R.D. Sellers
@rdsellerswrites.bsky.social
Southern Horror writer, fueled by cold brew and haunted memories.
Currently submitting short stories for publication (suggestions welcome).
WIP - My first novel, Black Patch Harvest. Southern Gothic Suspense/Horror.
Website: rdsellerswrites.com
Currently submitting short stories for publication (suggestions welcome).
WIP - My first novel, Black Patch Harvest. Southern Gothic Suspense/Horror.
Website: rdsellerswrites.com
Pinned
R.D. Sellers
@rdsellerswrites.bsky.social
· Oct 24
Blight
The night air pressed down like rain-soaked bedsheets. Old, worn shoes rubbed Anthony Barron’s sockless ankles raw as they slapped against cracked concrete. Behind him, a Holtson City cop’s flashli…
rdsellerswrites.com
Everyone in Holtson City knows better than to step in the old house on Pine Street.
But when a man on the run is left without a choice, he finds out why.
“Blight” is a #SouthernGothic #FlashFiction about decay, trauma, and the desperate hunger that consumes us all.
#Horror #AmWriting
But when a man on the run is left without a choice, he finds out why.
“Blight” is a #SouthernGothic #FlashFiction about decay, trauma, and the desperate hunger that consumes us all.
#Horror #AmWriting
Locking in on my novel today. Need some extra willpower. Got just the thing...
#AmWriting #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriter #GreenLantern
#AmWriting #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriter #GreenLantern
November 21, 2025 at 4:31 PM
Locking in on my novel today. Need some extra willpower. Got just the thing...
#AmWriting #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriter #GreenLantern
#AmWriting #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriter #GreenLantern
November 9, 2025 at 11:54 PM
Finished my first draft for the @nycmidnight.bsky.social #ScaryStoryChallenge. Really having a blast with this one!
November 2, 2025 at 5:02 AM
Finished my first draft for the @nycmidnight.bsky.social #ScaryStoryChallenge. Really having a blast with this one!
Everyone in Holtson City knows better than to step in the old house on Pine Street.
But when a man on the run is left without a choice, he finds out why.
“Blight” is a #SouthernGothic #FlashFiction about decay, trauma, and the desperate hunger that consumes us all.
#Horror #AmWriting
But when a man on the run is left without a choice, he finds out why.
“Blight” is a #SouthernGothic #FlashFiction about decay, trauma, and the desperate hunger that consumes us all.
#Horror #AmWriting
Blight
The night air pressed down like rain-soaked bedsheets. Old, worn shoes rubbed Anthony Barron’s sockless ankles raw as they slapped against cracked concrete. Behind him, a Holtson City cop’s flashli…
rdsellerswrites.com
October 24, 2025 at 11:12 PM
Everyone in Holtson City knows better than to step in the old house on Pine Street.
But when a man on the run is left without a choice, he finds out why.
“Blight” is a #SouthernGothic #FlashFiction about decay, trauma, and the desperate hunger that consumes us all.
#Horror #AmWriting
But when a man on the run is left without a choice, he finds out why.
“Blight” is a #SouthernGothic #FlashFiction about decay, trauma, and the desperate hunger that consumes us all.
#Horror #AmWriting
Reposted by R.D. Sellers
A dim hallway, a half-open door, a whisper of movement behind the curtains—these are more effective than any gore or violence. The mind fills the gaps with its own horrors, drawing from memory, imagination, and deep-seated anxieties.
open.substack.com/pub/wordsbym...
#spookyseason #poetrycommunity
open.substack.com/pub/wordsbym...
#spookyseason #poetrycommunity
October 11, 2025 at 2:18 PM
A dim hallway, a half-open door, a whisper of movement behind the curtains—these are more effective than any gore or violence. The mind fills the gaps with its own horrors, drawing from memory, imagination, and deep-seated anxieties.
open.substack.com/pub/wordsbym...
#spookyseason #poetrycommunity
open.substack.com/pub/wordsbym...
#spookyseason #poetrycommunity
New Essay is live!
