Rebecca Johns
@rebeccajohns.bsky.social
Writer and professional awkward person. Check out my novels Icebergs (Bloomsbury) and The Countess (Crown/Broadway) www.rebeccajohns.com
Pinned
Rebecca Johns
@rebeccajohns.bsky.social
· Mar 25
How Ozempic Changed America: Theater of War Productions, Presented by WNYC
YouTube video by WNYC
m.youtube.com
My @theatlantic.com piece as performed by the amazing Hope Davis and the talented team at Theater of War NYC.
m.youtube.com/watch?v=e-VV...
m.youtube.com/watch?v=e-VV...
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
We profiled refugees who:
Arrived in the country legally.
Applied for green cards.
Were arrested by ICE and detained.
One refugee who was arrested found out they got their green card after being released.
This is an unprecedented operation.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/u...
Arrived in the country legally.
Applied for green cards.
Were arrested by ICE and detained.
One refugee who was arrested found out they got their green card after being released.
This is an unprecedented operation.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/u...
They ‘Had Done Everything Right.’ ICE Detained Them Anyway.
www.nytimes.com
January 27, 2026 at 2:25 PM
We profiled refugees who:
Arrived in the country legally.
Applied for green cards.
Were arrested by ICE and detained.
One refugee who was arrested found out they got their green card after being released.
This is an unprecedented operation.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/u...
Arrived in the country legally.
Applied for green cards.
Were arrested by ICE and detained.
One refugee who was arrested found out they got their green card after being released.
This is an unprecedented operation.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/u...
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
Also, may I say that I don’t agree with people saying ICE and CBP need “more training.” They’re doing exactly what this administration has trained them to—impose a reign of fear in blue cities. They don’t need more training. They need to be ripped up root and branch.
January 24, 2026 at 11:01 PM
Also, may I say that I don’t agree with people saying ICE and CBP need “more training.” They’re doing exactly what this administration has trained them to—impose a reign of fear in blue cities. They don’t need more training. They need to be ripped up root and branch.
Fantastic piece, Paul. The first time I’ve read this one.
Very pleased that my newest writing, "Things We Miss," has been published by sneaker wave mag. Thanks to Michele Morano who read early versions and gave incredible feedback, and shoutout to @rebeccajohns.bsky.social & DePaul's creative writing MFA program
www.sneakerwavemag.org/p/things-we-...
www.sneakerwavemag.org/p/things-we-...
things we miss
by Paul Booth
www.sneakerwavemag.org
January 18, 2026 at 6:44 PM
Fantastic piece, Paul. The first time I’ve read this one.
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
It is in no way “law enforcement” to beat up an American 10th grader and steal and sell his possessions.
This is 10th-grader Arnoldo Bazan.
A citizen.
Immigration agents grabbed him and put him in a chokehold.
"We're from the United States bro!' he screamed.
Agents took and sold his phone
And when he finally got home hours later, his shirt was ripped, he neck had angry, red welts, and he sobbed.
A citizen.
Immigration agents grabbed him and put him in a chokehold.
"We're from the United States bro!' he screamed.
Agents took and sold his phone
And when he finally got home hours later, his shirt was ripped, he neck had angry, red welts, and he sobbed.
January 14, 2026 at 8:32 PM
It is in no way “law enforcement” to beat up an American 10th grader and steal and sell his possessions.
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
He didn't shoot her in the head at point blank range because he felt like he was in danger. He shot her in the head at point blank range because he was furious that she wasn't afraid of him. He shot her in the head at point blank range because he felt emasculated.
January 9, 2026 at 11:25 PM
He didn't shoot her in the head at point blank range because he felt like he was in danger. He shot her in the head at point blank range because he was furious that she wasn't afraid of him. He shot her in the head at point blank range because he felt emasculated.
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
This is an almost shockingly wise essay. I'm glad I've finally read it.
