News

  • New poetry book EVERYTHING THAWS is out! + Locus poll

    My poetry memoir, EVERYTHING THAWS, is now available from Ben Yehuda Press! This book has been a long time coming, and it contains some of the most personal work I have ever written. It has migrations, and permafrost, and many Gulag stories, and an ice dragon. It’s a very Jewish book. You can order the…

  • My first Birdverse novel THE UNBALANCING is out!!

    You can buy it from Tachyon or other retailers. “In this first full-length novel from the acclaimed Birdverse, new love blossoms between an impatient starkeeper and a reclusive poet as they try together to save their island home. The Unbalancing is a gorgeous tale of the inevitable transformations of communities and their worlds rooted in the mystical…

  • Everything Thaws is coming in 2022

    I signed the contract and can finally announce that my poetry memoir EVERYTHING THAWS, about Soviet Jews and permafrost and climate change and stories of the Vorkuta GULAG will be forthcoming from Ben Yehuda Press in 2022. This book has been in development for a few years, after my father passed away – a painful…

  • Story and Poem sale

    My science fiction short story “These Are The Attributes By Which You Shall Know God” (about aliens and Spinoza and architecture) will appear in Glittership: An LGBTQ Science Fiction & Fantasy podcast, edited by Keffy M. Kehrli. My poem “core/debris/core” will appear in Disabled People Destroy SF (via Uncanny Magazine). Poetry for DPDSF is edited by S. Qiouyi Lu. I’m…

  • Catching up on various publishing news

    I’m behind on pretty much everything, including my publishing news – some of which are rapidly becoming “olds!” Sorry about that. But – better late than never. My SF short story “How to Remember to Forget to Remember the Old War” (originally published in Lightspeed’s Queers Destroy Science Fiction) will be reprinted in the Sunspot…

  • Ursula K. Le Guin tribute anthology

    It is official – I will be editing an anthology of speculative poetry in tribute to Ursula K. Le Guin’s life and work, for Aqueduct Press. I will also be contributing a retrospective essay on Le Guin’s poetry; she was a prolific and wonderful poet, and I feel her poetic work is not celebrated enough…

  • Award Eligibility Post 2017

    Updated  and expanded Jan 30. Dear friends, This award season, I would like you to consider only one piece  for awards – the Birdverse novella A Portrait of the Desert in Personages of Power  in Beneath Ceaseless Skies  (Part I, Part II), and you can also listen to an absolutely epic podcast/audiobook by C.S.E. Cooney. “Portrait” is eligible as…

  • Work in Uncanny and Daily Science Fiction

    While I was moving house and waiting for my internet to be reconnected, multiple works of mine came out! I’m trying to catch up now. First, my short poem “Domovoi” came out in Uncanny Magazine Issue 17, with a wonderful podcast by Amal El-Mohtar (hurray!!) My poem is in wonderful company: this issue features work…

  • Birdverse novella “Portrait…” is out

    While I was away from the computer for a rather dramatic and unpleasant move, my Birdverse novella A Portrait of the Desert in Personages of Power became available for free at Beneath Ceaseless Skies. Part 1: http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/a-portrait-of-the-desert-in-personages-of-power-pt-i/ Part 2: http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/a-portrait-of-the-desert-in-personages-of-power-pt-ii/ A 5-hour long EPIC audiobook/podcast narrated by the indomitable CSE Cooney: http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/audio/bcs-200-a-portrait-of-the-desert-in-personages-of-power/ This is one of the best…

  • Strange Horizons poll results are in

    The Strange Horizons readers’ poll results are in. “Ranra’s Unbalancing” placed first in the poetry category. “Long Shadow” placed second in the poetry category. My folkloristics essay “The Uses and Limitations of the Folklorist’s Toolkit for Fiction” shares first place with “Gender, Sex, and Sexuality in SF: A Conversation” by Polenth Blake and Bogi Takács.…

