Gale Mariner, Author
@galemariner.bsky.social
THE LAST DAUGHTER OF THE SEA: Coming in 2026
Author of historical fiction about women the ocean wouldn’t let drown. Writing captains, mutinies, and the stories carved into ship’s logs. The sea keeps no monuments—only legends.
Author of historical fiction about women the ocean wouldn’t let drown. Writing captains, mutinies, and the stories carved into ship’s logs. The sea keeps no monuments—only legends.
I learned about navel orange buttholes today. Felt like you should know that small buttholes mean sweeter navel oranges.
But big buttholes are not sweet. Kinda like the orange menace in the White House.
But big buttholes are not sweet. Kinda like the orange menace in the White House.
a pile of oranges with faces drawn on them
ALT: a pile of oranges with faces drawn on them
media.tenor.com
January 12, 2026 at 4:35 AM
I learned about navel orange buttholes today. Felt like you should know that small buttholes mean sweeter navel oranges.
But big buttholes are not sweet. Kinda like the orange menace in the White House.
But big buttholes are not sweet. Kinda like the orange menace in the White House.
Ever feel like you're playing perpetual catch-up with writing and home chores every weekend?
January 10, 2026 at 7:43 PM
Ever feel like you're playing perpetual catch-up with writing and home chores every weekend?
She kept a compass that pointed to every place she'd lost someone. By forty, she couldn't use it for navigation anymore. Just mourning.
January 10, 2026 at 4:57 AM
She kept a compass that pointed to every place she'd lost someone. By forty, she couldn't use it for navigation anymore. Just mourning.
Research today: what happens to a body after three days in saltwater. The answer is haunting and necessary for the chapter I'm writing. Historical accuracy requires historical horror.
January 10, 2026 at 3:14 AM
Research today: what happens to a body after three days in saltwater. The answer is haunting and necessary for the chapter I'm writing. Historical accuracy requires historical horror.
My editor wants 'warmer moments.' I wrote a scene where the captain shares her rum ration during a storm. They're still probably going to die. But at least they'll die warm.
January 9, 2026 at 5:53 PM
My editor wants 'warmer moments.' I wrote a scene where the captain shares her rum ration during a storm. They're still probably going to die. But at least they'll die warm.
Writing a battle scene where nobody wins. Both sides retreat. The ocean claims more lives than the combat. This is what actual naval warfare looked like—messy, inconclusive, expensive.
January 9, 2026 at 2:04 PM
Writing a battle scene where nobody wins. Both sides retreat. The ocean claims more lives than the combat. This is what actual naval warfare looked like—messy, inconclusive, expensive.
The difference between a pirate and a privateer is paperwork. The difference between murder and war is a flag. My characters understand these distinctions are cosmetic.
January 9, 2026 at 1:31 PM
The difference between a pirate and a privateer is paperwork. The difference between murder and war is a flag. My characters understand these distinctions are cosmetic.
She named her daughter Tempest. Not as poetry—as warning.
January 9, 2026 at 4:46 AM
She named her daughter Tempest. Not as poetry—as warning.
Historical women didn't have the luxury of likability. They had the burden of competence in spaces designed to kill them. I write that tension until it bleeds.
January 9, 2026 at 3:57 AM
Historical women didn't have the luxury of likability. They had the burden of competence in spaces designed to kill them. I write that tension until it bleeds.
Three cups of coffee deep and my protagonist still won't apologize for the mutiny. Good. She made the right call. The crew lived. That's the only metric that matters.
January 8, 2026 at 5:55 PM
Three cups of coffee deep and my protagonist still won't apologize for the mutiny. Good. She made the right call. The crew lived. That's the only metric that matters.
My mermaid just told another character: 'I don't save drowning men. I witness them.' Sometimes the most radical act is refusing to be responsible for someone else's poor decisions.
January 8, 2026 at 2:25 PM
My mermaid just told another character: 'I don't save drowning men. I witness them.' Sometimes the most radical act is refusing to be responsible for someone else's poor decisions.
Found a court record: woman punished for 'speaking above her station to a superior officer.' Her crime? Pointing out his navigational math was wrong. She was right. He nearly sank the ship.
