CL Hellisen
@clhellisen.bsky.social
Stories in F&SF, Strange Horizons, Apex, Tor, Shimmer, BCS.
Repped by Caro Clarke
The Shape of Monsters out now https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/The-Shape-of-Monsters-Audiobook/B0FGDJ5X1M
https://clhellisenlanding.carrd.co/
They/them, Scotland + S. Africa
Repped by Caro Clarke
The Shape of Monsters out now https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/The-Shape-of-Monsters-Audiobook/B0FGDJ5X1M
https://clhellisenlanding.carrd.co/
They/them, Scotland + S. Africa
Pinned
CL Hellisen
@clhellisen.bsky.social
· Jul 7
Godskin
Sometimes among the fish and crabs, we trawl squid and octopus, or little sharks, all added to the pots. Sometimes it’s a fish person, a thing we cut free and do not talk of, pretend we never saw. …
strangehorizons.com
If you'd like to read my World Fantasy Award shortlisted story Godskin, then amble on over to @strangehorizons.bsky.social ...
strangehorizons.com/wordpress/fi...
strangehorizons.com/wordpress/fi...
Reposted by CL Hellisen
The fabulous folks of Neon Hemlock are having an AMA! Come talk about Queer SFF.
www.reddit.com/r/QueerSFF/c...
www.reddit.com/r/QueerSFF/c...
From the QueerSFF community on Reddit
Explore this post and more from the QueerSFF community
www.reddit.com
January 29, 2026 at 5:37 PM
The fabulous folks of Neon Hemlock are having an AMA! Come talk about Queer SFF.
www.reddit.com/r/QueerSFF/c...
www.reddit.com/r/QueerSFF/c...
Reposted by CL Hellisen
Saw one of these sharing the street with a squirrel earlier. I give it a month before the rodents of Leeds raid the plastic treasure fleet, crack open their lids, devour their cargo, & ride them around the city like a band of furry privateers.
January 29, 2026 at 1:57 PM
Saw one of these sharing the street with a squirrel earlier. I give it a month before the rodents of Leeds raid the plastic treasure fleet, crack open their lids, devour their cargo, & ride them around the city like a band of furry privateers.
Reposted by CL Hellisen
Bluesky, you have a learned helplessness problem.
If someone posts a word or food you don't know, you don't look it up. You just demand repeatedly in the comments for the answer. Then get mad when people tell you to do it yourself.
I'm here to tell you I won't be enabling that lack of curiosity.
If someone posts a word or food you don't know, you don't look it up. You just demand repeatedly in the comments for the answer. Then get mad when people tell you to do it yourself.
I'm here to tell you I won't be enabling that lack of curiosity.
January 29, 2026 at 2:49 PM
Bluesky, you have a learned helplessness problem.
If someone posts a word or food you don't know, you don't look it up. You just demand repeatedly in the comments for the answer. Then get mad when people tell you to do it yourself.
I'm here to tell you I won't be enabling that lack of curiosity.
If someone posts a word or food you don't know, you don't look it up. You just demand repeatedly in the comments for the answer. Then get mad when people tell you to do it yourself.
I'm here to tell you I won't be enabling that lack of curiosity.
Reposted by CL Hellisen
Spotted in Dundee.
January 28, 2026 at 12:54 PM
Spotted in Dundee.
Book 3.
Call and Response, Christopher Caldwell's collection of fantastical Black, queer short fic.
Stunning and unapologetically American - not stars and stripes bluster, but a seething cocktail of folk magic, fairy tale logic, bitter truths & hopeful poisons.
www.neonhemlock.com/books/call-a...
Call and Response, Christopher Caldwell's collection of fantastical Black, queer short fic.
Stunning and unapologetically American - not stars and stripes bluster, but a seething cocktail of folk magic, fairy tale logic, bitter truths & hopeful poisons.
www.neonhemlock.com/books/call-a...
January 29, 2026 at 8:16 AM
Book 3.
Call and Response, Christopher Caldwell's collection of fantastical Black, queer short fic.
