Spellbound. In a year dominated by headlines about artificial intelligence, Liz Shipton’s Dot Slash Magic bursts onto the scene as an urban fantasy that speaks directly to our moment—brilliant, timely and impossible to ignore. Shipton blends contemporary anxieties with striking imagination to create one of the most original releases of the year.
I was hooked from the first chapter: Shipton’s mix of humor, heart and high-stakes magic kept me turning pages long past midnight.
Magic Meets Machine
Dot Slash Magic introduces Seven Jones, a self-taught coder with commitment issues whose carefully controlled life unravels after a breakup leaves her living on a houseboat. While studying at a San Diego community college, she stumbles into an underground magic club. There she discovers she might be a “Maker”—someone who can wield real magic alongside artists and old-soul practitioners who distrust technology.
When meditation and grounding fail to tame her chaotic powers, she does what any coder would: she writes a program. Her AI assistant is meant to stabilize her magic but instead sparks a war between traditional sorcerers and her “artificial magic” approach. Dragons dive-bomb the campus quad. Krakens rise from the marina. Psychedelic monsters hunt students in broad daylight. Blamed for tearing holes in reality, Seven—helped by ex-Navy SEAL Logan—must fight monsters and prejudice alike.
But beneath the magical mayhem lies a deeper exploration. Shipton uses urban fantasy to examine our urgent anxieties about AI, creativity and connection. Her sharp humor keeps the story racing while asking essential questions: What happens when technology and magic collide? Who is responsible when power outpaces wisdom? And why does the human element matter when the tools themselves become extraordinary?
The Santa Cruz & San Diego Connection
While the novel unfolds in San Diego, Shipton’s Santa Cruz roots echo through its cultural backdrop. Her time at the Santa Cruz harbor helped shape the novel’s houseboat community, and her experience with Cabrillo Stage informed its community college theater scenes. Shipton also lived in San Diego for four years during college, an experience that directly inspired her choice of setting. The result is a world that blends the grit and energy of Southern California with the creativity and countercultural spirit she absorbed in Santa Cruz—an intersection familiar to anyone who has navigated between these two coastal hubs.
Life at Sea: Where Books Are Born
For four years, the author has lived off-grid on her 43-foot sailboat Loki, turning it into both a home and a floating writing retreat. The journey began in September 2021 and has since taken her down the Pacific coast and into the Caribbean. She says being responsible for her own survival clarifies what stories matter. It’s DIY in the truest sense—something Santa Cruz has always celebrated.
This nautical life inspired her self-published Thalassic series, and Shipton chronicles her adventures on Instagram with compelling visual storytelling—from coding sessions interrupted by dolphins to her loyal canine co-captain supervising edits. Her writing process reflects sailing’s mix of discipline and improvisation: She plots meticulously but leaves room for surprises. That go-with-the-flow ethos is pure Santa Cruz. One rule, however, is non-negotiable: Zero AI assistance in her creative process. “I wanted to explore our fears about AI from the inside,” she explains, “but the words themselves? Those have to be human.”
Social Media Sorcery
Shipton has gone viral on BookTok and Instagram with satirical reels lampooning fantasy conventions—her take on the “one-bed trope” is “no beds, just the floor.” Her perfectly timed riffs on spicy romance and slow-burn tension have made Dot Slash Magic essential reading for the extremely online fantasy crowd.
Beyond comedy, she cultivates a genuine community through interactive Q&As, live chats and spoiler-free world-building discussions that build loyalty across multiple audiences. As a “hybrid author,” Shipton has mastered both indie and traditional publishing, cementing her status as one of fantasy’s most exciting and adaptable new voices.
Why This Book Matters Now
Whether shelved as urban fantasy or speculative fiction, Dot Slash Magic does what the best genre-bending books do: it makes us laugh while forcing us to face what terrifies us about tomorrow. The genre distinction is one Margaret Atwood argues deserves its own proud bookstore section, though that’s a debate still alive in local shops. Gary, owner of Two Birds Books on 41st Avenue—my favorite well-curated bookshop—says he shelves Atwood under General Fiction.
The art-versus-technology conflict at its core isn’t abstract philosophy—it’s Shipton’s lived experience. Before sailing and coding, she was a musician who watched her industry transform. That tension between traditional craft and digital disruption gives the story its beating heart.
Beyond the Last Page
Liz Shipton’s trajectory—from Santa Cruz harbor to BookTok sensation, coding wizard to fantasy powerhouse—reads like fiction itself. With Dot Slash Magic, she proves that the best speculative literature helps us groove with our beautifully weird present moment. Her humor, technical chops, and genre-breaking storytelling position her at the forefront of fantasy’s next wave. For readers who want adventure with an eye on the future, Shipton’s work is unmissable. In true Santa Cruz spirit, Dot Slash Magic isn’t just a story—it’s an invitation to imagine braver, weirder futures together.
Dot Slash Magic is available now from Angry Robot Books. Local readers: Meet Liz on Oct. 11 at California Coffee in Aptos—grab a cappuccino and hang with Santa Cruz’s rising literary star.
Follow Shipton’s adventures (both nautical and magical) here: lizshipton.com, instagram.com/lizshiptonauthor and
tiktok.com/@lizshiptonauthor.
