Morgan Richter
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Morgan Richter
@morganrichter.bsky.social
680 followers 400 following 1K posts
Author of THE DIVIDE and THE UNDERSTUDY, both from Knopf. Gen-X pop culture maven, Duran Duran aficionado, Miami Vice expert. Failed screenwriter, retired YouTuber. https://morganrichter.net/
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morganrichter.bsky.social
Every once in a while, the Industry Relations office of my alma mater sends me job postings. Many years ago, a bright-eyed and energetic young version of me would have jumped at the chance to be Lorne Michael's Second Assistant. The current version of me felt exhausted just reading this.
Snippet from a job posting: "SECOND ASSISTANT: The Office of Lorne Michaels at SNL is looking for an office assistant. In the office’s structure, there are three total assistants, and this opening is for the “second assistant,” a combination of executive and personal assistant. The ideal candidate has relevant experience in the entertainment industry (ideally two years on a desk or something of a similar nature). The office as a whole manages Lorne’s calendar, call sheet, meetings at SNL, and other personal endeavors. The second assistant also specifically handles ticketing for all of Lorne’s guests at SNL, checking them in and escorting high-profile talent. The pay range for this position is 75-90k plus full benefits. This job is located in New York City (full-time in-office six days a week on weeks when SNL is shooting, full-time mostly in-office five days a week on weeks when SNL isn’t shooting) and has an immediate start date. The ideal candidate is someone who has a high level of discretion, intellectual curiosity, organizational skills, the ability to read a room, an interest in comedy television/SNL and a “no-task-too-small” attitude!"
November 16, 2025 at 3:16 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
I'm sorry, I'm afraid I'm much too busy this morning. You've caught me right in the middle of an important Ninja Quest™ (i.e. doing my nails).
A sealed packet of Ninja Quest-brand acetone-free nail polish remover wipes.
November 16, 2025 at 2:55 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
The too-brief emergence of Napoleon's cheery bisexual side is the only thing worth remembering about the Christmas episode. (I just revisited my recap, and I'd mercifully forgotten about the part where a captive Illya and Napoleon are freed from their bonds by a bunch of turkeys.)
Screenshot from horrible Man from UNCLE episode "The Jingle Bells Affair," in which Robert Vaughn and David McCallum can barely conceal their withering disdain for the script as a turkey hovers behind them, ready to peck at the ropes binding their hands to free them from captivity.
November 12, 2025 at 6:23 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
Had a great time at Broadway Books in friendly, peaceful, quirky, lovely Portland chatting with the amazing @wnwagner.bsky.social. The crowd may have been small (my sister, my second cousin, my old friend Dave, Wendy's spouse, and one cool stranger), but everyone was lively and engaged.
Interior of Broadway Books in Portland, where I'm signing copies of The Understudy at a table while the fantastic Wendy N. Wagner stands nearby. Quick plug for Wendy's eco-horror book Girl in the Creek: It's wonderful, and everyone should read it.
September 28, 2025 at 5:20 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
I remember! I got into a weird fight in a bar with some random angry dude on this very topic! From my blog: morganrichter.net/blog/todays-...
Excerpt from a blog post I wrote on "Take On Me": "The video for “The Sun Always Shines on TV” is a direct sequel to “Take on Me,” transforming “Take on Me”’s romantic optimism into bitter tragedy: At the start of “The Sun Always Shines on TV,” Bailey and Harket’s characters experience momentary bliss in the real world, and then Harket is sucked back into the comic book, presumably for eternity, leaving Bailey bereft. Because Americans by and large don’t know much about A-ha, I got into an argument on this very subject with some random dude at a bar in New York a small handful of years ago: “Take on Me” came on over the sound system, his girlfriend and I started gushing about the video, I mentioned the existence of the sequel, and he jumped into our conversation to angrily insist that I must be talking about some kind of fan-made project, because the “Take on Me” video has never, ever had a sequel. I am not the kind of person who gets into arguments at bars, to put it mildly, and this experience—having my calm factual knowledge flat-out refuted by some dude who didn’t know a blasted thing about the subject matter but was nonetheless absolutely certain he was more qualified to weigh in on it than me—was a unique one to me at the time. Then I started a YouTube series devoted to analyses of Miami Vice episodes, and I quickly became accustomed to angry dudes yelling at me about how I am wrong, wrong, wrong."
September 23, 2025 at 5:38 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
For some damn reason, my sole Wikipedia citation comes in the entry for "catfight."
Wikipedia citation from the Wikipedia page for "Catfight", which quotes a long-ago blog post I wrote on my old, old blog, in which I recapped the Man from UNCLE episode "The Concrete Overcoat Affair." To be fair, that episode does contain a really epic catfight.
