Shown is a graphic that has a background of a mountainous landscape, mostly obscured by pinky-grey clouds. There are three narrow, rocky paths disappearing into the clouds and a few black birds in the sky. On the top left is the BFS logo, a black dragon design curling around the letters ‘BFS’. Top right is the World Fantasy Convention logo, a white drawing of woman with long hair holding a sword aloft, bursting from a black background with stars. Photos: Rachel V Green (top left); Anna Smith Spark (top right); Russell Smith (middle left); Liam Hogan (middle right); Allen Stroud (bottom left); Melissa Ren (bottom middle left); Garrett Boatman (bottom middle right); Jendia Gammon (bottom right).

BFS Online: World Fantasy Convention 2025 – Readings

Grab your ticket here

We have eight readings from a range of authors – fantasy, science fiction and horror – to help you find your next book (or add to that beautiful TBR pile). Bring your favourite tipple and enjoy some first-rate readings from the SFFH community.

Readings from Rachel V. Green, Anna Smith Spark, Russell Smith, Liam Hogan, Allen Stroud, Garrett Boatman, Melissa Ren, and Jendia Gammon. Find out more about them below.

Rachel V Green (she/her): Author of Guardians and City of Sunlight, Rachel loves to build worlds! Living happily in beautiful Herefordshire, UK, she can’t help but sit amidst the rolling hills and imagine realms with higher stakes, dangers at every turn and forces we can’t control. Rachel dreams big and crafts characters that can take on any challenge and win! Find all Rachel’s info on Linktree.

Anna Smith Spark (she/her): Anna Smith Spark is the author of the Empires of Dust grimdark epic fantasy series The Court of Broken Knives, The Tower of Living and Dying and The House of Sacrifice; the standalone A Woman of the Sword; and A Sword of Bronze and Ashes, book one of her folk horror high fantasy series The Remaking of This World Ruined. Her work has been described as ‘a masterwork’ and ‘awe-inspiring’. She’s dyslexic, dyspraxic, ASD, PhD; previous jobs include English teacher, fetish model and petty bureaucrat. You may know her by the heels of her shoes. Find out more about Anna on her website. Or connect with her on Facebook and Twitter. Get a copy of Anna’s book here.

Rusell Smith (he/him): Russell is a historian, games writer and fiction author, crossing many worlds on a number of adventures. A gamer and a regular hand at conventions in the UK, rumours of his status as a Time Lord are neither confirmed nor denied at this time. Check out more of what Russell is up to on his website. You can also follow him on Twitter or Facebook. Get Russell’s books here.

Liam Hogan (he/him): Liam Hogan is an award-winning speculative short story writer, with stories in Best of British Science Fiction and in Best of British Fantasy (NewCon Press). He volunteers at the creative writing charities Ministry of Stories, and Spark Young Writers. Sci-Fi collection: A Short History of the Future (Northodox Press). Fantasy: Happy Ending Not Guaranteed (Arachne Press). Read Liam’s blog or follow him on Bluesky.

Allen Stroud (he/him): Allen Stroud is a writer, lecturer and researcher. He has worked in computer games, roleplaying games, novels, short stories and scripts. He has worked with the Ministry of Defence on strategic planning and resilience in the 22nd century. His Fractal Series, published by Flame Tree Press now consists of three novels, six novellas and an album of music with more stories coming out in late 2025. Publisher’s Weekly said about the series – “this raises fascinating questions about the politics of space exploration.” Stroud was the 2017, 2018, 2021 and 2023 chair of Fantasycon, the annual convention of the British Fantasy Society, which hosts the British Fantasy Awards. In June 2019, he became Chair of the British Science Fiction Association, taking over from Donna Bond, stepping down in June 2025. Stroud continues to write academic papers, reviews, articles and fiction in science fiction, fantasy and horror. He lives in a messy house with three cats and his partner, Karen. Find out more on Allen’s website. Get his books here.

Melissa Ren (she/her): Melissa Ren is a Chinese-Canadian writer whose narratives tend to explore the intersection between belonging and becoming. She is a prize recipient of Room Magazine’s Fiction Contest, a Tin House alum, a grant recipient of the Canada Council for the Arts, and a senior editor at Augur Magazine / Tales & Feathers. Her writing has appeared or forthcoming in Factor Four Magazine, Fusion Fragment, DreamForge Magazine, and elsewhere. Get more information via Linktree or follow Melissa on Instagram, Bluesky or Threads.

Garrett Boatman (he/him): Garrett Boatman is the author of Stage Fright, originally published by Onyx in 1988, reissued as Paperback from Hell #11 by Valancourt Books with an introduction by Will Errickson and Audible by Joe Hempel; Floaters: A Victorian Zombie Adventure, published by Bram Stoker Award-winning Crystal Lake Publishing, 2021; and the Night Trilogy: Night’s Plutonian Shore, The Clocks of Midnight, and The Mirror of Eternity, 2023-4. Garrett is a member of the British Fantasy Society, Science Fiction and Fantasy Society, and Horror Writers Association. Find out more about Garrett on his website or follow him on Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter. Get his books here.

Jendia Gammon (she/her): Jendia Gammon is the Nebula Award and BSFA Award finalist author of fantasy, science fiction, and horror novels and short stories (Doomflower, 2025; Atacama, 2025: The Inn at the Amethyst Lantern, 2023 – as J. Dianne Dotson; The Shadow Galaxy, 2023 – as J. Dianne Dotson; The Questrison Saga – as J. Dianne Dotson). She is also editor-in-chief of a new speculative fiction publishing imprint. Jendia conducts workshops and participates in panels on creative writing for international conventions. She holds a degree in ecology and evolutionary biology. Jendia is also a science writer and an artist. Find out more on Jendia’s website. Or follow her on her socials – Twitter, Threads, Bluesky. Buy Jendia’s latest book here.

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