Melissa
@organza.bsky.social
Public libraries, books, and other stuff that takes my fancy.
Melbourne, Australia. Wurundjeri country.
She/her
Melbourne, Australia. Wurundjeri country.
She/her
Lovely piece about reading what you love
October 6, 2025 at 9:35 AM
Lovely piece about reading what you love
Reposted by Melissa
Legendary cover artist Robert McGinnis passed away last month at 99. For @smartbitches.bsky.social , I wrote an appreciation of the indelible mark he left on the visual language of romance novels: smartbitchestrashybooks.com/2025/04/robe...
Robert McGinnis: 1926-2025 | Smart Bitches, Trashy Books Amazon iconAudible iconAutographed iconBook Bub iconBooksprout iconBuy Me a Coffee iconEmail iconFacebook iconGoodreads iconSocial ...
Smart Bitches, Trashy Books
smartbitchestrashybooks.com
April 14, 2025 at 12:15 PM
Legendary cover artist Robert McGinnis passed away last month at 99. For @smartbitches.bsky.social , I wrote an appreciation of the indelible mark he left on the visual language of romance novels: smartbitchestrashybooks.com/2025/04/robe...
Reposted by Melissa
WINNER ANNOUNCED: Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards 2025
🏆 Prize for an Unpublished Manuscript: I Made This Just for You, Chris Ames.
Congratulations to Chris Ames on being awarded the VPLA Prize for the thought-provoking short story collection 'I Made This Just for You'. #wheelercentre #vplas
🏆 Prize for an Unpublished Manuscript: I Made This Just for You, Chris Ames.
Congratulations to Chris Ames on being awarded the VPLA Prize for the thought-provoking short story collection 'I Made This Just for You'. #wheelercentre #vplas
March 19, 2025 at 7:38 AM
WINNER ANNOUNCED: Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards 2025
🏆 Prize for an Unpublished Manuscript: I Made This Just for You, Chris Ames.
Congratulations to Chris Ames on being awarded the VPLA Prize for the thought-provoking short story collection 'I Made This Just for You'. #wheelercentre #vplas
🏆 Prize for an Unpublished Manuscript: I Made This Just for You, Chris Ames.
Congratulations to Chris Ames on being awarded the VPLA Prize for the thought-provoking short story collection 'I Made This Just for You'. #wheelercentre #vplas
Listening to Bettany Hughes talking about the seven wonders of the ancient world—the last session we’ll hear after 6 days of #AdelaideWritersWeek the BEST literary festival ever.
March 6, 2025 at 5:32 AM
Listening to Bettany Hughes talking about the seven wonders of the ancient world—the last session we’ll hear after 6 days of #AdelaideWritersWeek the BEST literary festival ever.
Reposted by Melissa
How do you make a Librarian laugh?
December 30, 2024 at 4:17 PM
How do you make a Librarian laugh?
What a delightful line up! Unfortunately it’s probably about 4am in my time zone
January 19th. 1pm Eastern. Virtual. Recorded. Plugged.
January 8, 2025 at 8:13 PM
What a delightful line up! Unfortunately it’s probably about 4am in my time zone
I know it’s a bit past the Trans Day of Remembrance, but I’ve only just read this. And it’s very good. Remember.
open.substack.com/pub/lauriepe...
open.substack.com/pub/lauriepe...
On transphobia, memory and mourning.
Trans Day of Remembrance hit different this year.
open.substack.com
December 14, 2024 at 8:43 PM
I know it’s a bit past the Trans Day of Remembrance, but I’ve only just read this. And it’s very good. Remember.
open.substack.com/pub/lauriepe...
open.substack.com/pub/lauriepe...
Reposted by Melissa
‘Etched in muscle memory’: beer ad and original Doctor Who theme music preserved by Australian sound archive
‘Etched in muscle memory’: beer ad and original Doctor Who theme music preserved by Australian sound archive
Words immortalised by John Meillon in VB advertisement deemed iconic, as well as audio recordings preserving and documenting First Nations culture
* Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email
You could get it ridin’, you could get it slidin’. And…
www.theguardian.com
December 10, 2024 at 2:03 PM
‘Etched in muscle memory’: beer ad and original Doctor Who theme music preserved by Australian sound archive
London books!
This thread is officially open to recommendations for diverse and interesting London novels, bonus points for pulp/genre because I like it. Do not say Dickens, I swear to god.
Five best London novels by white men. Amazing.
December 6, 2024 at 11:07 AM
London books!
Reposted by Melissa
As an addition, if someone's using Libby and a book isn't available in their library, make sure to mark the book with a "notify me" tag. They share it, which encourages the library to buy more copies when there's enough demand.
November 23, 2024 at 3:41 AM
As an addition, if someone's using Libby and a book isn't available in their library, make sure to mark the book with a "notify me" tag. They share it, which encourages the library to buy more copies when there's enough demand.
Reposted by Melissa
I love libraries. As a latchkey kid I basically grew up in my local library. As an adult, finding my books in the library is how I knew I had made it as a writer. Please use and support your local library, they're incredibly important to your community and to the country.
I always love when authors speak approvingly of libraries.
I mean, I'd LIKE to be able to buy a copy of every book I've ever liked, but in between financial and spatial requirements ...
So, yeah, the library is where it's at. For this, and many other reasons.
I mean, I'd LIKE to be able to buy a copy of every book I've ever liked, but in between financial and spatial requirements ...
