CASSANDRA KHAW is the USA Today bestselling and Bram Stoker Award-winning author of The Library at Hellebore, Nothing But Blackened Teeth, The Salt Grows Heavy, Breakable Things, and coauthor of The Dead Take the A Train with Richard Kadrey. They are an award-winning game writer.
I blame this essay on the trailer for the Wicker, which if you don’t know, is about a middle-aged woman who gets a basketmaker …Read More
TITHI LUADTHONG, also known as Grandfailure, is a freelance illustrator and concept artist based in Thailand. His work focuses primarily on science fiction and fantasy, including book covers, publishing, board games, and other commercial illustration. His art often emphasizes vast environments, atmosphere, and visual storytelling through landscapes and imagined worlds. He is particularly drawn to scenes where small human figures are placed against enormous environments, creating a strong sense …Read More
DMITRI LINCOLN MEHLHORN is an attorney, entrepreneur, investor, and Democratic activist. He is known for his work on public policy, political strategy, philanthropy, and efforts to strengthen democratic institutions and has contributed commentary to publications including The Atlantic, The Daily Beast, and The New Republic.
Drawing on philosophers such as Karl Popper, Hannah Arendt, and Carl Sagan, Dmitri also writes science fiction to stress-test the century ahead: the …Read More
Yoon Ha Lee: I’ve been meaning to read C.J. Cherryh’s Heavy Time and Hellburners for the very first time. I have copies but kept putting it off because reading Cherryh not only requires all my brain cells, but I want to be able to sink into Alliance-Union and life circumstances precluded it. My introduction to Cherryh was Exile’s Gate in 10th grade off an English teacher’s bookshelf – …Read More
JAMES ISLINGTON was born in 1981. He is the author of the Licanius Trilogy, beginning with the originally self-published fantasy novel The Shadow of What Was Lost (2014) and continuing with An Echo of Things to Come (2017) and The Light of All That Falls (2019), all collected in a 2026 omnibus. The Will of the Many (2023), first in the Hierarchy series, won an Aurealis Award and saw …Read More
Black Dingo (Flame Tree 10/26) by Eugen Bacon. Afro irrealism is a wonderfully odd and imaginative genre that eludes expectations and boundaries. I’m looking forward to Eugen Bacon’s curated vision in this collection. I expect it to be weird and unexpected in all the right ways!
–Maya C. James
I’m looking forward to Matt Hill’s new novel, Wrecks (Dead Ink 8/26). Hill’s last novel, …Read More
Chinelo Onwualu is a Nigerian writer, editor, and journalist living in Toronto. She teaches creative writing at the University of Toronto’s School of Continuing Studies. She’s the co-host of Griots and Galaxies, a podcast about African Speculative fiction and the people who write it. She’s also co-founder of Omenana, a magazine of African Speculative Fiction. She was chief spokesperson for the African Speculative Fiction Society. And she was a …Read More
Asimov’s editor Sheila Williams’ journey back from her serious health issues continues slowly apace. As Medicare will no longer cover her rehab, her daughters have launched a GoFundMe to help support their parents’ move into a longer-term care facility. As editor of Asimov’s, Sheila has long understood that editing a science fiction magazine is not simply a matter of finding good stories, but of finding writers, and sometimes, helping them …Read More
GARTH NIX was born July 19, 1963 in Melbourne, Australia and grew up in Canberra. He joined the Army Reserve at 17 and served as a part-time soldier for five years. At 19, he began writing, and sold first story Sam, Cars and the Cuckoo (1983) within the year. He attended the Canberra College of Advanced Education (now the University of Canberra) and received a BA in professional writing …Read More
Tricia Narwani is the publisher and editor-in-chief of Del Rey Books. She has worked with authors including Pierce Brown, Wesley Chu, Saara El-Arifi, Heather Fawcett, Kevin Hearne, Bryan Lee O’Malley, Josh Malerman, China Miéville, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Ava Reid, Chuck Wendig, Kiersten White, and Heather Walter. She lives in Brooklyn with a very large collection of vinyl records and one very small cat.
