I can’t believe 2026 is halfway over. Then again, it’s been a wild ride of a year so far. I got a new engineering job in February that has me traveling to a lumber mill in the deep south of the US. It’s a wildly different experience than my other jobs and I’m learning so many new skills. I’m glad I like the smell of sawdust and pine.

I also finished a novella which is in my agent’s hands.

Oh, right, and I moved from Brooklyn to Philadelphia.

Anyway, point is, it’s July and that means is time for Readercon! One of my favorite conventions!

I have a full schedule this year, which includes several panels, a reading, and a kaffeeklatsch. Here’s the list

Thursday, July 9, 2026

• Reading: A. T. Greenblatt – 8:30 PM
  • Where: Location: Envision – Enliven

Friday, July 10, 2026

• Panel: Finding Your Writing Posse – 11:00 AM
  • Where: Salon C-D
  • Description: From your local critique group that meets in a coffee shop to national (and international) organizations like SFWA and RWA, there are writing peer communities and professional organizations on many scales offering many things to prospective members. But how do you find the right one(s) for you? What if you write in multiple genres or have just switched genres? This panel will discuss how to discover what’s available and find your best fit.
  • Co-Panelists: Rachel Gutin, Bethany Powell, E. C. Ambrose, Scott Edelman
• Panel: Beyond Treevenge: Environmental Justice Stories of Hope and Resistance – 1:00 PM
  • Where: Salon E
  • Description: Fiyah, Reckoning, Solarpunk Magazine, Stelliform Press, Tractor Beam, Sieze the Press, DreamForge, the new Eco24 anthology from Apex; the list goes on. New markets for ecological and progressive speculative fiction and poetry keep appearing, and given the state of the world and people’s growing desperation for positive change, it’s not hard to see why. Let’s explore what drives this exploding field. How is art rebuilding our capacity to imagine optimistic futures?
  • Co-Panelists: Marissa Lingen, Michael J. DeLuca, Rob Cameron, Romie Stott
• Kaffeeklatsch: A. T. Greenblatt – 3:00PM
  • Where: Suite 830
• Panel: Comfort Reads: Not Always Cozy – 6:00 PM
  • Where: Salon E
  • Description: Comfort reads are very personal, as one person’s comfort read may keep another up at night, but what are some hallmarks of a comfort read, and how can we recognize when we need one? The panel will discuss re-reading for comfort and pleasure, both of individual books and of entire series, what else we derive from such reading besides comfort, and how to find a personal comfort read.
  • Co-Panelists: Sam Wilket, P. H. Low, Rachel Gutin, Sacha Lamb

Saturday, July 11, 2026

• Panel: Clarkesworld Turns 20! – 11:00 AM
  • Where: Salon C-D
  • Description: Clarkesworld Magazine turns 20 this year, and its story began right here at Readercon, at a Meet the Pros(e) party! An early innovator in digital distribution, Clarkesworld is still shaping and influencing the field today. Help us celebrate Clarkesworld and the many authors it has published!
  • Co-Panelists: James Patrick Kelly, Lettie Prell, Neil Clarke, Suzanne Palmer
• Panel: Building a Writing Life With a Day Job and a Family – 2:00 PM
  • Where: Salon E
  • Description: Writing with a full-time job and a busy household requires planning. Your creative life must survive competing schedules, fatigue, and interruptions. What are some practical, sustainable strategies for keeping your writing life on track without burning out or turning writing into another source of guilt? Having a martyred spouse doesn’t count!
  • Co-Panelists: Arley Sorg, Gregory Wilson, Lyndsay Ely, Rob Cameron

I’m so excited for all of these great conversations! If you are going to be at Readercon, please don’t hesitate to say hello to me!