When Words Collide is coming up in August! Look for @caitgauthor.bsky.social's event & also presenters @kristadb1.bsky.social @mldcurelas.bsky.social @markleslie.bsky.social & Crystal Kladreau www.whenwordscollide.org/

When Words Collide

When Words Collide Annual Festival for Readers and Writers in Calgary.

whenwordscollide.org

Cait Gordon ♿️@caitgauthor.bsky.social · 3w ago

Doing a super fun thing for my birthday weekend in August! If you’re going, please say hi! #CanLit

Haven't posted flowers in a while, so here's a thread of What's Been Blooming! Hairy False Golden Aster! Yay, planted the plug last year & it's blooming for the first time this year. #NativePlants #BloomScroll #FridayFlowers

Excellent thread from @skyladawn.ca on dealing with threats of self harm without asking a person's victims to do the emotional lifting that is needed.

Skyla Dawn Cameron@skyladawn.ca · last mo.

There was some private discussion last night about how to word this and I'm going to give it a shot. CW about witnessing threats of self-harm.🧵

Mayor Jeromy Farkas releases this video on the Stampede tent noise rules ahead of an expected debate today at city hall.

Jeromy Farkas@jeromyyyc.bsky.social · last mo.

It's time to cut through the bullshit about the Cowboys tent. Stampede succeeds because Calgarians welcome millions of people into our city. That goodwill matters. Bad operators do not get to treat neighbours like garbage and damage the reputation of an event that belongs to all of us.

Danielle Smith offers Albertans $100 rebates after spinning giant policy wheel again

Danielle Smith offers Albertans $100 rebates after spinning giant policy wheel again

EDMONTON — Premier Danielle Smith has announced that many Albertans will receive a $100 energy rebate after listening to her closest advisor, a big wheel of policy ideas she keeps in her office closet...

thebeaverton.com

New personal painting. Inspired by the scene in Fantasia that I feel like I’ve built my entire art style and personality around.

So where was I? Ah, chocolate chip scones. First: self-raising flour, big pinch of salt, an extra teaspoon of bread soda / baking soda: about 250g lard. pulse the whole business: then add buttermilk ("quant. suff" as we used to say in nursing school) to bring together. Pulse till it does. (1/n)

i think if you dress like this, you deserve to do a little corruption

Philip Bump@pbump.com · 2mo ago

I’m sorry, no. This is not the guy who did the reflecting pool. No. Come on. We’re just putting a hat on a hat here. www.nytimes.com/2026/06/18/u...

1/ Happy Juneteenth! How a Texas emancipation commemoration spread across the US is an amazing story. But Juneteenth wasn’t the first Black Freedom Day in America—or the only one of its day. So, let’s talk about em’. Pictured: Martha Yates Jones and Pinkie V Yates, Houston Juneteenth, 1908 | HPL

Here in the fair city of Calgary we have a bunch of privately controlled lakes that you can only access if you are a resident of certain suburbs, and an an Australian I think this is absolute bullshit

Faine Greenwood@faineg.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Is it time for another one of my Californian rants about how batshit insane it is that so much of the East Coast’s beaches are heavily controlled + privatized for the benefit of loathsome rich coastal property owners?

Currently dying at the fact that the Washington State Department of Health department issued a warning to all visiting the state that our weed is VERY strong & not to be taken lightly. Be safe out there visiting soccer fans! (credit to @pgcornwell.bsky.social for sharing this hilarious nugget first)

Okay, it's time for a Moist Owlette™ timeline cleanse. Today's moist owlette is "Owlfredo" at the Stone Zoo in Stoneham, Massachusetts. She's an Eastern screech owl (Megascops asio) & Animal Ambassador with a big personality. (📷: @zoonewengland.bsky.social via IG)

Let's see what's blooming this week! Canada violet, and I'm posting this one because it has volunteered itself in a patch of dirt right up against the garage, surrounded by boards and rocks. #NativePlants #Bloomscroll #FridayFlowers

Niken sent the first illustration draft for the tenth anniversary edition of Solomon's Seal and it is GORGEOUS and I'm so excited and I'm going to be very poor paying for everything but it'll be worth it. (I'll share the final with patrons later when she's done.)

Everything you need to know about Trump’s Iran deal

Everything you need to know about Trump's Iran deal

The details of Trump’s Memorandum Of Understanding with Iran have finally been released. Here is everything you need to know. 1. The deal is a 14 point plan, one point for every time Trump previously ...

thebeaverton.com

Millions of copyrighted songs were fed to AI music generators - now there's proof Suno and rivals are being sued for $150k per song. A sum that would bankrupt these companies and set an important precedent.

