A note from the author:

On this page, you will find content and courtesy warnings for my published works.

CONTENT WARNINGS are intended for people who deal with traumatic experience and resulting triggers. They are designed to cite as many potentially (re)traumatizing aspects of a text as possible so that readers with trauma are able to care for themselves. Out of respect for everyone’s experience, I have tried to be as thorough and explicit as possible.
If you are a reader who deals with trauma but you are also put off by spoilers, I recommend asking someone who is aware of your triggers to review the list and tell you about specific content that might be relevant to you.
If you see something I’ve missed, first of all, I am truly sorry. I know how impactful traumatic content can be, and as an author and a librarian, I want each reader to come away feeling fulfilled and safe in the world of books. Secondly, I welcome anyone flagging that a content warning might be missing. Please use the contact form on this site to get in touch.

I separate out COURTESY WARNINGS because I don’t believe things that aren’t necessarily or inherently traumatizing belong in a content/trigger warning list. For example, in life I am a very sweary individual and I enjoy open-door romances. However, while four-letter words and sex are not harmful in and of themselves, there are people who may sometimes struggle with their presence on the page for personal reasons.
This brings us back to my librarian training, where I aim to find the right book for each reader. Courtesy warnings exist to help you figure out if a particular book or story is the right text of mine for you, especially because I write across a range of genres and I do not consistently avoid or include things like swear words, sex, etc. Each piece of writing is unique, and hopefully these warnings will assist readers in finding the stories that are right for them.

This page will be updated regularly to include new work, as well as to add any content warnings that may have been overlooked. If you see that published works have warnings that are marked as “pending,” please have patience with me as I work to add those in.

Click on a title in the list below to jump to the warnings for that story/book:

NASCENT WITCH

Courtesy Warnings: Lots of swearing throughout the entirety of the book. Closed-door sex preceded by some intimacy/foreplay on the page. Rehoming of a pet (with the pet’s quality of life as a motivator). Social alcohol consumption.

Content Warnings: Brief but violent abduction of a character by a stalker. Physical violence and the threat of murder in this scene (no SA). Stalker exhibits escalating violence previous to this scene, more against objects than people. Mention of an off-page abusive parent periodically throughout book in relation to a side character who reflects relevant trauma; said abusive parent also demonstrates racism and antisemitism off page. Childhood trauma of the loss of a parent off page briefly mentioned. Discussion of magickal pregnancies/births leading to trauma, death, witch hunts, especially in a historical context. Off-page discussion of a parent with gambling addiction, resulting in frightening phone calls to the household and a temporary marital separation. Discussion of a child internalizing unhealthy body standards/experiencing body dysmorphia; discussion of the same character exhibiting unhealthy romantic and workplace relationships later in life, implied as a result of these childhood issues.

FAMILIAR TERRITORY

Courtesy Warnings: PENDING

Content Warnings: PENDING

SIBYLS

Courtesy Warnings: Some swearing throughout the book. Beer is consumed by characters, casually and once as a coping mechanism (but not indicating addiction).

Content Warnings: Descriptions throughout of irreversible weather-related damage to homes and properties. Gendered swear words are used, both by a misogynistic male character and by a female character in reference to another female character. A child has a brief but serious bout with illness. Two large men attack two elderly women during a home robbery. A character cheats on his wife (no sex on page); the wife attempts to kill her husband with a shotgun and is briefly held in the town jail. Several characters experience pregnancies (planned and unplanned) which cause them to behave in erratic, often violent ways for supernatural reasons: a woman sets a car on fire and beats it; a woman throws glass in a state of distress. A character drinks whiskey to drunkenness during an angry episode. The same character intends to kill several women with a knife; he is then killed (off page) by catastrophe; his body is later discovered.

ELECTRIC TREES

Fins

Courtesy Warnings: Nudity on page. Some swearing.

Content Warnings: Brief moment of domestic violence as one character grabs another roughly by the arm.

Due North

Content Warnings: Mention of climate change in relation to its devastating impact on polar bears.

All of His Loved Ones

Courtesy Warnings: Story takes place in a funeral home.

