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Angela Boord

@angelaboord.bsky.social

2.3K followers 970 following 1.1K posts

Nerdy introvert. Hopeless romantic. Character-driven epic fantasy about chasing hope in the darkness. 🦾❤️‍🩹 #SPFBO Finalist FORTUNE'S FOOL #SFINCS Finalist #BBNYA Semifinalist https://linktr.ee/angelaboord

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Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · Oct 24

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If you like your epic fantasy with deeply personal stakes...
If you need to read about the private lives of mercenaries...
If you like your worlds intricate and dark...

Check out my Eterean Empire series! 🦾

books2read.com/fortunesfool
books2read.com/foolspromise

#BookSky #booksky💙📚

On an epic fantasy book cover, a woman holds a sword in her metal hand and throws a deck of cards onto a table with a Renaissance still life of wine and fruit

An epic fantasy book cover featuring a man, sitting beside a sleeping woman, who holds a dagger in one hand and clenches his other in a fist.

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Reposted by Angela Boord

Kira of the Wind (Erika McCorkle) @kiraofthewind.com · 1d

Request for writers who consider me a friend, especially those of you who do WIPSnips or other engagement posts talking about your wip:

If you have the time and energy, post here about your wip. Give me CONTEXT. Tell me who your characters are and their relationships. Tell me about your setting.

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Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · 8h

things are a little tense. Then there's Maddie, Cam's sister, who dreams alternate futures. There's a bit of a romance here with Sergei, but it's a subplot, this isn't romantasy.

Sergei's sister Anya and brother Kolya also show up, not as POVs, though.

Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · 8h

Cam has his own weird "abilities", premonitions which manifest as extreme anxiety. And he's really good at swordwork, but of course that's just a sport in Illinois in 1988, right? (nervous laughter)

Sergei and Cam are pretty much like brothers, but they have had a recent split and...

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Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · 8h

...is also trying to find her by digging through his nightmares (of which, he has many). Sergei sees things other people don't, like not-rats and actual , alive bugs which he thinks are listening in on him. As the book opens, he's using his best friend Cam as cover at a party...

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Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · 8h

I'm revising my giant Cold War portal/epic fantasy Through Dreams So Dark into 2 books, so right now I'm working on the first part. Sergei's mother was supposedly killed while escaping the USSR with her family, but Sergei has been told that she might not be dead. A creepy government organization...

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Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · 9h

Hope y'all are ok and out of the hospital soon!!

Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · 9h

It's also a convenient date to add up the cumulative copies and see how much it's sold in its lifetime.

Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · 9h

I do, probably because it took so long to get it finished and published! Just getting it out into the world felt like a victory I wanted to remember. I've marked its anniversary with a sale at least once, but usually I just think, "hey, it's been x years now!"

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James Lloyd Dulin @jamesldulin.bsky.social · 1d

The time has come...

Introducing Ethos by The Arcanist Guild, @benjaminaeveryn.bsky.social, E.J. Doble, @bshgarcia.bsky.social, Jonathan Neves Mayers, Morgan Shank.

A Dark Fantasy Anthology with six novelettes and beautiful artwork.

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Reposted by Angela Boord

Paul G. Zareith @paulgzareith.ink · 10d

Quite a beautiful review of my little novella, The Moribund Monarch's Masterpiece, by Vivian Cicero from Grimoire Ink.

It's always delightful to know that something I wrote evokes such strong emotions in a reader & that alone makes participating in #SFINCS worth it for me.

#BookSky #DarkFantasy

Grimoire Ink Reviews @grimoireinkreviews.bsky.social · 10d

#3 for #SFINC3 is The Moribund Monarch’s Masterpiece By @paulgzareith.ink, reviewed by Vivian!

grimoireinkreviews.wordpress.com/2025/09/28/t...

