Roxanne Ocasio (querying!)
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roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Roxanne Ocasio (querying!)
@roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
410 followers 100 following 190 posts
she/her/ella
🇵🇷 Bilingual fantasy writer
“The Chupacabra Next Door” featured in Speculative Fiction for Dreamers.
Querying a contemporary fantasy with free Luigi vibes.
Cleveland against the World
🖤🩶🤍💜 + free 🍉
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roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “after”; here’s a story within the WIP that might become a prequel 👀:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: “I imagine they didn’t tell you much about their time abroad when you were a girl. Coño, I don’t imagine these two know much about it either.” Silva leaned his forearm on the table, setting his fork at the edge of his plate. “I’m from some campo town just outside of Jumacao, and volunteered for the navy as soon as I was old enough. I rose to captain quickly because my superior officers kept getting themselves killed, and wound up encountering Lady Amelia when she and your father were cruising the oceans, just before the first invasion of Avonyr. Suffice to say after she kicked my culo a handful of times, stole from ships I was supposed to protect, and made me look a fool in front of king and country, I decided to fake my own death to escape the embarrassment.” He snorted, refilling Victoria’s cup and then his. “I respected them because they fought with honor. When bochinche spread about what they were doing, I brought Joanna with me to come support their cause.”
May 13, 2025 at 12:35 AM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “over”; SEND ME ON AN ADVENTURE is a big mood:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: Victoria switched to her native tongue. “Why do you speak our language?”             “We are all from the same place,” he said, answering in kind. “A country called Borinquera, which is not of this realm. The language we speak therefore is not Spanish, as it is called here, but Borinqueran.” She touched the pendant around her neck, tracing her thumb over the engraving. “That’s impossible. I would remember—”             “Do you remember anything before you were seventeen?”             “No. How…?” Her eyes widened, her lower lip trembling slightly. “There are pieces of things, but my abuela told me they were dreams. That I read too many books, that I…” She wrapped her arms around her torso, rubbing one forearm. “That a car accident had taken my memory from me. That’s not true, is it?”
May 2, 2025 at 4:35 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “cup” and they drink A LOT in the new WIP:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: “I had to step in last week.” Elliot picked up his cup. “They nearly arrested me.” “You shouldn’t…” Victoria sighed loudly and looked at the ceiling. “They’ll shoot you, you know. The only reason I can talk them out of it is…” She hesitated, her hand on her cup. The obvious reason—their difference in skin color—wasn’t actually how she managed to avoid getting arrested herself. The discovery of her power to control had been an accident; years ago, when the school had a colonizer’s name, Joanna had been cornered by a bully. Girls with strange accents and even stranger mannerisms were obvious targets. But while Victoria had confessed to her cousin that she could control people with a glance—and move things with her mind, she later discovered—she hadn’t dared to tell their strict, religious abuela. Nor did she intend to tell anyone else, no matter how trustworthy or kind or handsome they seemed to be. “I can talk my way out of it because the cops just assume I’m Italian and I wave my teacher ID around. You though—you probably shouldn’t get involved, for obvious reasons.”
May 1, 2025 at 1:03 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “official” and I’m officially querying this novel as of today:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: The agent shook his head. “Are you hungry? I was thinking of crossing the street and getting some breakfast. My treat, since I was an ass to you.” Bianca shook her head. “As good as food sounds, I really have to get back.” “Oh, come on, I’m sure all you have to do is bat your eyelashes at your boss and he says yes.” Murphy walked back around his car and began to fill his gas tank. “What’s a couple more hours going to do? You have your work stuff, right?” “I really should go.” “I’ll even call your boss, if you want. Say it was official business.” Bianca removed the gas pump from the car. “Okay fine, but please don’t call my boss.”
April 3, 2025 at 2:24 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Back for today’s #WIPSnips prompt, “scene”; taking this one from the novel I’m about to query:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: He removed his trench coat, then slowly the body armor, strap by strap. Something oddly familiar in all of it, as if she had lived this scene before. The knot in Bianca’s chest anchored her to the spot where she stood, amidst her red cape, like a pool of blood. “What happened to [spoiler]?” she asked, out of breath. “Is he dead?”
