Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by AJ

R.S.A. Garcia (BUY THE NIGHTWARD) @rsagarcia.bsky.social · 1d

You know this if you're an adult fantasy writer having people sneer at your 'YA' book. You know this as a BIPOC writer when people sneer about being 'bored', 'confused' or 'unable to relate/don't care'.

Here's an idea: maybe all books aren't written to please you. Try being open to different ideas.

🌈 Hailey Piper 🌈 @haileypiperfights.bsky.social · 1d

They say they want new things in fantasy, then authors from marginalized groups do new things, but they don't like that, they want the new thing to be like the old thing except new.

What they really want is a book to rewind time and make them young again, something no book or anything else can do.

3 4 27

AJ @ajknights.bsky.social · 1d

How do other people with cute cats acheive productivity?

Cuz how am I not supposed to snuggle them all day?

1

Reposted by AJ

Fran Wilde @franwilde.bsky.social · 2d

Hey, Baltimore! Can’t wait to see you tonight (10/9) at the Pratt Library!

Fran Wilde at the Enoch Pratt library 10/9 7pm!

3 8

AJ @ajknights.bsky.social · 2d

I long abandoned the catholic faith although I was raised in the church... but this new pope has my ATTENTION.

I might even try to take in a mass lol.

Lucius Fox In The Box @carnegro.bsky.social · 2d

Pope Leo is spitting.

www.npr.org/2025/10/09/n...

Leo questioned a world where the wealth of the elite grows
"exponentially" while many "millions of people die of hunger or survive in conditions unfit for human beings." He also criticized "ideologies that defend the absolute autonomy of the marketplace and financial speculation,"
with false promises "that a free-market economy will automatically solve the problem of poverty."

Leo described a "new tyranny," which shuns any kind of oversight and where the economy is structured "in such a way that sacrifices are demanded of the masses in order to serve the needs of the powerful." The poor, he wrote, are only allowed "drops that trickle down."

The pope openly challenged "prosperity theology" and called Christians to the practice of giving charity. "It will not solve the problem of world poverty, yet it must still be carried out, with intelligence, diligence and social responsibility," he wrote.

Popular movements that challenge "the empire of money," invite people to take on the cause to combat poverty alongside the poor, instead of on their behalf, and "make history," the pope said. It our duty, Leo said, to "make their voices heard, albeit in different ways, in order to point out and denounce such structural issues, even at the cost of appearing foolish or naïve."

1 1

AJ @ajknights.bsky.social · 4d

Amen amen amen

Chibdm @chibdm.bsky.social · 5d

Robin Williams' daughter has some quality thoughts on AI slop

Reposted by AJ

Kate / Katelyn Forrest @kateforrest.bsky.social · 6d

Trans author here!

Got a sapphic urban fantasy godpunk novel out in the world.

Greek mythology + Rhode Island + punk rock + sapphic smooching

bsky.app/profile/kate...

Kate / Katelyn Forrest @kateforrest.bsky.social · Jul 15

What happens when your new fling turns out to be a legit goddess? And her ex is trying to overdose humanity on old magic?

What to do, what to do.. 🤔

Once Upon a Punk Show. Sing together. Save the world together. Out now!

Full blurb and links below ⤵️

katelynforrest.com/once-upon-a-...

Once Upon a Punk Show

For Giulia Caesari, a small-time punk singer chasing a stage high, embracing the chaos of her life is a night in the mosh pit. Until she learns chaos is not an abstract thing. Chaos is a flesh and …

katelynforrest.com

1 9 10

Reposted by AJ

R.S.A. Garcia (BUY THE NIGHTWARD) @rsagarcia.bsky.social · 8d

This Oct, as a breast cancer survivor in treatment since 2021, I'm doing a thread on stuff I wish I'd been told.

I'll update as I go, but the first thing I'll share is every person's body & treatment is different. Some fear symptoms or side effects they might never get. Don't be afraid to fight 1/3

5 50 140

Reposted by AJ

R.S.A. Garcia (BUY THE NIGHTWARD) @rsagarcia.bsky.social · 7d

Day 4 of Black Spec Fic month recs!

1. THE PALM-WINE DRINKARD by Amos Tutuola
www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-palm-w...

2. SON OF THE STORM by Suyi Davies Okungbowa
www.barnesandnoble.com/w/son-of-the...

3. Bonus from me: THE SUN FROM BOTH SIDES
clarkesworldmagazine.com/garcia_05_19/

Share & enjoy!

2 8 9

Reposted by AJ

R.S.A. Garcia (BUY THE NIGHTWARD) @rsagarcia.bsky.social · 8d

Day 3 of Black Spec Fic month recs!

1. BLOODCHILD by Octavia E. Butler
www.barnesandnoble.com/w/bloodchild...

2. THE BEST OF ALL POSSIBLE WORLDS by Karen Lord
www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-best-o...

3. Free bonus from me: FIRE IN HIS EYES, BLOOD ON HIS TEETH
podcastle.org/2022/04/26/p...

Enjoy!

