@Burnsie
@ljburns.bsky.social
TV & Book Writer (Roswell, Crave, Sanctuary Bay);
Managing Editor at www.antagonistblog.com;
Gun Violence Prevention advocate @MomsDemand
Managing Editor at www.antagonistblog.com;
Gun Violence Prevention advocate @MomsDemand
Reposted by @Burnsie
1. I see elsewhere on Bluesky that the discourse has turned toward telling writers not to be ashamed to admit they have day jobs or other sources of income (or spousal/family financial support), and you know what, that's 100% correct. Day jobs and support from loved ones are great if you have them!
November 26, 2025 at 12:35 AM
1. I see elsewhere on Bluesky that the discourse has turned toward telling writers not to be ashamed to admit they have day jobs or other sources of income (or spousal/family financial support), and you know what, that's 100% correct. Day jobs and support from loved ones are great if you have them!
All pie is bad.
I SAID WHAT I SAID
I SAID WHAT I SAID
Apple pie is bad. This is not really debatable. So is key lime pie, while we’re on the topic. Pecan pie is the 🐐 tho.
November 25, 2025 at 11:22 PM
All pie is bad.
I SAID WHAT I SAID
I SAID WHAT I SAID
Reposted by @Burnsie
My contribution to the discourse around "should writers be paid or should you steal their work" is: Yes, we should be paid.
ALSO! I'm very proud of my book. If you buy it, I do not mind what format you buy it in, where you get it or if you get it from a library 💚 bookshop.org/p/books/burn...
ALSO! I'm very proud of my book. If you buy it, I do not mind what format you buy it in, where you get it or if you get it from a library 💚 bookshop.org/p/books/burn...
November 25, 2025 at 11:12 PM
My contribution to the discourse around "should writers be paid or should you steal their work" is: Yes, we should be paid.
ALSO! I'm very proud of my book. If you buy it, I do not mind what format you buy it in, where you get it or if you get it from a library 💚 bookshop.org/p/books/burn...
ALSO! I'm very proud of my book. If you buy it, I do not mind what format you buy it in, where you get it or if you get it from a library 💚 bookshop.org/p/books/burn...
Reposted by @Burnsie
What have I become
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end
And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end
And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt
November 23, 2025 at 3:24 AM
What have I become
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end
And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end
And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt
Reposted by @Burnsie
Reposted by @Burnsie
New research by @mctd.bsky.social shows the impact of generative AI on authors in the UK. They found over a third of novelists report their income has already been negatively impacted by AI and 85% expect their future income will be negatively impacted.
www.mctd.ac.uk/impact-of-ge...
www.mctd.ac.uk/impact-of-ge...
Impact of Generative AI on the Novel
A report examining how literary creatives being affected by GenAI and what measures they want see implemented by the government to protect the UK’s literary scene.
www.mctd.ac.uk
November 20, 2025 at 11:57 AM
New research by @mctd.bsky.social shows the impact of generative AI on authors in the UK. They found over a third of novelists report their income has already been negatively impacted by AI and 85% expect their future income will be negatively impacted.
www.mctd.ac.uk/impact-of-ge...
www.mctd.ac.uk/impact-of-ge...
Reposted by @Burnsie
Self promo is my bane; it makes me feel like an immense tit when I post stuff about my writing (thanks to upbringing - never blow your own horn), but it is increasingly apparent that all it means is that I'm utterly invisible as a writer...
So, anyway.
I have books and stories out there.
So, anyway.
I have books and stories out there.
November 19, 2025 at 9:05 AM
Self promo is my bane; it makes me feel like an immense tit when I post stuff about my writing (thanks to upbringing - never blow your own horn), but it is increasingly apparent that all it means is that I'm utterly invisible as a writer...
So, anyway.
I have books and stories out there.
So, anyway.
I have books and stories out there.
