Dearest T. rex,

I’m sorry.

I’m sorry I called you overplayed. I’m sorry I confused you for the bully some men have made of you. And I’m sorry that you’ve had to bear the weight of being an ambassador for prehistory more than 66 million years after you lived, to be an icon whether you wanted to be or not.

The versions I met of you when I was young, they were all so mean. You were the biggest, more ferocious, and hungriest creature to ever exist. Unquestioned. You were named a tyrant and expected to act like it. And knowing people who aspired to that dominance, never even allowing their terrible power to be questioned, I came to believe in the distortion, too.

But some part of me knew this couldn’t be right. I kept seeking you out. In every museum, I’d look for you. If a dinosaur movie didn’t include you in some way - a picture in a book, a fossil skull grinning from the shadows - I’d feel a little let down. Because you were an animal, long dead and entirely unconcerned about what I think of you. The problem was always human, and in me for fixating on your bad reputation. I know what that’s like, and I feel doubly bruised for doing the same to you.

We won’t speak, so I can’t fear a cutoff. But I would hope, if you could understand it, that you could embrace Tyrant Lizard Queen as the love letter I have been longing to write. You were always there, peering out of the hazy past, ready to take me in your jaws and pull me back to a time when life was more vibrant, abundant, and strange than anything I know now. You acted as a beacon for me, a refuge in time away from all my 21st century primate worries. You’ve put food in my mouth and afflicted me with countless hours of wonder. A more honest book might just say “thank you” over and over.

I had to tell your story. I wanted to show the world how I see you. You are one of my most favorite monsters, not for heavy jaws or rapacious instincts but because you are so big, so striking, as to be a force of nature. You push the boundaries on what seems real. All the things I’d love to know about you have occupied years of my life, and my heart beats through these pages. Pages that, if I’m lucky, will still be read after I’m only bones, perhaps not even that.

I never expected that I’d have a relationship with a dinosaur. But I don’t know how else to describe it. I met you and the love was so unquestionable that I didn’t even realize what it was. From the perspective of deep time, I’ve always adored you, my tyrant lizard queen.

Tyrant Lizard Queen is nearly here. After years of work and waiting, Snaggletooth will stomp her way to bookshelves on Tuesday. (Some lucky ducks are already getting their copies.) I hope you love the book. And if you do, I hope you talk it up to the people in your life. Word of mouth makes a world a difference, moreso as we keep fighting for books during a time of fascist bans and ai slop. Every copy that passes over the bookshop counter and inhabits a library shelf helps keep me moving to the next story. Most of all, though, I hope you enjoy the tale and come away with a new perspective on an old friend.

In addition to the book, I commissioned artist Emma LeRae to create a movie style poster for Tyrant Lizard Queen, as well as a sticker of Snaggletooth and one of her babies. You can find both at Emma’s store.

And if you pre-ordered Tyrant Lizard Queen in any format, first, thank you! But don’t forget your goodies. You’ve got just a few more days to fill out the form to get some digital bonus materials related to the new book, as well as a signed bookplate. Fulfillment will be through St. Martin’s Press, and you can get all the details on the form page.

Scribblings

• I’ve been visiting a few podcasts as Tyrant Lizard Queen is getting ready to come out. ACS podcast Tiny Matters had me back for a bonus episode, and I hopped on the BeX Files to talk TLQ as well as some other favorite monsters of mine.

• Tears of the Mountain is a beautiful short film, and one that cuts close to the pain of seeing dinosaur fossils sold for profit.

• Triceratops wasn’t the only dinosaur that wrestled with its horns. In a new piece of paleo fiction, I imagine an ancient tussle between a pair of very spiky horned dinosaurs.

Stomping to a City Near You

It’s almost time! Next week, I’ll be making a few stops to celebrate the release of Tyrant Lizard Queen.

• Launch day! October 27th I’ll be at the central Enoch Pratt Library in Baltimore, MD.

• October 28th at Scrawl Books in Reston, VA. This is a trivia night event, so make sure you’re ready for dino questions!

• November 4th I’ll be in Lewes, DE at the public library for a joint event with Browseabout books.

• November 5th I’ll be at the Bureau of General Services - Queer Division in NYC!

• November 6th I’ll be at the Harvard Bookstore in Cambridge, MA!

• December 2nd I’ll be at the Natural History Society of Maryland in Baltimore, MD.

If you’d like me to do an in-person or virtual event closer to you, encourage your local museum or library to get in touch.

Ear Perks

• No one writes werewolves like Angela Quinton. Spit is one of my favorite stories, and if you want a howling good time I very much recommend it.

• Did dome-headed dinosaurs have mobile tongues? A delicate new fossil hints that they may have.

• Wolves have a taste for blueberries!