Charlie Stross
@cstross.bsky.social
SFF author, triple Hugo award winner (and three times Locus award too), over a million books sold.
Mostly on Mastodon: @[email protected]
Blog: https://www.antipope.org/charlie/blog-static/
Mostly on Mastodon: @[email protected]
Blog: https://www.antipope.org/charlie/blog-static/
Reposted by Charlie Stross
If you see this, don't participate. It's a rigged study by Lisa Littman and unethical researcher J. Michael Bailey meant to undermine access to care. Spread the word.
January 30, 2026 at 5:28 PM
If you see this, don't participate. It's a rigged study by Lisa Littman and unethical researcher J. Michael Bailey meant to undermine access to care. Spread the word.
Reposted by Charlie Stross
Add another entry in the Book of Plumber Crimes: I thought at first this was Homeowner Crimes but then got to "He informed IFD that he was aware of the use of a blow torch on active gas pipes but noted his experience as a plumber"
ATTN: @rahaeli.bsky.social , I have found Brand New Levels of PLUMBER CRIMES. (Thanks to a friend sharing a screenshot image with me.)
local12.com/news/nation-...
local12.com/news/nation-...
3 people, 1 dog displaced after Indiana man tries using blow torch to thaw gas lines
Firefighters discovered the man was unaware of the fire and refused to leave the space, continuing his work.
local12.com
January 30, 2026 at 6:00 PM
Add another entry in the Book of Plumber Crimes: I thought at first this was Homeowner Crimes but then got to "He informed IFD that he was aware of the use of a blow torch on active gas pipes but noted his experience as a plumber"
Welp, just spent two hours this morning discovering a new not-by-favourite experience the hard way: an electrooculography exam. I'm now blind as a bat until the eyedrops wear off (typing this almost blind on an iPad) and *really enjoyed* the fine electrodes in contact with my corneas (no I didn't).
January 30, 2026 at 12:32 PM
Welp, just spent two hours this morning discovering a new not-by-favourite experience the hard way: an electrooculography exam. I'm now blind as a bat until the eyedrops wear off (typing this almost blind on an iPad) and *really enjoyed* the fine electrodes in contact with my corneas (no I didn't).
Reposted by Charlie Stross
Well, if Slippery Jim was the unfortunate Master Criminal from "The Code of the Woosters" coming down to the old Grange then he might regret meeting broken bottle chewing Aunt Agatha who kills rats with her teeth. So it makes complete sense for the Rat to meet Reggie and Bertie.
January 29, 2026 at 9:20 PM
Well, if Slippery Jim was the unfortunate Master Criminal from "The Code of the Woosters" coming down to the old Grange then he might regret meeting broken bottle chewing Aunt Agatha who kills rats with her teeth. So it makes complete sense for the Rat to meet Reggie and Bertie.
I mean, in 20/20 hindsight it was OBVIOUS that my Stainless Steel Rat homage needed to be gatecrashed by Jeeves & Co. with nuclear artillery. Right?
January 29, 2026 at 8:39 PM
I mean, in 20/20 hindsight it was OBVIOUS that my Stainless Steel Rat homage needed to be gatecrashed by Jeeves & Co. with nuclear artillery. Right?
Reposted by Charlie Stross
#cuyreads26 Book 6: @cstross.bsky.social - The Regicide Report
I can not put into words how much I loved the one-line payoffs of literally multiple books worth of setup. Fantastic end to the main series and I'm eagerly awaiting more!
I can not put into words how much I loved the one-line payoffs of literally multiple books worth of setup. Fantastic end to the main series and I'm eagerly awaiting more!
January 29, 2026 at 8:25 PM
#cuyreads26 Book 6: @cstross.bsky.social - The Regicide Report
I can not put into words how much I loved the one-line payoffs of literally multiple books worth of setup. Fantastic end to the main series and I'm eagerly awaiting more!
I can not put into words how much I loved the one-line payoffs of literally multiple books worth of setup. Fantastic end to the main series and I'm eagerly awaiting more!
Aaaand the nuclear artillery is in the tender, if slightly drunken, hands of Smoothbrain Freddie, Clotworthy-Skeffington, and Bullingdon Thump. Tally ho and pass the iodine tablets!
January 29, 2026 at 8:26 PM
Aaaand the nuclear artillery is in the tender, if slightly drunken, hands of Smoothbrain Freddie, Clotworthy-Skeffington, and Bullingdon Thump. Tally ho and pass the iodine tablets!
