Ann Leckie
@annleckie.com
Author of the award-winning Ancillary Justice. Lives in St Louis.
Reposted by Ann Leckie
i think a (perhaps underappreciated) aspect of this whole situation is the extent to which every elite profession is filled with people who excel at drawing attention and want to be famous more than they want to do the actual job
December 11, 2025 at 2:18 PM
i think a (perhaps underappreciated) aspect of this whole situation is the extent to which every elite profession is filled with people who excel at drawing attention and want to be famous more than they want to do the actual job
Agree, plus those "dusty tea bags" are dusty because no one at Starbucks in the US has even the slightest idea of how to prepare tea that isn't iced orange pekoe.
If you wanna go low or no caffeine there are many lovely tisanes etc, camellia sinensis is not actually that low in caffeine.
If you wanna go low or no caffeine there are many lovely tisanes etc, camellia sinensis is not actually that low in caffeine.
So I can’t read this for Reasons, but the first picture shows someone with matcha and guuuuys matcha is just chock full of caffeine. It’s more caffeinated than coffee.
Cafes across the U.S. are embracing the low- and no-caffeine lifestyle, with options that are a far cry from dusty tea bags and rewarmed decaf. nyti.ms/3XKlqoj
December 11, 2025 at 2:14 PM
Agree, plus those "dusty tea bags" are dusty because no one at Starbucks in the US has even the slightest idea of how to prepare tea that isn't iced orange pekoe.
If you wanna go low or no caffeine there are many lovely tisanes etc, camellia sinensis is not actually that low in caffeine.
If you wanna go low or no caffeine there are many lovely tisanes etc, camellia sinensis is not actually that low in caffeine.
Reposted by Ann Leckie
this is spearfishing, which is incredibly effective. AI gives any old bad actor the ability to target victims with a high degree of personalization, and polish that was impossible two or three years ago. people expect scams to look like scams, and when they don’t, they get hustled
There's a tendency to look at these after the fact and go "I would never fall for this" but I have definitely gotten emails from journalists or public figures I don't know, done 5-ish minutes of googling and replied. At first it looks like a totally harmless, plausible message!
December 10, 2025 at 5:29 PM
this is spearfishing, which is incredibly effective. AI gives any old bad actor the ability to target victims with a high degree of personalization, and polish that was impossible two or three years ago. people expect scams to look like scams, and when they don’t, they get hustled
Reposted by Ann Leckie
Scam alert: Someone is pretending to be me and reaching out to authors. The pitch contains enough specific details that it sounds plausible at first.
This is not me! I'm so sorry to anyone who has fallen for this.
This is not me! I'm so sorry to anyone who has fallen for this.
December 10, 2025 at 4:46 PM
Scam alert: Someone is pretending to be me and reaching out to authors. The pitch contains enough specific details that it sounds plausible at first.
This is not me! I'm so sorry to anyone who has fallen for this.
This is not me! I'm so sorry to anyone who has fallen for this.
WEATHER UPDATE
it fuckin wimdy
it fuckin wimdy
December 10, 2025 at 5:01 PM
WEATHER UPDATE
it fuckin wimdy
it fuckin wimdy
So. Much. Fun.
Begging the Author's most exquisite indulgence but @annleckie.com how much fun, exactly, did you have writing the character(s) of Presger Translator Dlique.. or is it Zeiat?
December 10, 2025 at 1:39 PM
So. Much. Fun.
Reposted by Ann Leckie
Users of Gen AI climb on the backs of actual creators and stick flags between their shoulder blades, treating them like territory. Us and our work are just ladders to them. The only work they really want to do is to climb over us and claim our talent and abilities as their own.
December 9, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Users of Gen AI climb on the backs of actual creators and stick flags between their shoulder blades, treating them like territory. Us and our work are just ladders to them. The only work they really want to do is to climb over us and claim our talent and abilities as their own.
Reposted by Ann Leckie
I said it before, will say it again -- generative AI fetishizes "ideas" while sneering at effort, execution, and education. That, despite Gen-AI being built on and out of other people's effort, execution and education.
