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speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Speculative Insight journal
@speculativeinsight.bsky.social
1.9K followers 310 following 2.5K 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/
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speculativeinsight.bsky.social
In this new subscriber essay, @priyajsridhar.bsky.social looks at what makes two Kelly Link stories so utterly intriguing on a re-read.

Subscribe now to read: AUD30/yr (~USD19 or GBP15) - an extra essay a month and an exclusive-to-book essay every six months!
www.speculativeinsight.com/subs
Purple background, white text, which says There is no single interpretation of one Kelly Link tale, even when you know the authorial intention. "Why Kelly Link is the Henry James of Speculative Fiction" -- Priya Sridhar
November 14, 2025 at 8:45 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
And these are the subs-essays: more questions of representation and genre, more Pratchett and Tolkien and also Kingfisher; more empire; forensics in SFF, and Alan Moore's London.
(Subscribe for AUD30 to get access to all of them!)
Screenshot of the subscriber essays in Speculative Insight. Essay titles include The Empire of the Radch and the Injustice of Justice; Dispatches from Other Londons; War and Empire in Post Second World War Science Fiction. Screenshot of the subscriber essays in Speculative Insight. Essay titles include Different Types of Strength, Should Galadriel have taken the Ring? Men Who Respect Witches IV Screenshot of the subscriber essays in Speculative Insight. Essay titles include Reimagining Disability in YA Fantasy; Forensics for Fairytales; Untangling Quiet Screenshot of the subscriber essays in Speculative Insight: Romantic Lead Balloons
November 9, 2025 at 10:06 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
These are the free essays... there's questions of representation and genre, there's Pratchett, there's Tolkien, there's families, Warhammer, the Dublin Portal, and living in an empire...
Screenshot of the free essays in Speculative Insight. Essay titles include Almost a Witch, Lives under Empire, Towards a Taxonomy of Historical Science Fiction. Screenshot of the free essays in Speculative Insight. Essay titles include Glass Geographies, Upwardly Mobile and Hating it, The Dublin Portal... or the Dublin Intrusion? Screenshot of the free essays in Speculative Insight. Essay titles include In the Grim Darkness of the Far Future there are Only Warriors, What Lies and Threats, Celibacy & the Single Wizzard Screenshot of the free essays in Speculative Insight. Essay titles include The SEA is Whose? and Families of the Future.
November 9, 2025 at 10:01 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
This excellent essay from Freyja Stokes examines the ways in which Terry Pratchett accurately portrays historical sex work in Europe, and its close connections to witchcraft.

Read it now! Tell your friends! www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says The history of sex work is not only one of marginalisation. It is also a history of real-world people who, like Rosemary Palm, work collectively with their communities and allies to push for improvements, protections, social change, and legal legitimacy. "Almost a Witch" -- Freyja Stokes
November 5, 2025 at 12:45 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
This time last year, @tansyrr.bsky.social gave us her list of the great (male) brutes and villains of the #Discworld...

Read it here (for free!): www.speculativeinsight.com/essays/brutes-villains
Purple background, white text, which says In the Discworld, true power-hungry evil tends to go hand-in-hand with a willingness to do a lot of admin. "Brutes, Villains, & Bureaucrats" -- Tansy Rayner Roberts
November 4, 2025 at 11:20 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
This excellent essay from Freyja Stokes examines the ways in which Terry Pratchett accurately portrays historical sex work in Europe, and its close connections to witchcraft.

Read it now! Tell your friends! www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says The history of sex work is not only one of marginalisation. It is also a history of real-world people who, like Rosemary Palm, work collectively with their communities and allies to push for improvements, protections, social change, and legal legitimacy. "Almost a Witch" -- Freyja Stokes
November 4, 2025 at 8:46 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Freyja Stokes writes about witches and "seamstresses" (the Discworld's sex workers, except for Sandra), and especially the historical connections between the two professions, in this excellent new essay.

Read it now! Tell your friends! www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says Seamstresses and witches both perform demanded services but are marginalised for doing so. Mistress Weatherwax and Mrs Palm are two women who head heavily gendered and marginalised professions. Both women are aware of the deeply-culturally-ingrained narratives that are applied to them by wider society. "Almost a Witch" -- Freyja Stokes
November 4, 2025 at 8:42 AM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Freyja Stokes writes about witches and "seamstresses" (the Discworld's sex workers, except for Sandra), and especially the historical connections between the two professions, in this excellent new essay.

