Farah Mendlesohn

#BassetHounds One moment: oh you can't leave my sight Mom! let me adore you while you sit on the loo! Next moment: Oh, it's you. I'm following a very important scent. I'd have been back in an hour, honest!. -- Brought to you by this morning's woodland/hill walk.

Anyone remember the panic over Lesbians in the Locker Rooms? I do.

The paperback of my novel Nonesuch is out in England today. Main edition on the right, special blue indy bookshops edition on the left. Sequel coming next year. Available from all good bookshops, and Amazon.

Who do I give to to get this in front of as many Michigan voters as possible?

I’m not a political journalist, so was gladly surprised at the community I found here last night. To Americans anxious about the upcoming elections, a key thing we learned in Brazil that might help you: DO NOT engage with the far-right online. Don’t share rage bait. Amplify your people. Ignore them.

Who let the ducks out? #BrisbaneIn2028 #Aussiecon5

Did you know that Australian Magpies are a very different bird to the European Magpie? The Australian Magpie is a songbird, and a member of the Artamidae, in its very own genus Gymnorhina and is most closely related to the black butcherbird (Melloria quoyi). #Aussiecon5 #Birdwatching

Congrats to all the World Fantasy Award winners... and particularly Brisbane local, and Aussiecon5 guest, Kathleen Jennings! ( @tanaudel.bsky.social) locusmag.com/2026/10/worl... #wfc2026

Twitch and OpenAI are unfortunately teaming up to see what users can build for Twitch with AI. To vote against this happening, vote on this UserVoice post: twitch.uservoice.com/forums/92338...

@pictcon.bsky.social is now half way to breaking even for 2027. Do you live in Scotland or near enough that a one day science fiction and fantasy convention (with an optional dinner the night before, for early arrivals) appeals? Just £30/£20!- we just need to sell 26 more tickets to be on target!

The Papers from the 2026 Frances Hardinge Conference are now available for purchase: £5 payhip.com/b/vkyIY (please share)

For the third year running I'll be hosting an online webinar discussion and 'in conversation' on 30th December. This year our guest is the award wining Nicola Griffith. Tickets are free. Donations to the Going Up and Under Fan Fund very welcome. Details in the link.

Join us for next year, 23rd October 2027 in the Salutation hotel, Perth.

The Papers from the 2026 Frances Hardinge Conference are now available for purchase: £5 payhip.com/b/vkyIY (please share)

@pictcon.bsky.social went international!

Ooo. Nice!

Guest of Honour @neilwilliamson.bsky.social chatting with @ruthejbooth.bsky.social at Pictcon2 @pictcon.bsky.social

We've had tremendous feedback! Next year's guests are Ann Landmann (Cymera) and Noel Chidwick (Shoreline of Infinity). Join us! 23 October 2027, Salutation Hotel Perth, at Eventbrite. Search PictCon3 and sign up for the newsletter at PictCon.com

Cat was a brilliant last minute panelist. We've had tremendous feedback! Next year's guests are Ann Landmann (Cymera) and Noel Chidwick (Shoreline of Infinity). Join us! 23 October 2027, Salutation Hotel Perth, at Eventbrite. Search PictCon3 and sign up for the newsletter at PictCon.com

Home after a fantastic time at Pictcon @pictcon.bsky.social where I moderated a panel on AI, listened to several other panels, and then decamped to the bar to share time with writers and attendees. Then I took the train back to Kirkcaldy and got home to the temp rental to decompress.

Seconded! @pictcon.bsky.social is a heartening testament to how microcons can support grassroots genre communities. I loved keeping panel chats going between things with such thoughtful and engaged fans. Thank you @effjayem.bsky.social and team for making my first one so welcoming. See you in 2027!

Thank you to our guest of honour at PictCon2 Neil Williamson. We've had tremendous feedback! Next year's guests are Ann Landmann (Cymera) & Noel Chidwick (Shoreline of Infinity). Join us! 23 October 2027 Salutation Hotel Perth, Eventbrite: Search PictCon3 Sign up for the newsletter at PictCon.com

25 memberships sold for PictCon3! A science fiction convention in Perth, Scotland, 23rd February 2027. We need to get to 60 to hit our break even mark. Help us get there in record time. www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/2002066393...

