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cmsullivan.bsky.social
C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
@cmsullivan.bsky.social
2.4K followers 680 following 230 posts
queer speculative author, library dweller. viable paradise '25, taos toolbox '24. stories in apex magazine and the daily tomorrow, forthcoming in kaleidotrope. SFWA associate and codex member. she/they. 🚫 to AI, now and always.

https://www.cm-sullivan.com
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cmsullivan.bsky.social
C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying @cmsullivan.bsky.social · Jul 24
Excited to finally share my novel, THIEF OF THE VASTBORN, for #questpit!!

THE ADVENTURES OF AMINA AL-SIRAFI x THE SONG OF ACHILLES: Fate swap. Drowned world. Queer M/M romance. Enemies to lovers. Sea-dragons?! And more! Read the agent’s guide below.

Querying soon!

#F #A #RF #Q #W
An agent's guide to Thief of the Vastborn by C.M. Sullivan, adult fantasy + romance, ~112,000 words. The graphic shows a dragon and a sailboat with charts and maps as the background vector. TEXT: Pitch: In a flooded world survived by waterborne cities, young Zev is given a prophecy that he will die by the same illness that killed his mother. A decade later, when a dying Zev decides to take fate into his own hands, he accidentally swaps fates with the Prophecied Divine, a handsome and sheltered man destined to end the worldwide flood. The graphic shows a sailboat and more charts. TEXT: Tropes: Queer M/M romance, fate swap, drowned world, sea-dragons, enemies to lovers, forced proximity, slow burn, animal companion, prophecies, pirates, cults. The graphic shows a leaf, an hourglass, and more charts and maps. TEXT: Comps: The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty, high seas adventures; The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller for mythical doomed yaoi; The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon for dragons; The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart for drowned world. The graphic shows columns and charts.
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
mruthrobinson.bsky.social
I jumped out of my seat and had to take a lap around the house when I first saw FOUR recommendations for @othersidespec.bsky.social stories in this issue of Locus. If you haven’t yet, give these stories a read! They’re “devastating,” “luminescent,” “heartbreaking.”

othersidespec.com/issues/issue...
Screenshot that reads Recommended Stories "Before She Knew About Magic", Joshua Geller Schwartz (Otherside 6/26) "First To Rot", J.N. Howell (Otherside 6/26) "Remade, Reshaped, Remembered", Sydney Paige Guerrero (Otherside 6/26) "This Is C(lone)-Pop", Lia Lao (Otherside 6/26) "Fletcher's Flights", Jonathan Olfert (Beneath Ceaseless Skies 6/11/26)
September 12, 2026 at 12:31 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
bingingout.bsky.social
"Seneschal of Shattered Tor" is a postcolonial high fantasy about a society trying to Be Better* and the leaders dragging them into the future. I hope you enjoy it!

* T&C apply
September 4, 2026 at 9:20 PM
cmsullivan.bsky.social
back in martha's vineyard on an author fellowship with MVICW and there's really nothing like being surrounded by a bunch of other writers 🥲
September 2, 2026 at 1:11 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
rukman.bsky.social
New poem release for me!

"There are lonely things in the forest", my poem about absence and climate grief is out at @thedeadlands.com today.

psychopomp.com/deadlands/is...
There are lonely things in the forest / Rukman Ragas / Psychopomp
Read There are lonely things in the forest, by Rukman Ragas, a poem from Issue 43 of The Deadlands, summer, 2026.
psychopomp.com
August 19, 2026 at 7:13 AM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
riolombana.bsky.social
ime nonviolent communication can solve a lot of relationship problems. but, um. not all of them.

at least, not problems that ride in with the storm and settle into the whites of your girlfriend's eyes

