Big News Roundup!
New work, awards eligibility, upcoming appearances, and more!
Hello, and Happy Groundhog Day! I don't know about you, but for me the first month of 2026 seemed to go on forever, and yet somehow I'm surprised it's already over? In any case, here is some of what I'm up to these days.
New Poem!
"Wolves" is a poem I wrote during a flash fiction class led by my friend Kayleigh Shoen. Sometimes you get a flash prompt and poetry is what comes out. I had a lot of fun with this one, which made me think about who is tempting and why, and how that can be dangerous, even when it seems innocuous, and even in ways that aren't the most obvious ones. I was delighted that Small Wonders accepted this one. Small Wonders is dedicated to excellent poetry and flash fiction, and I really love what they do!
New Narration!
"The Smell of the Planet I Was Born On" by Rodrigo Culagovski is a wonderful science fiction short story. I was honored to narrate it for Escape Pod! This one made me think a lot about classism, colonialism, and what it means to be from a place.
Hugo Awards Eligibility!
The magazine version of Worlds of Possibility ended with the June 2025 issue, so this is the last year that Worlds of Possibility will be eligible for the Best Semiprozine category of the Hugo Awards. I'm also personally eligible for the Best Editor Short Form category. If you are nominating for the Hugos and you love cozy, comforting, hopeful science fiction and fantasy, please do get your free copy of Worlds of Possibility Volume 2, and consider Worlds of Possibility for your ballot!
"How to Cook with the Negative Space in Your Grandmother's Recipes" by Jennifer Hudak made the Locus Recommended Reading list!
The Locus Recoomended Reading List collects a lot of things the reviewers at Locus loved during the past year. Lots of incredible work on there, and I am especially delighted to congratulate Jennifer Hudak for making the list with her Worlds of Possibility story "How to Cook with the Negative Space in Your Grandmother's Recipes". This story originally appeared in the February 2025 issue of Worlds of Possibility, and you can also read it in Worlds of Possibility Volume 2, which is free to everyone in ebook format.
Come See Me at Boskone and ICFA!
I'm going to be at Boskone in Boston, Massachusetts in a couple of weeks, and ICFA (The International Conference of the Fantastic in the Arts) in Orlando, Florida in March. At ICFA, you can most often find me luxuriating in the glorious swimming pool. Boston in February is, alas, too cold for swimming, so here's my Boskone schedule:
Friday, February 13, 2026 - 6:00PM — Reading
I will read some of my work, and also some Worlds of Possbility work. I will have some exciting free things for anyone who attends!
Sunday, February 15, 2026 - 11:30AM — The Appeal of Simple Romance Stories
I'm moderating this discussion between Darlene Marshall, Romie Stott, and Juliana Spink Mills.
Not every epic romance needs a dragon to slay or a kingdom to save for two people to fall in love. More readers are embracing love stories that focus on healthy, low-drama relationships that are often shaped by ideas from therapy and emotional growth. Let's explore why these feel-good romances are resonating right now, and how authors are keeping the magic alive in stories where love just...works.
Sunday, February 15, 2026 - 1:00PM — Poetry Slam
Romie Stott will be participating in and leading this multi-poet reading session. I'm delighted to be reading along with Rob Cameron, Gillian Daniels, Courtney Floyd, Theodora Goss, and Michael McAfee. I honestly can't wait to hear everyone else read! Once again, I will have some fun free stuff for attendees at this one.
SFWA Mentorship Program Opening to Applications Next Week!
I'm the Director of Matching for the SFWA Mentorship Program, which means each year I study lots of applications and do my best to make good matches between mentors and mentees. This program is completely free and open to anyone. We always have many more mentee applicants than it is possible to match, so we use a random lottery system to choose mentees. Our Mentors are all volunteers who want to give back to their creative community. You do not need to be a member of SFWA to participate as a mentee or as a mentor.
The application period for 2026 is February 7 - February 21. (SFWA will share links to the application forms on the 7th, but you can read about the program anytime at the SFWA page.) I'll be working with the Mentorship program team to make matches in the weeks after the application period ends, and the Mentorship Period will be from late March to late June.
If you are a writer who is interested in sharing your career experience, please apply as a mentor!
If you are interested in getting career advice, please apply to be a mentee!
Standing with Minnesota
Minneapolis has had an especially rough start to the year. All across the US, people are watching and standing with the residents of the Twin Cities. If you, like me, are not in Minnesota, but you want to help, I highly recommend checking out science fiction author Naomi Kritzer's blog post about action items you can take. If you have money you can donate, use the Stand With Minnesota guide to choose a place to send some funds. In the last month, I chose to send money to Neighbors Helping Neighbors, The Emergency and Rapid Response Rent Fund for Workers by CTUL, and Community Aid Network MN. Minneapolis winters are cold, and when it's dangerous to leave the house to go to work, people still need food and shelter.
That's all from me for today. I hope wherever you are, you're safe and warm if it's cold or cool if its hot!
