I’ll be attending Worldcon virtually once again this year! If you’re also attending virtually, or you’ll be in Anaheim but are happy to take a break from peopling in person, here’s where you can find me.
My full schedule is on my “Person” page for ease of description reading and adding to YOUR schedule; just click the star icon between the time and the panel name.
Friday, August 28th, 2026
3:00pm PT (6:00pm ET): In Space, No One Can Hear You Laugh: Humor in Sci-fi
I am so delighted and honored that Escape Pod is once again an Ignyte Award finalist for Outstanding Fiction Podcast! You can read our official announcement here.
Recently, I recorded a panel for WriteHive that will be shared on July 11th at the conference. The topic was “Predicting the Future: Where Science Fiction Could Explore Next” and I had both my writer and editor hat on for that one. Two hats, one head, zero chill.
Anyway, one of the things the other panelist and I discussed is that the future is for everyone. I think when we say that, some people envision every story being turned into a Miss Universe pageant, where a character from every possible group must be paraded onto the stage and given a brief spotlight somehow. Instead, one thing I mean is that when we look at the breadth of futuristic science fiction, the whole shelf rather than one book, it’s important that we try to make space for stories about all the different kinds of people who are alive today. To quote Lilo & Stitch: no one is forgotten, no one is left behind*.
We are living in a time, like so many other times, when marginalized people are being persecuted to varying degrees in different places. It is, pardon my language, some really gruesome shit. At Escape Pod, our stated ethos is that we try to showcase stories that are hopeful, optimistic, escapist—which can mean very different things to different people, especially depending on what they’re going through at any given moment. It can also mean that it feels as if we’re turning away from harsh reality, pretending nothing is wrong, avoiding hard truths and experiences.
That’s one way to handle escapism, but not the only way. I think that instead we try to fulfill our mandate, at least to some extent, by taking the people who are getting it in the neck today and showing them living, breathing, dreaming in the future. We show them surviving. We show them thriving. Maybe we don’t show how the dots connect, how we get from here to there, but we want to believe that we will. That we must.
Whether we win any awards or not, I hope we can keep offering people that vision of the future. One for everyone, where no one is forgotten, and no one is left behind.
*Well, paradox of tolerance, of course. Some people can eat dirt. They know who they are.
Being a finalist for a prestigious award is pretty incredible. Having it happen more than once is downright humbling and amazing.
Escape Pod has again made the finalist roster for Best Semiprozine at the Hugo Awards. It is, as always, an incredible list of publications to be on, and it only scratches the surface of the robust, diverse scope of short fiction available today.
We already made an official post about it, so I won’t belabor the point, but I would like to reiterate, with every part of my heart from the bottom to the top, that we wouldn’t be here without our amazing team. This includes not only the writers who create the stories and the narrators who bring them to life, but our hosts and audio producers and assistant editors and associate editors and admins, without whom the ship simply would not fly.
If you’re a voter, or maybe if you just want to see or hear what we’re about, you can check out our Voter Packet for a sampling of stories that represent the kind of work we publish. And if you like those, go ahead and read or listen to the rest!
Thanks to everyone who voted for us, everyone who has supported us throughout the years, and highest of fives to my partner in crime, Mur.
Special shout-out to my husband, Eric, whose uncredited audio work on my host spots and narrations deserves to be credited somewhere. Go vote for him and PodCastle next time, too!
A few months back, I had the pleasure of being interviewed for the Angie & Christie Write Now podcast, and the episode is finally out! Give it a listen when you get the chance.
If you peruse their channel, you’ll find other cool interviews, Q&As and book recommendations from various authors as well. So you can start by listening to me yammer, then dive into the backlist. Backlisten? That’s a word now, I just decided.
Your keen eyes may also detect the Strong Women, Strange Worlds logo in the above image. They’re an organization dedicated to showcasing women and nonbinary authors of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. They host regular virtual live readings, with a few coming up quite soon! Check them out as well.
If you’ve been waiting for word on the sequel to Witch You Would, the wait is over! Witch Is Minepreorder links are now up, and so is the extremely adorable cover by artist Jess Miller.