...anyway, please enjoy Kaitlin's and my cowritten sapphic horror story, it's free to read!
August 16, 2026 at 10:50 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
muteddragon.bsky.social
"That Summer at Aunt Jackie’s Alpaca Farm" was written at Viable Paradise with the prompt of cottage core and alpacas. I added eldest sibling angst and magical wool. Enjoy!
translunartl.bsky.social Translunar Travelers Lounge @translunartl.bsky.social · Aug 15
Welcome to the Translunar Travelers Lounge, it's Saturday August 15 2026, and we have 13 new stories for you. Issue 15 is live! translunartravelerslounge.com
Translunar Travelers Lounge
a speculative fiction magazine
translunartravelerslounge.com
August 15, 2026 at 5:32 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
uncannymagazine.bsky.social
PLEASE SHARE! Writers! Uncanny Magazine will be open for short story submissions from August 24 to September 7! WE CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOUR AMAZING, HUMAN-WRITTEN STORIES! www.uncannymagazine.com/submissions/
Uncanny Magazine will be open for short story submissions from August 24 to September 7!
August 15, 2026 at 3:49 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
thelialao.bsky.social
my favorite story i’ve written (“revolutions, as told by a humble rice farmer”) is out in @podcastle.org! 🥹😭

referencing tang dynasty poetry it asks “what if we focused on this RANDOM RICE FARMER instead of the empire??” it’s a deconstruction of nationalism & v queer

podcastle.org/2026/08/11/p...
poster with the words “revolutions, as told by a humble rice farmer”, “fantasy”, “3500 words”, “history from the bottom-up, emperors get decapitated, but we keep farming rice” “@thelialao” on the left side are picture of rice paddies and on the right side are two men wearing hanfu
August 11, 2026 at 12:35 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
a-ornelas.bsky.social
Very happy to say I’m going to @viableparadise.bsky.social this fall ✨ I received a Writer of Color Scholarship and am fundraising for the rest.

Earning in pesos makes getting to a U.S. workshop its own exercise in speculative economics, so any help (or share) means a lot!

gofund.me/198c28fdb
Donate to Fund Anaïs' Dream Workshop Experience, organized by Anaïs Ornelas Ramirez
Hello! I’m Anaïs, a Mexican speculative fiction writer, and I’m hoping t… Anaïs Ornelas Ramirez needs your support for Fund Anaïs' Dream Workshop Experience
gofund.me
August 10, 2026 at 12:08 AM
cmsullivan.bsky.social
Contract is signed! I'm excited to share that my medieval fantasy story “Holly and Axe,” a sapphic reinterpretation of Sir Gawain and The Green Knight, has been acquired by @kaleidotrope.bsky.social for publication. 🪓🌲
The graphic shows a misty forest. The text reads: Holly and Axe by C.M. Sullivan, medieval fantasy, 2,000 words, featuring monstrous Arthurian romance, the power of stories, and a sapphic retelling of The Green Knight.
August 7, 2026 at 2:13 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
muteddragon.bsky.social
My latest story is available to Orion's Belt subscribers now! Grief, connection and some special candles.
orionsbeltmagazine.bsky.social Orion's Belt magazine @orionsbeltmagazine.bsky.social · Aug 5
🌞 OB summer issue #36 is now live for our subscribers, & also available to buy (link below).

This issue was made possible by powerful, transformative stories, poems, & interviews that invite us to look inside ourselves, into our past, and at the world around us.

Join the read & the journey! 🌞
August 5, 2026 at 10:31 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
apexmag.bsky.social
"In the hospital, they say my brain is melting out my nose. They don’t say it like that. They say I’m dying of a prion disease." 🦠🦌🧫

New fiction today by @anjbaker.bsky.social: "Cervidae, New and Sharp"

Read it here: www.apexbookcompany.com/blogs/apex-m...
"Cervidae, New and Sharp" By Anj Baker. Apex Magazine, Issue 154.
August 4, 2026 at 3:47 PM
cmsullivan.bsky.social
my story, “The Light Below,” is available to read today in apex’s issue 154!! otherwise, you can catch it online october 20 🕯️🤍

www.apexbookcompany.com/products/ape...
August 4, 2026 at 2:17 PM
cmsullivan.bsky.social
So excited to be a part of this issue!! Especially such an honor with this TOC and beautiful art.
apexmag.bsky.social Apex Magazine and Book Company @apexmag.bsky.social · Aug 3
We're thrilled to reveal the cover of Apex Magazine Issue 154, featuring the beautiful "Dark Thoughts" by @jeleynai.bsky.social, with cover design by Justin Stewart! 🌕🐦‍⬛🌿