My muse also informs me that the best way to deal with a warren of godzilla cavies—essential before they undermine the nearer mountain ranges—is time-on-target bombardment with large lumps of plutonium. GO HOME MUSE YOU'RE DRUNK
January 29, 2026 at 8:22 PM
My muse also informs me that the best way to deal with a warren of godzilla cavies—essential before they undermine the nearer mountain ranges—is time-on-target bombardment with large lumps of plutonium. GO HOME MUSE YOU'RE DRUNK
This extra chapter has metastasized into a frankensteinian hybrid, and I now find myself writing "the Stainless Steel Rat does [over] Bridgerton" mashed up with "Jeeves and Wooster decide the Atreides House Atomics will solve the mole problem REAL good, what".
I hate my muse.
I hate my muse.
January 29, 2026 at 8:08 PM
This extra chapter has metastasized into a frankensteinian hybrid, and I now find myself writing "the Stainless Steel Rat does [over] Bridgerton" mashed up with "Jeeves and Wooster decide the Atreides House Atomics will solve the mole problem REAL good, what".
I hate my muse.
I hate my muse.
Reposted by Charlie Stross
BREAKING: The Senate just blocked a bill that would have renewed ICE's budget without real, enforceable changes.
This is a direct result of hundreds of thousands of people across the nation demanding that our Senators vote no.
This is a direct result of hundreds of thousands of people across the nation demanding that our Senators vote no.
January 29, 2026 at 6:26 PM
BREAKING: The Senate just blocked a bill that would have renewed ICE's budget without real, enforceable changes.
This is a direct result of hundreds of thousands of people across the nation demanding that our Senators vote no.
This is a direct result of hundreds of thousands of people across the nation demanding that our Senators vote no.
Reposted by Charlie Stross
Ok, started reading The Regicide Report last night.
Thank you SO MUCH @cstross.bsky.social for resurrecting Dr. Phibes AND Vulnavia.
I literally said: "No, he didn't; Oh, he DID!" and somewhat later "And Vulnavia too!" out loud much to the confusion of my family (we are all Phibes fans).
Thank you SO MUCH @cstross.bsky.social for resurrecting Dr. Phibes AND Vulnavia.
I literally said: "No, he didn't; Oh, he DID!" and somewhat later "And Vulnavia too!" out loud much to the confusion of my family (we are all Phibes fans).
January 29, 2026 at 4:06 PM
Ok, started reading The Regicide Report last night.
Thank you SO MUCH @cstross.bsky.social for resurrecting Dr. Phibes AND Vulnavia.
I literally said: "No, he didn't; Oh, he DID!" and somewhat later "And Vulnavia too!" out loud much to the confusion of my family (we are all Phibes fans).
Thank you SO MUCH @cstross.bsky.social for resurrecting Dr. Phibes AND Vulnavia.
I literally said: "No, he didn't; Oh, he DID!" and somewhat later "And Vulnavia too!" out loud much to the confusion of my family (we are all Phibes fans).
Reposted by Charlie Stross
Reposted by Charlie Stross
big news for @cstross.bsky.social fans! I got to read the manuscript earlier this year and it is a wild ride.
25 years in the company of Mo, Bob, and many others both light and dark. Arrived and read, a fitting conclusion courtesy of @cstross.bsky.social, though hopefully not our last visit to the Laundryverse. A belting end to an entertaining journey.
January 29, 2026 at 2:24 PM
big news for @cstross.bsky.social fans! I got to read the manuscript earlier this year and it is a wild ride.
And now I am EXTREMELY butthurt that I had this insight precisely 48 hours after the final Laundry Files novel was published, because it is totally a Bob Howard quip.
In magic (as in software) true names have power, and getting a demon's name wrong can be deadly—or it was, before Gandalf the GUID assigned them all unique 128-bit identifiers.
January 29, 2026 at 2:31 PM
And now I am EXTREMELY butthurt that I had this insight precisely 48 hours after the final Laundry Files novel was published, because it is totally a Bob Howard quip.
Reposted by Charlie Stross
Not sure how the administration thinks this plays into their narrative, bc at best it shows that Pretti is a normal human being instead of a saint, and at worst it implies they actually targeted and hunted him down like they've threatened to do to other protestors.
