Ruth EJ Booth (she/they)
@ruthejbooth.bsky.social
SFFH Author/Critic. BSFA & British Fantasy Award Winner. Shoreline of Infinity columnist. GSFWC. #SGSAH funded. #StrathLife
Queer Neurodivergent Human with Chronic Illness.
Stories and more: https://linktr.ee/ruthejbooth
Queer Neurodivergent Human with Chronic Illness.
Stories and more: https://linktr.ee/ruthejbooth
Pinned
**New Blog** Thank you, everyone, for your kind Birthday greetings! As thanks (as well as apology for missing World Fantasycon later this month), please accept this wee seasonal gift from me...
www.ruthbooth.com/2025/10/hall...
www.ruthbooth.com/2025/10/hall...
Hello to all the recent new followers here. Alongside my own news on fiction and things, I tend to share a certain amount of Politics, Science, being a Plant Parent, Cool Things in SF and Fantasy, Music, and random rants about living in capitalism as a neurodivergent, chronically-ill individual.
November 27, 2025 at 7:04 PM
Hello to all the recent new followers here. Alongside my own news on fiction and things, I tend to share a certain amount of Politics, Science, being a Plant Parent, Cool Things in SF and Fantasy, Music, and random rants about living in capitalism as a neurodivergent, chronically-ill individual.
Shout out to anyone squinting out the window for five minutes solid trying to work out if it's raining and, if it is, exactly how badly.
The MVPs check out both sides of the house.
The MVPs check out both sides of the house.
November 27, 2025 at 2:15 PM
Shout out to anyone squinting out the window for five minutes solid trying to work out if it's raining and, if it is, exactly how badly.
The MVPs check out both sides of the house.
The MVPs check out both sides of the house.
Reposted by Ruth EJ Booth (she/they)
£15,000 prize launched for writers from refugee and migrant backgrounds
£15,000 prize launched for writers from refugee and migrant backgrounds
The Footnote x Counterpoints prize is intended to uncover new literary voices whose work reflects the experiences of migration
Footnote Press and Counterpoints Arts have announced a new fiction award celebrating writers from refugee and migrant backgrounds, offering a £15,000 prize and a publishing deal for the winner.
The Footnote x Counterpoints prize for fiction, launching on Thursday, marks the second time the two organisations have collaborated on a prize. In 2023, writers were invited to submit narrative nonfiction, but now the prize will focus on fiction for the first time. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
November 27, 2025 at 12:19 AM
£15,000 prize launched for writers from refugee and migrant backgrounds
Employers across industries notoriously use a definition of "private" that goes way beyond the reasonable understanding of any person using forums, messageboards and similar social media. Combine this with anti-solidarity behaviour, and this creates a horribly hostile work environment.
EXCLUSIVE: So far it's been unclear what proof Rockstar Games has to justify its firing of 34 union members, who it claims were leaking "confidential information in a public forum".
PMG has now seen some of the messages which contributed to this decision being made.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TvW...
PMG has now seen some of the messages which contributed to this decision being made.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TvW...
The Messages Rockstar Saw Before Firing 34 Union Members
YouTube video by People Make Games
www.youtube.com
November 26, 2025 at 3:12 PM
Employers across industries notoriously use a definition of "private" that goes way beyond the reasonable understanding of any person using forums, messageboards and similar social media. Combine this with anti-solidarity behaviour, and this creates a horribly hostile work environment.
Auto Centipede.
So this happened in Oslo yesterday. Four articulated buses got stuck in a roundabout.
November 26, 2025 at 2:47 PM
Auto Centipede.
Reposted by Ruth EJ Booth (she/they)
short fiction, articles/non-fiction, guest speaking, awards, various misc
November 26, 2025 at 1:26 PM
short fiction, articles/non-fiction, guest speaking, awards, various misc
Reposted by Ruth EJ Booth (she/they)
I can't repost this so quoting instead:
"I know we know this, but authors need to get better at talking about how they actually make their money. Stop pretending it's from the books."
But it IS basically books: 30% original pub, 30% foreign, 30% tv/film and/or royalties. the other 10% is--
"I know we know this, but authors need to get better at talking about how they actually make their money. Stop pretending it's from the books."
But it IS basically books: 30% original pub, 30% foreign, 30% tv/film and/or royalties. the other 10% is--
November 26, 2025 at 1:25 PM
I can't repost this so quoting instead:
"I know we know this, but authors need to get better at talking about how they actually make their money. Stop pretending it's from the books."