For the full list of contributors and other updates, check out "Apex in August 2026" on Patreon: www.patreon.com/apexbookcomp...
The cover of Apex Magazine Issue 154. A pale-skinned girl with long brown hair stands against a grey background. Her face is framed by a full moon. She wears a circlet of golden laurel leaves, a black earring shaped like a dagger, and a dark grey dress with sheer voluminous sleeves. She is holding out her hands, welcoming a flock of white ravens to swoop through her chest. The ravens burst out from between her shoulder blades, feathers now black. Credits on Cover read: Original Fiction By: Anj Baker, Rob Cameron, A.M. Maris, Alia Ai-Ming Shahzad, Stefan Alcalá Slater, and C.M. Sullivan, David R. Hoffman, RJ Aurand, and S.C. Pires Nonfiction By: Richard Dansky and Lesley Connor Classic Fiction By: Shingai Njeri Kagunda and Justin C. Key
August 4, 2026 at 2:22 AM
cmsullivan.bsky.social
thank you guys so much for the love on this project!! i’ve been drafting it in isolation since september 2024, and it makes me a little less nervous to query 🥲

excited to catch up on other folks’ pitches!! #questpit
cmsullivan.bsky.social C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying @cmsullivan.bsky.social · Jul 24
Excited to finally share my novel, THIEF OF THE VASTBORN, for #questpit!!

THE ADVENTURES OF AMINA AL-SIRAFI x THE SONG OF ACHILLES: Fate swap. Drowned world. Queer M/M romance. Enemies to lovers. Sea-dragons?! And more! Read the agent’s guide below.

Querying soon!

#F #A #RF #Q #W
An agent's guide to Thief of the Vastborn by C.M. Sullivan, adult fantasy + romance, ~112,000 words. The graphic shows a dragon and a sailboat with charts and maps as the background vector. TEXT: Pitch: In a flooded world survived by waterborne cities, young Zev is given a prophecy that he will die by the same illness that killed his mother. A decade later, when a dying Zev decides to take fate into his own hands, he accidentally swaps fates with the Prophecied Divine, a handsome and sheltered man destined to end the worldwide flood. The graphic shows a sailboat and more charts. TEXT: Tropes: Queer M/M romance, fate swap, drowned world, sea-dragons, enemies to lovers, forced proximity, slow burn, animal companion, prophecies, pirates, cults. The graphic shows a leaf, an hourglass, and more charts and maps. TEXT: Comps: The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty, high seas adventures; The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller for mythical doomed yaoi; The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon for dragons; The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart for drowned world. The graphic shows columns and charts.
July 26, 2026 at 1:23 PM
cmsullivan.bsky.social
AMINA AL-SIRAFI x QUEEN'S THIEF

A dying thief switches fates with a man prophesied to end the worldwide flood. What's worse than death? Oh, consigning the guy you love to it.

🐉 sea-dragons
🏛️ floating libraries
🌊 flooded world
⛵ high seas adventures
🔥 slow burn romance

#questpit #A #F #W #Q
A graphic depicts the text "THIEF OF THE VASTBORN" by C.M. Sullivan. The graphic shows a dragon statue; a marble column with an ocean view; a red-haired man with a blue eye gazing skyward; a grotto filled with seawater; part of a scarred man's face; a mosaic sun insignia; the statue of a half-veiled woman; a ship-rope and the open sea; and Greco-Roman style columns with an orange tree.
July 24, 2026 at 9:58 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
mytherea.bsky.social
Starfall: a queer space opera heavy on the intimate-stakes character drama, elfy science-fantasy, and swashbuckling starship adventure about a telepathic space elf who joins off-brand Starfleet. He's a stabby cinnamon roll who doesn't want any friends! (This is a lie.)

