Speculative Insight journal
LightNews LightNews
banner
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Speculative Insight journal
@speculativeinsight.bsky.social
2.3K followers 400 following 3.6K posts
A journal that explores the breadth and depth of the themes, ideas, and issues of science fiction and fantasy. Ed. Alexandra Pierce.
https://www.speculativeinsight.com/
Posts Replies Media Videos
Pinned
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Speculative Insight journal @speculativeinsight.bsky.social · Oct 17
Hi new folks! Speculative Insight publishes nonfiction essays about science fiction and fantasy.

First Saturday of the month is a free essay; third Saturday of the month is for subscribers (and subscribing is AUD30/year: ~15GBP, 18 euro, and USD20... ish)

www.speculativeinsight.com
Speculative Insight
A journal for exploring the ideas and themes that stand behind, inform, and develop out of, speculative fiction.
www.speculativeinsight.com
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
James Patrick Kelly gives us a brief history of the robot in fiction in this new essay, initially published in his new collection The Book of Bots just last month (get it from Fairwood Press!).

Read the essay: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says Asimov wrote thirty-seven stories and five novels in his robot sequence. It should come as no surprise that his thinking evolved over time. ... by "The Inevitable Conflict" (1950), he conceived what came to be called the Zeroth Law. "The Comedy of Science" -- James Patrick Kelly
September 11, 2026 at 9:42 AM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Ways in which poets had dealt with lady knights in their fictional works also got applied to Joan of Arc, as Joyce Chng shows in this essay we're reprinting from April 2024...

www.speculativeinsight.com/from-the-vault
Purple background, white text, which says Joan of Arc transcended her traditionally feminine boundaries, took on a male persona and embodied a male spirit, thus enabling her to assume the role of a warrior. Joan was, then, an exceptional woman... "Rendered Harmless: Strategies to Tame the Lady Knight" -- Joyce Chng
September 12, 2026 at 10:00 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
sffoundation.bsky.social
This year's SFF conference, in partnership with the Clarke Award and the University of Liverpool, is now live - online, 12-13 December. Confirmed speakers: Andrew M. Butler, Anne Charnock, E.J. Swift, Tade Thompson. buytickets.at/thesciencefi...
Buy tickets – The State of SF and of Things to Come: Reading SF through the Clarke Award – MS Teams
The State of SF and of Things to Come: Reading SF through the Clarke Award – MS Teams, Sat 12 Dec 2026 - Sun 13 Dec 2026 - Keynote speaker: Dr Andrew M. Butler, Chair of the Judges of the Arthur C. Cl...
buytickets.at
September 15, 2026 at 9:44 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
This essay from James Patrick Kelly would not be a complete history of fictional robots without thinking Naomi Kritzer, Ted Chiang, Ann Leckie, Becky Chambers, Suzanne Palmer...

Read the essay here: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says In the last two decades, advances like deep learning and the neural net revolution, the design of transformer architecture, the development of giant language models, the efficiencies of miniaturisation and the construction book in data centres have opened new imaginative spaces for stories about robots - humanoid and not - and AIs. "The Comedy of Science" -- James Patrick Kelly
September 13, 2026 at 12:48 AM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Did you know that subscribing to Speculative Insight gets you access to all the past subscriber essays?
For AUD30/yr (~USD21, GBP16, EUR19) you can read 30 (and counting!) more essays: Pratchett's men, cargo ships in space, Tamsyn Muir as cosy catastrophe... and much more!
www.speculativeinsight.com
Speculative Insight
A journal for exploring the ideas and themes that stand behind, inform, and develop out of, speculative fiction.
www.speculativeinsight.com
September 14, 2026 at 2:45 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
freyamarske.bsky.social
Last chance to read the first four chapters before the book's release tomorrow!

This week: meet Jehan, for whom I really SHOULD have invented a fantasy vocab word for Le Messy Ex-Situationship.
reactorsff.bsky.social Reactor Magazine @reactorsff.bsky.social · 2d
The only thing that can distract from a murder is a situationship.