The Moribund Monarch’s Masterpiece By Paul G. Zareith

Reviewed by Vivian Cicero We enter the story in the hold of a merchant vessel, in which an imperial inspector has chosen to impose his will, rather than simply signing off on the manifest. He has g…

grimoireinkreviews.wordpress.com

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Reposted by Angela Boord

Lilly Lockwood 🔥Pre-Order Broken Bells!🔔 @voicesofvalhoon.bsky.social · 10d

My first two reviews for #SFINCS are up!

Full reviews on my blog⬇️
It's You, Isn't It? weirdereviews.blogspot.com/2025/09/its-...
The Drowned Heir
weirdereviews.blogspot.com/2025/09/the-...

Short review for It's You, Isn't It? by Antony Paschos
Genre: SciFi
I was really intrigued by the premise of this book, and I do still think it’s a unique spin on the space colonialism trope, but the prose made it quite difficult to read at some points. I often got lost in the prose, it was rather repetitive, the dialogue was stilted, and I found myself having a hard time caring about the characters. Twice when we were about to get some very interesting worldbuilding about the Platani and the Gardeners it was glossed over or completely shut down because Avra (the MC) was ‘bored’. But that kind of lore is exactly what I want in a book like this! That being said, I did enjoy the ending, the worldbuilding was interesting, and the back and forth of telling the story pre-revolt and during was an interesting framing device that worked well for this story.

Short review for The Drowned Heir by Jennifer R. Donohue
Genre: Fantasy
I was drawn in by the blurb and then even further drawn in by the first chapter. Donohue weaves together a unique story filled with worldbuilding that draws from folklore, rich descriptions, and a plot that pulls you along to the very end. I particularly loved the worldbuilding in this one. The nature of the charms, tattoos, and rituals of the world felt very in line with the lifestyle of the characters in the coastal village. The main character’s constant struggle with accepting her new responsibility as her uncle’s heir all while housing his restless spirit was such an interesting dynamic to watch unfurl. I’d recommend The Drowned Heir to anyone that loves low magic fantasies with a nautical feel and complicated family dynamics.

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Reposted by Angela Boord

L.L. Stephens @triempery.bsky.social · 2d

#WIPSnips The word for October 6 is MISS

Dorilian misses a lot of things as his life changes... and changes again. In this snip from THE RILL LORD he meets up with the Khelds again after a long absence and realizes another change about to happen. #WritingCommunity #WriteSky

Screenshot of a text excerpt from THE RILL LORD, sixth and final (April 2026) book of the Triempery Revelations series by L.L. Stephens. Snip is a portion of a scene in which Dorilian rejoins Hans and the Khelds. Here he accepts a breakfast while they still don't know who he is.

Nalf guffawed. “Sit down, damn you.” He kicked out the next bench. As he did so, he eyed Dorilian up and down. “You’re dressed like a gods-bedecked Staubaun this time out. Almost manage to look like one too with that big ring and so much gold on your buttons. Gerd! How can two civilized men expect to talk over empty plates? Get the man a porridge or something.”
Dorilian took the offered seat, knowing he might never again get to savor such Kheldish bluntness with impunity. He only now realized he had missed it, this earthy honesty of feeling. He would miss it even more when they learned to know him on sight. Gerd set a bowl of porridge in front of the Thegnard, then moved around the table to take a seat himself.

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Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · 2d

I think I like him, though 😅

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Reposted by Angela Boord

C M Debell @cmdebell.bsky.social · 2d

#WIPSnips 6 October 'miss'

When your characters have enough problems without a crown prince who should know better popping in for a visit.

#writingcommunity #writesky #booksky #writingfantasy

Quote from Northern Steel for the prompt 'miss'

Very deliberately, she set the bottle on her desk. With some force.
Krado blinked at her in surprise, oblivious to the tension. “Really, Cat. I don’t see what the fuss is about. No one knows I’m here—”
“That’s the bloody problem! What do you think your guards will do once they realise you’re missing? Gods, they’ll tear this city apart.” And anyone who got in their way.
“But they don’t know,” he said patiently. “They think I’m in seclusion, contemplating the state of my soul or something. They won’t find out for, oh, hours.” An airy wave of his hand served to underline the vagueness of this estimate.
“They won’t find out at all,” she snapped, “because you’re going back. Osk—”
“No.” Krado leant back in the chair and crossed his legs at the ankles with a casual smile that nevertheless conveyed the immovable force of the imperial will. “Not until you tell me what’s going on.”

