Lindsey Carmichael
@utarcher.bsky.social
Writer & Paralympic medalist. FD/MAS. She/her.
♿🏳️🌈
https://www.lindseycarmichael.com
📷 PFP credit to Ace Jones Taylor.
🧵 Cover credit to HGEmbroideryArt.
♿🏳️🌈
https://www.lindseycarmichael.com
📷 PFP credit to Ace Jones Taylor.
🧵 Cover credit to HGEmbroideryArt.
Pinned
Lindsey Carmichael
@utarcher.bsky.social
· Jul 30
Hi! I'm a nerdy queer writer w/ work in the anthology Traveling Light from Hugo-finalist podcast @worldbuildcast.bsky.social. A 2x Paralympian, I set a world record in 2004 & won a bronze medal in 2008. So far I'm the only US woman to win an Olympic or Paralympic archery medal in singles since 1996.
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
Franzi Schimmer captured this Grizzly bear in Brooks Falls, Alaska just floating along, tippy-tapping down the river, browsing the salmon.
Prior to hibernation, up to 40% of a bear's body mass is fat, which is less dense than water (~0.9 g/cm^2), so the murder-monster is also a floaty-boaty.
Prior to hibernation, up to 40% of a bear's body mass is fat, which is less dense than water (~0.9 g/cm^2), so the murder-monster is also a floaty-boaty.
February 14, 2026 at 9:47 PM
Franzi Schimmer captured this Grizzly bear in Brooks Falls, Alaska just floating along, tippy-tapping down the river, browsing the salmon.
Prior to hibernation, up to 40% of a bear's body mass is fat, which is less dense than water (~0.9 g/cm^2), so the murder-monster is also a floaty-boaty.
Prior to hibernation, up to 40% of a bear's body mass is fat, which is less dense than water (~0.9 g/cm^2), so the murder-monster is also a floaty-boaty.
Looking at this billboard and listening to The Cancer Journals by Audre Lorde. She's struggling w "the urge, the need, to work again... To be of use, even symbolically."
I'm thinking of ableism. How "when slowing down isn't an option," we need to throw out each and every system that says it isn't.
I'm thinking of ableism. How "when slowing down isn't an option," we need to throw out each and every system that says it isn't.
February 14, 2026 at 7:15 PM
Looking at this billboard and listening to The Cancer Journals by Audre Lorde. She's struggling w "the urge, the need, to work again... To be of use, even symbolically."
I'm thinking of ableism. How "when slowing down isn't an option," we need to throw out each and every system that says it isn't.
I'm thinking of ableism. How "when slowing down isn't an option," we need to throw out each and every system that says it isn't.
Totally neurotypical train of thought I just had:
I wonder how best I can trick myself or gamify the process of eating breakfast within an hour of waking up, instead of finally realizing I need food at 3pm in the afternoon because I began shaking from low blood sugar.
Super normal. 🫠
I wonder how best I can trick myself or gamify the process of eating breakfast within an hour of waking up, instead of finally realizing I need food at 3pm in the afternoon because I began shaking from low blood sugar.
Super normal. 🫠
February 13, 2026 at 9:18 PM
Totally neurotypical train of thought I just had:
I wonder how best I can trick myself or gamify the process of eating breakfast within an hour of waking up, instead of finally realizing I need food at 3pm in the afternoon because I began shaking from low blood sugar.
Super normal. 🫠
I wonder how best I can trick myself or gamify the process of eating breakfast within an hour of waking up, instead of finally realizing I need food at 3pm in the afternoon because I began shaking from low blood sugar.
Super normal. 🫠
A small happy thing! Since I'm about to start watching B5 with friends, I'm debating starting a watch thread to comment on any disability themes that come up. It's been more than a decade since we all first watched it together, so I don't remember much.
cordcuttersnews.com/babylon-5-is...
cordcuttersnews.com/babylon-5-is...
Babylon 5 Is Now Free to Watch On YouTube | Cord Cutters News
In a move that has delighted fans of classic science fiction, Warner Bros. Discovery has begun uploading full episodes of the iconic series Babylon 5 to YouTube, providing free access to the show just...
cordcuttersnews.com
February 13, 2026 at 8:00 PM
A small happy thing! Since I'm about to start watching B5 with friends, I'm debating starting a watch thread to comment on any disability themes that come up. It's been more than a decade since we all first watched it together, so I don't remember much.
cordcuttersnews.com/babylon-5-is...
cordcuttersnews.com/babylon-5-is...
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
In her short book Against Technoableism @ashleyshoo.bsky.social demonstrates repeatedly why simpler tech is often safer & easier to repair w/o expensive corporate interventions. I listened to the book while struggling to repair my own manual chair & felt SO witnessed.
bookshop.org/p/books/agai...
bookshop.org/p/books/agai...
