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Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub!

@annasmithwrites.bsky.social

2.7K followers 1K following 780 posts

Godblind, Songs of the Drowned trilogies, also Black Library & Marvel. Magic & Mayhem Author Academy. 1/3 of The Write Advice. Rep @harryillingworth.bsky.social Zen, Shotokan, DnD, antifa, anti-AI, #WorkingClass. She/They https://linktr.ee/AnnaStephens

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Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · Nov 28

Seeing as a lot of #editors and #publishers have made it over here now - hello! - and I have a new fantasy book on submission, here's a thread of memes for the main characters to give you a flavour of what to expect.

Character The First: The Diamond Prince.

Collage of images with the following captions: The Diamond Prince (thief), Fabulous fashion sense, dramatic as fuck, exquisite taste in jewellery, good with a sword, magic glass, slut (positive)

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Mike Brooks @mikebrooks668.bsky.social · 10h

Since the article itself is paywalled... my new novel is called THIS IS WHERE THE FUTURE BLEEDS, which @losbennett.bsky.social sold to @titanbooks.bsky.social earlier this year. It's a fantasy adventure in a queer-normative world featuring fractured futures, sapphic romance, and giant wasps.

Mike Brooks @mikebrooks668.bsky.social · 11h

www.thebookseller.com/rights/titan...

Titan snags ‘refreshingly original’ fantasy adventure from Mike Brooks

Titan Books has acquired a new fantasy adventure novel from The God-King Chronicles author Mike Brooks.

www.thebookseller.com

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KJ Charles @kjcharleswriter.com · 1h

THIS THIS THIS. the number of reviews I leave asking 'where the hell was the editor?'

violent alien @blipstress.bsky.social · 9h

An actual hot take: Too many authors are afraid of editors watering down their voice or whatever and not afraid enough of editors letting you put any old slop on the page.

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Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 10m

It's one of those weeks. Busy, frustrating, sometimes depressing. Work sucks.
But this morning, a character taught a dragon how to blow raspberries, so it's not all bad.

And don't @ me about the biology of dragon mouths. I made 'em and I say they can do 'em.

a cartoon dragon is standing in a forest

Alt: a cartoon dragon is standing in a forest

media.tenor.com

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Dave "David" Wragg @davewragg.com · 17h

TOMORROZ!

Solaris Books @solarisbooks.bsky.social · 18h

At 7pm on 9th October, don't miss @aptshadow.bsky.social at Leeds Waterstones for a very special panel event on "Building Brilliant Worlds" alongside @rjbarker.bsky.social and
@davewragg.com in association with @britfantasysoc.bsky.social!

Tickets only £5! www.waterstones.com/events/panel...

A screenshot of the Waterstones Event Graphic.

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Critical Role @criticalrole.bsky.social · 2d

The epic premiere of #CriticalRole Campaign 4, Episode 1 - "The Fall of Thjazi Fang", is now available on YouTube! ⚔️ 🧭 🪶

WATCH THE C4 PREMIERE ⬇️
https://youtu.be/3Mbynm0pGX0

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sunyi @handle.invalid · 2d

Happy Mid Autumn Festival! 🥮 I’m thrilled to share the cover of #TheGirlWithAThousandFaces, coming 5 May 2026 from @torbooks.bsky.social! ⭐⁣The Girl with a Thousand Faces is a Chinese-Gothic tale set in a historical Hong Kong.

Cover art by Lindsey Carr, Cover design by Shreya Gupta

A ghostly Chinese woman with dead white eyes stares out from a stylised black and green ocean, her face surrounded by billowing gold foam

THE HIGHLY ANTICIPATED NEW NOVEL FROM THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE BOOK EATERS

A haunting dark urban fantasy set in a historical Hong Kong, where ancient myths and local legends combine in a story of ghosts, grief and women who will not forgive.

Mercy Chan is a triad exorcist with a mysterious past. After washing up on the shores of Hong Kong with no memory during World War II, she found a home in Kowloon Walled City, an infamous, ghost-infested slum full of lost and traumatised civilians. Since the war ended, Mercy has rebuilt her life and found work as a ghost-talker for the local triad, dealing with the angry and bitter spirits who haunt this place.

But the past she can’t remember won’t let her go. An unusually powerful ghost lurks in Kowloon’s waterways, drowning innocents and threatening the district. Unnervingly, it claims to know Mercy—and her forgotten childhood.

As Mercy is drawn into a deadly cat-and-mouse game with this malignant spirit, she begins to realise that the monster she fights within these walls may well be one of her own making.

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DHH Literary Agency @dhhlitagency.bsky.social · 2d

Happy #DHHNewsRoundup day! We’ve got another batch of fabulous literary updates for you, with huge congrats to our brilliant authors! 📚✨

shorturl.at/UPCA4

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Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 2d

Ooh, can't wait to see Stew launch his wonderful new book! Come along if you're at World Fantasycon at the end of the month!

Stew Hotston (he/him) @stewarthotston.com · 2d

Project Hanuman has its launch at @worldfantasy2025.bsky.social two weeks before it's in shops. There will be cake, wine and merch. 2pm on the Friday of the convention (31st October).

I'm petrified of launching this thing alone so please come along and eat my cakes

There may also be special guest

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British Fantasy Society @britfantasysoc.bsky.social · 5d

Last chance to grab your ticket for this! We have a day full of readings, panels, interviews and fun!

