Margaret Owen

@what-eats-owls.bsky.social

2957 Followers 496 Following

doodler, demi, USA Today, Sunday Times, and NYT #1 bestselling author of LITTLE THIEVES, THE MERCIFUL CROW, ROOTBOUND & more ✨ She/her. Rep: Victoria Marini

WHERE TO FIND ME AT LOS ANGELES WORLDCON Thursday, August 27, 2026 Panel: Authorial Bias and Worldbuilding 3-4 PM, 252AB (Anaheim Convention Center North) Signing Pedestrian Bridge (ACC North) 6-7 pm
Sunday August 9 - Puget Sound Book Festival Saturday August 15 - Huntington Beach Barnes & Noble in conversation with Ashley Poston Sunday August 16 - D23 panel and signing August 27-30 - Los Angeles Worldcon
screenshot of the NYT bestseller list for Young Adult Hardcover, with Rootbound by yours truly sitting at number one. prepare to be sick of me
Short video from an airplane window passing over a sea of smoke that extends to the horizon beneath scattered clouds. Eventually it passes the fires and clears to show the Cascade mountains.
The Lindworm - The framing fairy tale of Holy Terrors is Prince Lindworm. A prince, born as a monstrous serpent called a lindworm, devours bride after bride on their wedding night, until a clever maiden thwarts him by wearing every dress she owns. When he demands she remove her clothing, she insists he shed a skin for every dress, and eventually he is stripped down to his true human form. Lindworms are also a creature of myth; said to increase treasures they lay on, this is believed to be the origin of the myth of a dragon’s hoard. In Holy Terrors, we meet a version of Vanja who, under Irmgard’s influence, is warped into a ruby lindworm, while Prince Lindworm serves as the metaphor for the painful and vulnerable process of reconciliation for Emeric and Vanja.
Title: Little Thieves: Under the Cover secrets, research, and other particulars from the series Fairy Tales & Folklore
Painted Devils takes place in the principality of Lüdheid, in the northern-central empire, in the region known as the Haarzlands, inspired by the Harz in Saxony-Anhalt. This map is much cruder simply because we didn’t get into nearly as much urban detail as in Little Thieves!
Title: Little Thieves: Under the Cover secrets, research, and other particulars from the series MAPS
Did you catch that when you read the books? I hope you enjoyed it either way, and there’s more to come! See you soon!
The crown reverses in Irmgard’s web, and then morphs into a new crown entirely in the bubble held together by cobwebs as Irmgard literally rewrites reality into what she believes she deserves... ...but as we learn this new reality is unstable and breaking apart, the webs turn to cracks, and spiders appear to try and fail to hold it together. Finally, Irmgard’s reality fully breaks down, and she chooses to make a monster of the girl it’s built on, unleashing the lindworm. The penultimate chapter header reflects the question the entire series has led to: What does justice look like for someone like Vanja, and what does it look like for someone like Irmgard? And finally, Vanja’s story started with a lantern, and ends with a candle. The halo of Justice’s scales now surrounds the flame, and I think you can guess about the ribbons.
Irmgard’s visual motif is spiders, so as her work continues in the background, the window begins to take on elements of webbing... until the chapter where Death has to make a very difficult choice. For the first time, we see Vanja’s red penny skull-side up.
We start with the Pfennigeist’s signature red penny, crown-side up... which slowly changes into a stained glass window, as the Pfennigeist begins taking on the role and traits of a Low God.
In Holy Terrors, nothing is quite as it seems. That includes chapter headers that start as one thing and shift to another; the changes start subtle, and become increasingly abrupt.
For Painted Devils, as the gang is racing to secure a substitute sacrifice for the Scarlet Maiden, the increase of her power and the threat she poses is reflected in the growth of her thorns. (GIF that depicts chapter headers ornamented by thorny vines that spread as the story progresses)
In Little Thieves, Vanja has until the next full moon to break her curse. The chapter headers progress with the story, showing her running out of time. (GIF depicting the chapter headers that include a moon that wanes from full to new as the story progresses)
Title: Little Thieves: Under the Cover secrets, research, and other particulars from the series THE CHAPTER HEADERS
Photo of the rafters at the Seattle center armory, a large indoor structure, with very light smoke visibly catching light from skylights
Cluster of small brown mushrooms around a wooden dowel in a garden bed. Unacceptable!