A.I. and the Fetishization Of Ideas
In writing and in dispensing my (very dubious, probably shady) writing advice, I am often keen to note that ideas are bullshit. Most writers treat them like precious gems when really, ideas are lik…
terribleminds.com
December 9, 2025 at 2:01 PM
I said it before, will say it again -- generative AI fetishizes "ideas" while sneering at effort, execution, and education. That, despite Gen-AI being built on and out of other people's effort, execution and education.
Reposted by Ann Leckie
This is the bad writing advice I've given students (and myself) a thousand times.
It's not untrue. It's just insufficient.
From my newsletter: why "jUsT fOCuS oN tHe wRitiNg" is only half the story.
undercover-in-the-apocalypse.ghost.io/actually-no-...
It's not untrue. It's just insufficient.
From my newsletter: why "jUsT fOCuS oN tHe wRitiNg" is only half the story.
undercover-in-the-apocalypse.ghost.io/actually-no-...
Actually, no, it's not JUST about the writing.
It's something I've said a thousand times.
To my students. To myself. To despairing strangers on social media, staring down the barrel of a publishing industry where nothing seems to make sense anymo...
undercover-in-the-apocalypse.ghost.io
December 9, 2025 at 4:02 PM
This is the bad writing advice I've given students (and myself) a thousand times.
It's not untrue. It's just insufficient.
From my newsletter: why "jUsT fOCuS oN tHe wRitiNg" is only half the story.
undercover-in-the-apocalypse.ghost.io/actually-no-...
It's not untrue. It's just insufficient.
From my newsletter: why "jUsT fOCuS oN tHe wRitiNg" is only half the story.
undercover-in-the-apocalypse.ghost.io/actually-no-...
Reposted by Ann Leckie
faster-than-light travel is a lie in the exact way that "flat earth" is a lie or young-earth creationism is a lie.
i don't care if it's "fun to think about." if you have a public platform (as a science journalist or a science fiction writer) you should not use that to spread disinformation.
i don't care if it's "fun to think about." if you have a public platform (as a science journalist or a science fiction writer) you should not use that to spread disinformation.
December 9, 2025 at 1:26 AM
faster-than-light travel is a lie in the exact way that "flat earth" is a lie or young-earth creationism is a lie.
i don't care if it's "fun to think about." if you have a public platform (as a science journalist or a science fiction writer) you should not use that to spread disinformation.
i don't care if it's "fun to think about." if you have a public platform (as a science journalist or a science fiction writer) you should not use that to spread disinformation.
Reposted by Ann Leckie
not really! science fiction and fantasy are primarily marketing categories. but also, if there is an aesthetic distinction, it isn't "plausibility." Le Guin said it better than I can: www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/342990...
Excerpt from The Left Hand of Darkness | Penguin Random House Canada
The 50th anniversary edition of Ursula K. Le Guin's classic Hugo and Nebula Award-winning novel that explores the effects of gender on culture and society--with new material from David Mitchell and Ch...
www.penguinrandomhouse.ca
December 7, 2025 at 12:03 PM
not really! science fiction and fantasy are primarily marketing categories. but also, if there is an aesthetic distinction, it isn't "plausibility." Le Guin said it better than I can: www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/342990...
Reposted by Ann Leckie
i know it's trite but: most science fiction is not trying to predict the future.
i keep seeing people stumbling over this. "well, it wouldn't be plausible to have--" okay but maybe the author wasn't trying for "plausible." usually they aren't.
what other goals might the author have had?
i keep seeing people stumbling over this. "well, it wouldn't be plausible to have--" okay but maybe the author wasn't trying for "plausible." usually they aren't.
what other goals might the author have had?
December 6, 2025 at 11:40 PM
i know it's trite but: most science fiction is not trying to predict the future.
i keep seeing people stumbling over this. "well, it wouldn't be plausible to have--" okay but maybe the author wasn't trying for "plausible." usually they aren't.
what other goals might the author have had?
i keep seeing people stumbling over this. "well, it wouldn't be plausible to have--" okay but maybe the author wasn't trying for "plausible." usually they aren't.
what other goals might the author have had?
Reposted by Ann Leckie
You can’t tell if someone is disabled just by looking at them.
There’s no such thing as the “genuinely disabled”.
You are not entitled to a person’s entire medical history just so you can decide whether to believe them or not.
People are not faking disability, most are trying to fake being well.
There’s no such thing as the “genuinely disabled”.