Videos show altercation between Alex Pretti and federal officers 11 days before he was killed
Three newly discovered videos show the Minneapolis ICU nurse being tackled by federal agents in a prior confrontation
www.theguardian.com
January 29, 2026 at 2:02 PM
Not sure how the administration thinks this plays into their narrative, bc at best it shows that Pretti is a normal human being instead of a saint, and at worst it implies they actually targeted and hunted him down like they've threatened to do to other protestors.
Reposted by Charlie Stross
Reposted by Charlie Stross
I know the idea of a submarine built by a schoolteacher and operated by Irish republicans sounds like the kind of maritime escapade @dreadships.bsky.social would write about, but it was actually a serious thing.
I've never understood how nobody has ever written a novel about this before, but there was a brief time when the *Irish republican movement* possessed the first fully functional submarine.
Yes, you heard that right.
A short thread . . . 1/
#SpeirGorm #JohnPhilipHolland #Submarine
Yes, you heard that right.
A short thread . . . 1/
#SpeirGorm #JohnPhilipHolland #Submarine
January 29, 2026 at 10:13 AM
I know the idea of a submarine built by a schoolteacher and operated by Irish republicans sounds like the kind of maritime escapade @dreadships.bsky.social would write about, but it was actually a serious thing.
Reposted by Charlie Stross
25 years in the company of Mo, Bob, and many others both light and dark. Arrived and read, a fitting conclusion courtesy of @cstross.bsky.social, though hopefully not our last visit to the Laundryverse. A belting end to an entertaining journey.
January 29, 2026 at 2:17 PM
25 years in the company of Mo, Bob, and many others both light and dark. Arrived and read, a fitting conclusion courtesy of @cstross.bsky.social, though hopefully not our last visit to the Laundryverse. A belting end to an entertaining journey.
In magic (as in software) true names have power, and getting a demon's name wrong can be deadly—or it was, before Gandalf the GUID assigned them all unique 128-bit identifiers.
January 29, 2026 at 1:40 PM
In magic (as in software) true names have power, and getting a demon's name wrong can be deadly—or it was, before Gandalf the GUID assigned them all unique 128-bit identifiers.
Reposted by Charlie Stross
It always makes me laugh, because my small experiences of working with big firms to explain storytelling were so universally bizarre. They really don't want to be told that the nuance is a factor...
January 29, 2026 at 10:37 AM
It always makes me laugh, because my small experiences of working with big firms to explain storytelling were so universally bizarre. They really don't want to be told that the nuance is a factor...
Reposted by Charlie Stross
Oh, goodie. I can’t *wait* for them to release ‘safe mushroom foraging with AI - how to not liquify your insides with your friendly chatbot that totally knows how many ‘r’s are in ‘strawberry’, because the government told me they’re the future’.
Monorail, monorail, monorail, monorail…
Monorail, monorail, monorail, monorail…
I think I might take one of these "under 20 minutes" AI skills courses the UK Govt. seems very keen on everyone doing and live-post it here... Maybe we can all learn something together! The press release sends me to aiskillshub.org.uk/aiskillsboost/ - let's go and see!
AI Skills Boost - AI Skills Hub
aiskillshub.org.uk
January 29, 2026 at 10:26 AM
Oh, goodie. I can’t *wait* for them to release ‘safe mushroom foraging with AI - how to not liquify your insides with your friendly chatbot that totally knows how many ‘r’s are in ‘strawberry’, because the government told me they’re the future’.
Monorail, monorail, monorail, monorail…
Monorail, monorail, monorail, monorail…
Reposted by Charlie Stross
The toy line just had *important* spoilers for the new Masters of the Universe movie!
January 28, 2026 at 10:26 PM
The toy line just had *important* spoilers for the new Masters of the Universe movie!
Reposted by Charlie Stross
People don't realise how much of medicine isn't strictly scientific. Hence bashing my head against the wall at Emily Maitlis boasting about getting the Tavistock gender service shut down 'because it wasn't data driven'
January 29, 2026 at 9:34 AM
People don't realise how much of medicine isn't strictly scientific. Hence bashing my head against the wall at Emily Maitlis boasting about getting the Tavistock gender service shut down 'because it wasn't data driven'
Reposted by Charlie Stross
Hah! It is here…! @cstross.bsky.social
January 29, 2026 at 8:09 AM
Hah! It is here…! @cstross.bsky.social