My opening news of WorldCon is not about me: Can I just say how happy I am for Strange Horizons? Their Hugo win for Best Semiprozine is so well-deserved and so long in the making it’s not even funny! It was perfect to be in the midst of friends doing radical, BIPOC-centered, global work when the news was announced, and see the impact that Strange Horizons has had on us all. Huge congratulations to everyone on the team!!!
Which… as I myself received tangential congratulations, I suppose is now me from here on out — I’ve recently been added to the Strange Horizons narration team, and I couldn’t be more honored. So excited to join this brilliant, *Hugo award-winning* magazine! I’ll also have an essay in a forthcoming issue — keep your eyes peeled for “Africanfuturism Beyond the Future,” coming soon…
WorldCon was fabulous — I’m enamored with the circles of the SFF community that I find myself sharing space with. I shared meals and drinks and dancing and conversation and laughter with such wonderful folks. It’s such a joy to imagine justice and radical community with you all, and to learn from the ways that you’re growing and transforming as writers and people. And all my panels went well — though top billing goes to “Bad Girls of SFF” which might have been the most fun panel I’ve ever been a part of! Witty, hilarious, and profound at the same time, it was a delight to moderate!
After floundering through how to introduce myself to people (flash fiction writer? academic? poetry editor? reviewer? essayist? audio narrator?) it was nice to come home to a reminder that even though I may not be easily or neatly encapsulated, I do good work that people seem to enjoy: my newest story + my newest audio narration work came out in Simultaneous Times today!
I hope you enjoy “When You See a Dragon, You Run“
Speaking of Simultaneous Times, and places where my dubious affiliation as a recurring narrator is somehow garnering me awards recognition, Simultaneous Times is shortlisted for *another award*! It’s up for The British Fantasy Award for Best Audio!! This magazine was started out of love for community, and it’s wonderful to see it being recognized for the supportive and enabling work it’s done.
Take care of each other, and stay tuned for upcoming posts on “Africanfuturism Beyond the Future” and the syllabus I’m currently working on for the beginning of the schoolyear, “Writing Speculative Fiction for Social Justice.”
Jenna Hanchey 