Stunning and unapologetically American - not stars and stripes bluster, but a seething cocktail of folk magic, fairy tale logic, bitter truths & hopeful poisons.
www.neonhemlock.com/books/call-a...
Call and Response, Christopher Caldwell's collection of fantastical Black, queer short fic.
Stunning and unapologetically American - not stars and stripes bluster, but a seething cocktail of folk magic, fairy tale logic, bitter truths & hopeful poisons.
www.neonhemlock.com/books/call-a...
Reposted by CL Hellisen
Tune in tomorrow for our @lunapress.bsky.social 2026 Novella Launch!! @aknighton.bsky.social and I will be chatting all about the novellas, inspirations, and thematic overlaps despite being such different genres! 7pm GMT/2pm EST on YouTube to watch live! Spread the word! ✨️🖤 youtu.be/E2rmVnbVOp4?...
Luna Novella Launch: #24-25
YouTube video by Luna Press Publishing
youtu.be
January 28, 2026 at 10:33 PM
Tune in tomorrow for our @lunapress.bsky.social 2026 Novella Launch!! @aknighton.bsky.social and I will be chatting all about the novellas, inspirations, and thematic overlaps despite being such different genres! 7pm GMT/2pm EST on YouTube to watch live! Spread the word! ✨️🖤 youtu.be/E2rmVnbVOp4?...
I have been struggling to read for the last few weeks.
And struggling to write.
(these things go hand in hand, it's like trying to build muscle while starving)
anyway, no more doomscrolling the end times, cat, go read a fucking book.
And struggling to write.
(these things go hand in hand, it's like trying to build muscle while starving)
anyway, no more doomscrolling the end times, cat, go read a fucking book.
January 28, 2026 at 9:03 PM
I have been struggling to read for the last few weeks.
And struggling to write.
(these things go hand in hand, it's like trying to build muscle while starving)
anyway, no more doomscrolling the end times, cat, go read a fucking book.
And struggling to write.
(these things go hand in hand, it's like trying to build muscle while starving)
anyway, no more doomscrolling the end times, cat, go read a fucking book.
Reposted by CL Hellisen
Monetisation
The advert said
MONETISE YOUR FOLLOWERS
so he thought
he would respond
by painting them
in the changing light,
like waterlilies
in a pond.
The advert said
MONETISE YOUR FOLLOWERS
so he thought
he would respond
by painting them
in the changing light,
like waterlilies
in a pond.
January 28, 2026 at 9:26 AM
Monetisation
The advert said
MONETISE YOUR FOLLOWERS
so he thought
he would respond
by painting them
in the changing light,
like waterlilies
in a pond.
The advert said
MONETISE YOUR FOLLOWERS
so he thought
he would respond
by painting them
in the changing light,
like waterlilies
in a pond.
Reposted by CL Hellisen
But the AI bots are coming, and people using AI to grift you into trusting them are here…and you should be at least lightly vigilant or aware.
And regardless, if your gut says No Bueno, listen to your gut. It’s your life and energy & you don’t need to be tuned into every rando.
And regardless, if your gut says No Bueno, listen to your gut. It’s your life and energy & you don’t need to be tuned into every rando.
January 28, 2026 at 7:18 PM
But the AI bots are coming, and people using AI to grift you into trusting them are here…and you should be at least lightly vigilant or aware.
And regardless, if your gut says No Bueno, listen to your gut. It’s your life and energy & you don’t need to be tuned into every rando.
And regardless, if your gut says No Bueno, listen to your gut. It’s your life and energy & you don’t need to be tuned into every rando.
Enjoyed this episode with Scotland's @lyndseycroal.bsky.social, talking novellas, short stories, closed room horror, her recent and upcoming releases, and her path of discovery writing.
(My own approach is similar - if I plot something out extensively, i get too bored to go back in and write it.)
(My own approach is similar - if I plot something out extensively, i get too bored to go back in and write it.)
