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Megan Giddings

@megiddings.bsky.social

My first short story collection, Black Arts, comes out on September 8th. Yes, I do live in Minneapolis. Boss, I'm tired. www.megangiddings.com

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Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 3h ago

Hello, my short story collection, Black Arts, comes out in 34 days. If you pre-order it, you will get 13 stories that play with form and genre delivered to your beautiful home. It's already a paperback, so you will actually want to carry it around and read it www.blackgarnetbooks.com/item/UhelvOr...

Black Arts by Megan Giddings | Black Garnet Books

The very first story collection from the critically acclaimed, visionary author of the novels Lakewood, The Women Could Fly, and Meet Me at the CrossroadsOver three genre-busting novels, Megan Gidding...

blackgarnetbooks.com

BOMB Magazine @bombmag.bsky.social · yesterday

T Clark’s short story collection “All This Want (And I Can't Get None)” ( @oneworldbooks.bsky.social, 2026) features stories on Black girlhood, thwarted desire, and growing up around New York City’s edges, as discussed with @kjmoulton.bsky.social. bit.ly/4h9ZFZX

BOMB Magazine | T Clark by Katie Moulton

Stories on Black girlhood, thwarted desire, and growing up around New York City’s edges.

bit.ly

Molly Templeton @mollytempleton.com · 2d ago

A follow-up to the Spokane thread: a little closer to (my) home, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs are getting close to their fundraising goal, but they're not there yet! The reservation has been affected by two of Oregon's (historically terrible) fires this season:

The Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon (CTWS) Wildfire Recovery Fund

***OFFICIAL CTWS DONATION ACCOUNT***NOTE: Processing Fee is optional. You can deselect this option upon making a donation. The Confederated Tribes of the Warm…

zeffy.com

Anna Clark @annaleighclark.bsky.social · 2d ago

News item from the City of Flint:

Screenshot from an emailed press release from the city of Flint. It reads:

"City of Flint Completes Historic Lead Service Line Replacement Effort

"FLINT, Mich. — The City of Flint has completed the replacement of the final active lead service line identified through a federal settlement agreement marking the successful completion of one of the largest infrastructure projects in the city's history.

"With the completion of this final replacement, there are no active lead service lines remaining in the City of Flint."

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 3d ago

bring back Detroiters to do a season three where Cramblin-Duvet get hired by the Stevens campaign and they pitch her on doing "the voice"

Ruth Joffre @ruthjoffre.bsky.social · 5d ago

last call to sign up for my writing magic class at @storystudiochicago.bsky.social! if you're into earth magic, portals, witches, unusual superpowers, and magical creatures, this class is for you. we'll meet online starting next Tuesday, August 4. see you there!

Writing Magic with Ruth Joffre - StoryStudio Chicago

This class is all about magic and how it can shape a story. We’ll explore various magical systems to understand how they work and what impact they can have in our writing.

storystudiochicago.org

Erin Maye Quade @erinmayequade.bsky.social · 5d ago

Hey Minnesota won and the nudification technology ban will go into effect tomorrow at 12:00AM!

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 5d ago

I simultaneously really resent the idea of ever having to show my drafts or workflow to "prove I didn't use AI" and feel deeply weirded out seeing people on social media claim they never generate anything while writing a book that isn't just the book

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · last wk.

i am not saying at all it's not sexual harassment, but if someone began their sexual harassment of me with Happy weiner wednesday!!!! I would first wonder if I or they were having a stroke www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her under investigation for sexual harassment allegations

St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her is facing an investigation into allegations of sexual harassment.

mprnews.org

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · last wk.

you're all joking now but like half of you are going to make Luca Guadagnino presents Richard Siken's Crush: The Movie your whole personality when it comes out

Russ @russ41.bsky.social · last mo.

I'm gonna be saying this a lot for the foreseeable future, but folks, our neighbors in Springfield need our help. springfieldg92.org/get-involved/

Get Involved - G92

We're a movement rooted in love, built on action, and united by our commitment to dignity and justice for all, especially our Haitian neighbors.

springfieldg92.org

Chris Geidner@chrisgeidner.bsky.social · last mo.

I was on a Zoom call with advocates from Springfield and elsewhere in Ohio yesterday afternoon, and it’s absolutely horrifying and inexcusable what this administration is doing to this community and the lie that Sam Alito told to OK this.

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · last wk.

Got sent a scan of the in-print starred review of Black Arts, so yeah, I have to post it again. Unfortunately, still very pleased to read the phrase: "the sublime metafictional closer..."

A scan of the paper copy of Black Arts' starred review in Publishers Weekly: These striking and well-crafted stories of real-world problems by Giddings (Meet Me at the Crossroads) are laced with horror tropes and speculative elements. In the fascinating title entry, a Black painter named Carol, who resists pressure from the market to depict Black pain, finds a mysterious muse in the physically abusive ghost of a white woman who haunts her new house. In "Metaphors Are Violence," Lyn, who hasn't had sex in months, is drawn to a hot guy named "T," who's fascinated by her hometown's supposed contact with aliens, but she's blocked in her pursuit of T by a standoffish and attractive woman named Chanel. The sublime metafictional closer, "How to Be a Black Writer," encompasses many of the conflicts that precede it. Writing in the second person, the protagonist reflects on facing a double standards as a creative writing student, taught not to criticize her white peers' mediocre work while they were free to ear into heres ("There was a phrase you hated but it felt appropriate in the moment: why yuck someone's yum?") Throughout, Giddings eschews exposition, instead allowing the stories to cohere from rich details and heightened emotions of anxiety, desire, and jealousy. The author deserves high marks for this ebullient, ideas-driven collection."

