M L Clark
@mlclark.bsky.social
Writer (SFWA), translator, humanist, general odd duck • 🇨🇦n in 🇨🇴 • avoids pronouns, they/them if key 🌈🌌
Reposted by M L Clark
📣 It's here: the 2026 @strangehorizons.bsky.social Criticism Special!
💡 A whole week of critical insight, with a new essay and new review every day. A podcast, a roundtable, an *editorial*.
📚 The weird! Anthropology! Non-anglophone SFF! Plus thoughts on fantasy series, adaptations, film and more.
💡 A whole week of critical insight, with a new essay and new review every day. A podcast, a roundtable, an *editorial*.
📚 The weird! Anthropology! Non-anglophone SFF! Plus thoughts on fantasy series, adaptations, film and more.
26 January 2026
Welcome to the annual Strange Horizons criticism special!
strangehorizons.com
January 26, 2026 at 1:41 PM
📣 It's here: the 2026 @strangehorizons.bsky.social Criticism Special!
💡 A whole week of critical insight, with a new essay and new review every day. A podcast, a roundtable, an *editorial*.
📚 The weird! Anthropology! Non-anglophone SFF! Plus thoughts on fantasy series, adaptations, film and more.
💡 A whole week of critical insight, with a new essay and new review every day. A podcast, a roundtable, an *editorial*.
📚 The weird! Anthropology! Non-anglophone SFF! Plus thoughts on fantasy series, adaptations, film and more.
Reposted by M L Clark
Una librería no es una biblioteca. No confundáis la cultura con el mercado.
January 25, 2026 at 3:58 PM
Una librería no es una biblioteca. No confundáis la cultura con el mercado.
This video was made around the kid, who likes to sing her heart out in the background.
😂 But lo! A video for @clarkesworldmagazine.com's Jan 2026 issue now exists. Yes, this issue has a story of mine in it - and some really great other ones, too. Use my time codes to skip past boring intro stuff.
😂 But lo! A video for @clarkesworldmagazine.com's Jan 2026 issue now exists. Yes, this issue has a story of mine in it - and some really great other ones, too. Use my time codes to skip past boring intro stuff.
SFF Review: Clarkesworld, January 2026
YouTube video by M L Clark: Better Worlds Theory
youtu.be
January 25, 2026 at 10:43 PM
This video was made around the kid, who likes to sing her heart out in the background.
😂 But lo! A video for @clarkesworldmagazine.com's Jan 2026 issue now exists. Yes, this issue has a story of mine in it - and some really great other ones, too. Use my time codes to skip past boring intro stuff.
😂 But lo! A video for @clarkesworldmagazine.com's Jan 2026 issue now exists. Yes, this issue has a story of mine in it - and some really great other ones, too. Use my time codes to skip past boring intro stuff.
I hope I'm not jinxing this by saying it, but after I duck out to get the kid food, I'm going to try recording a video review of the latest Clarkesworld. First time in months I've had the capacity. Back issues of Asimov's also await, but gosh, were other stories in this issue fantastic. More soon! 🤞
January 25, 2026 at 2:26 PM
I hope I'm not jinxing this by saying it, but after I duck out to get the kid food, I'm going to try recording a video review of the latest Clarkesworld. First time in months I've had the capacity. Back issues of Asimov's also await, but gosh, were other stories in this issue fantastic. More soon! 🤞
A humbling moment.
Every weekend, I give my newspaper to a street vendor after finishing the crossword.
Today I mentioned a job opening, which he told me he couldn't apply to because he can't read.
Every time I've given him the paper, he was looking at the pictures. Our privilege knows no bounds.
Every weekend, I give my newspaper to a street vendor after finishing the crossword.
Today I mentioned a job opening, which he told me he couldn't apply to because he can't read.
Every time I've given him the paper, he was looking at the pictures. Our privilege knows no bounds.
January 24, 2026 at 3:44 PM
A humbling moment.
Every weekend, I give my newspaper to a street vendor after finishing the crossword.
Today I mentioned a job opening, which he told me he couldn't apply to because he can't read.
