sslottjeauthor.bsky.social - Profile | ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

UK AUTHORS AND AI HATERS: TODAY IS THE LAST DAY! respond to this consultation and tell the bastards what you think. You don't have to answer every fiddly question - and if you want, sample answers are available to c&p.

submitted 2 days ago • 0 comments

Who’s been putting off filling in that government consultation on AI then? Because you took one look and realised that fucking thing was designed SPECIFICALLY to put you off? Don’t worry, there are three online guides to help you: The Association of Illustrators theaoi.com/news/the-cop...

submitted 2 days ago • 17 comments

They tried to cancel John Crace from covering the right-wing jamboree at ExCel but no one can stop him filing copy this good www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

submitted 8 days ago • 35 comments

Don't let anything or anyone stop you from making your art. The harder it is for us to survive, the more important it is. Society berates us for pursuing this kind of work but without us, there'd be nothing but the corporate and the disingenuous. You matter. Your dreams matter. Your work matters.

submitted 8 days ago • 5 comments

I hope America is as lucky as the delta jet - everyone survives but the right wing explodes

submitted 8 days ago • 1065 comments

Why are some stories so damn hard to write?

submitted 9 days ago • 0 comments

New from @orbitbooksuk.bsky.social this month! Grave Empire by Richard Swan is a gunpowder fantasy with "a whole heap of adventure packed between the covers" #BFSReview britishfantasysociety.org/review/grave...

submitted 9 days ago • 0 comments

A reminder: Vladimir Putin could end the war in Ukraine right now, just by ordering his soldiers to go home. No need for treaties or negotiations.

submitted 13 days ago • 230 comments

The best way to grow as a writer? I've said it before and I'll say it again: Beta read for other authors, frequently and across genres. I've learned soooo much from my beta read clients and I'm immensely grateful for the opportunity. 🤗 #WritingCommunity #writers #authors #betaread

submitted 11 days ago • 0 comments

You should get a library card if you don’t have one already. Then get the apps Libby and Hoopla. There you can download audiobooks and ebooks. So even if you don’t go to your local library a lot, you can still support them and the authors you love.

submitted 12 days ago • 67 comments

I'm in print!

submitted 11 days ago • 28 comments

Update update: 24 hours in and aside from a sore left arm, easily managed by ibuprofen, no real aches or fatigue. I feel lucky. But even if both vaccines kicked my ass this weekend, it would have been worth it. Get your shots, y'all!

submitted 11 days ago • 572 comments

Indie authors! Sell me a book you've done. But don't just dump a shop link. Hype us up, show us what you got. I want to see what you've poured heat and effort into. Might even buy a couple. #indieauthor #amreading #amwriting #booksky #writingcommunity #fantasy #scifi

submitted 11 days ago • 4 comments

It is February, which means queer history talks. This year I will be in Aberystwyth. I think you can guess which talk is mine.

submitted 14 days ago • 1 comment

This. Ana on the Edge has been challenged or banned in more US states, counties, school districts, and libraries than I can even keep track of. My sales don’t rise because of them, they stagnate. And fewer trans and nonbinary kids get to see themselves in stories as a direct result.

submitted 12 days ago • 2 comments

The superb @quietriotpod.bsky.social podcast is on 14.9K followers. SURELY we can get it to 15K, people? Please follow them! 🙌

submitted 12 days ago • 5 comments

This is very urgent. The UK government is planning to change copyright law. If you are an artist, author, musician or work in the creative industry please read this. www.chrishaughton.com/blog/ai-and-...

submitted 18 days ago • 15 comments

Please stop with the generative AI. It's garbage, theft, making us less capable. Image by www.nobodyssweetheart.com

submitted 14 days ago • 33 comments

“A consultation on changes to UK copyright law is “fixed” in favour of AI companies and will lead to a “wholesale” transfer of wealth from the creative industries to the tech sector.”

submitted 15 days ago • 0 comments

It's next Wednesday! Ticket here: tinyurl.com/bfsgdd What makes a dragon a dragon? Join us to find out. BFS members - free. Non members - £2.

submitted 16 days ago • 0 comments

Just realized the Tech Bros have become the Borg. “Assimilate and use our technology unquestioningly or we will destroy your society.”

