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Posts by Ben Francisco

The Spring Kaleidotrope features fantastic fiction from @amandacecelia.bsky.social, @michelehporter.bsky.social, Dom D. Borg, @faithallington.bsky.social, S.M. French-Byrne,
@klneidecker.com, Matt Hornsby, Eliezra Schaffzin, Timothy Mudie, @emharriettwrites.bsky.social, and @megelison.bsky.social!

2 weeks ago 12 5 1 1

Such a great novella! Exciting that it's getting a new incarnation!

3 weeks ago 1 0 1 0

Mari is very kind to say this, but yes, it’s been twenty years, and it would be a genuinely a thrill just to be nominated enough to be buried in the after-the-award stats.

3 weeks ago 33 16 0 0

2nd day of @sfwa.org Constellation fantastic! Loved mentoring from @ctaylorbutler.bsky.social & insights from Nebula winner @vriccithode.bsky.social & stellar readings from @adriabailton.com @brklyndragon.bsky.social @benfrancisco.bsky.social @michaelsolisauthor.bsky.social #writingcommunity

4 weeks ago 4 1 0 0

An anthology you DO NOT want to miss! Featuring some of the incredible authors we've been so privileged to publish over this past decade! Please share this post with fans and readers of Black SFF. Guaranteed you will help someone find their next favorite storyteller in these pages!

1 month ago 127 103 3 6

Congrats, Renan! Well deserved!

1 month ago 1 1 1 0
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MG/YA Constellation Series - SFWA - The Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association Join us on March 21-22 for a full roster of master classes, author showcases, and mentorship sessions celebrating excellence in MG/YA SFF!

MG/YA writers, have you signed up for our Constellation Series? 👀 It's SFWA's first-ever free-to-the-public professional development weekend. This March 21-22, we have master classes, a mentorship hour and open lobbies for networking, readings, and Q&As. Register today and spread the word!

1 month ago 11 12 0 3
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LAcon graphic "Hugo Award Nominations Now Open" with the url for the website LAcon.org the logo of the convention and the dates August 27-31

LAcon graphic "Hugo Award Nominations Now Open" with the url for the website LAcon.org the logo of the convention and the dates August 27-31

Your Hugo Nominating ballot can make a difference.

There are a total of 7718 people with the right to cast a nominating ballot in the 2026 Hugo Awards.

As of this morning, 1293 of those people have cast a nominating ballot in at least one category.

www.lacon.org/hugos/

1 month ago 126 82 4 104
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When Your Ex-Husband Lies Dying and Only You Can Get Him the Magic Elixir from the Bodega March sweeps in with a wonderful quartet of stories as The Sunday Morning Transport brings tales by Ben Francisco, V.M. Ayala

open.substack.com/pub/thetrans... if you like my writing read this - Ben is one of my inspirations. Also read this if you’ve ever found a second love. Especially if the second love outshines the first. Also read if you love Old New York City bodegas #fiction #divorce #NYC #beautiful

1 month ago 4 1 0 0

💙 I enjoyed this one a lot, great story by @benfrancisco.bsky.social

1 month ago 4 1 0 0

Another great story this week is up at @morningtransport.bsky.social! This one is by @spacevalkyries.bsky.social and is about a mysterious mermaid, the complexity of identity, belonging, and making wishes.

1 month ago 2 1 0 0
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submissions — neon hemlock

We have only 61 stories submitted for WHAT ELEGANT STARS so far. I suppose a lot of folks will submit in the last month, but that still seems low. Though the theme is more specific than some previous ones, so folks are less likely to have anything ready to go.

www.neonhemlock.com/submissions

1 month ago 87 74 18 5
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An African View Of The 2025 Locus Recommended Reading List, Hugo and Nebula Nominations, BSFA voting and More. Hey y’all. The 2025 Locus Recommended Reading List is out and as usual, I did a quick analysis of the list to see how much work by African authors appears, something I've been tracking since 2021. There is work by 15 African* authors/editors (including myself) recognized – Kemi Ashing-Giwa, Laila Lalami, Nnedi Okorafor, T.L. Huchu, Adam Oyebanji, Eugen Bacon, CL Hellisen, Tochi Onyebuchi, M.H.

An African View Of The 2025 Locus Recommended Reading List, Hugo and Nebula Nominations, BSFA voting and More.

Hey y’all. The 2025 Locus Recommended Reading List is out and as usual, I did a quick analysis of the list to see how much work by African authors appears, something I've been tracking…

1 month ago 46 22 0 0

Such a great collection of stories!

1 month ago 1 0 1 0
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Favorite Short SF from 2025 Continuing my roundup of excellent science fiction, fantasy, and horror from 2025, here are some of my favorite short stories and collections published last year. (For my favorite novels and novell…

Big thanks to @benfrancisco.bsky.social for including MONUMENTS IN DARKNESS in his "Favorite Short Story Collections from 2025" roundup, calling it "an excellent collection of horror, dark fantasy, and weird fiction from a master of the genre." You can read the rest of the review at the link!

1 month ago 5 2 1 0
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When Your Ex-Husband Lies Dying and Only You Can Get Him the Magic Elixir from the Bodega March sweeps in with a wonderful quartet of stories as The Sunday Morning Transport brings tales by Ben Francisco, V.M. Ayala

The Sunday Morning Transport makes one more trip today with a story from Ben Francisco (@benfrancisco.bsky.social) that examines what really might be in the back room of your local bodega - and what it might cost. Free for everyone to read!

