Please be a book hipster!
This is a free newsletter! If you would like to support me — and give your future self a gift of a lovely read — please do pre-order my upcoming adult novel...
Why Are Toxic "Superfans" Such a Nightmare for Hollywood?
ICYMI I have a novel coming out next August called Lessons in Magic and Disaster, about a young witch who teaches her mother how to be a witch. Along the...
San Francisco's Next Election Is a Referendum on Billionaires
Before we get started, hi! This is a free newsletter, but I really appreciate your support as a trans author and organizer. I have a new novel coming out in...
They Can't Get Rid Of Us — Our Parties Are Too Good
Hey, this is a free newsletter — but if you would like to support me, please pre-order my novel Lessons in Magic and Disaster (August 2025). A young trans...
Where do genres come from?
We spend a lot of time discussing how genres work, where to draw the lines between genres, and which tropes and motifs are essential to a particular genre....
I'm Obsessed With This Cute Time Travel Show
One thing I appreciate about Netflix is the wealth of Brazilian TV shows and movies — this was super useful when I was learning Brazilian Portuguese. But...
One More Vital Reason Why Community Gives Me Hope
A week or so ago, I was the closing speaker at the final XOXO Fest in Portland, which was a huge honor. I was asked to come talk about reasons to have hope...
Here's Why You Suck At Predicting the Future
This past weekend, I was super honored to give the closing talk at XOXO, a wonderful festival in Portland OR that was happening for the very last time. I was...
10 Literary Books That Made Me a Better Science Fiction Writer
I love literary fiction, whether it’s grand pomo experiments or a totally grounded personal stories about one family. I’ve been reading literary writing my...
Why I Go To Conventions
While I was at Worldcon last weekend, Emily Wilson (writer for New Scientist and author of the Sumerians trilogy) asked me why I go to conventions. This...
Another Way To Think About "Conflict" and "Stakes" In Your Fiction
Last week, I was an instructor at the Lambda Literary Workshop, and it was an utter privilege to get to work with some brilliant writers whose bravely...
I Love It When a Plan Doesn't Come Together
This is going to be a short newsletter. I’m afraid things are going to be a bit spotty for the next couple weeks: I'm an instructor at the Lambda Literary...
A Grab Bag of Mini Rants!
Sorry, I just got back from a ton of travel and don’t have the spoons to write a proper newsletter today. Plus it’s my birthday! But here are a bunch of...
Bluestockings Is Reinventing the Radical Bookstore. You Can Help!
I’ve written before about why bookstores are more than just excellent places to discover your new favorite author. They’re also community spaces and key...
Weirdest and Best James Brown Cover Versions
Sorry I haven’t put out a newsletter yet this week! I’m traveling on the East Coast (going to Readercon this weekend) and haven’t had time to write anything...
We Should All Be Archivists
Lately, I keep obsessing about two seemingly opposing but interrelated trends: 1) The past decade has seen an incredible bounty of art and self-expression...
Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About My Breasts
Tom Rulkens/Flickr (CC) The other day, a man in a car pulled over and rolled down his window, waving to get my attention. I stopped walking because I figured...
Let Authors Read Their Work!
One thing that bums me out is my sense that people don't seem to want to listen to authors reading their work in public as much as they used to. (This is a...
What It Means To Be Optimistic About the Future
For a few years, before the pandemic, I got asked the same question at every convention, book festival and conference: “Do you feel optimistic about the...
11 Hot Takes About Doctor Who
Doctor Who is so, so alive. The world’s oldest and arguably greatest science fiction (and occasionally fantasy) series is firing on all cylinders this year,...