Sami Schalk @drsamischalk.bsky.social · 2w ago

If you are not in Madison and would like to donate I will post a thread of things to support, first and foremost this GoFundMe for Corey Ruiz’s family. www.gofundme.com/f/justice-fo...

Donate to Justice for Corey: Telling His Story, organized by Antonio Lopez

Our beloved Corey was murdered in the street by a Madison Police Department officer… Antonio Lopez needs your support for Justice for Corey: Telling His Story

gofundme.com

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 2w ago

Black Arts (out September 8th!) has received another very thoughtful review, this time from BookList:

Black Arts by megan Giddings
A group of children find a leg lying underneath a bush behind the school in "The Children and the Leg Found in June." Two roommates move into a cheap apartment just above a unit occupied by two ghosts in "Double Exposure." A girl is sent to live with her aunt for a few weeks and interacts with a cousin made of glass in "Brittle." These short stories by giddings (Meet Me at the Crossroads, 2025) mix the genre of horror and fantasy. Women try to find reasons to survive in a difficult (or even an ending) world, casting out for lovers from a narrow pool, trying to make their relationships stick, and recovering from or remembering sexual violence. The tales are overflowing with ghosts, some threatening and others tantalizing, and the feeling of being haunted--by spirits or by visions of the past--pervades the narratives. Many protagonists are Black, queer, and/or artists, trying to find their place in tangled webs of feeling or upturned worlds. The stories are dark but moving in this excellent collection. Review by Leah von Essen

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 2w ago

Black Arts (out September 8th!) has received another very thoughtful review, this time from BookList:

Ruth Joffre @ruthjoffre.bsky.social · 2w ago

I’ve been keeping this secret for MONTHS and now I can finally scream about it: I’VE GOT A FLASH CHAPBOOK COMING OUT!!!! it’s called Lies I Tell My Children and it has an amazing cover!! order it from Bottlecap Press: bottlecap.press/products/lie...

The front and back covers of the chapbook Lies I Tell My Children by Ruth Joffre. The front cover is bright red and features the silhouette of a condor surrounded by iridescent blue bubbles. The back cover has the following text:

Almost a decade in the making, Lies I Tell My Children is a collection of surreal and fanciful falsehoods dreamed up by a single mom just doing her best. Originally inspired by the things parents say to get kids to do their homework or clean their rooms, this series of flash fictions expanded into an intimate portrait of one woman’s mind: her fears, her desires, and the secrets she keeps from her children.

Built around a series of hypotheticals (e.g. “if they don’t stop growing up so fast…”), the stories in this chapbook often veer into fantasy and fabulism, depicting a world where nightmares come to life, ghosts haunt the backyard, and slime molds creep out of the air conditioner. Everything in this chapbook is a lie, and yet every word of it is true.

Ruth Joffre is a Bolivian American writer and the author of the story collection Night Beast. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in more than 100 publications, including Wigleaf, SmokeLong Quarterly, TriQuarterly, Fractured Lit, Pleiades, hex literary, and the anthologies Best Microfiction and Best Small Fictions. She does not have children.

Amy Rossi @mossyair.bsky.social · 2w ago

15 years ago, I decided I was going to write a book about glam metal groupies. I quit my job. I got an MFA. I spent 3.5 years querying agents. The book died on sub. Then I re-envisioned it and rewrote it. And now GIRLS ON THE EDGE comes out March 16 from Park Row Books bookshop.org/p/books/girl...

Cover for Girls On the Edge by Amy Rossi, featuring two girls hugging obscured by a hot pink wash

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 2w ago

thanks for the starred review, publishers weekly: www.publishersweekly.com/9780063352797

A starred review from publishers weekly, my bros. Giddings (Meet Me at the Crossroads) laces these striking and well-crafted stories of real-world problems with horror tropes and speculative elements. In the fascinating title entry, a Black painter named Carol, who resists pressure from the market to depict Black pain, finds a mysterious muse in the physically abusive ghost of a white woman who haunts her new house. In "Metaphors Are Violence," Lyn who hasn't had sex in months, is drawn to a hot guy named "T," who's fascinated by her hometown's supposed contact with aliens, but she's blocked in her pursuit of T by a standoffish and attractive woman named Chanel. The sublime metafictional closer, "How to Be a Black Writer," encompasses many of the conflicts that precede it. Writing in the second person, the protagonist reflects on facing double standards as a creative writing student, taught not to criticize her white peers' mediocre work while they were free to tear into her ("There was a prhase you hated but it felt appropriate in th emoment: why yuck someone's yum?"). Throughout, Giddings eschews exposition, instead allowing the stories to cohere from rich details and heightened emotions of anxiety, desire, and jealousy. The author deserves high marks for this ebullient, ideas-driven collection."

