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There’s certainly no shortage of science fiction and fantasy-inspired crafts on the internet, and it can sometimes be hard to make heads or tails of the offerings. Would it be better to create a felt Triffid, or embroider a map of Middle Earth? Would heading to a pottery studio to make a replica pensieve be a good use of your time? Or how about a papier maché Nautilus?

The choices is intimidating, so to streamline the process and get your crafting as soon as possible, here is a selection of sci fi and fantasy-inspired cross stitch patterns that are great for beginners.   

This week, the 215 Festival is in full swing. We've highlighted a few events here, but make sure to visit their site to get the full event listing. And not on the calendar, but very important for fall: take a stroll and buy a book from your local bookseller! It's book-curling-tea-sipping weather and you need the correct provisions.

Tonight, Friday, October 24, hit up the Literary Mixtape: 215 Fest Edition: a late-night reading in which people DJ books instead of music, sharing their top hits. Starring Allen Crawford, Kristine Kennedy of Philly Beer Week, and Julia Factorial. 10 p.m., Society Hill Society at 400 S 2nd St.

It's here, you guys! It's finally here!

Tomorrow kicks off the first ever Hello Kitty Reading Day, a celebration of Hello Kitty's 40th anniversary and the great books published around her. A lot of other publishers are playing along, including Abrams, Penguin, Perfect Square, Priddy Books, Sourcebooks, and, of course, us! Brett dished out all the details in this post a few weeks ago. 

Want to join in the fun? Over on the Hello Kitty Reading Day website, you can find participating locations. If nothing is going on near you, don't worry! Today we're handing out this handy Hello Kitty Reading Day Event Kit, just for you. 

You can check it out embeded below, or download it off our Scribd page. There are plenty of fun activities you can enjoy at home. Check it out! 

Hello Kitty Reading Day: Event Kit by QuirkBooks

For those who scoff: “A comic book could never scare me!” – there’s something about the way good writers and illustrators use the space on the page and in the frames that can make comics and graphic novels absolutely chilling. It’s the anticipation, the quietness, the occasional first-person perspective.

It’s the way your mind fills in the blanks, maybe by adding sound – the click of heels on an empty, dark street, the sound of something crawling across the attic floor – or allowing one scene to bleed into another.

Since Halloween is right around the corner, what better time to test your mettle than with these classic horror comics and graphic novels?

Chances are, if you're a Quirk fan, you enjoy a good scary story. I mean, here at the Quirk HQ, we publish our fair share of them. The Pride & Prejudice & Zombies series, The Resurrectionist, Horrorstor, Bedbugs, Stuff Every College Student Should Know… the list goes on. 

Last October, we released an eBook exclusive reprint (ePrint?) of Suburban Legends by Sam Stall. A collection of creepy TRUE short stories of horror in the suburbs, it was a fun book to work on. And to promote it, we posted a number of excerpts on our Scribd page.

Since Halloween is quickly approaching, I figured we should give these to you guys once again. So here you go, four true stories of horror from the suburbs. 

Suburban Legends: Roadside Assistance

Suburban Legends: The Prime Time Poltergeiest

Suburban Legends: The Goatman Cometh

Suburban Legends: Guess What's Coming To Dinner?

Enjoy!