It’s been busy here since my last newsletter. We welcomed our third child into the world just before Christmas, and of course there was Christmas itself with two very excited children (5 and 4 years old) on top of life with a newborn. It was a pretty crazy period and it passed by in a sleep-deprived blur. That said, we are almost 1/12th of the way through the year and I’ve got some exciting news so I better get cracking!
I’ve been nominated for the BSFA Award!
Existing subscribers will have received my recent announcement that my Writers of the Future winning story, “The Stench of Freedom”, has made the long list for the BSFA Award for Best Shorter Fiction 2026. To say this is an honour and a surprise is an understatement. BSFA Members have until 19 February 2026 to vote on which stories make the final shortlist.
I made the Tangent Recommended Reading List for 2025!
My Writers of the Future winning story, “The Stench of Freedom”, received a double-starred recommendation from the prestigious Tangent Online Recommended Reading List for 2025. Tangent is a long-standing online reviewer of sci-fi and fantasy stories, reviewing all the big magazines and anthologies and each year they select (and broadly rank) their favourites. Honestly, this was a huge surprise and I am pretty blown away. It’s cool to see my story listed, and so highly (only a rare triple-starred rating is higher) among stories published in the big industry magazines like Analog or Clarkesworld, some of which are likely to receive one of SFF’s biggest awards. It’s an honour and I’m feeling very proud.
Awards Eligibility 2025
Following on from my nomination for the BSFA Award and recognition in the Tangent list, I wanted to note award season is upon us and, ahem, if I’m not being too cheeky, if you liked any of my published stories, then I’d be honoured if you’d consider nominating them for writing awards. All the details are in the link below. One has to do one’s own marketing, you know.
Rejectomancy Writing goals for 2026
Throughout 2025, I provided a monthly update on the number of my submissions, rejections and acceptances for my short stories. For 2026, I want to do something different. My third child arrived just before Christmas, so things are pretty busy in my life to say the least. Chances are, my writing time will reduce for the foreseeable future. Therefore, my focus for 2026 (and probably henceforward) will be to write smarter, not harder. I have set myself realistic goals and will, instead, provide progress updates against these goals.
What then, are my writing goals for 2026 I hear you scream. Here you go (with a brief update to get the ball rolling):
Submit a story to the Jim Baen Memorial Story Contest 2026: This is a well-known science fiction contest for stories set in the near future. I have already submitted my entry to this. Results are due late March. Fingers crossed.
Submit a story to the Rhys Davies Short Story Competition 2026: I am finalising my entry and am on course to submit to this Welsh contest before the 16 February deadline.
Submit a story to the Baen Fantasy Adventure Award: I am plotting out my entry for this fantasy short story contest, which needs to be submitted by 30 April, so I’m feeling pretty confident at the moment that I’ll achieve this.
Complete first draft of a novel: I am about 10,000 words in against a 90,000 word target. Though I am mulling over a point of view change to a different protagonist, which may necessitate a rewrite.
Publish at least one story / receive at least one story acceptance: I’d like to have at least one story published this year, and bonus points if it is at a pro-rate market (8c a word). Sometimes a story might get accepted but not published until the following year, so this goal reflects that.
That is plenty to keep me more than busy alongside everything else. I told you I had a full time job, right? And three children aged 5 and 4 years old and 1 month? And chickens, and fish, and a cat too? And, of course, my lovely wife, who I very much want to keep and therefore not neglect. Yeah, it’s quite a bit on my plate before I can make time to write, so I want to be realistic and manage my own expectations this year. In hindsight, I think I stretched myself a bit thin last year and put too much pressure on myself.
What’s got me hooked this month?
What I’ve been reading: I read All Systems Red by Martha Wells, the first ‘Murderbot’ story, which has been adapted into an Apple TV series. It’s a short read (maybe 120 pages) but excellent. I managed to buy a collection of Martha Wells’ books for around $20 (14 ebooks in total—outrageous value) in an online charity fundraiser and I think I have the complete series. I’m looking forward to reading the next instalment.
I also read “The Body”, which is one of the four novellas from Stephen King’s collection Different Seasons. This story was adapted into the film, “Stand By Me”, directed by Rob Reiner. I enjoyed it, though my favourite novella from that collection was Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption. Kind of crazy that two iconic films were adapted from two stories from the same collection, especially when there’s just four stories in total. When you’re on fire, you’re on fire, Mr. King.
What I’ve been watching: I watched Under the Banner of Heaven on Disney+. It’s about a murder investigation in the Mormon community in the mid 1980s adapted from / inspired by the book of the same name by Jon Krakeur. I’ve read and really enjoyed both Into the Wild and Into Thin Air by Jon Krakeur and this book is also on my to-read list, so I took the chance to watch the TV adaptation. I don’t know how accurately the show represents Mormon history and culture, but it was a gripping story with an excellent cast and overall a very entertaining watch.
Memetime
It’s that New Year period, when the buzz of Christmas has waned and the nights are still long, and the urge to keep up the fairy lights and tree and decorations for just a bit longer is strong. Well, for me anyway!
A dream of mine is to have a Christmas room in our house where the decorations are permanently up and Christmas music and films are always on, so I can get that warm, fuzzy Christmas feeling whenever I want. So, this meme really resonates with me!
Until next time, keep dreaming.
Joel
