Jess Koch
@jesskoch.bsky.social
Author of strange stories & infrequent poetry in Weird Horror, Bourbon Penn, Stoker-Nominated CHROMOPHOBIA, & more. HWA, SFWA, Codex New England https://linktr.ee/byjesskoch
Portals #1 drops in October and will open to submissions on June 22nd! It will be co-edited by the incredible Angel Leal and Jess Cho, who are looking for horror fiction/poetry by trans authors. All proceeds from sales of this installment will go to Trans Lifeline. 🏳️⚧️ (3/8)
Hey everyone, read this if you’re in a weird horror about twins, cannibalism, and the devouring power of plants. @jesskoch.bsky.social
Jess Koch > Eleanora > Bourbon Penn
The twins were born on a humid January night, uprooted from their young mother’s womb through a cesarean incision opened across gossamer skin, exactly seventeen years and ninety-eight days before they...
bourbonpenn.com
I wrote this back in 2020, right at the beginning of covid, when a lot of us were mulling over what it meant to be alone in our tiny apartments. Back then, I didn’t realize how topical “AI therapists” would end up being.
SHORT FICTION: New Apartment
RE: Ghost bats and the death of the sun
open.substack.com
This was...a choice. (A really bad one if that was in any way unclear).
Seattle Worldcon 2025@seattlein2025.org · last yr.Statement From Worldcon Chair: We have received questions regarding Seattle’s use of AI tools in our vetting process for program participants. In the interest of transparency, we will explain the process of how we are using a Large… seattlein2025.org?p=3859
This story probably flew under your radar last year, read it! Read it! Read it!
Ecdysis — Weird Horror Magazine
weirdhorrormagazine.com
Zachary Gillan@megapolisomancy.bsky.social · 3y ago“Ecdysis” - Jess Koch - A woman hears something in the walls. Unbearably creepy; builds and builds, humane, unsettling, terrifying, all at once. Some resonances with SRT’s “Subsidence” from last year, and this is another “ahha, yes, this is why we read this stuff” stories.
The whole thing is damning, but this part is particularly sickening. These are the text messages of middle school boys playing Call of Duty.
I've been wanting to talk about burnout for a while so here it is, appropriately two months after I initially had the idea.
My Years of Stress and Un-relaxation
On burnout and broken clocks
open.substack.com
I mean, what the fuck. The fact that this statement could be referencing a hundred different things speaks for itself.
New post for the new year and all its woes: "Why does the saying 'live in the moment' persist so relentlessly? Have you seen the moment? Have you doom-scrolled The Guardian politics live blog recently? If that’s 'the moment,' I don’t want to live in it."
On Giving Up
My (probably too earnest) admission of guilt
open.substack.com
RE: this DEI firefighter bs, I think it’s good to remember that big media is not REFLECTING the narrative of the people, but rather CREATING a narrative to tell you what and how to think so that your views fall in line with the corporations and special interests that own the media.
I went dark on here for almost 2 weeks. When that happens, safe to assume my battery ran dead and I forgot to plug myself back in.
I hurt my neck the other day (quite badly) and I resent that the heat pack I bought is called a “sport” pack, implying I pulled a muscle doing something resembling sports rather than looking sideways for too long at a bar.
I wrote 1000 words today so I only need to do that *does math* 79 more times. Then I will have something resembling a book, at least in length.
This one is short because it was my birthday this weekend and I was hungover and also because when I did get around to writing this, it was midnight. Excuses aside, here are some thoughts (but no solutions) for feeling lost.
These, the Days Misplaced
Short thoughts on feeling lost in life and art
open.substack.com
The darkest of dark satire is not actually satire.
Nina Turner@ninaturner.bsky.social · 2y agoMusk’s wealth in 2012: $2 Billion Musk’s wealth in 2024: $447 Billion Bezos’s wealth in 2012: $18 Billion Bezos’s wealth in 2024: $249 Billion Zuckerberg’s wealth in 2012: $44 Billion Zuckerberg’s wealth in 2024: $224 Billion Minimum wage in 2012: $7.25 Minimum wage in 2024: $7.25
Oh God, it's like Christmas next week, it feels like the apocalypse every goddamn day, and the nightmares will only continue to unfurl in the new year. Also you still have to write your book.
I can’t remember the last book I finished but I have started about a dozen recently, all of which are on the floor beside my bed because my cat got embarrassed for me, knocked them off the nightstand, and pulled the bookmarks out of them. Thanks, Nadja.
In which I reflect on querying this year and all the advice I wish I had followed:
Staying Sane While Querying Your Book
Tips from the trenches of rejection
open.substack.com
In my flailing around not knowing what to do with myself, I started a substack. It's mostly for myself but maybe it's for you too?
In the Small Hours | Jess Koch | Substack
Shouting into the void about writing, depression, and existence. Click to read In the Small Hours, by Jess Koch, a Substack publication. Launched 4 minutes ago.
inthesmallhours.substack.com
I envy those who can channel their anxiety and outrage into meaningful creative work. All I've done for weeks is play Elden Ring and stress nap.
Everything you have ever written, everything you will ever write, is political. That isn’t to say “be careful” with your words. Recognize their power and wield them accordingly.
We're getting to the time of year when I start wincing at "Best Of" lists that are entirely big 5 titles. Come on, we don't really believe that, coincidentally, ALL the year's 'best' books were published by the biggest companies and zero small presses, do we?
I would pay someone an ungodly amount of money to organize my notes app.
Our 2024 Award Eligibility List. If you're reading for/nominating for awards I am happy to send you digital files or eBooks of our 2024 work. Thank you!
