Colton Howler
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coltonhowler.bsky.social
Colton Howler
@coltonhowler.bsky.social
160 followers 530 following 61 posts
Fantasy and Sci-Fi (writer / author) thinking of dreaming of electric sheep. Four hundred fragments of stories and one hope to tell them to you. Louisville KY-ish
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coltonhowler.bsky.social
Two thoughts... First, at what level does seeking engagement detract from the creation of art? How much of us is put into the world pleading, hands outstretched, manipulating hashtags to garner any sort of feedback? All that time cannot be returned to us.

Second, do y'all know any good hashtags??
December 30, 2024 at 4:31 AM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
I trimmed down as much context as I could to reduce spoilers for my epic fantasy. Things are not looking good for our intrepid heroes, however.

#WIPSnips #amwriting #writingcommunity #writers #authors #writesky #writingprompts
December 8, 2024 at 12:37 AM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
Flash prompt!

There it is again; the ring-ting-tingling from a distance. You gulp and feel your heart quicken. The December holiday fever has begun and you know it's only a matter of time until the contagion gets to you. What do you do?

#WritingSky #WritingPrompts #FlashPrompts #Writers
December 5, 2024 at 4:47 PM
Reposted by Colton Howler
saishi.bsky.social
Reminder to Nightshade every. Single. Piece. Of art.

Because idiots like this will take your stuff, feed it to AI, and proudly show it off as 'Fixed'.

Do not engage the account. Block and report.

FFXIV people, this person is scraping our stuff specifically, including screenshots.
December 3, 2024 at 5:45 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
I've been reading tons of stuff like "Black Pill" by @ellereeve.bsky.social, "Wild Faith" by @swordsjew.bsky.social et al and I'm starting to look that that Charlie meme
That one meme from "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" with the character Charlie looking deranged in front of his conspiracy wall
December 4, 2024 at 12:48 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
I love finding old sketches. This is one of the main characters of "Blood of the Anvil", the current novel I'm working on. She's a fledgling mage and general badass, Kersona.

#fantasy #writing #writingsky #booksky💙📚 🪐📚
A digital drawing of the character Kersona, in a battle stance with sword and shield. She looks on to her opponent with anger and determination. Her braid is coming undone and flies wild in the action.
November 30, 2024 at 7:10 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
mynoise.net is a sound generation site and it's amazing. Indispensable tool for me. I especially like "Rain on a Tent" and "Irish Coast"
noise.net
November 29, 2024 at 5:54 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
Some concept sketches for my main series "Amalgam Songs". "Battle Fatigue" and "The Catalyst", respectively.
Pencil and ink drawing of an Accordant mage mid-fight, with overflowing arcane surge flowing through her as roiling clouds of glowing iridescent steam. Her posture is resolute, head tilted slightly down to show her intense readiness to continue the battle. Pencil and ink concept sketch of a scene from "Blood of the Anvil", depicting characters Adda and Sivar emerging from their hide site to witness a caravan being raided by unknown assailants. The wind is high on the great plains, and as Adda approaches the edge of the rock outcropping her cloak billows. Sivar appears ready to move on, his warrior's pragmatism encourages him to carry on away from danger to fight another day.
November 28, 2024 at 6:00 AM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
"Hopenbloomen"

#poetry #poemsky
Hopenbloomen - Colton Howler Precipitous prejudiced ponderances Nipping nascent natures Of blooms and twigs, birdsong and fresh lush New saturation, vibrancy, translucence A bud not bloomed bears beauty Wrapped in layers of time Nipped buds never know Dice cast caught midair These thoughts only come when it’s cold When the leaves are lying dead Winter brings flowers to mind While spring makes me yearn my youth Summer of my life Golden December of the world What buds yet to bloom will make it? The gardener is getting out the weedeater Bear with me, sleeping Morninglory Scant comfort, your ignorance To never know the grace of bloom; Or to know and to be cut short? Which hurts more? Does it matter? Bloom anyways.
November 28, 2024 at 3:38 AM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
"That night feeling." The nip of winter on your nose, eyes turned to the sky to soak in the stars; while the air tries to soak you up. Dead country, dead-end town, dead quiet of an anxious land devoid of critters. It's just us out here. The cold, the stars, and me. What a trio we are.
November 28, 2024 at 2:51 AM
Reposted by Colton Howler
marcelias.bsky.social
Billionaires are bowing down.
Media figures are bending a knee.
Public figures want to accommodate.

