Vajra Chandrasekera
@vajra.me
Writer. Revenant. Wrote THE SAINT OF BRIGHT DOORS (2023, Nebula, Ignyte, Crawford, and Locus awards) & RAKESFALL (2024, Le Guin Prize and Otherwise award.) Colombo/New York. https://vajra.me
Pinned
Vajra Chandrasekera
@vajra.me
· 15d
we (will soon) have such sights to show you
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
I found the ep in PLURIBUS where Carol--white, American--meets 5 non-white, non-American survivors of the hivemind off-putting, but in a way that made me curious to see where Gilligan was going. Now that I have, I wrote about how empire, privilege, genAI, & resistance converge in the show's subtext:
Resisting the Hivemind: Pluribus, Generative AI, and Empire - Reactor
While its creator tell us that Pluribus is not about advent of generative AI, it's difficult not to spot the many places where the fledgling tech and extraterrestrial hivemind overlap.
reactormag.com
January 14, 2026 at 6:53 PM
I found the ep in PLURIBUS where Carol--white, American--meets 5 non-white, non-American survivors of the hivemind off-putting, but in a way that made me curious to see where Gilligan was going. Now that I have, I wrote about how empire, privilege, genAI, & resistance converge in the show's subtext:
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
Q: will this help?
A: yes. celebrating the misfortune of bad people is one of the ways society discourages antisocial behavior
Q: is it healthy?
A: also yes. one needs to pretend that the unaccountable can at least be laid low by chance
A: yes. celebrating the misfortune of bad people is one of the ways society discourages antisocial behavior
Q: is it healthy?
A: also yes. one needs to pretend that the unaccountable can at least be laid low by chance
Before publicly celebrating terrible things happening to bad people, maybe don't just ask yourself if such statements are "fair" or if those people "deserve" what's happening to them...
Maybe ask yourself:
"Will this help?" and "Is this healthy?"
And take a moment if the answer to both is "No."
Maybe ask yourself:
"Will this help?" and "Is this healthy?"
And take a moment if the answer to both is "No."
January 14, 2026 at 7:21 AM
Q: will this help?
A: yes. celebrating the misfortune of bad people is one of the ways society discourages antisocial behavior
Q: is it healthy?
A: also yes. one needs to pretend that the unaccountable can at least be laid low by chance
A: yes. celebrating the misfortune of bad people is one of the ways society discourages antisocial behavior
Q: is it healthy?
A: also yes. one needs to pretend that the unaccountable can at least be laid low by chance
I think that's everyone who's on here—do follow them if you don't already!
January 14, 2026 at 1:12 AM
I think that's everyone who's on here—do follow them if you don't already!
Congrats PKD Award nominees!
SUNWARD, @willalex.bsky.social
OUTLAW PLANET, M.R. Carey
CASUAL, @kojiadae.bsky.social
THE IMMEASURABLE HEAVEN, @caspargeon.bsky.social
UNCERTAIN SONS, @thomasha.bsky.social
SCALES, Christopher Hinz
CITY OF ALL SEASONS, @oliverklangmead.bsky.social & Aliya Whiteley
SUNWARD, @willalex.bsky.social
OUTLAW PLANET, M.R. Carey
CASUAL, @kojiadae.bsky.social
THE IMMEASURABLE HEAVEN, @caspargeon.bsky.social
UNCERTAIN SONS, @thomasha.bsky.social
SCALES, Christopher Hinz
CITY OF ALL SEASONS, @oliverklangmead.bsky.social & Aliya Whiteley
2026 Philip K. Dick Award Nominees locusmag.com/2026/01...
January 14, 2026 at 1:11 AM
Congrats PKD Award nominees!
SUNWARD, @willalex.bsky.social
OUTLAW PLANET, M.R. Carey
CASUAL, @kojiadae.bsky.social
THE IMMEASURABLE HEAVEN, @caspargeon.bsky.social
UNCERTAIN SONS, @thomasha.bsky.social
SCALES, Christopher Hinz
CITY OF ALL SEASONS, @oliverklangmead.bsky.social & Aliya Whiteley
SUNWARD, @willalex.bsky.social
OUTLAW PLANET, M.R. Carey
CASUAL, @kojiadae.bsky.social
THE IMMEASURABLE HEAVEN, @caspargeon.bsky.social
UNCERTAIN SONS, @thomasha.bsky.social
SCALES, Christopher Hinz
CITY OF ALL SEASONS, @oliverklangmead.bsky.social & Aliya Whiteley
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
2026 Philip K. Dick Award Nominees locusmag.com/2026/01...
January 14, 2026 at 1:00 AM
2026 Philip K. Dick Award Nominees locusmag.com/2026/01...
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
With THE MISHEARD WORLD out next month, it's the perfect time to explore the weird and wonderful worlds of Aliya Whiteley!
Each book is a standalone, wildly imaginative, mind-bending, and perfect for fans of @vajra.me and @oliverklangmead.bsky.social.
So why not dive in? https://geni.us/misheardw
Each book is a standalone, wildly imaginative, mind-bending, and perfect for fans of @vajra.me and @oliverklangmead.bsky.social.
