V. S. Holmes is querying
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vsholmes.bsky.social
V. S. Holmes is querying
@vsholmes.bsky.social
570 followers 950 following 340 posts
Dark spec fic, from snarky archaeologists in space to slow-burn gothic fantasy and everything in between | STARS' EDGE: NEL BENTLY BOOKS and BLOOD OF TITANS | Writer for SolForge Fusion

♿🏳️‍🌈 🏳️‍⚧️ he/they

https://linktr.ee/vs_holmes
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vsholmes.bsky.social
Playing around with a new project today for #WIPSnips

#gothic #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts #WriteSky #fantasy #lgbtqia #amquerying
An excerpt written in black text on white with the word "picture" highlighted in grey. Excerpt reads: They gave us each a docket on the mission itself, and of course our fellow team members. I spent the long, sleepless train ride from Ossgen reading over the material and the overview of our tasks for the next few months. I stare at the picture open before me. A short biography, detailing half a dozen impressive achievements—awarded a Kirkhân second-class by nineteen being the most notable—and a single grainy photogram. Long pale hair, curled for the occasion. There’s only the one photo in our family before this one, when grandmother died. We all assembled around her in our black huiken. I’m prettier in this picture than in that one, than in person.
November 9, 2025 at 12:13 PM
vsholmes.bsky.social
Here's my list of new science fiction, fantasy, and horror reads for November! This month there's court intrigue, LGBTQ romance, completed fantasy series starters, sci-fi romance, and more.

vsholmes.com/sales.html
A promo image with a night-sky banner saying sales and freebies. Below it sales "NOVEMBER SALES. Each month I share new freebies and sales in the science fiction, fantasy, and horror genres!" A list of six sales follows: LGBTQ romance, out of this world sci-fi romance, year-long free sci-fi and fantasy, epic fantasy with court intrigue, fierce fantasy, and completed fantasy series starters.
November 1, 2025 at 5:52 PM
vsholmes.bsky.social
October 25, 2025 at 12:10 PM
vsholmes.bsky.social
My (totally free) monthly update went out yesterday, with thoughts on this season when the veil is thin, autumnal rituals, the nearness of death, and the creepy films we enjoyed lately. As always, there are also great free books and sales. #writesky #writingcommunity
www.patreon.com/posts/when-v...
A desaturated photo of V wearing a loose t-shirt, a wide-brimmed black hat, and aviator style sunglasses. He has shaggy red hair and is smiling. various trees are in the background.
October 19, 2025 at 9:09 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
Hey folks! I'm participating in DVPit today! I'll be pitching THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN, my folkloric fantasy meets gothic romance standalone! This is a pitch contest, so liking/reposting is ONLY for agents/editors (you're free to comment or quote-post though!) Your support means so much!
#DVpit (Diverse Voices Pitch) is a Bluesky event for marginalized creators that have been historically underrepresented in publishing to pitch their work to agents & editors. Post your pitch on Bluesky on Wednesday, Oct 8, 2025 between 8AM ET - 8PM ET. Your pitch must include the #DVpit hashtag (illustrators pitching their art must use #DVArt) A like ❤️ from an agent = a query request A repost 🔁 from an editor = interest in submission once you've signed with an agent A like ❤️ from an editor = editor who takes unagented submissions Please do not like or repost a pitch if you are not an agent or an editor. Support other creators by replying to their pitch or quote-reposting their pitches. Visit dvpit.carrd.co for more detailed guidelines.
October 8, 2025 at 11:45 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
When addict and failed-necromancer Ivigh is given an offer he can’t refuse, he must find Eir Lahren—the necromancer who unleashed the magical storm ravaging the world and gave Ivigh the gaping, bloodless hole in his chest.

#amquerying #fantasy #writeSky #WritingCommunity #transmasc #folklore #LGBTQ
A title card for THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN with a six-pointed sigil in the background. A promo showing comp titles for THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN, including Gideon the Ninth, The Briar Book of the Dead, Viscera, and The Wolf and the Woodsman. Quote above reads: A Frisian inspired folkloric fantasy meets gothic romance. For readers who enjoyed:" followed by the book covers. A mood board for THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN showing a grid of nine pictures. From top to bottom, L - R: A brooding man with longer dark hair smoking a hand-rolled cigarette, dark clouds with pink light coming through; a spiral of skulls and longbones; a landscape with ponds and rolling, grassy hills; a dark, stone chamber with rough hewn columns; a close-up of white flowers; a dark European longhouse; a mixed race woman with dark blonde curls; a moody image of old standing stones.
October 8, 2025 at 10:12 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
Querying: THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN, folkloric fantasy + gothic romance inspired by death, sex, and Frisian folklore