So, yeah, the library is where it's at. For this, and many other reasons.
November 23, 2024 at 2:28 AM
I love libraries. As a latchkey kid I basically grew up in my local library. As an adult, finding my books in the library is how I knew I had made it as a writer. Please use and support your local library, they're incredibly important to your community and to the country.
Reposted by Melissa
Also: If you don't have money to buy my (or anyone's) books, and you live in the anglosphere, before you pirate them, try to get them from your local library instead. They have it or can get it, they pay for the books, and in many places writers get paid for their books being lent. Everyone wins!
November 23, 2024 at 1:01 AM
Also: If you don't have money to buy my (or anyone's) books, and you live in the anglosphere, before you pirate them, try to get them from your local library instead. They have it or can get it, they pay for the books, and in many places writers get paid for their books being lent. Everyone wins!
Reposted by Melissa
Fantastic news. The more recognition for poets and poetry, the better.
It’s official: in 2025, the Nebula Awards and @sfwa.bsky.social will recognize poetry as a new award category. Poetry has been a vital part of SFF from the earliest pulps. I’m so thrilled to see it recognized in this way.
November 22, 2024 at 10:41 PM
Fantastic news. The more recognition for poets and poetry, the better.
Reposted by Melissa
Given all the talk about kids & phones, here’s one of *many* critiques of Jonathan Haidt’s popular book: www.theguardian.com/books/2024/a...
The Anxious Generation wants to save teens. But the bestseller’s anti-tech logic is skewed
There’s no doubt about the mental health crisis facing young people. Jonathan Haidt blames our devices – which oversimplifies the problem
www.theguardian.com
November 22, 2024 at 11:09 PM
Given all the talk about kids & phones, here’s one of *many* critiques of Jonathan Haidt’s popular book: www.theguardian.com/books/2024/a...
It’s still #TransgenderAwarenessWeek so what better excuse to revisit my favourite fictional trans person. Tran lady. Trans Regency lady. I love a big Regency romance and I cannot lie.
November 16, 2024 at 4:11 AM
It’s still #TransgenderAwarenessWeek so what better excuse to revisit my favourite fictional trans person. Tran lady. Trans Regency lady. I love a big Regency romance and I cannot lie.
Good to know, when you’re new to a place
Welcome to new Bluesky users. Here’s how we do things:
1. Always observe the Hambledon Protocol
2. No flisking
3. If someone tealights you, rink them without apology
4. I don’t mind them so much, but tissue-posts are generally frowned on
5. No questions
Good luck!
1. Always observe the Hambledon Protocol
2. No flisking
3. If someone tealights you, rink them without apology
4. I don’t mind them so much, but tissue-posts are generally frowned on
5. No questions
Good luck!
November 15, 2024 at 9:43 AM
Good to know, when you’re new to a place
Reposted by Melissa
Nearly 400 books removed from school libraries in one Tennessee county. Based on my skim of the list, most of them appear to be books by women, authors of color, &/or LGBTQ+ authors.
www.nashvillescene.com/news/pithint...
www.nashvillescene.com/news/pithint...
Roughly 400 Books Removed From Wilson County School Libraries
District removes books including ‘The Bluest Eye,’ ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ and Dr. Seuss’ ‘Wacky Wednesday’ to comply with state law
www.nashvillescene.com
November 13, 2024 at 2:11 PM
Nearly 400 books removed from school libraries in one Tennessee county. Based on my skim of the list, most of them appear to be books by women, authors of color, &/or LGBTQ+ authors.
www.nashvillescene.com/news/pithint...
www.nashvillescene.com/news/pithint...
Libby and other free digital resources are great! But just a reminder for fellow Australians that Kindle doesn’t work with libraries here. (Kobo, on the other hand, plays very nicely with Libby/Overdrive.)
I love that so many are advocating for libraries on my TL. If you don't know already, you can connect your library card to Libby, which allows you to read books on the Kindle store for FREE. #Booksky
November 13, 2024 at 9:02 AM
Libby and other free digital resources are great! But just a reminder for fellow Australians that Kindle doesn’t work with libraries here. (Kobo, on the other hand, plays very nicely with Libby/Overdrive.)
Every cloud has a silver lining
I told a friend that my response to *waves at everything* would be to write hopeful solidarity-filled queer romances EVEN HARDER, powered by the rocket fuel of rage and spite.
November 13, 2024 at 5:26 AM
Every cloud has a silver lining
www.theguardian.com/books/2024/n...
I loved this strange and beautiful book. Much as I’d’ve loved our Charlotte Wood to win.
I loved this strange and beautiful book. Much as I’d’ve loved our Charlotte Wood to win.
Samantha Harvey’s ‘beautiful and ambitious’ Orbital wins Booker prize 2024
The British author’s novel about astronauts on the International Space Station was chosen unanimously as the winner, says judging chair Edmund de Waal
www.theguardian.com
November 13, 2024 at 5:18 AM
www.theguardian.com/books/2024/n...
I loved this strange and beautiful book. Much as I’d’ve loved our Charlotte Wood to win.
I loved this strange and beautiful book. Much as I’d’ve loved our Charlotte Wood to win.
Not that we mind people using computers for Roblox
It’s really pretty cool that one thing you can do to support people you like is ask your local library to get their book because it doesn’t cost you anything, it helps them, and the librarian gets to know someone actually wants to read a book and not just use the computer for Roblox
November 13, 2024 at 4:55 AM
Not that we mind people using computers for Roblox