But it IS basically books: 30% original pub, 30% foreign, 30% tv/film and/or royalties. the other 10% is--
"I know we know this, but authors need to get better at talking about how they actually make their money. Stop pretending it's from the books."
But it IS basically books: 30% original pub, 30% foreign, 30% tv/film and/or royalties. the other 10% is--
Why am I suddenly thinking of Judge Death?
OpenAI says they aren't liable for the suicide of a user their chat bot urged to kill himself because suicide is a violation of the TOS
Additionally, OpenAI argues its not liable because Raine, by using ChatGPT for self-harm, broke its terms of service
November 26, 2025 at 8:24 AM
Why am I suddenly thinking of Judge Death?
Reposted by Ruth EJ Booth (she/they)
This is interesting. Amazon UK is selling the paperback of Fight Like A Girl #2 for £4.64, which is less than the ebook price and less than it costs from the printer. www.amazon.co.uk/Fight-Like-G...
Amazon.co.uk
www.amazon.co.uk
November 25, 2025 at 9:11 AM
This is interesting. Amazon UK is selling the paperback of Fight Like A Girl #2 for £4.64, which is less than the ebook price and less than it costs from the printer. www.amazon.co.uk/Fight-Like-G...
Wishing you and yours a contemplative #GazpachoSoupDay. Save a career today. Tell your friend that Gazpacho Soup is served cold and watch them go up, up, up the zigurat, lickety-split.
a man in a military uniform is holding a clipboard and a light bulb .
Alt: Arnold Rimmer, a man in a khaki uniform, giving an elaborate salute.
media.tenor.com
November 25, 2025 at 8:56 AM
Wishing you and yours a contemplative #GazpachoSoupDay. Save a career today. Tell your friend that Gazpacho Soup is served cold and watch them go up, up, up the zigurat, lickety-split.
Reposted by Ruth EJ Booth (she/they)
November 25, 2025 at 4:15 AM
Reposted by Ruth EJ Booth (she/they)
just incredibly thrilled to announce that after months and months of uncertainty over the future of the game, and several I have bought Zombies, Run!, the game I co-created and have been making for the past 12 years:
zombiesrungame.com
observer.co.uk/the-critics/...
zombiesrungame.com
observer.co.uk/the-critics/...
I’m a novelist who’s just bought a video games company. Here’s why you should care about games writing | The Observer
observer.co.uk
November 24, 2025 at 6:08 AM
just incredibly thrilled to announce that after months and months of uncertainty over the future of the game, and several I have bought Zombies, Run!, the game I co-created and have been making for the past 12 years:
zombiesrungame.com
observer.co.uk/the-critics/...
zombiesrungame.com
observer.co.uk/the-critics/...
Reposted by Ruth EJ Booth (she/they)
The one thing I really miss about the 'older world' is browsing library stacks, and card catalogues. However much I appreciate databases and retrieving what I want in moments, the serendipity of 'the book next to the one I wanted' and 'the article in the same issue' cannot be replicated. #Libraries
November 24, 2025 at 11:39 AM
The one thing I really miss about the 'older world' is browsing library stacks, and card catalogues. However much I appreciate databases and retrieving what I want in moments, the serendipity of 'the book next to the one I wanted' and 'the article in the same issue' cannot be replicated. #Libraries
Juliet hits on a very important point here. If we don't trust tech companies anymore, will they make more effort to appear trustworthy -- or will they assume that, since we use their products anyway, they can do what they like?
Food for thought in the "Shove LLMs-in-everything" era.
Food for thought in the "Shove LLMs-in-everything" era.
So the 'Gmail is now training its LLM on your email' alert was a genuine misunderstanding due to unclear language on their part and the fact users no longer trust Google not to be evil. I wonder if this uproar will give the decision makers there pause for thought. Not counting on that happening 1/5
November 23, 2025 at 9:24 AM
Juliet hits on a very important point here. If we don't trust tech companies anymore, will they make more effort to appear trustworthy -- or will they assume that, since we use their products anyway, they can do what they like?
Food for thought in the "Shove LLMs-in-everything" era.
Food for thought in the "Shove LLMs-in-everything" era.
Reposted by Ruth EJ Booth (she/they)
Treasure trove of Peter Capaldi's Dr Who memorabilia in raffle to help save Barrhead church
Am sure there will be some Dr Who fans here. For a local(ISH) cause...
www.glasgowlive.co.uk/whats-on/fil...
www.glasgowlive.co.uk/whats-on/fil...