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C M Debell @cmdebell.bsky.social · 5d

The Stuff With Fantasy Free Fall event starts today! 200+ books are free until 5th October.

Check out the sale at stuffwithfantasy.com/event/68930d...

#freebooks #stuffwithfantasy #indiefantasy

Collage of front covers of fantasy books in the Stuff With Fantasy Free Fall book event from October 3-5th 2025
www.stuffwithfantasy.com

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Reposted by Angela Boord

Patrick Samphire but for Halloween 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 @patricksamphire.bsky.social · 3d

This is absolutely the notice I would put up if I were torturing someone.

Denice (Dee), the Red Witch @deetheredwitch.bsky.social · 3d

Good Morning, World.

Printed sign on a wooden door that says 'we are recording screams and torture noises today (10/4). Don't call the cops.'

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Reposted by Angela Boord

J.C. Snow @jcsnow.bsky.social · 3d

It would definitely make Monday morning better to wake up and see 100 people following my queer epic fantasy kickstarter 🥰 (if you are, you know, into sword lesbians and emotional trauma)

www.kickstarter.com/projects/jcs...

Kickstarter Banner for The Seaglass Blade: queer high fantasy exclusive hardcover, by JC Snow. Currently at 97 followers.

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Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · 3d

To Dream a Darker Realm takes place in 1988 when department stores displayed walls of TVs... do they still do that? Do department stores still exist? I haven't been to a mall in a loooong time 😂

Maddie's POV:

#WIPSnips #amwritingfantasy #writesky 💙🪐📚

Her dreams didn’t work exactly like a Magic 8-ball or a deck of Tarot cards. If they did, they’d be easier to explain away or ignore. She divided them into two categories. Category One, little-d-dreams, like sitting for an exam in a class you didn’t know you were taking or forgetting your pants. Category Two, capital D Dreams, the ones normal people didn’t have, where images flickered in her mind like TV screens in department stores, each showing a different moment of the same episode. In a day or a week or a year, something would happen, and she would have an unnerving memory of having dreamed it, turning it on or off like switching the channel.

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LUCY 🏳️‍⚧️💀👑 @regalbones.bsky.social · 4d

Lots of swords ⚔️

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Reposted by Angela Boord

Kat Kinney @katkinneywrites.bsky.social · 5d

Who's ready for the Stuff with Fantasy Free Fall event from October 3-5!?

📚 There are 200+ free ebooks at stuffwithfantasy.com, where you can filter by age category, trope, representation, and spice level to find the perfect fit for your reading mood!

#fantasy #booksky #yabooks

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Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · 4d

From To Dream A Darker Realm...

A flashback from Sergei in the interlude. (Dr. A is talking about the Cold War; this is set in 1988.)

#WIPSnips #amwritingfantasy #WriteSky

I stared at her. “Do you know how hard it is to make friends when you can’t say anything? I don’t mean surface friends—acquaintances—I mean real friends.”
I thought I had one real friend. Mary Bishop. But she wasn’t going to college; she was staying in Bent Creek. She didn’t like school, and she wanted to get on with her life.
Doctor A sighed. “I know this has all been harder on you than it should be. But you need to have these experiences, Seryozha. Maybe you can’t have them the way the majority of other young people do, but you can have them, within certain parameters. I know it might be impossible to understand, given how ordinary your day-to-day life seems, but there is always the threat of someone from your mother’s old division discovering you or even infiltrating our ranks. This is war, Sergei, even if it doesn’t look like it. The research your mother was involved in was very sensitive, and we have evidence that other people who tried to exit that program were hunted down and killed.”