Every time I've given him the paper, he was looking at the pictures. Our privilege knows no bounds.
Every weekend, I give my newspaper to a street vendor after finishing the crossword.
Today I mentioned a job opening, which he told me he couldn't apply to because he can't read.
Every time I've given him the paper, he was looking at the pictures. Our privilege knows no bounds.
This week, a few folks reached out unprompted to tell me that they enjoyed my latest in @clarkesworldmagazine.com. I am beyond touched whenever anyone takes the time to read my work - but also, this time, INCREDIBLY ENVIOUS that they read the issue before I did.
😂 I have some reading to do tonight!
😂 I have some reading to do tonight!
January 23, 2026 at 5:20 PM
This week, a few folks reached out unprompted to tell me that they enjoyed my latest in @clarkesworldmagazine.com. I am beyond touched whenever anyone takes the time to read my work - but also, this time, INCREDIBLY ENVIOUS that they read the issue before I did.
😂 I have some reading to do tonight!
😂 I have some reading to do tonight!
Folks, I don't care how hard your weekend was. If the final twist in this documentary excerpt doesn't make you laugh with the deepest of empathy, the problem is you.
#Birbs #Nature
#AttenboroughIsTheRealTreasure
youtube.com/shorts/98WFD...
#Birbs #Nature
#AttenboroughIsTheRealTreasure
youtube.com/shorts/98WFD...
His sincere heart was ultimately betrayed and stolen. #wildlife #animals #shorts
YouTube video by Animal life
youtube.com
January 20, 2026 at 3:56 AM
Folks, I don't care how hard your weekend was. If the final twist in this documentary excerpt doesn't make you laugh with the deepest of empathy, the problem is you.
#Birbs #Nature
#AttenboroughIsTheRealTreasure
youtube.com/shorts/98WFD...
#Birbs #Nature
#AttenboroughIsTheRealTreasure
youtube.com/shorts/98WFD...
It has been a REALLY HARD few months. I have messages going back to August that I couldn't get to because I was doing two or three jobs at once.
But today I finally got to breathe out a bit (and see how messy the apartment is, oof).
And then I stepped out into the good earth and just... existed. ✨
But today I finally got to breathe out a bit (and see how messy the apartment is, oof).
And then I stepped out into the good earth and just... existed. ✨
January 18, 2026 at 8:55 PM
It has been a REALLY HARD few months. I have messages going back to August that I couldn't get to because I was doing two or three jobs at once.
But today I finally got to breathe out a bit (and see how messy the apartment is, oof).
And then I stepped out into the good earth and just... existed. ✨
But today I finally got to breathe out a bit (and see how messy the apartment is, oof).
And then I stepped out into the good earth and just... existed. ✨
Molly Conger's Weird Little Guys is always an excellent listen, but I strongly recommend this episode.
I used to write longwinded essays attempting to bring history and humanism to current events.
Molly does it so much better, even and especially when world-grief over recent events hits her, too.
I used to write longwinded essays attempting to bring history and humanism to current events.
Molly does it so much better, even and especially when world-grief over recent events hits her, too.
Cops & Klan
pca.st
January 16, 2026 at 1:25 AM
Molly Conger's Weird Little Guys is always an excellent listen, but I strongly recommend this episode.
I used to write longwinded essays attempting to bring history and humanism to current events.
Molly does it so much better, even and especially when world-grief over recent events hits her, too.
I used to write longwinded essays attempting to bring history and humanism to current events.
Molly does it so much better, even and especially when world-grief over recent events hits her, too.
There's a bitter irony to waiting on yet another glitching pro plugin to do its work, so that you can launch the CUSTOM build you developed to bypass a ton of other glitchy pro plugins. 🙃
So close, though! I am almost at my long-overdue rest.
Just need these entries to load into my new system...
So close, though! I am almost at my long-overdue rest.
Just need these entries to load into my new system...
a little boy is sitting at a desk with his hand on his chin and a sad look on his face .