So why not dive in? https://geni.us/misheardw
January 13, 2026 at 4:49 PM
With THE MISHEARD WORLD out next month, it's the perfect time to explore the weird and wonderful worlds of Aliya Whiteley!
Each book is a standalone, wildly imaginative, mind-bending, and perfect for fans of @vajra.me and @oliverklangmead.bsky.social.
So why not dive in? https://geni.us/misheardw
Each book is a standalone, wildly imaginative, mind-bending, and perfect for fans of @vajra.me and @oliverklangmead.bsky.social.
So why not dive in? https://geni.us/misheardw
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
A very important thing for you to know about Icelandic is that the word "rassgat" (butthole) is used as an endearment about cute things. So if you say someone is "algjört rassgat" (a total butthole) it means they are VERY cute. If the cuteness is overwhelming we say "rúsínurassgat" (raisin asshole).
January 13, 2026 at 12:07 PM
A very important thing for you to know about Icelandic is that the word "rassgat" (butthole) is used as an endearment about cute things. So if you say someone is "algjört rassgat" (a total butthole) it means they are VERY cute. If the cuteness is overwhelming we say "rúsínurassgat" (raisin asshole).
the fact that there are people who would (and did) buy this shit
Eric Adams, former NYC mayor, launched a memecoin (cryptocurrency) today. He marketed it as an “NYC Token” and used media appearances and his social media to promote it.
Within hours, Adams then drained its liquidity, apparently having scammed investors out of $3.4 million—a move called a rug pull.
Within hours, Adams then drained its liquidity, apparently having scammed investors out of $3.4 million—a move called a rug pull.
January 13, 2026 at 11:33 AM
the fact that there are people who would (and did) buy this shit
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
😂
Perhaps the surest sign of AI not being super intelligent is the amount of tailored scams targeting the finances of authors, which is as rewarding as trying to mug a seagull.
January 12, 2026 at 12:05 PM
😂
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
Hey worms, give this a listen! A fascinating discussion of aesthetic regime change, the conflation of high art and realpolitik, mistranslating Gramsci, and, of course, spoilers for The Works of Vermin.
Really cool episode--can't wait to read the essay
Really cool episode--can't wait to read the essay
Eden launches into @hironennes.bsky.social's The Works of Vermin, using it as a platform to explore ideas around the potentials and contradictions of living in modern cities, the influence of the French Second Empire (yes) on the New Weird and much more!
soundcloud.com/death-senten...
soundcloud.com/death-senten...
The Works of Vermin, The City, and the Second Empire
Eden launches into Hiron Ennes' The Works of Vermin, using it as a platform to explore ideas around the potentials and contradictions of living in modern cities. He also discusses the influence of the
soundcloud.com
January 12, 2026 at 7:14 PM
Hey worms, give this a listen! A fascinating discussion of aesthetic regime change, the conflation of high art and realpolitik, mistranslating Gramsci, and, of course, spoilers for The Works of Vermin.
Really cool episode--can't wait to read the essay
Really cool episode--can't wait to read the essay
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
Oh shit I didn't realize Carmen Maria Machado won a Nobel Peace Prize but honestly I support it even as I wonder what she's doing in Venezuela instead of working on her next book.
(source: nymag.com/intelligence...)
(source: nymag.com/intelligence...)
January 10, 2026 at 6:44 PM
Oh shit I didn't realize Carmen Maria Machado won a Nobel Peace Prize but honestly I support it even as I wonder what she's doing in Venezuela instead of working on her next book.
(source: nymag.com/intelligence...)
(source: nymag.com/intelligence...)
It's hard to say how things will play out over the next few decades, whether in this bizarre industry, or the political upheavals of any of our countries, or just life in general. All you can really control is the work, and I for one would like to leave behind a big pile of it
January 11, 2026 at 1:31 AM
It's hard to say how things will play out over the next few decades, whether in this bizarre industry, or the political upheavals of any of our countries, or just life in general. All you can really control is the work, and I for one would like to leave behind a big pile of it
Same. Third and fourth novel at different stages of edits, fifth being drafted. Multiple shorter projects also on the table (it's a big messy table)
The true secret to my long career: As a midlist writer hanging on to my career one book at a time, I can only control the work I do, not outcomes.
So I work: Drafting Novel W while waiting for edit notes on Novel F. When edits & draft are done, I'll return to the half finished & overdue Novel L.
So I work: Drafting Novel W while waiting for edit notes on Novel F. When edits & draft are done, I'll return to the half finished & overdue Novel L.
January 11, 2026 at 1:28 AM
Same. Third and fourth novel at different stages of edits, fifth being drafted. Multiple shorter projects also on the table (it's a big messy table)
It makes me very happy to know that you found my work inspiring and generative—thank you!! And best of luck with the story on sub!
January 10, 2026 at 3:11 PM
It makes me very happy to know that you found my work inspiring and generative—thank you!! And best of luck with the story on sub!