You are not entitled to a person’s entire medical history just so you can decide whether to believe them or not.
People are not faking disability, most are trying to fake being well.
December 4, 2025 at 5:52 AM
You can’t tell if someone is disabled just by looking at them.
There’s no such thing as the “genuinely disabled”.
You are not entitled to a person’s entire medical history just so you can decide whether to believe them or not.
People are not faking disability, most are trying to fake being well.
There’s no such thing as the “genuinely disabled”.
You are not entitled to a person’s entire medical history just so you can decide whether to believe them or not.
People are not faking disability, most are trying to fake being well.
I read this, unsurprisingly it's really really good!
(Repost with screenshot)
The Subtle Art of Folding Space got a starred review from Library Journal!
"Chu finds a delightful and poignant intersection between the multiverse, family dysfunction, and dim sum in his debut novel."
The Subtle Art of Folding Space got a starred review from Library Journal!
"Chu finds a delightful and poignant intersection between the multiverse, family dysfunction, and dim sum in his debut novel."
December 4, 2025 at 5:05 PM
I read this, unsurprisingly it's really really good!
Reposted by Ann Leckie
I thought the book was stunning! It's brilliantly and defiantly queer.
WHAT WE ARE SEEKING got a starred review in Library Journal! A perceptive one, too. Bujold's ETHAN OF ATHOS is definitely a book I thought about while writing it
December 4, 2025 at 4:13 PM
I thought the book was stunning! It's brilliantly and defiantly queer.
Reposted by Ann Leckie
The garum zipper pouch!
The last Pasts Imperfect of 2025 is out! The incomparable @toriflee.bsky.social has our annual ancient world gift guide. Then, saving Sudan's cultural heritage, cats in Ancient China, Indigenous canoe-making, ancient disability, new ancient world journals by @yaleclassicslib.bsky.social & much more!
Pasts Imperfect (12.4.25)
This week, the one and only Tori Lee returns with her annual ancient world gift guide. Then, racing to preserve Sudan's cultural heritage, a new study on domestic cats assesses the leopard cats of anc...
pasts-imperfect.ghost.io
December 4, 2025 at 12:53 PM
The garum zipper pouch!
Reposted by Ann Leckie
FINALLY.
The bronze statue depicting the eponymous cybernetic star of Paul Verhoeven’s 1987 set-in-Detroit sci-fi satire was installed in Eastern Market on Wednesday, nearly 15 years after someone proposed it in a viral social media post.
Detroit finally has a RoboCop statue - Detroit Metro Times
Nearly 15 years later, Detroit finally has its statue of RoboCop. The bronze statue depicting the eponymous cybernetic star of Paul Verhoeven’s 1987 set-in-Detroit sci-fi satire was installed in East...
www.metrotimes.com
December 4, 2025 at 1:05 PM
FINALLY.
Reposted by Ann Leckie
Historian of eugenics here. I don't normally like to retweet bad arguments, but this is such a fundamental misunderstanding of eugenics, I think it's important to point out. I don't have time to debunk all of the ways this is inaccurate, but I'll highlight a few things and then recommend some books🧵
December 4, 2025 at 12:44 PM
Historian of eugenics here. I don't normally like to retweet bad arguments, but this is such a fundamental misunderstanding of eugenics, I think it's important to point out. I don't have time to debunk all of the ways this is inaccurate, but I'll highlight a few things and then recommend some books🧵
Reposted by Ann Leckie
No-strings-attached, zero-means-testing, no-questions-asked cash payouts have been proven, over and over again, to be the most effective form of charity/aid going.
It gets people in housing, and it saves the state money. We know this. It's fact, not theory.
It gets people in housing, and it saves the state money. We know this. It's fact, not theory.
An Oregon pilot program giving cash to homeless youths sees a staggering reduction in homelessness. The program gave participants $1,000 cash payments each month for two years, and at the end of the project's first phase, 91% of participants reported being in stable housing.
Oregon pilot program giving cash to homeless youths sees staggering reduction in homelessness
The state program gave participants $1,000 cash payments each month for two years. At the end of the project's first phase, 91% of participants reported being in stable housing.
www.streetroots.org
December 3, 2025 at 7:12 AM
No-strings-attached, zero-means-testing, no-questions-asked cash payouts have been proven, over and over again, to be the most effective form of charity/aid going.
