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jessicapeter.bsky.social
Jessica Peter
@jessicapeter.bsky.social
1K followers 790 following 130 posts
Horror writer, Poetry Editor of Haven Spec, editor of Howls from the Scene of the Crime. Social worker, health researcher (under a slightly different name), health policy PhD student.

Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

http://www.jessicapeter.net
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jessicapeter.bsky.social
I'm thrilled to join Haven Spec as Poetry Editor! Excited to dig into the beautiful mountain of spec poetry - the vivid, the emotional, the lyrical, the strange, the dark, the climate-conscious, the bittersweet, the idea-driven, the magical, the otherwordly, the weird. . . and everything else!
havenspec.bsky.social Haven Spec Magazine @havenspec.bsky.social · Oct 2
We're over the moon to announce that Jessica Peter / @jessicapeter.bsky.social has joined us as our new Poetry Editor!

Welcome! Welcome Welcome Welcome!
Image shows a snippet from the Haven Spec website of Jessica Peter's bio and image. The text reads as follows: Jessica Peter writes dark, haunted, and sometimes absurd short stories, novels, and poems. A social worker and health researcher, she lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Her writing can be found in Apparition Literary, The NoSleep Podcast, Flame Tree, and Cosmic Horror Monthly, among other places. She also co-edited Howls from the Scene of the Crime: An Anthology of Crime Horror (Howl Society Press, May 2024). You can find her on Bluesky at @jessicapeter.bsky.social, or at www.jessicapeter.net.
October 2, 2025 at 3:47 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
amybrown.xyz
this iconic advertising copywriter named Kathy Hepinstall Parks died over the weekend and I wanted to share something from her website I thought Bluesky would like
Why should I write better when a machine can do it for me? Because actually no one can do it for you, because your voice is unique among all the people on earth. Siri never petted a horse's neck. Alexa has never been ghosted by the captain of the football team. But you have lived, your heart is beating, you have suffered, and you have something important to say. It's a human's job, to use words, and whatever job you give to a machine, that part of your brain goes dark. Maybe it's worth it when it comes to remembering phone numbers and directions, but when that part of your brain that uses words goes dark, that's a vast area that's very close to your soul. Don't let some internet platform convince you that what you have to say and create isn't worthwhile. Words are the echo of your soul. Honing that echo matters.
August 22, 2025 at 2:20 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
mcardlejeanne.bsky.social
Grouchy writer rant: don’t put this in your guidelines if you want me to take you seriously “Simultaneous Submissions: Don’t. This is the fastest way to get on our list.” Especially from a token or nonpaying market. If. You dont want sim subs, fine, but sim subbing writers are not criminals 🙄
August 13, 2025 at 8:40 PM
jessicapeter.bsky.social
Seeing my favourite bread newsletter (@wordloaf.org) post about the starvation in Gaza made me tear up - important to see food writers as well advocating for Palestinians (also includes some links to where you can send financial support on-the-ground) newsletter.wordloaf.org/bread-not-as...
Bread, not as sustenance, but as leverage
On Gaza right now
newsletter.wordloaf.org
August 6, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
sjjphd.bsky.social
So I vaguely recalled in the wake of Sweeney jeans ad discourse (which I was genuinely trying to avoid) that at some point I thought I learned that Black people gave us jeans — I just couldn’t recall the source until today. There is a doc which this article summarizes, with sources cited. Cheers.
Enslaved Blacks invented blue jeans
A few weeks ago, on Feb. 14 to be exact, I tweeted the following:
www.phillytrib.com
August 6, 2025 at 12:29 AM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
erikahall.bsky.social
We need to teach people the difference between being uncomfortable and being unsafe. Because the discomfort of the safest people is endangering the most vulnerable, all day every day.
July 29, 2025 at 4:09 AM
jessicapeter.bsky.social
I've seen 2 Hamilton Fringe shows & they were both bangers!

--> The Pole Shebang - touching, funny, interactive, IMPRESSIVELY athletic memoir via pole-dancing

--> Ugly Privilege - standup comedy that really hit for me. On autism, queerness, & being a weird little guy

Going through Sun! #HamOnt
July 25, 2025 at 2:55 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
parkermolloy.com
Today's newsletter: The Wall Street Journal says ChatGPT had a "stunning moment of self reflection." NBC says Grok "issued an apology." This lazy language isn't just bad writing — it's helping tech companies dodge responsibility for real harm. www.readtpa.com/p/stop-prete...
Stop Pretending Chatbots Have Feelings: Media's Dangerous AI Anthropomorphism Problem
When AI causes harm, headlines blame the bot instead of the billion-dollar companies that built them. This anthropomorphic coverage is tech journalism at its worst.
www.readtpa.com
July 21, 2025 at 7:33 PM
jessicapeter.bsky.social
Very nice article on speculative poetry!
lynnesargent.bsky.social Lynne Sargent @lynnesargent.bsky.social · Jul 22
And here's the editorial on the SPI. Thanks again so much to @strangehorizons.bsky.social for their support. If you have a Worldcon membership, please come to the virtual meeting this Friday @9am PST/12pm EST to support this initiative when it comes to a vote!