PictCon3! 23rd October 2027. Guests: Ann Landmann (Cymera Festival) & Noel Chidwick (Shoreline of Infinity) Location: Salutation Hotel, Perth, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 £30/£20/£19 Sign up for the newsletter at PictCon.com Tickets at Eventbrite. Search PictCon3 We've sold 14 tickets already, just 46 to go to break even!

Are you a fan of Crime novels? Run out of Val McDermid and want a great Lesbian crime investigtion duo? Like whisky? Currently on the East Coast of Scotland? Check out my lovely friend Natalie Jayne Clarke at the Birnam Arts Festival next week. Please share! birnamarts.com/event-Natali...

Available now, our new anthology of Welsh-themed contemporary fantasy, They Are Still Here wizardstowerpress.co...

I'm seeing headlines about how 25% of students admitted to university without qualifications fail to complete their degrees, and that this is justification for preventing people without qualifications from accessing student loans. That means *75%* of students without qualifications complete degrees.

Please register your interest in helping to put on a great Aussiecon5 here: forms.gle/BUK7H1Fe7UJG...

Some sad news for #WorldSpaceWeek. Margaret Hamilton, who led software development for the Apollo programme, has died.

It's #WorldSpaceWeek. The Island Lagoon Tracking station at Woomer was the first deep space station to be established outside the USA. With a 26 metre antenna it was active from 1960 until 22nd December 1972. You can find lots more details here. #Aussiecon5

Congratulations to Dr Sean Richards who graduated in September with a PhD in Physics from the University of Auckland. Richards described graduating in astrophysics as continuing a path set by "our ancestors" who used the stars to navigate the Pacific Ocean. #WorldSpaceWeek #Aussiecon5

As for why I was travelling this weekend, I attended the Vintage Toys of the Universe retro con in Lommel in Belgium. And Tiny Koala tagged along. #TinyKoalaAdventures #Aussiecon5 #VintageToysOfTheUniverse #Lommel #Brisbane2028 #Meanjin2028

Melee (our Treasurer) having a moment with Dominar Rygel from Farscape, at the Jim Henson exhibition at the Gallery of Modern Art in Brisbane. Farscape was filmed in Australia, with a mostly Australian cast and crew. #Aussiecon5

It's World Space Week! So over this week I'll be posting Australian Space Exploration milestones. #Aussiecon5 www.worldspaceweek.org

It’s 170 years since 10,000 people in South Carolina honoured their Congressman with a public dinner. That’s nice, isn’t it? People so rarely respect politicians these days. Unfortunately, they were showing their support for him beating an abolitionist almost to death with his cane

New article from me. Joanna Russ's The Female Man, and a Christmas Carol. "There Were These Three Ghosts..."

Black journalists speak out against alleged retaliation and discrimination at WJZ baltimorebeat.com/black-journa...

On pre-order, our very Welsh Kickstarter project. They Are Still Here features stories of resistance and resilience in Welsh community, with a little help from our supernatural friends. wizardstowerpress.co...

Some fascinating Collaborative Doctoral Awards on offer here at the BL, including a great history of sexuality/book history/library history project relating to the Rund Collection of 19th/20thC erotic books and ephemera www.bl.uk/services/res...

Solidarity with and empathy for the "Cornell Jane Doe." (I, too, am a Doe.) #MeToo #MeTooAcademia

South Africa spent a lot more time trying to pretend the bantustans were sovereign than Israel does; the Israeli position is *explicitly* that there is no sovereign Palestinian state, the Territories are under Israeli jurisdiction, but also Israel has no responsibility for the people who live there.

Worldcons strive to be inclusive and accessible. Accessibility is shaped by the venues we use, the ways we use them and the things our members tell us they need. Our host city, Brisbane, is implementing A City for Everyone: Inclusive Brisbane Plan, 2019-2029 It's a downloadable pdf. #Aussiecon5

For my newsletter this morning, I found a small glimmer of political hope for trans people in the US and wrote about it: www.burnsnotice.com/we-may-have-...