April 2, 2025 at 5:23 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “survival”:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: “Prove it.” She leveled the blade at his throat. “Who are you, really?” “Someone…very invested in Lord Devereux’s survival.” He pulled the blanket tighter, tucking it in on one side. The use of the proper title made Victoria loosen her grip on the machete hilt. “And if I’m not mistaken, that crest on your necklace belongs to House Hernandez.”
March 14, 2025 at 7:51 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
It’s been a while, but I’m back for #WIPSnips with an excerpt from my portal fantasy. Today’s prompt is “before”:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: Victoria cleared her throat and squared her shoulders, mustering the politest smile she could manage before her second coffee. The officer snapped his head in her direction, straightening. “Sir.” Victoria nodded in greeting, fumbling for her teacher identification. “These are my students. What’s going on?”             But she already knew that whatever this police officer had concocted was a lie, that her students were often harassed while minding their business on the way to school. He spun his story of how they had thrown rocks at his patrol car, how they had hurled obscenities at him. Victoria studied the three boys. One had begun grumbling in Spanish, calling the officer an embustero. She gave him a look and shook her head to silence him, but the boy next to him couldn’t hold his composure. “But Miss Hernandez,” he said, “you know we ain’t do stuff like that. We ain’t dumb. El policía dice embuste, de verdad.”
March 7, 2025 at 6:47 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “part.” This is the last one before #WSpit tomorrow, and I’ll be pitching this, so please support me:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy #ownvoices
Image of text: “He wants me to do it?” Bianca raised an eyebrow, uneasiness bubbling in her stomach. “I don’t know anything about hacking a system.” Diego shook his head. “You’re plugging a flash drive into a computer. Central Command will do the hard part.” Bianca curled her fingernails into her palm, the name Central Command stirring that uneasiness into a flurry. “I thought El Lobo liked his recruits to come willingly,” she said. “This feels like I don’t have a choice.” “El Lobo is giving you an opportunity.” His face changed, tense lines transforming into reverent hope. “It’s up to you to take it.”
February 25, 2025 at 8:37 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “money”:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: The wolf gestured; two men dragged her manager to a clear spot on the tile floor as Bianca was forced to her feet. Those frustrating comments replayed in her mind, how she would never be worthy of a raise or promotion. It must have shown on her face, because the wolf’s expression shifted slightly before he turned to address the crowd. “This man,” he said, “along with several others, has been helping the CEO of Mayflower Financial embezzle money and steal from your paychecks. Evidence of this is about to flood the internet, along with the sins of the other companies in this building.” He reached inside his trench coat, producing a gun that matched his silver helmet, and removed the safety. “Should I shoot him,” he asked, “or would you like to?”
February 22, 2025 at 3:43 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “whim” so I’m going with “whimpered”:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: Red stepped back as El Lobo drew his sword. She laid a hand on the hilt of the blade that hung at her hip, looking out at the growing gathering of organization members in corners on the rooftop. Below, people began coming out of their hiding places, pointing up to the rooftop and shouting. At her feet, world leaders on the verge of death whimpered. The president began to pray. Everything she had devoted herself to in the last year was about to come to fruition, in a way she never imagined. She looked at El Lobo—[spoiler redacted]—and nodded, then drew her sword. The city itself fell silent.
February 21, 2025 at 3:39 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
I was in Boston today and wound up part of this!
February 18, 2025 at 12:00 AM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “candy”:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: He looked at her, his gaze drifting a bit lower than it should have. “A rich billionaire pendejo has to show up to this type of thing with a beautiful date, so here we are.” “That’s cool, I really am just arm candy then.” Bianca twisted her mouth, crossing her arms over her cleavage. “You could have taken anyone on this mission.” “El Lobo insisted on you specifically, so it wasn’t my choice.”
            “Oh, even better.”             “Will the two of you cut it out?” Tyler, over their earpieces. “Central Command is about to open the whole line and all I hear is this bullshit.”