strangehorizons.com/wordpress/no...
Speculative Poetry and the Hugos
A guest editorial in support of adding a permanent Hugo award for poetry
strangehorizons.com
July 23, 2025 at 7:50 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
jordanshiveley.bsky.social
Unbound/Boundless who no longer have the rights to sell my book are still selling it for FUCKING $4 on Amazon. Talk about some shady fucking shit. Trying to burn through the inventory THEY NO LONGER HAVE THE LEGAL RIGHT TO SELL before they are forced to send me the remaining stock. Weasels.
June 30, 2025 at 1:20 AM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
aanpress.bsky.social
“Mmeory” is a multi genre anthology of memory manipulation stories on KS. Cheering for a surge this week - 87% base funded ($727 to go). Our recent updates are about choosing authors and designing covers - www.kickstarter.com/projects/526... #sff #fantasy #book #ks #booksky
Mmeory: A genre spanning anthology of memory manipulation
An anthology of memory manipulation stories: magic spells, cyborg memory edits, very unreliable narrators, time travel gone wrong.
www.kickstarter.com
June 17, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
courtneymilan.com
One of the reasons I think “defund the police” is a great slogan is that you get to repeatedly tell people that studies show that police don’t actually solve murders, and in fact one-third of stranger-murders are committed by police.
June 8, 2025 at 4:53 PM
jessicapeter.bsky.social
Congrats Chris! Happy book birthday!
May 15, 2025 at 10:49 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
howlsociety.bsky.social
Here is a list of 5 dark medical non-fiction books from our very own @jessicapeter.bsky.social! Join our Discord for a lively discussion! howlsociety.com/2025/04/29/h...
5 Non-Fiction Medical Horror Books from Howl Society Book Club. Image of 5 book covers. Taste for Poison, Black Death and the Golden Gate, Crisis in the Red Zone, The Butchering Art and Still Life with Bones.
April 29, 2025 at 11:22 PM
jessicapeter.bsky.social
Had a lovely time moderating a panel on horror at @gritlitfestival.bsky.social last night with Cheryl Isaacs, Pasha Malla, and AGA Wilmot! Thanks to everyone who made it out to our later night session. #HamiltonReads2025
Jessica Peter sits in a conference room at GritLit
April 28, 2025 at 3:40 AM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
caitgauthor.bsky.social
LAST DAY to cast your votes to nominate works for the #2025PrixAuroraAwards! Learn more about how to vote at https://csffa.ca!

Voting closes TODAY at 11:59 EST on April 5, 2025.

As I’ve mentioned, I have two works eligible for Best Short Story! Enjoy nominating all your faves! Cheers! #SFF
COURIER OF THE SKIES BY CAIT GORDON CAN BE NOMINATED IN THE PRIX AURORA AWARD BEST SHORT STORY CATEGORY! An undercover disabled pilot defies a eugenics governing system to courier much-needed cargo to the Network, but the Welliams are onto her. Vote to nominate this and other works at csffa.ca until April 5, 2025! First published in SPRING INTO SCIFI 2024 EDITION! Also featured is the cover of the anthology on a tablet. The cover is a blue space background with a spaceship. BEV THE HACKER DOES TIME BY CAIT GORDON, CAN BE NOMINATED IN THE PRIX AURORA AWARD BEST SHORT STORY CATEGORY! A teen girl begins her community service at a seniors residence after hacking the intragalactic network to route all sexy searches to display laxative commercials. But for some weird reason, there doesn't seem to be any "old people" anywhere! Vote to nominate this and other works at csffa.ca until April 5, 2025! Thanks so much for your consideration First published in LAUGHS IN SPACE! The image also shows the cover of the book within a tablet. On the cover is an egg cup with a planet on it. And dangling from the planet is a little happy face ornament.
April 5, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
haileypiperfights.bsky.social
Today begins the Crime Writers for Trans Rights Auction! A couple hundred or so authors have donated items to be auctioned off in support of The Transgender Law Center from Kellye Garret, Gillian Flynn, Roxane Gay, S.A. Cosby, and more, including me with this:
www.32auctions.com/organization...
screenshot from the auction. Character Name: select a name to be used in a horror short story by Hailey Piper. Beneath is a screenshot of Adrienne Barbeau in John Carpenter's The Fog, speaking into the radio mic "(Your name here), you're on the air, which is full of fog.)"
March 26, 2025 at 1:01 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
sashabrown.bsky.social
If you're in HWA and haven't voted on the Stoker preliminary ballot yet, you're running out of time! oh whoops I dropped this link to my short story that's on the list, my bad
sashabrown.bsky.social Sasha Brown @sashabrown.bsky.social · Feb 2
🦷🦷🦷 KEEP INDIE HORROR WEIRD by subscribing to the brilliant Weird Horror Mag from @undertow.bsky.social(link below), and maybe also by checking out my story that's now on the Stoker preliminary ballot! 🦷🦷🦷

