Michael Johnstone

The cover for Uncanny Magazine Issue 64, “Barbershops of the Floating City" by Grace P. Fong: A woman stands facing the viewer, her qipao is a light blue color with flower designs in a darker shade of blue. Her long, black hair trails elegantly behind her while she holds a pair of scissors close to her chest. Behind there is a shadow that looks in the opposite direction, as if she is looking down at the city depicted below. At the top is a sun that crowns the two figures and bathes the entire picture in light. The quote reads: "There have been portals to the Fae realm for at least as long as humans have had fairy tales, but the first one deliberately engineered by humans was opened in an abandoned amusement park thirty-five miles northeast of Antiphony."

ICYMI! Reading for the Hugo Awards?

Try the short story "Unfinished Architectures of the Human-Fae War" by Caroline M. Yoachim @carolinemyoachim.bsky.social!

It placed 4th in the Uncanny Poll!

You can read it here!

buff.ly/KkHUnep

An open letter to Grammarly and other plagiarists, thieves and slop merchants To everyone at Grammarly, I am writing a book right now, a really challenging endeavor that no doubt someone in Silicon Valley will think it’s fine to steal the day it’s published. I’ve been a profes...

I finally lost my shit about so-called AIs, LLMs, enshittification & everything fucking evil that @officialgrammarly.bsky.social is doing. I'm fucking furious, and not just about what 1 company has done. An open letter to Grammarly & the rest of the LLM hype machine www.moryan.com/an-open-lett...

Beneath Ceaseless Skies - 2026 Awards-Eligible Stories from <i>BCS</i> by Scott H. Andrews For readers interested in nominating for awards, such as the Hugos or Nebulas, in 2026, here are the eligible stories from BCS in 2025 and which awards category they fit in. Thank you for your interes...

Nominating for Hugos? Here's all eligible BCS stories, category, nominating links, and link to our BCS Authors Elsewhere posts. (Pls *DON'T* nominate BCS for Semiprozine; we recused. You can nominate Scott for Editor Short Form if you find him worthy.) www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/2025/12/07/2...

Just submitted a short story, my first one this year. Now, the waiting and the nibbling on fingernails begin. 👀🙃

#sff #amwriting

Cover of the novel THE VANISHED BIRDS, by Simon Jimenez. Black, with concentric circles of red, blue, yellow, and orange.

Reading THE VANISHED BIRDS by Simon Jimenez, and I'm wholly entranced by the prose, just as I was with THE SPEAR CUTS THROUGH WATER (my favourite read of 2025). Love pleasant shocks such as "a carbonation of applause." Poetry throughout.

#sff #booksky 📚💙🪐

10 new books in March offer mental vacations March is always a big one for books – this year is no different. We call out a handful of upcoming titles for readers to put on their radars — offering a good alternative to doomscrolling.

So happy to see SEASONS OF GLASS AND IRON on this NPR roundup for March! & so dislocating to see myself quoted on Pop Culture Happy Hour in 2021 & realize that was 5 years ago, instead of the 2-ish it feels like it ought to be

www.npr.org/2026/03/03/n...

The cover of JITTERBUG by Gareth L Powell features a stylised rocket silhouette at the centre of an orrery, with a space suited figure dangling in its wake

RELEASED TOMORROW!
A traumatised bounty hunter. A betrayed pirate queen. An ambitious politician. Can they somehow work together to save the human race? Published by @titanbooks.bsky.social and available through all good booksellers.

Skin Thief by Suzan Palumbo (ebook) — neon hemlock This order will come with a DRM-free epub file. The stories in this collection of dark fantasy and horror short stories grapple with the complexities of identity, racism, homophobia, immigration, ...

It is women in horror month. I am one of those and here is my gothic/horror lit collection that people said was pretty good.

www.neonhemlock.com/ebooks/skin-...

Cover of Shoeshine Boy & Cigarette Girl by P.A. Cornell next to text that reads: Shoeshine Boy & Cigarette Girl by P.A. Cornell I was thrilled when this sci-fi love story came just in time for Valentine's Day. Cornell weaves a beautiful romance seamlessly with tense action, sending the reader on a wild, emotional ride that is deeply satisfying by the end. I also need everyone to read the behind the scenes tidbit at the end because that, my friends, is the insight into how a master creates a story. Cornell does not disappoint with her latest book. Grab your copy ASAP.

