“for how the decision was represented” “bound by certain undertakings”

In addition to supporting Palestinian writers like Randa Abdel-Fattah, and authors and artists who withdrew from AWW in solidarity, spare a thought for the "little" magazines like @overlandjournal.bsky.social, who have relentlessly stood up for Palestine and have been comprehensively defunded for it

We've lost Meanjin, a situation that was completely unthinkable until it actually happened. Don't think we won't lose more. It's quite clear there are people who don't care what they destroy for political gain. Literary culture in this country is already frayed. Don't let it come apart entirely.

spoilers for my next project

I made another little game in a week inspired, in various ways, by the play La Marea, the works of Jeffrey Smart, and our collective efforts to keep living In These Times: chipswoon.itch.io/how-to-be-al...

2/ ‪'How To Destroy A Writers' Festival In 24 Hours Or Less' by Tracey Whiting, Alison Beare, Leesa Chesser, Mary Couros, Brenton Cox, Nicholas Linke, Daniela Ritorto, Donny Walford & Jennifer Fuller (Adelaide Festival Corporation Board Press, 2026).

You can contact the Adelaide Festival here to express your opinion about their decision to ban Randa Abdel-Fattah. Please refrain from abuse.

The Board can’t claim they didn’t see this coming after this happened at Bendigo. The Board’s job is to protect the org first and foremost. The Board has decided to kill the event, hurting the org and the org’s reputation, costing the org money. This Board has to go. Not fit for purpose.

If you’re going to tank a literary festival, own it

I've been running an indie games studio for 15 years now, and it felt like a good time to boil down what I've learned into 4 pieces of advice: www.pentadact.com/2026-01-08-1... I hope it's of use, not least because goddamn I forgot how long blog posts take to write.

Begging arts institutions to stop being huge, capitulating cowards in 2026

3/ Props to Michelle de Kretser, Melissa Lucashenko, Peter Greste, Yanis Varoufakis, Evelyn Araluen, Amy McQuire, Clare Wright, Chelsea Watego, Bernadette Brennan & Amy Remeikis. And counting ... www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01...

What’s the point of writers’ festivals — or, for that matter, writers — if they can’t discuss issues that matter? Australian arts administrators would rather destroy the whole sector than allow Palestinians to speak about genocide. It’s beyond shameful.

Absolutely disgraceful from the Adelaide Festival. I hope other participants reconsider their part in it.

As you read the news today, watch who phrases the news as an "illegal invasion and regime change" versus "bringing democracy". It'll tell you everything you need to know about the news source you're reading, and frankly should decide whether you ever read them seriously again.

An administration driven by greed, cruelty, and frankly a sort of empty-hearted boredom. The death of innocents so they can beat their chests and line their already fat wallets. Whatever comes next has to at least look like justice. We cannot just turn the page for the sake of one party’s comfort.

My latest game-a-week is up ☀️ a little summer vibes prototype I built while learning collision physics in Godot: chipswoon.itch.io/catch-a-vibe Thanks for playing these little games! This rapid prototyping has been the most creatively rigorous and fulfilling project I've engaged with in a while.

you’re right! it feels mostly awful to Go Online™, these days. the internet in a sad state, for reason after reason after reason. but there is a way to fix it; to trade the voidful howling for a quiet & joyful song. here’s how to win the war for the soul of the internet, and build the Web We Want.

May 2026 be better, safer, and fairer. May all that was good in 2025 be better in 2026. May all that was bad in 2025 be things we put our efforts towards improving.

just so it's clear: this is the exact core function of genAI Fascist government and climate deniers love it because it can produce the aesthetics of knowledge without any actual tendency towards truth. It is automated denialism. Shame on every climate scientist promoting its use (there are lots)

My kid Tom loves drawing cities, so we made a game where you can draw them like he does! Go play Tom City here -> tomanddad.itch.io/TomCity

I'm late to it but we just played Thank Goodness You're Here and it is so WONDERFUL and joyful and funny. It is exactly what I needed during the liminal taint of the year.