What makes a book a Fall Book …Read More
With overflowing warrens of books festooned with decorations and copious spreads of cake and charcuterie, Dark Carnival held its 50th anniversary celebration on August 1, 2026. The event drew genre aficionados both new and old to congratulate its longtime proprietor, Jack Rems, on a half-century of independent business. Since 1976, Dark Carnival, the second-oldest genre bookstore in the US, has accumulated an incomparable selection of science fiction, fantasy, horror, …Read More
It’s one thing to be anti-AI in the sense of believing that AI-generated slop, disinformation and deepfakes are bad; that AI companies that hope to con your boss into firing you and replacing you with AI that can’t do your job are bad; that betting the economy on AI is bad; that betting the human-habitable planet Earth on AI is bad; that running roughshod over local environmental rules and seizing …Read More
Claire North: If I’ve got two weeks without a care in the world, then as I luxuriate upon a lounger in a floppy straw hat, listening to the wind through the trees, you bet I’ve got a pile of books to get through. Near the top, I’d love to tick off Gardens of the Sun by Paul McAuley, ‘cos it’s been on my TBR forever and he’s a stand-out British …Read More
Gen Con Writers Symposium was held July 30 – August 2, 2026 at the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown as part of the massive Gen Con gaming convention. Steven Barnes & Tananarive Due were special guests, with Justina Ireland and Kwame Mbalia as featured guests. Organized by Maurice Broaddus, along with project manager Olivia Sailor, head of operations Matt Jarchow, head of communications Gini Koch, and others, the event saw approximately …Read More
CLARION
The Clarion workshopran from June 28-August 8, 2026 in La Jolla CA. Their 2026 faculty included Sarah Pinsker, Grady Hendrix, Erin Roberts, Abbey Mei Otis, Andy Duncan, Elizabeth Hand, and Jac Jemc (faculty director).
ALPHA WORKSHOP FOR YOUNG WRITERS
The 2026Alpha Workshop for Young Writersran from July 15-26, 2026 at the University of Pittsburgh in Greenburg PA. Their lecturers were Mark Oshiro, Max Gladstone, Ayana Gray, and Scott H. …Read More
Richmond-Upon-Thames is a charming borough of South West London, famous for its riverside and the mixture of artists and rock stars it routinely attracts. These days, it is familiar to many Americans from the Apple TV show Ted Lasso, who will be delighted to know it is just as charming and quirky as it appears on screen.
It therefore seemed like a good idea to hold a miniconvention there. …Read More
German fans organised a terrifically thoughtful Eurocon / MetropolCon in Berlin, that had a fabulous atmosphere, a very strong professional attendance, and attracted 960 members, under the motto Everything is running smoothly.
The venue Silent Green is a repurposed crematorium in Wedding, one stop from Berlin Hauptbahnhof. The classic Kuppelhalle is a beautifully ornate space, while the majority of rooms are predominantly modern and underground. Relaxation also occurred …Read More
The Sycamore Hill Writers Conference was held at the Wildacres Retreat on June 13-19, 2026.
#noinsta …Read More
Readercon 35 was held July 9-12, 2026 in Burlington MA at the Boston Marriott Burlington. Guests of honor were authors P. Djèlí Clark and David Gerrold; Mike Resnick was the memorial guest of honor. Readercon 35 had a total of 711 member registrations, 667 printed badges, and 608 warm bodies on Sunday, compared to 2025’s 653 registrations and peak count of 610 warm bodies. The focus of Readercon is …Read More
ANAND GANDHI is a defining voice in contemporary Indian cinema. His philosophical triptych Ship of Theseus and mythological horror Tumbbad are among the most celebrated films of their generation. His work has won honors at the international film festivals of Toronto, Venice, Transylvania, Tokyo, and Hong Kong.