Reposted by @Burnsie
Adds something to my bookmarks knowing full well that I will never see it again
November 18, 2025 at 11:50 PM
Adds something to my bookmarks knowing full well that I will never see it again
Four of my books are on here. Excuse me while I dissolve into a puddle of rage.
Hey authors! Check to see if Anthropic stole your book to train their slop generator on. You’re entitled to $1500 per stolen Work.
Look up your work, and if you’re in the database, file a claim
secure.anthropiccopyrightsettlement.com/lookup/
Look up your work, and if you’re in the database, file a claim
secure.anthropiccopyrightsettlement.com/lookup/
Submit a Claim
secure.anthropiccopyrightsettlement.com
November 18, 2025 at 11:33 PM
Four of my books are on here. Excuse me while I dissolve into a puddle of rage.
Reposted by @Burnsie
I think the President of the US responding to a question about the murder of a journalist with "A lot of people didn't like that gentleman" is probably pretty bad.
November 18, 2025 at 9:49 PM
I think the President of the US responding to a question about the murder of a journalist with "A lot of people didn't like that gentleman" is probably pretty bad.
Reposted by @Burnsie
PSA for any Apub authors whose books are in the Anthropic settlement list: Amazon is not participating in the settlement, since they have an investment in Anthropic. When you submit your claim form, you DO NOT have to list Amazon as an add'l rightsholder, & can claim 100% of settlement money.
November 18, 2025 at 4:26 PM
PSA for any Apub authors whose books are in the Anthropic settlement list: Amazon is not participating in the settlement, since they have an investment in Anthropic. When you submit your claim form, you DO NOT have to list Amazon as an add'l rightsholder, & can claim 100% of settlement money.
Every single reporter in the room should have walked out.
November 18, 2025 at 10:54 PM
Every single reporter in the room should have walked out.
Reposted by @Burnsie
I will never forget having to edit Jamal’s final, posthumous piece for the Washington Post, after he was murdered.
He was calling for free expression in the Arab world. You can read it here :
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/glo...
He was calling for free expression in the Arab world. You can read it here :
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/glo...
Opinion | Jamal Khashoggi: What the Arab world needs most is free expression
The Arab world needs a modern version of the old transnational media so citizens can be informed about global events.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 18, 2025 at 6:48 PM
I will never forget having to edit Jamal’s final, posthumous piece for the Washington Post, after he was murdered.
He was calling for free expression in the Arab world. You can read it here :
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/glo...
He was calling for free expression in the Arab world. You can read it here :
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/glo...
Reposted by @Burnsie
A reminder that seven years ago almost to the day, the CIA determined that Mohammed Bin Salman ordered the killing of @washingtonpost.com journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
CIA concludes Saudi crown prince ordered Jamal Khashoggi’s assassination
Audio recordings, intercepted phone calls and other intelligence link Mohammed bin Salman to killing that Saudis say was conducted by rogue elements.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 18, 2025 at 6:05 PM
A reminder that seven years ago almost to the day, the CIA determined that Mohammed Bin Salman ordered the killing of @washingtonpost.com journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
Reposted by @Burnsie
When former Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers was pursuing a romantic relationship with a woman he described as a mentee, he turned to a longtime associate for guidance: Jeffrey E. Epstein.
Dhruv T. Patel and Cam N. Srivastava report.
Dhruv T. Patel and Cam N. Srivastava report.
As Summers Sought Clandestine Relationship With Woman He Called a Mentee, Epstein Was His ‘Wing Man’ | News | The Harvard Crimson
When former Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers was pursuing a romantic relationship with a woman he described as a mentee, he turned to a longtime associate for guidance: convicted sex offender…
www.thecrimson.com
November 17, 2025 at 1:45 AM
When former Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers was pursuing a romantic relationship with a woman he described as a mentee, he turned to a longtime associate for guidance: Jeffrey E. Epstein.
Dhruv T. Patel and Cam N. Srivastava report.
Dhruv T. Patel and Cam N. Srivastava report.