  • Strange Horizons Readers Poll

    The Strange Horizons Readers’ Poll runs traditionally for two weeks of January, this year from 4-17th. Voting is free and open to everyone. If you read Strange Horizons, you can vote. You can vote for fiction, poetry, articles, columnists, and artworks. I blog about this poll every year because I think it’s fun and important…

  • Award Eligibility 2015

    2015 has been a great year for my work. Prose-wise, I am most proud of the two Birdverse novelettes in BCS. I cannot decide which one I think is more award-worthy, but I feel “Grandmother-nai-Leylit’s Cloth of Winds” may win for me with a very narrow margin. NOVELETTES “Geometries of Belonging,” (Birdverse novelette), Beneath Ceaseless…

  • Patreon updates!

    I’ve switched my Patreon to monthly payments. The previous per-creation arrangement was not really working for me, as I ended up constantly worrying whether new pieces were worth charging for, and in the end, nothing felt quite worthy of posting for pay. The monthly payments feel liberating. They also give patrons more predictability – you…

  • It’s everything at once day

    October is here, and new things with it! 1) Queers Destroy Horror special issue of Nightmare Magazine, edited by Wendy Wagner, is out! Unlike other Queers Destroy issues, this one includes a poetry section. That’s terrific – dark poetry has a long tradition, and I am glad to see it honored here. The poetry selection…

  • Forthcoming: New Essay and a Birdverse Poem

    I have been quite sick for a while and on top of that, moving, but I have two new things to report. First, will have a letter in Letters to Tiptree from Twelfth Planet Press; it’s about translations of feminist SF, samizdat, and more. Thrilled to see the collection – the full ToC is here.…

  • Spelling the Hours – the lineup!

    At long last, here’s the table of contents announcement for the poetry chapbook focusing on forgotten figures in science and technology, Spelling the Hours! This chapbook is one of the bonuses for the forthcoming An Alphabet of Embers anthology. The chapbook is very cool – different styles, people, time periods – but I think that…

  • Poetry collection forthcoming!

    I am thrilled to announce that I sold my first poetry collection, titled Marginalia to Stone Bird, to Aqueduct Press. It includes forty-six reprinted and nine original poems, and it will appear in the Conversation Pieces series. I’m really happy with this. I loved working with Aqueduct for my first edited anthology, The Moment of…

  • Congratulations, Galen Dara!

    I learned that Galen Dara has been shortlisted for the Chelsey Award with her illustration to my story “A City on its Tentacles” in Lackington’s Magazine. I am so incredibly happy for Galen. It was truly an honor to have my work illustrated by her, and the octopus painting is just so true to the…

  • Rhysling nominations

    I am pleased to announce that two of my short poems have been nominated for the Rhysling award this year: “Dualities” in Mythic Delirium “Landwork” in Goblin Fruit There are still a few days left to nominate poems for the Rhysling, so I am linking a post by Bogi Takács on Stone Telling poems eligible…

  • Strange Horizons poetry happiness and other news

    The results of the Strange Horizons Readers Poll came out, and i am extremely happy to see so many of my favorite people and pieces represented. In particular, the poetry slate looks like this: First place: “You Are Here” by Bogi Takács Second place: “Salamander Song” by Rose Lemberg and Emily Jiang Third place: “Seeds”…

  • An Alphabet of Embers ToC announcement

    All contracts for the anthology are in, and I am ready to announce the lineup. First, however, I want to talk about the process of assembling this collection. Slush has been, for the lack of a better word, epic. When I was Kickstarting, I expected to receive 200-300 stories for the project, plus a few…

  • Award Eligibility 2014, prose+poetry

    For 2014, I am eligible with prose (short stories), poetry (short poetry category), and as Best Fan Writer. Regarding Best Fan Writer, I’ve never before considered myself a candidate, but in the spirit of #dontselfreject, I do think I qualify. For my essays, look in Essays the category. Especially highlighted are: “Encouraging Diversity – An…

