Gus Ryer
Reader, writer, tinkerer. Querying CASCADE- far-future SF w/ nanotech, ancient gods, & hidden history. Also LIFT, space elevator derring-do. gusryer.com
He/him
#AmQuerying
- QUANTUM MAGICIAN ❌ Logan Lucky When an AI-piloted hyperliner threatens her home, centenarian traffic controller Dez decides to rob the hell out of it. Neither private security nor mobsters can keep Dez from her cash. But, when things aboard aren’t as expected, all bets are off. #QuestPit #W #A #SF
- BOOK OF KOLI ➕ THE ARCHIVE UNDYING Two fugitive engineer priests Two vengeful warrior twins Together, they’ll bring hell to the gods 🌍 Terraforming gone bad 🛰️ Ancient mechanical gods 🕷️ Arachnid mammals 🧙 Nanotech magic ⚔️ Sword (1) vs 🔫 railguns (lots) #QuestPit #Q #A #SF #F #SFF
- ARCHIVE UNDYING ❌ ASHES OF THE SUN When a machine god severs the world from ancient nanotech, two engineer priests, a blademaster & her warrior-poet twin must hunt it for a cure—and revenge. Failure will doom the world to divine wrath. Success may be deadly. #QuestPit #Q #A #SF #F
- ASHES OF THE SUN ❌ HORIZON ZERO DAWN When a machine god severs the world from ancient nanotech, two engineer priests, a blademaster & her warrior-poet twin must hunt it for a cure—and revenge. Failure will doom the world to divine wrath. Success may be deadly. #QuestPit #Q #A #SF #F
- This sounds so cool and unique, I love the ancient nanotech concept
- Thank you so much!!
- Shoot, forgot hashtags- need more coffee. In case it helps folks like me find this: #WritingCommunity #AmWriting #AmQuerying
- Seeing all the AI in recent pitch events got me thinking a little more critically, and I decided to do a full audit of the assets in my own moodboards/agent guides. Surprise! Turns out I’d been inadvertently using images that were either wholly or in-part generated. 🧵
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View full threadFeel like an absolute rube with how anti generative AI I am and how easily I was fooled. When I zoomed in, these pics weren’t even that convincing. Don’t be like me - examine your images from the start!
- Sadly, there aren’t any quick and easy answers. I’ll still be vetting each image as best I can, but it’s a start anyway. Hopefully you’ll consider actively vetting your art too (if you’re not already). Support human artistry! End of thread.
- I’ve updated my agent’s guide with assets I’ve vetted as best I can, and I think the new one looks pretty great! I certainly feel better knowing where the images are from.
- Can’t justify iStock as an ongoing cost, but for one-off projects there’s a lot of value in trusting the origins of your imagery. I’d also love to commission some character art sometime!
- Let that be a lesson to me!
- Needless to say, I’m not going to use those images anymore. I signed up for a trial at iStock, and they have some cool stuff and promise none of it’s AI. I’m skeptical based on what I’ve seen, but it certainly has LESS of that garbage. Also trying out a few other stock sites.
- This was incredibly disappointing. I’d spent so much time assembling these promo images in Canva, and most of that work is now tainted. Very annoyed that Canva didn’t label their stock imagery. Most of all though, I’m disappointed in myself.
- I’d found those images ages ago, and at the time I must not have looked at them with a critical eye. From there, familiarity meant I didn’t examine them further, assuming them to be safe.
- I ran the assets through a few generators, and they returned mixed but generally positive results (as in they were likely AI). Knowing detectors are flawed and hoping to give the benefit of the doubt, I even tracked down the artist’s professional website and send him an inquiry.
- He never responded, but he’s also got an article on his website about selling AI images, so things ain’t looking good. I’m going to assume the detectors are accurate.
- Hopefully by reading this you’ll avoid my mistakes and oversights.
- Hey, if you didn’t know, today’s Independent Bookstore Day! So if you’re looking for an excuse to add to your bookshelf, there you go. Picked up THE BUFFALO HUNTER HUNTER, by @sgj.bsky.social for myself - been looking forward to his one for a while. #AmReading #BookSky
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- Can’t wait to start!
- Looking for the most refreshing NA #cocktail I’ve ever had? Give The Garden Ritual a whirl: 2 oz Ritual tequila sub .5 oz Giffard Grapefruit NA .5 oz tarragon simple syrup .5 oz grapefruit .25 oz lime 2 snap peas Muddle peas, shake over ice. Garnish w/ grapefruit & ALL the herbs.
