R.J. Breathnach
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rjbreathnach.bsky.social
R.J. Breathnach
@rjbreathnach.bsky.social
280 followers 310 following 150 posts
Irish. Scríbhneoir of poetry and science fiction. https://linktr.ee/rjbreathnach
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rjbreathnach.bsky.social
It's #WorldHoneyBeeDay today, so it seems like the perfect opportunity to reshare my story "Be Kind, Beepocalypse" from HEXFILED Issue 2 🐝 If a post-apocalyptic world where bees are the dominant species intrigues you, then you might want to have a gander 🐝

#scifi #sciencefiction #irishwriters
Be Kind, Beepocalypse — HEXFILED
hexfiled.com
August 15, 2026 at 9:47 AM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
My copy of Tales from Beyond, Volume 3 has arrived! The second instalment of my story “Olive Trees Burning” graces these pages, with the final part coming in Volume 4. Thanks so much to Steve and Wally at Red Books!

#writing #writingcommunity #scifi #sciencefiction #irishwriters
The front cover of Tales from Beyond Volume 3, featuring a silhouette of a man walking through a row of trees bathed in an eerie red light. Text reads: who had left her to die while a so-called animal had saved her, tending to her wounds and feeding her. It was a painful process, to try and reconcile the belief of a lifetime with the evidence of her eyes and her skin, made more agonising by its failure. “How do I get out of here?” She asked once her tears had stopped flowing. “Come with me.” Rifqa answered. To be concluded in Volume 4
August 13, 2026 at 12:17 PM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
You can now read my poem "Quarantined Hive on an Apple Tree" in Issue 18 of Drawn to the Light!

#poem #poetry #poetrycommunity #irishwriters

drawntothelightpress.com/issues/
Issue 18 Summer 2026
drawn-to-the-light-press-issue-18Download
drawntothelightpress.com
August 4, 2026 at 12:23 PM
Reposted by R.J. Breathnach
clarkesworldmagazine.com
We're still pushing away at our goal of giving our entire team a raise in celebration of our 20th anniversary issue in October. Each subscription takes us one step closer.
clarkesworldmagazine.com/subscribe/
There isn't a better way to thank them for their part in the last 20 and the next 20.
Clarkesworld Magazine - Science Fiction & Fantasy
Clarkesworld Science Fiction and Fantasy Magazine and Podcast. This page: Subscribe to Clarkesworld Magazine
clarkesworldmagazine.com
July 24, 2026 at 3:59 PM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
One of the most powerful exhibits at this year’s Venice Biennale is The Gaza Genocide Tapestry. There are 100 tatreez panels, hand-stitched by Palestinian women in refugee camps using traditional techniques, showcasing the most heartbreaking moments of the monstrous horror being inflicted on Gaza.
Two hand stitched textile panels. On top is “Women in Flood” showing two Palestinian women carrying their belongings in a flooded tent camp in Gaza. Below is “Tents on beach”, showing a tent camp set up by displaced Palestinians on Gaza’s Mediterranean coast. Two hand stitched textile panels. On top is “Press” showing the iconic blue Press jacket worn by Palestinian journalists documenting Israel’s genocide in Gaza. Below is “Journalist on the scene” showing a Palestinian journalist carrying an injured child after an Israeli air strike. Two hand stitched textile panels. On top is “Man on fire”, depicting the moment Palestinian university student Shaban Al-Dalu was set ablaze by an Israeli strike on al Asqa hospital. Below is “Girl is the fire”, depicting Ward Jalal Al-Shaikh Khalil, a six year old girl who survived an Israeli air strike on a school. Two hand stitched textile panels. On top is “Lined up before a tank”, showing Palestinian men stripped naked and detained by Israeli soldiers. Below is “Hind Rajab”, depicting the five year old murdered by Israeli soldiers and the two paramedics who were killed attempting to rescue her.
July 14, 2026 at 1:41 PM
Reposted by R.J. Breathnach
thefuturefire.bsky.social
Oh hells yes do we want WorldCon 2029 to be in Dublin! @dublin2029.bsky.social

TFF will attend WC for the first time in ten years, if it happens.
June 27, 2026 at 11:27 AM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
Buzzing (if you'll pardon the pun) to say that you can now read my novelette "Be Kind, Beepocalypse" in Issue 2 of HEXFILED Literary Magazine!