Millions of Copyrighted Songs Were Fed to AI Music Generators – Now There's Proof

Millions of copyrighted songs trained AI music generators, and new searchable databases from The Atlantic now confirm which tracks were used.

gadgetreview.com

25 years ago: "i'm sorry Mrs. Smith but your 14 year-old son Charlie downloaded a Metallica album off Napster and now he's being sued for $1 million & might go to jail" Today: "we fed every song in existence into our model what the fuck do you mean we have to pay for it? that's ridiculous!!!"

i like that Paul Simon gets big cocky with his theory that there's 50 ways to leave your lover, and then when pressed for answers he's only got like six and one of them is just "get on the bus"

Again, it is an act of courage for an author to step up to speak about a publish who holds their rights to some of their work. Speaking up is always risky, and I appreciate the bravery.

Avi Silver (they/he)@thescreambean.bsky.social · 2mo ago

brandon has bravely articulated what I've felt unable to for a long time. I'm angry, I'm sad, and I remain at a loss as to what to do. 1/8

The Writer's Little Book of Naming returns! This is a novelette-sized ebook entirely focused on the ways in which creating names for characters, places, and things in a world can reflect culture and enrich a setting: www.swantower.com/writing/the-...

I am not done with talking about this situation yet (I'm just working on my wording here), but I want everyone who is watching to internalize this entire thread. NO ONE BLAMES THE AUTHORS. WE ARE NOT MAD AT YOU. The reason so many of us get angry and loud is because we had this happen to us, too.

Skyla Dawn Cameron@skyladawn.ca · 2mo ago

The thing I love about the author community is that in a Publisher Behaving Badly situation, there's no blaming or hesitation, strangers will come together like a group of friends with a truck, boxes, and snacks for the road as they help move you out of your ex's place to safety in under an hour.

The thing I love about the author community is that in a Publisher Behaving Badly situation, there's no blaming or hesitation, strangers will come together like a group of friends with a truck, boxes, and snacks for the road as they help move you out of your ex's place to safety in under an hour.

I’m sharing this video again because people don’t really get what these data centers and ai are doing to our planet and our communities. Especially Black communities because they were strategically placed there. I need you to listen to these people. STOP USING AI. STOP SUPPORTING AI.

CNN@cnn.com · 7mo ago

The world has entered “an era of global water bankruptcy” with irreversible consequences, according to a new United Nations report. https://cnn.it/4qxGTNX

It’s Indigenous History Month! Here’s a list of some of our favourites speculative fiction writers from the so-called “Canada” portion of Turtle Island:

Got a short story acceptance today! 🎉

My negotiations with MRM ended last September after 7 months. SFWA and David were among the people I consulted with during that time. The fact that the Grinder still hasn’t relisted these magazines says a lot. You can read about how things ended for me here: open.substack.com/pub/pacornel...

Diabolical Plots@diabolicalplots.com · 2mo ago

Several people have asked me recently why Analog/Asimov's/F&SF/Ellery Queen/Alfred Hitchcock still don't have Submission Grinder listings again, because the communications from SFWA on the subject have been so positive. So I thought it might be worth addressing this briefly.

Hello! 👋 I'm hoping to raise money for two Bay Area cat rescues. If you post a screenshot of you donating at least $20, I will answer a style-related question for you. But first, let me tell you about the rescues, why they're worthy of your support, and hopefully get you to adopt a cat. 🧵

Scams can be hard to spot.

Courtney Milan@courtneymilan.com · 2mo ago

I think I just barely escaped a shockingly savvy scammer trying to get my bank credentials. First, whoever it was had my actual phone number, my actual bank, and the last 4 digits of my account. They sent a "was this transaction you" message that looked almost identical to the ones my bank sends.

Happy Friday. My fortune cookie said it was a good day to buy a book and I am passing that reminder on to you. One from AaN aanpress.com/aanorder.html or a pre-order from a new press we are helping out www.jessicapixie.com/product-page.... Support small press indies. We appreciate you #booksky #sff

Magpies here😭 They're so hungry so early.

Leigh Harlen (Birch)@leighharlen.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Oh good, it's officially my favorite time of year after "weird ducks"! It's "large almost adult crow children follow their parents around and scream at them for food" season.