There Is No Mary Problem in ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’
George’s vision of his wife without him is essential to the film, but critics continue to miss its true—and profound—meaning.
open.substack.com
December 24, 2025 at 12:34 AM
This is an almost shockingly wise essay. I'm glad I've finally read it.
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
One of the many reasons AI can't produce good writing is it can't hate its own writing. It can't think to itself "Maybe I'm illiterate" during the writing process. And that's essential
December 9, 2025 at 8:45 PM
One of the many reasons AI can't produce good writing is it can't hate its own writing. It can't think to itself "Maybe I'm illiterate" during the writing process. And that's essential
I miss physical journals. Getting @pshares.bsky.social as an email in my inbox feels like another thing on my to-do list, whereas getting a print mag in the mail always felt like a gift,
I know why. The expense is enormous. But that doesn’t change the equation.
I know why. The expense is enormous. But that doesn’t change the equation.
November 12, 2025 at 8:14 PM
I miss physical journals. Getting @pshares.bsky.social as an email in my inbox feels like another thing on my to-do list, whereas getting a print mag in the mail always felt like a gift,
I know why. The expense is enormous. But that doesn’t change the equation.
I know why. The expense is enormous. But that doesn’t change the equation.
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
This NYT Obit of VP Cheney mentions something that seems impossible in retrospect: That he and GWB were re-elected *after* it was proved there were no WMDs in Iraq.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/04/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/04/u...
Dick Cheney, Powerful Vice President and Washington Insider, Dies at 84
www.nytimes.com
November 4, 2025 at 5:53 PM
This NYT Obit of VP Cheney mentions something that seems impossible in retrospect: That he and GWB were re-elected *after* it was proved there were no WMDs in Iraq.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/04/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/04/u...
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
ProPublica is hiring a reporter to join our amazing investigative unit with The Texas Tribune. APPLY HERE ➡️ propub.li/4qvyjzw
November 4, 2025 at 3:51 PM
ProPublica is hiring a reporter to join our amazing investigative unit with The Texas Tribune. APPLY HERE ➡️ propub.li/4qvyjzw
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
“We should replace Bad Bunny with Lee Greenwood” is an also a perfect summation of the “deal” they’ve offered universities.
October 10, 2025 at 12:27 PM
“We should replace Bad Bunny with Lee Greenwood” is an also a perfect summation of the “deal” they’ve offered universities.
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
This South Side Weekly report on the Chicago building raid is well worth reading. Most striking to me are the indications of collusion between federal authorities and the building owner and management to effect a mass eviction at the blighted property. southsideweekly.com/federal-agen...
October 8, 2025 at 12:54 PM
This South Side Weekly report on the Chicago building raid is well worth reading. Most striking to me are the indications of collusion between federal authorities and the building owner and management to effect a mass eviction at the blighted property. southsideweekly.com/federal-agen...
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
The elimination of USAID is a moral atrocity and all involved made a choice to enable, and then lie about, ending the lives of some of the most vulnerable people in the world.
October 8, 2025 at 2:09 PM
The elimination of USAID is a moral atrocity and all involved made a choice to enable, and then lie about, ending the lives of some of the most vulnerable people in the world.
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
"Did something happen in the intervening years that made me swerve into delusion and assholery? Could what happened to me happen to you? You’re not going to get any satisfaction with that line of inquiry. Even if you asked me directly, I couldn’t tell you."
Hello, We Used to Know Each Other and Now I’m a Toxic Presence on Your Social Media Feeds
Hello, I’m someone you used to know. Pretty well, in fact. We had some good conversations. We saw eye to eye on all the important things. We laughe...
buff.ly
October 6, 2025 at 1:30 PM
"Did something happen in the intervening years that made me swerve into delusion and assholery? Could what happened to me happen to you? You’re not going to get any satisfaction with that line of inquiry. Even if you asked me directly, I couldn’t tell you."