  • Proud

    When I went to Readercon in 2013, I was asked to put down the most important line from my work on a sticker as a way of introduction. I wrote, without hesitation, “My life is described by the music of mute violins.” It is an opening to “Seven Losses of Na Re,” a magic realist…

  • ST reading periods reminder

    Reminder: Stone Telling is OPEN to submissions for our Hope issue. We will also be reading for our Joke issue beginning Dec. 1st. You can send 3 poems for the Hope issue and, once we reopen, 3 poems for the Joke issue (yes, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to have six pieces…

  • Award Eligibility, “Stalemate” reviews, Rhysling

    This year, I have three pieces in the short story category, of which I would like to promote two for fiction award eligibility. (Please promote yours, too!) “A City on its Tentacles” – a slipstream/fantasy/magic realist short story about a mother and a chronically ill child. It appeared in in the inaugural issue of Lackington’s,…

  • An Alphabet of Embers update

    I have finished responding to all submissions received during the open reading period. I responded to a total of 884 submissions. If you have not heard from me with either a rejection or an acceptance, please query immediately either to the editorial address (stonebirdpress@gmail.com) or in comments to this entry. Please do not wait or…

  • Editorial confidentiality: a public statement

    by Shweta Narayan and Rose Lemberg Recently, an editor outed a pseudonymous writer using the writer’s private information available to him as an editor/publisher. The editor in question later claimed that he received permission from the author in question. The author in question has not, to our knowledge, made a public statement either confirming or…

  • An Alphabet of Embers reading period, update

    We’re about 2 weeks away from the end of the reading period for An Alphabet of Embers. We are reading until Sep 30th (inclusive of that day). We’ve received many wonderful stories, and are hoping to receive many more before closing to submissions. Please do not be discouraged from submitting! You’ll never know whether something…

  • Announcing: Stone Telling 11, Reverberations

    We are happy to announce the cover and lineup for the 11th issue of Stone Telling magazine, featuring all new-to-us voices. The issue is scheduled to go live in the next 2 weeks. Poetry: Isabel Yap, The Monkey Climbs the Tree, as the Turtle Watches Valeria Rodríguez, Vertigo and Annihilation Gillian Daniels, To the Creature…

  • Two new sales

    I’m happy to announce that my poem, “The Mikveh of Past Meanings,” will appear in Other Countries: Contemporary Poets Rewiring History, edited by Claire Trévien and Gareth Prior. I am very excited about this project and cannot wait to see the final product. I have also sold a SFnal short story, “Stalemate,” to Lackington’s for their Institutions…

  • WE’RE FUNDED! HURRAY!! But wait, there’s SO MUCH MORE!

    WE ARE FULLY FUNDED THANKS TO OUR AMAZING WONDERFUL BACKERS AND SUPPORTERS!!!! And we are now officially OPEN to submissions. Submissions guidelines have been updated and are available here!   But wait! We’re not done! Still 9 days to go!   CONSIDERING INCREASING YOUR PLEDGE? Available now: one postcard with a random Letter of Embers…

  • An Alphabet of Embers submissions guidelines

    AN ALPHABET OF EMBERS submissions guidelines for writers. UPDATE! UPDATE! if you have submitted a story to AoE and have not heard back, please query immediately – to the editorial address or as a comment to this entry. I am seeking submissions for An Alphabet of Embers, an anthology of unclassifiables – lyrical, surreal, magical, experimental pieces…

  • An Alphabet of Embers, second day

    MAJOR THANKS to our wonderful supporters – those who donated and those who spread the word – we’re very close to hitting 50%! Can we get to $3000 today? Last night, an Anonymous and Illustrious Patron of the Arts purchased the $600 reward, which means that I will be at Readercon 2015 with a Viking…

  • An Alphabet of Embers Kickstarter is Alive!