Not to be controversial but I think we should use tools and resources to make people's lives less miserable instead of more

Got a tune for ya spillycave.bandcamp.com/track/pirate

Pleased to see this piece. Personally, I find these uses of synthetic data v concerning and I find the traction and endorsements that this work has to be quite baffling, esp given the well-storied role of algorithmic targeting in undermining democracy

In this short essay, @lmsacasas.bsky.social provides a useful checklist for recognizing the Borg complex, and for deconstructing “manufactured inevitability.” A sort of guide for responding to the “banality of evil” as wonderfully captured by Arendt. open.substack.com/pub/theconvi...

another example of AI as tracer dye, exposing an already existing problem (and, of course, significantly worsening it)

Earlier this year I did a talk called Malys: the Art of Demon-Making at Freeplay Angles! It's about personal reflection and expression, and converting that to horrifying demons, made for @summerfallstudios.com's newest roguelite exorcist deckbuilder MALYS! 🫵 youtu.be/sXOTCRvUTCc Enjoy! 🔥🕯️😈🕯️🔥

Hey so I don’t want to do this so DMs are closed for the foreseeable

Second game-a-week is up on itch — a little Pokemon Snap-inspired photography game about memory and nostalgia: chipswoon.itch.io/souvenir

Seven. HUNDRED. And thirty eight. Times.

The Steam Winter Sale is here! Get Letters to Arralla at 30% off 🎁✨ Looking to wind down this holiday season with a cuppa and a relaxing lil story? We’re on sale for $11.89 USD ($17.46 AUD)! ⏱️ Sale ends January 5th 2026 #steamwintersale #IndieGameDev

“But it’s also that this land, this beautiful Aboriginal land, was not made to hold such grief. It can, and it does, but it shouldn’t have this burden thrust upon itself.” @jordanas.bsky.social on the logic of violence that permeates Australia.

you should all play more indie games made by 1 to 4 gay people in their bedrooms

One thing I forgot to mention in my Frosty Mini Recap is that the ever talented @actualmontaigne.bsky.social is the composer for Wyrmspace Tactics!

Watching monuments lit up with a tacky News Corp slogan made me feel sick. Our national icons turned into billboards for a populist fantasy, while those of us doing the actual research are maligned. It's state-sponsored PR masquerading as policy, a grotesque spectacle by a government drunk on power.

Dogpile has been my daily chillout game for a minute it’s so good

When this "AI" bubble pops, the men pretending they weren't pushing the hype, like "critics" whose position is "AGI is real but LLMs aren't the way," who were in eugenicist and "AI existential risk"🙄 circles, will get specials discussing what they saw coming, when its the women who told you so.

Wirm, Woodworm, Wyrmspace – Weirdly, a lot of games about worms in the Frosty Mini, a showcase of games from Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand. Here's a roundup of all the games that were featured:

There are lots of myths about the Australian #SocialMediaBan for under16s. One is that it will stop cyberbullying. It won't. Here's a short, blunt piece from me in @theconversation.com explaining why: theconversation.com/australias-s...

Good news! The eSafety Commissioner says we don't need to worry about being subject to more surveillance because she doesn't "think that it's possible to have more surveillance than has been already baked into the algorithms in these systems" www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12...

BANGER of a trailer! I’m so keen for this one!

Why is some middle aged radio host driving federal policy

Make sure you check out the Frosty Mini official Steam event! 🧡🍦 Add some games to your wishlist, grab a bargain, and snag some cool demos: store.steampowered.com/curator/4542...

Big shout out to our incredible team 💕: @actualmontaigne.bsky.social - Music @kgt.bsky.social - Narrative & Sound @liviola.bsky.social - UI and UX @disisdaadam.bsky.social - Programming @sashamutch.bsky.social - Art, Animation and compositing @andrewmendlik.bsky.social - Tech Art

That's all folks, thank you for tuning into the very first Frosty Mini showcase! ☀️🧡 Head to our website for a list of all the games we featured today, and to visit our official Steam event where you can wishlist your faves and find even MORE ANZ-made games! ➡️ frostygamesfest.com/frostymini2025

Soar as an albatross embarking on an epic journey to reunite with their family in this relaxing, story-driven flight game grounded in the Māori world. Toroa: Skycall by @atawhaigames.bsky.social is out now!

It’s Wyrmspace, baby!!!

Fucking WHERE

As the age assurance policies roll in I'm still thinking about this article from AFR: www.afr.com/politics/fed... It's been two and a half years since the Murphy Report was released, and instead of regulating online gambling advertising, the Albanese govt may use the social media ban as a cover.