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Reposted by Angela Boord

C M Debell @cmdebell.bsky.social · 4d

#WIPSnips October 4 - 'hunt'
I don't have 'hunt' in this WIP, but I do have 'follow' in this scene, and it has the right vibes.

#writingcommunity #writesky #booksky #writingfantasy

Grey Coat stuck with Tais as he left the temple square, and the familiar prickle settled between his shoulder blades. He wasn’t imagining it. The man was following him.
He assessed his options. He wasn’t far from the edge of the Silks. The sensible course would be to let the gate guards deal with his shadow. He had been intending to take the blades to Vir anyway, and he would have bet a month’s pay that it was only because of the Isyr that he had a shadow in the first place.
On the other hand, he was tired and fed up, and beating answers out of someone suited his mood far better than prudent retreat. So, he changed course and headed not to the Silks, but towards the streets around the garrison. He would be on familiar turf there, and Yholis help any thug caught threatening a former soldier on their own ground.
Grey Coat wasn’t stupid, however. As soon as it became apparent where he was heading, his shadow stopped skulking. He also multiplied, another man appearing out of the side streets to keep pace with Tais as Grey Coat closed in from behind.
Tais stopped. They weren’t going to let him reach the garrison. Well, fine. His hand was tight around the hilt of the Isyr sword, and he was itching to use it.

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Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · 6d

Hello, #FantasyIndiesOctober! I'm Angela and I write soap opera epic fantasy 😁 My Eterean Empire series includes a #SPFBO Finalist and a #SFINCS finalist, but currently I'm cutting up Through Dreams So Dark, book 1 of the Cold War portal fantasy Rai Ascendant series, into 2 books for re-release📚.

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Angela Boord @angelaboord.bsky.social · 6d

Believe it or not, "salmon" shows up twice in Through Dreams So Dark-this will now be book 2, but since the book was published whole and I'm now cutting it up... I don't think this counts as a spoiler?

#WIPSnips #amwritingfantasy #WriteSky 💙🪐📚

She ran her fingers down the silk wall hangings, calling up the silk spirits that resided inside, quiet but strong. People tended to ignore them, even enanki, but they enjoyed being appreciated. Will you hush the room? she asked. The last thing she wanted was for Marinen to find out what she was doing. For you, ni-Kaija, for you, they whispered. After she ate dinner—a lavish spread of smoked salmon on rye crisps, spring greens, a delicate broth of clams, and a pastry filled with dried cloudberries from last summer—she put a kettle on the little brazier she’d been allowed and made herself a cup of tea with the herbs she’d requested for a headache. She didn’t need herbs to shift to the Lake, but her nerves were strung tight, and she did need to relax.

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C M Debell @cmdebell.bsky.social · 6d

#WIPSnips I don't have 'salmon' in any of my books, but I did manage to find a fish in this WIP

#writesky #writingfantasy #writingcommunity

Nineer stretched a hand towards the leather bundle he had placed on her desk, eyebrow raised.
He nodded, wolfing down the fish soup as Nineer unwrapped the blades. Tais watched her face. The Temple of Yholis was rich in Isyr. Donations from wealthy patrons filled its vaults and the emperor even had his own shrine to the goddess here, which was rumoured to be lined with the stuff. Nineer had probably seen more Isyr than he could imagine. Even so, he saw the beauty of the Ado blades reflected in her awed expression.
“Are these…”
Tais nodded around a mouthful of bread.
She shook her head in admiration, then flipped the leather back over their distracting perfection. “What are you doing with them?”
He told her. She frowned. “You think these have something to do with Hagan’s death?”
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “But leaving them there… it didn’t feel safe.”
She gave him a knowing look. “How does it feel now? Be careful, Captain. Isyr gets under your skin.”
Didn’t he know it? Already he could feel the lure of the blades, the desire to possess them. He needed to get rid of the wretched things before that desire eclipsed good sense.

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