    The Kickstarter for An Alphabet of Embers, an anthology of unclassifiable lyrical pieces, has gone live! There are some wonderful rewards – this book, an additional chapbook of science poetry which is going to be terrific, wonderful music and art rewards, as well as a poem in Old Norse*! This will be absolutely beautiful.   *…

  • A Sale, and an Award Nomination

    My magic realist flash story, “No Longer Lacking an Onion,” has been accepted to appear in Goldfish Grimm’s Spicy Fiction Sushi. Hurray, and thanks to editors Kelly Stiles and Michael Haynes, as well as to first reader Natalia Theodoridou for passing it up! My short poem “The Journeymaker, Climbing” from Winter 2013 issue of Goblin…

  • News, mentions, and congratulations

    A.C. Wise kindly profiles me in a current installment of her Women to Read series at SF Signal. She highlights my story “Geddarien,” as well as “A City on its Tentacles” from Lackington’s: In the interest of full disclosure, “Geddarien,” my recommended starting point for Rose Lemberg’s work was reprinted in the architecture issue of Unlikely…

  • Commenting policy posted

    I have posted a page with my commenting policy. Section II specifically deals with the question of closed comments. Comments are open here for now, but I am in the middle of a bad tendonitis flare; responses may be slow.  

  • Poem sale, and Hugo shoutouts

    My poem “Peregrinations in Change and Fear,” which some of you have read in drafts as “untitled,” will be published in Poems for the Queer Revolution edited by Jude Sandelewski. I have made two other sales which I cannot announce yet, but hopefully soon. Hugo shoutouts: Major congratulations to Ann Leckie (Ancillary Justice), Catherynne M.…

  • Poem sale, and a future kickstarter

    My poem “Baba Yaga Tries to Donate Money” has been accepted for publication at Apex. I am very happy about this! This is a humorous (of sorts) poem about the perils of fundraising. Speaking of fundraising, this June I am planning to kickstart for an anthology of short, weird, surrealist pieces of up to 1200…

  • An audio reprint and a review

    “Giant,” my magic realist flash piece about Alan Dundes, will be podcast at Toasted Cake. I love Tina Connoly’s podcast work, and am looking forward to hearing the story in that format. Sofia Samatar has a lovely review of the first issue of Lackington’s magazine. She has this to say about my story: A City on…

  • new short story, and Strange Horizons fund drive

    Strange Horizons is a magazine close to my heart. My first professional sale, Kifli, appeared in Strange Horizons in 2010; they published my award-winning epic poem In the Third Cycle, as well as Between the Mountain and the Moon and The Three Immigrations. They are currently running their annual fundraiser, and my short story Teffeu:…

  • New poems and a reprint: now with more Birdverse

    Happy things! First of all, a new issue of Through the Gate is up, featuring my poem “Resh” alongside excellent work by Sara Norja, Bogi Takács, Mari Ness, and Sonya Taaffe. It is a small, but perfectly formed issue with poems that work with each other to create a lovely harmony. Major kudos to editor…

  • inkscrawl.net seeks short poetry submissions

    inkscrawl.net, a magazine of short (10 lines or less) speculative poetry, is open to submissions once more. This time, it is guest-edited by Jennifer Smith, who asked me to post about her vision. I am very happy to do so! Says Jennifer: I’m a mythic poetry fanatic, and while I do see that many short…

  • Reprint and poetry sale

    The new issue of Unlikely Story, Journal of Unlikely Architecture, is out, with a reprint of my Jewish magic realist story “Geddarien.” It was the third story I’ve ever written and the second I have sold, and I am so happy and blessed that my zeide’s story remains meaningful to people. I am grateful to…

  • “Held close…” and other news

    Thank you everybody who voted in the Beneath Ceaseless Skies readers’ poll. It was truly an amazing competition. I am happy and humbled to report that “Held Close in Syllables of Light” was the winner, and will be reprinted in Best of Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Year Four. Thank you again! In addition, my poem Resh,…

  • Two short announcements

    My flash length surrealist story, “Theories of Pain,” is up on Daily Science Fiction website today. My prose poem “The Rotten Leaf Cantata” will appear in Strange Horizons later this year.