1 month ago 6 4 0 1

Ah thank you, Meg! ☺️

1 month ago 0 0 0 0
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When Your Ex-Husband Lies Dying and Only You Can Get Him the Magic Elixir from the Bodega March sweeps in with a wonderful quartet of stories as The Sunday Morning Transport brings tales by Ben Francisco, V.M. Ayala

I have a new story up at @morningtransport.bsky.social! Recommended for fans of magical bodegas, complicated ex-husbands, and second-person narration!

www.sundaymorningtransport.com/p/when-your-...

1 month ago 17 7 2 0
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Favorite Short SF from 2025 Continuing my roundup of excellent science fiction, fantasy, and horror from 2025, here are some of my favorite short stories and collections published last year. (For my favorite novels and novell…

My round-up of some of my favorite SF short stories & collections from 2025, including brilliant work by @danielbraum.bsky.social @nicholaskaufmann.bsky.social @thomasha.bsky.social @angelaliu.bsky.social @kjy1066.bsky.social @daviddlevine.com @aimeeogdenwrites.com!

benfrancisco.net/2026/02/26/f...

1 month ago 12 7 7 0
Photo of a Brooklyn Bodega with a multitude of signs advertising Deli, grocery, lotto, open 24 hours.

Photo of a Brooklyn Bodega with a multitude of signs advertising Deli, grocery, lotto, open 24 hours.

If you've ever thought bodegaa were magical...

I have a story coming for you this Sunday on @morningtransport.bsky.social.

1 month ago 10 3 1 0

So honored that Disgraced Return of the Kap's Needle was featured in Ben's favorite SF from 2025 alongside authors that are my inspiration! 🖤

2 months ago 4 1 1 0
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Favorite Speculative Fiction Books from 2025 The year 2025 was a rough one in so many ways, but one good thing about it was lots of great new releases of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. With nominations underway for the Hugo Awards (and…

Some of my favorite SF from 2025! Including some brilliant novels and novellas by @willalex.bsky.social @matthewkressel.net @nnedi.bsky.social @renanbernardo.com, Sarah Langan, @annaleen.bsky.social @victorpineiro.bsky.social and more!

benfrancisco.net/2026/02/14/f...

2 months ago 15 9 3 1

What an amazing list of Boricua speculative reading. Thank you Ben for highlighting so many wonderful works, including mine ❤️

2 months ago 5 1 0 0

There's SO much great Puerto Rican SF out there, this is just the tip of the iceberg! Please feel free to chime in on this thread with your own favorites and recommendations!

2 months ago 2 1 0 0
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Latinx Rising: An Anthology of Latinx Science Fiction and Fantasy An Anthology of Latinx Science Fiction and Fantasy

Latinx Rising is a wonderful, diverse anthology of Latinx speculative fiction, including several brilliant Puerto Rican authors like Daniel Jose Older and Giannina Braschi, and even includes a photo narrative of Boricuas on the moon!

bookshop.org/p/books/lati...

2 months ago 3 1 1 0
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Brincando Charcos (Jumping Puddles) “Dónde estámos?” Mateo asks, wiping the wetness out of his hair. We’re both sopping wet. Charcos may get you there fast, but it’s not the cleanest way to travel.

My own story, "Brincando Charcos" literalizes the Puerto Rican metaphor of "jumping the puddle" (for crossing from island to mainland). Two young men jump through puddles like portals - but their growing love is overshadowed by the "men in blue" pursuing them.

strangehorizons.com/wordpress/fi...

2 months ago 1 1 1 0
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Crave - Nightmare Magazine Taina crawls underneath the shack to unearth her wooden cigar box. She opens it and places the items in front of her: a piece of leftover mundillo lace from an unfinished handkerchief, an ivory ribbon...

"Crave" by @lilliamr.bsky.social is an evocative horror story that draws on imagery of mundillo (a Puerto Rican lace-making tradition) to tell the story of La Caridad, a witch who demands great sacrifices - particularly of the town's women and girls.

www.nightmare-magazine.com/fiction/crave/

2 months ago 1 1 1 0

Wepa! Your work has given me so much Boricua joy! (And maybe one or two nightmares lol.)

2 months ago 0 0 0 0
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Up In the Hills, She Dreams of Her Daughter Deep In the Ground Up in the hills, where the green shadows grow long, and far from all the student protests in San Juan, Gloria and her husband, Pedro, lived in a tiny house. An almost perfect square of concrete in …

"Up in the Hills, She Dreams of Her Daughter Deep in the Ground" by @kjy1066.bsky.social is a powerful, haunting short story that draws on surrealist metaphors to grapple with patriarchy and the disturbing history of forced sterilization of women in Puerto Rico.
strangehorizons.com/fiction/up-i...

2 months ago 3 3 1 0

House of Bone and Rain by @gabino.bsky.social is a haunting crime novel taking place in PR, dealing with the harsh realities of hurricanes, colonialism, violence, and hauntings. Iglesias is the master of crime stories with supernatural elements that play on deeper themes - I recommend all his work!

2 months ago 11 2 2 2