Snarky sapphic sci-fi archaeologists:
books.vsholmes.com/cnzvzl8ab2

Fantasy with bloodthirsty gods + broken heroes: books.vsholmes.com/m4juo9rp4d

Free shorts: vsholmes.substack.com
A promo image on a dark space background showing the six books in the Stars' Edge Universe with the tagline: Dr. Nel Bently discovers her pristine archaeological site is the center of an intergalactic feud. Tossed into a world of high tech and higher stakes, she only has her trowel, her attitude, and her badass and alien girlfriend, Lin. A promo image on a dark forest background showing the four books in the Blood of Titans World with the tagline: When Alea's home is destroyed by a mad kin's genocide, she is forced to choose between mortals who play at gods and gods who pray for mortality. With the gods at war with the titanic creatures that created them, the only heroes left are as broken as the world they must reforge.
October 8, 2025 at 10:08 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
It's the last day of #DVParty, though tomorrow the REAL party starts! I've been talking a lot about my dark #fantasy manuscript, but today we're sharing our next projects. I have a new science romantasy series in the works that's basically Treasure Planet for horny, queer adults. #sf #r
A space-themed promotional image with white/blue text reading: It began, like it always did for Mannu Calabret, with running. He dodged the next musket beam, using the time he knew it would take for the guards to reload to pull himself hand-over-hand up the governor’s manor wall. When he dropped into the relative quiet of the Belamy gardens, the shouts of the guards were muffled, as if simply being within these walls alone lent him immunity. If only.
October 7, 2025 at 2:15 PM
vsholmes.bsky.social
For the penultimate day of #DVparty, we're sharing our playlists! I always write with mood music, usually instrumental epic scores. Writing this gothic, folkloric fantasy has lent itself to some darker lyrical pieces and slowed/reverbed renditions.
October 6, 2025 at 10:23 PM
vsholmes.bsky.social
Opening lines for #DVparty

Howling wind pummels my aching bones, but it’s a welcome change from Ossgen’s stagnation. I crouch at the base of the terp, chapped fingers hovering over colorless soil. I don’t blame the townsfolk for their fear of the Waste, but it won’t kill them. Not right away.
#DF
The opening paragraphs of THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN with a grassy landscape in the background. Excerpt reads: Howling wind pummels my aching bones, but it’s a welcome change from Ossgen’s stagnation. I crouch at the base of the terp, chapped fingers hovering over colorless soil. Cracked clay and storm-blasted grasses are cast in colorless greys under the perpetual dusk. I don’t blame the townsfolk for their fear of the Waste, but it won’t kill them. Not right away. I shuffle another dozen steps to the crest of the hill and lean on my cane. Drag marks, down into the gully. Sure enough, in the basin below lies my quarry. It’s Miss Lange, judging by the periwinkle tipdoek. She left the town two days ago searching for the few quickthorn still clinging to life. Most make it back, those who leave to gather or hunt. She wasn’t so lucky. I limp my way down the slope toward her. She doesn’t hear me, doesn’t turn, but remains swaying in the swale. Her smooth hands grasp at something in reflex, maybe remembering her child’s sticky hand. This is the only time I hesitate, in the stillness when the body recalls its last echoes of humanity. I stop just behind her to pray. May her spirit find solace and not find its way back. May Wodan spare us each this fate. Then I slit her throat.
October 4, 2025 at 3:45 PM
vsholmes.bsky.social
Today's theme for #DVparty is introducing our main characters. Ivigh is the acerbic, trans masc narrator in THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN. A failed necromancer turned con man, he pretends to be a grave warden and hunts for his next fix to take the edge off the wound burrowing through his beatless heart.
A short excerpt in pale text on black, with the image of the lower half of a man's face with stubble who is smoking something. He has long dark hair and wears a loose white shirt with old-fashioned jacket. The excerpt reads: Her pale brows rise and I feel the curiosity when she glances over. “I’m not sure I’ve ever heard you be humble before.” I scoff, hunching deeper into my jacket as if that’ll help the bone deep chill. “I’m humble all the time. I hate almost everything about myself.” She chuckles and I can hear she’s tired too. “Just like you pretend not to care about folk, when really you care more than anything. It’s like you think you’re the worst most abhorrent god among men. But a god nonetheless.” Image of two old 19th cen. syringes of glass and metal on a wooden background. An image of a dark stone cavern with pillars and runes/art etched on the far wall. An image of concentric circles of long bones and skulls.
October 3, 2025 at 2:30 PM
vsholmes.bsky.social
We're kicking off the pre-party for DV Pit today with mood boards, so here's one for my folkloric fantasy meets gothic romance, THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN. #DVparty #F #LGBT #DF
A mood board for THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN showing a grid of nine pictures. From top to bottom, L - R: A brooding man with longer dark hair smoking a hand-rolled cigarette, dark clouds with pink light coming through; a spiral of skulls and longbones; a landscape with ponds and rolling, grassy hills; a dark, stone chamber with rough hewn columns; a close-up of white flowers; a dark European longhouse; a mixed race woman with dark blonde curls; a moody image of old standing stones.
October 2, 2025 at 2:04 PM
vsholmes.bsky.social
After a few weeks off from #WIPSnips I'm back with "obvious."
This is from THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN, which I'll also be pitching during DVPit in Oct.

#WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts #WriteSky #fantasy #lgbtqia #amquerying
A screenshot of an excerpt from THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN, written in black text on white, with the word "obvious" highlighted in grey. The excerpt reads: I dig a shallow pit, just deep enough to roll the torn body in and cover them over. The loose soil is a boon, now, but it still takes too much effort and far too much time. I drag a piece of the storm-shattered carriage over the obvious grave. When I straighten, Mudlark stands a few paces away, arms crossed and face like a storm cloud. Judging by the expression, she’s been standing there far longer than I would like. What’s the point of excuses? She’s seen what she’s seen and nothing I can say will change her plummeting opinion of me. It’s not like I care what she thinks.
September 20, 2025 at 11:39 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
Hi! I write dark spec fic of various flavors including snarky sapphic archaeological sci-fi and slow burn brooding fantasy.

Currently querying a folkloric fantasy meets gothic romance inspired by death, sex, and Frisian folklore.
vsholmes.start.page
A promotion image of the entire Nel Bently book series featuring space themed covers with a blond queer woman on the cover. A promotion image of the entire Blood of Titans book series featuring painted covers with various fantasy characters wielding power on the covers.
September 9, 2025 at 12:10 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
Beach campfire, complete with crashing surf, seals, s'mores, and the splash of the Milky Way overhead.
A photograph of a small campfire on a sloped beach at dusk. A lifeguard chair sits in the background and the bluffs are topped with scraggly brush and trees.
August 22, 2025 at 11:51 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
Beach campfire, complete with crashing surf, seals, s'mores, and the splash of the Milky Way overhead.
A photograph of a small campfire on a sloped beach at dusk. A lifeguard chair sits in the background and the bluffs are topped with scraggly brush and trees.
August 22, 2025 at 11:43 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
I'm doing yesterday's #WIPSnips "shout" because I don't have today's "recent" in THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN.

#WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts #WriteSky #fantasy #lgbtqia #amquerying
An excerpt written in black text on white with the word "shout" highlighted in grey. Excerpt reads: “We?” I turn, hand gripping the bloody front of [REDACTED]'s dress, gripping Mudlark’s hand as if it’s the only thing tethering me to this world. I think it might be. Everything reaches me as if through a fog. The only clarity is [REDACTED]'s broken body. “Who’s we, you and the shit in your skirts?” A figure lunges from the shadows ahead. A flash of steel and I hear Mudlark shout as she’s jerked into the darkness and everything in me turns to fire. I don’t remember the last time I cared if I was discovered or attacked. I’ve been beaten too many times to count and stopped listening for footfalls echoing mine. I care now.
August 22, 2025 at 11:10 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
The word "cheap" is the #WIPSnips prompt today.

THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN follows addict and failed-necromancer Ivigh.

#WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts #WriteSky #fantasy #lgbtqia #amquerying
An excerpt written in black ink on white with the word "cheap" highlighted in grey. Excerpt reads: I manage to scrub most of the travel from my body, and once I’m clean I sink down onto the bed. My body aches and the buzzing itch at the ends of my nerves grows louder with every increasingly painful minute of sobriety. The constant chill in my bones grows closer to frigid. Braving the crowd downstairs is honestly the last thing I want to do. But I need to find a chemist. I need to buy enough cheap spells to convince whatever town I con next that I’m just the necromancer for them. I need to leave tomorrow.
August 13, 2025 at 8:21 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
Today's #WIPSnips word is "split."