The Rest of the Day Off

Content Warnings: Discussion of workplace gendered harassment, the sexual harassment of a coworker, and a short story in which a rape and murder occur. A character mentions their brother is dying of cancer.

Song and Siren

Content Warnings: Brief mention of mold-induced deaths. A gun is present on the page, but it is not fired.

Honey

Courtesy Warnings: Tense family dynamics involving financial dependence on relatives.

Content Warnings: Story begins and ends at the scene of an accident, after a child caused a gas stove to explode; emergency vehicles and personnel present. A mother leaves her family and the narrator, her daughter, processes this loss throughout. Brief mention of a character with chronic pain as a result of a drunk driving accident. A child displays selective mutism in response to losing a parent. A person who may have dementia grabs a child by the arm and verbally accosts her.

The Tuesday Murders

Courtesy Warnings: Social drinking and drunkenness are mentioned, and a hangover is experienced on page. Swearing throughout. Sex scene briefly described.

Content Warnings: Murder is used as a comedic device throughout. A hostile, sexist work environment exists; gendered swear words are used. An elderly woman mentions the recent deaths of two friends. A neighbor ignores main character’s wishes to be left alone and demonstrates he has memorized her schedule; he subsequently exhibits many of the hallmarks of stalking, including possessiveness and violence. A character accidentally slices her hand with a knife. A character accuses the main character of being a sex worker in a derogatory way. The aforementioned stalker shoots his victim. Several characters are murdered by way of poison, and one character is beaten to death with a skillet.

The Family Wolves

Courtesy Warnings: Some swearing.

Content Warnings: Family trauma is referenced frequently, its impact evident on several characters. Animal cruelty and violence against a bird. A teen girl is drunk and throwing things in response to sexually harassing comments about her and her family. An abusive alcoholic man kills his wife in front of their six-year-old child. A young woman learns she was adopted by her sister’s father, and that her birth father was abusive towards her then-pregnant mother. A woman abused by her girlfriend is drinking in order to cope.

And This, Her Art

Courtesy Warnings: Intimate imagery and implied sex.

Content Warnings: A romantic relationship is terminated.

Husband

Courtesy Warnings: Swearing.

Content Warnings: Doubting one’s sanity and reality occurs throughout the story, in both domestic and clinical settings. The (possibly preternatural) disappearance of a spouse. Sex in which consent is murky because of aforementioned questioning of reality/sanity. The female main character is caused physical pain and discomfort by the sex in question.

Bits

Content Warnings: Bodily pain and weird horror described throughout; strong sensory descriptions.

The Hum

Courtesy Warnings: Swearing. A senior coworker is something of a bully to the main character.

Content Warnings: People demonstrate negative sensory experiences from an unexplained sound, the existence of which is unconfirmed. A character is mourning her sister. Someone has disappeared, and characters are affected by his disappearance in myriad ways. Arachnophobia warning for this story.

Reflections

Content Warnings: Story is about a missing sibling.

Vision

Courtesy Warnings: Some swearing and explicit language. References to masturbation.

Content Warnings: Disturbing atmosphere, violent imagery, and uncanny elements throughout; implicit and explicit danger towards adolescents throughout, often supernatural in nature. Distorted time and difficulty with memory experienced by the main characters. Death of the family matriarch (off-page, previous to story’s action) mentioned. Two adolescent boys follow a woman to her apartment, and one gropes her. The same woman, who increasingly appears as not quite human, disrobes and engages in sexual activity with the boy who groped her. Discussion of an adolescent girl being sexually propositioned and threatened with violence by grown men on a social media platform. The boy who had the encounter with the woman is suspected to be either missing or a runaway; law enforcement and a social worker come to his class asking questions. The other boy involved is eventually pursued by the same woman who presumably took his classmate. A man hallucinates the voice of his deceased wife. The aforementioned girl is heavily influenced by social media attention and increasingly loses touch with real life, eventually moving towards suicidal behavior.

Skin Deep

Courtesy Warnings: Main character experiences sensual, intimate visions. Sex on the page, non-explicit.

