Emily Mulholland Merriman is querying Rootfall
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emmywriting.bsky.social
Emily Mulholland Merriman is querying Rootfall
@emmywriting.bsky.social
110 followers 90 following 410 posts
Young adult fantasy writer in the US. Querying my (hopefully) debut novel Rootfall.

🏳️‍⚧️ queer autistic

she/her
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emmywriting.bsky.social
No new pictures, where are you mentally?
Post from lunarmoonmuse that reads "they should invent a week that's bearable" with a blue border depicting outlines of animals.
October 4, 2025 at 7:12 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
This one?
Six anus-shaped pieces of chocolate.
October 4, 2025 at 1:45 AM
emmywriting.bsky.social
Apricot jelly on top to add flavor and keep everything glistening and fresh!
August 23, 2025 at 12:41 AM
emmywriting.bsky.social
Seven Blades in Black (the entire Grave of Empires series) is my favorite book (series) of all time. The adventure, the humor, the depth of character...I've read things that come close, but never things that match it. The trilogy has PROFOUNDLY influenced my writing and love for the craft.
the cover of Seven Blades in Black, by Sam Sykes. Sal the Cacophony faces off against seven swords pointed at her.
August 20, 2025 at 11:14 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
#WIPSnips August 12th: split

Starting in the middle of a sentence, but it should be easy to understand. This is where we really get to see the mage-knight aspect of the Librarians rather than just the mage aspect.

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity
instead of being half as tall as Royse, it was closer to twice as tall. Long, twisting horns grew out of its head and a pair of fangs jutted past its bottom lip. Its nearly naked body was ridged with muscle. The only thing obscuring its skin was a loincloth the size of Royse’s undershirt, from the back of which emerged a long tail with a sharp tip. “Preserver,” Giles whispered, as if he was too scared to say it aloud. The preserver let out an earsplitting roar that rustled the leaves and blew back the Pages’ hair. It began stomping forward, slowly at first but picking up speed. A human-sized blur flew over Royse’s head and crashed into the ground in front of the preserver, splashing dirt into the air. The dirt settled to reveal a huge suit of dark blue plate armor with a red belt and scabbard. The scabbard was empty, however, due to its wearer having drawn its contents: a broadsword that was far too large for any normal person to wield. Thankfully, Sir Rickard wasn’t a normal human. He was the greatest mage alive at single combat.
August 13, 2025 at 1:10 AM
emmywriting.bsky.social
#WIPSnips August 11: Real

Royse (MC) has just discovered she's going to be dueling her best friend Malle for promotion from Page to Squire. Julian asks Royse and Malle who they think will win, and they both say they don't know.

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity
“That’s a cheap answer,” Julian said. “You have to have a hunch one way or the other, even if it’s just your own confidence.” He leaned forward and his lips stretched into a smug smile. “Want to know what I think?” “Did we ask?” Giles said. Julian raised his eyebrows. Royse and Malle shared a wide-eyed look. This was the first time any of them had seen Giles stand up to Julian directly, let alone with such an attitude. Royse couldn’t help but grin. Julian cackled, a loud, harsh sound that made diners at other tables turn to look. “He finally grows some courage. All right. I see you. We’ll just let it play out.” He stood, stretched, and walked over to drop his dishes in the bin. “That was great,” Malle said with a grin. Giles shrugged. “I just finally had enough. Some of us care about this, you know?” “I’m sure he does too,” Malle said, “or he wouldn’t work so hard. Maybe he uses his arrogance to hide his real feelings.” “I doubt it,” Royse said. “I think he’s just arrogant. He cares, but he’s never had to worry, because he’s always been the best. Except for Sancha, but he’s had half a year to get over that.”
August 11, 2025 at 9:52 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
#WIPSnips August 10th: flower

Royse's first quest with her entire cohort. They've been tasked with protecting a village from a horde of imps lurking in the forest. It was fun to take the arrogant Julian down a peg in this exchange.

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity
They emerged on a low hilltop surrounded by flat grassland on all sides. The sun was off to one side, bright despite noon being three hours away. Its heat was kept at bay by a soft wind that rustled the grasses and carried to Royse’s nose the irreconcilable smells of sweet wildflowers and musky farm animals. Less than a league in front of them stretched the treeline of a tall green forest. A league behind sat a small farming village. Royse felt safe to assume that was the village they were protecting and the source of the animal smells. “Can we just burn down the forest?” Julian asked. “The wind will keep the fire away from the village.” Malle glared at him. “And kill all the poor animals in it?” “There are villages on the other side,” Sir Rickard said. “And the wind can change at any time. We do this the right way.” Julian shrugged. “More murder for me.” “Not murder,” Royse reminded him. “They’re imps.” “Fine. More carnage for me. Happy?” “Their bodies vanish when slain,” Giles said, “so we probably won’t leave much in the way of carnage.” Julian rolled his eyes. “You’re all insufferable.” Then he cast the general combat buff and leaped off of the hill, soaring in a smooth arc toward the forest. His landing threw chunks of soil into the air.
August 10, 2025 at 11:16 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
#WIPSnips August 9th: brush

Sancha is a bit of a ringer brought in to spar with each of the MCs and show them how much further they have to grow. She's beaten everyone but Malle, and now sparring seems to be turning into sparking.