November 22, 2025 at 8:41 PM
Treasure trove of Peter Capaldi's Dr Who memorabilia in raffle to help save Barrhead church
Reposted by Ruth EJ Booth (she/they)
Maternal mortality came down over history because of specific, measurable interventions.
Human childbirth is difficult and hazardous for both mother and child. Early adaptations to this hazard were to have more children, which worked at a human population level, but didn't change individual risk.
Human childbirth is difficult and hazardous for both mother and child. Early adaptations to this hazard were to have more children, which worked at a human population level, but didn't change individual risk.
This is one of the most horrific and evil things I have ever read. www.theguardian.com/world/ng-int...
Influencers made millions pushing ‘wild’ births – now the Free Birth Society is linked to baby deaths around the world
A year-long investigation reveals how mothers lost children after being radicalised by uplifting podcast tales of births without midwives or doctors
www.theguardian.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:28 PM
Maternal mortality came down over history because of specific, measurable interventions.
Human childbirth is difficult and hazardous for both mother and child. Early adaptations to this hazard were to have more children, which worked at a human population level, but didn't change individual risk.
Human childbirth is difficult and hazardous for both mother and child. Early adaptations to this hazard were to have more children, which worked at a human population level, but didn't change individual risk.
Reposted by Ruth EJ Booth (she/they)
@priyajsridhar.bsky.social explains her essay about Kelly Link's short stories in this short video.
Subscribe to read: AUD30/yr gets you an extra essay per month! (About USD19 / GBP15.)
www.speculativeinsight.com/subs
Subscribe to read: AUD30/yr gets you an extra essay per month! (About USD19 / GBP15.)
www.speculativeinsight.com/subs
November 18, 2025 at 6:04 PM
@priyajsridhar.bsky.social explains her essay about Kelly Link's short stories in this short video.
Subscribe to read: AUD30/yr gets you an extra essay per month! (About USD19 / GBP15.)
www.speculativeinsight.com/subs
Subscribe to read: AUD30/yr gets you an extra essay per month! (About USD19 / GBP15.)
www.speculativeinsight.com/subs
Regardless of whether or not the Krasnov story is true, that the codename would not only be that of an Ataman of the Don Cossacks but also a Nazi collaborator is a stroke of genius.
November 22, 2025 at 8:42 AM
Regardless of whether or not the Krasnov story is true, that the codename would not only be that of an Ataman of the Don Cossacks but also a Nazi collaborator is a stroke of genius.
But there is a techmological fix. It's just Low Tech, not High Tech.
Consider advancing yourself rather than just speeding up the planet eater.
Consider advancing yourself rather than just speeding up the planet eater.
If people in your team or organisation are using AI notetakers as a way of coping with too many meetings and a culture of presenteeism, there's not a technological fix for this. The answer is to have fewer, better organised meetings www.careful.industries/blog/2025-11...
November 21, 2025 at 8:48 AM
But there is a techmological fix. It's just Low Tech, not High Tech.
Consider advancing yourself rather than just speeding up the planet eater.
Consider advancing yourself rather than just speeding up the planet eater.
Reposted by Ruth EJ Booth (she/they)
This week, I withdrew from a speaking engagement at a public university because they sent me a list of prohibited “words & concepts.” I will not humor this censorship. It does a disservice to the stories I’m discussing & the audience, who deserve unfettered access to information & conversation.
November 20, 2025 at 10:20 PM
This week, I withdrew from a speaking engagement at a public university because they sent me a list of prohibited “words & concepts.” I will not humor this censorship. It does a disservice to the stories I’m discussing & the audience, who deserve unfettered access to information & conversation.
Anyone remember WeWork?
“But the most absurd & preposterous of all… was one started by an unknown adventurer, entitled ‘A company for carrying on an undertaking of great advantage, but nobody to know what it is’”
—Charles Mackay (1814–1889) on the South Sea Bubble, in Extraordinary Popular Delusions & the Madness of Crowds
—Charles Mackay (1814–1889) on the South Sea Bubble, in Extraordinary Popular Delusions & the Madness of Crowds
What if the A.I. bubble “is an inevitable part of developing and adopting a revolutionary tool that will fundamentally improve productivity and growth?” Mohamed El-Erian writes.
November 20, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Anyone remember WeWork?