Against Technoableism: Rethinking Who Needs Improvement
Rethinking Who Needs Improvement
bookshop.org
February 13, 2026 at 7:01 PM
In her short book Against Technoableism @ashleyshoo.bsky.social demonstrates repeatedly why simpler tech is often safer & easier to repair w/o expensive corporate interventions. I listened to the book while struggling to repair my own manual chair & felt SO witnessed.
bookshop.org/p/books/agai...
bookshop.org/p/books/agai...
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
As a direct result of the obscene actions of Russell Vought and Elon Musk in destroying USAID, we can expect “at least 9.4 million additional deaths by 2030, if the current funding trend continues.
About 2.5 million of those deaths are projected to be children under the age of 5.”
About 2.5 million of those deaths are projected to be children under the age of 5.”
One year on from dismantling of USAID, study projects that global aid cuts could lead to 9.4 million deaths by 2030 | CNN
It’s been one year since the Trump administration dismantled the US Agency for International Development (USAID), with aid cuts leading to the closure of HIV clinics in South Africa, the termination o...
www.cnn.com
February 13, 2026 at 3:00 PM
As a direct result of the obscene actions of Russell Vought and Elon Musk in destroying USAID, we can expect “at least 9.4 million additional deaths by 2030, if the current funding trend continues.
About 2.5 million of those deaths are projected to be children under the age of 5.”
About 2.5 million of those deaths are projected to be children under the age of 5.”
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
“Terminated USAID funding has also resulted in more than 164,000 additional child deaths from pneumonia, 125,000 additional child deaths from diarrhea, 70,000 additional adult and child deaths from malaria, and 48,000 additional adult and child deaths from tuberculosis.”
Quick takes: Death toll from USAID cuts, withdrawal of chikungunya vaccine, funding for updated Ebola vaccine
A model that tracks the impact of USAID funding cuts estimates that more than 760,000 people have died as a result of those cuts since January 2025.
www.cidrap.umn.edu
February 13, 2026 at 2:46 PM
“Terminated USAID funding has also resulted in more than 164,000 additional child deaths from pneumonia, 125,000 additional child deaths from diarrhea, 70,000 additional adult and child deaths from malaria, and 48,000 additional adult and child deaths from tuberculosis.”
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
Worldbuilding for Masochists @worldbuildcast.bsky.social is eligible for Best Fancast!
🧵 Here's why we think we're worthy of your consideration:
-We dig into SFF worldbuilding from a ton of different, exciting angles with an eye toward encouraging writers to make interesting, innovative choices.
🧵 Here's why we think we're worthy of your consideration:
-We dig into SFF worldbuilding from a ton of different, exciting angles with an eye toward encouraging writers to make interesting, innovative choices.
Nominations are now open for the 2026 Hugo Awards!
Emails are going out to eligible nominators (those who became a member of LAcon V by January 31, 2026, or were a member of the Seattle Worldcon 2025) about how to set up their LAcon V virtual convention account.
Emails are going out to eligible nominators (those who became a member of LAcon V by January 31, 2026, or were a member of the Seattle Worldcon 2025) about how to set up their LAcon V virtual convention account.
February 11, 2026 at 8:31 PM
Worldbuilding for Masochists @worldbuildcast.bsky.social is eligible for Best Fancast!
🧵 Here's why we think we're worthy of your consideration:
-We dig into SFF worldbuilding from a ton of different, exciting angles with an eye toward encouraging writers to make interesting, innovative choices.
🧵 Here's why we think we're worthy of your consideration:
-We dig into SFF worldbuilding from a ton of different, exciting angles with an eye toward encouraging writers to make interesting, innovative choices.
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
The volume & geographic distribution of protest nationwide during year 1 of Trump's second term was extraordinary.
February 12, 2026 at 6:19 PM
The volume & geographic distribution of protest nationwide during year 1 of Trump's second term was extraordinary.
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
I often think abt how wheelchairs are seen as bad or "giving up" in a nondisabled gaze. I think it's bc they're comparing their walking experience to their assumptions abt my wheelchair. But I'm comparing "crutches=pain/injury/20 ft of movement" to "wheelchair=less pain/injury/I can go MILES!"
February 12, 2026 at 10:27 PM
I often think abt how wheelchairs are seen as bad or "giving up" in a nondisabled gaze. I think it's bc they're comparing their walking experience to their assumptions abt my wheelchair. But I'm comparing "crutches=pain/injury/20 ft of movement" to "wheelchair=less pain/injury/I can go MILES!"