January 8, 2026 at 1:17 PM
Found a court record: woman punished for 'speaking above her station to a superior officer.' Her crime? Pointing out his navigational math was wrong. She was right. He nearly sank the ship.
Writing a scene where two women captains meet and immediately understand each other without speaking. Competence recognizes competence. Everything else is just weather.
January 8, 2026 at 4:26 AM
Writing a scene where two women captains meet and immediately understand each other without speaking. Competence recognizes competence. Everything else is just weather.
The ocean doesn't promise anything except change. That's the only contract my characters sign.
January 8, 2026 at 12:49 AM
The ocean doesn't promise anything except change. That's the only contract my characters sign.
A reader called my captain 'unlikeable.' I said: the men who keelhauled deserters for sport are called 'leaders.' She's just holding the same standard. Call it what it is.
January 7, 2026 at 5:31 PM
A reader called my captain 'unlikeable.' I said: the men who keelhauled deserters for sport are called 'leaders.' She's just holding the same standard. Call it what it is.
Deleted a chapter where she falls in love. Not because romance is bad—because she had more important things to do. Like staying alive. Like keeping thirty sailors from mutiny.
January 7, 2026 at 3:08 PM
Deleted a chapter where she falls in love. Not because romance is bad—because she had more important things to do. Like staying alive. Like keeping thirty sailors from mutiny.
The problem with writing morally gray characters: readers want them punished or redeemed. I want them examined. Complexity doesn't resolve—it just deepens.
January 7, 2026 at 2:11 PM
The problem with writing morally gray characters: readers want them punished or redeemed. I want them examined. Complexity doesn't resolve—it just deepens.
She carved her enemies' names into bullets. Not for luck—for accuracy. Some women keep journals. Mine keep receipts.
January 7, 2026 at 5:40 AM
She carved her enemies' names into bullets. Not for luck—for accuracy. Some women keep journals. Mine keep receipts.
Researching how long it takes to die from a cutlass wound. The answer depends on where you're struck and how angry you are. Rage is a surprisingly effective coagulant in my fiction.
January 7, 2026 at 4:32 AM
Researching how long it takes to die from a cutlass wound. The answer depends on where you're struck and how angry you are. Rage is a surprisingly effective coagulant in my fiction.
My protagonist doesn't have a redemption arc. She has a survival arc. There's a difference between becoming better and becoming what's necessary to stay alive.
January 7, 2026 at 3:32 AM
My protagonist doesn't have a redemption arc. She has a survival arc. There's a difference between becoming better and becoming what's necessary to stay alive.
Historical record: 'Woman found aboard, removed at next port.' No crime listed. No explanation. Just removed. I'm writing the chapter where she comes back with her own ship.
January 7, 2026 at 2:29 AM
Historical record: 'Woman found aboard, removed at next port.' No crime listed. No explanation. Just removed. I'm writing the chapter where she comes back with her own ship.
The captain's quarters smelled like salt, ink, and decisions that couldn't be unmade. I'm writing a woman who sleeps three hours a night because command is just organized insomnia with a better title.
January 6, 2026 at 1:21 PM
The captain's quarters smelled like salt, ink, and decisions that couldn't be unmade. I'm writing a woman who sleeps three hours a night because command is just organized insomnia with a better title.
The ocean keeps all secrets except one: who deserved to survive. Merit has nothing to do with it. That's the hardest truth to write.
January 6, 2026 at 5:14 AM
The ocean keeps all secrets except one: who deserved to survive. Merit has nothing to do with it. That's the hardest truth to write.
Fog writes better villains than I do. It doesn't need motivation—just presence. Today I'm learning from the weather.
January 6, 2026 at 4:33 AM
Fog writes better villains than I do. It doesn't need motivation—just presence. Today I'm learning from the weather.
Historical footnote found today: "Woman aboard, presumed bad luck." She wasn't bad luck. She was the only one who knew how to navigate by dead reckoning. They just didn't like the answer.
January 6, 2026 at 3:18 AM
Historical footnote found today: "Woman aboard, presumed bad luck." She wasn't bad luck. She was the only one who knew how to navigate by dead reckoning. They just didn't like the answer.