The benefit of writing a sequel, in terms of cover art, is that you’ve already set a precedent. It’s good to maintain the format of what you’ve already got in some way, and change up the details to fit the new book. Cohesion! Continuity! You love to see it.
The challenge, then, is to figure out what to keep and what to change. What exactly do you want to add in terms of different elements? What are the symbols you can pull from the text and plop into the art so readers can judge your book by its cover?
For Witch You Would, I knew I wanted butterflies and a slate, and the rest was up to the artist. For Witch Is Mine, I asked for books and peacock feathers. I also requested a dragon plushie, providing some sample photos of how I’d love it to look. Why these things specifically? You’ll find out when you read it!
Without further ado, check out these two nerds! I can’t wait for you to meet them.
You may remember Emelia, Penelope’s sister, from the first book. Here she is, in all her professional yet resting-murder-faced glory! Sebastian is a new character, a stoic cinnamon roll librarian who loves his bow ties. Bow ties are cool, as everyone knows.
Right now, the book is set to release on October 9th, but discussions are in progress about potentially pushing that back to the beginning of next year. I’ll be teaching at Viable Paradise again in October, and for those of us in the US, that time is probably going to be… stressful, to say the least.
We shall see what unfolds! I’ll keep you updated. Meanwhile, join me in gazing raptly at this cover and emitting the occasional excited squeal and kicky legs. And hey, drop a preorder if you’re so inclined!
Starting today, aka Giving Tuesday, WriteHive is holding their 2025 Silent Auction fundraiser!
I have three things up for bidding. You can get a 30-minute coaching call with me, where we can talk about whatever writing, publishing or career things you’d like. Or, if you want a signed/personalized book, you can bid on a copy of either Where Peace Is Lost or Witch You Would.
WriteHive is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to helping writers achieve their goals. They have a variety of events and programs dedicated towards that purpose, including free virtual conventions and a year-round Discord.
All money raised will go directly to funding operations, allowing their volunteers to bring more opportunities to the writing community. You can win signed books, manuscript critiques, bookish merch, and other cool stuff.
If you’re part of a book club that likes space opera, good news: Chilling Effect is (for now) one of Hoopla’s Book Club Selections!
The Club offers recommended audiobooks, eBooks, and comics and manga that libraries and patrons can use to host book clubs in person or virtually. All recommended titles from The Club are available on Hoopla Instant, so book club members can read or listen all at the same time with no holds or waiting. And starting this year, The Club is also available in Canada for the first time.
You can borrow Chilling Effect as an eBook or audiobook, whichever floats your spaceship. The other books shown in the image at the top are also great, especially Countessby Suzan Palumbo and Annihilation Aria by Michael R. Underwood. Check them out, too!
(This is old news to folks who are subscribed to my newsletter, but I figured it was worth dropping here as well for posterity and anyone who might have missed it the first time around.)
I’d sit on the couch or a beanbag or, in the summer, this big green high-backed chair in my dad’s family room. I might start out normal enough, with the ol’ junk heap on the seat like anybody else, but within minutes I’d have my head dangling over the edge and my bare feet pointing at the ceiling.
Did I enjoy the rush of blood to my head? The novelty of the cartoon sky and ground being reversed? Did I just like pissing off any adults who wandered in and barked at me to sit correctly and stop being so weird?
I honestly don’t remember. I can’t tell you why I did it. It just made sense at the time.
When I started my website a grumble-frumble ago–that’s a highly technical term for “I don’t want to look it up and feel old”–I decided to have a separate site for my blog. It’s still there, and it will stay there for at least another grumble-frumble or so. But I can’t remember exactly why I set things up that way, and while I’m sure it made sense at the time, it seems like a silly thing to do now.
I have become the adult, yelling at my child self to sit properly. Actually I yell at my son to do it, because of course he inherited my penchant for strange behavior, and he’s always messing up the couch cushions.
Anyway, going forward, I’ll be posting new blog content here. I’ll also be revising and reposting some things from my old blog–because sometimes a big green high-backed chair is still worth having, but could use new padding and upholstery.
So welcome to my new online home. Come on in and make yourself comfortable. Watch TV upside down if you must, but don’t come crying to me if you fall over, I warned you to be careful, BUEEENO. Allá tú.
