
Telling my husband about a conversation with our almost-8-y/o about glaciers and no, she’s never seen one before

Me: Yeah, Maine doesn’t have those anymore
Him: No, we have their poop-stones

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
mwithpen.bsky.social
Your books give me so much joy! And something to binge while powering through my mile long to do list so we can leave on time 😂 I am so grateful for the audiobooks!
mwithpen.bsky.social
Taking my older kid to Boston soon for a birthday weekend getaway, which is probably as much for me as her

Impatience has me rereading @sheenajolie.bsky.social‘s Beacon Hill Sorcerer books and I’d forgotten how very Boston it is 💜
Reposted by Melissa Burkart
kiricallaghan.com
I need your help. One of my events is at the most adorable freaking bookshop in Sierra Madre, and I need my east-side LA cozy murder mystery / fantasy lovers to know about it.

We're gonna have a night of witchy talk and book reading for my launch too!

fablesandfanciesbooks.com/events/33993...
Reposted by Melissa Burkart
emgiosia.bsky.social
Just a few more days to get this bundle, or an individual game! 💕
emgiosia.bsky.social
Happy Solo September, TTRPG nerds!

You can get every single one of my paid games for 75% off, OR $10 for the entire bundle: itch.io/s/160050/sol...
Solo September Sale by emgiosia
A bundle by emgiosia, $10.00 for 12 games
itch.io
Reposted by Melissa Burkart
kiricallaghan.com
In regards to sales, lists and acknowledgement would be cool but more than anything I’d love for The Hearth Witch’s Guide to Magic & Murder to reach enough people that my publisher says, “ah heck yeah, give us two more.”

(Book 2 is already slotted for 2026)
Reposted by Melissa Burkart
jessiegender.bsky.social
Ok, we “saved” Jimmy Kimmel. Now can we bring that same energy to migrants, trans people, BIPOC and women? Or are we just reserving that for rich white guys?
mwithpen.bsky.social
It’s as ready as I can make it! I’ll have that in your inbox ASAP—thank you!
Reposted by Melissa Burkart
franwilde.bsky.social
In less than a week — six days! — the Canarviers will arrive to steal your hearts!

Make sure you catch your thieves! RSVP to an event near you (it MATTERS!) Preorder, do those magical library holds. The thieves are counting on you!

www.penguinrandomhou...
1/2
Just one week until A Philosophy of Thieves!
Make sure you catch them!
mwithpen.bsky.social
Not me jumping at “shorter writes counts” 😂 but what’s the opinion on novellas?
mwithpen.bsky.social
This #PSA brought to you by the massive anxiety spike when, 2 days after closing a really freaking awesome show, I get a text about reprising it
mwithpen.bsky.social
Dear #TheatreSky

Budget for an intimacy director as default/priority, whether community or professional

-moments of intimacy are more truthful bc they’re created in a space of safety
-BOUNDARIES keep actors safe & avoid stages/life confusion
-can provide a clear avenue to address possible issues
Reposted by Melissa Burkart
trollbreath.com
If you want to see a really great use of repetition of word/phrase, you should check out this story.

@maressakate.bsky.social nails a vibe and voice, and her theme is on point for the world we are being reluctantly driven towards by our tech lords.
trollbreathmag.bsky.social
Free Fiction Friday is here! Here's an apt tale for humanities poor life choices: magazine.trollbreath.com/the-machines...

@maressakate.bsky.social
A robot-like humanoid drawing against an antique wall background.  
The Machines are Hungry by Maressa Voss   
Trollbreath Magazine
Reposted by Melissa Burkart
kiricallaghan.com
Pssst.

I’m a queer author about to debut in traditional publishing with a modern-day sapphic Sherlock Holmes hommage with fey and magic.

You can order signed copies through here: www.therippedbodice.com/book/9781464...
www.therippedbodice.com
mwithpen.bsky.social
Schools might be desperate for subs, but just jumping through the hoops to schedule the fingerprinting seems like it would winnow out applicants

In a good way! At the very least it proves reading comprehension and patience
Reposted by Melissa Burkart
silverhawthorne.bsky.social
Best social media team in politics.
zohrankmamdani.bsky.social
"How Are the Very Rich Feeling About New York’s Next Mayor?"

A Dramatic Reading of The Recent New York Times Dispatch from the Hamptons.

Presented by The Gilded Age's Morgan Spector.