"To survive in the mouth of this dragon we call america, we have had to learn this first and most vital lesson—that we were never meant to survive... That visibility which makes us most vulnerable is that which also is the source of our greatest strength."
—Audre Lorde, The Cancer Journals
—Audre Lorde, The Cancer Journals
February 12, 2026 at 11:59 PM
"To survive in the mouth of this dragon we call america, we have had to learn this first and most vital lesson—that we were never meant to survive... That visibility which makes us most vulnerable is that which also is the source of our greatest strength."
—Audre Lorde, The Cancer Journals
—Audre Lorde, The Cancer Journals
Co-signed by a wheelchair user who grew up being told I was "wheelchair-bound," but the truth of my actual experience is that my wheelchair is freedom for me. Spent HS thru my 30s on crutches and chose a wheelchair again. It wasn't "giving up," it was a tool liberating me from pain and injury!
I have a friend who said, of Starfleet Academy, that this took them out of it - that seeing a person in a wheelchair in the 32nd century seemed unrealistic, since medicine in Star Trek "should be able to cure whatever was wrong with them."
That's not the case, for any number of possible reasons.
That's not the case, for any number of possible reasons.
February 12, 2026 at 10:19 PM
Co-signed by a wheelchair user who grew up being told I was "wheelchair-bound," but the truth of my actual experience is that my wheelchair is freedom for me. Spent HS thru my 30s on crutches and chose a wheelchair again. It wasn't "giving up," it was a tool liberating me from pain and injury!
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
Nominations are now open for the 2026 Hugo Awards!
Emails are going out to eligible nominators (those who became a member of LAcon V by January 31, 2026, or were a member of the Seattle Worldcon 2025) about how to set up their LAcon V virtual convention account.
Emails are going out to eligible nominators (those who became a member of LAcon V by January 31, 2026, or were a member of the Seattle Worldcon 2025) about how to set up their LAcon V virtual convention account.
February 11, 2026 at 7:28 PM
Nominations are now open for the 2026 Hugo Awards!
Emails are going out to eligible nominators (those who became a member of LAcon V by January 31, 2026, or were a member of the Seattle Worldcon 2025) about how to set up their LAcon V virtual convention account.
Emails are going out to eligible nominators (those who became a member of LAcon V by January 31, 2026, or were a member of the Seattle Worldcon 2025) about how to set up their LAcon V virtual convention account.
"My visions of a future I can create have been honed by the lessons of my limitations."
Audre Lorde, August 29, 1980
The Cancer Journals
Audre Lorde, August 29, 1980
The Cancer Journals
February 12, 2026 at 2:22 PM
"My visions of a future I can create have been honed by the lessons of my limitations."
Audre Lorde, August 29, 1980
The Cancer Journals
Audre Lorde, August 29, 1980
The Cancer Journals
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
My book is out today and I got to write an essay reflecting on disability in romance for LitHub! Check out the article below🥹
An excellent article from romance author Sabina Nordqvist, whose debut IT'S ALL IN YOUR HEAD is out today! #writing #reading #booksky
lithub.com/the-power-of...
lithub.com/the-power-of...
The Power of Giving Your Disabled Characters a Happily-Ever-After
The day I limped into a seven-month chronic pain rehab program, the first thing they told me was: we don’t talk about pain here. We were not allowed to exhibit “pain behaviors” either, which were p…
lithub.com
February 10, 2026 at 9:07 PM
My book is out today and I got to write an essay reflecting on disability in romance for LitHub! Check out the article below🥹
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
We are doing a second run of my "poetry against ICE" workshop via @buttonpoetry.bsky.social on Wednesday, Feb 18 on zoom. Register for the workshop here: buttonpoetry.com/product/butt...
Forwarding 100% of my payment to CTUL's emergency & rapid response fund: chuffed.org/project/1671...
Forwarding 100% of my payment to CTUL's emergency & rapid response fund: chuffed.org/project/1671...
February 10, 2026 at 10:25 PM
We are doing a second run of my "poetry against ICE" workshop via @buttonpoetry.bsky.social on Wednesday, Feb 18 on zoom. Register for the workshop here: buttonpoetry.com/product/butt...
Forwarding 100% of my payment to CTUL's emergency & rapid response fund: chuffed.org/project/1671...
Forwarding 100% of my payment to CTUL's emergency & rapid response fund: chuffed.org/project/1671...
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
I wrote my final book review column for the Washington Post a while back. (I didn't know it was the last one of course.) I was worried it might not even run since the book section is ending, but thanks to the heroic efforts of editor Jacob Brogan, here it is:
www.washingtonpost.com/books/2026/0...
www.washingtonpost.com/books/2026/0...