ZAIN MEMON is an acclaimed game designer. His bestselling board games SHASN and AZADI are played in over 70 countries. His work …Read More
JAMES PATRICK KELLY was born April 11, 1951 in Mineola NY. He earned a BA in English Literature at the University of Notre Dame in 1972 and attended the Clarion Writers’ Workshop in 1974 and ’76. He began writing full time in 1977. In 2005 he joined the Stonecoast Creative Writing MFA program as an adjunct, where he taught for 15 years. He writes a column in Asimov’s Science …Read More
Victor Manibo and Sam Rebelein read at the KGB Bar in New York NY on July 8, 2026 as part of the Fantastic Fiction at KGB Reading series, hosted by Ellen Datlow and Matthew Kressel. …Read More
Westercon 78/BayCon 42 was held July 3-6, 2026 in person at the Santa Clara Marriott in Santa Clara CA. Charlie Jane Anders, Annalee Newitz, Jenay the Kitchen Witch, and Desmond Crisis were guests of honor; Kevin Roche was featured guest (science); and Sumiko Saulson was poet-in-residence. The theme for the 42nd anniversary was The Answer , in homage to The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
Programming included an array …Read More
CHLOE GONG was born December 16, 1998 in Shanghai, China. Her family immigrated to New Zealand when she was two years old and she now lives in New York City. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2021 with a double major in English and international relations. In 2020, she published her debut novel These Violent Delights. She went on to write sequel Our Violent Ends, Foul Lady …Read More
Nino Cipri, Jeff Somers, Seamus Sullivan, and Cecilia Tan read at Barrow’s Intense Tasting Room in Industry City, Brooklyn NY on June 16, 2026 as part of the Brooklyn Books & Booze Reading series, hosted by Amy Goldschlager. …Read More
Siobhan Carroll and Micaiah Johnson read on May 13, 2026, and Nicholas Kaufman and A.C. Wise read on June 10, 2026, at the KGB Bar in New York NY as part of the Fantastic Fiction at KGB Reading series, hosted by Ellen Datlow and Matthew Kressel. …Read More
WisCon 48 was held May 21-25, 2026, and was conducted completely online. Darcie Little Badger and Premee Mohamed were guests of honor. Programming included panels, solo presentations, and readings, with an array of items on SF/F and horror literature, diversity, feminism, disability, publishing, queer identities, faith, criticism, liberatory practice and more. Highlights included guest of honor readings, a ”Vid Party,” numerous online hangouts, roundtables on co-op gaming and the …Read More
Rebecca Baum, Sharang Biswas, Sarah Branson, and Jamilette Cintron read at Barrow’s Intense Tasting Room in Industry City, Brooklyn NY on May 19, 2026 as part of the Brooklyn Books & Booze Reading series, hosted by Amy Goldschlager. …Read More
The 12th annual Bay Area Book Festival took place from May 29 – 31, 2026 in downtown Berkeley CA. Free to the public – with around 25,000 people attending over the three days – and staffed by a host of volunteers, the festival included interviews, panels, readings, and events for adults, teens, and children on a range of topics across the literary spectrum. Over 250 writers participated on 11 stages, …Read More
TEMI OH was born in London, England. She graduated King’s College London with a Bachelor of Science and University of Edinburgh with a Master of Arts. She currently lives in London.
Written while at King’s College, her first novel, Do You Dream of Terra-Two? (2019), won an Alex Award from the American Library Association in 2020 and was named an NPR Best Book of the Year in 2019. She …Read More
Elwin Cotman, Andrew Katz, Somto Ihezue, Andrew Hiller, Alicia Hiller, A.C. Wise, Gina Tron, John Slater Simmons III, and Chris Campbell all read from the 27th story observatory of Baltimore’s World Trade Center during the 2026 AWP Conference, March 4, 2026. Charm City Spec organized the event, hosted by Chris Rose. …Read More
The tenth annual StokerCon, sponsored by the Horror Writers Association (HWA), was held June 4-7, 2026, both virtually and in person at the Westin Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania. Guests of honor were Linda D. Addison, Rachel Harrison, Billy Martin, John Shirley, James Tynion IV, and Ann VanderMeer. The Stoker Awards were hosted by Kevin Wetmore Jr., and this year’s Lifetime Achievement Awards recipients were Jonathan Maberry and Lisa Morton. The …Read More