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
I fished out this excellent thread on the “but AI for medical uses is great” topic, highly recommend you read it
This is not an LLM—so it doesn't have language-related issues—but it's important to be clear that it is very much part of (and in fact represents a new spearhead into) the neoliberal drive to privatize essential public services, and represents tremendously harmful outcomes globally
Using an AI tool, one additional case of cancer was spotted per 1,000 women screened. Crucially this was without increasing false positives - seems an excellent result
www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
January 9, 2026 at 6:39 PM
I fished out this excellent thread on the “but AI for medical uses is great” topic, highly recommend you read it
Yikes, that sounds rough. Hope you feel better soon!!
January 9, 2026 at 3:57 PM
Yikes, that sounds rough. Hope you feel better soon!!
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
the discourse on what jobs are acceptable to replace with generative AI reveals a lot about what we think of other people's jobs
January 9, 2026 at 6:48 AM
the discourse on what jobs are acceptable to replace with generative AI reveals a lot about what we think of other people's jobs
congratulations everyone
I’d just like to say how happy it makes me that not a single person has even mentioned his tedious antiwoke rant this year. There is *some* good in this world.
Reminder to the SF/F genre that Dave Truesdale emerges annually from his pearl-clutching, snowflake cave to write rambling rants for the Tangent Online Recommended Reading List.
This year he whines about SFWA for 2,000 words, using 7 of those words to admit he hasn't been a member in 22 years. 1/2
This year he whines about SFWA for 2,000 words, using 7 of those words to admit he hasn't been a member in 22 years. 1/2
January 9, 2026 at 3:03 PM
congratulations everyone
oh it's just an exercise in propaganda ("America is great but Trump is bad") so I doubt there was even an actual survey
January 9, 2026 at 3:03 PM
oh it's just an exercise in propaganda ("America is great but Trump is bad") so I doubt there was even an actual survey
that adds up to 100% commitment to the bit (the bit is empire)
Commissioned by NPR in December in partnership with Ipsos, the share of people who believe the U.S. is a moral leader dropped to 39% from 60% in a similar poll conducted in 2017. n.pr/3Z3IbnD
Many Americans say the U.S. is not a moral leader but want it to be: NPR/Ipsos poll
Commissioned by NPR in December in partnership with Ipsos, the share of people who believe the U.S. is a moral leader dropped to 39% from 60% in a similar poll conducted in 2017.
n.pr
January 9, 2026 at 2:58 PM
that adds up to 100% commitment to the bit (the bit is empire)
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
maybe the New Weird is dead in the same sense of the father in Rakesfall that keeps coming back to have tea in the kitchen
January 9, 2026 at 8:37 AM
maybe the New Weird is dead in the same sense of the father in Rakesfall that keeps coming back to have tea in the kitchen
I offer you halieutics in exchange for perdurance
January 9, 2026 at 1:03 AM
I offer you halieutics in exchange for perdurance
Delighting in the perdurance of the critical essay as a form: Audsley King's “Sweet and Golden Dreams” is about Gene Wolfe’s PEACE (a book I am very much looking forward to reading) and my RAKESFALL greenpigsinheaven.wordpress.com/2026/01/06/s...
Sweet and Golden Dreams
empire and bloodline anxiety in vajra chandrasekera’s rakesfall and gene wolfe’s peace But long before this transfiguration had completed itself, Ashlyme had shrugged and turned his bac…
greenpigsinheaven.wordpress.com
January 9, 2026 at 12:43 AM
Delighting in the perdurance of the critical essay as a form: Audsley King's “Sweet and Golden Dreams” is about Gene Wolfe’s PEACE (a book I am very much looking forward to reading) and my RAKESFALL greenpigsinheaven.wordpress.com/2026/01/06/s...
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
This is a vetted fundraiser for the family of Renee Good, the woman who was killed by ICE in Minneapolis.
www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...
www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...
Donate to Support for Renee Good’s wife and son, organized by Mattie Weiss
Please support the wife and son of Renee Good as they grapple with the devastating … Mattie Weiss needs your support for Support for Renee Good’s wife and son
www.gofundme.com
January 8, 2026 at 2:29 AM
This is a vetted fundraiser for the family of Renee Good, the woman who was killed by ICE in Minneapolis.
www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...
www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...
Reposted by Vajra Chandrasekera
“i want back my rocking chairs, / solipsist sunsets, / & coastal jungle sounds...”
A poem by Renee Nicole Good, who was murdered by ICE earlier today.
lithub.com/renee-nicole...
A poem by Renee Nicole Good, who was murdered by ICE earlier today.
lithub.com/renee-nicole...
Renee Nicole Good, murdered by ICE, was a prize-winning poet. Here’s that poem.
Renee Nicole Good, 37, mother to a six-year-old boy, was murdered earlier today by an ICE agent in Minneapolis, a few blocks from her home. According to the Minnesota Star Tribune: [An ICE agent] s…
lithub.com
January 8, 2026 at 3:54 AM
“i want back my rocking chairs, / solipsist sunsets, / & coastal jungle sounds...”
A poem by Renee Nicole Good, who was murdered by ICE earlier today.
lithub.com/renee-nicole...
A poem by Renee Nicole Good, who was murdered by ICE earlier today.
lithub.com/renee-nicole...