fuck off, billionaires

February 2026 brings a new standalone novel from the Queen of Speculative Fiction: Arthur C. Clarke award-nominated Aliya Whiteley! Here's what @oliverklangmead.bsky.social @manuscriptgal.bsky.social @timjmajor.bsky.social & @catamaroon.bsky.social thought of it! Preorder geni.us/misheardw

Finished this year's Booker winner. This and the last haven't been to my taste at all. I guess, for Flesh, it was an interesting read, but I desperately hope that it doesn't start a trend - one book composed of dialogue in that style is enough for me!

Merry Christmas, Bluesky! To celebrate, here is Moth - he is 12 weeks old and very sleepy.

Today's pick for my paperbacks of the year is @oliverklangmead.bsky.social's Calypso: epic space scifi... as an epic poem! It's so unusual and creative: a tale of a character awakening from cryosleep on a colonising spaceship, but the narrators & style make this something really special. 📚💙🪐

Calypso by @oliverklangmead.bsky.social @titanbooks.bsky.social #poetry #scifipoetry #scifi #booksky

After hearing @oliverklangmead.bsky.social read from his book at an Electric Sheep reading I had his book in my cart before he was even finished. I inhaled Calypso bookshop.org/p/books/caly... in one sitting yesterday. One of the most amazing books of speculative poetry I will ever encounter.

"I take a synthetic flower from her, Twirling its wire stem between my fingers. The storms part momentarily below, And together we glimpse the new world's seas." @oliverklangmead.bsky.social

And finally, genre-defying reads: dark dystopias, portals between worlds, time travel, weird mythologies, all of them with fantastic stories and worlds to get lost in! 📚Ft @tinywriterlaura.bsky.social, @renanbernardo.com, @oliverklangmead.bsky.social, @nnedi.bsky.social, & @starkholborn.bsky.social

It's time for another batch of 'books i've particularly enjoyed reading recently', and this lot all happen to be folks I follow here! @jonnelledge.bsky.social @annaleen.bsky.social @oliverklangmead.bsky.social @eddierobson.bsky.social @tkingfisher.com

And inspired by Paradise Lost btw !! My colleague @oliverklangmead.bsky.social brilliant "Calypso" now out in paperback 🌌

Go flaccidly amid the noise & haste. Go ahead, flop: get completely flat, absolutely mollusc boneless, slither & ripple along like a sidewinder, devolve into a blissfully frictionless goo, reject your spine & slip through the day in silky indolence like the mellow unhurried globules in a lava lamp

I don't mind the smell of a vape, but I really don't understand why anyone wants to smoke an Um-Bongo.

Have you picked up a copy of CALYPSO by @oliverklangmead.bsky.social yet? ✨ Experience the Hugo and BSFA award-nominated, truly unforgettable lyrical eco-fiction masterpiece, now out in paperback! Order now: https://tinyurl.com/mrx2tdxx

I'm at the combination

"When I wake next, I will be a midwife, Because the Calypso is expecting. The Calypso will soon be a mother. She is ready, and expecting to birth Skies, and rivers, and trees, and animals. The Calypso will birth a whole new world." @oliverklangmead.bsky.social

I know it's a bit late, but I'd like to suggest the following to the writers struggling with how to move on from 007's death in the last James Bond movie:

I loved this. Decadently and deftly written. A book deeply concerned with aesthetics, and refreshingly cavalier with its setting - a visceral Gene-Wolfe-esque opera of a novel. Bravo, @hironennes.bsky.social

Today's AI spam is for a book I haven't written. But it gets even better than that:

My latest cartoon for @theguardian.com books pages.

SCI-FI COURSE w/ @oliverklangmead.bsky.social 🚀 Just 1 Discounted Ticket remaining for underrepresented writers or those on low-income! DM or email us at george.forster(at)commapress.co.uk to apply! ✉️ 📅 Dec 15 - Feb 23 📍 Online Via Zoom 🎟️ ORDER HERE: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/sci-fi-onl...

One of my favourite fantasy novels in recent years - well worth picking up.

somehow bond returned

Oliver K. Langmead's verse-novel, Calypso, was shortlisted for the poetry Hugo & a British Science Fiction Association Award, and named one of the best Science Fiction books of 2024 by the Guardian and Esquire magazine. Wanna hear Oliver read? Register now! @oliverklangmead.bsky.social

It might look like I'm stealing Garth Marenghi's new book, but rest assured that he charged me full price for it, along with a substantial additional fee for signing his name in it.