Woke up to this lovely review in @cjtavares.bsky.social’s newsletter. 😊

I know it's hard sometimes to know what to do on days like today, so here's an idea. It's something small that most of us can do. Pick an author whose work you enjoy. Doesn't have to be one of our authors. Go buy a copy of their latest book. Viola! You've made the world a better place.

Kameron Hurley | Patreon creating Short Stories

You don’t need more bad takes.

You need better stories.

Start here.

www.patreon.com/kameronhurley

Now that SHOESHINE BOY & CIGARETTE GIRL is out in the world, I thought I'd share some of the things readers have been saying. Get your copy: www.starsandsabers.com/books/shoesh...
@starsandsabers.bsky.social

The cover for Uncanny Magazine Issue 63, “Blessed Universe" by Galen Dara: An ethereal figure stands front and center of the frame, behind here there is a shower of stars on a violet space-landscape. She is dressed in robes that blend into her, and she holds her palms open. On each hand and the center of her chest there are three sources of light, as if she has the moon for a heart, and stars on the palm of her hands, a mist rises from her open palms. The quote reads: "What a strange world and what powerful characters Titos Pavlou has created! I can’t stop thinking about this book even though this might be for younger readers. But! It’s only the first in the series and I’ve read online that the second installment gets more grown-up, so I’ll stick it out for the battle scenes."

Congratulations to Eugenia Triantafyllou! Eugenia's “The Life and Times of Alavira the Great as Written by Titos Pavlou and Reviewed by Two Lifelong Friends” is a finalist for the BSFA Award for Best Short Fiction! Read it here! buff.ly/6ZnbYnQ

Haven't signed the contract yet, but I can say I received my first short story acceptance in a few years. Looking forward to revealing the full details when I can. So happy for this story to find a home. ☺️

HEY CANUCK SF AUTHORS! You have just 32hrs left to submit your 2025 SFF poetry & short fiction to Year's Best Canadian F&SF: Volume Four (best of 2025). We're already at a record 450+ subs--can we get to 500!?!? DO IT!! Make me regret my life choices! Link below! We close Feb 28 11:59pm Pacific!

There's so much to explore and discuss in WITCHMARK!

I'll be thinking about the implications of how the novel uses magic to make concrete the social/economic/political consequences of the commodification of bodies and the alienation of labour (in a basically Marxist sense). At least, as I see it. ☺️

Ra: Knizia's most impactful game - TCbH Retrospective Review YouTube video by The Cardboard Herald

Alright folks, just posted our Ra retrospective, probably the most ambitious project I’ve ever done for the channel. If you care about historical context of #boardgames or just want to help us grow, this is one I’d really appreciate you sharing about. @25thcentury.games

youtu.be/aOJKFlf7l_g

Cover of C.L. Polk's novel WITCHMARK. Blue, with a silhouette of a man on a bicycle and upside-down silhouettes of a woman and man beneath the bicycle's wheels, and trees and a night sky of stars in the background.

Super happy to say I'll be giving a paper this May at ACCSFF '26! It will be my first academic conference in *many* years. I'm looking forward to writing my paper on @clpolk.com's novel WITCHMARK. (Just, um, need to, erm, remember how. Ahem. 👀😊)

www.yorku.ca/accsff/

#sff #booksky 📚💙🪐

On Spec 129 features a cyborg whale. Works by Julie Czerneda, Marie Bennan, Cat Isidore, Alex Langer, Fiona Moore and more.

On Spec 134 features a druid on the cover. Works by Fiona Heath, Stephen Kotowych, Marie Labrousse, Ian Li and more.

We urge all our friends in the Worldcon community to consider nominating On Spec for the Best Semiprozine Hugo Award, and to consider nominating Diane Walton for Best Editor - Short Form.

They've done great work for 35 years.

New blog post: hugoclub.blogspot.com/2026/02/the-...

Going to re-up our call to nominate On Spec for Best Semiprozine at the Hugos

With Canadian identity under attack by USA-based alt-right political forces, it's an important moment to celebrate things that are weirdly Canadian

This is also their last year of eligibility. Throw them a vote, please.

Book Review: The Best Weird Fiction of the Year Volume One by Michael Kelly, ed. - Lightspeed Magazine If you're looking for a gorgeously curated selection of stories, Arley Sorg suggests you check out The Best Weird Fiction of the Year Volume One edited by Michael Kelly.

Over at @lightspeedmagazine.com I review The Best Weird Fiction of the Year Volume One edited by Michael Kelly!

TL;DR: IT's GOOD!!! If you like short fiction, it's a worthy addition to your library! : )

Also check out antho Beyond the Glittering World!!!

www.lightspeedmagazine.com/nonfiction/b...