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 2w ago

rode a slow escalator at the long island while whitney houston's i will always love you hit the crescendo and i have never felt more alive

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 2w ago

thanks for the starred review, publishers weekly: www.publishersweekly.com/9780063352797

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 2w ago

it would have been thrilling if fifa had let sergio ramos give messi a slap for old times' sake and as a way for spain to celebrate the world cup just a little harder

MPR News @mprnews.org · 2w ago

The United Way of Northeastern Minnesota said Friday that supplies and volunteers for the area are in a good place. But there's still plenty people outside the Boundary Waters can do to help.

How to help as wildfires continue to burn in Minnesota

Tips from area leaders coordinating emergency response and people on the ground.

mprnews.org

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 3w ago

now that the scammers have found my university email, I am getting invited to fake book festivals, getting offered to sit on fake judging panels, emails from fake Liane Moriarty, fake book clubs, fake podcasts, getting fake book deals from Hachette, fake agents offering me representation

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 3w ago

Never expected to get one of the most thoughtful reviews of my writing life from Beauty News NYC (a true lovely kindness to see this book so engaged with already): www.beautynewsnycofficial.com/lifestyle/25...

Black Arts: Stories write-up from BEAUTY NEWS NYC (?!!)
These 13 stories from a rare writer I believe we'll see produce throughout her entire lifetime place Megan Giddings in conversation with contemporary horror story masters like Kelly Link and canonized leaders like Shirley Jackson. The title story "Black Arts" adds the requisite haunted house to any great horror book. Its ending tale, "How to Be a Black Writer," employs second person for an Erasure (the book) to American Fiction film level of indictment of scary structural racisms informing every style of Black writer, whether we like it or not. All wrap drumbeats of African American matriarchal lineages, Black intellectual concerns and unique millennial generational anxieties into prose so eerily good it is more spine chilling than her plots."

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 3w ago

on Sunday, I will be yelling vamos!!!!! (Spanish accent, not Argentinian accent!!!)

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 3w ago

this is the best paragraph I've read about my next book, truly gets it, gets me: reactormag.com/30-more-sff-...

A screenshot from a lovely Reactor article about books to anticipate for the fall. Black Arts by Megan Giddings:
"A spirit possesses a mean to walk for a while with her daughter; the personification of a tarot card deals with sexual trauma; two women are shipwrecked on an island with a bunch of tech bros. Megan Giddings has become a must-read author for me. She so effortlessly straddles the line between literary and speculative, balancing modernity with the supernatural and surreal. After three novels, this is her first story collection, and it truly showcases the breadth of her genius. Put this one on your shelf next to Kelly Link and Helen Oyeyemi. (September 8, Amistad)

Sanctuary Supply Depot @supplydepotmpls.bsky.social · 3w ago

$9300!!! Getting closer!!

Sanctuary Supply Depot@supplydepotmpls.bsky.social · 4w ago

This is NOT how we treat our neighbors. No one involved has been able to answer what "alternative housing" will be available for the people they are intentionally displacing in preparation for a Minnesota winter. Shelters are full, and not every shelter is suited for every person... Please help 💕💸

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 3w ago

If you're looking for something to read this afternoon, you should check out this story by @ruthjoffre.bsky.social: www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/waru...

"To prepare us for the ritual, Abuelita bought a special blend of tea, La Flor de Papa, made from the flowers of a varietal of purple potato only found in the Andes, in a narrow microclimate between 3,600 and 3,800 meters above sea level. Both the petals and pollen are harvested at the end of each growing season, freeze-dried in thin sheets, and then meticulously pre-portioned into individual sachets to guarantee the correct dosage based on the drinker's exact height and weight. Too much pollen and the memories will flow indiscriminately, draining out of Abuelita's mind as if through a sieve, leaving her a mere shell of herself, with nothing but procedural memories, like how to walk or dress herself. Too little and the memories might get stuck, gumming together like half-melted candy, and even if we did manage to transfer some, they would be impossible to tease apart, the memory of a parade from fifty years ago superimposed onto a massacre that took place on that same street on that same day in 1563. Mistakes like that were dangerous, I knew.

My mother told me a story once about a man who drank La Flor de Papa, and then lost all grip on reality. According to her, he was a businessman--or maybe a politician--the kind of man who wore a crisp, black suit on a Saturday afternoon, when everyone else in town was heading to market. He came running up the street, dress shoes clacking on the cobblestones. He was waving his hands over his head, shouting in Quecha: The conquistadors are coming! On horseback!" From Ruth Joffre's Waru Waru

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 3w ago

when you're not really someone who likes saying very mean things online but you find yourself wondering if you should say something aboslutely rancid so that your workplace will fire you and you'll get a big pay out eventually and that might let you lean hard into art or learning a new language

Megan Giddings @megiddings.bsky.social · 4w ago

you can see your best, new, large friend starring in, maybe, the greatest sportswashing enterprise of all time on sunday august 23rd