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
TikTok will be co-owned by China and Trump allies, Paramount was sold to a pro-Trump billionaire who's also set to buy Warner Bros, X is owned by an apartheid-bred fascist, WaPo and Meta are owned by Trump-cowering billionaires, and Murdoch owns the Fox empire. Here's why media has a liberal bias.
September 20, 2025 at 9:13 PM
TikTok will be co-owned by China and Trump allies, Paramount was sold to a pro-Trump billionaire who's also set to buy Warner Bros, X is owned by an apartheid-bred fascist, WaPo and Meta are owned by Trump-cowering billionaires, and Murdoch owns the Fox empire. Here's why media has a liberal bias.
As I’m slogging through a POV change in my novel, I decide to do a little experiment. I ask Claude to change the POV from first to third in one graph.
It turns every instance of “I” into “they,” including words inside quotation marks.
In case anyone’s thinking the machines are the answer.
It turns every instance of “I” into “they,” including words inside quotation marks.
In case anyone’s thinking the machines are the answer.
September 16, 2025 at 3:02 AM
As I’m slogging through a POV change in my novel, I decide to do a little experiment. I ask Claude to change the POV from first to third in one graph.
It turns every instance of “I” into “they,” including words inside quotation marks.
In case anyone’s thinking the machines are the answer.
It turns every instance of “I” into “they,” including words inside quotation marks.
In case anyone’s thinking the machines are the answer.
What a great idea for a class! StoryStudio is great and you should definitely sign up for this.
There’s no WRONG choice for your fiction’s point of view (or points of view!), but the perfect one can make the story… Learn how from the incredible @chrisbohjalian.bsky.social
via @storystudiochicago.bsky.social. One class, Zoom, Sept. 30!
www.storystudiochicago.org/classes/clas...
via @storystudiochicago.bsky.social. One class, Zoom, Sept. 30!
www.storystudiochicago.org/classes/clas...
PJ Seminar: A Master Class on Deciding the Best Point of View for Our Fiction with Chris Bohjalian - StoryStudio Chicago
Choosing our perspective—or choosing to have multiple perspectives—is, perhaps, the first decision we make when we start a novel or short story.
www.storystudiochicago.org
September 11, 2025 at 2:46 PM
What a great idea for a class! StoryStudio is great and you should definitely sign up for this.
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
it’s fascinating. majorities of americans oppose the military occupation of cities. a substantial number of those are fucking furious about it, but rather than lean into this anger and attack trump’s perception of strength, these “strategists” want democrats to avoid the confrontation entirely.
There it is folks. The brilliant Dem strategy, according to the genius pundits with the ear of Dem leadership, is to let Trump keep doing everything he's doing but only if we can also help Republicans avoid paying a political price for hurting people long enough to hold the House and Senate in 2026
September 8, 2025 at 1:15 PM
it’s fascinating. majorities of americans oppose the military occupation of cities. a substantial number of those are fucking furious about it, but rather than lean into this anger and attack trump’s perception of strength, these “strategists” want democrats to avoid the confrontation entirely.
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
Epstein survivors say they’re compiling their own client list.
“We know who abused us. We saw who came and went. This list will be survivor-led—for survivors”
“We know who abused us. We saw who came and went. This list will be survivor-led—for survivors”
September 3, 2025 at 3:57 PM
Epstein survivors say they’re compiling their own client list.
“We know who abused us. We saw who came and went. This list will be survivor-led—for survivors”
“We know who abused us. We saw who came and went. This list will be survivor-led—for survivors”
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
This is me in every above ground pool in the greater Chicago area.
Watching this video 10 times has significantly improved my mood.
August 19, 2025 at 8:19 PM
This is me in every above ground pool in the greater Chicago area.
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
This story has it all: aquaculture, Black Flag, Bernie Sanders, Star Trek as policy, John Hodgman, male tears, and a candidate citing Luthen’s monologue from Andor.