British Fantasy Society @britfantasysoc.bsky.social · Aug 22

The British Fantasy Society is excited to announce our next event day, taking place on Saturday 4th October 2025, 10am to 6:30pm (BST).

Ticket: tinyurl.com/bfsmonster

#BritishFantasySociety #FantasyBooks #HorrorBooks #SFFBooks #AuthorTalk #WritingCommunity #Monsters

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Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 5d

Beautiful. Iconic. Fucking ridiculous. Love it.

Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 5d

Things only a dungeon master would say: roll to attack the blanket.
I only have myself to blame.

a man wearing a shirt that says " desto " on it

Alt: Matthew Mercer, DM of critical role, looking unimpressed

media.tenor.com

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Alex S. Bradshaw 🦕 @alexsbradshaw.bsky.social · 5d

So stoked for the beginning of @spotlightindie.bsky.social 's Big Indie Weekend!

Look at all these amazing guests!!

Spotlight Indie @spotlightindie.bsky.social · 5d

Want to know what's coming up today? ⬇️
1pm BST: Predicting the Future
3pm BST: War, Wounds and Battlescenes
6pm BST: Realm Raiders
7pm: No Such Thing as a Stupid Question
8.30pm: Interview: Graham Austin King
9.00pm: Live Launch Party: Phil Parker

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Stew Hotston (he/him) @stewarthotston.com · 5d

Project Hanuman is out on November 11th. Today, I wanted to highlight that the gent that is @justinleeanderson.com gave it this summary: Battlestar Galactica crossed with The Matrix on a heavy dose of LSD.

Which, honestly, will do for me. #sff #sciencefiction #scifi

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Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 6d

Happy Campaign 4 day to all who celebrate!

Critical Role @criticalrole.bsky.social · 6d

CAMPAIGN 4 IS HERE! 4️⃣ 🎉

Our tale of Aramán, led by Game Master Brennan Lee Mulligan, starts RIGHT NOW on Beacon, YouTube, and Twitch!

JOIN US AT THE TABLE ⬇️
Beacon.tv
YouTube.com/CriticalRole
Twitch.tv/CriticalRole

Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 6d

A book that smells of Ork, on the other hand...

a man has a tattoo on his arm that says pmrror

ALT: a man has a tattoo on his arm that says pmrror

media.tenor.com

Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 6d

Dear Gods!

Emily C. Hughes @emilyhughes.bsky.social · 6d

no no the publishing industry is doing fine, why do you ask

A screenshot from Publisher's Lunch:
Jennifer L. Armentrout and Hellmann's
In a promotion designed for BookTok enjoyment, Jennifer L. Armentrout’s just-published THE PRIMAL OF BLOOD AND BONE is available in a special, limited-edition "garlic-scented copy, infused with Hellmann’s Garlic Aioli to create a one-of-a-kind, Craven-proof book." They explain: "This exclusive edition is printed with garlic-infused ink, designed to ward off Armentrout’s bloodthirsty monsters, the Craven. While humans may dread garlic breath, Hellmann’s has cleverly transformed this social faux pas into an unexpected – and delicious – form of supernatural protection."

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Courtney Milan @courtneymilan.com · 7d

Hey authors, the official list of Anthropic works is available for searching.

secure.anthropiccopyrightsettlement.com/lookup

Submit a Claim

secure.anthropiccopyrightsettlement.com

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Merriam-Webster @merriam-webster.com · 7d

We are thrilled to announce that our NEW Large Language Model will be released on 11.18.25.

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Amy de la Force @amydelaforce.bsky.social · 6d

I'm in the process of kicking off my debut #romantasy's street team, and for anyone else in the same boat, I can highly recommend #LuciaDamisa's blog series about starting hers. Super informative!

luciasfiction.wordpress.com?s=street+team

Search Results for “street team” – Lucia, Fantasy Author

For The Stargazers and Dreamers

luciasfiction.wordpress.com

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Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 6d

I absolutely saw pube before anything else.
Ew, what a sentence.

Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 6d

Fantastic article here about how sales track hamstrings authors but is rarely, if ever, considered alongside the data that made that record. jennasatterthwaite.substack.com/p/the-bigges...

The Biggest Publishing Industry Gaslighting Happening Right Now

On the dreaded 'track record,' fake publisher math, and overemphasis on name

jennasatterthwaite.substack.com

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Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 7d

Turns out Act 3 of this book should be Act 2. Some rather sweeping changes and conflating of chapters to do in the next couple of weeks to whip it into shape before the big drive to the finish.
I don't normally go back and edit so heavily while drafting, but this was a huge issue, so here we are.

a man in a t-shirt says " i have an intelligence of 6 "

Alt: a man playing dungeons and dragons says " i have an intelligence of 6, i know what I'm doing"

media.tenor.com

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Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 7d

Absolutely. Hopefully it's a starting point, not the only outcome.

Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 7d

❤️

Anna ZenKen Stephens - Fantasy Heist on sub! @annasmithwrites.bsky.social · 7d

Proofreading training materials at work where they extol the myriad virtues of LLM/AI and ChatWTF & then mention how voracious they are for information & THEN tell you how careful you must be not to let confidential material get added into the data.
YOU MEAN LIKE ALL THE DATA YOU STOLE TO TRAIN IT?