This week on the pod we talk with the brilliant @lyndseycroal.bsky.social, who was just yesterday nominated for a BSFA Award! She tells us about writing 100 published stories, and explains what her next book (out soon!) is about...
Watch now: youtu.be/oQkEzFDtyKE
Or listen: linktr.ee/ukpageone
Watch now: youtu.be/oQkEzFDtyKE
Or listen: linktr.ee/ukpageone
January 28, 2026 at 3:32 PM
Enjoyed this episode with Scotland's @lyndseycroal.bsky.social, talking novellas, short stories, closed room horror, her recent and upcoming releases, and her path of discovery writing.
(My own approach is similar - if I plot something out extensively, i get too bored to go back in and write it.)
(My own approach is similar - if I plot something out extensively, i get too bored to go back in and write it.)
Reposted by CL Hellisen
Your brain thinks your cat is a baby.
Science says that’s…completely reasonable.
#CatScience #ScienceOfCats #Neuroscience
#BrainScience #PsychologyFacts
#ScienceCommunication #SciComm
#CatsOfInstagram #CatLovers
#CatParents #DidYouKnow
#FunScience #NerdyButCute
Science says that’s…completely reasonable.
#CatScience #ScienceOfCats #Neuroscience
#BrainScience #PsychologyFacts
#ScienceCommunication #SciComm
#CatsOfInstagram #CatLovers
#CatParents #DidYouKnow
#FunScience #NerdyButCute
January 27, 2026 at 3:20 PM
Your brain thinks your cat is a baby.
Science says that’s…completely reasonable.
#CatScience #ScienceOfCats #Neuroscience
#BrainScience #PsychologyFacts
#ScienceCommunication #SciComm
#CatsOfInstagram #CatLovers
#CatParents #DidYouKnow
#FunScience #NerdyButCute
Science says that’s…completely reasonable.
#CatScience #ScienceOfCats #Neuroscience
#BrainScience #PsychologyFacts
#ScienceCommunication #SciComm
#CatsOfInstagram #CatLovers
#CatParents #DidYouKnow
#FunScience #NerdyButCute
Reposted by CL Hellisen
"I’d dropped hundreds, maybe thousands, of coins into the skull of Francisco Xalbec, and I still wasn’t sure how full it was, but I knew with profound certainty that I had to fill it."
TODAY beloveds!! new fiction 🖤💀
The Skull of Francisco Xalbec by Alan M. Fisher
psychopomp.com/deadlands/is...
TODAY beloveds!! new fiction 🖤💀
The Skull of Francisco Xalbec by Alan M. Fisher
psychopomp.com/deadlands/is...
The Skull of Francisco Xalbec - PSYCHOPOMP.COM
Every time I died, I received another coin to place in the skull of Francisco Xalbec.
psychopomp.com
January 27, 2026 at 1:44 AM
don't need a free course to tell me LLMs are plagiarised slop and create *more* not less work to correct the flaws they make because they're glorified text-predictors.
how about the government put money into paid apprenticeships for older adults (not just young folk and new graduates).
how about the government put money into paid apprenticeships for older adults (not just young folk and new graduates).
BREAKING: Free AI training will be offered to every adult in the UK, with short courses to teach people how to use simple AI tools effectively in the workplace.
Technology Secretary Liz Kendall tells #BBCBreakfast about the scheme
Technology Secretary Liz Kendall tells #BBCBreakfast about the scheme
January 28, 2026 at 1:39 PM
don't need a free course to tell me LLMs are plagiarised slop and create *more* not less work to correct the flaws they make because they're glorified text-predictors.
how about the government put money into paid apprenticeships for older adults (not just young folk and new graduates).
how about the government put money into paid apprenticeships for older adults (not just young folk and new graduates).
I wrote a thing about short stories, why they get rejected, and what you can apply to your own work.
clhellisen.beehiiv.com/p/a-view-fro...
clhellisen.beehiiv.com/p/a-view-fro...
