Eek! What could be scarier than a horror story? Writing one, for starters. Luckily, Austin Public Library’s invited local author Tonia Ransom to help buff up y’all’s bone-chilling bona fides. With a novella (Risen) and a Black creator-centric horror-fiction podcast (Nightlight) under her belt, Ransom lays out the basics for beginners and longtime creepers alike, with tips on writing petrifying plots, skin-crawling characters, and eerie environments that’ll have your bones rattling in fear. Happy haunting, y’all! – James Scott