Verity Holloway
@verityholloway.bsky.social
Strange fiction, weird history. Lost member of the PRB. Marfan syndrome. Will-o’-the-wisp. Victorians, folklore, bad medicine. THE OTHERS OF EDENWELL and CHEER THE SICK out now. Non-fiction in @helleborezine.bsky.social. 🦇🖋️🇬🇮
I'm at that point in novel-writing where you're stuck on a series of horribly undulating hills, like I found a problem And I fixed it! I found a new problem And I fixed it! Found a BIG problem Oh God, oh no, pass the bucket—
We had a prison officer come in to scare us off crime. Tiny Scottish dude. Gave us detailed instructions on how to kill a man with a sock and some batteries and how to make a shank from a toothbrush. For the girls, the message was, avoid prison because "you'll come oot a dyke".
Andrew Male@andrewmale.bsky.social · 21h agoBizarre things that happened in your assembly: A neighbour of one of the teachers gave us a five-minute lecture about kwashiorkor which involved him reciting a list of his favourite words (yes, ‘kwashiorkor’ was one of them). Included the unforgettable phrase, “Diarrhoea, another beautiful word.”
It’s the first day of autumn! Remember to switch from regular depression back to seasonal depression!
If you're in the mood for some folkloric spooks for the season, might I suggest... helleborezine.com/products/tales
Tales of Occult Britain
HELLEBORE's first anthology of short fiction features nine new tales by masters of the supernatural and the strange: Nina Antonia, Ramsey Campbell, Steve Duffy, Helen Grant, Verity Holloway, Eóin Murp...
helleborezine.com
Partner opened a bag of Anthap nuts and there was a maggot going about its business inside, so that's my day ruined.
My partner rushed up to him to pull him off, but he had latched on so hard and she fell backwards, and he started kicking her. Security intervened from here. This news article has everything you need to know www.abc.net.au/news/2026-09...
Man banned from Oz Comic-Con after allegedly biting artist
A man has been banned from Oz Comic-Con after allegedly biting one of the artists on Sunday afternoon.
abc.net.au
Over the weekend, my partner confronted an AI vendor who was intentionally lying about using AI - this ended up with him becoming verbally abusive before coming out of his booth to physically assault my friend who started filming the incident - he BIT HER (yes BIT)
The Dickin Medal is the highest award that can be issued to animals in British military service. Bearing the words "We Also Serve" it has been awarded 75 times since its creation in 1943. Only one cat has ever received the award. This is the story of Able Seacat Simon, of HMS Amethyst. 🧵 1/25
Dreamt every household in the land was issued one Vile Leg in case of emergencies. Citizens were advised to stockpile canned food to supplement their Vile Leg, which could feed a family of four for several months. Keep your Vile Leg somewhere cool and dry.
Tag yourself. I'm the horrid little knifeman emerging from the cactus.
Eroina@eroina.bsky.social · 3d agoIllustration intitulée « Le Lecteur de romans policiers » de l'artiste allemand Martin Claus, publiée dans le magazine satirique "Fliegende Blätter" en mars 1933.
Christening a baby is nothing like christening a ship. I know that now. Once again I can only apologise.
Environmental storytelling on today's dog walk: Wrapped sanitary pad Single high heeled shoe Beer can Beer can Beer can Open bag of cement Turned the corner: Roadworks absolutely trashed Beer can Beer can Another, different high heeled shoe
Joints hurt too much to write or sew. I hate you, September. I am going to burn your house down.
Verity Holloway@verityholloway.bsky.social · 5d agoIt is cold and I am angry about it.
My ideal situation would be, essentially, we get to a place where a kid from a South London council estate could, if they so wished, go to the local youth centre and learn to play the violin. But, then, we come back to this, the reason it will never happen:
Scornflake Ghhhoul@scornflakegrrrl.bsky.social · 5d agoAlso, would be cool if there were some kind of indoor space they could hang out in on grim and cold days. Not tied to any activity unless they want to. Like just some comfy sofas, maybe a pool table or something like that. Free. Yeah, would not be cheap for the council but once you offset it
Just go clarify, this is just published! We’ve just been chasing our tails with so much on. Eg, haywoodbooks.com/writing-whil...
Writing While Caring – Haywood Books
haywoodbooks.com
BookwormVaught - Dr Anna Vaught@bookwormvaught.bsky.social · 5d agoIn my hands this morning. May you feel the love and comfort. Ebook out imminently. @renardpress.com Anna x
"Weirdos generate a suspiciously childlike woman who can't say no" would have been a better headline.
Forbes@forbes.com · 6d agoTilly Norwood, a controversial AI “actor,” abruptly switched languages during an interview with Piers Morgan, though the company behind the AI creation denied she malfunctioned.
Every year on 19 December, the famous Christmas lights at Mousehole in Cornwall are dimmed between 8 and 9pm, leaving just the Cross and Angels shining down across the village and out to sea.
Despite hand pain, I actually wrote a lot today. Somehow I'm still telling myself, "Could've been more!" because that's just how the song goes.
Verity Holloway@verityholloway.bsky.social · 6d agoSometimes my motor control goes haywire and I can't type, which would be fine if my entire life didn't revolve around this keyboard.
GREAT. Today's vet bill is twice what I expected (partly because it includes a full checkup in addition to neutering, partly because I also had to pick up several of Monty's meds). A bunch of overpriced (Con-fucking-Ed) and overdue bills also hit today so I'm gonna be DEEP in the hole without help
Cold cream is absolute God-tier skincare, but it's sobering to realise the Victorians sold it in such tiny pots because the whale oil inside would quickly go rancid.
Sometimes my motor control goes haywire and I can't type, which would be fine if my entire life didn't revolve around this keyboard.
I love giving my dog's name over the phone and then having to repeat it, like "Yes, as in Marlon Brando."
"Sometimes, young women are just in pain" - a GP I hope one day experiences shingles.
Hazie@hazie.bsky.social · 6d agoMass disabling event aside, physicians are directly responsible for the deterioration of women’s health. “Doctors more often attributed women’s symptoms to anxiety & made more diagnostic errors with female patients, even when test results were positive.” www.theguardian.com/science/2026...