Bloodchild and Other Stories|Paperback

A perfect introduction for new readers and a must-have for avid fans, this New York Times Notable Book includes "Bloodchild," winner of both the Hugo and the Nebula awards and "Speech Sounds," winner ...

www.barnesandnoble.com

1 13 12

Reposted by AJ

R.S.A. Garcia (BUY THE NIGHTWARD) @rsagarcia.bsky.social · 9d

Day 2 of Black Spec Fic month recs!

1. MIDNIGHT ROBBER by Nalo Hopkinson
www.barnesandnoble.com/w/midnight-r...

2. THE SPLINTER IN THE SKY by Kemi Ashing-Giwa
www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-splint...

3. A free read from me: THE ANCHORITE WAKES
clarkesworldmagazine.com/garcia_08_18/

Share & Enjoy!

Midnight Robber|eBook

A daughter must contend with her father's crime in the award-winning author's "deeply satisfying" novel of Caribbean folklore and sci-fi adventure (The New York Times Book Review). It's Carnival ti...

www.barnesandnoble.com

1 16 14

Reposted by AJ

Hypervisible @hypervisible.blacksky.app · 7d

“All of this feels ridiculous because that’s exactly what it is. But the larger goal is to inure you to the strangeness of it all so that when these products — be they movies, shows, or TikToks — finally come to market, your reaction is ‘Sure, why not?’”

Tilly Norwood is a gen AI psyop

The point is to normalize generative AI in your mind.

www.theverge.com

10 110 300

AJ @ajknights.bsky.social · 10d

Not me having to take cuss from this cat cuz I dared to go outside to clear a drain while she was sleeping. Now I'm on snuggle punishment. 🤣🤣🤣

2

Reposted by AJ

Merriam-Webster @merriam-webster.com · 10d

We are thrilled to announce that our NEW Large Language Model will be released on 11.18.25.

660 8.3K 25K

Reposted by AJ

Alanna Smith @alannamode.bsky.social · 12d

Give folks their flowers

No, I mean right now. Go tell someone you loved their work right now. They're on social media just say it, it has never been easier

"They know how much people love--" no they don't go say it right now to a composer or artist or game dev or writer or anyone AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH

Murlin @murlin.bsky.social · 12d

From bravewave.net/interviews/t...

Mo: Do you remember the first time you met someone who said they loved your work on Mega Man 2?

Tateishi: You’re the first, in 2013. No one else has.

Mo: Wow. I’m surprised. I don’t even have a follow-up question… how could no one come up and say something.

Tateishi: …

Mo: Now that you know how big Mega Man 2 is outside of Japan, do you look fondly back at the soundtrack?

Tateishi: Yeah, my thoughts have changed since I met you and became more aware of how people felt. But even when I was at Konami, I didn’t even bother telling anyone I did Mega Man 2. So the fact you came all the way to Japan to tell me these things makes me very happy I worked on the game all those years ago.

44 4K 7.8K

Reposted by AJ

R.S.A. Garcia (BUY THE NIGHTWARD) @rsagarcia.bsky.social · 13d

Consider that we don't need snobbery & never did.

We DO need gatekeepers focused on something more than popularity & profit.

Corporations replaced knowledgeable reviewers, editors, artists, etc, with influencers, comment sections & fandoms & it's hurt us all.

www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio...

In an era of AI slop and mid TV, is it time for cultural snobbery to make a comeback?

The lowbrow dominates culture and anyone who questions the status quo is dismissed as an elitist killjoy. But with bland algorithmic content on the rise, perhaps we consumers should start taking our a...

www.theguardian.com

2 15

Reposted by AJ

Abeeha Tariq @abeehatariqart.bsky.social · 14d

Screenshot of text I’ve written that reads: I really want to rant about the way the world is going and how the creative industries are being destroyed and how those two things are so closely tied together and I want to complain about how hard it is to just exist and create right now and how it feels like you always need to be 'on' and the pressure to always be making content and be visible that's pushed on us by this capitalist fast tech-driven world we're in right now and how it's stifling creativity in the worst way and how it feels like you need to choose between being visible and actually making good art and experimenting and being a human being but I am exhausted and all my energy has been drained

12 220 700

Reposted by AJ

Jason Sanford @jasonsanford.bsky.social · 17d

Welcome to a world where companies use your IP without compensation or permission to train their AIs and landlords want to own any IP you create in their apartments.

Funny how writers and artists are told what we create had no value but everyone aims to steal it.

Purplepingers ☭ @purplepingers.bsky.social · 18d

An update on that insane lease term where the landlord owns everything you create during the tenancy:

4 33 77

Reposted by AJ

Derek Johnson @derekjesq.bsky.social · 21d

“Fascism” isn’t a slur for politics we don’t like. It’s a precise word with precise meaning. And in the face of what’s happening right now in America, it’s the most honest one we have.

I’ll lay it out as plainly as I can. 🧵

38 1K 3.1K

Reposted by AJ

R. A. Meenan (Sammie) @zyearth.com · 15d

YOUR. ART. MATTERS. Art connects us. It gives us hope. It's a reminder that life is worth living and we can and will have a better future.