From my gothic romance meets folkloric fantasy, THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN

#WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts #WriteSky #fantasy #lgbtqia #amquerying
A short excerpt written in black text on white with the word "split" highlighted in grey. Excerpt reads: I press her into the worn stone, leaning on her out of exhaustion and relief and for a split second everything that is me and her are muddled. I’d be happy to watch the world dissolve under the thick drops of greasy rain. But her? Apparently under these layers of linen and dry bones I still have a heart. “We’re camping here. No one’s coming after us in that, anyway.”
August 12, 2025 at 9:43 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
"Frequent" is today's #WIPSnips

#WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts #WriteSky #fantasy #lgbtqia #amquerying
Black text on white with "frequenting" highlighted in grey. Text reads : Miss Lange’s weight sags against me and I ease her body from my sore arms to the ground. It’s over after a minute and I trade blade for the shovel I stash outside the walls. The swale is a pretty enough resting place, sheltered from the worst of the wind. She’s been out long enough to be dehydrated, her blood is thick with the scent of coins and currants. I don’t look at her face as I dig, frowning down at the clumped soil instead, sour sweat dripping from my brow. I count shovelfuls without goal and watch her half-clotted blood drain into the sand, leaving little more than a pink greasy stain. It’ll be gone by afternoon, if anyone were to look. They never do. The only folk frequenting the Waste are me and the dead.
August 8, 2025 at 2:50 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
Though I don't have today's #WIPSnips word "boss" in THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN, I do have "employer," so we're going with that.

#WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts #fantasy #transmasc #amquerying #LGBTQIA
An excerpt written in black text on white with the word "employer" highlighted in grey. The excerpt reads: More pain blooms in my chest, my back where I landed, he atop me. My ribs are tight as if—I look down to see several layers of new white bandages around my chest. I remember her expression then, the night before. I’m too exhausted to race for excuses and don’t really have any that could convince Mudlark. Not after what she probably saw. “I can explain.” “You can lie, you mean.” Her whisper is deadly soft. An entirely new pain burns through my chest, agony, breaking. It’s not good for an invalid to be argued with first thing upon waking. “I don’t see how this is lying, Mudlark, my underlying health conditions are no business of any employer so long as it doesn’t impact my work.” “Your work.” She’s shaking now and I suddenly wish I could hold her, but she looks like she would rather strangle me. “I thought—I thought we were friends.”
August 5, 2025 at 10:01 PM
vsholmes.bsky.social
Upright coral fungus from this week at work
A pale, coral-shaped fungus with many long, thin branches, sitting on dark mulch and soil.
August 2, 2025 at 10:00 PM
vsholmes.bsky.social
Forbidden Marshmallow
A round, white mushroom in a bed of brown leaves. The mushroom cap is crinkled and brown like a toasted marshmallow.
July 15, 2025 at 11:20 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
It's been a sad few months with folks (understandably) boycotting Zon, so I thought I'd pull Nel out of KU and try her out on Itchio. The entire sapphic snarky sci-fi series is now available for pay-what-you-want (tips are greatly appreciated!)

vs-holmes.itch.io
A screenshot of the Stars' Edge: Nel Bently books on Itch.io
July 11, 2025 at 9:19 AM
vsholmes.bsky.social
This one's a bit long, but I thought I might share the opening paragraphs of THE PASSING OF EIR LAHREN for today's #WIPSnips word "finger."

#WriteSky #WritingCommunity #WritingPrompts #fantasy #transmasc #amquerying #LGBTQIA
A screen shot of black text on white with the excerpt: Howling wind pummels my aching bones, but it’s a welcome change from Ossgen’s stagnation. I crouch at the base of the terp, chapped fingers hovering over colorless soil. Cracked clay and sandblasted grasses are cast in colorless greys under the perpetual dusk. I don’t blame the townsfolk for their fear of the Waste, but it won’t kill them. Not right away. I shuffle another dozen steps to the crest of the hill and lean on my cane. Drag marks, down into the gully. Sure enough, in the basin below lies my quarry. It’s Miss Lange, judging by the periwinkle tipdoek. She left the town two days ago searching for the few quickthorn still clinging to life. Most make it back, those who leave to gather or hunt. She wasn’t so lucky. I limp my way down the slope toward her. She doesn’t hear me, doesn’t turn, but remains swaying in the swale. Her smooth hands grasp at something in reflex, maybe remembering her child’s sticky hand. This is the only time I hesitate, in the stillness when the body recalls its last echoes of humanity. I stop just behind her to pray. May her spirit find solace and not find its way back. May Wodan spare us each this fate. Then I slit her throat.
July 4, 2025 at 2:04 PM