So we may be about to kick off this year’s Spooktastic Reads event, but with SciFi Month also (a little further) around the corner, let’s have another update on our 2026 mission!
First off, if you missed the explanatory post from last month, you can catch up and get the introductory factoids here!
Now for the fun features part of the update:
As we do every SciFi Month, we have a prompt-a-day challenge for any and all participants to have fun with, whether you’re on Instagram or Bluesky or even blogging! Each prompt is open to interpretation, just the way we like it, so take the ones you like and run with them – but if you’d like a little help with any, we’ve got some suggestions in the master schedule.
- November 1st: Dust off your suits
- November 2nd: Side quests
- November 3rd: One word review
- November 4th: Stellar crew
- November 5th: Timey wimey
- November 6th: Woo, stars
- November 7th: Pets in spaaaaace
- November 8th: Constellations
- November 9th: Supply drop
- November 10th: Fictional friends
- November 11th: From A to B
- November 12th: Event horizon
- November 13th: Planet hopping
- November 14th: Twinkle, twinkle little star
- November 15th: Current read
- November 16th: Red giant
- November 17th: Alien art
- November 18th: Black hole
- November 19th: Shooting stars
- November 20th: Galactic empires
- November 21st: #StackSaturday
- November 22nd: Alpha Centauri
- November 23rd: Babelfish
- November 24th: All in the name
- November 25th: Supernova
- November 26th: Eccentricity
- November 27th: Endless journey
- November 28th: Tau Ceti
- November 29th: Life, but not as we know it
- November 30th: Crew’s choice
Also as part of our prompts challenge, we’ve got some Friday Five prompts to line up with each Friday in November, which you can use to make recommendations or write mini-reviews, or otherwise feature five notable books! Those prompts are as follows:
- Woo, stars: this was a behind-the-scenes joke between co-captains but it’s become our theme for this year’s event, because we loved it so much. Let’s have your favourite star-studded cover art.
- Planet hopping: either list some fictional planets you’d like to visit, or highlight some books that visit multiple planets.
- Galactic empires: the good, the bad and the poetic. If it made an impression on you, tell us about it!
- Endless journey: long series/long journeys (interpret “journey” as you please!)
Elsewhere on board, our co-captain Annemieke at A Dance With Books has posted a reading schedule for the finale of the Imperial Radch Read Along, which began last November and will be wrapping up this November with Radiant Star. Be sure to drop a comment or stop by our Discord server, OtherWorlds, if you’d like to join in! If you’re not a Discord member but you’d like to be, let one of us hosts know and we’ll get you an invite.
As for me, you may recall me (not) being a tease (ok I was) about my own reading plans in the last update, and I am delighted to confirm that there will be a buddy read taking place in OtherWorlds for the newly released Becky Chambers novel As You Wake, Break The Shell.
Buddy reads are less formal than a read along, so there’s no schedule and no Q&A, just friendly nerdy chatter as we make our way through the story. I’ll have a dedicated channel up on Discord very soon, so look out for that. Otherwise, you can also tag me (@deargeekplace.bsky.social) and/or SciFi Month (@scifimonth.bsky.social) on Bluesky to share your thoughts (the hashtag across all socials is #SciFiMonth26).
I believe that’s all the planning done for the moment, though I’d definitely like to do at least one SF-related movie night liveskeet, so stay tuned for details once I’ve settled on my movie(s) of choice!
See you on the launchpad, fellow nerds!
ART CREDIT
Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Klaus Pontoppidan (STScI)
Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)
Detail from an image of the Rho Ophiuchi Cloud Complex captured by the James Webb Space Telescope. Use of this image does not imply affiliation with or endorsement by NASA.
Banner quote: Dolly Parton
