Mark A. Rayner

@markarayner

Human-shaped, simian-obsessed, robot-fighting, pirate-hearted, storytelling junkie, Mark A. Rayner is an award-winning writer of satirical & speculative fiction.

232 Siguiendo3581 Seguidores202 Publicaciones

Bluesky

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Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· 6d

"Not only is the story hilarious, but true to Rayner’s style, it makes crafty insights ... that create a completely satisfying reading experience! Highly recommended." –Grady Harp, Amazon Top 100 Reviewer mybook.to/AlphaMax books2read.com/u/m0olnY bookshop.org/p/books/alph... #humour #humor #sff

3-d image of the cover art of alpha max by mark a. rayner

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· 7d

Welcome to an incredibly chatty #caturday. [sound on for adorable meowing] #cat #cats #catsofbluesky #humor #humour [description: a black cat meows and bluprs into a tiny microphone]

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· 10d

Lovely new review of Alpha Max by Lynda Williams, author of the Okal Rey Saga. Great last line: "A fun read that's occasionally poignant in a nippy way." Available wherever you buy books: mybook.to/AlphaMax books2read.com/u/m0olnY #review #sf #SFF #sciencefiction #humor #humour

Goodreads screenshot of a five-star review:

Alpha Max: An existential romp through an absurd multiverse (the tundraverse book 1) by mark a rayner, cal chayce
Linda's review

Wacky with a sustaining thread of raw existential angst.

Ever been troubled by the mess a multiverse would make of your identity, life, and the meaning of a special night together in a tent? Or wondered what different versions of you might have in common. Or not.

Mark A. Rayner juggles it all in his black humor, satirical multiverse romp layered over the big questions of identify, meaning and what matters when everything is jumbled up.

A fun read that's occasionally poignant in a nippy way.

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· 20d

What's more fun than golfing? #existential #questions #humor #humour

a woman in a pink unitard is kicking a man in a pair of jeans and yellow sweater in the midriff, both of them flying through the air

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· 22d

"A delightful collection of stories ranging across genres, whose recurring motif is the distinction between what is real and unreal, a true and a false dream." ~ Alex Good, Toronto Star Only $3.63US! mybook.to/TGoPH #theodyssey #odyssey #fiction #shortstories #SFF #humor #humour #literaryfiction

cover art for the gates of polished horn a collection of stories by mark a. rayner

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Jul 12

Free on Kindle for the weekend! A Milkshake Apocalypse -- a short story from the Tundraverse mybook.to/Milkshake Dr. Maximilian Tundra and his breakfast are the only thing standing between humanity and the collapse of civilization. #shortfiction #SFF #humor #humour #clownapocalypse #free

cover art for A Milkshake Apocalypse - a short story from the Tundraverse - by Mark A. Rayner

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Jul 11

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Jul 10

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Jun 24

Last day to get this deal -- $2.99US for ebook, $21 for paperback! ★★★★★ "Not the ‘usual’ multiverse story." –Kaye Nutman Amazon: geni.us/AlphaMax Other ebook: books2read.com/u/m0olnY Indie Bookstores: bookshop.org/p/books/alph... #book #books #sff #humor #humour #multiverse #deep #philosophical

cover art for alpha max by mark a. rayner

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Jun 23

Skip into the Tundraverse! Alpha Max is on sale for just two more days! ($2.99 ebook/$21 paperback). Amazon: geni.us/AlphaMax Other ebook: books2read.com/u/m0olnY Indie Bookstores: bookshop.org/p/books/alph... #books #book #SFF #humor #humour #darkcomedy

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Jun 15

"I really enjoyed this fun romp through alternate universes, following alternate Max Tundras... Reminded me of Vonnegut, smart, wryly funny, and makes you think. I’m glad I picked this up!" –Kit On sale for one more week! $2.99 US. Amazon: geni.us/AlphaMax Other: books2read.com/u/m0olnY #book

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· May 27

Weird monkey eating salad. #IKnowItsACat #cat #cats #humor #humour

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· May 21

Wow! A lovely 5-star review of The Gates of Polished Horn: "The first thing to say is that this short story collection is first class. Even if you don’t usually read short fiction, you should really give this a try." – Judi Moore booksandpals.blogspot.com/2026/02/revi... #books #book #fiction

cover art of the gates of polished horn, a collection of stories, by mark a. rayner

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· May 15

If you're in Halifax (Canada), I'm doing a reading tonight at Trident Booksellers at 5:30pm. I sure hope this doesn't happen again! #TriCon ##Halifax #reading #books #book #SFF #humor #humour

A swarm of Beakers (from the muppets), one of them a Goth Beaker, on a busy street