It is up to us to form a new opposition.
We will not back down. We must not obey.
November 28, 2024 at 2:24 AM
Reposted by Colton Howler
locusmag.bsky.social
Squockets say "donate to Locus Magazine to stay connected to the speculative fiction world." Help us jumpstart 2025 at our end of year giving campaign! Thank you for supporting what we do!

tinyurl.com/Locusdon... or

linktr.ee/locusmagaz... to see all the ways to support
Flying squid rockets plus text says Donate to Locus
November 27, 2024 at 3:04 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
I hear that authors are doing this on here...
Get to know my writing. For every like, I will post one quote.
November 27, 2024 at 1:01 AM
Reposted by Colton Howler
readerofbannedbook.bsky.social
November 26, 2024 at 6:11 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
Y'all finding the time to write when you have toddlers is HARD, cause I'll always prioritize their needs over mine. I love them but I miss the days when my word count was 3k-5k
November 26, 2024 at 10:11 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
Am I weird for feeling bad for not including certain characters enough in my stories, as if they're real people and feel left out?
November 26, 2024 at 6:02 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
#poetry #poetrysky #poem #writersky
"No-Stalgia by Colton Howler" A day goes by Oh wait it was a week Oh me oh my I thought I was on a streak No call to Ron Call him tomorrow Oh he's gone There's no tomorrow Love to siblings My gaggle of dorky dorks When last we met It was two summers ago Now I feel bad Guilt finds a home in my hands Delete that draft They hate me, they're steamed mad Tomorrow I'll try Oh shit it's been a year Oh, a kid, mine Surely I'll have time, here New day new draft Shit it's been a week I deleted five How can I love if I don't do it perfectly? Won't they hate me? Won't their lights dim near me? Won't their smiles for me wither? Won't they remember all those weeks I did not call? Where does the sun go when it sets? When does the fast forward reset? When will my guilt let me be? When will the pain of my failure let me be? Why does this feeling stack? How high can it reach? What if it touches the sun? Would that finally motivate me to change? Remorse is a name I know But how can I have remorse? I didn't do anything. Oh. I didn't do *anything.* I should call my mom. Maybe tomorrow.
November 25, 2024 at 3:59 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
I've said it before and I'll say it again... David Graeber is the most impactful anarchist writer in the last two generations. His ability to articulate incredibly dense topics and make solid arguments is unparalleled. He is sorely missed these days. Wonder what he'd say about the US nowadays?
November 25, 2024 at 2:31 AM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
Maybe I'm just getting old, but I did not find that writing adult, epic fantasy on Wattpad or Inkitt yielded any tangible results. It mostly seems to be for a different audience than I'm aiming for. Is there any app or site in the same vein that we can use?
November 24, 2024 at 10:42 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
Is there a particular piece of prose that you are proud of? Poetry, fiction, anything... Give us a taste!

#WritingSky #WriterSky
November 24, 2024 at 2:57 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
Here's a 1-2-3-4 punch for you just in time for holiday dinner

Jesus & John Wayne - Kristin Du Mez (@kkdumez.bsky.social)

Unholy - Sarah Posner (@sarahposner.bsky.social)

Wild Faith - Talia Lavin (@swordsjew.bsky.social)

American Idolatry - Andrew Whitehead (@Andrew-Whitehead.bsky.social)
November 23, 2024 at 3:53 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
Hey #BookSky & #Writers tell me about the favorite character(s) you have written (if you have one, I know it's hard to choose)! Why are they your favorite?
November 22, 2024 at 5:20 PM
Reposted by Colton Howler
gailsimone.bsky.social
True!
November 22, 2024 at 2:02 PM
coltonhowler.bsky.social
It is an odd feeling, connecting with dead folk over their words on paper. Communing with ghosts, if you will, lamenting the sorry state of our world... Tolkien on dictatorship, Orwell on totalitarian authority, Le Guin on colonialism, Vonnegut on misinformation... We read but don't heed.
November 22, 2024 at 2:41 PM