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity
Sancha looked Malle up and down. “I guess it’s your turn, then?” she asked with a grin. “I guess it is.” Malle stood and joined her and Sir Rickard around the book. The two girls’ fingers brushed together as they gripped it. Then Royse was alone with her emotions. #
August 9, 2025 at 7:34 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
#WIPSnips August 8th: update

How about an updated wardrobe to go with a new rank?
A few minutes later, Royse’s basking was interrupted by the wake-up bell, whose chiming magically sounded in every living quarter at once. She put a spark of mana into the everglowing lantern on her nightstand, which flared to life, shining a gentle yellow light across the room. It wasn’t much of a room, only consisting of a bed with a nightstand, a desk with a chair, and a wardrobe with a washbasin, but that was all she needed. Royse rolled out of bed and tied on her new white robes with the plain corded belt of a Page. Only Knights and above specialized enough for colored belts. Once she finished her morning ablutions, she stepped out into the corridor to head for Sir Merrick’s office. Like yesterday, her year was meeting the research Commander first thing in the morning. Unlike yesterday, they were already Pages, and there were only four of them. Also unlike yesterday, they weren’t taking an exam. They weren’t ending their time as students--they were starting their time as Librarians.
August 9, 2025 at 1:00 AM
emmywriting.bsky.social
#WIPSnips August 6th: compete

In which Royse learns how difficult it will be to climb the ranks as a Warden of the Library.

#booksky #writesky
Sir Merrick nodded. “Well said. The two of us will offer you resources, but making and executing the final decisions on your training is solely your responsibility. You will require more than a little grit and dedication to advance to Squire, and advancing beyond that will demand more than you can imagine. Remember that many of your opponents in the promotion tournament will have been in their role for longer than you. That means they have had more chances to study the same magic as you. They will be more skilled than you at using the very same spells.” Royse tried not to let her worries bubble to the surface. She had known about the difference in experience, but she’d never heard it put that plainly. She’d have to compete against Pages who had been learning Basic magic for multiple years. That included healing magic she’d be unable to match and powerful attacks she might not be able to defend against. If she didn’t learn the right spells and use them the right way...
August 7, 2025 at 12:22 AM
emmywriting.bsky.social
#WIPSnips August 5: boss

In which Royse is supposed to fight a 1v1v1 but instead finds herself in a 1v2.

#writesky #booksky #writingprompts
“This is supposed to be an individual tournament,” Sir Hawise said. “The fact that you two immediately decided to team up against a Page a year younger than you makes me worry about your ability to put the Library’s needs ahead of your own desires.” Col glowered at her. “The Library’s needs are not to promote younger Pages over older ones. It makes Pages want to quit.” Sir Hawise stepped closer to Col, who shrank back. “I’m going to ignore that a Page just told a Captain what the Library needs. What I am going to do is to remind you that if we only promoted by year, you and Borisu wouldn’t even be in consideration until the entire year ahead of you and at least a quarter of your year became Squires. You only have this chance because enough of the older Pages are weak or content where they are. But if you keep teaming up to take the easy way out, you’ll be fifth-year Pages stuck losing to promising first-years.” Royse couldn’t help but grin at watching these arrogant Pages get dressed down by a superior. Not only was it deeply satisfying, but it wasted even more of their time and mana.
August 5, 2025 at 6:42 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
In which Royse grapples with the certainty she's been betrayed and wonders about the obvious subject. Again keeping things a bit vague so as not to give away the first big plot point :P

#WIPSnips #Booksky #Writesky
Someone in the Library, someone Royse knew, was a traitor. Whoever it was leaked information to the stranger and presumably was still doing so. But who? Julian was the obvious suspect. He was the only person who had learned about Royse’s inability to heal. He was also ambitious enough to be bribed, especially by someone with as much magical skill and knowledge as the stranger. But that led to another question: why couldn’t Julian steal the book? Why create such a convoluted plan to get Royse to do it when Julian was almost certain to win the promotion tournaments already?
August 4, 2025 at 5:20 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
#WIPSnips August 3: Here's an intentionally vague one, because it references the first major plot point and I don't wanna spoil it.