We're excited to present the last chapter from our extended preview of @freyamarske.bsky.social's dark academia fantasy Bodies of Magic! Read chapter four before the novel's release on September 15th 📖
Bodies of Magic by Freya Marske: Chapter 4 - Reactor
Every mage with the healer’s gift has five years to prepare for the Academie's infamous Grand Exam…
reactormag.com
September 14, 2026 at 8:05 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Did you know that subscribing to Speculative Insight gets you access to all the past subscriber essays?
For AUD30/yr (~USD21, GBP16, EUR19) you can read 30 (and counting!) more essays: Pratchett's men, cargo ships in space, Tamsyn Muir as cosy catastrophe... and much more!
www.speculativeinsight.com
Speculative Insight
A journal for exploring the ideas and themes that stand behind, inform, and develop out of, speculative fiction.
www.speculativeinsight.com
September 14, 2026 at 2:45 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
vallescurarule.bsky.social
Techbros are scaremongering that SciFi concepts will wipe out humanity in 10 years!

But they're counting on you not educating yourself with *Spec Fic for Newbies*! Learn about 90 subgenres & major tropes in this Locus recommended, BSFA/BFA shortlisted series: linktr.ee/specficforne...
To the left, the cover (red and black) of "Spec Fic For Newbies: A Beginner's Guide to Writing Subgenres of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror" Vol 1 by Tiffani Angus and Val Nolan. To the right, a list of the topics covered by the book: "Learn about writing… Spaceships, Aliens, Big Dumb Objects, Robots, Military SF, Utopia, Dystopia, Apocalypses, Cyberpunk, Solarpunk, Folktales & Fairy Tales, Witches, High Fantasy, Sword & Sorcery, Grimdark, Historical Fantasy, Steampunk, Urban Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, Time Travel, Gothic Horror, Supernatural Horror, Vampires, Psychological Horror, Body Horror, Zombies, Suburban Horror, Splatterpunk, Techno Horror, and Cosmic Horror!" To the left, the cover (blue and black) of "Spec Fic For Newbies: A Beginner's Guide to Writing Subgenres of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror" Vol 2 by Tiffani Angus and Val Nolan. To the right, a list of the topics covered by the book: "Learn about writing… Space Opera, Astronauts, First-Contact Stories, Climate Fiction, Pandemic Fiction, Uplifted Animals, Submarine Stories, Mysterious Islands, Biopunk, The Multiverse, Mythic Fantasy, Fairies, Goblin Markets, Enchanted Clothing, Dragons, Cryptozoology, Body Swaps, Portal Fantasy, Comedic Fantasy, Carnivalesque, Folk Horror, Ghost Stories, Werewolves, Possessed/Cursed Items, Animals That Attack, Evil Children, Ecohorror, Gendercide, Places People Shouldn’t Go, & Last Person Left Alive Stories!" To the left, the cover (green and black) of "Spec Fic For Newbies: A Beginner's Guide to Writing Subgenres of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror" Vol 3 by Tiffani Angus and Val Nolan. To the right, a list of the topics covered by the book: "Learn about writing… Space Academies, Superheroes, Terraforming Tales, Mad Scientists, Space Westerns, SF Procedurals, Meta SF, Spy-Fi, Searches For God In Space, The End Of The Universe, Dinosaur Tales, Archaeologist Stories, Hollow Earth, Elves, Magic Schools and Dark Academia, Wizards & Sorcerers, Magical Realism, Anthropomorphic Fantasy, Fantasy of Manners, Swashbuckling Fantasy, Weird Fiction, Urban Gothic, Shapeshifters, Birthing Monsters, Alien Abductions, Fungal Horror, Bugs!!!, Kaiju, Deals With The Devil, Near-Death Experiences"
September 14, 2026 at 10:47 AM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
We're super excited to feature a new essay from James Patrick Kelly this month!

Published in his recent collection The Book of Bots, it takes a spin through the history of influential robots in fiction.

Read it here: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says The evolving genre of scientifiction - later dubbed science fiction - experienced an invasion of marauding robots in the years after R.U.R. Many were created by deluded or deranged fictional scientists, whom they then kill. "The Comedy of Science" - James Patrick Kelly
September 3, 2026 at 10:30 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Brides of Frankenstein: in The Bride!, Honeysuckle, Penny Dreadful, and now IRL with AI companions.

