I spent the first three months of 2026 in the novel-editing mines, working on a new draft that I hope to send out on submission to agents later in the year. That means a sustained period of hiding away not doing much else! Still, I’ve had two big successes to start off the year.

Firstly, I’m proud to say I was longlisted for the Bath Flash Fiction Award. This means I’ll be published in their upcoming summer anthology, so watch this space! The authors’ names were not attached to the stories in the announcement post, but those who know me may well be able to figure out which title is mine.

Secondly, my short story “The Hourglass” received an honourable mention in the New England Science Fiction Association’s recent short story contest. This was an older piece I reworked for the occasion, so I was pleased to see it getting some love. I recorded a reading which was played in the main hall at the BOSKONE 63 sci-fi convention in Boston, MA, this February.

Joining the Orion’s Belt Starship

The other thing I’ve been busy with alongside novel editing is a new position as First Reader for the online literary speculative-fiction magazine, Orion’s Belt. They are a free-to-read magazine publishing flash fiction, poetry and reviews, specialising in non-realist stories that focus on internal and interpersonal conflicts. Exactly the kind of writing I’m interested in!

The magazine is moving through a transition period, with a new editor-in-chief, Gessica Sakamoto Martini, and a new format. (They are changing from shorter monthly issues to longer biannual ones.) It’s a very exciting time to get aboard the starship.

I’m one of several First Readers for flash and micro fiction, meaning I’m sent short genre works from writers all over the world who engage with what it means to be human. It’s my job to decide what to pass up the chain to a fiction editor and what’s not yet ready for publication.

We’re a few weeks into the current submission period, and my impression so far is that there are so many talented people out there! For all the talk of AI slop flooding editors’ inboxes, I’ve found that the vast majority of people are sending in well thought-out, deftly produced pieces that clearly show the author’s passion for the craft. Not every piece has reached its ideal form, but often I can see how strong they’ll be after one or two more drafts.

Because Orion’s Belt is a flash fiction magazine, and the workload given to each First Reader is manageable, I’m able to read every submission I receive in full, which I find richly rewarding. It’s also hammered home a few truths for me that have proven useful when submitting my own work elsewhere.

Namely, that real people are taking the time to read everything I send out. Often the decisions they make are less about quality and more about personal preference. Realising this makes rejection easier to deal with; sure, a story might not be quite ready, but it might also be that it just didn’t vibe with one particular reader. Another person on another day may well have loved it enough to pass it up the chain.

The Orion’s Belt submission period is open until the 15th of May. If you know anyone who writes literary science fiction, fantasy or horror, don’t hesitate to send them our submissions page.

To get a sense of the kind of thing the magazine is looking for, check out “A Recipe for the Day Alban Kills the King” by M. R. Robinson. She’s one of my favourite emerging SFF writers; she tells tender stories about human relationships accompanied by tonnes of heart. Robinson is also co-founder of a new queer-led spec-fic mag, OTHERSIDE. Find more from her at m-r-robinson.com.