- Anyone want to play Spot the Owl? #BirdSky
- It was a sneaky little critter! A Barred Owl, I think?
- Finished my first pass on a rewrite today - almost feels bigger than finishing the 1st draft. To celebrate, an all-time fav: Gus’ Mai Tai 1 oz Jamaican rum 1 oz aged rum 0.5 oz Grand Marnier 0.75 oz lime 0.5 oz orgeat Shake with ice, dump, garnish with mint. Cheers! #AmWriting #WritingCommunity
- Would ya look at that - I just got an agent like on one of my #PosterPit pitches!
- Revised Agent's Guide for CASCADE! Got a hankering for a SFF adventure mashup? Think Horizon Zero Dawn with nanotech magic, alien fauna, and failed terraforming. Oh, and a hunt for a (supposedly) dead machine god. Now #AmQuerying! #AgentsGuide #AgentGuide
- A beautiful day calls for a beautiful #cocktail. No other excuse needed: Pisco Sour 2.0 oz pisco 0.75 oz lemon (or lime) 0.5 oz simple syrup 0.75 oz aquafaba or egg white) Dry shake, then shake over ice. Double strain and garnish with a pretty Angostura pattern. Cheers!
- Had a fabulous time with #PosterPit today! Thank you all so much, and I can’t wait to read & watch all your stories! For a thematic libation, may I suggest: The Godfather -2.0 oz blended scotch -0.25 oz amaretto Stir over ice, garnish with orange. Cheers to the storytellers!
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- Wow that looks great! Cheers!
- IN A WORLD Where the gods who forsook humanity have returned… And they’re not here to deliver, but to destroy… Two rogue engineer priests and two sibling warriors must take a stand. This summer, they'll bring hell to the gods. ASHES…SUN—HORIZON 0 DAWN #PosterPitQ #A #SF #F
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- Gotta show them what’s what! And that’s so kind, thank you!
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- Okay, now you’ve SOLD me - would absolutely read!
- Oh man, I hate it when a god gets stuck in your head! This sounds and looks seriously awesome!
- Logan Lucky ✖️ QUANTUM MAGICIAN When an AI-piloted hyperliner threatens her home, aging traffic controller Dez decides to rob the hell out of it. No security/mobsters can keep Dez from her cash but, when things aboard aren’t as expected, all bets are off. #PosterPit #PosterPitW #A #SF
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- You’re hired! She’s always looking for crew
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- Saw that too. Took a page out of your book and added the hashtag as a quote
- Here’s my thread of #PosterPit pitches (and because I forgot the main hashtag- whoops!):
- IN A WORLD Where the gods who forsook humanity have returned… And they’re not here to deliver, but to destroy… Two rogue engineer priests and two sibling warriors must take a stand. This summer, they'll bring hell to the gods. ASHES…SUN—HORIZON 0 DAWN #PosterPitQ #A #SF #F
- IN A WORLD Where the gods who forsook humanity have returned… And they’re not here to deliver, but to destroy… Two rogue engineer priests and two sibling warriors must take a stand. This summer, they'll bring hell to the gods. HORIZON 0 DAWN—ASHES…SUN #PosterPit #PosterPitQ #A #SF #F
- Logan Lucky ✖️ QUANTUM MAGICIAN When an AI-piloted hyperliner threatens her home, aging traffic controller Dez decides to rob the hell out of it. No security/mobsters can keep Dez from her cash but, when things aboard aren’t as expected, all bets are off. #PosterPit #PosterPitW #A #SF
- IN A WORLD Where the gods who forsook humanity have returned… And they’re not here to deliver, but to destroy… Two rogue engineer priests and two sibling warriors must take a stand. This summer, they'll bring hell to the gods. HORIZON 0 DAWN—ASHES…SUN #PosterPit #PosterPitQ #A #SF #F
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- Ahhhh that’s so kind, thank you very much!!!
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- Thank you so much!!
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- Awesome design, and great tagline!
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- Killing it with these graphics!
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- Ooh, fabulous poster!! This one’s a real winner
- Oh shoot, are we supposed to do both? Whoops
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- Someone’s gotta change the divine engine’s oil!
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- Love all of this. Fascinating stuff on its own of course, but no question this will improve my action scenes. Much appreciated!
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- Very cool! I’m going to add these to a list along with the other works you mentioned. Appreciate the recommendations!
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- Wow, what a collection! Sounds like I’ve got some collecting to do. This one’s by Fiore dei Liberi, based on his Fior de battaglia