Side by side dumpsters, both painted with pride rainbows because: Seattle!
Screenshot that reads: Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Young Adult Literature K. Ancrum, The Corruption of Hollis Brow (‎HarperCollins 2025) Amber McBride, The Leaving Room (Feiwel & Friends 2025) Margaret Owen, Little Thieves series, consisting of Little Thieves (Henry Holt and Co. 2021), Painted Devils (Henry Holt and Co. 2023), and Holy Terrors (Henry Holt and Co. 2025) Vanessa L. Torres, On the Wings of La Noche (Knopf 2025)
Photo of a little black cat looking like he has never done anything wrong in his entire life. He is sitting in wait by the shower curtain, planning crime.
Screenshot from Sailor Moon depicting, from left to right, Sailor Jupiter, Sailor Moon, Sailor Venus, Sailor Chibimoon, Sailor Mercury, and Sailor Mars, posing on the guide rails of a path, because this show was peak. Technically they’re all Super Sailors at this point, which is its own gender.
Screenshot of the Zillow house listings for Laurelhurst. The visible ones range from 1.4 million dollars at the low end, to 18.8 million dollars at the high. One cluster obscures a couple listings for a house (3 bed 2 bath, 2000 square feet, for 950k) and the additional unit they’ve squeezed into the back of the lot (2 bed 2 bath, 1000 square feet, 895k.)
fromsoft meme depicting the cover of Holy Terrors with the text overlay of "LODESTAR NOMINATED", I am a professional
Fancy graphic announcing Holy Terrors’ lodestar nomination. It depicts the cover of holy terrors except the main figure has been photoshopped to be holding a clip art trophy and is standing front of a pile of stolen trophies. I did not photoshop out the shutterstock watermark because I’m a professional.
fromsoft meme depicting the cover of Holy Terrors with the text overlay of "LODESTAR NOMINATED"
Screenshot of a Tiffany lamp replica by Meyda with a very similar base to the mystery lamp
Colorful stained glass lampshade made of an elaborate mosaic of glass pieces, creating the image of yellow and green leaves against a backdrop of blues and browns.
Graphic detailing my Norwescon schedule, which is as follows: THURSDAY: Professional IP Writing vs. Fanfic, 7pm - 8 pm, in Cascade 11 SATURDAY: Autograph session, 10 am - 11 am, Grand Ballroom YA Is for Everyone?, 12 pm- 1 pm, Cascade 6 SUNDAY: Not Instagram Ready: YA Protagonists That Aren’t Always Perfect, 11 am - 12 pm, Cascade 7 & 8
an extremely dumb graphic featuring my books and, you know, yugioh
graphic detailing my eligibility for SFF awards in 2026: Best Series: Little Thieves Best Young Adult Novel/Andre Norton/Lodestar: Holy Terrors Best artist: yours truly
a white cardboard box (with ventilation holes) that reads "LIVE BIRDS" and has the USPS logo
screenshot of map showing seven elementary schools within the grounds of Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state
Book cover in the style of Victorian foiled books. The front cover features the same characters as the previous two, a few years older; they stand in front of a multicolored stained glass rose window. The young man's expression is split between betrayed anger and desperation, and he's caught one of the young woman's wrist/hand. The young woman is sticking her tongue out at him with a gold-plated dagger laying against his jaw. The back cover depicts a hooded figure holding up a dagger with red hands, a ribbon tied around their throat, and a tear slipping down their face. Behind them are two windows with diamond panes showing glimpses of eyes and various creatures and symbols. Above them is a stained glass window showing a woman in royal regalia with hands clasped in prayer, and a ribbon that reads "Blessed Innocente."
Stained glass window depicting a troubled young woman holding a broom and standing behind the bars of a window as sun rises over a city outside. At her feet are two coffins and two open graves that form a cross.
Stained glass window depicting content woman in a shawl and simple dress handing out gemstones to three girls at her knees.
Stained glass window depicting a hard-faced, ragged young woman with broken manacles standing in a prison yard, holding a tower in one hand and a coin in the other.
Stained glass window depicting a girl with two opposing faces, one a skull, one human but blank-eyed, holding a coin. On the skull side, the background is a cloudy graveyard below a moon, on the human side is a sunrise with stars.