February 17, 2025 at 11:16 AM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “super”:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: “There was extremely brief surveillance video of one of those Ars Nova attacks, and it was hard to tell if the bullets were bouncing off the armor or…” He gripped the steering wheel. “Someone no taller than you picked a man up by the throat and tossed him like a ragdoll, in a red hooded cape like she was taunting them to shoot her. There’s no way a woman is that strong.” “A woman? I thought their leader was that man in the wolf helmet.” “He’s apparently gotten himself a Red Riding Hood.” Chase grimaced. “My bosses are convinced it must be A.I.—because if there are people out there with superpowers and they’ve decided to overthrow the American government, we have a big problem on our hands. Where on earth would these…things…even have come from?”
February 10, 2025 at 4:48 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “ground”:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: Half a dozen potted plants had been knocked over, dirt streaking the pathway. [Spoiler redacted] had Diego on the ground, a gun to his chest. “No,” she whispered. “We need help. We need…”
February 6, 2025 at 7:37 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “kitchen” and apparently my characters are in the kitchen quite a bit:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: True to his word, Diego came early in the morning with boxes to help her pack her things. They turned on salsa music and got to work, with occasional conversations about what life inside the community—rather, inside The Ars Nova—would be like. When both realized they hadn’t eaten all day, he insisted on cooking dinner for her, even after she suggested takeout delivery. He changed the music from salsa to bachata and danced around her kitchen until the power went out. “At least the food’s done,” he said, tossing the serving spoon onto the counter. “Do you have any candles handy?”
February 4, 2025 at 5:44 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “down” and this one is 🔥:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #fantasy #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: Bianca marched up to the side doors, past a handful of luxury vehicles in the adjacent parking lot. She had leather winter gloves on, and was under instructions not to remove them, but it made handling the badge more difficult. The access pad lit up green. Bianca pulled the door handle but it didn’t budge. Sealed shut. She walked around to the back doors; again, the access pad lit green, but the door wouldn’t open. A third try on the other side of the building with the same results. Three sealed entrances made her glad she hadn’t been sent to burn the bank down. It was then that the earbuds in her ears crackled. She winced, stifling a groan. “Sorry,” a woman—not Simone—said over the frequency, “I was told your hearing was quite sensitive and forgot. You’re going to have to enter through the front.”
January 30, 2025 at 11:04 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “conversation” and this snip is ✨alarmingly✨ timely:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #fantasy #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: “Do we even have an HR department anymore?” She raised her voice slightly, hoping the group could hear her above other conversations and clacking keystrokes. “If you’re gonna call me racist slurs, at least use the right ones. I’m Latina, carajo, not Arab.”
January 29, 2025 at 12:11 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “appall” and I’m here with “appalling”:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #fantasy #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: Diego sat on the edge of the desk beside her, telekinetically spinning a few pens that had been in a cup on the desk. “I hate that you had to go through all this, but it worked out,” he said. “You moved the plan along in a way I couldn’t.”            “Seventeen text messages and counting, apologizing for his appalling behavior last night.” She twisted her mouth, a slight laugh escaping. “He wants to go out again. Can I just cuss him out and be done? We have enough, don’t we?” “I doubt he’ll give you the exact location of the stronghold.” The pens clicked together, continued to spin. “But it never hurts to see what else you can con out of him.”
January 26, 2025 at 5:30 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “goal” but the only occurrence is a spoiler, so went with “endgame” (my middle school actually was banned from visiting COSI; never knew why):

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #fantasy #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: “I hope we’ve hit endgame by then.” Diego shoved his hands back into the pockets of his leather jacket. “I still can’t believe you’ve never been to COSI. That’s a rite of passage for most kids who grew up in Ohio.” “I told you why I never went, remember?” Bianca let out a breath, watched it curl into that blank sky. “The eighth graders went a week earlier and were so awful, COSI banned our school from going back. I don’t even know if they refunded the trip money.”   “I’m honestly shocked it’s still open with all the places that have closed since the pandemic.” His demeanor relaxed, if only for a moment. “It’s been twenty-some years since I was here. Coño, I feel old saying that.” “My, what an old ass man you are.” Bianca laughed, but he didn’t, clearly elsewhere in his own thoughts. “I take it you’re not going to visit your parents while we’re here.”