#sciencefiction #scifi #writing #writingcommunity #irishwriters

hexfiled.com/be-kind-beep...
Be Kind, Beepocalypse — HEXFILED
hexfiled.com
June 25, 2026 at 2:33 PM
Reposted by R.J. Breathnach
ursulakleguin.com
This year is the 50th anniversary of the standalone edition of The Word for World is Forest.

This Berkley Medallion edition is from December 1976. Cover art by Richard Powers.
The cover for the 1976 edition of The Word for World is Forest is all shades of green: The author's name is across the top in white, under which smaller text says "author of The Left Hand of Darkness." The book title is a vivid yellow, and under that text says "the mind-stunning science fiction masterpiece." The illustration shows a female fiture with long hair, nude, behind a lot of waving green growths that emanate from a round planet-like shape at the lower right. There are bits of red and yellow mixed in, giving the whole thing a cellular vibe. In the foreground, at the bottom, are green figures, not quite human-like.
June 19, 2026 at 5:44 PM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
Delighted to say you can now read my poem “It was a Harsh Winter” in the inaugural issue of Aduantas!

#poem #poetry #poetrycommunity #irishwriters

aduantasmag.com/issues/
Issues
Visit the post for more.
aduantasmag.com
June 10, 2026 at 11:18 AM
Reposted by R.J. Breathnach
clarkesworldmagazine.com
Between now and October (our 20th anniversary issue), we're running a subscription drive and dedicating all new revenue toward improving pay for our staff, writers, artists, and contractors. Details on how to subscribe can be found here:
clarkesworldmagazine.com/subscribe/
Subscribe to Clarkesworld Magazine
Clarkesworld Science Fiction and Fantasy Magazine and Podcast.
clarkesworldmagazine.com
June 9, 2026 at 4:57 PM
Reposted by R.J. Breathnach
sffmagazines.bsky.social
Clarkesworld is holding a subscription drive to provide a modest raise for their team members. I encourage all of you to subscribe if you have not.

Here's Neal's editorial: clarkesworldmagazine.com/clarke_06_26/

And here's a link to the subscription page: clarkesworldmagazine.com/subscribe/
Subscribe to Clarkesworld Magazine
Clarkesworld Science Fiction and Fantasy Magazine and Podcast.
clarkesworldmagazine.com
June 9, 2026 at 4:47 PM
Reposted by R.J. Breathnach
sci-fi-ireland.bsky.social
Applications for issue 2 readers remain open!!! If you'd like to be part of Sci-Fi Ireland issue 2 please head to our website and the - 'Team' - page where all the information on how to apply is available from a cute robot who gives out flowers 🤖💐🌸👾

#sciencefiction #ireland #readers
June 5, 2026 at 9:18 AM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
Happy #WorldBeeDay everyone! 🐝 Celebrate by reading my poem “The Apiarist”, originally published in Issue 30 of ROPES Literary Journal! #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity #irishwriters

impact.universityofgalway.ie/articles/rop...
ROPES: The Apiarist - Cois Coiribe
Published annually by students of the MA in Literature and Publishing at NUI Galway, ROPES Literary Journal has firmly established itself as part of the flourishing literary scene in Ireland. R. J. Br...
impact.universityofgalway.ie
May 20, 2026 at 11:43 AM
Reposted by R.J. Breathnach
ursulakleguin.com
"A War Without End" is collected in The Wave in the Mind (Shambhala, 2004). You can also read it here: www.versobooks.com/blogs/news/3...
"The exercise of imagination is dangerous to those who profit from the way things are because it has the power to show that the way things are is not permanent, not universal, not necessary." from "A War Without End" by Ursula K. Le Guin, 2003
May 11, 2026 at 9:42 PM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
Have you ever watched a Godzilla movie and thought to yourself "This is great, but I wish it was more Irish"? If so, you might enjoy my bog-kaiju story "Torathar Rises", published in Issue 2 of The Freak!

#writing #writingcommunity #sciencefiction #spéirghorm

www.thefreak.ca/stories/tora...
Torathar Rises - R.J. Breathnach — The Freak!
Metallic screeching rang out through the Connemara air as the peat harvester slowed and ground to a halt.
www.thefreak.ca
May 3, 2026 at 11:00 AM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
So proud to say three of my poems were published today in The Candyman’s Trumpet, including my sea-themed sonnet “Salt and Freedom”!