ALT: a little boy is sitting at a desk with his hand on his chin and a sad look on his face .
media.tenor.com
January 15, 2026 at 3:47 PM
There's a bitter irony to waiting on yet another glitching pro plugin to do its work, so that you can launch the CUSTOM build you developed to bypass a ton of other glitchy pro plugins. 🙃
So close, though! I am almost at my long-overdue rest.
Just need these entries to load into my new system...
So close, though! I am almost at my long-overdue rest.
Just need these entries to load into my new system...
#PoetryBreak
Today's poet was new to me. You can and should find Alessandra Olanow on Instagram. @aolanow
My last few months have been incredibly stressful, but poems like this one are fortifying.
Art doesn't fix the world. It simply reminds us we're not alone in the work that might get us there.
Today's poet was new to me. You can and should find Alessandra Olanow on Instagram. @aolanow
My last few months have been incredibly stressful, but poems like this one are fortifying.
Art doesn't fix the world. It simply reminds us we're not alone in the work that might get us there.
January 13, 2026 at 9:16 PM
#PoetryBreak
Today's poet was new to me. You can and should find Alessandra Olanow on Instagram. @aolanow
My last few months have been incredibly stressful, but poems like this one are fortifying.
Art doesn't fix the world. It simply reminds us we're not alone in the work that might get us there.
Today's poet was new to me. You can and should find Alessandra Olanow on Instagram. @aolanow
My last few months have been incredibly stressful, but poems like this one are fortifying.
Art doesn't fix the world. It simply reminds us we're not alone in the work that might get us there.
#ArtBreak for anyone else who had a rough weekend. Forget people! Let's focus on other animals.
This is the work of 18th-C Japanese artist Maruyama Ōkyo. Although Maruyama explored many forms & materials - Chinese, Western, traditional - some of his most famous work is also just his most adorable.
This is the work of 18th-C Japanese artist Maruyama Ōkyo. Although Maruyama explored many forms & materials - Chinese, Western, traditional - some of his most famous work is also just his most adorable.
January 12, 2026 at 12:16 PM
#ArtBreak for anyone else who had a rough weekend. Forget people! Let's focus on other animals.
This is the work of 18th-C Japanese artist Maruyama Ōkyo. Although Maruyama explored many forms & materials - Chinese, Western, traditional - some of his most famous work is also just his most adorable.
This is the work of 18th-C Japanese artist Maruyama Ōkyo. Although Maruyama explored many forms & materials - Chinese, Western, traditional - some of his most famous work is also just his most adorable.
This is a rare subtweet, but I can't express my gratitude in full on my main work platforms until 2 more deliverables are up.
But boy howdy, on hard weeks two things help:
- knowing part of my income serves people in need locally; &
- knowing the people I serve at work are terrific human beings.
But boy howdy, on hard weeks two things help:
- knowing part of my income serves people in need locally; &
- knowing the people I serve at work are terrific human beings.
January 8, 2026 at 8:37 PM
This is a rare subtweet, but I can't express my gratitude in full on my main work platforms until 2 more deliverables are up.
But boy howdy, on hard weeks two things help:
- knowing part of my income serves people in need locally; &
- knowing the people I serve at work are terrific human beings.
But boy howdy, on hard weeks two things help:
- knowing part of my income serves people in need locally; &
- knowing the people I serve at work are terrific human beings.
#ArtBreak
Gordon Mortensen is a US reduction woodcut print artist. His patient, layered method brings every part of natural scenes to vivid life.
In the agony of sweeping world events, it can be hard to remember the individual.
Mortensen's reminder to care for every corner of existence is a gift.
Gordon Mortensen is a US reduction woodcut print artist. His patient, layered method brings every part of natural scenes to vivid life.
In the agony of sweeping world events, it can be hard to remember the individual.
Mortensen's reminder to care for every corner of existence is a gift.
January 8, 2026 at 1:14 PM
#ArtBreak
Gordon Mortensen is a US reduction woodcut print artist. His patient, layered method brings every part of natural scenes to vivid life.
In the agony of sweeping world events, it can be hard to remember the individual.
Mortensen's reminder to care for every corner of existence is a gift.