January 25, 2025 at 2:04 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “easy”; this is my variant excerpt with “uneasy” 😈:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #fantasy #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: The room began to clear out, but Bianca stopped at a hand on her arm. She faced El Lobo, squaring her shoulders.             “I don’t expect that Captain Vargas will have any difficulties in the field,” he said, “but if he does, I’m depending on you to keep him safe.”             Bianca looked down at the floor.             “Keep him safe, not kill anyone. You have boundaries that I intend to honor.” His tone was softer, a bit uneasy. “I’ll see you for the debriefing upon your return.”
January 15, 2025 at 7:54 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “easy”; this is my strict with the prompt excerpt:

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #fantasy #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: A plane roared overhead. The [redacted bank name] corporate office—one of two in the area—wasn’t far from Cleveland’s airport. It would be easy to escape. She could step off the sidewalk, cross the street to the nearby gym, and ask for a phone to call the police. Or go the other direction and run across the street into one of the businesses there. Say she’d been taken hostage, forced into stealing from the bank. But would they believe her, or would she end up in jail herself? Or would Simone be waiting in that hotel parking lot where they had appeared, ready to kill her if she didn’t comply? Had they figured out how to kill her? A car drove past in the opposite direction, blowing through the stop sign. The red bank logo at the top of the building stood out against the blue sky, the sun shining. It almost convinced her it wasn’t winter anymore.
January 15, 2025 at 5:09 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “zodiac” and we are all vibes today (also realized today Diego is an air sign, so this tracks):

#booksky #writesky #writingcommunity #fantasy #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: Diego lifted his hands. Trees began to sway beyond the typical gust of wind. Leaves scattered on the ground flew up into the air, circling them. His face calm, hands moving as if he were conducting a symphony only he heard. What was it like to feel this powerful? Bianca twirled amid the leaves, arms outstretched, cold air kissing her face. Stars twinkled brighter, the city fading away. She tossed her head back and laughed, her hood releasing her dark hair into the night chill. Bianca looked at Diego, and he smiled back—the first time she’d seen him smile. She stuck her hands in her pockets, thankful for the cover of night that hid the rush of blood in her cheeks. “Did he—El Lobo—teach you how to do that?” she asked. “What you just did?”
January 14, 2025 at 2:29 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “game”:

#booksky #writesky#writingcommunity #fantasy #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: Bianca pushed through the crowd and down the stairs to the third sublevel. She found Diego, wearing a pair of wire-rimmed glasses and a Cleveland Guardians cap, at a corner table away from everyone. For a moment, she let herself be engulfed by the sounds of the crowd shouting at a months-old baseball game. What was she doing here? Having a casual drink with a man who had almost gotten her killed? Diego waved her over to an empty seat beside him. “I thought I was going to have to come get you,” he said over the hum of the bar, then lowered his voice to a normal tone. “So you really didn’t tell the FBI anything?”
January 12, 2025 at 9:40 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “wish” and this comes from the very beginning of the novel:

#booksky #writesky#writingcommunity #fantasy #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: Bianca Rojas would have done anything for the power to end this miserable day. She passed the giant windows at the front of South Station Tower, dodging yet another lunchtime walker as she tightened her medical mask. Sky too blue, clouds too perfect for another bleak Boston winter. Her thoughts drifted back to her quarterly review, to the frustration of being infantilized by her male manager and denied a raise in the same breath. She wished, not for the first time, that she could land one of those coveted jobs in a self-contained community and never have to leave home again. Bianca caught a glimpse of protesters on the sidewalk holding up the usual signs; she had been protesting with them a couple of weeks ago against curfew violation arrests, managing to escape before police started shooting. But did any of it matter?
January 11, 2025 at 4:49 PM
roxanne-ocasio.bsky.social
Today’s #WIPSnips prompt is “spin”:

#booksky #writesky#writingcommunity #fantasy #bipocwriters #latinofantasy #feministfantasy
Image of text: A few more people in suits left for the day, each shaking his hand before boarding the elevator. He was so different from how she had seen him behave; all business and buttoned up. Something about it made Bianca’s head spin, the wildness of this man running into South Station Tower with an M16 one day and politely asking after his employees’ families the next. Diego motioned Bianca toward the room he had just exited. “Kaiya,” he called back, “you can leave when you’re finished.” Once the door was shut, Diego snatched the phone from Bianca’s hand.
January 10, 2025 at 4:25 PM