#poem #poetry #poetrycommunity #writingcommunity #irishwriters
Salt and Freedom The smell of salt and freedom on the wind, the sound of rocks embracing gentle waves. Escape from memories of times I’ve sinned, and hope my withered soul can still be saved. The vastness of the water stretching out beyond the limits set by human eyes. The tranquil peace that cures me of my doubt, that’s broken only by the seagull’s cries. The footsteps of the people on the pier who’ve come to feel the ocean’s sweet caress, divinely subtle antidote to fear and worry, sadness, anger, and our stress. The smell of salt and freedom in the air, escape from all life’s burdens that I bear.
May 1, 2026 at 4:03 PM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
Every #WorldBookandCopyrightDay I share the top 10 books I’ve read over the previous 12 months. So without further ado! #booksky 💙📚

1. “Sourdough Culture: A History of Bread Making from Ancient to Modern Bakers” by Eric Pallant.
April 23, 2026 at 2:41 PM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
Pleased to say you can now read my short story “The March of the Silent Horde” in Issue 1 of Triptych! Join our narrator as he journeys across a world devastated by climate collapse with the mysterious Quiet Man 🤫

#writing #writingcommunity #sciencefiction

sites.google.com/view/triptyc...
Triptych - Issues
Issue #1
sites.google.com
April 11, 2026 at 9:43 PM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
Happy #WorldPoetryDay all! You can read my poem “The Bog God of Gortnacrannagh” in The Honest Ulsterman if you’re so inclined.

www.humag.co/article/2752...
Honest Ulsterman - Article - The Bog God of Gortnacrannagh from October 2021 Edition
The Honest Ulsterman is a long-running Northern Ireland literary magazine that was established by James Simmons in 1968.
www.humag.co
March 21, 2026 at 9:26 PM
Reposted by R.J. Breathnach
bansheepress.bsky.social
Submissions for issue 22 (autumn/winter 2026) are now open until 31 March! We’re looking forward to reading your short fiction, poetry, flash & essays ✨

bansheepress.org/submit
Submit — Banshee Press
\uD83C\uDF84 The Banshee shop is now closed for the festive season! Any orders placed will be fulfilled in January 2026 \uD83C\uDF84
bansheepress.org
March 1, 2026 at 3:09 PM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
Delighted to see my poem "Raindrops of Jupiter" published in the N&H Journal Issue 1!

#poem #poetry #poetrycommunity #writing #writingcommunity #irishwriters

www.thenhjournal.com/issues
The N&H Journal - Issues
www.thenhjournal.com
February 25, 2026 at 2:52 PM
Reposted by R.J. Breathnach
clarkesworldmagazine.com
It's time for your periodic reminder that we count on subscriptions to keep the lights on.
clarkesworldmagazine.com/subscribe/
Thank you.
Fed up with your world? Visit ours. Picture of the Clarkesworld robot looking over at the cover of our February issue. That cover features a robot looking out at the sea while standing on the beach with their hands clasped behind their back. The water comes gently towards their feet. Peaceful ocean and sky. A contemplative moment of peace. Cover art by Matt Dixon.
February 11, 2026 at 3:07 PM
rjbreathnach.bsky.social
Delighted to get my copy of All The World’s A Page from Quillkeepers Press, featuring my poem “A Sonnet on Betrayal”!

#poem #poetry #poetrycommunity #writingcommunity #irishwriters
The front cover of All The World’s A Page: An Anthology of Sonnets by Various Authors. Compiled by Quillkeepers Press.
February 4, 2026 at 12:21 PM
Reposted by R.J. Breathnach
irishlittimes.bsky.social
A Cleanse for Imbolc by Jessica Traynor @jesstraynor.bsky.social @poetryireland.bsky.social

#imbolc #stbrigidsday
February 1, 2026 at 6:27 PM
Reposted by R.J. Breathnach
sparksjournal.bsky.social
Submissions are now open for our upcoming issue. You can submut via the link below. We are looking for flash fiction, short stories and poetry. docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
docs.google.com
January 30, 2026 at 11:13 AM