submitted 16 days ago • 102 comments

At Weeknight Writers, we don’t just talk about queer representation - we put our money where our mouth is. Which is why we’re hosting Writing Trans Characters, a virtual deep-dive with trans authors who will be PAID to teach you about writing transgender characters, on March 15th at 1-3PM EST 1/7

submitted 16 days ago • 1 comment

I am extremely annoyed by The Guardian claiming 'Romantasy has reclaimed the geeky fantasy dominion for women, celebrating female friendship, agency and sexuality'. This skewed view stems from the ongoing erasure of women writers in SF&F through fewer reviews, omission from 'Best of' lists etc etc

submitted 16 days ago • 2 comments

My nephew asked me to draw a cat with two kittens because his mum told him I "was so good at drawing" 😬 I'm not unhappy with the result, though

submitted 18 days ago • 0 comments

Not saying I was tired or anything, but I couldn't keep my eyes open... in my dream

submitted 19 days ago • 1 comment

Can bad book reviews actually help authors? From boosting visibility to highlighting positive reviews, negative feedback can be surprisingly helpful. Learn how to turn lemons into lemonade in the writing world! https://buff.ly/3WRXwHk #booksky #bookreviews #writingcommunity

submitted 19 days ago • 2 comments

Cover reveal for TOGETHER WE RISE by my friend and fellow author, Richie Billing, out on 22nd March 2025 📚🐉 A novella to inspire hope in dark political times with an original soundtrack integrated within the story. Interested? Find more info and the book here: storyoriginapp.com/universalboo...

submitted 19 days ago • 0 comments

Have you been asked, as a federal worker, to do something you don't want to do? But they won't put it in writing? DON'T DO IT. If they're going to punish you? MAKE THEM PUT IT IN WRITING. ALL OF IT. Document, document, document. Act confused. Be confused! Go slow. Require clarity. Lots. Document

submitted 20 days ago • 164 comments

‘It’s not just a few ships doing it’: how the world’s plastic ends up on a Guernsey beach

submitted 21 days ago • 7 comments

Imagine a judge saying a racist could use the n-slur or an anti-semite the k-slur "as long as it was not done 'offensively' or 'gratuitously'." Our judiciary is increasingly a source of shame.

submitted 23 days ago • 40 comments

UK writers: if you haven't yet responded to the government's AI consultation (& don't feel like giving away your copyright), the @alcs-uk.bsky.social have produced some really helpful advice ⤵️ www.alcs.co.uk/news/your-ri...

submitted 23 days ago • 2 comments

The White House is saying Canada misunderstood the tariffs as a trade war & it feels eerily similar to when men hit on women relentlessly- then act like they didn't mean it when women do not reciprocate. Huge "It was just a joke, it's not that serious" vibes. Canada did not misunderstand anything.

submitted 23 days ago • 60 comments

Yes, we’re small but we’re still a major customer of the United States. Our news shows are already listing Canadian alternatives to US products. Commonwealth countries are also supporting us and now the EU is under attack . There will be a financial hit for America & American jobs lost.

submitted 23 days ago • 0 comments

Libraries and librarians didn’t just change my life - they saved it. Today I was honoured to be made a Centenary Champion for @natlibscot.bsky.social along with the great @valmcdermid.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/books/2025/j...

submitted 27 days ago • 11 comments

OpenAI says it has proof that Deepseek used its work without permission to create something meant to undermine and destroy its product. On behalf of all the authors whose novels and stories were taken as training data, oh no that must be so hard for you.

submitted 28 days ago • 338 comments

My friend works at a children's hospice in Huddersfield (UK), and has worked incredibly hard to put together this charity album to raise funds for it, for which my band Interplanetary Trash Talk has donated a track! Please pick it up if you can: forgetmenotcharity.bandcamp.com/album/many-d...

submitted 28 days ago • 1 comment

"The terror that anyone who could hurt them would was the root. A fundamental assumption of malice. Vulnerability without solace. For too many, the solution was to eradicate all threats, real or imagined. Only then might they feel safe. Only then might they rest." #TheDamnedKing #TheEidynSaga

submitted 30 days ago • 2 comments

Hey folks we have teamed up with Alex Davis to offer you two complete passes to The UK Ghost Story Festival this February. For a chance to win, just answer the simple question in the article. gnofhorror.com/competition-...

submitted 31 days ago • 0 comments

PSA FOR AUTHORS: some dipshit put a pirate edition of my new book on Apple Books with a "50% OFF" medallion on the cover illo. They used an obscure unicode glyph in the author name so that searches for "Charles Stross" find it but the bookstore won't merge it. Where there's one there'll be others!

submitted 36 days ago • 9 comments

If you’ve had the thing foisted on you in Word, file/options/copilot has a checkbox that currently turns it off (in my version anyway.)

submitted 40 days ago • 10 comments

Live your life so that when you die, some joyless schmuck is annoyed that his entire social media feed is a wall of people's posts talking about how much you and your work meant to them

submitted 41 days ago • 225 comments

I promise you, once you free yourself from the notion that other writers are your competition and start viewing them as your fellow weirdos who share similar special interests as you, your life in publishing will become so much easier.

submitted 41 days ago • 90 comments

The BFS celebrates all things SFFH. And we want to celebrate with live events in your local area. We're currently looking for authors in Greater Manchester who're interested in panels, readings & talks. Fill out the form & we'll be in touch. forms.gle/yQmFRvbHNxkq...

submitted 42 days ago • 0 comments