It gets people in housing, and it saves the state money. We know this. It's fact, not theory.
It gets people in housing, and it saves the state money. We know this. It's fact, not theory.
Reposted by Ann Leckie
genuinely surprised at what a small following Jennifer Laughran's tumblr has. she's a senior agent at Andrea Brown and has a permanently open Q&A for authors. an amazing resource and opportunity! an incredibly generous one, too.
www.tumblr.com/literaticat
www.tumblr.com/literaticat
@literaticat · Ask the Agent:
I'm Jennifer Laughran. I'm a Senior Agent at the Andrea Brown Literary Agency, representing great authors and illustrators of children's and YA books. I'm also a life-long bookseller and sloth fan. As...
www.tumblr.com
December 3, 2025 at 12:00 PM
genuinely surprised at what a small following Jennifer Laughran's tumblr has. she's a senior agent at Andrea Brown and has a permanently open Q&A for authors. an amazing resource and opportunity! an incredibly generous one, too.
www.tumblr.com/literaticat
www.tumblr.com/literaticat
I love ILL. It is the bestest ever.
A couple weeks ago we got a lovely note from someone on the other side of the country thanking us profusely for ILLing a book to them. Curious, we looked up the book they borrowed.
It would have cost $1,200 for them to purchase it.
ILL is one of the things I love most about libraries.
It would have cost $1,200 for them to purchase it.
ILL is one of the things I love most about libraries.
Requested a book through ILL over break. It arrived today. Libraries man.
December 3, 2025 at 1:23 PM
I love ILL. It is the bestest ever.
Reposted by Ann Leckie
If we're talking about the alleged rampant scourge of non-disabled "cheaters," it's worth noting that extended time has a huge impact on test scores for disabled students, but only nominal impact on test scores for non-disabled students.
So if someone "doesn't need it?" Let them have it anyway
So if someone "doesn't need it?" Let them have it anyway
December 3, 2025 at 1:03 PM
If we're talking about the alleged rampant scourge of non-disabled "cheaters," it's worth noting that extended time has a huge impact on test scores for disabled students, but only nominal impact on test scores for non-disabled students.
So if someone "doesn't need it?" Let them have it anyway
So if someone "doesn't need it?" Let them have it anyway
Reposted by Ann Leckie
"Measurements Expressed as Units of Separation," an absolutely amazing story about having an affair with your professor who might be a Naga, is finally available for free online.
fucking love this story. everyone should read it. www.thedarkmagazine.com/measurements...
fucking love this story. everyone should read it. www.thedarkmagazine.com/measurements...
Measurements Expressed as Units of Separation - The Dark Magazine
7 centimeters of my ring finger on my right hand. Sliced with a hot knife through gristle and tendon and bone, as though it were as soft as an ingot of butter. 2490 kiloliters of water had once ripped...
www.thedarkmagazine.com
December 2, 2025 at 9:13 PM
"Measurements Expressed as Units of Separation," an absolutely amazing story about having an affair with your professor who might be a Naga, is finally available for free online.
fucking love this story. everyone should read it. www.thedarkmagazine.com/measurements...
fucking love this story. everyone should read it. www.thedarkmagazine.com/measurements...
I mean, why care if someone takes a little longer for a test? IME the jobs that require speedy work & problem solving don't generally need college--I'm thinking, like, food servers and such. I guess doctors do, but otherwise? An extra 30 minutes isn't an issue.
December 2, 2025 at 9:42 PM
I mean, why care if someone takes a little longer for a test? IME the jobs that require speedy work & problem solving don't generally need college--I'm thinking, like, food servers and such. I guess doctors do, but otherwise? An extra 30 minutes isn't an issue.
Reposted by Ann Leckie
I would rather have a world where we all trust each other and accept that a few people will take advantage of it than a world where folks have to perform disability constantly in order to get the help they need. Let kids have an extra 30 minutes on the test, jesus fucking christ
December 2, 2025 at 8:32 PM
I would rather have a world where we all trust each other and accept that a few people will take advantage of it than a world where folks have to perform disability constantly in order to get the help they need. Let kids have an extra 30 minutes on the test, jesus fucking christ