Cass Morris

And my gods they will pack bond with *anything*, given half a chance. We plan for it, now, how likely they are to adopt cursed fairy hounds or convince the cyclopes to unionize. So we always finds ways to honor and reward that.

And the thing is, most of them *want* to be that way, naturally. Even the ones who seem like murderbeasts the second I put a foam sword in their hands -- they still intuit that it's only fun if their opponent is also having fun. They don't like hitting people when they're down.

It is the most important thing we keep in mind at work, when we're thinking about the stories we're telling and our campers' roles as their heroes. We want them to be brave and clever and creative, but above all, we want them to have empathy. To be kind and compassionate.

“Like I said, some people will die. When you go to war, some people will die.”

That’s what the President of the United States is saying to the American people.

He won’t be hurt by a retaliatory attack or high gas prices. But you will — and that’s a sacrifice he’s willing to make.

From an international perspective, America is a rogue state now, right? America doesn't respect international law, doesn't honor treaties, is murdering civilians all over the world without care or consequence.

At what point does the rest of the world say ENOUGH?

#FaveLineFriday: Progress has been slow and hard-won this week, but I'm ultimately getting to something I'm happy with.

That's really the thing for me -- I like making actual connections. I absolutely hate feeling like I'm playing a game against the internet, and one that I will always be destined to lose.

Gods that metaphor is so damn accurate

This is something we talked about a lot on @worldbuildcast.bsky.social in our recent crossover episode with @sffaddictspod.bsky.social -- both the struggles since even trad pub requires authors to be their own marketers these days & the details of how we approach putting ourselves out there.

And ultimately it ends up all feeling like a scam, because in order to get any sort of return, you have to pour so much money *in*. It's hard to imagine a point of success at which that becomes worth it.

I'm an extravert and have no trouble talking about myself and my work. I really enjoy talking to folks at cons or signings or here on BSky. But everything you have to do to get "reach" on socials is just so exhausting. Analytics and A-B testing and scheduling and planning, thanks, I hate it.

#PretendPanel Mar 6: I loathe it, and that has a lot to do with the current avenues of marketing. Talking about my book, making graphics, hyping it all up, that's all fine, but trying to beat the ever-changing algorithms on different platforms is just fucking maddening. 🧵

#WIPSnips Mar 6: My absolute favorite use of this word appears in one of my absolute favorite passages in the entire manuscript, and I'm afraid it's far too good to share in a snippet. 😅 It's the culmination of too much to give away. This one is from earlier in the text, and thus less climactic.

An icon of a feather quill in a sketched circle, in green, with text: Scribendi - News and updates from Cass Morris: author, podcaster, educator, geek.

I’ve been working on a newsletter all week, so I’ll share that!

buttondown.com/cassrmorris

#SFFChat A4: A sort of renewal, at least.

#SFFChat A3: Honestly, I get such a charge from doing Worldbuilding for Masochists with @mrmaresca.com and @natania.bsky.social and all our amazing guests. It’s brilliant to get to talk with such amazing people about craft on a regular basis.

😂 I mean honestly for our modern world that's totally valid

This is making me think of the episode of @worldbuildcast.bsky.social we did for New Year's Eve this year, which was all about calendars, and how even in one culture there can be multiple.

Oh, it gets better. It's actually mythology in immersive entertainment. I work for a company that produces mythology-themed summer camps. I get to send the kids on their quests.

It's worthy of them! What an awesome case!

Yes, mother maiden and crone

Rebirth is all over my day job, though, since I work in mythology. 😂 Can't swing a chimera without hitting a reborn god or a hero returning from the underworld.

#SFFChat A2: Y'know, it's actually not something I focus on all that much, which is slightly odd considering what a devout reincarnationist I am. My fantasy calendars do tend to start in spring, because I firmly believe that's when the damn year *ought* to begin, as the world wakes back up.

It was my own damn fault, really, having the third ones done at a Claire's 😅

Oof, that happened to me with my second and third earring holes. (Third got infected and it spread to the second). I eventually had to give them up entirely. Fortunately the first piercings were so old and stable that they stayed fine.

That is a wonderful and hilarious philosophy of tattoos!

(Selfishly I'd also love it if giant chonky novels with denser prose and lots of history stuffed into them came back in vogue. That would *really* help me out. 😅 )

#SFFChat A1: I feel like we're starting to see a move in this direction, but more earnestness. Less cynicism, less smugness, less hard-bitten-ness. You can be witty without being derisive.

We're seeing it in cozies, I think, but I'd like to see more of it back in epics. I like big emotions.

I also put bandanas and scarves in my hair quite often. I like dangly pendant necklaces. I'm not much of a belt person except for the pouch belt I wear with my Star Wars cosplay and also at camp.

#SFFChat Intro: Hello! I'm Cass, author of historical fantasy series the Aven Cycle.

I love dangly earrings. Chandelier earrings. I don't care if they're out of fashion. I adore them.

And thanks to @peculiarityshop.bsky.social I'm apparently also now addicted to rings. 😅

I am loving the variety in the replies & quotes of the original post. It's so heartening to see so many people who've enjoyed offbeat Shakespeare as well as the A-list hits!