Must Read Short Speculative Fiction: January 2026 - Reactor This month's short fiction recs include strange tales, near future explorations, and at least one giant.

The world is a trash fire. Take a break with some new short speculative fiction. reactormag.com/must-read-sh...

Amazing! Fantastic! Astounding! Science Fiction and the Pulp Magazines — Toronto Public Library Join us at the Merril Collection for this exhibit on the incredible pulp magazines. The pulps were fiction magazines that dominated North America from the 1890s to the 1950s. For over half a century, ...

Looks like an awesome exhibit is going on now at the Merril Collection inside the Lillian H. Smith branch of the Toronto Public Library!

tpl.bibliocommons.com/v2/events/69...

It's that time! Vote in the annual Locus Awards Poll & Survey to determine the winners of the 2026 awards (tickets available now)!

You can vote at poll.voting.locusmag... or via the link in our bio!

SFWA Career Mentor Questionnaire Greetings, SFWA Mentorship Program Mentor Applicant! We're happy that you're interested in our program, and we're gratified to see you “paying it forward.” One of the Mentorship Program's goals is to…

MENTORS WANTED: Help newer writers in the SFWA Career Mentorship Program! Apply by February 21 to provide 3 months of professional development. No critiques required, just advice!

You do *not* need to be a SFWA member. Apply here: 👇️

docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

Blue cover of Victor LaValle's novel THE CHANGELING. White coffee cup and a muffin next to the book.

Finished @victorlavalle.bsky.social's THE CHANGELING yesterday. I am still feeling spent emotionally. Not just the ending, but the whole story. I've wanted to read it for a while; it fully met expectations. Can't wait now to discuss it with my Fantasy & Horror course.

#booksky #sff #horror 💙📚🪐

support - The Ignyte Awards We live in immensely difficult times and hope our supporters are utilizing their discretionary income to prioritize giving to causes which aid in our collective survival and the dismantling of oppress...

With the caveat that there are much more important things in need of financial support in our fucked up times, the support page for the Ignytes is back up for the 2026 cycle.

ignyteawards.fiyahlitmag.com/support/

Hi Jason, I just came across We Who Hunt Alexanders, and I have to say it immediately grabbed me. Amelia’s story is gripping, dark, and layered with emotion. The way you explore a monster who feels happiness, sadness, fear, and love in a world that’s cruel and unforgiving makes this story compelling and unforgettable. That’s exactly why I wanted to reach out. I run a book review service through Super Lovers Book, connecting books with real readers who genuinely enjoy science fiction, dark fantasy, and emotionally rich stories. These readers don’t just leave stars they leave thoughtful, honest reviews that highlight what makes a story unique, powerful, and worth discovering. Here’s why reviews are so important for We Who Hunt Alexanders: Build Trust: Potential readers often decide whether to pick up a book based on reviews. Authentic feedback signals that your story is worth their time. Increase Visibility: Platforms like Goodreads reward books with steady, genuine reviews, helping them appear in search results, recommendations, and “readers also enjoyed” lists. Generate Momentum: Each review encourages more readers to pick up the book, engage with the story, and leave their own thoughts, creating a snowball effect of attention. Reach the Right Audience: Reviews written by readers who love sci-fi and dark fantasy ensure your story reaches the readers most likely to appreciate and recommend it. I truly believe We Who Hunt Alexanders deserves this kind of engagement. A few honest reviews now can amplify your book’s reach, help it gain visibility, and connect it with the readers who will love it most. Would you be open to having We Who Hunt Alexanders read and reviewed by genuine readers who are passionate about sci-fi and dark fantasy? No pressure at all I just wanted to reach out because your work deserves to be discovered by more readers. Warmly, Herry Sharp CEO, Super Lovers Book

if you continue to ignore my messages, I might do something you would regret for the rest of your life. I already have access to your book, and instead of giving it a positive review, I will leave a negative one and damage its reputation. It seems you have forgotten that I have a community of readers, and I can easily influence them to bring your book down. You can try me though. CEO | Super Book Lover Curator Helping brilliant books find their people, one honest review at a time.

Book club scams are now threatening authors who don't fall for their BS. In December, I received an email from Herry Sharp, so-called CEO of "Super Book Lover Curator" praising my novella We Who Hunt Alexanders.

Totally AI-generated and a scam so I didn't respond.

Now Herry is threatening me. 1/

I'm two thirds of the way through it, and my dread is properly intensifying with each chapter. 😳