A View from the Slush
clhellisen.beehiiv.com
January 28, 2026 at 1:15 PM
I wrote a thing about short stories, why they get rejected, and what you can apply to your own work.
clhellisen.beehiiv.com/p/a-view-fro...
clhellisen.beehiiv.com/p/a-view-fro...
Reposted by CL Hellisen
It comes from a livejournal post Cat Valente wrote when they were editing Apex (I'm horrified to learn that this is now 16 years old). It's basically what you're saying here - show us the cool shit up front, don't bury the lede, hook us early
catvalente.livejournal.com/590003.html?...
catvalente.livejournal.com/590003.html?...
Adventures in Editing
I've been fiction and poetry editor over at Apex Magazine for several weeks now. I've accepted a story, asked for rewrites on a couple of stories, and rejected a whole lot of stories, and not a few po...
catvalente.livejournal.com
January 28, 2026 at 10:55 AM
It comes from a livejournal post Cat Valente wrote when they were editing Apex (I'm horrified to learn that this is now 16 years old). It's basically what you're saying here - show us the cool shit up front, don't bury the lede, hook us early
catvalente.livejournal.com/590003.html?...
catvalente.livejournal.com/590003.html?...
I've been slush reading for many years now, and I mostly say no to stories where the reward is all in the ending.
**A reader is only going to get a few lines in before they judge yea or nay.**
You need to set up the payoff of the ending in the first few lines.
And that's a tough one.
**A reader is only going to get a few lines in before they judge yea or nay.**
You need to set up the payoff of the ending in the first few lines.
And that's a tough one.
January 28, 2026 at 9:57 AM
I've been slush reading for many years now, and I mostly say no to stories where the reward is all in the ending.
**A reader is only going to get a few lines in before they judge yea or nay.**
You need to set up the payoff of the ending in the first few lines.
And that's a tough one.
**A reader is only going to get a few lines in before they judge yea or nay.**
You need to set up the payoff of the ending in the first few lines.
And that's a tough one.
Reposted by CL Hellisen
I'm thrilled to discover that Storyteller: A Tanith Lee Tribute Anthology is on the preliminary ballot for the Stoker Awards!
The works the authors brought to this book are unique and powerful and focus on voices that, like Tanith herself, seem to slip too easily beneath community awareness.
The works the authors brought to this book are unique and powerful and focus on voices that, like Tanith herself, seem to slip too easily beneath community awareness.
January 27, 2026 at 12:34 AM
I'm thrilled to discover that Storyteller: A Tanith Lee Tribute Anthology is on the preliminary ballot for the Stoker Awards!
The works the authors brought to this book are unique and powerful and focus on voices that, like Tanith herself, seem to slip too easily beneath community awareness.
The works the authors brought to this book are unique and powerful and focus on voices that, like Tanith herself, seem to slip too easily beneath community awareness.
Today's good news is that @thisjulieday.bsky.social's Storyteller: A Tanith Lee Tribute is on the Stoker long list for Superior Achievement in an Anthology.
I'm incredibly proud of having a short story (Makers) in this anthology packed with superstar writers.
I'm incredibly proud of having a short story (Makers) in this anthology packed with superstar writers.
January 27, 2026 at 4:29 PM
Today's good news is that @thisjulieday.bsky.social's Storyteller: A Tanith Lee Tribute is on the Stoker long list for Superior Achievement in an Anthology.
I'm incredibly proud of having a short story (Makers) in this anthology packed with superstar writers.
I'm incredibly proud of having a short story (Makers) in this anthology packed with superstar writers.
Reposted by CL Hellisen
“Magie Vol, Ogies Toe” by @clhellisen.bsky.social (Winter ‘26) “is another loss story, in which the lead and their sister must find a way to satisfy the ravenous ghost of their mother.”
It’s a bit early to have a favorite story of the year, but my favorite of the sixteen 2026-published short works I’ve read is reviewed here in my Magazine Minis, featuring Asimov’s and Kaleidotrope www.tarvolon.com/2026/01/26/t...