Aaaaand here's the UK version. Gone for less Tim Burton more a classic 1930s feel which I also love and fits the book really well as it's a whodunnit. I love them both.

Really enjoyed Del Toro's Frankenstein. Worth seeing in a cinema if you can!

This is how you blurb

Honor to have a vampire novel on this list:

Feb 2026 brings a new standalone novel from the Queen of Speculative Fiction: Arthur C. Clarke award-nominated Aliya Whiteley! Here's what @oliverklangmead.bsky.social @manuscriptgal.bsky.social @timjmajor.bsky.social & @catamaroon.bsky.social thought of it! Preorder geni.us/misheardw

SCI-FI SHORT STORY COURSE W/ @oliverklangmead.bsky.social 🚀✍ 📍 Online Via Zoom 📅 Dec 15 - Feb 23 🎟️ www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/sci-fi-onl... Explore the farthest reaches of your imagination & get published in a Comma eBook on this Sci-Fi course lead by renowned author & poet Oliver K. Langmead.

Litfest’s event on co-writing novels kicks off with a reading from THE NEEDFIRE by “Mo” (one half of @mkhardywrites.com) exploring the border places, equally linked to @oliverklangmead.bsky.social’s mysterious CITY OF ALL SEASONS which we turn to next…

Went to Tron: Ares for the soundtrack, came away also super impressed by the CG. The script's pretty basic, but I had a really good time. Deserves better than a lot of the reviews it's been getting.

If you see a tree in the middle of the road, please be patient as it takes time for them to cross

why has the political discourse in this country become about appeasing the racists - is the racist vote really that overwhelming?

Huh - got an AI spam email so lazy that the spammer didn't even bother to take their prompt out of the email.

Also now out in paperback is this great piece of science fiction poetry that I think really worked to make a story come alive - Calypso by Oliver K Langmead www.runalongtheshelves.net/blog/2024/4/...

My new novel, The Heist Of Hollow London, is published TODAY. The hardback may not be out in the UK yet - it's listed for the end of October here - but the ebook is certainly available now. Here are some links but please feel free to buy wherever you can find it: amzn.to/3IOGJRw

CALYPSO by @oliverklangmead.bsky.social is out now in paperback! Experience the Hugo and BSFA award-nominated, truly unforgettable lyrical eco-fiction masterpiece, for fans of Kim Stanley Robinson and Adrian Tchaikovsky. https://tinyurl.com/mrx2tdxx

The Calypso paperback is officially out now! What a year it's had. Shortlisted for a Hugo and a British Science Fiction Association Award, and named one of the best science fiction books of 2024 by the Guardian and Esquire Magazine. It was even one of the Financial Times's Summer Reads of 2024!

THE NEEDFIRE is coming South of the border - see @mkhardywrites.com @litfest.bsky.social's Autumn Weekend! Join us in Lancaster 19th Oct, 2pm where they will be discussing the process of co-writing with the superb @oliverklangmead.bsky.social! Tickets only £6. Book here:

I spent the summer reporting this essay on why it seems harder than ever to sell a book right now—especially if it isn't a debut and comes with the dreaded "sales track." I'm grateful to the writers, agents, editors, publishers & experts who spoke to me for this piece: thewalrus.ca/the-publishi...

Is anyone else seeing a huge uptick in AI generated author scam emails recently? I feel like I'm getting one a day - inviting me to radio shows, book clubs and podcasts that don't exist, using language that's clearly come out of an LLM.

This Litfest Festival Bookshop is now....open! Grab all the festival titles in one handy spot (and browse the rest of the bookshop for bargains whilst you're there! @mollieray.bsky.social @oliverklangmead.bsky.social @mkhardywrites.com @malikalnasir.bsky.social & more! Shop here: geni.us/LFAWBK

Amazing news: Creative Writing at Lancaster University has been ranked #3 in the UK in the new Guardian University guide. So proud of my colleagues. We work so hard, and it's an excellent result. This result is in spite of the University getting ready to cut 1/4 of its staff next month.

Daily obligatory verminposting: please enjoy this meme that's old enough to drive

Pixel is 10 years old today! Happy Birthday, Pixel 🎂

My next book is in here! reactormag.com/new-science-...

We're delighted that our very own @mkhardywrites.com will be taking THE NEEDFIRE on the road for an event on co-writing with @oliverklangmead.bsky.social for Lancaster @litfest.bsky.social 's Autumn Weekend! Grab your tickets now! Only £6 bit.ly/46lSmby Full programme bit.ly/4nd4T6T

Hell yeah - excited to be chatting with @mkhardywrites.com about co-writing SFF next month at Litfest!