This has been an amazing week of scholarly, literary, and magical discussions. Thank you so much for entertaining my clay- and career-related questions!

Featured Book: 'This Ravenous Fate', by Hayley Dennings Shelf Companions: 'Silk & Steel' edited by Janine A. Southard 'midnight & indigo: 22 Speculative Stories by Black Women Writers (Issue 4)', edited by Ianna A. Small 'Blood Debts' by Terry J. Benton-Walker 'Children of Blood and Bone' by Tomi Adeyemi

Not to my taste, but still glad I gave it a try. Dark sapphic romance with a vampire twist, starring two Black women. I don't mind a dark theme, but the romance aspect fell flat for me, in comparison to the many luscious descriptions of blood. Wish the two enhanced each other, instead!

#booksky📚💙🌶️

In the fairytales, dragons are known for their hoards. But do they really all love gold? Write a story about an unusual sort of dragon, with an unexpected kind of hoard. by Maroon Stranger

✨️writing prompt✨️

Solstitia seeks short stories of any genre for the fourth issue of their twice-yearly zine, themed "Dragon Hoards". Fiction fans welcome here!

📝: under 10K words
🗓: due 09.01
💸: $50 award

Featured Book: 'No Shelter but the Stars', by Virginia Black Shelf Companions: 'Faebound' by Saara El-Arifi 'The Splinter in the Sky' by Kemi Ashing-Giwa 'The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms' by NK Jemisin 'Black Sun' by Rebecca Roanhorse

Another Black sapphic read; s/o to V. Black for handing me the spiciest book on her table at ReadOut! Reminds why I've loved fanfiction; it's hard to find a well-written tale of two women with full arcs, flaws, and victories, falling in love, on traditional shelves. Kudos to you!
#booksky 📚💙🌶️🪐 #bvm

We all know what it's like to be an outsider, noses pressed to the window of where we want to be. Write a story that re-examines or subverts the view through the glass. by Maroon Stranger

✨️writing prompt✨️

Bannister Press seeks visually evocative, thought-provoking fantasy short stories of otherness for the second installment of their annual anthology "Other". Submit the first 1500 words of your story to be considered.

📝: 2.5K - 3.5K words
🗓: due 08.31
💸: $0.08 CAD/word

Featured Book: 'Faebound', by Saara El-Arifi. Shelf Companions: 'Masquerade' by OO Sangoyomi, 'The Bruising of Qilwa' by Naseem Jamni, 'Witches Steeped in Gold' by Ciannon Smart, 'Iron Widow' by Xiran Jay Zhao.

One of my first forays into Black sapphic romantasy. Loved the drama, creative worldbuilding and fresh take on those tired old fantasy tropes. Still learning about this genre, but I'm curious to read more!

#booksky 📚💙🌶️ #blackbooks #blacksky #bvm

Love can be complicated... even more so, with magic involved. Write a story of potions and paramours, and the promises, or perils, of mixing the two. by Maroon Stranger

✨️writing prompt✨️

Silver Sun Books seeks fantasy short stories of Potions & Paramours for Issue 20 of their quarterly anthology "Indie Bites", featuring indie authors whose books are self-published, hybrid, and unpublished.

📝: up to 7.5K words
🗓: due 08.31
💸: £5 honorarium, plus donations share

Haul from my local bookstores on Bookstore Romance Day! Excited to start Lana Harper's sapphic witchy series. Expanding my Romantasy repertoire!

#booksky #blackbooks #blacksky #bvm 📚💙🌶️

😯 I want to read this!

"An Island Princess Starts a Scandal" by Adriana Herrera

Honestly, my ideal historical romance. Real, unsung histories of women of color, portrayed as playful, nuanced and powerful as I know they must have been. Sapphic history can be uplifting... and sexy! More, please, Adriana Herrera!

#booksky 📚💙🌶 #blacksky #blackbooks #bvm #sapphic #lgbtq #lesbian

From "Blade Runner" and "Neuromancer" to "The Matrix" and "Ghost in the Shell", many cyberpunk futurisms seem halfway to coming true. So... what's next? Write the story if what comes after dystopia.

✨️writing prompt✨️

Author Henry Neilsen seeks cyberpunk horror short stories of a technofeudalist future for his upcoming shared-world anthology, "The Disconnected".

📝: up to 3K words
🗓: due 08.16
💸: AUD$10/500 words

#writingcommunity #bvm #writesky #litmag

"Witches Steeped In Gold" by Ciannon Smart

Another Caribbean author; loved exploring the rich world of Xaymaca through this fantasy lens. A good YA read for lovers of dense world-building, full casts of moody characters, and plots with more turns than a mountain highway!

#booksky 📚💙🪐 #blacksky #blackbooks #bvm #specfic

Much has been written about romantic love. What about the other bonds that shape our lives? Write a sci-fi or fantasy tale celebrating sister, teachers, neighbors, or best friends. (Maroon Stranger)

✨️writing prompt✨️

Author Claudie Arsenault seeks sci-fi/fantasy short stories centering non-romantic relationships for her upcoming anthology, "Common Bonds". Aromantic writers encouraged!