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· May 14

Comparisons can only take you so far in the Tundraverse! This first book, Alpha Max, is on #sale for $2.99 (US)! Amazon: https:// geni.us/AlphaMax Other ebook: https:// books2read.com/u/m0olnY Indie Bookstores: https:// bookshop.org/p/books/alpha-max-mark-a-rayner/1f805ce9fa9cd57c #books #ebooks

"into the spider-verse meets groundhog day meets edge of tomorrow meets ricky and morty meets the dark tower with drugs, apocalyptic cannibals, saber-tooth tigers, sexxxy clowns and one of an infinite number of dudes named Maximilian Tundra - @lolitmeirl, Twitter

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Mar 4

Joe and I are back at the podcast! Re-creative is all about fun conversations with creative people, where we talk to folks about the art that has inspired them! Guests include: John Scalzi, David Brin, Bruce Sterling, and so many more! Visit: re-creative.ca Or wherever you get your podcasts!

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Jul 28

"Whimsical yet unsettling." –The Toronto Star Books2Read: books2read.com/u/4jzRWo Amazon: geni.us/Gates Only $3.48 in ebook! #books #book #sciencefiction #literaryfiction #SFF #reality

whimsical yet unsettling ... rayner plays with the question of what's real. his stories are like though experiments, with imagined and reimagined histories - the toronto star -- with cover art for the gates of polished horn, a collection of stories by mark a. rayner

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Jul 22

Last few hours to get Alpha Max on sale! (Then it's going back into the vault.) A sequel (Beta Max, naturally) is on its way! $3.99 US ($6 off) geni.us/AlphaMax books2read.com/u/m0olnY #summerreading #book #books #humor #humour #scifi #sciencefiction #sff #novel

3D representation of the cover art of Alpha Max by Mark A. Rayner

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· May 4

Finally, an explanation for R2D2's sass! #cat #cats #maythefourth #starwars #humor #humour

R2D2 with its stomach gate open, and a cute little white and grey tabby looking out from robot's tummy adorably

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Apr 26

Beware the corn goblin! #caturday #cat #cats #catsofbluesky #humor #humour [Description: A black and white kitten messily grabbing a corn of cob and eating it.]

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Apr 20

This explains a lot. #easter #eastersunday #easterbunny #jesus #humor #humour P.S. The Easter Bunny is terrifying.

A giant yellow easter bunnyy with pink feet, hands, waistcoat and bow tie opening the crypt door for Jesus. Jesus is walking out and says: Thanks man, I owe you one. by jon adams

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Mar 29

When you have been denied treats, once again. #cat #cats #caturday #humor #humour

grey cat looking very cross in a dark background

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Mar 26

Another deep and thoughtful review of my new book, by Lisa Timpf, at The Seabord Review! www.theseaboardreview.ca/p/rayners-th... #review #reviews #book #books #fiction #shortfiction #SFF #sciencefiction #humor #humour

slide showing cover art of the gates of polished horn by mark a rayner, and this review:
Places Strange & Familiar
"Rayner has a unique and interesting voice, and while the characters and the events are sometimes drawn from beyond this world, they are also believable within the frame of the stories."
-Lisa Timpf, The Seabord Review

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Mar 25

Oh, oh, do this one next: "My life has a superb cast, but I cannot figure out the plot.” ― Ashleigh Brilliant #philosophy #life #humor #humour #quote #quotes

tom gauld cartoon
Soren Kierkegaard, 1843

Cartoon showing a man walking to the left and a dog walking to the right while they say:
"Live can only be understood backwards" "but it must be lived forwards."

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Mar 24

When I figure out an unconventional story edit for my WIP. #dogs #WritingCommunity #dog #corgi #humor #humour #writing #WIP #amwriting #dogstodon

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Mar 18

A beautiful review from Olga Miret, author and reviewer extraordinaire! She outlines each story on Amazon and on Goodreads, here: www.goodreads.com/review/show/... #book #books #review #reviews

slide that shows cover of The Gates of Polished Horn by Mark a. Rayner (markarayner.com/gates) with a quote titled: wonderful and varied! “I loved this collection of stories. They are all beautifully written and make one stop and think. Best savoured slowly, and you should give them time to sink in.”
–Olga Miret, author of The Man Who Never Was

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Mar 15

Caturday is always the best time to drop a new Mr.Mittens and the Yowltones album cover. #cat #cats #caturday #humor #humour

four cats walking towards the camera while other cats look back at a forest fire

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Mar 14

Twitter, as foretold by Hieronymus Bosch #twitter #humor #humour #satire

Detail from the Garden of Earthly Delights: Bird-headed monster or The Prince of Hell - close-up head eating human torso with black birds, smoke and fire shooting out of the torso's ass

Mark A. Rayner@markarayner· Mar 13

Introducing Chuck A. Merican: the obvious choice for Director of the CIA. #humor #humour #satire #trump #TrumpIsARussianAsset