#booksky #writesky #writingprompts
Royse nearly stepped on the letter as she entered her room. The striking crimson wax of the seal caught her eye right before she put down her boot. Instead, she set the stack of books Sir Merrick had given her on her desk, then bent down and picked up the letter. The orb-headed staff on the seal made Royse’s blood chill. She hurriedly closed the door before breaking the seal. The letter consisted of three neatly written lines: Don’t think I forgot about you. The book is named Divining Subtle Patterns. Good luck with your promotions. Royse memorized the book’s title and then reduced the paper to ashes with a conjured flame. Despite the evidence being gone, her heart still pounded, as if someone could still discover the curse and her plan.
August 3, 2025 at 7:47 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
Using "engage" as engaging someone in combat. Julian has just baited Royse (MC) into a duel by insulting her best friend. He's trying to get Royse to fight aggressively instead of defensively for once.

#WIPSnips #Booksky #Writesky
Julian had more mana than Royse, so there was no sense in standing there letting both of their mana drain to nothing. She launched herself toward him, covering the entire distance in two leaps. Right before she landed in front of him, she threw her arm forward in a punch. Julian spun out of the way of her blow. Royse had watched him spar enough to know that he was likely to spin all the way around and use his momentum to make a powerful elbow strike. So she let her knees buckle as she landed, crouching just enough for his elbow to pass harmlessly over her head. She threw her leg back to kick his chest, but he jumped out of the way. “That’s better,” Julian said with a grin as Royse turned to face him. “I felt it this time. You’re trying to hurt me.”
August 2, 2025 at 6:56 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
From my novel out with betas, Rootfall. One of the villains (John) is telling the MC's brother (Steffan) a very biased account of earlier events involving the MC. I love this sort of contrast cuz it's so revealing.

#WIPSnips #Writesky #Booksky
John’s face remained unreadable as he pulled out a pipe and lit it. After a toke, he shrugged and said, “Fine. You could probably find out anyway. We were set up in Addra, on Nergund. We took over the entire town a few months earlier, and Arwynn was still rebuilding after a revolt. In another season or so, everything would have been good. But this caravan owner tricked us. He pretended he wanted to trade, then got the bandits in the area to attack us. Took the whole city and killed most of our people. I heard he became mayor after that, too, so he wasn’t just trying to free it. He wanted it for himself, even if he had to cover it in blood first.” John took another draw on the pipe. The smell was complex and musky, nothing like the sharp stuff Steffan’s mother used to smoke.
August 1, 2025 at 4:41 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
Millie says no more work today
A tabby cat lying on her side on a pink desk between a computer mouse and keyboard. Her extra fluffy belly is facing the camera.
July 31, 2025 at 8:03 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
From the first chapter of my upcoming Royal Road series. The characters are about to test to become Wardens of the Library of Magic, tasked with protecting it...and Julian throws Royse off her groove just before the last exam.

#WIPSnips #Booksky #WritingCommunity
Royse barely kept her mouth from dropping open. “I...what?” “Not a real fight. Spar with me.” There was no trace of humor in his expression. “Why?” Why would Julian want to spar with her? The only person she reliably defeated was Giles. What would he gain? “I want to see what you’re like when you stop holding back.” “Holding back? What makes you think that?” Her chest tightened. Of course Julian had been the one to notice. And at the worst possible time, too. Now she’d be second-guessing herself all day. He shrugged. “It’s obvious to anyone who pays enough attention. You fight too defensively. Like you’re scared of getting hurt. You don’t even punish obvious mistakes.” Leaning forward, he put his hand on the door frame next to her head. “I want to know why.”
July 31, 2025 at 5:32 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
#coverreveal for the first book in the #RoyalRoad series I've been writing! I'm gonna start publishing in a month, but I'm so excited I had to share this.

For context, the story is about a magical library and the mages (wardens) who defend it. The library's symbol is an 8-pointed star.

#booksky
July 30, 2025 at 9:34 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
From Rootfall, the book I have out with betas. Fjorir is a city nestled between two mile-high roots of the World Tree. The ramp leads up one of those roots.

#WIPSnips #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts
As Bo and Frederick had said, the caravan started up the right side of the ramp, the side that was closer to the city. Gwen was barely two feet from the railing. She watched as they drew even with--and then rose higher than--each successive story of building. Soon they were above even the highest buildings, and she could see out across the entire city. On entering Fjorir, Gwen had thought the people moved like ants, and that only seemed more true now that they looked the right size. The entire city was just an ant hive with streets instead of tunnels.
July 30, 2025 at 5:14 PM
emmywriting.bsky.social
Housesitting at my Mama's, so it's time for *drumroll please* blurry dog photos! The sleepy terrier is Peanut and the sleepy pibble is Rue.
A small, brown terrier curled up in a dog bed. A medium-sized brown pit bull curled up on a blanket on a couch.
July 23, 2025 at 10:56 PM