Sarah Fletchins

@phdancersteapot.bsky.social

347 Followers 133 Following

Queer, expat writer-illustrator based in Sheffield, UK. Addicted to tea🫖 #amquerying YA 🏳️‍🌈supernatural romance🐈‍⬛ Runs Storytime for Grown-ups 📖#TeamTeaAndBooks May be a🐉on the inside. She/they

Sarah is dressed in a rainbow unicorn onesie with an old lady blue-rinse wig on and blood red lipstick, showing fangs over her bottom lip as she peers up at the camera through red rimmed glasses.

A digital invite to a book launch party for 'Crying out For Magic', featuring reading and a bingo game, on 31st August at UTC 12.00 pm. Instructions say to sign up for the author's substack to receive your bingo card and meeting link.

A dark background with one cat's eye visible holds the following snippet of text:

‘So she won’t be able to do it.’ At first Grace just looked terrified, but then she got her science face on, and determination rose to the surface, her adrenaline becoming focused. sharper somehow. ‘So we have to do something to increase her energy so she can get through the Change. So we feed her, right? Like, a lot.’ Grace’s anguish was dropping away now that she felt she could take action, replaced with a calm purposefulness. Max might not get involved very often, but all he was smart, Reece realised.

‘I’ll throw it all up!’ Fey groaned, looking green.

Grace knelt beside her, cupped her chin and held her gaze. ‘No, you won’t.’ She looked up at Reece. ‘We need a load of sweet stuff, sugary drinks, and salty, fatty stuff like crisps. Just pretend we’re having a tenth birthday party.’ She paused. ‘And also tuna, for afterwards. Just get all the cans of tuna, but don’t open any, or the smell will bother her.’

Max put a hand on her shoulder. ‘Very good.’ Grace gave a tight smile and went pink again.

a brown paper page with packing symbols for ‘this way up’ and ‘fragile.’ A contents label reads: Cinnamon rolls - 2, Magic - Lots.
A small section of the paper is ripped away to reveal two different skylines, depicting ruined buildings, with a green slash between them.

Two small sections of the paper are ripped away. One reveals two different skylines, depicting ruined buildings, with a green slash between them. The second, the face of a white boy with curly hair, smiling shyly at someone.

Closeup of hands playing guitar with the following text on a dark background:

‘So you knew when you asked me to join the band.’ His voice was flat and empty, his gaze dropping to the floor. She was ruining the memory of their amazing performance and it hurt to watch.

‘I promise we didn’t just ask you because of that,’ she told him, her voice pleading. ‘You are amazing Jake. And your song, it gets to everyone. Like somehow you’re speaking directly to every single person.’ She hesitated. Say it, say it, say it. ‘And I really like our band practices. I’ll miss them so much when I leave school. I’ll miss you. I—’

‘JAKE!’ Grace had spotted them, and came tumbling up from the table to envelop Jake in a hug, Fey close behind her.

The spring green-toned image collage is dominated by the stare of a half-human, half-cat face, illustrated in watercolour and pencil. Both eyes in the portrait are yellow-green and both the short, pixie-cut hair of the human and the fur of the cat is black. The human half of the face has pale skin. The tagline reads: “Have you ever been told a secret that changed everything, when all you wanted was to share one of your own?” Around the portrait image are photographs relating to high school gossip and bullying, queer Pride and comfort. They include gossiping figures in school uniform, a hot beverage held between someone’s palms, rainbow reflections and badges, a black cat, a writing hand with a pen, and someone sketching.

The spring green-toned image collage is dominated by the stare of a half-human, half-cat face, illustrated in watercolour and pencil. Both eyes in the portrait are yellow-green and both the short, pixie-cut hair of the human and the fur of the cat is black. The human half of the face has pale skin. The tagline reads: “Have you ever been told a secret that changed everything, when all you wanted was to share one of your own?” Around the portrait image are photographs relating to high school gossip and bullying, queer Pride and comfort. They include gossiping figures in school uniform, a hot beverage held between someone’s palms, rainbow reflections and badges, a black cat, a writing hand with a pen, and someone sketching.

A tea mug with a teapot on it surrounded by art materials including watercolour paints, paper and pencils, and some open notebooks.

A gradated pastel background with images of the kindle and paperback versions of the anthology 'Not/Coming Out' and the text: Not/Coming Out, a charity anthology, May 16th 2024, OUT NOW! And a small sticker-style text saying 'My work's in this!'

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

6 images of cats. Top 2 are white Turkish Angora & an arrow points to them saying, 'This cat'. The other 4 are off various cats snuggling toys with an arrow and the words, 'These poses'.