www.weirdhorrormagazine.com/to-the-wolves
To the Wolves — Weird Horror Magazine
www.weirdhorrormagazine.com
February 13, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
dgcomedy.bsky.social
True then. True now. Thank you, Willem Arondeus.
January 27, 2025 at 8:40 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
clarkesworldmagazine.com
Seriously Google? How does your "AI" get "but has also faced criticism for publishing AI-generated stories" from the countless news stories written about us NOT WANTING GENERATED STORIES and actively fighting against them. Oh wait, it's not actually intelligent, is it? Just bullshit all the way down
Clarkesworld Magazine is an American online science fiction and fantasy magazine known for publishing short stories by authors such as Elizabeth Bear, Kij Johnson, and Caitlín R. Kiernan. The magazine has been praised for its high-quality content and diverse range of stories, but has also faced criticism for publishing AI-generated stories. FALSE
March 12, 2025 at 1:11 PM
jessicapeter.bsky.social
I'm going to be hosting an event @gritlitfestival.bsky.social this year!

Join me for "gritLIT After Dark: Horror" with Cheryl Isaacs, @agawilmot.bsky.social, and @pas-mal.bsky.social on Sat April 26 #HamOnt

www.gritlit.ca/festival-eve...
gritLIT After Dark: Horror — gritLIT
In their three chilling new books, Cheryl Isaacs ( The Unfinished ), Pasha Malla ( All You Can Kill ), and AGA Wilmot ( Withered ) bring haunting narratives to life, each pulling readers into an...
www.gritlit.ca
March 11, 2025 at 3:16 PM
jessicapeter.bsky.social
Really nice article from Hamilton's poet-in-place about why having a city poet matters - and really, why art matters. www.thespec.com/opinion/cont... #HamOnt
Does the city need a poet? Hamilton’s Poet In Place explains why it does
Poetry, when taken off the page and placed in public spaces, can be an act of civic engagement, Lishai Peel writes.
www.thespec.com
March 2, 2025 at 4:54 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
docnock.bsky.social
Check out the first Strong Women, Strange Worlds starter pack: go.bsky.app/7VBpS1A

#specfic #writing
February 23, 2025 at 7:26 PM
Reposted by Jessica Peter
theomoudakis.bsky.social
Your Ontario Election Guide! (Part 2)
February 23, 2025 at 1:45 PM
jessicapeter.bsky.social
Tomorrow is the provincial election! I encourage you to vote - against Doug Ford. Show him he doesn't deserve a majority.

To find out who is the most strategic vote against Ford and his PCs in your riding, see votewell.ca or smartvoting.ca. #HamOnt
Here are some of the worst things Doug Ford has done as our premier: - Promising that he would continue to protect the Greenbelt lands, and then turning over and selling off rights to his developer friends. Yes, we need housing, but this is not the only way! He did this even in cities like Hamilton where we’d just held a referendum with a strong winning vote to build UP, not OUT. He’s being investigating by the RCMP, but called this election before the investigation results are out. - Starving our public healthcare system of funds while trying to convince the public that a private healthcare system is the way to go. This includes passing Bill 124 which suppressed wages of nurses, the backbone of our healthcare system. - Closed supervised injection sites that were “too close to schools” without another option until some future time. Hamilton, for example, only had one supervised injection site. Now it has none. This is going to cause more drug use all over the city (including even in school parking lots) instead of in one place, and it will cause more deaths from overdose. - Spending hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to get the private European company Therme Spa to set up on the old Ontario Place grounds, and at the same time let the Ontario Science Centre conveniently (again) crumble (did you know it had to suddenly closed?) as they worked on its new location on the Ontario Place grounds Doug Ford has a pattern of using public money – our taxpayer money – to pour into private industry, especially to his friends, to the detriment of the actual public. He has a pattern of promising one thing and doing another. He called this expensive election in the middle of winter because he’s relying on voter apathy, and the confusion between federal and provincial elections, and maybe some that hope he’s can fight Trump (but don’t be fooled – he’s also been caught on a hot mike saying he was happy Trump won). Show him he does not deserve a majority government!
February 26, 2025 at 7:29 PM