Read Zoe L. Tongue's discussion of how such characters are portrayed in this new essay: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says With AI companions... this belief that there could be a human-like mind there takes on a sinister edge when that companion's programmed sycophantic behaviour means that it will not (or cannot) tell you 'no'. "Permutations of The Bride: Frankenstein, Violence, and Robot-Wives" -- Zoe L. Tongue
August 10, 2026 at 10:12 AM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
In early 2024, Octavia Cade wrote this scorching essay: two fictional views on a post-capitalist society. Today we're bringing it out of the vault for everyone to read! Still feels relevant...

www.speculativeinsight.com/from-the-vault
Purple background, white text, which says What happens if we imagine a society without predators? A post-capitalist community where the ability to economically exploit others is limited, or entirely absent. What does this society look like? "Economic Predation and the End of Capitalism" -- Octavia Cade
August 13, 2026 at 10:30 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
richmondbridge.bsky.social
‘Joan, like her literary knightly kin, was reverted back to womanhood in spite of the known fact of her short hair … Artists gave her back her long hair, turning her into a woman, not a warrior’
speculativeinsight.bsky.social Speculative Insight journal @speculativeinsight.bsky.social · 2d
Joyce Chng's essay - first published in April 2024, now leaping out of the vault - points to ways in which lady knights, while challenging stereotypes, nonetheless get cut down to expected feminine standards by male medieval poets.

www.speculativeinsight.com/from-the-vault
Purple background, white text, which says In this essay, I will discuss various strategies by which the literary lady knight -and to some extent, Joan of Arc - was rendered harmless by being turned into a romantic figure ready to be rescued by the male hero... "Rendered Harmless: Strategies to Tame the Lady Knight" -- Joyce Chng
September 13, 2026 at 8:51 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
emwhite.sadbutbuildingworlds.blog
This essay is really something else (complimentary, but also: wow). @octavia-cade.bsky.social, who writes excellent cli-fi, climate horror and plenty else, rises to the occasion here.
speculativeinsight.bsky.social Speculative Insight journal @speculativeinsight.bsky.social · Aug 14
In early 2024, Octavia Cade wrote this scorching essay: two fictional views on a post-capitalist society. Today we're bringing it out of the vault for everyone to read! Still feels relevant...

www.speculativeinsight.com/from-the-vault
Purple background, white text, which says What happens if we imagine a society without predators? A post-capitalist community where the ability to economically exploit others is limited, or entirely absent. What does this society look like? "Economic Predation and the End of Capitalism" -- Octavia Cade
September 13, 2026 at 8:49 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Joyce Chng's essay - first published in April 2024, now leaping out of the vault - points to ways in which lady knights, while challenging stereotypes, nonetheless get cut down to expected feminine standards by male medieval poets.

www.speculativeinsight.com/from-the-vault
Purple background, white text, which says In this essay, I will discuss various strategies by which the literary lady knight -and to some extent, Joan of Arc - was rendered harmless by being turned into a romantic figure ready to be rescued by the male hero... "Rendered Harmless: Strategies to Tame the Lady Knight" -- Joyce Chng
September 13, 2026 at 8:45 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Brides of Frankenstein: in The Bride!, Honeysuckle, Penny Dreadful, and now IRL with AI companions.

Read Zoe L. Tongue's discussion of how such characters are portrayed in this new essay: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says With AI companions... this belief that there could be a human-like mind there takes on a sinister edge when that companion's programmed sycophantic behaviour means that it will not (or cannot) tell you 'no'. "Permutations of The Bride: Frankenstein, Violence, and Robot-Wives" -- Zoe L. Tongue
August 10, 2026 at 1:15 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
In early 2024, Octavia Cade wrote this scorching essay: two fictional views on a post-capitalist society. Today we're bringing it out of the vault for everyone to read! Still feels relevant...

www.speculativeinsight.com/from-the-vault
Purple background, white text, which says What happens if we imagine a society without predators? A post-capitalist community where the ability to economically exploit others is limited, or entirely absent. What does this society look like? "Economic Predation and the End of Capitalism" -- Octavia Cade
August 14, 2026 at 8:56 AM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Just over two years since publication, Octavia Cade's essay looking at fictional post-capitalist societies is still making some... well, strong points.