Read it now! Tell your friends! www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says Seamstresses and witches both perform demanded services but are marginalised for doing so. Mistress Weatherwax and Mrs Palm are two women who head heavily gendered and marginalised professions. Both women are aware of the deeply-culturally-ingrained narratives that are applied to them by wider society. "Almost a Witch" -- Freyja Stokes
November 3, 2025 at 7:21 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
In which Granny Weatherwax is far more comfortable with Mrs Palm than Nanny... and Freyja Stokes explores the historical connections between witchcraft and sex work, as so beautifully explored by Terry Pratchett.

Read it now for free: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says Nanny, a typically candid and non-judgemental figure, is mortified to find out that her grandson suggested staying at this kind of establishment. She is then floored when Granny Weatherwax is unphased, knows exactly who Mrs Rosemary Palm is, and speaks of her with matter-of-fact respect. "Almost a Witch," Freyja Stokes
November 3, 2025 at 9:12 AM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
In which Granny Weatherwax is far more comfortable with Mrs Palm than Nanny... and Freyja Stokes explores the historical connections between witchcraft and sex work, as so beautifully explored by Terry Pratchett.

Read it now for free: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says Nanny, a typically candid and non-judgemental figure, is mortified to find out that her grandson suggested staying at this kind of establishment. She is then floored when Granny Weatherwax is unphased, knows exactly who Mrs Rosemary Palm is, and speaks of her with matter-of-fact respect. "Almost a Witch," Freyja Stokes
November 2, 2025 at 7:40 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Freyja Stokes goes deep into the historical connections between European witchcraft and sex work, and draws out how #Pratchett uses these in the person of Mrs Palm. It's got history AND sexy puns...

This one's very reasonably-priced - it's free!

Read it now: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says The real-world history and stories about "witches directly inform the portrayal of Discworld's witches. Discworld's sex work and sex workers are similarly informed by real-world history and narratives. More specifically, the ways in which Mrs Rosemary Palm is "almost a witch" can constructively frame some real-world conversations around marginalisation, power, and autonomy... "Almost a Witch," Freyja Stokes
November 2, 2025 at 9:00 AM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Freyja Stokes goes deep into the historical connections between European witchcraft and sex work, and draws out how #Pratchett uses these in the person of Mrs Palm. It's got history AND sexy puns...

This one's very reasonably-priced - it's free!

Read it now: www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says The real-world history and stories about "witches directly inform the portrayal of Discworld's witches. Discworld's sex work and sex workers are similarly informed by real-world history and narratives. More specifically, the ways in which Mrs Rosemary Palm is "almost a witch" can constructively frame some real-world conversations around marginalisation, power, and autonomy... "Almost a Witch," Freyja Stokes
November 1, 2025 at 10:02 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Freyja Stokes, a real-life #Pratchett scholar, looks at Mrs Palm and the historical connections between sex work and witchcraft... come for the history, stay for some amazing puns.

Read for free: www.speculativeinsight.com

Please share widely!
Purple background, white text, which says Mrs Palm is an interesting Discworld character, as is the historical context her story references. Discworld's foremost witch, Granny Weatherwax, describes Mrs Palm as "almost a witch."
November 1, 2025 at 8:01 AM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Freyja Stokes, a real-life #Pratchett scholar, looks at Mrs Palm and the historical connections between sex work and witchcraft... come for the history, stay for some amazing puns.

Read for free: www.speculativeinsight.com

Please share widely!
Purple background, white text, which says Mrs Palm is an interesting Discworld character, as is the historical context her story references. Discworld's foremost witch, Granny Weatherwax, describes Mrs Palm as "almost a witch."
October 31, 2025 at 8:40 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
This time last year our subscriber essay was about Tamsyn Muir's Locked Tomb series, and the idea of cosy catastrophe... so if, like me, you're pining for Alecto, you might like to read this in the interim?
Subscribe for AUD30/year (USD19/GBP15) to access this and others!
www.speculativeinsight.com
Purple background, white text, which says This undercutting of the gothic mood is a signature move of the Locked Tomb series and probably a determining factor in whether readers take to these books or bounce off them. "Goofiness and Horror in Gideon the Ninth and Harrow the Ninth" -- Paula Aamli
October 24, 2025 at 9:29 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
@tansyrr.bsky.social has been writing a series on Pratchett's Men, and you can catch half of them for free (and subscribe to get the other half!). The most recent essay is the first focused on Sam Vimes... but there's more to come, don't worry.

www.speculativeinsight.com/essays?autho...
Purple background, white text, which says Pratchett's Men: With Witches (Equal Rites, Wyrd Sisters, Witches Abroad, Lords and Ladies); Deconstructing the Fantasy Hero; Brutes and Villains; Unromantic leading men; Celibacy and wizardry... and there's more to come...
October 24, 2025 at 12:52 AM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Moth Paulson examines @annleckie.com's Radch novels in this new subscriber essay, pointing out both the seeming importance of 'justice' and its actual absence.

