Elana Gomel

Jewish Authors in the Horror Space This list highlight a few of the many Jewish authors in the horror and dark literature spaces who are creating work today and telling stories in ways that have become meaningful to them and to their r

My latest article is up on the The Lineup where I spotlight Jewish authors in the horror space! This is something I’ll be doing more often.

@johnpalisano.bsky.social
@raforall.bsky.social
@natcassidy.bsky.social
@nicholaskaufmann.bsky.social
@mor1233.bsky.social

the-line-up.com/jewish-horro...

Somewhat belatedly, I want to share this excellent review of my #darkfantasy novel Nine Levels.

www.abyssapexzine.com/2025/07/aa-r...

I am to participate in a fascinating literary event in San Francisco - a panel with post-Soviet writers. There should be more of those. As opposed to fascism which seems to be everywhere, the terrible legacy of communism is forgotten. We, writers and intellectuals, need to speak out

Big Brother Is Working For You! Orwell, Trigger Warnings, and the Meaning of Censorship (Part 1)

I have been absent from this platform for a while, sorry. But things are happening: my new novel is coming out and my Substack is gaining steam. So I thought that on this somber day I will share with you my essay about the importance of free speech open.substack.com/pub/elanagom...

Righteous Killers SF and Violence, Part 3

When I am not writing novels or articles, I run a series of free essays on Substack where I discuss philosophical or political issues through the lens of speculative fiction (SF). Here is the latest. It concludes a three-part series on SF and violence.
elanagomel.substack.com/p/righteous-...

Among all the novels I have written, this is my own favorite. If you want to wander in the dark forest of fairy tales, here is your gateway to the land of ghoulish Little Mother, the Ogre, and the Three Dragon Rivers. Thank you Crystal Lake Publishing for featuring it!

Can We Vaccinate Against Murder? SF and Violence, Part 1

As some of you may know, I have a Substack where I discuss speculative fiction. Some of my previous posts addressed fairy tales, utopias, ghost stories, and toxic nostalgia. My latest post is about violence and SF.
open.substack.com/pub/elanagom...

Just in time for #womeninhorror month! This new collection of #dark #fantasy contains my story “Thief of Dreams” and many other wonderful tales by women authors! tinyurl.com/axkkbsyv

Is Science Fiction Marxist? Genre and Ideology

My new #Substack answering the question: Is #ScienceFiction a #Marxist genre (and if not, why do so many Marxists like it?)
open.substack.com/pub/elanagom...

Xenomorphs and gender And why you should not watch Alien: Romulus

I discuss #sciencefiction theory and #gender in my new Substack on the #Alien franchise open.substack.com/pub/elanagom...

Shared Universes, History, and Feminism Are women welcome in the Night Land?

I am revisiting my favorite places of the imagination. First on the list: William Hope Hodgson’s The Night Land. But this Edwardian masterpiece is blatantly misogynist. So as a feminist, how can I love it so much? Here is my answer

elanagomel.substack.com/p/shared-uni...

Ben Yehuda Press banner, showing several titles from the catalog.

If you're interested in Jewish books and authors, check out our titles at ben yehuda press!

www.benyehudapress.com/
8/8

“Ten years ago, California voters approved spending $7.5 billion to build water storage and improve state water facilities—but by 2023 not one dam had been finished, per the Los Angeles Times. Not a single one. “

Recommended Reading in 2025 And how to travel back in time when you really need to - like, right now

My last two essays of the bad year 2024 have to do with learning from the past and understanding the present. The first one is about #sci-fi of the past and why prophecy always fail.
open.substack.com/pub/elanagom...

I am stuck in cold Amsterdam but sending warm New Year wishes to all my friends, near and far 💕💕💕

Of Mountains and Monsters: Nine Levels is a mythological quest of courage and survival Nine Levels Elana Gomel Mirror World Publishing, 2024 ISBN-13: 978-1998360024 Ebook, 282 ppg. Buy link   “There was power...

An excellent and perceptive review of my latest #fantasy #novel Nine Levels.

Cover of NINE LEVELS by Elana Gomel

Congratulations to @mor1233.bsky.social! Her book, NINE LEVELS, has been nominated for the 2025 @specawards.bsky.social by Mirror World Publishing.

#SSBA #BookSky #indiepress #bookawards #fantasy 💙📚

Oaks Roots run deep

open.substack.com/pub/judithma...
This is my new #story about war, loss, grief and the unbeatable bond between parents and children and between brothers-in-arms. Free to read in Judith Magazine.

I am doing a countdown of my publications this year. Let’s start with my #dark #fantasy novel Nine Levels. You may have heard of the story of Demeter and Persephone. But I bet you have never heard it told like this…

Here is my new Substack essay about Lunar Gothic: a genre that combines the techno ambience of science fiction and the spookiness of supernatural horror. Free for all! open.substack.com/pub/elanagom...

Thank you so much! What class is that?

On the Utopian Impulse; or Why Better is Never the Best A Postscript to Utopia-Bashing

The follow-up to my discussion of #utopia and of the connection between utopia and violence. My Substack is free, and (polite) responses are always appreciated.

open.substack.com/pub/elanagom...

I keep complaining that not enough #international #sciencefiction and #fantasy is being published. Well, here is a new international collection of SFF by women with my story about #aliens and #motherhood.

The most banned books in the world have been Nineteen eighty-four by George Orwell (the USSR), Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie (Iran), Social Contract by Jean-Jacques Rousseau (also Iran), Mao:the Unknown Story by Jung Chang (China), Tombstone by Yang Jisheng (also China). How about buying those?

Are nominations by publishers only or by authors as well?

Since #censorship is in the news, let me post a short list of books that were banned in the USSR (meaning you could go to jail for reading one).

George Orwell Nineteen eighty-four
Evgeniy Zamyatin We
Alexander Solzhenitsyn The Gulag Archipelago
Arthur Koestler Darkness at Noon

Please add me. I have published a number of articles on Dickens and late-Victorian Gothic, and my books reference the period.

If you are interested in portal fantasy (and who isn’t?), check out this new collection. It contains my story ״The White Forest״, a mashup of folk horror and Ukrainian nostalgia #fantasy #newrelease

The Girl with All the Gifts is a great read. But if you really want to understand the current moment through SF, I recommend Zamyatin’s We.

Utopia, Dystopia, Anti-Utopia, Hetertopia... A Guide for the Perplexed

I write on Substack about speculative fiction. Here is my new post on utopia, dystopia and anti-utopia (these are different things), arguing that search for a perfect society inevitably leads to totalitarianism.

open.substack.com/pub/elanagom...