Meet Graham Platner, the Maine oysterman trying to crack the senate. @grahamformaine.bsky.social
newrepublic.com/article/1996...
Meet Graham Platner, the Maine oysterman trying to crack the senate. @grahamformaine.bsky.social
newrepublic.com/article/1996...
The Political Awakening of the Oyster Farmer Gunning for Susan Collins
Graham Platner’s campaign launch has been a sudden sensation. But what he’s building now is rooted in the work of a lifetime.
newrepublic.com
August 29, 2025 at 11:52 AM
This story has it all: aquaculture, Black Flag, Bernie Sanders, Star Trek as policy, John Hodgman, male tears, and a candidate citing Luthen’s monologue from Andor.
Meet Graham Platner, the Maine oysterman trying to crack the senate. @grahamformaine.bsky.social
newrepublic.com/article/1996...
Meet Graham Platner, the Maine oysterman trying to crack the senate. @grahamformaine.bsky.social
newrepublic.com/article/1996...
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
Please please help me spread the word!
I've been to Atlanta a few times, but I don't know as many folks there as I do in Seattle or LA.
So I would really *massively* appreciate any and all help letting ATL folks know about this event. 🍑💖📚
I've been to Atlanta a few times, but I don't know as many folks there as I do in Seattle or LA.
So I would really *massively* appreciate any and all help letting ATL folks know about this event. 🍑💖📚
This Tuesday! Atlanta! I'm going to be at Charis Books in Decatur, GA for their regular Meet Me There spoken word event, along with the wonderful @quarefutures.bsky.social!
RSVP and info: www.charisbooksandmore.com/event/meet-m...
ATL queers, I'd love to see you there!
RSVP and info: www.charisbooksandmore.com/event/meet-m...
ATL queers, I'd love to see you there!
August 28, 2025 at 8:38 PM
Please please help me spread the word!
I've been to Atlanta a few times, but I don't know as many folks there as I do in Seattle or LA.
So I would really *massively* appreciate any and all help letting ATL folks know about this event. 🍑💖📚
I've been to Atlanta a few times, but I don't know as many folks there as I do in Seattle or LA.
So I would really *massively* appreciate any and all help letting ATL folks know about this event. 🍑💖📚
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
This is good: With Trump/RFK destroying CDC, JB Pritzker's officials are exploring the possibility of buying Covid vaccines from manufacturers and distributing them in-state themselves, source tells me.
Dem govs must step up and fill the void.
New piece from me:
newrepublic.com/article/1998...
Dem govs must step up and fill the void.
New piece from me:
newrepublic.com/article/1998...
Trump’s Decapitation of CDC Takes Darker Turn—and Hands Dems a Weapon
Illinois’s J.B. Pritzker is leading a charge other Democratic governors should take up: In our America, we’ll make sure public health systems remain strong.
newrepublic.com
August 29, 2025 at 5:05 PM
This is good: With Trump/RFK destroying CDC, JB Pritzker's officials are exploring the possibility of buying Covid vaccines from manufacturers and distributing them in-state themselves, source tells me.
Dem govs must step up and fill the void.
New piece from me:
newrepublic.com/article/1998...
Dem govs must step up and fill the void.
New piece from me:
newrepublic.com/article/1998...
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
remember folks, we cant have gun restrictions because if we do the federal government will occupy our streets, imprison people without due process, ship dissidents to foreign gulags and things of that nature
August 27, 2025 at 6:42 PM
remember folks, we cant have gun restrictions because if we do the federal government will occupy our streets, imprison people without due process, ship dissidents to foreign gulags and things of that nature
Reposted by Rebecca Johns
A man, near the White House, who describes himself as a "retired disabled combat veteran," after burning an American flag tells bystanders "I am being detained because I expressed my First Amendment rights."
August 25, 2025 at 11:27 PM
A man, near the White House, who describes himself as a "retired disabled combat veteran," after burning an American flag tells bystanders "I am being detained because I expressed my First Amendment rights."