#Questpit #Q #A #SF #SFF
Title slide that reads "Starfall, Queer Space Opera Adventure, 139,000 words, R. J. Howell." Slide that reads: "Pitch: Erendesirel was raised for two things: political marriage and political skirmishes. Sadly, the galaxy doesn’t have much call for a well-trained ornamental husband or sword-wielding duelist. Banished from his technologically-hostile homeworld, unskilled, and entirely broke, he applies to the Galactic Survey and Security Fleet, a company of space-faring scientific contractors. He just has to somehow pass a basic competency exam he is woefully unprepared for. And agree to a 10-year debt contract to pay for his tuition. And avoid being driven insane by the thoughts and feelings of a crew of a hundred and twenty souls serving on a very small starship. And navigate all the well-meaning people trying to be his friend. Oh, and not get kidnapped by pirates." There is another section below it that reads "Comps" and show the covers of Ocean's Echo by Everina Maxwell, Swordspoint by Ellen Kushner, Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir, The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers, Slow Gods by Claire North, and Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold. There is also an illustration of a space elf named Eren. This slide reads: "Excerpt: Erendesirel—the nameless, the houseless, the planetless—had tracked his quarry down to a victuals shop on the outskirts of the space station’s medical district. From his hunter’s hide on a public bench opposite the establishment, he glowered at the incongruously-wooden door, breathed in the smell of roasted nuttiness and sticky sugar wafting out through the open bay window, and fought for equanimity. His hand tightened on the hilt of his family sword, the blade pressed against his leg to accommodate the rather unfriendly design of the bench. Galactic architecture was, as always, crafted for comfort and unobtrusiveness but singularly failed to take into account a full-length sword at one’s hip. It didn’t matter that of all the peoples of the galaxy, there was only one that insisted on carrying true steel swords instead of some technological marvel that, oh, made the sword shrink or disappear or be constructed entirely out of light. He would never stoop to touch such a thing. No, the sword and dagger set of his clan would serve him for this purpose just fine. No matter that they were considered contraband. By both his people and station security, if for rather different reasons." This slide reads "The Trope Nebula" and contains a series of trope-related terms: All the feels, found family, to boldly go (but contractually), swords but space, touch-adverse telepathic space elves, starships!, stabby cinnamon roll, disaster bisexuals, qu3eer, student debt?, lesbians with laser canons, and friendship! (whether you want it or not).
July 24, 2026 at 2:17 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
thelialao.bsky.social
wrapping up edits so here's an updated agent's guide for #questpit! :))

[BREAKING NEWS]: BROKE PHD STUDENT FAKES DEATH AND STEALS IDENTITY OF BILLIONAIRE TECH HEIRESS. TOO BAD HER GENIUS RIVAL IS ONTO HER & IS OBSESSED WITH EXPOSING HER NEW SKIN

#A #Litfic #SF #LGBT #OV #Q
slide that reads "an agent's guide to FACELESS". line under reads "literary speculative fiction / 95,000 words @thelialao) background is a blurry photo of an asian woman with a blue tint Pitch [BREAKING NEWS]: BROKE PHD STUDENT FAKES DEATH AND STEALS IDENTITY OF BILLIONAIRE TECH HEIRESS. TOO BAD HER GENIUS RIVAL IS ONTO HER & IS OBSESSED WITH EXPOSING HER NEW SKIN the opulence of CRAZY RICH ASIANS x the futuristic atmosphere of LOCAL HEAVENS & THE BOOK OF RECORDS x the socio-satirical tone of THE IMMORTAL KING RAO set in a floating city owned by tech conglomerates, in a world ravaged by climate change inspired by Silicon Valley & East/Southeast Asia @thelialao Background picture is a black robot in a glass box First Page It’s a beautiful night to die. From the balcony, Fay Soon stares down at the celebration: the silken gowns, the crystal chalices, the laughter resounding like shattered glass. It’s the end of semester which means yet another overpriced soirée for Chang’E National University’s elite. After seven years here, the scene is hardly unfamiliar. She studies the expanse of the university gardens. There’s a cyclical nature to it. Young and eager minds unfurling: the undergraduates, loquacious in their attempts to impress one another, each conversation, each gesture, carefully selected like the finest blossoms in a greenhouse. There are those on the other end of the cycle too. Senescence. The doctoral candidates wilting in the shadows. Hoping for their ideas to be transfigured by wind or water or even the sorghum wine they’re cradling in their hands. But no matter how many times Fay experiences it, she doesn’t think she’ll ever get used to the spectacle. No one in the outer circle speaks like that, not in those sprawling, unmanicured streets. It’s opulent; it’s hypnotizing. It’s— —a complete and utter waste of funds. @thelialao Background is a chandelier in dim lighting Epigraph As every flower fades and as all youth Departs, so life at every stage, So every virtue, so our grasp of truth, Blooms in its day and may not last forever … We must prepare for parting and leave-taking Or else remain the slaves of permanence. – Hermann Hesse, The Glass Bead Game @thelialao Background is a white wall with the shadows of leaves
July 24, 2026 at 4:02 AM
cmsullivan.bsky.social
Excited to finally share my novel, THIEF OF THE VASTBORN, for #questpit!!

