January 2026: Joy, Angst, and Reconnection

December was a weird month. I had surgery on the 1st, and then Brianne had surgery on the 17th, so we spent a lot of time on rest and recovery, while also feeling the annual crunch to get ready for Christmas. We also had lots of Shiraki Press stuff land just before the end of the year, including a new acquisition, and I started reducing my dependence on digital technology for the new year and focusing on reconnection with myself, my community, and my natural environment.

What I’ve been writing:

• I published The Gilded King, a poem about a guy who sucks
• I did a retrospective on my experiences in 2025, in which I focused mainly on things that do not suck
• I wrote a kick-off post for my personal theme of reconnection in 2026, because lately, “online” has really started to suck

What I’ve been reading:

• Snake-Eater by T. Kingfisher — here’s my review
• How to Break Up With Your Phone by Catherine Price — more thoughts on this soon, I think?

News from Shiraki Press:

• We acquired our fifth title, Light & Earth & Marrow by Jeannie Marschall!
• We’re curating a hopepunk reading list!

Things that brought me joy this month:

• I was engrossed by Blue Prince, an absolutely fantastic exploratory puzzle game. Get a notebook and a pencil; you’ll need it, and that’s a genuine selling point.
• I finally caught up with the rest of the world and watched KPop Demon Hunters. It’s pretty, and has stellar music!
• Brianne gave me a Ninja Crispi air fryer for Christmas, and I have become air fryer dad. 💪
• This rendition of One Night in Bangkok as a 16th century chanson is utterly flawless. If you know the original, you must click through. I promise you won’t regret it.

Things that are bringing me angst:

• Amazon’s new Ask This Book feature forces Kindle books into their AI ecosystem without authors’ or publishers’ consent. It’s an infuriating overreach, and I look forward with glee to the inevitable lawsuit(s).
• Trump’s illegal attack on Venezuela, the Democrats capitulating on health care premiums, the DNC burying their 2024 election report, RFK Jr.’s HHS slashing childhood vaccine recommendations, ICE thugs constantly shooting people… I could go on like this forever, but you get the point. I think pretty much everyone in power in US politics today needs to see the inside of a cell.
• Washington state friends: a virulent anti-trans initiative recently got enough signatures to get on the state ballot in 2026. Come November, it’s up to us to vote this thing down so hard its sponsors never want to crawl out from under their hateful little rocks ever again.

My recent strategies for reducing and simplifying my use of tech and pursuing reconnection:

• I’m consolidating my online platform down to joshsutphin.com and my personal Bluesky and Mastodon accounts. If you previously followed my Horror × Hope project, that’ll all be on joshsutphin.com from now on.
• I’ve started using a physical day planner. It hasn’t totally replaced digital scheduling, but it’s quickly becoming my primary go-to, and it feels way easier (and calmer!) to do mid- and long-term planning. I paired it with this mechanical pencil that feels way nicer than its price tag would make you think.
• My venerable Pixel 6 Pro finally gave up the ghost last month, forcing a switch to an iPhone 11, and I’ve been deliberately slow to reinstall apps, I’m use the browser instead of the app whenever possible, I’m keeping as many apps as practicable off of my home screen, I’m keeping Do Not Disturb enabled, and I’m shutting down any and all notifications with extreme prejudice.

Upcoming events:

• I’ll be at RadCon February 13-15. Come say hi!
• I’ll be at Rainforest Writers Retreat February 18-22. Do not come say hi! The whole point of a retreat is for me to be left alone! 😂
• I’ll be at Emerald City Comic Con March 5-7 for some portion of the time. Come say hi again!

That’s all for now!