"This isn’t about hating the South. It’s about loving it enough to hold up a mirror to it. Love without truth curdles into worship, and worship of a false self is just another haunting." -- R.D. Sellers
#southerngothic #amwriting #horrorwriter
"This isn’t about hating the South. It’s about loving it enough to hold up a mirror to it. Love without truth curdles into worship, and worship of a false self is just another haunting." -- R.D. Sellers
#southerngothic #amwriting #horrorwriter
We Don’t Talk About Monsters
Halloween hands us easy monsters: plastic fangs, rubber masks, store-bought blood. They’re safe because we know they’re not real. Real monsters dress better. They keep tidy lawns and shake your ha…
rdsellerswrites.com
October 10, 2025 at 11:00 PM
New Essay is live!
"This isn’t about hating the South. It’s about loving it enough to hold up a mirror to it. Love without truth curdles into worship, and worship of a false self is just another haunting." -- R.D. Sellers
#southerngothic #amwriting #horrorwriter
"This isn’t about hating the South. It’s about loving it enough to hold up a mirror to it. Love without truth curdles into worship, and worship of a false self is just another haunting." -- R.D. Sellers
#southerngothic #amwriting #horrorwriter
What music helps your writing process?
I never expected smooth jazz to be my muse for horror writing, but I've never felt more focused.
#SouthernGothic #HorrorWriter #amwriting
I never expected smooth jazz to be my muse for horror writing, but I've never felt more focused.
#SouthernGothic #HorrorWriter #amwriting
October 4, 2025 at 1:29 PM
What music helps your writing process?
I never expected smooth jazz to be my muse for horror writing, but I've never felt more focused.
#SouthernGothic #HorrorWriter #amwriting
I never expected smooth jazz to be my muse for horror writing, but I've never felt more focused.
#SouthernGothic #HorrorWriter #amwriting
If it seems like I'm slowing down in posting, it's because I am. Writing my debut novel has absorbed nearly all of my free time (though I did take time to watch Bama beat UGA, IN ATHENS, last night. RTR!). Things are progressing nicely, but it may mean fewer posts for a while.
kermit the frog is using a typewriter in a messy room .
ALT: kermit the frog is using a typewriter in a messy room .
media.tenor.com
September 28, 2025 at 12:35 PM
If it seems like I'm slowing down in posting, it's because I am. Writing my debut novel has absorbed nearly all of my free time (though I did take time to watch Bama beat UGA, IN ATHENS, last night. RTR!). Things are progressing nicely, but it may mean fewer posts for a while.
That moment you finish revising part of your novel and realize you unlocked how to make all of it better... But you have to rewrite the whole thing...
#amwriting #horrorwriter #southerngothic
#amwriting #horrorwriter #southerngothic
a man in a suit is sitting in the back seat of a car and smiling .
ALT: a man in a suit is sitting in the back seat of a car and smiling .
media.tenor.com
September 25, 2025 at 12:07 AM
That moment you finish revising part of your novel and realize you unlocked how to make all of it better... But you have to rewrite the whole thing...
#amwriting #horrorwriter #southerngothic
#amwriting #horrorwriter #southerngothic
If you're like me and don't have time to travel for expensive writing workshops, finding videos like this can be a huge help when crafting your first novel.
This really made me think.
youtu.be/g_e9pnGskow?...
This really made me think.
youtu.be/g_e9pnGskow?...
9 Mistakes You're Probably Making in the First 10 Pages
YouTube video by Alyssa Matesic
youtu.be
September 19, 2025 at 5:29 PM
If you're like me and don't have time to travel for expensive writing workshops, finding videos like this can be a huge help when crafting your first novel.
This really made me think.
youtu.be/g_e9pnGskow?...
This really made me think.
youtu.be/g_e9pnGskow?...
Loved the show. Hated it sometimes, too. The first five-six seasons were largely excellent. Mixed feelings about the ending, but it was great to have such a consistently entertaining horror show on broadcast TV for so long.
In less important news, Supernatural debuted on the CW on this date in 2005. That damn show had it's ups & downs but the world of Supernatural scholarship has been very good to me over these last 2, um, decades and holy crap how is that possible?
a man in a blue shirt says what
ALT: a man in a blue shirt says what
media.tenor.com
September 14, 2025 at 1:16 AM
Loved the show. Hated it sometimes, too. The first five-six seasons were largely excellent. Mixed feelings about the ending, but it was great to have such a consistently entertaining horror show on broadcast TV for so long.
👻 New essay is live: Haunting Contradictions
Why I love horror even though I hate being scared — and why dread lingers long after a jump scare fades.
💀 What's your favorite dread-inducing scene in film or print?