Denzel slouched in, a sluggish tiredness in his movements, and dropped into his chair behind the keyboard. ‘I think I just failed a maths test,’ he groaned, laying his head on his arms on the keys. Sam had switched it on for him in preparation and it made a discordant twang.
Sam grimaced sympathetically, even though he couldn’t see her. ‘Oh. I’m sorry. Do you want a hug? Do you need some help?’ She slipped out from behind the kit, and then felt awkward for standing up in case Denzel didn’t like hugs. They hadn’t really had reason to establish this.
To her relief, Denzel got up and came to her, resting his head against her shoulder. ‘Yes to both.’
Sam squeezed him as she would Lacey. She chewed on the inside of her cheek, wondering if her instinctive next words were weird. ‘Help over the break?’
Denzel pulled back and looked at her, his eyes going wide. ‘Really? Would you?’ His skin looked grey and his breath was short, his panic and gratitude at her offer transparent.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

‘She was asking for you.’
Jake forced himself to take a slow breath. Reece was doing a pretty good job of conveying that this was a Fey-specific problem, and it was bad, without giving anything away to Denzel. Jake swiped into the messages, turning his phone screen away from Denzel’s prying eyes, and scanned them quickly, his stomach dropping into his feet.
‘I…um… haven’t been there. To Rosemary’s,’ he admitted, a hint of panic finding its way into his voice. He forced himself to look up and meet Reece’s eyes.
Reece took a step backwards. Because I’m feeling too intense, Jake realised, trying to breathe deeply and calm himself. Then Reece took a tentative step forwards. ‘Can I—’ He held his hand out for Jake’s phone.

Max pulled the car to the curb and Jake flung open the door, two sets of velvety cat paws springing over him to jump to the pavement as Rosemary and Fey turned their superior night vision and sense of smell to the task of locating Reece fast. It made no difference—Jake still saw him first, tucked up against the far wall of the bus depot building, a crumpled, human-shaped shadow in the dark. Jake was out of the car and crossing the street to the park-and-ride carpark before Max had even pulled up the hand brake, the yellow of the street lamps making blurred pools in his peripheral vision as he ran. He knew he was yelling out but couldn’t hear his own words.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

‘I don’t really have any cooking skills,’ Reece admitted, shrugging. ‘I mean, I did the essentials we had to do in food tech but it’s not like we had ingredients at home to practise any of that, so I mostly forgot it all. I can like, turn an oven on and throw things in there for however long it says on the packet. It does the job.’
Jake turned around from the kettle and blinked at him. ‘Are you being serious?’ He rubbed his eyes. ‘I guess I thought you’d be pretty good with anything that’s like, life skills.’
Reece shrugged again, embarrassed. ‘Doesn’t really take extensive skills to make survival food.’
Jake looked like he was fighting some kind of internal war, chewing on the inside of one cheek. ‘Okay,’ he said after a moment. ‘You’re coming to my house, and we’re gonna do cooking.’

Max came in through the back door, wearing his work boots and covered in splotches of white paint. He stopped when he saw Fey’s pale form on the sofa, and strode over to join them, ignoring the dirty prints his boots made on the living room floor.
‘What’s going on?’
Rosemary knelt down next to Fey and looked into her eyes, touching her forehead like Reece had tried to do to check for a fever. She glanced up at Max. ‘Catsbane misuse.’
Max made the angriest sound Reece had ever heard from him. A sudden, guttural growl. ‘So we shouldn’t have trusted you to keep your own supply.’ He looked at Fey with resigned disappointment. Reece felt ill for her. His dad had always looked at him like that. Max, however, hadn’t given him that look once. To earn it from him must be sickening.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

A starry night background with the text: @TeamTeaAndBooks writers host Meet My Characters Monday #MMCM Our characters want to chat to your characters. Questions will be posted every Monday by different characters from the imaginations of @TeamTeaAndBooks. The host will be announced each Sunday on the TTAB account. Let your MC take the social media reins, unleash an antagonist, or let a side character have the spotlight. We can't wait to hear from them.

It was uncomfortable. It left her open to being hurt, to care what these people thought. Yet somehow Sam felt as though she’d found the two (maybe three, if she counted Grace. Was Grace a friend?) human beings around her own age in the entire world who would never betray her, who fitted. How had she gotten so lucky? And there was… There was something about Jake in particular. Like her mind had singled him out as safe, as worth defending even if it meant other people noticed her when she could have slipped under the radar; Sensible Sam, leaving the building. His presence in the band seemed to open up what had been just about the music into something that felt like real friendship with Denzel, too. Denzel responded to Jake, despite all his misgivings about letting him in. And it felt like she was favouring Jake, caring about what happened to him more than she did other people. Wanting, more than she ever had with Denzel alone, to make music a home that they could all return to.

A vivid yellow-green banner-shaped flier with a background of meadow flowers and text that reads:
Picture This Storybook Edition:
Gardens of the Mind
11 creatives in collaboration
Visual artists inspiring writers
Join us for the launch via YouTube premiere on
Saturday October 28th 2023
On YouTube channel PhDancer's Teapot
10:00 UK and Ireland / 19:00 Queensland, Australia / 19:30 South Australia / 20:00 Victoria and NSW, Australia
BYO food and drinks to enjoy while you watch and comment live!