Reposted by @Burnsie
I don't know if this is a hot take or not but I would say one of the most important skills for a professional artist to have is to know when something is "good enough"
When you're on deadline there isn't time for perfection. Make it as good as you can, then let it go.
When you're on deadline there isn't time for perfection. Make it as good as you can, then let it go.
November 17, 2025 at 7:57 PM
I don't know if this is a hot take or not but I would say one of the most important skills for a professional artist to have is to know when something is "good enough"
When you're on deadline there isn't time for perfection. Make it as good as you can, then let it go.
When you're on deadline there isn't time for perfection. Make it as good as you can, then let it go.
I will gladly trade you Xmas lights throughout November for Xmas lights throughout January. Because in November, you can just decorate for Thanksgiving instead! Whereas in January, all we have is the long, dark, cold, bleak pit of despair that is, you know, January.
November 17, 2025 at 7:23 PM
I will gladly trade you Xmas lights throughout November for Xmas lights throughout January. Because in November, you can just decorate for Thanksgiving instead! Whereas in January, all we have is the long, dark, cold, bleak pit of despair that is, you know, January.
Reposted by @Burnsie
Could argue the misogyny Summers expressed both publicly while president of Harvard and in emails to Epstein says more about the culture at our most elite institutions than any of the frontpage freakouts over academia in the past few years but hey
November 17, 2025 at 12:36 PM
Could argue the misogyny Summers expressed both publicly while president of Harvard and in emails to Epstein says more about the culture at our most elite institutions than any of the frontpage freakouts over academia in the past few years but hey
Reposted by @Burnsie
Fellow writers constantly closing pop-up windows while we work, Emma Thompson feels our pain! ♥️
November 15, 2025 at 8:56 PM
Fellow writers constantly closing pop-up windows while we work, Emma Thompson feels our pain! ♥️
Reposted by @Burnsie
Priests being arrested
November 14, 2025 at 4:23 PM
Priests being arrested
Reposted by @Burnsie
Reposted by @Burnsie
I think there are a number of people employed at the New York Times -- certainly not all of them, but many! -- who simply do not grasp how badly the paper's credibility has been shaken over the past few years, along several different axes, and for multiple different reasons
November 13, 2025 at 5:43 PM
I think there are a number of people employed at the New York Times -- certainly not all of them, but many! -- who simply do not grasp how badly the paper's credibility has been shaken over the past few years, along several different axes, and for multiple different reasons
Reposted by @Burnsie
My takeaway from every new Epstein revelation is that some powerful people victimized many powerless young women, many more knew, some actively enabled it--and we're still being told that MeToo and accountability for sexual violence have gone too far
November 12, 2025 at 5:05 PM
My takeaway from every new Epstein revelation is that some powerful people victimized many powerless young women, many more knew, some actively enabled it--and we're still being told that MeToo and accountability for sexual violence have gone too far
Reposted by @Burnsie
Important to understand the Epstein stuff and the fascism and the corruption are, in a lot of ways, really all the same story from different angles: powerful men who can and do abuse vulnerable people around them because they can, and because systems of elite accountability catastrophically failed
November 12, 2025 at 9:14 PM
Important to understand the Epstein stuff and the fascism and the corruption are, in a lot of ways, really all the same story from different angles: powerful men who can and do abuse vulnerable people around them because they can, and because systems of elite accountability catastrophically failed
Reposted by @Burnsie
In fact, B&N has been expanding rather a bit recently; their sales are up and they've refreshed their stores. And independent books stores have been growing in numbers too! It's been quite a turnaround for brick and mortar bookstores in the last couple of years. I hope it lasts.
I'm more shocked they're still opening new B&Ns.
November 12, 2025 at 10:04 PM
In fact, B&N has been expanding rather a bit recently; their sales are up and they've refreshed their stores. And independent books stores have been growing in numbers too! It's been quite a turnaround for brick and mortar bookstores in the last couple of years. I hope it lasts.