September 19, 2025 at 7:44 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
At mine, at that same Spokane bookstore last year, I looked like I was giving a presentation for Debate Club. (For this year's event, they gave me a sturdy armchair, which greatly mitigated the comedy club effect.)
I'm standing at a music podium in front of a screen at Auntie's Bookstore in Spokane, delivering a talk about my novel The Divide.
September 18, 2025 at 5:19 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
I'm cranky and prickly this morning for a multitude of reasons, so I'm (crankily) sharing this unsolicited email from someone who tries to make me insecure about the low reader interest in THE UNDERSTUDY, then offers to let me pay for Amazon reviews. This is gross.
Unsolicited and damn twerpy email that reads as follows: "Morgan, The Understudy already gives readers everything they want in a thriller. High-stakes ambition, a sinister understudy, and a glamorous world where art collides with obsession and murder. It’s suspenseful with a unique hook, written with cinematic pacing. But here’s the problem. Amazon doesn’t reward originality, or sharp dialogue, or the operatic scale of Kit and Yolanda’s rivalry. It rewards review activity. With only 48 ratings, the book risks slipping into the background while lesser thrillers with noisier readers steal the spotlight. That’s why I connect authors with a private group of over 2,000 everyday readers. They enjoy choosing books like yours, reading them, and sharing thoughtful, authentic reviews. They aren’t promoters. They’re genuine readers who take the time to respond, and authors usually thank them with a small tip, often the price of a couple of coffees. So the real question is this: will The Understudy stay backstage on Amazon, or will you let readers give it the standing ovation it deserves?"
September 15, 2025 at 12:49 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
A “1-2 season TV show (I) sorely miss,” you ask?
Advertisement for the short-lived and much-missed 1980s ABC series Max Headroom, featuring a futuristic cityscape, with Matt Frewer as investigative reporter Edison Carter and Amanda Pays as his controller Theora, posing on a TV set featuring the image of Edison's computer-generated chaotic alter ego, Max Headroom.
September 13, 2025 at 2:45 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
Darth, I had another book published by Knopf! It's about the murderous rivalry between a pair of divas during the production of an opera based on Barbarella.
Cover of The Understudy, a novel by Morgan Richter, which features an illustration of a woman peeking out from behind a red curtain in a sinister way.
September 11, 2025 at 1:33 AM
morganrichter.bsky.social
@alexdugganreports.bsky.social I’m in Spokane on my book tour, and I went to the Northwest Museum of the Arts today, and I stared at this exhibit, thinking, “wow, that name is very familiar.”
Northwest Museum of the Arts exhibit on the effects of fires on Spokane, spotlighting Spokesman-Review journo Alexandra Dugan.
August 16, 2025 at 12:11 AM
morganrichter.bsky.social
I know I have a cluster of Spokane mutuals on here -- if you're not doing anything tomorrow (Thursday) night, by all means stop by Auntie's and introduce yourself! I'd love to meet you all in person. No RSVP or book purchase necessary. It should be a fun event; Lucy Gilmore is absolutely delightful.
Flyer for an event: "Auntie's Bookstore presents Morgan Richter with Lucy Gilmore, Thursday, August 14th at 7:00 PM." It also features the cover of "The Understudy, a novel by Morgan Richter."
August 13, 2025 at 1:13 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
Huge thanks to @cheriepriest.com for making Wednesday night's launch event for THE UNDERSTUDY at Elliott Bay Book Company a ton of fun! And thank you to everyone who braved some erratic Seattle August weather to show up.
Photo of me and Cherie Priest sitting on the stage in Elliott Bay Book Company's reading room, chatting about my book THE UNDERSTUDY. I am gesticulating weirdly with my hands, as I am doing in every single damn photo of the event taken by my sister.
August 8, 2025 at 12:37 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
Good morning, Seattle! It'll be a drizzly day, but the weather should be clear tonight for my Elliott Bay bookstore event with the amazing @cheriepriest.com. Come join us at 7PM as we chat about THE UNDERSTUDY and more. Cherie has promised that there will be shenanigans.
Flyer from The Elliott Bay Book Company advertising a book event for THE UNDERSTUDY: Morgan Richter with Cherie Priest, Wednesday 8/6 at 7 PM.
August 6, 2025 at 1:00 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
SEATTLE! In one short week, I'll be chatting with the amazing @cheriepriest.com about my opera-set, All About Eve-esque thriller THE UNDERSTUDY at the Elliott Bay Book Company. Wednesday 8/6 at 7 PM! It's going to be fun; I'd love to see you there.
Flyer for an event at the Elliott Bay Book Company: "Morgan Richter with Cherie Priest, Wednesday 8/6, 7 PM." It also features the cover of "The Understudy, A Novel by Morgan Richter."