📝: up to 7.5K words
🗓: due 08.15
💸: 8c/word

#writingcommunity #bvm #writesky #litmag

"Jamaica Ginger", by Nalo Hopkinson

Falling in love with Nalo Hopkinson. This short story collection is such a delight! "Broad Dutty Water" and "Inselburg" were my favorites. I love her unapologetically exuberant imagination! What should I read by her next?

#booksky 📚💙🪐 #blacksky #specfic #blackbooks #bvm

Memory is where we create the world, in retrospect. What happens when our memories are altered? Write a story wherein all is not as we remember it to have been.

✨️writing prompt✨️

Air & Nothingness Press seeks speculative short stories of memory manipulation for their upcoming anthology, "Mmeory". Writers of Color strongly encouraged!

📝: under 2K words
🗓: due 08.15
💸: 8c/word

#writingcommunity #bvm #writesky #prompt #litmag

What's a writer to do when @reactorsff.bsky.social lists her first short story among the top ten of June 2025? Buy more books, of course! 🥰

Thank you again to @lunastation.bsky.social for giving Deepika's story a home, and to Book + Bottle for helping me celebrate! Can't wait to share more.

A fresh take on the sci-fi thriller. Thoroughly enjoyed! Recommended read to those who enjoy unique perspectives, engaging mysteries, and a little dash of horror in their not-too-far-off future fiction. Looking forward to more from this author!

#booksky 📚💙🪐 #scifi #mystery #thriller #asianauthor

A Stranger in the Citadel, by Tobias Buckell

Whew, what a ride! Highly recommend to readers curious about what speculative fiction can do. A swift, fierce, and explosively creative dive into a world shaped by anti-literacy.

#booksky 📚💙🪐 #scifi #caribbeanauthor

The Bruising of Qilwa, by Naseem Jamnia

My first time reading a medical mystery plot in a fantasy... and I want more! Loved the complicated explorations of Persian history and identity, presented through an alternate world where blood magic and bioscience intersect.

#booksky 📚💙🪐 #fantasy #lgbtbooks

Loving @maroon-stranger.bsky.social 's 'Lentils for Breakfast'! Such an evocative (and fragrant!) way of portraying the challenges of assimilation while holding on to one's cultural roots. Looking forward to the other stories too!

Nnedi Okorafor? Mostly sci-fi, but I've heard Who Fears Death is more toward the horror side

What a tender story. I resonated with so many aspects of Jess's journey, and the Ghosts v Gods v Gangsters action did not disappoint!

Great read for fantasy lovers looking beyond the Euromythos, and for Queer children of Asian diaspora.

#booksky 📚💙 #fantasy #lgbtq #sapphic #lesbian 📚🏳️‍🌈

Thank you!!

Better is a direction! And paradise is in the mind...

Feeling inspired by this read. At times painful; as a mixed kid, Sidney's self-hatred reflects who I could've been. Grateful for the family & community who guided me to love, instead.

#booksky 📚💙 #blackbooks #fantasy #bvm #blacksky

😃 I'm stunned!! Thank you @jamieboyd.bsky.social for sharing this... and thank you so much @bookjockeyalex.bsky.social and @reactorsff.bsky.social for featuring my story! I'm so glad Deepika is reaching the hearts she's meant to.

#booksky 📚💙 #writesky #blackbooksky #bvm

Some lighthearted fantasy romance treats (and one poetry anthology!) from a local book fair. I've read a few of these already; my favorite was the Kimberley Lemming! Any other lovers of her work?

#booksky 📚💙 #romantasy 📚🌶 #romancebooks #bvm #blackbooks

Gods of Jade and Shadow, by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

My second Silvia Moreno-Garcia read; first was Mexican Gothic, which I read when it came out and still bring up in book conversations to this day.

Luxurious, culture-rich, fantastical, and sweetly achingly human. More brown fairytales, please!

#booksky 📚💙🪐 #fantasy

The Scarlet Throne, by Amy Leow

South Asian villainess arc. Binsa's fear & ambition cast such a compelling story, even as she makes every wrong decision imaginable. My closest comparison is OO Sangoyomi's 'Masquerade'.

Still chewing on this book, and imagine I will be for quite a while. ❤️

#booksky 📚💙🪐 #darkfantasy #asianauthor

Another favorite read of 2024. Real, flawed characters in a deeply imagined, fantastical world... plus, all the martial arts movie drama one could ask for! Made me nostalgic for a time&place that never existed. Looking forward to the next installment!

#booksky 📚💙 #fantasy #asianauthor

"They're gone. Now you got no excuse for who you can be. So who you gonna be? Same as you were? Or everything you would've been otherwise?"

So much wisdom&imagination in this book. This is why I read speculative fiction!

#booksky 📚💙 #blackbooks #fantasy #bvm #blacksky