  • My Readercon schedule

    Hurray! I have a Readercon schedule. In fact, it feels like I am on All the Panels… Those are some awesome panels! If you can only make one, please come to the Socioling panel. It will be fabulous, and it is a useful thing for writers. I would also be happy if you came to…

  • Interview at Strange Horizons, and a translation

    An interview with me appeared today at Strange Horizons. It is entitled Noticing Language, and it is about language, linguistics, my novel, poetry, emerging poets, and various other things. A few comments I wanted to add to the interview: Rose Lemberg lived in Ukraine, subarctic Russia, and Israel before relocating to Berkeley for her Ph.D.…

  • Essay reprint, and poetry nominations

    My essay  “Feminist SF/F: on Feminist Characters” was selected to be included in Speculative Fiction 2012: The Year’s Best Online Reviews & Commentary. I have not sent it to them, so this was a surprise. My long mythic poem “Between the Mountain and the Moon” is a Rhysling Award nominee. Finally, “Between the Mountain and the Moon” won…

  • New Poetry, Readercon, Nebula

    The Winter Goblin Fruit is up, with glorious illustrations, beautiful work by Mat Joiner, Shweta Narayan, Alicia Cole, Ada Hoffmann, Sally Rosen Kindred, and others! I have two poems in this issue, both fragments from the Crow Epic – “The Journeymaker, Climbing” and “The Journeymaker to Keddar.”  The latter is a love poem (of sorts),…

  • Hacking update, and sales

    Dear readers, As some of you know, roselemberg.net has been hacked recently. I have finished unhacking it today, but the price of this is the loss of my previous website theme/design. I have installed a clean, but basic theme. This is a temporary situation before I settle on a more permanent new look for roselemberg.net,…

  • Sale announcement, and a short note on “Among Others”

    My unclassifiable maybe-flash, maybe-prose poem “Bone Shadows” will appear in the poetry section of the new Interfictions. Sofia Samatar edits the poetry department, so if you have something suitable, please consider sending it to her! Tangentially, there is an odd blog post on Black Gate entitled “SFF Corruption” in which a blogger is accusing Jo…

  • Reprint sale

    My Jewish magic realist short story “Seven Losses of Na Re”, which originally appeared in Daily Science Fiction, will be reprinted in Ann and Jeff Vandermeer’s feminist speculative fiction anthology.

  • Small poetry announcement

    My two small poetic fragments from the Crow Epic, “The Journeymaker, Climbing” (written for Sonya Taaffe) and “The Journeymaker to Keddar,” will appear in the Winter 2013 edition of Goblin Fruit.

  • “The Three Immigrations” up at Strange Horizons

    My magic realist poem “The Three Immigrations” about real and fantastic immigrations (and languages) is up at Strange Horizons. Many thanks to the SH team for giving it a home.

  • Stone Telling 8: Together, Apart

    Together, Apart is an issue that we are especially proud of. It comes out at a personally difficult time for both of us, and it comes after three very focused themed issues. Frankly, I was apprehensive about having an open-themed issue follow these, but we feel that it works powerfully, building upon and elaborating on…

  • Poetry, and Sofia Samatar

    My Birdverse poem, “I will show you a single treasure from the treasures of Shah Niyaz,” will appear in the Summer 2013 issue of Goblin Fruit. In other news, “The Moment of Change has been reviewed by Belle DiMonté at Cabinet des Fées: “This anthology is, quite simply, beautiful and transcendent in every sense.” Hurray…

  • Poetry sale, +

    My longish poem about real and fantastical immigrations, appropriately titled “The Three Immigrations,” will appear in Strange Horizons. In other news, Weird Fiction Review reviewed The Moment of Change: This is a stunning collection of poetry, of deeply felt, painstakingly crafted expressions of doubt, hope, fear, courage, transformation, transgression, and other emotions and experiences that beg…

  • Locus Podcast, and Review

    Emily Jiang and I talk about speculative poetry, diversity, multilingualism, and music in the Locus Poetry podcast. And Erik Amundsen reviews the seventh issue of Stone Telling at Versification.