Subscribe to read: AUD30/year (~ GBP15 or USD19) gets you this and 11 other essays!
www.speculativeinsight.com/subs
Purple background, white text, which says There is little justice in the Radch series as a whole - space stations are oppressive panopticons and planets are where people go seemingly to exploit others, free from the gaze of AI cores. "The Empire of the Radch and the Injustice of 'Justice'" -- Moth Paulson
October 22, 2025 at 10:49 AM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Moth Paulson examines @annleckie.com's Radch novels in this new subscriber essay, pointing out both the seeming importance of 'justice' and its actual absence.

Subscribe to read: AUD30/year (~ GBP15 or USD19) gets you this and 11 other essays!
www.speculativeinsight.com/subs
Purple background, white text, which says There is little justice in the Radch series as a whole - space stations are oppressive panopticons and planets are where people go seemingly to exploit others, free from the gaze of AI cores. "The Empire of the Radch and the Injustice of 'Justice'" -- Moth Paulson
October 21, 2025 at 9:45 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Moth Paulson draws parallels between real-world present and past (in)justice, and @annleckie.com's Radch novels, in this new subscriber essay.

Subscribe to read: AUD30/year (~ GBP15 or USD19) gets you this and 11 other essays!
www.speculativeinsight.com/subs
Purple background, white text, which says Whilst the parallels to the slave trade are clear, Fosyf Denche's treatment of the Valskaayan tea-pickers also mirrors early transitions from slavery to the penal servitude of the convict lease system. "The Empire of the Radch and the Injustice of 'Justice'" -- Moth Paulson
October 21, 2025 at 8:42 AM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
This is a Tasmanian pademelon who was curious about our camper van.
A pademelon
October 20, 2025 at 8:12 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Moth Paulson - @adorkablesmile.bsky.social - draws parallels between real-world present and past (in)justice, and @annleckie.com's Radch novels, in this new subscriber essay.

Subscribe to read: AUD30/year (~ GBP15 or USD19) gets you this and 11 other essays!
www.speculativeinsight.com/subs
Purple background, white text, which says Whilst the parallels to the slave trade are clear, Fosyf Denche's treatment of the Valskaayan tea-pickers also mirrors early transitions from slavery to the penal servitude of the convict lease system. "The Empire of the Radch and the Injustice of 'Justice'" -- Moth Paulson
October 20, 2025 at 6:30 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Moth Paulson - @adorkablesmile.bsky.social - looks at justice and incarceration in @annleckie.com's Radch novels, and real-world analogues...

Subscribe to read: AUD30/year (~ GBP15 or USD19) gets you this and 11 other essays!
www.speculativeinsight.com/subs
Purple background, white text, which says "Out of sight, out of mind" is an apt description of the carceral system in the Empire of the Radch. It exists away from the people in all aspects, allowing them to forget the punitive aspects of their system, one which may on its surface seem humanitarian, but instead exists to keep a servile underclass for the rich and powerful. "The Empire of the Radch and Injustice of 'Justice'" -- Moth Paulson
October 20, 2025 at 9:12 AM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
Moth Paulson looks at justice and incarceration in @annleckie.com's Radch novels, and real-world analogues...

Subscribe to read: AUD30/year (~ GBP15 or USD19) gets you this and 11 other essays!
www.speculativeinsight.com/subs
Purple background, white text, which says "Out of sight, out of mind" is an apt description of the carceral system in the Empire of the Radch. It exists away from the people in all aspects, allowing them to forget the punitive aspects of their system, one which may on its surface seem humanitarian, but instead exists to keep a servile underclass for the rich and powerful. "The Empire of the Radch and Injustice of 'Justice'" -- Moth Paulson
October 19, 2025 at 9:01 PM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
In which Moth Paulson looks at how @annleckie.com's Radch novels present the idea of "justice" and how it matches (?) the real world...

Subscribe to read: AUD30/year (~ GBP15 or USD19) gets you this and 11 other essays!
www.speculativeinsight.com/subs
Purple background, white text, which says The Radch justice system is more rehabilitative than our current punitive systems. Leckie explores the limits of rehabilitative justice in the trilogy, particularly in the manner of "re-education". "The Empire of the Radch and the Injustice of 'Justice'" -- Moth Paulson
October 19, 2025 at 9:00 AM
speculativeinsight.bsky.social
A pademelon
October 19, 2025 at 4:31 AM