Octothorpe 156 is here! We discuss Locus, we discuss the Nebulas, we discuss Eastercon, and then we talk about Liz’s totally SFnal and very genre pick. Listen here! https://octothorpe.podbean.com/e/156-surprisingly-well-adjusted-young-gentlemen/

@Locusmag @SFWA #Eastercon #NebulaAwards #LocusMagazine #ScienceFiction #Podcast

The New Nebula Award Finalists

The Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association has released its list of finalists for the new Nebula Awards. These are some of the best stories, movies, games and more from 2025, and a great way to boost your to be read list. If you’re an SFWA member you have until April 15th to vote on your favorites.

The list is available in lots of places but I’ll link to Andrew Liptak’s site because he has already done the work of finding links for the stories that are available online. Thanks, Andrew!

I’ll copy the short stories here, but click through to Andrew’s site for links to the novelettes and more. And do I love that many of the top short story markets are open access? I do!

Here are the finalists for the 2026 Nebula Awards

Best Short Story 

I’ve only read a couple of these stories so this promises to be a treat. Happy reading everyone!

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Photo by Enis Can Ceyhan on Unsplash #365Ways #365Ways2026 #freeFiction #inspiration #NebulaAwards #reading #SFWA #toBeRead #Writers #writing

Congratulations to @MarieCroke , "Our Echoes Drifting Through the Marsh" from BCS #423 has been voted a finalist for the Nebula Awards!

"Our Echoes Drifting Through the Marsh" is a great fantasy story of family, memorial, loss, and compassion. You can read it here: https://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/our-echoes-drifting-through-the-marsh/

#fantasy #sff #shortstory #novelette #nebulaawards

Beneath Ceaseless Skies - Our Echoes Drifting Through the Marsh by Marie Croke

Outside the preburial cottage, the pier creaked. I saw no shadow under the doorway, yet I froze, afraid Adamet was listening. I imagined, yet again, an anger filtering over his calm countenance. Wondered whether my admission of taking Danai into the Whispermarsh had been a final wedge between us. "Did your father truly leave?" I asked softly. A part of me hoped if he had, it was because he wanted to be kept in the dark about any admissions I made. A larger part of me believed he was done with me, exhausted by the choices I'd made.

Beneath Ceaseless Skies
The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA) is proud to announce its latest Nebula Award Finalists for works published in 2025, to be celebrated this year in Chicago at the organization’s 61st Annual Nebula Awards Conference. Link: nebulas.sfwa.org/9192-2/ #sfcd #nebulaawards
Nebula Awards Finalist Announcement - SFWA - The Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association

It's that time of year again! Join us in welcoming our newest Nebula Awards Finalists into the fold. Congratulations and let's get voting!

SFWA - The Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association

Are you nominating for Hugos or Nebula Awards?

Here's all eligible BCS stories, their category (Short Story, etc), links to nominating info, and link to our BCS Authors Elsewhere posts, to read our authors' work published in other fine venues.

(Pls *DON'T* nominate BCS for Semiprozine Hugo; after ten times as a Finalist, we recused. You can nominate Scott for Editor Short Form if you find him worthy.)

Thank you for considering our stories!

https://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/2025/12/07/2026-awards-eligible-stories-from-bcs/
#hugoawards #nebulaawards

Beneath Ceaseless Skies - 2026 Awards-Eligible Stories from <i>BCS</i> by Scott H. Andrews

For readers interested in nominating for awards, such as the Hugos or Nebulas, in 2026, here are the eligible stories from BCS in 2025 and which awards category they fit in. Thank you for your interest in our stories! What BCS Stories are Eligible: Everything published in 2025, which is BCS #423 through BCS #447. Here are some of our best-reviewed pieces of 2025 and which award category they fit in (short fiction categories for Hugos and Nebulas are the same). For a list of all eligible BCS stories and their categories, see the bottom of this post. Please DON’T...  Read more »

Beneath Ceaseless Skies
News Podcast: Nebula Awards Reverse AI Policy and Authors Challenge Amazon’s ‘Ask This Book’ https://selfpublishingadvice.org/podcast-nebula-awards-reverse-ai-policy/ #generativeAIwriting #self-publishingnews #AIeligibilityrules #authorlicensing #NebulaAwards #AskThisBook #Podcast
Nebula Awards Reverse AI Policy

Dan Holloway covers the Nebula Awards’ AI rule reversal and fresh concerns over Amazon’s “Ask This Book” feature.

The Self-Publishing Advice Center

News Summary: Nebula Awards’ AI Policy Sparks Debate on Authorship and Process

The use of AI in competitions and beloved public literary events has become its own subgenre in a crowded news field. The two highest-profile instances have been the announcement by the Grammys that they would allow the use of AI in eligible tracks…
https://selfpublishingadvice.org/nebula-awards-ai-policy/

#AIinliterature #authorship #largelanguagemodels #literarycompetitions #NebulaAwards

Nebula Awards' AI Policy Sparks Debate

The Nebula Awards' AI policy reversal sparks debate over authorship versus process in literary creation and the nuanced role of AI tools.

The Self-Publishing Advice Center
Nebula Awards' AI Policy Sparks Debate

The Nebula Awards' AI policy reversal sparks debate over authorship versus process in literary creation and the nuanced role of AI tools.

The Self-Publishing Advice Center
Press Release - December 22, 2025 - SFWA - The Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association

The SFWA Board of Directors extends its apology and next steps after an inappropriate Nebula rule change announced on Friday, December 19.

SFWA - The Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association