#HorrorEssays #HorrorCommunity #SouthernGothic #AmWriting
Why I love horror even though I hate being scared — and why dread lingers long after a jump scare fades.
💀 What's your favorite dread-inducing scene in film or print?
#HorrorEssays #HorrorCommunity #SouthernGothic #AmWriting
Haunting Contradictions
Being scared is a natural part of life. But it’s never been my favorite part. Which may sound odd considering my chosen form of storytelling. But like the subject matter itself, I’m full of contrad…
rdsellerswrites.com
September 12, 2025 at 11:52 PM
👻 New essay is live: Haunting Contradictions
Why I love horror even though I hate being scared — and why dread lingers long after a jump scare fades.
💀 What's your favorite dread-inducing scene in film or print?
#HorrorEssays #HorrorCommunity #SouthernGothic #AmWriting
Why I love horror even though I hate being scared — and why dread lingers long after a jump scare fades.
💀 What's your favorite dread-inducing scene in film or print?
#HorrorEssays #HorrorCommunity #SouthernGothic #AmWriting
New Essay Drops Tomorrow! 👀
But first...
What's scarier: something that jumps out you from the dark or slow, creeping dread that follows you from room to room?
I know my answer, but I want to know yours.
#SouthernGothic #IndieWriter #AmWriting #HorrorWriter
But first...
What's scarier: something that jumps out you from the dark or slow, creeping dread that follows you from room to room?
I know my answer, but I want to know yours.
#SouthernGothic #IndieWriter #AmWriting #HorrorWriter
If you loved my latest #FlashFiction, don't miss my new essay, Haunting Contradictions, out Fri, Sept 12.
Only on rdsellerswrites.com
Dread > jump scares.
Why I love horror even though I hate being scared.
#HorrorCommunity #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriting #AmWriting
Only on rdsellerswrites.com
Dread > jump scares.
Why I love horror even though I hate being scared.
#HorrorCommunity #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriting #AmWriting
September 11, 2025 at 3:06 PM
New Essay Drops Tomorrow! 👀
But first...
What's scarier: something that jumps out you from the dark or slow, creeping dread that follows you from room to room?
I know my answer, but I want to know yours.
#SouthernGothic #IndieWriter #AmWriting #HorrorWriter
But first...
What's scarier: something that jumps out you from the dark or slow, creeping dread that follows you from room to room?
I know my answer, but I want to know yours.
#SouthernGothic #IndieWriter #AmWriting #HorrorWriter
You'd think it would be all the horrors in my head that keep me from getting to bed at a decent hour. But you'd be wrong... It's this little bundle of terror.
#HorrorWriter #IndieWriter #SouthernGothic
#HorrorWriter #IndieWriter #SouthernGothic
September 10, 2025 at 1:50 AM
You'd think it would be all the horrors in my head that keep me from getting to bed at a decent hour. But you'd be wrong... It's this little bundle of terror.
#HorrorWriter #IndieWriter #SouthernGothic
#HorrorWriter #IndieWriter #SouthernGothic
Getting deep into an important character moment in my upcoming novel last night had my brain working overtime.
It's probably fitting I didn't sleep well considering the trauma I'm inflicting on these poor, fictional people... it's gonna get so much worse. 😈
#amwriting #southerngothic #indiewriter
It's probably fitting I didn't sleep well considering the trauma I'm inflicting on these poor, fictional people... it's gonna get so much worse. 😈
#amwriting #southerngothic #indiewriter
September 9, 2025 at 2:49 PM
Getting deep into an important character moment in my upcoming novel last night had my brain working overtime.
It's probably fitting I didn't sleep well considering the trauma I'm inflicting on these poor, fictional people... it's gonna get so much worse. 😈
#amwriting #southerngothic #indiewriter
It's probably fitting I didn't sleep well considering the trauma I'm inflicting on these poor, fictional people... it's gonna get so much worse. 😈
#amwriting #southerngothic #indiewriter
Ain't that the truth!
Hoping I'll get that notice one day, too.
Hoping I'll get that notice one day, too.
In the world of submissions where rejections can often feel as regularly as the rising sun, a note to say, 'You've made the longlist, is a kindness.
#writerslife #writingcommunity
#writerslife #writingcommunity
September 9, 2025 at 2:45 PM
Ain't that the truth!