Review | Fantasy and sci-fi books for anyone who feels lost right now
Four fascinating new books explore what we do when a collapse appears inevitable.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 10, 2026 at 5:42 PM
I wrote my final book review column for the Washington Post a while back. (I didn't know it was the last one of course.) I was worried it might not even run since the book section is ending, but thanks to the heroic efforts of editor Jacob Brogan, here it is:
www.washingtonpost.com/books/2026/0...
www.washingtonpost.com/books/2026/0...
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
Folks, please don’t tell artists they shouldn’t be making or selling their art right now. For many, it’s how they pay the bills. Art is vital during times like this. ALL ART. Whether it’s a protest sign or a book cover or just a beautiful drawing. It’s part of the heart of humanity.
January 28, 2026 at 6:33 PM
Folks, please don’t tell artists they shouldn’t be making or selling their art right now. For many, it’s how they pay the bills. Art is vital during times like this. ALL ART. Whether it’s a protest sign or a book cover or just a beautiful drawing. It’s part of the heart of humanity.
Today I helped host a zoom book club meeting about Le Guin's 1971 Lathe of Heaven. (I volunteered before I understood how many spoons yesterday's MRI saga would drain from my body and soul.) Even exhausted, I had a lot of thoughts on the book which I may as well attempt to share here. 1/?
February 8, 2026 at 3:00 AM
Today I helped host a zoom book club meeting about Le Guin's 1971 Lathe of Heaven. (I volunteered before I understood how many spoons yesterday's MRI saga would drain from my body and soul.) Even exhausted, I had a lot of thoughts on the book which I may as well attempt to share here. 1/?
Amazing thread. It's wild to me that I know the truth of this in my bones from my archery career, yet struggle so much to put it into practice with writing. The blueprint of forcing myself to shoot 100s of arrows a day thru burnout somehow hasn't translated to consistent creative practice. 😭 Yet...
I don't know what to tell you. You can't sit at a piano for the first time ever and play a sonata. You can't pick up a tennis racket for the first time and serve a 110MPH Ace.
You have to fuck up.
You have to be able to handle failing.
You have to love it enough to not get it right and keep on.
You have to fuck up.
You have to be able to handle failing.
You have to love it enough to not get it right and keep on.
February 8, 2026 at 2:26 AM
Amazing thread. It's wild to me that I know the truth of this in my bones from my archery career, yet struggle so much to put it into practice with writing. The blueprint of forcing myself to shoot 100s of arrows a day thru burnout somehow hasn't translated to consistent creative practice. 😭 Yet...
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
The same people who slashed food support for millions of Americans. Booing is the politest reception they deserve.
Not only did they bring a small private army, but among the waste of taxpayer money was BRINGING A FULL PLANE OF FOOD.
To *Italy*.
To *Italy*.
February 7, 2026 at 4:38 PM
The same people who slashed food support for millions of Americans. Booing is the politest reception they deserve.
Reposted by Lindsey Carmichael
Encouraging to see some members of the US Olympic team wearing masks to protect their health ahead of competition.
February 6, 2026 at 7:49 PM
Encouraging to see some members of the US Olympic team wearing masks to protect their health ahead of competition.
What a BS dystopian premise, underpaid workers in the Philippines used to give the illusion of being actually autonomous. Capitalism bending over backwards to hide the actual labor being done by real humans, all to avoid paying an actual salary and benefits to taxi drivers with a union.
Once again, it turns out “fully autonomous” means “a guy in the Philippines.”
It Turns Out Waymos Are Being Controlled by Workers in the Philippines
During a Congressional hearing, Waymo's chief safety officer, Mauricio Peña, was grilled over the company's reliance on overseas workers.
futurism.com
February 6, 2026 at 6:40 PM
What a BS dystopian premise, underpaid workers in the Philippines used to give the illusion of being actually autonomous. Capitalism bending over backwards to hide the actual labor being done by real humans, all to avoid paying an actual salary and benefits to taxi drivers with a union.
The executive function theft built into the American medical system bureaucracy is fucking RUDE and I hate it to tiny little pieces. Yesterday that applied to me and two loved ones, all simultaneously for different reasons.
Today? I am chasing approval for an MRI I don't want, but need to beg for.
Today? I am chasing approval for an MRI I don't want, but need to beg for.
February 6, 2026 at 6:35 PM
The executive function theft built into the American medical system bureaucracy is fucking RUDE and I hate it to tiny little pieces. Yesterday that applied to me and two loved ones, all simultaneously for different reasons.
Today? I am chasing approval for an MRI I don't want, but need to beg for.
Today? I am chasing approval for an MRI I don't want, but need to beg for.