Blank Paper Will Always Be At The Ready

Writer of fiction and zines | mariebismonte.com | mbismonte.itch.io

[mbismonte]

THE BOULDER Issue 6: Pyramids is out now!

"There's no data on how the pyramids were exactly built. To be logical about it, you rebuild from the bottom."

Download here.

[mbismonte]

Issue 5: The Raven is live!

A work meeting. A date that doesn’t show up. A glass of wine. A mile walked home in the dark.

[mbismonte]

Surfaces that survived. Texture as record of endurance. Terror and tenderness.

[mbismonte]

She’s seen every angle of every relationship, every argument, every reconciliation, every breakup. Both sides, literally. And what does she know? That people are the same from every angle. Still confused. Still needy. Still routing their mess through her. Betty’s tired.

[mbismonte]

THE BOULDER Issue 4: Green Dot — out today

a serial zine about precarious labor under late capitalism. darwin is a freelancer. his boss won't pay him. his roommate makes content on onlyfans. his AI assistant is on self-care leave. he has $356 and a date he can't afford.

these are the ads between the pages. they are not real. betty AI is not a real product. hardon™ is not a real supplement MLM (the fine print is real though). meetcutemetrics is not a real dating app. the raven is not a real restaurant. none of this is real. rent is still due.

issue 4 is $5 — first paid issue. issues 1–3 are free.

[mbismonte]

The universe conspires, or does it?

Darwin's universe: Cordy's midnight emails blinking like warning lights. A green dot. Dolly is online. Fortune favors the hardworking (but rent is always due).

Issue 4: "Green Dot" drops Saturday, February 14th!

Previously: Issues 1-3 follow Darwin—a freelance data analyst trapped in the gig economy, drowning in Cordelia's predatory management style, haunted by Grace (a phantom), and now...maybe rescued by Dolly from MeetCuteMetrics™ or maybe not.

Read the series here!

Music: "Happy" by Ned's Atomic Dustbin

[mbismonte]

THE BOULDER #3 is out. It's about a man whose AI can't distinguish his boss from his dating app match, his roommate who doesn't understand why someone paid just to hold him, and a tower of magnetic blocks that might be the only stable structure in anyone's life.

Last free issue. $5 each after this.

[mbismonte]

Your boss is firing you one second, then hiring you the next, literally texting AND emailing you while your life is also falling apart. Who can relate?

Read THE BOULDER, a digital zine serial about the absurdity of the freelancer life in the gig economy. Issue 3—called “Peak Comic Sans”—is dropping on January 24!

[mbismonte]

Millennium Bridge, London, UK

[mbismonte]

Our last day in London. Took a wrong turn near Waterloo and wandered into Leake Street Arches—eight old railway tunnels beneath the station, now home to indie restaurants, bars, and London’s longest legal graffiti wall. Every surface covered in layers of paint and intention. Then, walking out, we spotted an Invader piece on the side of a building. Just sitting there, quiet, waiting to be noticed. Sometimes the best finds happen when you stop following the map.

[mbismonte]

THE BOULDER Issue #2: Climbing the Content Summit is out now.

Darwin's roommate gets beat up by a subscriber's husband. Can't make content. Deadline's tonight. Solution: Darwin's feet have higher arches.

Meanwhile: invoice still unpaid, rent was due yesterday, and a green dot blinks on a dating app.

The algorithm rewards consistency. The boulder doesn't care.

Free download.

[3lianav]

If there a single zine application out there where they don't ask you to be a professional artist or to write down what you want to draw/write before even getting accepted into the zine? Since when zines have become so fucking curated? Zines started as a way for everyone to share their word and art, not just the "good ones". Give back zines their real meaning or just don't call them zines at all

[mbismonte]

When your boss says “I’m giving YOU two weeks notice.” 💀💀💀 Rent is always due. Meet Darwin—freelance extraordinaire, people-pleaser, professional email-ignorer. The Boulder Issue 1 is out now, Issue 2 drops Saturday, 1/3, here.

[mbismonte]

The Boulder’s Issue No. 2–“Climbing the Content Summit”—is coming out on Saturday, 1/3/26!

Start the new year with this darkly absurd serialized fiction about the freelance life in late capitalism. If we don’t laugh, we’d be crying.

All issues (and my other works in digital format) can be found on mbismonte.itch.io.

[and-fishing-equipment]

in 2026 DO NOT ask yourself whether your art is GOOD

instead ask:

is it SINCERE

was it CATHARTIC

was it FUN TO MAKE

is it MADE BY ME

and don't forget to stay silly

[mbismonte]

A week before we ring in another 2020.

[mbismonte]

Thanks to Reddit, I found out Cyberpunk 2077 was on sale for $17.49 (from $70). I bought it right away on the Nintendo eshop. I was never gonna buy it otherwise. Turns out IT WAS AN ERROR. It’s now back to regular price. LOL.