Rachel Ayers, Author at Reactor

Rachel Ayers, Author at Reactor

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Home / Author / Rachel Ayers

Rachel Ayers

Rachel Ayers lives in Alaska, where she writes cabaret shows, daydreams, and looks at mountains a lot. She has a degree in Library and Information Science which comes in handy at odd hours, and she shares speculative poetry and flash fiction (and cat pictures) at patreon.com/richlayers.

Website

www.patreon.com/richlayers

Latest from Rachel Ayers

Showing 37 results

Illustration from S.C. Hall's The Book of British Ballads (1842)

Books

Fairy Tales

Folklore Meets Murder Ballad: Six Retellings of “The Cruel Sister”

By Rachel Ayers

November 5, 2025

Bela Lugosi as Count Dracula in Dracula (1931)

Featured Essays

vampires

Bite or Flight: Ranking Classic Vampire Strengths and Weaknesses

By Rachel Ayers

October 27, 2025

Cover art from Winter Rose by Patricia A McKillip (illustration by Kinuko Y. Craft)

Books

Fairy Tales

A Knight to Remember: Six Retellings of the Story of Tam Lin

By Rachel Ayers

September 22, 2025

Art from the album cover of Frank Loesser's Thumbelina and Wonderful Copenhagen, 1952

Books

Fairy Tales

Don’t Marry the First Mole You Meet: Five Retellings of “Thumbelina”

By Rachel Ayers

August 20, 2025

Beth Riesgraf as Parker and Aldis Hodge as Alec Hardison in season 3 of Leverage: Redemption

Movies & TV

heists

Recapturing the Magic of Leverage: Heists, Cons, and Competence Porn

By Rachel Ayers

April 15, 2025

Victoria Page (Moira Shearer) runs towards a pair of red ballet shoes in The Red Shoes (1948)

Books

Fairy Tales

Retelling “The Red Shoes”: The Most Fabulous Cursed Accessory

By Rachel Ayers

March 18, 2025

Painting of a woman pouring water from a bucket into a trough for a flock of geese

Books

Fairy Tales

Stolen Identities and Class Conflict: Six Savvy Retellings of “The Goose Girl”

By Rachel Ayers

February 12, 2025

Illustration of a scene from "Diamonds and Toads" or "The Fairies": A young woman fills a jug of water, while an old woman rests in the background.

Books

Fairy Tales

“Diamonds and Toads”: A Fairy Tale About Getting What You Deserve?

By Rachel Ayers

October 10, 2024

Illustration: Beauty sits on a chair at a dining table while the Beast sits beside her on the floor

Books

Fairy Tales

Five Thorny Retellings That Offer a Twist on “Beauty and the Beast”

By Rachel Ayers

August 21, 2024

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“There is an art to smiling in a way that others will believe. It is always important to include the eyes; otherwise, people will know you hate them.”

N.K. Jemisin, The Fifth Season

TPG 2026 • Site Credit