BFS Online: Writing Your Way – Readings

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We have six 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 Readings from Readings from Eve Smith, Carol Carman, David Green, Eliane Boey, Erin Brown, and Carol B. Duncan. Find out more about them below.

Eve Smith (she/her): Eve Smith writes speculative thrillers, mainly about the things that scare her. In this world of questionable facts and news, she believes storytelling can be a powerful way to engage people in real life issues. She attributes her love of all things dark and dystopian to a childhood watching Tales of the Unexpected and Edgar Allen Poe double bills. Longlisted for the Not the Booker Prize and described by Waterstones as “an exciting new voice in crime fiction”, Eve’s debut novel, The Waiting Rooms, set in the aftermath of an antibiotic resistance crisis, was shortlisted for the Bridport Prize First Novel Award and was selected as a Guardian Book of the Month. It was followed by Off-Target, about a world where genetic engineering of children is routine, which was a Book of the Month in The Times. Her latest thriller, One, longlisted for the British Science Fiction Association’s Best Novel Award, is set in a near-future Britain ravaged by the climate crisis where a One-Child policy is ruthlessly enforced. It was a New Scientist pick of the month. Eve’s previous job at an environmental charity took her to research projects across Asia, Africa and the Americas, and she has an ongoing passion for wild creatures, wild science and far-flung places. Find out more about Eve on her website or connect with her on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. Buy her books here.

Carol Carman (she/her): Carol Carman is a former BBC journalist and presenter who writes novels, short stories and poetry. Her humorous fantasy novels have been likened to those of Terry Pratchett, and her poetry to that of Victoria Wood. She’s flattered. Her book, Twicetime, has been described as ‘A delicious blend of magic, mayhem and wit’. You can discover more about Carol on her website and find her on Twitter and Facebook. Treat yourself to her books here.

David Green (he/him): David Green is a neurodivergent writer of the epic and the urban, the fantastical, the cosy, and the mysterious. With his character-driven dark fantasy series Empire Of Ruin, or urban fantasy noir Hell In Haven, David takes readers on emotional, action-packed thrill rides. Hailing from the north-west of England, David now lives in County Galway on the west coast of Ireland with his wife and Godzilla-obsessed son. When not writing, David can be found wondering why he chooses to live in places where it constantly rains. ​David’s Path Of War was nominated for Best Novel at the 2023 BFS Awards, and he is repped by Laura Bennett of Liverpool Literacy Agency. Learn more about David on his website or follow him on Twitter or Bluesky.

Eliane Boey (she/her): Eliane is a Chinese Singaporean writer, author of Other Minds and forthcoming Club Contango, both from Dark Matter INK. She is a member of the SFWA and has short stories published in Clarkesworld, The Penn Review, Weird Horror, and others. Eliane read Philosophy at the University of St Andrews, and Interdisciplinary Humanities at New York University. She also has a business degree from SMU in Singapore, which was probably what got her a job.  She has a working knowledge of bulk cargo ships and ports, which continues to inspire her writing. Find out more about Eliane on her website. Or you can follow her on Twitter. Grab her books here.

Erin Brown (she/her): Erin Brown is a black, neurodivergent poet and author of horror, fabulist, and fantasy short fiction. She has been published in FIYAH Magazine, The Deadlands, Fabulist Magazine, the Los Suelos CA Interactive Anthology, and 3Elements Literary Revue, the anthology It Was All a Dream: an Anthology of Bad Horror Tropes Done Right, and Fantasy Magazine, with upcoming work in other publications and anthologies in 2024. Erin received Truman Capote Literary Trust Scholarship in Creative Writing for Spring 2022 and was shortlisted for Brave New Weird 2022. You can find out more on Erin’s website or follow her on Twitter and Bluesky.

Carol B. Duncan (she/her): Carol B. Duncan is an academic and writer of Caribbean heritage. A child of the Windrush migration, Carol was born in London, England of Guyanese and Antiguan parentage. She spent childhood in Antigua with maternal grandparents from Dominica and Antigua before emigrating to Toronto. Caribbean folklore, storytelling and patois/creole language are important sources of inspiration in her writing. Carol holds a PhD in sociology and is a professor at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. Carol’s short stories have been published in Heartlines Spec, PREE Magazine – Caribbean Writing, and Augur Magazine. Carol’s writing has been recognized as the recipient of the Waterloo Region Arts Award for literature. Her short story, Peeny-Wally, was nominated for The Journey Prize and received an honourable mention in the Year’s Best Speculative African Fiction (and Poetry) Volume 2. It was selected for the anthology African Ghost Short Stories (Flame Tree, 2024). Learn more about Carol on her website or here. Get yourself a copy of her book here.