Most Octobers find me indulging in All Halloween, All the Time: I read nothing but ghost stories, eat nothing but pumpkin (you would not believe how many pumpkin cookbooks I own), and stay up late into the nights, basking in the glow of Halloween decorations that take days and days to put up. I drink pumpkin beer and listen to “The Monster Mash” on repeat while sewing costumes.

This October’s been a little different, though, focused as I’ve been on my spooky-(not)-scary-skeletons book, The Bone Brides. I haven’t had a weekend free from book things all month, and between that and mothering a toddler (he’s just figured out walking! a toddler, egad!), I simply don’t have my usual energy for Halloween. That’s okay, though: December’s a good month for ghosts, too. Perhaps the ghosts and I will just hibernate until then.

For the aforementioned reasons, this newsletter looks a little different from usual. Feel free to think of it as the anime-recap-episode that happens when production falls behind ;P

Recap, Part I: Cool Stuff I’ve Been Up To

Launch party at Linden Tree Books! Signing at Barnes & Noble Birdcage! Author talk at The Pleasant Pheasant! Thank you so much to the bookstores for hosting me; to my inimitable conversation partners, Samantha Chong and Cheri Radke, for asking all the right questions; and of course to everyone who came out to support The Bone Brides!

I also had the pleasure and honor of speaking to the creative writing class at my old high school! The students were fabulous—full of truly insightful questions—and talking with them reminded me precisely why it is that I write, and write specifically for teens.

Oh, and one kid said that my response to one of their questions was “actually really based,” and I will be living off that compliment for months.

Recap, Part II: Guests Posts I’ve Written

In case this shorter newsletter leaves you craving something more...

On changelings for Reactor: https://reactormag.com/five-unique-takes-on-faerie-changelings/

On mental health for The Nerd Daily: https://thenerddaily.com/marley-rose-teter-author-guest-post/

On rediscovering fantasy for The Debutante Ball: https://thedebutanteball.substack.com/p/marley-rose-teter-on-returning-to

And on Next Week’s Episode (aka, More Events on the Horizon)

This weekend, I’ll be at World Fantasy Con in Oakland! You can find me at the Mass Autographing Session on Friday, Oct. 23, from 8-10pm, and then moderating the panel “Fae, Fairie, Faerie, or Fairy? Cultural Differences” on Saturday, Oct. 24, from 9-10am. I’ll also just be wandering around, attending as many panels as possible, so if you see me, please do say hi!

Then, on Sunday, Oct. 25, I’ll be at Barnes & Noble Emeryville from 1-3pm, signing copies of The Bone Brides!

Finally, I’ll be at Fireside Books & More in Redwood City on Friday, Nov. 13, from 6-7pm for the panel “Imaginary Worlds, Real Emotions,” alongside fellow debut fantasy authors Zara Marielle and Mia V. Moss! The event is free to attend, but please do register in advance: https://luma.com/p1r47e9m

Some Halloweens are for Monster Mash-ing, and some are for hibernation. The ghosts and I will be back in full force in December! For now...I’m enjoying the fact that it’s a drizzly day, dark enough that I can turn on my koi-shaped paper lanterns to illuminate my study and cool enough that I can drink mug after mug of tea.

Always,
Marley