Last chance! Registration closes Tuesday. Come practice considering things we don’t always talk about in science writing classes, like how the writer establishes ethos, how to respect the voice of the writer & the voice of the publication, or how to write a joke: courses.the-efa.org/courses/155765

My next science editing class starts this week! Register here: courses.the-efa.org/courses/155765

Last week the bioGraphic team learned that, owing to an ongoing financial deficit, the California Academy of Sciences—where we’ve made our home for the past decade—will no longer be able to provide us with financial support, including support we were expecting this year.

Pierre Bourdieu once argued that the question of whether something is art isn't answered by the artist's intention or even the object itself. Instead, the quality of being "art" is conferred by a community — curators, dealers, auction houses, audiences, etc. 🧵

I've decided there is one more Omelas take I would read and it's one in the form of an Isaac Chotiner interview.

One thing to think about is that this is the astronauts' first smell of Earth. Sea air and burning hydrocarbons. There's a breeze that they'll be feeling after days in a capsule. There are fans there, because without fans CO2 will build up around you. But not a breeze like off the ocean.

One key skill for developmental editors is the ability to identify a draft's emerging themes. In our Mar. 31 webinar with Kathryn Jepsen, learn how to search for themes and better align a text with its theme to help a writer create a stronger, more cohesive story: webinars.editors.ca/upcoming_web...

@dianapho.bsky.social on developing a critical reading mindset: "Learn to read both within and outside yourself. Even as I'm sitting in discomfort, what does the text say? If I'm feeling great joy, why am I joyous? If I'm confused, what don't I fully understand? #Sirens26

Prof. Palmer's essay had me in tears, particularly for the account of her students. It reminded me of talking with my students about my disabilities, their concern, and how we would laugh together about the wonder and terror of being alive. strangehorizons.com/wordpress/no... @adapalmer.bsky.social

When I got the contract to write a history of concentration camps in 2014, I hoped to keep the US from ending up here. That didn't work out! But now it's critical to understand how much is already in process and the enormity of what's coming. The sooner we act to stop it, the more people we'll save.

Nerdy special interests save the day! Fascinating article on solving a mystery using specialized knowledge of social security number prefixes, and how generative AI is leading to publishers getting overwhelmed with slop proposals

Go to the mead-hall. Go again. The heron of forgetfulness is there, and you don't want to miss your chance. "Drinking the Heron" by RJ Aurand is our story today, and we think you'll want to read it again. And again. smallwondersmag.com/...

brass solidarity band performing “stand by me” in the streets of whittier next to alex pretti’s memorial. the crowd started chanting “the people united will never be defeated” so they incorporated it into the song. i love minneapolis

I wrote about how concentration camp regimes evolve and why it's not too late to stop this, even though we are deep in it now.

stop what you're doing and let Amber Glenn take you to church #USPrevagenChamps #figureskating

Best TikTok thing going is the two dudes trying food from every country without leaving NYC. If you haven’t seen them yet, it’s incredible. My favorite so far is last week’s. Legit got me emotional.

Tonight, I was one of more than 200 people who gathered on Chicago’s North Side to mourn Renee Nicole Good. Several people asked me to publish my remarks from the vigil, so I’m sharing them here.

@mcbride.house.gov is right. It’s hard enough being a kid — and politicians don’t need to make it harder. Thank you, Congresswoman, for speaking out against the cruel Republican attacks on health care for trans youth.

Made a site comparing the sizes of living things :) The great Julius Csotonyi spent 5 months painting over 60 illustrations for the site, no ai used > neal.fun/size-of-life/

Superb. One edit particularly drops out to me as a bit of truly sparkling dialogue: the left is the first draft, the second the shooting script by Stoppard

Hey Charlotte area folks! Come see me on a panel with @johnamen.bsky.social, founder of Pedestal Magazine; Ken Harmon, founder of @westtradereview.bsky.social; and Kathie Collins, co-founder of @charlottelit.bsky.social, on Dec. 4: charlottelit.configio.com/pd/615/panel...

the world is a bit smaller tonight with the death of Alice Wong. if you aren't familiar with who she was please pick up any of her books.

