Don Martin
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bydonmartin.bsky.social
Don Martin
@bydonmartin.bsky.social
3.5K followers 32 following 780 posts
Author of fiction, non-fiction, & poetry.

Coming soon: Verity Vox & the Curse of Foxfire (YA fantasy); Where did everybody go? (Non-Fic)

Out now: The Dabbler’s Guide to Witchcraft; while I wait to be a god again; The Playground

Host: Head On Fire pod
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bydonmartin.bsky.social
🎃 CHICAGO READERS!! 🎃

Come join me and Miranda Sun TONIGHT at The Book Stall at 6:30!

I am giving away Tacita’s Heart! (The anatomical heart 🫀 wax melts I made in collaboration with The Librarian’s Candle Co. that smell like Foxfire).

thebookstall.com/event/2025-1...
October 30, 2025 at 12:46 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Want to read a Harry Potter alternative about queer witches?

Are you tempted by Prime Day deals, but don’t want to support an evil corporation?

@bookshop_org is having an Anti-Prime Day sale! IT ENDS TODAY!!!

Might I suggest Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire?

bookshop.org/p/books/veri...
Photo of Don holding Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire
October 8, 2025 at 1:39 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Signed a fresh stack of books at Anderson’s Bookshop! I know a lot of these are for backorders, but they also have some left if you’re looking for a signed copy!

Any copy of Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire purchased through them will be signed!

andersonsbookshop.com/book/9798890...
Photo of Don in front of a stack of signed books titled Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire
September 4, 2025 at 8:32 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Oh…you’re here.

I was definitely ready for you!

Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire is AVAILABLE NOW!

bydonmartin.com/verity-vox-1
August 6, 2025 at 2:15 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
The Strand Bookstore @strandbookstore in New York, NY - August 29th

A Seriously Spooky YA panel featuring @ryanlasala.bsky.social @claribelortega.com and @megelison.bsky.social

Tickets here:

www.eventbrite.com/e/ya-panel-d...
July 18, 2025 at 9:31 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Signing at Jolly Giraffe Books in Frankfort, IL - August 24th

12p-3p

No ticket necessary!
July 18, 2025 at 9:31 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Announcing the tour schedule for Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire!

There might still be one last little event or two upcoming, but as far as major city bookstore tour appearances go this is it!

Hope to see you out there!

This is my very first book tour! AHHHHHHHH
July 18, 2025 at 9:31 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
EVERYONE MEET VERITY & TACITA!

The voice and heart of Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire!

My friends at Anderson’s Bookshop are hosting a preorder giveaway!

andersonsbookshop.com/book/9798890...
VeritycVox AND THE CURSE OF FOXFIRE EXCLUSIVE PREORDER OFFER WITH - ANDERSON's BOOKSHOPS - Verity dox- AND THE CURSE OF FOXFIRE DON MARTIN THE WITCH THE LOST GIRL PAGE STREET YAT 2 character art cards by cover artist @b.ruja Preorder Now! signed copy + an exclusive "Jack the cat" sticker Available for a limited time Preorder from Anderson's by /4 Image of Verity Vox floating while singing a spell Text reads: Verity vox witch in-training never let them see you flinch Books For Youth→Fiction-Fantasy Verity don AND THE CURSE OF FOXFIRE MARTIN When I read this review I sobbed so much my husband thought someone died. Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire. By Don Martin. Aug. 2025. 336p. Page Street YA, $18.99 (9798890032706). Grades 7-12. REVIEW. First published June 1, 2025_(Booklist). Witch-in-training Verity Vox has been called to the isolated Appalachian town of Foxfire, which has been cursed by otherworldly Earl, a huckster who promised to solve the town's problems in exchange for increasingly costly sacrifices. When Verity arrives, she finds a valley of withered crops, sick livestock, and a people deeply suspicious of magic. Verity won't give up, however, gradually mending broken items, fixing buildings, and growing magically productive gardens until she earns the trust of the people of Foxfire. But when she goes into the woods in search of a missing girl, she crosses Earl and unleashes his vindictive rage anew. Martin skillfully blends the cozy magic of healing and mending, conjured up by Verity's folk songs and nursery rhymes, with the eldritch horrors of Earl's twisted forest; Earl himself, whose incantations consist of distorted Bible verses, is composed of mismatched, rotten body parts and fetid hunks of wood. Martin's evocative, painterly descriptions bring it all to life, from a shape-shifting familiar to a pleasantly dusty dress shop to the grotesque approximation of a human shape attempted by an ancient god. Beneath it all is poignant subtext about poverty, neglect, the abuse of power, and the prison of conformity-but at heart, it's the witchy tale of home, belonging, and healing (with a quiet but well-earned queer romance) that will beguile readers. — Sarah Hunter Image of Tacita Tarry holding a lantern about to enter dark woods Text reads: Tacita Tarry her heart is held hostage literally...how is she walking around?
June 7, 2025 at 12:54 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Never getting over this:

www.publishersweekly.com/9798890032706
May 22, 2025 at 8:10 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Some thoughts on platform, context, and that Mein Kampf book lady.
Here's a tip from someone who used to have a very small platform and suddenly got a much larger one: (this is about the Mein Kampf book lady) Everything you put on social media platforms that thing. If I post a photo of my nachos, l'm platforming nachos. It comes with the tacit endorsement of nachos. Now you can post a problematic thing without the tacit endorsement aspect, but you must be clear & intentional when doing so. If I post a shopping haul photo, & it's clothes, jewelry, and a gun with no other context, it looks like I'm happily showing off all three of those items. That all of them are given equal weight and equal celebration. If you want to engage with a tough topic, you have to give it its own context. Its own post. And you have to give your audience a permission structure to trust that you'll handle the topic with care & reverence. That's how I can both cover the death & investigation of a trans student in Oklahoma on the same account I rank Digimon. My audience— trusts that when it's time to get serious, I am going to have done my research, laid out everything they need to know, and crafted the message in such a way they are going to leave my content feeling informed & empowered. But everything changes when I make one of those posts. My clothing changes. My hair changes. I choose different glasses. I give nonverbal cues to my audience that we aren't being silly now. You can absolutely post that you are choosing to read Mein Kampf. Honestly, given the times we're in, I don't blame you for wanting to get insight into the last time this happened. But there is no way on earth to share that with your audience if the context you're presenting is a cutesy romance book haul. If you're framing it as just another book, you are going to always appear callous & uncaring at best, and platforming those nachos at worst.
April 25, 2025 at 2:00 PM
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Barnes & Noble Rewards and Premium Members get 25% off all pre-orders from April 23rd through 25th! Premium Members get an additional 10% off!

Use code PREORDER25 at checkout!

www.barnesandnoble.com/w/verity-vox...
April 23, 2025 at 12:06 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Ask and he shall receive
Photo of Don next to his new Aventon ebike Photo of Don next to his new Aventon ebike Photo of Don next to his new Aventon ebike Photo of Don enthusiastically next to his new Aventon ebike
April 18, 2025 at 12:37 AM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire ARCs are up for request on Netgalley!

A few reminders:

My publisher handles all requests. I have no control over them. Please don’t ask.

Please don’t tag me in reviews. Those are for readers.

I know I have a large, passionate following but please don’t
AVAILABLE ON NETGALLEY NOW! yA Fantasy Age: 12-18 Yes i mean 12. do you miss whimsy? Agatha & Elphaba & winifred & verity do you miss The Dark is Rising, The Lost Years of Merlin, or Animorphs? Verity dox AND THE CURSE OF FOXFIRE. for kids who found themselves on the wrong end of scripture but the right end of choir inspired by real Appalachian history & folklore a cat-who-is-not-a-cat DON MARTIN that'sa nightjar... it could be importantess Kiki's Delivery Service meets old Gods of Appalachia but gay? a race to break a curse, Finding a missing gin •solve the mystery of what's really under the mountain about the book ? WELCOME TO FOXFIRE The rules here are simple: Don't look in the trees. Don't whistle in the woods at night. Don't answer if you hear your name called. And remember.. everything wants Verity Vox is a witch-in-training who has never met a problem her spells can t solve. But when a cryptic plea for help sends her to the forgotten coal mining town of Foxfire, she soon learns even magic has its limits. Verity discovers a curse was laid years ago by a traveling magician who vanished into the ancient Appalachian hills to seek greater power. Crops won't grow. Bellies go hungry. Even treasured possessions fall apart. What's worse, people have gone missing amidst rumors that they've sought out the magician who is lying in wait for those foolish or desperate enough to strike a deal with him. The witch must break the curse, find a missing girl, and solve the mystery of what's really under the mountain before the town falls forever into the clutches of the monster lurking in the hills. 9940 PAGE STREET YA ABOUT THE AUTHOR Don Martin was born in Appalachia and now lives with his husband on a horse ranch outside of Chicago, where he produces his inquisitive interview podcast, Head on Fire. verity vox and the curse of Foxfire is his debut novel. photo by Brittany Ambridge
April 2, 2025 at 12:50 PM
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Oh hey…thanks!