Content Warnings: Main character is in shock after almost drowning, interrogated by law enforcement and tended to by EMTs. This character experiences lost time, lost memory, disturbing dreams, blackouts, and similar traumatic aftermath throughout the story. Stories of drownings discussed throughout. Anxiety medication runs low and main character responds by adding alcohol to her coffee, aware she is self-medicating. Main character’s journalist lover is investigating her without her knowledge. Main character sleepwalks and almost steps off an overpass. A character appears with large open wounds in both palms. Main character finds an article about her father’s death, which trauma has erased from her memory. The father in question was terminally ill and died in a car accident when main character was a teenager; vehicular suicide is mentioned as a possible cause. We learn that main character’s mother also died.

IN THE LAB OF LOVE

Courtesy Warnings: PENDING

Content Warnings: PENDING

SEASON OF THE WITCH

Courtesy Warnings: PENDING

Content Warnings: PENDING

THE ILLUSTRATED WOMAN

The Illustrated Woman (Part One)

Courtesy Warnings: Some swearing. Passing mention of depression. An intimate setting and feelings of desire. The main character experiences being overwhelmed by a smell so intense it causes disorientation and the need to sit (not dissimilar from a narcotic effect, though no drugs are employed). A character undresses in front of another character.

Content Warnings: Animals kept in inhumane conditions. Brief mention of the loss of a loved one due to a drunk driver; equally brief mention of alcoholism/addiction in response to said loss. Brief reference to freak shows. Reference to a relationship between teens in which one teen exhibits low self-esteem to the extent that her partner worries for her.

Through Water, Through Glass

Courtesy Warnings: Main character struggles in gaining admission to an academic research institution.

Content Warnings: A general feeling of detachment on the part of the main character, especially in regards to her own autonomy. Aquatic animals in situations that may be dangerous to them. Brief mention of a person dying of hypothermia. Main character has a parent in law enforcement who demonstrates extreme emotional detachment from/disinterest in her. Character is exposed to freezing cold water and questions whether she will survive.

For Whatever We Lose

Courtesy Warnings: Some brief swearing. Legal substance use (alcohol and marijuana).

Content Warnings: Main character experiences flashbacks as a response to artistic stimuli, some of which may be considered traumatic. One brief scene of extreme domestic violence witnessed by a child. Reference to sexual encounters, both experienced and observed, that leave the main character feeling empty.

These Dark Deeds

Content Warnings: Highly traumatic content throughout: story revolves around a cult of adult men that targets children and supernatural ritual that harms children. Brief reference to an off-page rape involving teens and victim-shaming on social media. Reference to off-page death of both parents and on-page subsequent change in custody/household of younger children; grief, mourning, and trauma in children related to parental deaths. Inadequate school-based resources for neurodivergent child resulting in rehoming of that child; child displaying personality change after traumatic event(s). Grief and mourning in relation to death of a guardian. Reference to off-page fights and bullying in a school setting. Poor communication between a traumatized adult caregiver sibling and younger child siblings causing confusion and fear. Hunting rifle as a defensive measure appears on page. Older adult abusers taunt and threaten caregiver sibling who they had abused (off page) during his childhood; reference is made to the past abuse and threats are made against caregiver’s younger siblings. A child faces off with an adult man and the man grabs her by the arm and threatens her. A book read by the main character discusses the two-week abduction of several boys by grown men, ritualistic abuse in the form of beatings and other unmentioned implicit acts, and the boys’ subsequent demonstration of extreme trauma symptoms including anorexia, selective mutism, claustrophobia, nyctophobia, and self-harm including suicide by shotgun. A child is abducted in the present; older caregiver sibling has traumatic breakdown. Setting in which implications of ritualistic torture are visible (ritual symbols, blood, restraints). Abduction and imprisonment of several children; threat of the same abuse suffered by the boys in the book is implicit, but these children are liberated before that can occur.

Leave Your Fear, You’ll Be Just Fine

Courtesy Warnings: Some brief swearing. Wild exotic animals kept in domesticated contexts. A post-coital scene (sex is off the page and briefly discussed).

Content Warnings: Repeated mention of the divorce of the main character’s parents, catalyzed by her discovery of her father in an explicit act of infidelity. Main character demonstrates a tendency towards risk and reckless behavior throughout. A highly dangerous situation involving sharks.

