IT'S RELEASE DAY!

"We are all there, staring at the blank page, trying somehow to distill an evanescent moment into words. We're standing here at the margin between reality and understanding and all we have is language." - Cecelia Holland, novelist

🪶 I shared this quote for the first time 14 years ago over on Facebook, and it still resonates just as powerfully for me today....

#writersky #writingcommunity #authorsofsky #booksky
#WritingBlueSky

Middle Earth-themed "book nook" (detail of dwarf on a balcony)

Middle Earth-themed "book nook" (detail of Smaug flying over rooftops and breathing fire)

Two more details of the Tolkien-inspired book nook....

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Middle Earth-themed "book nook" on a shelf of Tolkien books.

Middle Earth-themed "book nook"

Middle Earth-themed "book nook" (detail of a hobbit hole)

Middle Earth-themed "book nook" (detail of a nazgul-like rider crossing a bridge)

I assembled my first "book nook." This one is Middle Earth-themed, and it now sits happily on one of my #Tolkien book shelves. It took me about 8 hours of work to assemble the kit, & I enjoyed every minute. Very sturdy wooden materials, and I'm very pleased with how it turned out!

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I've seen people trying to defend it today by saying "No, no, I just use it to brainstorm, bounce ideas, I do the actual writing" and with all the kindness in the world I need to tell you: if there is a stage of writing you are not good at, you need to get good, not use the plagiarism machine.

Beheld: Godiva's Story, by Christopher M. Cevasco Having survived a grave illness to become one of 11th-century England’s wealthiest landowners, Godgyfu of Coventry (Lady Godiva) remains forever grateful to the town whose patron saint worked such mir...

Currently available for sale on our website: Beheld: Godiva's Story by @cmcevasco.bsky.social. It's new, $18, and historical fiction.
carpelibrumbaltimore.com/products/beh...

GGG#615: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Season 1 [YouTube] [Apple] [Spotify] [Download] John Joseph Adams, Rajan Khanna, and Christopher M. Cevasco join us to discuss Season 1 of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, a new HBO series set 100 years befo…

🎙️ Listen to the latest episode of Geek's Guide to the Galaxy, wherein I discuss season 1 of A KNIGHT OF THE SEVEN KINGDOMS and the novella "The Hedge Knight" on which it's based along with @rajanyk.bsky.social, @johnjosephadams.com, & host David Barr Kirtley. ⚔️

geeksguideshow.com/2026/03/15/g...

If you share my passion for these historical periods, have a look!

👥 And if you'd like to be added to the starter pack, please let me know, & I'll happily add you.

go.bsky.app/KFcpDUm

#anglosaxon #normanconquest #kingarthur #arthuriana #vikings #viking #romanbritain #medievalsky

Very sad news about the loss of a great historian. His 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘔𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘪𝘢: 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘗𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘓𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘈𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘰-𝘚𝘢𝘹𝘰𝘯 𝘌𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥 was one of my most heavily used resources when I was researching and writing 𝘉𝘦𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘥: 𝘎𝘰𝘥𝘪𝘷𝘢'𝘴 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺.

#MedievalSky #AngloSaxons

Reminder: If you use generative AI for *any of your writing tasks* you are a Slopper not a writer and should be ashamed of yourself. The end.

The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy stylized as cover text.

If you wrote an SF/F/H story that was published in 2025 (or read a story that you thought was great), tell me about it in this thread!

Authors, also send your story to me here: johnjosephadams.com/basff-submis... (Please read the guidelines before submitting.)

Just saw this now. 😆

I don't get why cons for readers & writers give air to genAI; platforming its 'benefits' or 'showing both sides'. That's mainstream chat; not discussion for creatives & attendees come to see them. Treat genAI like the environmentally destructive inaccurate plagiarism machine we creatives know it is.

The 2025 volume of BASFF once again features some great stories! Full disclosure: For the past 6 years or so, I've been @johnjosephadams.com's assistant editor for these annual anthologies.

Do check out the full list of Notable Stories too: tinyurl.com/3rswhjes

#ScienceFiction #Fantasy #BookSky

A great directory of #TTRPG starter packs, including my own starter pack of #DMsGuild Creators, Contributors, & Reviewers. Check it out!

#DnD #ttrpgcommunity

This one actually made me LOL. 😆

Congratulations to @chrisperkinsdnd.bsky.social on his retirement. His innumerable contributions to #DnD, especially #DnD5e, are in great part responsible for my deeper re-immersion in the game I've loved since the 1980s. The revised rules are amazing—a high note indeed for him to go out on!
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Text reads: #HNS2025 REGISTRATION IS OPEN! Early bird prices available. Get your ticket before the cost goes up!