Tar Vol's Magazine Minis: Asimov's and Kaleidotrope
Tar Vol's January 2026 Magazine Minis features reviews of sci-fi and fantasy short fiction from Asimov's and Kaleidotrope, with a standout tale by Dan Peacock
www.tarvolon.com
January 27, 2026 at 2:10 PM
“Magie Vol, Ogies Toe” by @clhellisen.bsky.social (Winter ‘26) “is another loss story, in which the lead and their sister must find a way to satisfy the ravenous ghost of their mother.”
Reposted by CL Hellisen
When a review of the anthology specifically mentions your story 😊
"Kyi’yaji by Xan van Rooyen was one of my favorite stories, equal parts chilling and mesmerizing. I loved the concept within and how music was used as the catalyst. I found this one profoundly moving."
Link 👇
#booksky #horror
"Kyi’yaji by Xan van Rooyen was one of my favorite stories, equal parts chilling and mesmerizing. I loved the concept within and how music was used as the catalyst. I found this one profoundly moving."
Link 👇
#booksky #horror
01/25/2026 Recent Reads & Reviews: SAUUTI TERRORS
SAUUTI TERRORS Short Stories from the Unique Universe created by Contemporary African Writers. Edited by Eugen Bacon, Cheryl Ntumy, and Stephen Embleton.SAUUTI TERRORS, by its own description, is an a...
www.candacenolaauthor.com
January 26, 2026 at 9:01 PM
Just grabbed myself a ticket for this - an excellent group of writers
BFS Online is excited to announce our next event, Faith, Science & Folklore, taking place Wednesday 28th January 2026, 7pm (GMT).
Ticket: tinyurl.com/fascifolk
@samkhorton.bsky.social @rainewilson.bsky.social @mkhardywrites.com @davidgreenwriter.bsky.social
Ticket: tinyurl.com/fascifolk
@samkhorton.bsky.social @rainewilson.bsky.social @mkhardywrites.com @davidgreenwriter.bsky.social
January 26, 2026 at 4:33 PM
Just grabbed myself a ticket for this - an excellent group of writers
Reposted by CL Hellisen
Fuck ICE, fuck Reform, and fuck anyone who actually wants this.
The UK version of “Project 2025” by the Reform party includes a British ICE, a concentration camp for 24,000 people, mass surveillance and withdrawing from refugee, anti-torture and anti-trafficking conventions.
It’s on their website. That’s how comfortable fascists are in the UK today.
It’s on their website. That’s how comfortable fascists are in the UK today.
January 26, 2026 at 2:25 PM
Fuck ICE, fuck Reform, and fuck anyone who actually wants this.
Reposted by CL Hellisen
Cheap Meat: Hollow
March 19, 2025 at 1:01 PM
Cheap Meat: Hollow
i have evolved into a snot-based lifeform
January 26, 2026 at 11:04 AM
i have evolved into a snot-based lifeform
Reposted by CL Hellisen
"[SAUÚTI TERRORS delves] into themes of feminine rage & empowerment, of self-identity & place, of family, societal expectations & everything in-between all while told through the lens of a new world with a lush history of lore, legend, & deities all its own."
Thank you to @candacenola.bsky.social 🔥
Thank you to @candacenola.bsky.social 🔥
New review! Thanks to Flame Tree Press for the beautiful copy!
www.candacenolaauthor.com/post/01-25-2...
www.candacenolaauthor.com/post/01-25-2...
01/25/2026 Recent Reads & Reviews: SAUUTI TERRORS
SAUUTI TERRORS Short Stories from the Unique Universe created by Contemporary African Writers. Edited by Eugen Bacon, Cheryl Ntumy, and Stephen Embleton.SAUUTI TERRORS, by its own description, is an a...
www.candacenolaauthor.com
January 26, 2026 at 9:04 AM
"[SAUÚTI TERRORS delves] into themes of feminine rage & empowerment, of self-identity & place, of family, societal expectations & everything in-between all while told through the lens of a new world with a lush history of lore, legend, & deities all its own."
Thank you to @candacenola.bsky.social 🔥
Thank you to @candacenola.bsky.social 🔥