THE ADVENTURES OF AMINA AL-SIRAFI x THE SONG OF ACHILLES: Fate swap. Drowned world. Queer M/M romance. Enemies to lovers. Sea-dragons?! And more! Read the agent’s guide below.

Querying soon!

#F #A #RF #Q #W
An agent's guide to Thief of the Vastborn by C.M. Sullivan, adult fantasy + romance, ~112,000 words. The graphic shows a dragon and a sailboat with charts and maps as the background vector. TEXT: Pitch: In a flooded world survived by waterborne cities, young Zev is given a prophecy that he will die by the same illness that killed his mother. A decade later, when a dying Zev decides to take fate into his own hands, he accidentally swaps fates with the Prophecied Divine, a handsome and sheltered man destined to end the worldwide flood. The graphic shows a sailboat and more charts. TEXT: Tropes: Queer M/M romance, fate swap, drowned world, sea-dragons, enemies to lovers, forced proximity, slow burn, animal companion, prophecies, pirates, cults. The graphic shows a leaf, an hourglass, and more charts and maps. TEXT: Comps: The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty, high seas adventures; The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller for mythical doomed yaoi; The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon for dragons; The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart for drowned world. The graphic shows columns and charts.
July 24, 2026 at 4:06 AM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
cafecliche.bsky.social
To all staff and affiliates: please mark your calendars and save the date for the worst team-building outing of all time. OTHERLING, my second horror novel for adults, is coming your way in Fall 2028.
An announcement for my new book OTHERLING, a workplace doppelgänger horror novel
July 22, 2026 at 2:46 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
apexmag.bsky.social
We have decided to remove a short story from Issue 153 of Apex Magazine. After meeting with our reading and editorial teams, we'd like to share with you what happened, and importantly, how we plan to move forward from here. Thank you for sticking with us. 💜👽
July 10, 2026 at 3:54 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
emelkrishnan.bsky.social
We’re about $6700 away, and there’s 9 days left. This is doable folks, so please, help us get over the finish line so we can bring you more khōréō gloriousness!
khōréō: Year 6
Help us sustain and grow an award-winning magazine of speculative fiction and migration!
www.kickstarter.com
July 6, 2026 at 5:27 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
apexmag.bsky.social
STRANGE 👽 SURREAL 👽 SHOCKING 👽 BEAUTIFUL

Apex Magazine is OPEN TO SUBMISSIONS for the month of July! We're seeking short spec fic up to 9k words. Closing August 1st, reopening in September and November. We can't wait to read your work! 🖤

Submit here: apexbookcompany.moksha.io/publication/...
"Apex Magazine Submissions OPEN! We are Seeking: short sci-fi, fantasy, and horror fiction short genre-related nonfiction Up to 9k words Submissions Close August 1st https://apexbookcompany.moksha.io/"
July 1, 2026 at 3:46 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
muteddragon.bsky.social
"Some prospectors’ ghosts leave their previous clothes real easy. My laundry shop was just a railway station on their way to the afterlife." 🫧👻🌵
therumpus.net The Rumpus @therumpus.net · Jun 30
"I recognized the ghost from when he was a living customer and not an undead annoyance. He never tipped, not even around the holidays."

From "Lu’s Laundry and Other Services" by @muteddragon.bsky.social for this week's Sunday Scaries.

👻 buff.ly/jYalLS6
The cited quote and information written in black against a white background. The full Rumpus logo is at the top.
June 30, 2026 at 5:17 PM
Reposted by C.M. Sullivan 🍉 is querying
muteddragon.bsky.social
For sake of future Viable Paradise classes, I wrote a thing. buttondown.com/wenwenwrites...
Viable Paradise
I am writing this post for all the people who just got the special email that says “Congratulations, welcome to the Viable Paradise cult” (paraphrasing) and...
buttondown.com
May 28, 2026 at 9:06 PM