A number of my works are available through the National Library Service, which provides work via audio and braille, and I encourage their use. All my contracts allow for this service to provide access to my work. www.loc.gov/nls/who-we-s...

I mean if they're legitimately available in other venues go ahead and buy them there, I'm fine with that

The first four OMW books are on Macmillan Audio and they also have the audio for some short stories, which is probably the other two. Macmillan had no interest in doing non-OMW books at the time, so when Audible came by and wanted my backlist and was willing to pay well for it, I signed on.

1. Money and lots of it; 2. I've been clear with Audible I think they should service libraries and remind them of this on a regular basis and have even volunteered to be a test case for them; 3. That said, Audible's gonna Audible and my books are in libraries in print. Borrow them that way.

Sometimes the scroll is startlingly on point.

Today's December Comfort Watch: Kill Bill, Vol. 1, and how this absolutely gonzo tale of blood, revenge and the strategic application of samurai swords is without question the most personal film Quentin Tarantino has ever made: whatever.scalzi.com/2025/12/21/t...

Come on, we all know the Southern Hemisphere is a myth, Australia is in the San Fernando Valley, New Zealand is Peter Jackson' yacht with VFX artists chained below decks, Africa and South America are how Big Cartography sell maps to gullible chumps, and Antarctica is just a Beer Cave in Minnesota

Man, I'm done with the days getting shorter! I am talking to MANAGEMENT. I will GET RESULTS. If the days get longer here on out, you'll know who to thank.

I mean, the thing is, and I keep telling people this, I am SUPER lazy, so why would I learn how to prompt "AI" to write in a non-"AI" way when I can just naturally write in an engaging, human style? I doubt there is ever going to be a point where adding "AI" to the mix isn't just extra work for me.

Tonight in The December Comfort Watches: A Fish Called Wanda, the first and to date the only film that made me laugh so hard I almost peed myself right there in the movie theater: whatever.scalzi.com/2025/12/20/t...

It's true, I decided to fuck up "I'll Be Home For Christmas." Krissy listened to it and was all, "I love you but no." I mean, fair.

A Lord of the Rings Cover Band called Nick Cave Troll

Purrfect

ATTACKED www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/is-...

Tonight, the December Comfort Watch is The Big Short: a tale of a few people seeing an imminent global economic collapse that anyone could have seen coming, but didn't, mostly because they didn't want to. whatever.scalzi.com/2025/12/19/t...

"Moon" is here and I'm delighted. Libraries are awesome, y'all www.denvergazette.com/2025/12/18/d...

I have put my "It's the holidays, why are you sending me email, fuck off" notification up, so if you send me email between now and January 5 don't expect much

They think writers can be replaced because they don't understand what writing is effective, yes, but don't discount the desire to cut human labor out of the process entirely, not just for "cost savings" but because the management class and especially the investor class just fucking hate humans.

One major problem, bluntly, is that lots of folks can't distinguish between good writing and poor writing. This is about education, not intelligence: they could learn the difference, but it's frequently not taught, even in "good" schools. This is ultimately a competitive disadvantage for them.

There's a reason I've spent the last year diversifying my investment holdings. When the "AI" bubble pops, it's going to be fucking brutal.

I mean, you don't have to convince me, I do what an LLM is supposed to do, but much better, much cheaper and fueled almost entirely on snacks and Coke Zero. But then I want pesky things like human rights and a salary, so

I think there's a difference between "'AI' being shoved into everything even when it degrades the end product" and "'AI' being part of a varied tool set where it offers material benefit to workflow." We're in the beginning stage of the backlash to the hype era of "AI," which I am very happy about.

Thread. Also, I don't disagree with this generally; LLMs and/or generative "AI" is here to stay and being integrated into pre-existing programs/software in ways that are now inextricable. I do think there's a difference between it being a tool for, rather than an abdication of, personal creation.

1/2 Apropos of nothing in particular, I guarantee I will never write a piece of fiction with the "help" of a large language model because a) I spent too many years developing skills to just fuck off now, b) I don't plagiarize other authors, whether intentionally or by way of statistical matches.

HEY AUTHORS: It's the last weekend before Christmas and/or the end of Hanukkah, so people are going to be looking for last minute holiday gifts, which books are perfect for, so use this thread to tell everyone here at Bluesky about your book so they can go find it at their local bookseller. GO!