Red book cover in the style of an antique Victorian foiled cover. The front depicts the boy and girl from the LT cover, now posing in a mid-dance dip; she seems to have stolen a pair of manacles from him and is grinning, and he looks pleasantly suspicious. They are surrounded by a decorative frame of roses that begin yellow at the bottom, and transition to red at the top. The back cover depicts a wreath of yellow roses over a benevolent-ish goddess in crimson with open arms and a crown of burning roses. Below her, a blonde woman weeps into her hands, the tears becoming a waterfall, and in the bottom third, a buff woman with glowing eyes/freckles, flowing brown hair, and a fur cloak over a worn tunic notches a glowing arrow to a bow.
Blue cover in the style of a Victorian foiled book cover. The front depicts a gangly young man in a white shirt, gray waistcoat, and spectacles leaning through an open window with stained glass panes, searching for something while holding a glowing coin aloft. A girl in a green dress with a ruby teardrop under her right eye is perched on the arch of the window frame above him, sticking her tongue out and twirling a tiara around her fingers. The back cover depicts the rest of LITTLE THIEVES' ensemble cast interacting with each other through the diamond bars of a frame.
graphic detailing my eligibility for SFF awards in 2026: Best Series: Little Thieves Best Young Adult Novel/Andre Norton/Lodestar: Holy Terrors Best artist: yours truly
screenshot of a ream of printer paper for $6.99
Photo of an enormous gray tabby in a black stroller. He looks chill as hell because he is.
Catherine O'Hara as Moira Rose, dressed as the pope, for her son's wedding
Graphic stating that I have donated an ARC of Little Thieves, which I will sign and personalize for the winner, as well as doodle a character of their choice from Little Thieves, inside the ARC or separately. There's a URL which I will add in the next skeet.
Screenshot of the first step of the instructions in the post
illustrated coer of an artbook by the manga group CLAMP featuring four different men in tuxedos and action poses
"they’re insisting that gay men continue to be the perfect, harmless dolls that act, speak and perform the way that they want us to. We must behave in a manner that is pleasurable and inoffensive to them, in a mode that aligns with the characters on their favorite television show. We begin and end in their minds as these characters, who are written to be idyllic depictions of gay men that will be agreeable to a woman’s fantasy."
a beautiful and immaculate screencap from star wars of the moment poe dameron says "somehow, palpatine returned" except I have replaced "palpatine" with "the barnes and noble preorder sale" and given him a hand with which to display my two books available for preorder. pretty top-notch work if I say so myself
State Route 167 remains closed for a six-mile stretch Frager Road is closed at W Meeker Street; Old Fishing Hole Park is also closed Russell Road is closed at Veteran's Drive; Van Doren's Landing Park is also closed W Valley Highway/68th Ave S/Washington Ave S is closed from Willis to S 277th Street S 262nd Street at 78th Avenue S to 27232 72nd Avenue S, just prior to S 272nd Street 78th Avenue S from S 277th Street to S 262nd Street S 277th Street from 108th Avenue SE to 83rd Avenue S/Auburn Way N
Image depicting flash flood warning area spanning Kent, Renton, and Tukwila. Green River, Duwamish Waterway, and Cedar River are at risk.
screenshot of dropoout's own noise boyz™: a frowning josh ruben playing air keyboard, a frantic brennan lee mulligan on air trombone, and a suffering zac oyama sandwiched between them trying to meet his KPIs
screencap from the trailer of Wake Up Dead Man, featuring Glenn Close holding an axe for personal reasons, standing beside a spray painted phallus on a tomb, with the caption "These kids painting hugo awards all over his sacred resting place"
Screenshot that reads: "Bertelsmann Crowns A Coesfeld (Thomas, The Younger) As New CEO Berteslmann announced that Thomas Coesfeld, 35, will become the new chair and ceo of the company on January 1, 2027, after Thomas Rabe's 15-year tenure comes to an end. He was chosen over his older brother, Carsten Coesfeld, in the competition to see which of the controlling Mohn family members would take over. Carsten, who is on the company's executive board and is responsible for Bertelsmann Investments and Bertelsmann Education, is not mentioned in the release."
Screenshot from my Microsoft subscription management page that shows the drop-down menu for "Apps included with your subscription" and at the top is "Microsoft 365 Copilot app"
Screenshot highlighting the date and installation link at the website mentioned in the post.
meme of ben affleck exhaustedly smoking