One last bite at the apple for 2025! A Little Weird Goes a Long Way Wed, Dec 3 #onlineclass w/ @charlottelit.bsky.social Member discounts & some need-based scholarships available Generate new ideas from unusual sources to #write 4 strange new stories! charlottelit.configio.com/pd/605/a-lit...

If you wrote an SF/F/H story that was published in 2025 (or read a story that you thought was great), tell me about it in this thread! Authors, also send your story to me here: johnjosephadams.com/basff-submis... (Please read the guidelines before submitting.)

Hey, this is great! Thanks for sharing, @theopennotebook.bsky.social!

Reposting myself, which is a very cool thing to do, trust me. If you'll be at #SciWri25 next weekend in Chicago, come see this fun panel I'm on!

Someone (this company) didn’t read Little Eyes bookshop.org/p/books/litt...

300 cc's of weapons-grade serotonin straight to the frontal cortex I have ASCENDED

Apparently Bluesky is seeing an influx of new users. Welcome! If you're interested in science, journalism, and/or science writing, here are a bunch of folks worth following. go.bsky.app/7Z8u31b

TWO YEARS OF OTHERSIDE! Thank you, everyone, for all your support (and for bearing with all of the posts, sorry, we’re just so excited!). The last four days have been… surreal. Not to sound like a hopeless sap, but it means a lot to see all this support for queer art right now. Thank you, thank you.

Starting next week! I’m teaching a six-week asynchronous class on editing science writing for the public: community.the-efa.org/event/effect...

spotted at Logan airport. i hope they are equally enthusiastic about fermions

Want to know how the Stage 2 process works at CoW? At this point, stories have been read and recommended by multiple readers. Sometimes everyone loves them at Stage 1, sometimes opinions are more mixed, but if any of the team indicate they see something special, it usually goes up. 1/X

And we're live! Come join us as we chat with Thomas Ha about his new book, Uncertain Sons and Other Stories! Learn about his book, writing, and more. Join us now! twitch.tv/alphabetst...

And that submission link is... smallwondersmag.com/submissions/

This advice probably helps in any form of storytelling.

Another Hugo Award has successfully passed through the airport after a thorough inspection.

Best session title of WorldCon

Providing security for @marthawells.com today.

An update from us here at PBS 💙

This. We see a lot of stories with beautiful prose, but sometimes they fall flat because they just don’t grab us in the horror feels. And conversely, sometimes we see less-than-perfect writing which DOES grab us, and sometimes we opt to work with those people…

A reason to read @thomasha.bsky.social today…

The motion to add poetry to the Hugo Awards has passed. Thank you to everyone who has shown support, discussed this award, sat through business meetings, and nominated/voted in the Hugo Awards. This is a huge, huge deal to poets. I am actually a bit teary. <3 #poetryhugo poetryhugo.com

Good advice for anyone submitting short fiction to SFF publications (including @smallwondersmag.com)!

Today is the 5 year anniversary to when I slowly started losing my mind during the pandemic and began dressing up as works of art. As my Twitter account has long been abandoned, why not make a thread of my madness on BlueSky? This was “The Maid” by Wilhelm August Lebrecht Amberg, from 1862

I'm teaching my six-week asynchronous science editing class through @efafreelancers.bsky.social again!

As promised, in light of the WaPo report of Everglades camp detainees being swarmed by mosquitoes in the shower and unable to sleep at night due to being bitten, I want to briefly address concentration camp history and mosquitoes. I won't be comprehensive but will give a few examples. [1/17]

you've heard about the college kids who can't do anything without ChatGPT's help—but what about the students who oppose generative A.I. for myriad reasons and refuse to rely on it as a shortcut? well, I found and spoke with a few of them here: slate.com/life/2025/07...