And if you're still thinking about attending #HNS2025 virtually, good news! Early-bird pricing 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙑𝙞𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡 𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 has been extended.

Here's an overview of the benefits of Virtual attendance: tinyurl.com/3hcrnabj

#HistoricalFiction #HistoricalMysteries #HistoricalFantasy #AltHist #histfic

Fascinating. And sounds like just the sort of nasty thing the Norman invaders would have done during those early years of conquest.... #TeamHarold 😜

#AngloSaxons #NormanConquest #MedievalSky

Text reads: #HNS2025 REGISTRATION IS OPEN! Early bird prices available. Get your ticket before the cost goes up!

And if you're still thinking about attending #HNS2025 virtually, good news! Early-bird pricing 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙑𝙞𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡 𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 has been extended.

Here's an overview of the benefits of Virtual attendance: tinyurl.com/3hcrnabj

#HistoricalFiction #HistoricalMysteries #HistoricalFantasy #AltHist #histfic

Text Reads: #HNS2025 Special Guests & Spotlight Authors: Fiona Davis / Silvia Moreno-Garcia / Yangsze Choo / Jeffrey Blount / Sarah Penner (each name appears beneath a headshot of the author)

✨The #HNS2025 Conference is shaping up to be the #HistoricalFiction event of the year!

📚Even if you can't make it in-person or virtually, there are opportunities to promote your #histfic books to attendees.

• Ad options: tinyurl.com/2kukvpun

• Sponsorships: tinyurl.com/mwffk3z5

#BookSky #Authors

Photograph of the red-hued moon during total eclipse at ~3AM ET, March 14, 2025.

This was probably my best shot of the 'blood moon' lunar eclipse last night.... 🌝

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Text Reads: #HNS2025 Special Guests: Silvia Moreno-Garcia / Fiona Davis. Spotlight Authors: Sarah Penner / Jeffrey Blount / Yangsze Choo (each name appears beneath a headshot of the author)

Special Guests and Spotlight Authors for #HNS2025.

Plus over 100 other featured authors, agents, editors, artists, & other industry professionals from Australia, Canada, Ireland, the U.K., & the U.S. coming together to celebrate #HistoricalFiction: hns-conference.com/hns2025-pres...

Early-bird discounted registration ends tomorrow! ⏳

#HistoricalFiction #histfic #HNS2025 #authors #HistoricalFantasy #AlternateHistory #GothicFiction #HistoricalMysteries #BookSky #TimeTravel #HistoricalHorror #BiographicalFiction #AdventureFiction #HistoricalRomance #NauticalFiction

These are on my TBR list, and I look forward to reading them, but I also just want to say how much I love these covers--individually and as a thematic trio. They're just beautiful.

#BookSky

Science Fiction & Fantasy Pirate-Themed Anthology! An SF&F themed anthology about pirates from the small press Zombies Need Brains!

New ZNB #Kickstarter now LIVE at tinyurl.com/ZNBSkullXBones! Back now for #sff #antho about #pirates featuring @jenniferbrozek.bsky.social, Violette Malan, @ccfinlay.bsky.social, & more! Rewards and bonuses galore! Support #smallpress! #booksky #readingcommunity #fantasy #urbanfantasy #scifi

🤩 I'm on board for this! The original VIKINGS is one of my all-time favorites. I found the characters in the followup VIKINGS: VALHALLA far less compelling (even though I love that period of history), but BLOODAXE is closer temporally to the original and sounds like it has lots of potential. 🪓

Text reads: THE Conference for Historical Fiction! / HISTORICAL NOVEL SOCIETY 2025 CONFERENCE / Virtual Attendance Option / Celebrate the many subgenres of historical fiction / Enjoy 48 sessions livestreamed and recorded for on-demand viewing / Connect with fellow historical writers via session chats, themes hangout rooms, and discussion boards / Pitch your manuscript to agents / HNS-CONFERENCE.COM

⏳ Early-bird discounted registration ends soon for the 2025 @hnsnorthamerica.bsky.social Conference!

📡 There's also a virtual option (48 livestreamed sessions + optional Master Classes & Agent Pitches) & recordings accessible for 6 months: hns-conference.com/hns2025-full...

#HistoricalFiction

Congratulations to this year's Nebula Awards finalists!
📣 nebulas.sfwa.org/8528-2