Hoping I'll get that notice one day, too.
Hoping I'll get that notice one day, too.
If you loved my latest #FlashFiction, don't miss my new essay, Haunting Contradictions, out Fri, Sept 12.
Only on rdsellerswrites.com
Dread > jump scares.
Why I love horror even though I hate being scared.
#HorrorCommunity #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriting #AmWriting
Only on rdsellerswrites.com
Dread > jump scares.
Why I love horror even though I hate being scared.
#HorrorCommunity #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriting #AmWriting
September 9, 2025 at 3:06 AM
If you loved my latest #FlashFiction, don't miss my new essay, Haunting Contradictions, out Fri, Sept 12.
Only on rdsellerswrites.com
Dread > jump scares.
Why I love horror even though I hate being scared.
#HorrorCommunity #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriting #AmWriting
Only on rdsellerswrites.com
Dread > jump scares.
Why I love horror even though I hate being scared.
#HorrorCommunity #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriting #AmWriting
100% right on. One of my main goals as a horror writer is to hold up a mirror to so many of the archaic systems of the South that people here often don't even know why they continue to defend. I don't know that it'll be a tool for change, but if it gets someone to think, that's a win for me.
Horror can be cathartic. Horror can be subversive. It can help us understand the human experience. It can help us shine a light on beliefs and norms and systems that cause people pain. It can help us find strength. It can expand our consciousness. Horror can be so many things.
September 8, 2025 at 11:39 AM
100% right on. One of my main goals as a horror writer is to hold up a mirror to so many of the archaic systems of the South that people here often don't even know why they continue to defend. I don't know that it'll be a tool for change, but if it gets someone to think, that's a win for me.
Reposted by R.D. Sellers
I’ve got a new essay about archaeology in horror fiction at Nightmare Magazine. I can’t believe I forgot to share it last week. 🤦♀️ I love that you can read for free, buy single issues, or subscribe, because they publish a lot of cool stuff. www.nightmare-magazine.com/nonfiction/p...
Plumbing the Depths: Archaeology in Horror Fiction - Nightmare Magazine
Archaeology is a method and practice which resurfaces the past. It can help us reconstruct the history and culture of ancient (or not so ancient) people, and give us insight into what it means to be h...
www.nightmare-magazine.com
September 5, 2025 at 5:27 PM
I’ve got a new essay about archaeology in horror fiction at Nightmare Magazine. I can’t believe I forgot to share it last week. 🤦♀️ I love that you can read for free, buy single issues, or subscribe, because they publish a lot of cool stuff. www.nightmare-magazine.com/nonfiction/p...
📖 New Flash Fiction
When Tyler O’Connor hears something tapping at his bedroom window in the middle of the night, he does what any scared little boy would do…
He looks.
A story about missing children, haunted woods, and secrets that never die.
#HorrorFiction #FlashFiction #SouthernGothic
When Tyler O’Connor hears something tapping at his bedroom window in the middle of the night, he does what any scared little boy would do…
He looks.
A story about missing children, haunted woods, and secrets that never die.
#HorrorFiction #FlashFiction #SouthernGothic
Tap Tap Tap
Tyler O’Connor’s seventh birthday was tomorrow, but everyone forgot. His big brother, Peyton, disappeared about four months ago. Mom and Dad hadn’t thought about much else since. Mom especially s…
rdsellerswrites.com
September 6, 2025 at 1:00 AM
📖 New Flash Fiction
When Tyler O’Connor hears something tapping at his bedroom window in the middle of the night, he does what any scared little boy would do…
He looks.
A story about missing children, haunted woods, and secrets that never die.
#HorrorFiction #FlashFiction #SouthernGothic
When Tyler O’Connor hears something tapping at his bedroom window in the middle of the night, he does what any scared little boy would do…
He looks.
A story about missing children, haunted woods, and secrets that never die.
#HorrorFiction #FlashFiction #SouthernGothic
🧑💼Full day of work. ✔️
📖Full evening of writing another chapter in the novel. ✔️
😪Me...
#amwriting #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriting #WriterLife
📖Full evening of writing another chapter in the novel. ✔️
😪Me...
#amwriting #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriting #WriterLife
a stuffed animal is sitting on a large rock .
ALT: a stuffed animal is sitting on a large rock .
media.tenor.com
September 5, 2025 at 2:51 AM
🧑💼Full day of work. ✔️
📖Full evening of writing another chapter in the novel. ✔️
😪Me...