This is cool!
Screenshot of Don’s TikTok profile showing he’s reached a follower count of 400,000
March 26, 2025 at 11:19 AM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
I guess the…familiar is out of the hat?

Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire will have an audiobook, and it’s available for preorder now.

If Agatha or Elphaba have you loving a witch that sings…

It’s up on @libro.fm & anywhere else you get audiobooks!
Screenshot showing that Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire is available for preorder on Libro.FM Screenshot showing that Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire is available for preorder on Audible
March 14, 2025 at 1:39 PM
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Verity Vox audiobook update!
March 14, 2025 at 1:21 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
New favorite writing hack
March 13, 2025 at 10:16 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
It isn’t even 8am, and I am already exhausted.

Ya know what if you think like this I don’t want you as a fan.

“You should take it as a compliment that someone would bother to steal your car.”

Piracy is theft!
@abduking. • 1 hour ago shushhhh THE PIRACY WILL NEVER END. You should take it as a compliment that people would bother to pirate your books. 回
March 5, 2025 at 1:39 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Everything by KJ Charles.

If you want Gay Bridgerton, it’s these:
March 1, 2025 at 1:42 AM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Getting a ton of requests for me to come to your local bookstore, library, or school.

It’s time to start figuring out where the most interest exists!!!

So if you want me to come to your location, email my publicist!

The team is organizing tour stops now!
BOOKSELLERS, LIBRARIANS, EDUCATORS! IF YOU WANT ME TO APPEAR FOR A VERITY VOX EVENT, PLEASE EMAIL SHANNOND@PAGESTREETPUBLISHING.COM FOR BOOKING!
February 26, 2025 at 11:35 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Oh…and that’s Jack.

Preorder here: bydonmartin.com/verity-vox
Verity Vox AND THE CURSE OF FOXFIRE The cat with the smoke trails coming off of kim? That's DON MARTIN Jack. He's a cat-who-is-not-a-cat. I'd say more bat... spoilers. I have LOADS more references and bits of folklore and hidden details to share, bat it's a long way til August so we must pace ourselves. Pre-Order Today!
February 14, 2025 at 9:41 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Even the lettering had some TLC.
Verity's name is very special. Verity Vox AND THE CURSE OF This unique lettering was drawn by the cover designer, Katie Beasley. I told her that Verity needed & style unique to her. Something young readers could instantly identify. Iconic. She delivered. There is a lyrical sheet music quality to her name, which references Verity's magical singing voice. Bat it also is reminiscent of threads, which are important to the story for reasons that will become clear once you read it.
February 14, 2025 at 9:41 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
The title has a lot of hidden references.
Verity Vox AND THE CURSE OF FOXFIRE. Everyone on the team took a lot of TLC with the title. Big shout out to Katie here. The color was chosen to match the color of actual foxfire, whick is a kind of bioluminescence found in fangi in decaying wood. It is often found in the Appalachian hills. The word itself is also the name of a online> exiire b book series that documented the history and lore of the region. The Vulcan Oil Company" THE VULCAN Even the roughness of the fort traces back to documents from the real life mining company that partially inspired the story. DENINE CONTRIY GBL E
February 14, 2025 at 9:41 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
Visual vibe inspiration.
For the vibes I warted this to feel like a forgotten classic. A return to those Che Dark Is Rising Sequence SUSAN COOPER gorgeous painted covers of T.A. BARRON fantasy adventure books I LOST YEARS OF MERLIN loved as a kid. Like these from Susan Cooper and T.A. Barror # Peter Gendry • Saen's Secret I also drew a lot of inspiration from the cozy but isolated mountain villages in the artwork of Francisco Fonseca. As well as the photography of Victoria Veil and- Briscoe Park think Gaby nailed it!
February 14, 2025 at 9:41 PM
bydonmartin.bsky.social
These aren't just any birds!
They're nightjars.
These aren't just any birds! They're nightjars. Nightjars are noctarkal birds found all over the world. Sometimes called righthawks or dragon birds Like a lot of nocturnal animals, they have some curious folklore. I'd say more but...spoilers. Featuring images of nightjars.
February 14, 2025 at 9:41 PM