  • Small sale, and Wiscon!

    1. I wrote a small poem about bees yesterday, and sold it also yesterday to Mitchell Hart’s new magazine, Through the Gate. Through the Gate will launch in August. The poem has no title and probably does not need one; it will be known by its first line, “if all of her would turn into bees.” 2. WISCON BOOKS:…

  • Here, We Cross is Here, Indeed

    The fabulous chapbook collecting 22 queer and genderfluid poems from Stone Telling 1-7, edited by yours truly and made possible by the tireless work of Jennifer Smith, is here! At least, it is available to purchase through Amazon. I have not yet seen a copy myself, but it is available to order, as if by…

  • The Moment of Change is here!!

    The anthology is officially OUT, and available for purchase at the Aqueduct website! It will also be on sale during Wiscon, where we will be having a Moment of Change reading (WITH COOKIES), and it will be available to purchase from other outlets by the end of the month. I am so, so, so proud of this. Congratulations to…

  • “Seven Losses of Na Re” + a poetry review

    “Seven Losses of Na Re,” my magic realist short story about Soviet Jews, was sent to subscribers of Daily Science Fiction today. It will appear on the website a week later. And… Mythic Delirium 26 has been reviewed at Tor.com; my poem “The Journeymaker in Kestai” was among ones highlighted: Rose Lemberg’s “The Journeymaker in…

  • Honorable Mentions

    Ellen Datlow posted a full list of honorable mentions for The Best Horror of the Year, volume 4. I am listed for two things: Lemberg, Rose. “A Mother Goes Between,” Jabberwocky, July. Lemberg, Rose. “If I had Reb Yoel’s Violin,” (poem) Inkscrawl #1. The following Stone Telling poems were honorably mentioned: Austin, Alec. “The Vigil,”…

  • The Moment of Change – Reading

    So, the Moment of Change is almost here. It will be released at Wiscon, and I am organizing an open-mic reading to celebrate the anthology. You do not have to be a MoC contributor to participate in the open-mic reading! Everyone is welcome! Here is the description: Come join the authors of the “The Moment…

  • The Moment of Change – cover!

    Behold the cover in all its glory! So tremendously happy about this. The painting is by the wonderful Terri Windling. The table of contents is here! The anthology would be released at Wiscon; I have organized an open-mic reading (everyone is welcome to read!) – and will announce the details here when I have them.…

  • “Braided to each other / beneath the benevolence of the sky”

    My queer epic poem “In the Third Cycle” is a winner in the Strange Horizons readers’ poll.  I have written elsewhere about how important this piece is to me; I consider it my best poem. It is an incredible thing for me to see it recognized, and to know that it has readers. THANK YOU.

  • Assorted poetry news

    My long poem “In the Third Cycle” received a Rhysling nomination. I am glad. The Cycle is the first queer epic piece I wrote during the epic “Ten Days in December” (2010), and to see it recognized (first via the Rannu competition win, and now the nomination) makes me feel that people really do care…

  • inkscrawl, and Stone Bird Press

    Some of you might remember inkscrawl, a magazine of minimalist fantastical poetry launched by Mitchell Hart in 2011. Unfortunately, it closed after just two issues, after having published some wonderful short poetry in such a short period of time. This saddened me; though I rarely write very short poetry, I have been well  aware that…

  • 2011 in review, and nominations/eligibility

    I guess this is an obligatory nominating post for your nominating considerations; here are All the Things I published in 2011. Short Fiction of 2011: “Held Close in Syllables of Light,” Beneath Ceaseless Skies, novelette. (If you know me, you know how important this one is to me!) “A Mother Goes Between,” Jabberwocky, short story.…

  • New website

    I’ve redesigned roselemberg.net! I liked the old yellow version, but it was time to upgrade. The new official (gasp) blog/site runs on WordPress, and cross-posts entries to my Livejournal. I am still fiddling with the template, but am pretty happy with it for now. In the future, I am planning a custom logo graphic (custom…