Indelible

Content Warnings: Highly traumatic content throughout related to horror aspects of the story, to children experiencing loss, and to suicides. The sensory experiences of breathing recycled air and being on a rapidly moving train overwhelm the main character throughout the story. Grotesque artwork makes the main character frequently ill at ease. Two little girls demonstrate fear in relation to past traumas and losses they have experienced. The main character experiences anxiety in regards to the little girls’ safety and wellness. The death of the girls’ mother is mentioned. The main character has horrific nightmares about the torture and corruption of others, including her deceased sister. The main character is affected by the horror elements of the story, manifesting in behavioral and personality changes including: anorexia/food aversion, diminished regard for her own safety/security, and snappishness and sarcasm directed towards the children in her care. The implied deaths/suicides of multiple women come up in conversation. Gendered swear words are used by a man in reference to his sexual partners; this man demonstrates a dehumanizing proprietary attitude towards the women in his life and work. The main character relives on page the final difficult conversation she had with her older sister before the latter committed suicide by drowning. The interment of her sister’s body is mentioned. The main character views two artworks depicting the moment just before two suicides: her sister’s and her own. Readers are left with the likely outcome of the main character’s suicide.

A Taste of Memory

Courtesy Warnings: Strong sensory, emotional, and psychological responses to food as the main character eats.

Content Warnings: Conversation between two men in which women/wives are discussed in ways that render them as less human than men.

Belonging

Courtesy Warnings: Nudity on page.

Content Warnings: Multiple explicit scenes of sex on the page that blur the lines of consent, attraction, autonomy, and desire. Under/overtones of incest. Main character has overwhelming sensory responses to food. Main character has a history of feeling voiceless; an abusive past is implicit but does not appear on the page. A disturbed grave is present on the page, with bodies reduced to skeletons.

The Mirror

Content Warnings: Traumatic content throughout related to (post-)apocalyptic survivor narrative. Collective trauma and grief over violence, supernatural persecution, and death. Child characters are present throughout story and witness to much of the violence and subject to the trauma in question. Mourning of lost parents, partners, children, and other loved ones. Threat of sexual and gendered violence explicitly articulated (no SA occurs). Supernatural violence and killing on page; a daughter witnesses the slaughter of her mother. Weapons on the page including blades, bows and arrows, and fire.

Come the End, She Will Be Light

Courtesy Warnings: Teens and young adults swear throughout the story. A teen smokes cigarettes. Nudity on page.

Content Warnings: Traumatic content throughout: apocalyptic violence, cult activity, child trafficking and sacrifice, supernatural battles, and several instances of killing/death. A child character is abducted on page while the main character, also a child, witnesses and narrowly avoids abduction herself. Repeated mention of kidnappings and child trafficking of seven girls. Traumatized community response to trafficking and children placed in counseling in order to cope. A teen ballet dancer is briefly teased about eating celery, the joke alluding to an eating disorder; she later mentions being on an extreme diet as a dancer. Casual conversation about being/not being crazy and/or being driven crazy. A gendered swear word is used. The main character is almost killed by a falling tree branch. A character jokes about slipping drugs to a friend. Multiple characters are killed on page by supernatural forces. Many people fall under the influence of a demon, forming a cult which believes the demon has the right to their children. A character is in a severely depressive state as a result of grief; she is also impacted by caring for a dying parent. This same character demonstrates a lack of self-care in the form of not bathing, not eating, and extreme detachment. A character is possessed by a dark world and in her possessed state is seduced by a demon who has sex with her in front of a large crowd. Abducted girls locked up and crying on page, intended as human sacrifice to a demon. A child cries for her mother who has become a member of the demon cult. Two women, formerly friends before possession, argue and bait one another using language rooted in misogyny including gendered swears; they engage in magical battle and kill each other. The main character’s mother is possessed and slits the throat of her best friend. The main character is hunted and threatened by a cult mob. The main character does battle with a demon who threatens to devour her.

The Illustrated Woman (Part Two)

Content Warnings: Brief mention of the content of the stories in the collection, including those with traumatic aspects.