A couple of years ago I wrote a short little Christmas story and put it up on my site. Here it is for your enjoyment. It also comes with an audio version, so you can hear why I let actual professionals narrate my novels: whatever.scalzi.com/2022/12/22/a...

Since yesterday, many people have DM’d to say that they were strongly affected by my essay & wished they could share it. So I've revised, expanded, & posted it for free on both Substack & Patreon. Please feel free to share. www.patreon.com/posts/this-i... catvalente.substack.com/p/this-is-wh...

I just posted a holiday story, A Sandman Slim Christmas Carol, on my Patreon. It’s public and free for everyone to read and pass on to loved ones and/or enemies. I hope you enjoy it. www.patreon.com/posts/146234...

Me: (working on novel) Brain: Hey, got a great idea for a novel. Not this novel. Me: (typing) Not now, brain. Brain: Don't you wanna know what it is? Me: NOT NOW, BRAIN Brain: I'm not gonna lie, it's SUPER cool Me: LET ME FINISH THE NOVEL IN FRONT OF ME, BRAIN Brain: Okay, I'm gonna tell you

I mean, I thought he looked pretty great, also I will watch this special

Lol no

Tonight in The December Comfort Watches: Starship Troopers. Did you know that, in a wild coincidence, there is also a novel of the same name? I talk about both in the piece! Would you like to know more? whatever.scalzi.com/2025/12/18/t...

Remember how I said I have it written into my foreign-language contracts that my work has to be translated by an actual human? This shit is why. Those book translations are gonna suck. They'll save money putting out books that are going to be painful to read. That's not a great long-term strategy.

Good. I would fucking hate when I would inadvertently click on these fake trailers deadline.com/2025/12/yout...

Okay what the actual fuck this actually looks hilarious youtu.be/ZfNLApPCa8E

"Are we still capable of talking to each other," asks the woman hired by billionaires whose economic model is predicated on fomenting polarization to install an actual criminal who dismantles the regulatory state that kept them from fully extracting what remaining wealth there was from the lower 99%

Tonight the December Comfort Watches gets nostalgic with Pleasantville, a movie which ironically shows how nostalgia isn't all it's cracked up to be: whatever.scalzi.com/2025/12/17/t...

The Chronic WHAT cles of Narnia

I just cleared out two six weeks of email, much of it starting with I AM SO SORRY THIS EMAIL IS LATE

On one hand, this is a shocking upheaval of broadcast norms. On the other hand, I was watching YouTube less than an hour ago, but I can't tell you the last time I watched anything on our local ABC affiliate. www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general...

I mean, my version of "Sinners" would have been an semi-autobiographical tale of confused middle-aged white men making atrocious burritos, so perhaps it's for the best Mr. Coogler got there first

It's been my personal anecdotal experience that people who have gone no contact with a parent usually have done so for good reason, and that re-establishing contact on the parent's terms would do both parties more harm than good. defector.com/who-can-imag...

Old Man's War options paid for Athena's college education and, uhhhhh, the church

Paul McCartney has the opportunity to do the most awesome thing ever www.notreble.com/buzz/2025/12...

I wrote an episode of Love Death + Robots about that. It won an Emmy! (Not for me, for the animators. Still.) youtu.be/R9lTsnlJXcw

Actually there's a good chance of that, since I have a lot of stuff available, and I have a reasonably good reputation in LA - because, among other things, I don't piss and moan about how unfair everything is for me. I thank them for trying and then keep connections open for other opportunities.

A property of mine just went out of option, and I want you all to know it happened not because Hollywood is woke and a white dude can't get a fair shake but because selling anything in LA is a roll of the fucking dice and sometimes things just don't happen so you put on your big kid pants and deal

Have you ever seen a more "lol get wrecked loser" expression

please buy so many physical copies of the album so we can tour with strings & with Carolyn & Jamie and also Nicole who sat in in LA because that would be such an utterly killer tour youtu.be/pv53gRqjvxY?...

This is the sort of contract that if you were entertaining signing it, your friends should smash through a window, do roll on the floor, leap up in a feral pounce and slap it out of your hands