#amwriting #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriting #WriterLife
📖Full evening of writing another chapter in the novel. ✔️
😪Me...
#amwriting #SouthernGothic #HorrorWriting #WriterLife
ICYMI: 👻 Flash Horror Alert 👻
At an estate sale, a college student finds a box of Mason jars. Most seem harmless. One is fogged from the inside, with a strip of tape that reads: DON’T LET IT OUT.
My first flash horror story is live now. Quick to read. Hard to forget.
#HorrorFiction #FlashFiction
At an estate sale, a college student finds a box of Mason jars. Most seem harmless. One is fogged from the inside, with a strip of tape that reads: DON’T LET IT OUT.
My first flash horror story is live now. Quick to read. Hard to forget.
#HorrorFiction #FlashFiction
Don’t Let It Out
It was a perfect day for a drive back to Tuscaloosa. University of Alabama sophomore Maddy Thompson loved spending the summer with her parents in Fairhope, but she couldn’t wait to get settled into…
rdsellerswrites.com
September 3, 2025 at 3:20 PM
ICYMI: 👻 Flash Horror Alert 👻
At an estate sale, a college student finds a box of Mason jars. Most seem harmless. One is fogged from the inside, with a strip of tape that reads: DON’T LET IT OUT.
My first flash horror story is live now. Quick to read. Hard to forget.
#HorrorFiction #FlashFiction
At an estate sale, a college student finds a box of Mason jars. Most seem harmless. One is fogged from the inside, with a strip of tape that reads: DON’T LET IT OUT.
My first flash horror story is live now. Quick to read. Hard to forget.
#HorrorFiction #FlashFiction
☕️ + 💻 = 📚
Fueling up and chasing the next chapter.
Writers: how many cups of coffee does it take you to get into the zone?
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #WritersLife #HorrorCommunity #BehindTheScenes
Fueling up and chasing the next chapter.
Writers: how many cups of coffee does it take you to get into the zone?
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #WritersLife #HorrorCommunity #BehindTheScenes
September 2, 2025 at 12:04 PM
☕️ + 💻 = 📚
Fueling up and chasing the next chapter.
Writers: how many cups of coffee does it take you to get into the zone?
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #WritersLife #HorrorCommunity #BehindTheScenes
Fueling up and chasing the next chapter.
Writers: how many cups of coffee does it take you to get into the zone?
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #WritersLife #HorrorCommunity #BehindTheScenes
📚 Progress: 25,310 words into my first novel
🐾 Distraction: One very insistent co-author
I could be further along… but someone has other plans.
Writers (or anyone really): do your pets sabotage your productivity too?
#AmWriting #writersoffacebook #HorrorCommunity #BehindTheScenes #AuthorLife
🐾 Distraction: One very insistent co-author
I could be further along… but someone has other plans.
Writers (or anyone really): do your pets sabotage your productivity too?
#AmWriting #writersoffacebook #HorrorCommunity #BehindTheScenes #AuthorLife
August 29, 2025 at 11:23 PM
📚 Progress: 25,310 words into my first novel
🐾 Distraction: One very insistent co-author
I could be further along… but someone has other plans.
Writers (or anyone really): do your pets sabotage your productivity too?
#AmWriting #writersoffacebook #HorrorCommunity #BehindTheScenes #AuthorLife
🐾 Distraction: One very insistent co-author
I could be further along… but someone has other plans.
Writers (or anyone really): do your pets sabotage your productivity too?
#AmWriting #writersoffacebook #HorrorCommunity #BehindTheScenes #AuthorLife
Reposted by R.D. Sellers
I'm excited and honored my short story "The Midnight Commuter" is a finalist for the Eugie Foster Memorial Award! Thank you so much @fosteronfilm.bsky.social & the fans who voted, as well as my editors Wendy Delmater Theis & Bonnie Brunish for the nomination. Congratulations to my fellow finalists!
June 20, 2025 at 5:51 PM
I'm excited and honored my short story "The Midnight Commuter" is a finalist for the Eugie Foster Memorial Award! Thank you so much @fosteronfilm.bsky.social & the fans who voted, as well as my editors Wendy Delmater Theis & Bonnie Brunish for the nomination. Congratulations to my fellow finalists!