Gordon Mortensen is a US reduction woodcut print artist. His patient, layered method brings every part of natural scenes to vivid life.
In the agony of sweeping world events, it can be hard to remember the individual.
Mortensen's reminder to care for every corner of existence is a gift.
Another banger of an episode of 1950s TV suspense series One Step Beyond, featuring Marlon Brando's sister Jocelyn as the seer, during my dinner break.
Excellent writing joined with excellent acting, on a lean budget for props and staging.
Those were the days*!
*For storytelling, at least.
#SFF
Excellent writing joined with excellent acting, on a lean budget for props and staging.
Those were the days*!
*For storytelling, at least.
#SFF
▶ "One Step Beyond": Emergency Only. (Top 10 Episode).
YouTube video by One-Step-Beyond
youtu.be
January 7, 2026 at 2:09 AM
Another banger of an episode of 1950s TV suspense series One Step Beyond, featuring Marlon Brando's sister Jocelyn as the seer, during my dinner break.
Excellent writing joined with excellent acting, on a lean budget for props and staging.
Those were the days*!
*For storytelling, at least.
#SFF
Excellent writing joined with excellent acting, on a lean budget for props and staging.
Those were the days*!
*For storytelling, at least.
#SFF
Leave it to Mary Oliver to sum up what I said in a long-winded essay in one beautiful, heart-wrenching poem. 🤨
(Seriously, though: When Oliver veers from her usual, gently-moving-through-our-aching-world structure to drive home line breaks, you KNOW she's not a happy camper.)
#Poetry #PoetryBreak
(Seriously, though: When Oliver veers from her usual, gently-moving-through-our-aching-world structure to drive home line breaks, you KNOW she's not a happy camper.)
#Poetry #PoetryBreak
January 5, 2026 at 4:31 AM
Leave it to Mary Oliver to sum up what I said in a long-winded essay in one beautiful, heart-wrenching poem. 🤨
(Seriously, though: When Oliver veers from her usual, gently-moving-through-our-aching-world structure to drive home line breaks, you KNOW she's not a happy camper.)
#Poetry #PoetryBreak
(Seriously, though: When Oliver veers from her usual, gently-moving-through-our-aching-world structure to drive home line breaks, you KNOW she's not a happy camper.)
#Poetry #PoetryBreak
Haven’t really had a lick of time for writing here in the last few months, but ruminating on the first forty years of my life - and all the ways narrative can and does mislead us - is a pretty good excuse to dust off the ol' platform before I return to an evening of other work tasks. Warmth to all.
Notes on an Era, Narrative, & What Lies Beyond
Today I turn forty, which means I have officially lived ten years longer than I ever thought I would.
open.substack.com
January 4, 2026 at 10:33 PM
Haven’t really had a lick of time for writing here in the last few months, but ruminating on the first forty years of my life - and all the ways narrative can and does mislead us - is a pretty good excuse to dust off the ol' platform before I return to an evening of other work tasks. Warmth to all.
Live footage of me trying to get work done today.
a man is sitting at a desk in front of a computer monitor .
Alt: Ron Swanson from Parks & Rec stares at his computer with displeasure. Cut to Ron tossing his machine in a dumpster.
media.tenor.com
January 3, 2026 at 5:04 PM
Live footage of me trying to get work done today.
There are many ways to report on this morning's events.
The way Reuters chose is... sure one of them.
I'm not even going to bother saying "Do better".
But friends - readers - please take care when you move through any coverage of global events.
Pay attention to what is normalized, and by whom.
The way Reuters chose is... sure one of them.
I'm not even going to bother saying "Do better".
But friends - readers - please take care when you move through any coverage of global events.
Pay attention to what is normalized, and by whom.
Nicolas Maduro's heavy-handed rule in Venezuela is finally ended by Trump
Nicolas Maduro ruled Venezuela with a heavy hand for more than 12 years, presiding over deep economic and social crises and resisting pressure from domestic opponents and foreign governments for polit...
www.reuters.com
January 3, 2026 at 2:43 PM
There are many ways to report on this morning's events.
The way Reuters chose is... sure one of them.
I'm not even going to bother saying "Do better".