A pencil and fineliner sketch of Jake, a lanky boy with messy short hair and freckles, holding a soccer (football) ball under one arm and a plate of pancakes in the other hand. Around him are descriptors: His name, Jake Turner, pronouns, he/him, and birthday, 15 Sept 2001; "I'm fine;" flies on the football field; where was music all my life till now?; let's make a movie!; will make you food; gotta beat big sis Grace (at life) (but hurt her and you'll regret it); scarily interesting to supernaturals; pan, I guess (shrugs); faster than you—catch me if you can; "But I'm just ordinary;" pancake chef of the century; songwriter, apparently.

An illustrated poem on the pages of an A6 sketchbook, the pages lying open on top of various notebooks and art materials. The handwritten poem reads:
Visions of the Unnoticed

Behind a curtain of cloud
that has settled softly over time
hangs a secret, unnoticed.
A stone left unturned
almost on purpose, set aside from history.
You lift the lingering veil in dreams,
dancing with discovery,
untethering the tangled ties of understanding.
And when the sepia wash of sunrise
sweeps the curtain out of sight,
the lesson never lingers,
leaving only a tug of determined deja vu;
a prickle of almost-perception—
an introspection not quite deep enough
for knowing.

The illustration in watercolour and coloured pencil depicts a hand holding a single daisy up to the light in front of a background of blurred fields and silhouetted branches.

Sam dropped her bag behind the drum kit, pulling her sticks into her hand and flopping onto the drum throne in a tumbling sequence of movements that felt like they were one. Like collapsing into bed or diving into water. She twisted the sticks together in one hand, the smooth wood sliding over itself and over her fingers with a soft slip that told her she was home. Sam smiled, an ocean inside of her swelling and breaking gently against the shore of her ribs. It came in waves like this; the joy and pride at the safe, musical space she'd created. The pull of this emotional current didn't tug her in every direction like so many others had of late. It filled her with a sense of belonging, of purpose. Maybe being a mentor, a teacher, a guide to people who needed music in their lives; people like Jake, for whom it was a refuge, was what she wanted to do with her life. Maybe performance didn't have to be the ultimate dream she'd built it up to be. Maybe this was how she found her people.

A loaf-shaped cake with light-coloured buttercream icing covered in edible flowers and blackberries. '35' number candles are lit on the top. In the background are a teapot and mugs.

The weak Wednesday morning sun was doing very little to curb the chills that kept shivering up and down Reece’s arms as he slunk toward school, weaving through the side streets. At least it went some way to clearing the static in his head from lack of sleep, though. The first half of the night he’d been glued to his laptop screen, too much information from fifteen tabs and unrefined searches swirling around in his brain like a storm. And all for almost nothing. He wasn’t an empath or a highly sensitive person; scent had nothing to do with empathy and it wasn’t like he was sensitive in any other sense. No one was describing what emotions could be; dangerous. Drug-like.

A mood board made up of 9 images with a blue and yellow dark glowy colour scheme. In the top right yellow light shows a drummer's hands. A teen slumps against a wall with their head on their knees, and "sorry" is scrawled on a blackboard. Rising lights and smoke-like tendrils of light weave through the air. A hand reaches out as if from underwater. Light shines down a bass guitar from a close-up angle looking along the strings, a rainbow is reflected in someone's palm, and a silhouette shows two ambiguous figures kissing.

The spring green-toned image collage is dominated by the stare of a half-human, half-cat face, illustrated in watercolour and pencil. Both eyes in the portrait are yellow-green and both the short, pixie-cut hair of the human and the fur of the cat is black. The human half of the face has pale skin. The tagline reads: “Have you ever been told a secret that changed everything, when all you wanted was to share one of your own?” Around the portrait image are photographs relating to high school gossip and bullying, queer Pride and comfort. They include gossiping figures in school uniform, a hot beverage held between someone’s palms, rainbow reflections and badges, a black cat, a writing hand with a pen, and someone sketching.

A collage of 9 images: The central image is of Sarah, who has glasses, red-brown hair with a turquoise streak and pale skin, and is wearing a navy suit. Around her are artwork images in watercolour and pencil, featuring a tricycle, hands holding tea, Monet's garden, a face that is half fox, half human, someone looking out of a window, and a variety of beverages. There is also a cake decorated with teapot shapes and an image showing art materials, tea, and a series of other illustrations in a pile.

Two rabbits snuggling on a couch covered in a patchwork blanket. The rabbit on the left is tan-coloured with two up-ears. The rabbit on the right is tri-coloured with black, tan and white and has one up-ear and one lop-ear.