Read it now:
www.speculativeinsight.com/from-the-vault
Purple background, white text, which says Ideally, we could construct a world where education reduces the willingness to exploit other people simply to make more money... but if it doesn't? Are we supposed to suffer them forever? I suppose we could always just kill them. "Economic Predation and the End of Capitalism" -- Octavia Cade
August 14, 2026 at 6:15 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
James Patrick Kelly's new collection, The Book of Bots (from Fairwood Press), includes two new essays... and we're excited to be publishing one here.

Read this spin through the history of fictional robots here: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says Purple background, white text, which says Biologically speaking, the idea that a robot might become human is absurd. However, it has metaphorical weight if we're talking about robots that possess self-awareness and the capacity to have subjective experiences, emotions, and consciousness. "The Comedy of Science" -- James Patrick Kelly
September 12, 2026 at 3:59 AM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
1649digger.bsky.social
This is a wonderful essay!
speculativeinsight.bsky.social Speculative Insight journal @speculativeinsight.bsky.social · 4d
James Patrick Kelly's new collection, The Book of Bots (from Fairwood Press), includes two new essays... and we're excited to be publishing one here.

Read this spin through the history of fictional robots here: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says Purple background, white text, which says Biologically speaking, the idea that a robot might become human is absurd. However, it has metaphorical weight if we're talking about robots that possess self-awareness and the capacity to have subjective experiences, emotions, and consciousness. "The Comedy of Science" -- James Patrick Kelly
September 13, 2026 at 12:18 AM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
This essay from James Patrick Kelly would not be a complete history of fictional robots without thinking Naomi Kritzer, Ted Chiang, Ann Leckie, Becky Chambers, Suzanne Palmer...

Read the essay here: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says In the last two decades, advances like deep learning and the neural net revolution, the design of transformer architecture, the development of giant language models, the efficiencies of miniaturisation and the construction book in data centres have opened new imaginative spaces for stories about robots - humanoid and not - and AIs. "The Comedy of Science" -- James Patrick Kelly
September 13, 2026 at 12:48 AM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Make a band edible:

Goldfrappe

Well, drinkable anyway.
premeemohamed.com Premee Mohamed @premeemohamed.com · 3d
Make a band edible:

Orchestral Turnovers In The Dark
carturo222.bsky.social Arturo Serrano @carturo222.bsky.social · 3d
Make a band edible:

Tamallica
September 12, 2026 at 10:18 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Ways in which poets had dealt with lady knights in their fictional works also got applied to Joan of Arc, as Joyce Chng shows in this essay we're reprinting from April 2024...

www.speculativeinsight.com/from-the-vault
Purple background, white text, which says Joan of Arc transcended her traditionally feminine boundaries, took on a male persona and embodied a male spirit, thus enabling her to assume the role of a warrior. Joan was, then, an exceptional woman... "Rendered Harmless: Strategies to Tame the Lady Knight" -- Joyce Chng
September 12, 2026 at 10:00 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Amelia Brown draws interesting distinctions between novels that have funny moments and novels that count as genuinely "comedic" in this new subscriber essay.

Subscribe now to read: AUD30/yr (~USD21, GBP16) www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says Part of being a comedic novel comes down to plot. Is the plot itself funny? ... a comedic novel has as much humorous in the plot as in the scene. "What is a Comedic Fantasy Novel, Why Aren't There Very Many, and Why Should There Be More?" -- Amelia Brown
August 21, 2026 at 7:02 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
The essay appears in Kelly's new collection, The Book of Bots, from Fairwood Press.
September 7, 2026 at 8:30 PM
Reposted by Speculative Insight journal
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
This essay from James Patrick Kelly would not be a complete history of fictional robots without thinking Naomi Kritzer, Ted Chiang, Ann Leckie, Becky Chambers, Suzanne Palmer...

Read the essay here: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says In the last two decades, advances like deep learning and the neural net revolution, the design of transformer architecture, the development of giant language models, the efficiencies of miniaturisation and the construction book in data centres have opened new imaginative spaces for stories about robots - humanoid and not - and AIs. "The Comedy of Science" -- James Patrick Kelly
September 7, 2026 at 8:30 PM