July 30, 2025 at 1:55 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
This New York Magazine headline/subhed is a whole mood.
Headline and subhed of an article on NYmag.com today: "Everyone Has Hemorrhoids Now: Countless aspects of modern life can cause a painful, bleeding anus." By Katie Arnold-Ratliff.
July 29, 2025 at 1:11 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
OH MY GOD. I've spent the past 35+ years assuming I was overweight in high school, because a nurse practitioner in 1989 told me I should lose weight, and today an old friend sent me a photo from a school play in 1989 that makes me recalibrate EVERYTHING I ONCE HELD AS TRUE. I was so tiny back then!
A 1989 performance from Lewis & Clark High School in Spokane, Washington, of "Blazing Guns at Roaring Gulch," featuring young Morgan Richter looking INCREDIBLY SNATCHED in a tight dress. Suck it, nurse practitioner who told me I should lose weight!
July 27, 2025 at 12:34 AM
morganrichter.bsky.social
EVERYONE FROM SPOKANE! I want to invite you all to my August 14th event for THE UNDERSTUDY at Auntie's Bookstore. I'll be in conversation with author Lucy Gilmore, who is lovely and fun and writes wonderful books! (Is it me, or is this banner VERY DRAMATIC? It's awesome, and fitting for the book.)
"Auntie's Bookstore Presents Morgan Richter Thursday August 14th Auntie's Bookstore." It also has the cover of "THE UNDERSTUDY, a novel by Morgan Richter" and my author photo. The whole thing is *very* dramatic -- black background, big white text, and my book cover in vivid red.
July 22, 2025 at 7:19 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
I got back Tuesday night (Wednesday morning) after two weeks in Brooklyn, and this is the only souvenir I have brought back from New York, dammit. First time infected, as far as I know.
A positive Covid test. Well, crap. My skull-decoupaged end table is perhaps not the best background.
July 4, 2025 at 8:57 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
Been hiding out from the world for a while in a far-off realm (aka Brooklyn). I don’t love the heatwave, but the sunset (and skyline!) as viewed from my bed last night was unbeatable.
Nifty view of the NYC skyline at sunset.
June 24, 2025 at 2:59 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
What the hell, Slate? One front-page piece about the purported decline of Bluesky is a provocation; two is a vendetta.
Front page of Slate.com right now, which has two prominent articles, both featuring the Bluesky logo: "This Platform Was Supposed to Replace Twitter. It's Not Going So Well" and "I've Figured Out Why Bluesky Is Such a Sad Place to Hang Out."
June 12, 2025 at 1:29 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
THE DIVIDE comes out in paperback today! Despite nice reviews, it didn't make a splash in hardcover; I'm hoping it finds its audience now, because I'm really, really proud of this book. www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/731122...
Cover of THE DIVIDE, A Novel, by Morgan Richter, with a quote from Sarah Weinman at The New York Times: "A wild ride of a novel... Richter, an industry veteran and pop culture critic, writes with the energy of a freshly charged battery, full of bright sparks, quick wit, and vivid color."
June 10, 2025 at 1:40 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
My Hollywood-set neo-noir thriller THE DIVIDE comes out in paperback next Tuesday! Raymond Chandler got name-checked more than once in reviews, so if Chandler's work is your vibe, I encourage you to give it a read. www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/731122...
Cover of THE DIVIDE: A Novel by Morgan Richter, along with a blurb from Las Vegas Review of Books: “Richter’s novel moves and reads quickly without feeling rushed, paced like a brisk ninety-minute film noir that focuses more on character than convoluted plots. . . . The Divide has echoes of Raymond Chandler’s hard-boiled novels mixed with the humor and warmness of Psych—with a touch of Otto Preminger’s Laura to keep things interesting. . . . A soul-searching novel, using its “whodunit” plot to probe about the “what-ifs” in life that define a person’s trajectory.”
June 6, 2025 at 7:06 PM
morganrichter.bsky.social
Always has been! This is a photo from May 18, 1980 of our driveway in Spokane while the volcanic ash was still falling. Under that gonzo hand-painted bicentennial-themed mailbox (a family friend was the artist), please note the yellow Spokesman-Review box for our daily paper delivery.
Crazy photo from May 18, 1980, of the driveway of my childhood home in Spokane while the Mount St. Helen's ash was still falling, having accumulated a fair amount on my parents' absolute boat of a car.
May 29, 2025 at 12:43 AM
morganrichter.bsky.social
Here's the front and back of the paperback edition of THE DIVIDE. It's snazzy! Love that NYT quote emblazoned smack across the front cover.
Front and back cover of the paperback edition of THE DIVIDE by Morgan Richter.
May 22, 2025 at 6:38 PM