nossumusstellae
Ella Murphy - she/they - Canadian writer and artist
Proud to be a part of the queer/LGBTQIA communityIn the Query Trenches:
Ink Stained WolfArchive of Memory (Guardian and Nightfall bundle)
(link below to dedicated webpage)
The Starsinger Chronicles
"When the stars speak... listen."A journey through time wrapped in myth and legend, told through the eyes of the stars.My debut novel.
Ink
Stained
Wolf
(Nightfall + The Reflections Saga)One moment can spark a journey.The past can be a complicated thing - and for Jaye Avenheart, her history is no exception. Because no matter how long one tries... one cannot simply outrun the past.
about me
Writer - Artist - Explorer of worlds
My debut novel
I have been working on The Starsinger Chronicles for the past three years. Taking place in the island-filled ocean world of Ankyra, this novel is told in six parts, each leading into the next. A land of five peoples, Ankyra has a long and winding history, from its founding to the future. Featuring mermaids, pirates, air-sailors, and magic, The Starsinger Chronicles is a tale that is truly unique.This novel was inspired by a lot of things. The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern is a big one. If not for that book, I probably would not have thought that something like my novel could even exist. I would not have been brave enough to use third-person present tense, either. I was also inspired by the book Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, which has a similar multiple-part tale told over hundreds of years.Unusually for a book, The Starsinger Chronicles got its true start in a series of pixel arts that I created. It was with these works I first fleshed out the world of Ankyra and what it might be like. The next year, I began writing. Most of all, this novel would not have happened without the guidance and encouragement of my late mother. I would have never ventured on this incredible journey without her.And what a journey it has been. From simple pixels to a short story that became several that then became a novella, that somehow became a novel.Wishing you a wonderful journey through the waters of Ankyra.The Starsinger Chronicles is available as PDF BY REQUEST - Please contact on Tumblr or Bluesky.Featured in the Free Promos of PrideBookFair 2025 on Bluesky****“This is a land of stories. Myths and legends dance with history.Magic and wonder.Welcome, visitor, to the waters of Ankyra.I ask you to remember only one thing during your time here:When the stars speak... listen.”What begins as a simple journey to find the truth behind a myth becomes a centuries long tale, spanning multiple eras and empires.Imbued in this tale is the Starsinger, a mysterious deity of ancient myth that few know anything about, yet this being influences the entirety of of Tethe's history.Told in third-person present tense... from the viewpoint if the Stars.****If you read this book and find it to your liking, please consider donating to a Fibromyalgia/Chronic Fatigue/ME organization as a form of payment, in memory of my late mother, to whom this novel is dedicated.
Ink Stained Wolf
Nightfall + Reflections Saga
Jaye Avenheart first appeared in my creative mind over ten years ago. Since then, I have written her entire story, from her fractured childhood to the woman she is today.
This character has challenged me as a writer like none other I have ever written. Forcing me to confront subjects I would have never otherwise written, and explore places I have never been.*****This novelette anthology is unapologetically queer.
Available for Beta Readers ONLY - please contact on either Tumblr or Bluesky******Nightfall - a tale of escaping one's past and forging a new path.The past can be a complicated thing - and for Jaye Avenheart, her history is no exception. Because no matter how long one tries... one cannot simply outrun the past.This is a story of childhood trauma, the path to overcome and move on. A single event can spark a journey – for teen Jaye Avenheart, that moment arrives in a dark, dingy bar on the edge of a knife. Years later, everyone in the New York Underground MMA knows her name. Her hard-hitting style, opponents she leaves bloodied in the cage, the signature swirls up her arms. Few know the story behind the ink. The painful past she is desperately running from.Starting with a fractured and unhappy childhood, continuing on to troubled young adult years, and ending with finding a career in the MMA cage, Nightfall spans decades of Jaye's life, from age 13 to her late 40's.Nightfall is told primarily in first person present tense from Jaye's point of view, with sprinkles of other characters' thoughts. Newfoundland English abounds within these pages, as does Jaye's unique accent.Features:
*Complicated family relationships
*Visceral fight scenes
*Found family and a prized vintage 1969 Honda CB750 motorcycle
*A very unapologetic butch asexual lesbian for a main character, who is, and I quote, "hell on wheels, literally!""I stand, crushing my cigarette and tossing it. Drawing my knife with my right hand as I turn, hiding it behind my open jacket. Hoping they decide to just stay where they are.
Wishing, not for the first time, that I wasn’t so freakishly tall and conspicuously queer."
- Jaye******The Reflections Saga: Zachary Doran has it all: a husband, two kids, a successful Private Investigation agency with his father Eamon, and an awesome 1982 Corvette. His peaceful life is shattered when a young woman arrives from New York, seeking to hire the Dorans for a case. A case that throws a secret Zachary's father has kept for nearly 40 years into the light. Now if only Jaye Avenheart’s past would stay in the past, things would be much simpler.Continuing on the story that begins at the end of Nightfall, Reflections tells Jaye’s journey of self-discovery, family truths, and finding love when she least expects it in the form of Shaylock Winter, a woman with a mysterious past of her own.Features:
* The setting? The beautiful island of Newfoundland
* ... expect Newfoundland English and a lot of it (also a fair amount of Scottish Gaelic)
* Slightly non-chronological storytelling
* Family secrets and the fallout
* Unexpected love
* Assume everyone is queer unless otherwise specified
* Yes, the vintage vehicles are practically family, why do you ask?"I only took the case out of principle. Number one rule of being a Private Investigator is never turn away a paying client.
Even the ones you don’t like.
Her name? Jaye Avenheart.
Don’t make me say it again, once is enough. The point is, she messed my life up - bad. And I’d rather not dwell on it more than I have to."
-Zachary Doran*****
About me
My pen name is Ella Murphy. From the French "elle," meaning "she," and "la," the definitive article for feminine words; Murphy as in Murphy's Law: "what can go wrong will go wrong!" I am 33 years old, living in Canada. Active member of the Tumblr Writeblr community, including the monthly event Writeblr Live, and I have previously written a magical-realism novel entitled The Starsinger Chronicles. My novel was featured in the 2025 edition of Pride Book Fair on Bluesky.I have been writing poetry and (bad) fanfic since I was thirteen. Took up writing a bit more seriously ten years ago, after a big life change, and when the character of Jaye Avenheart decided to take up residence in my imagination. Since then, I've written a ton of short stories, a story that somehow ended up with a sequel and a prequel, and my novel. I often find myself venturing into new creative spaces, exploring themes I've never touched.I take inspiration from the world around me, places I have never been and places I long to go. The beautiful east coast island province of Newfoundland is a big focus for my recent work. I love writing places that feel isolated and yet not, quiet solitudes that are connected to a wider world.Hobbies include reading whatever book has caught my fancy, drawing, making the occasional pixel art, DnD (I'm still learning), and Lego dragons.Founder of monthly Writeblr event Gloved Fox Writer Chat over on Tumblr.Find me on Bluesky and Tumblr.