But friends - readers - please take care when you move through any coverage of global events.
Pay attention to what is normalized, and by whom.
The way Reuters chose is... sure one of them.
I'm not even going to bother saying "Do better".
But friends - readers - please take care when you move through any coverage of global events.
Pay attention to what is normalized, and by whom.
Today's going to be tough. My ward is from Caracas & has been up since 2 talking to people she knows in the region. Her half-brother is in hospital there for malnutrition-related seizures.
The world is a cruel, arbitrary place.
Please be ever so gentle with yourselves and others today and always.
The world is a cruel, arbitrary place.
Please be ever so gentle with yourselves and others today and always.
January 3, 2026 at 11:10 AM
Today's going to be tough. My ward is from Caracas & has been up since 2 talking to people she knows in the region. Her half-brother is in hospital there for malnutrition-related seizures.
The world is a cruel, arbitrary place.
Please be ever so gentle with yourselves and others today and always.
The world is a cruel, arbitrary place.
Please be ever so gentle with yourselves and others today and always.
I'm deeply thankful to have a story in this month's @clarkesworldmagazine.com. Anyone who knows me knows I LOVE reading the full ToC, meeting new writers on the page & revisiting others. Can't wait to read @awprihandita.bsky.social's latest, along w/ Chambers', Kelly's, Murray's, Murphy's, & Chu's!
Issue 232
Clarkesworld Science Fiction and Fantasy Magazine and Podcast.
clarkesworldmagazine.com
January 2, 2026 at 2:23 PM
I'm deeply thankful to have a story in this month's @clarkesworldmagazine.com. Anyone who knows me knows I LOVE reading the full ToC, meeting new writers on the page & revisiting others. Can't wait to read @awprihandita.bsky.social's latest, along w/ Chambers', Kelly's, Murray's, Murphy's, & Chu's!
Do we have a term for when you're in the middle of writing a story - in the middle of a sentence, even! - and a new story idea comes along, bumping into you like an urgent little bumble bee paragraph after paragraph, as you try to press on?
ASKING FOR A FRIEND.
ASKING FOR A FRIEND.
January 1, 2026 at 9:04 PM
Do we have a term for when you're in the middle of writing a story - in the middle of a sentence, even! - and a new story idea comes along, bumping into you like an urgent little bumble bee paragraph after paragraph, as you try to press on?
ASKING FOR A FRIEND.
ASKING FOR A FRIEND.
Our first #ArtBreak of 2026 is Thomas Blackshear II. Born into Wild West lore, he is famous for reorienting its focus.
We do not choose the stories into which we are born.
But we choose what we do with them, and the dignity we extend to others caught in their weave.
What will you re-tell better?
We do not choose the stories into which we are born.
But we choose what we do with them, and the dignity we extend to others caught in their weave.
What will you re-tell better?
January 1, 2026 at 2:14 PM
Our first #ArtBreak of 2026 is Thomas Blackshear II. Born into Wild West lore, he is famous for reorienting its focus.
We do not choose the stories into which we are born.
But we choose what we do with them, and the dignity we extend to others caught in their weave.
What will you re-tell better?
We do not choose the stories into which we are born.
But we choose what we do with them, and the dignity we extend to others caught in their weave.
What will you re-tell better?
First poem of 2026!
Aiming for more personal writing all around this year.
Maybe not all so bleak, though. 😬 We'll see how January fares.
#WritingCommunity #Poetry
Aiming for more personal writing all around this year.
Maybe not all so bleak, though. 😬 We'll see how January fares.
#WritingCommunity #Poetry
January 1, 2026 at 6:19 AM
First poem of 2026!
Aiming for more personal writing all around this year.
Maybe not all so bleak, though. 😬 We'll see how January fares.
#WritingCommunity #Poetry
Aiming for more personal writing all around this year.
Maybe not all so bleak, though. 😬 We'll see how January fares.
#WritingCommunity #Poetry
Reposted by M L Clark
Just making sure that 2025 is definitely over
January 1, 2026 at 4:43 AM
Just making sure that 2025 is definitely over