Jayde Holmes

A white thumb opens a tiny book to a page with a coloured pencil drawing. The drawing is of the Sigiriya Lion Gate. A bunch of tiny people and dogs are gathered before a cliff face, where the ruins of and entrance that now consists of a stone staircase between two massive lion paws sits at the base. Coming up from behind the ruins are metal stairs zigzaging up the rock, with dozens of people climbing them.

A white thumb holds open a tiny book, showing a coloured pencil drawing. The drawing is a recreation of one of the ladies of the Sigiriya cave paintings. The woman is shown from the waist up, she wears a green skirt but is topless, with large breasts. her neck, chest and hair are covered in jewellery. Her skin is golden and her hair is green.

A white thumb opens a tiny book to a page with a drawing done in pen and marker. The drawing is of a green hill, with terraces for tea or rice cut into it. A path leads down the hill to a town of scattered buildings. Amongst these buildings is a Buddhist stupa and the golden top of a Hindu temple. In the foreground are two more mountains in the bottom corners, and a red and blue train going past.

A white thumb opens a tiny book showing a drawing done in pen and marker. The drawing shows a few far away buildings and rice fields surrounded by mountains. Clouds are In front of one of the mountains.

More tiny #sketches of my #SriLanka holiday. The first two are from Sigiriya, whilst the second two I drew on the famous train to Ella.

#art #travel #travelart #tiny #sketchbook

A tiny book held with a white thumb and finger. The page it is open to has a drawing in pen of a busy market street with people walking around a road full of Tuk Tuks and trucks. The green and purple Lotus Tower is in the background. It is coloured with bright markers, using many different colours. Markers can be seen behind the book.

A tiny book being held open by white fingers. It is open to a page with a coloured drawing of Buddha statues beneath a ceiling mural. There are four statues, drawn in pen and coloured with markers. They are gold, with three wearing white robes and one wearing a red robe. The one in the red robe is standing in an elaborate arch. They are all holding up their right hands. Above them is a mural, made with coloured pencils, depicting a sitting Buddha, with one hand in his lap and another hand, painted red, held up. The background of the mural is mostly red, white, gold, black and blue. Pencils can be seen behind the book.

First tiny #sketches in my tiny #travel sketchbooks. I'm gonna draw a lot of things from my #SriLanka holiday. First, the Pettah Market, with the Lotus Tower in the background. Second, Buddha statues and murals from the Dambulla Cave Temple.

#travelart #tinysketches #art

A tiny book, being open by a white thumb. On the page is a bright coloured drawing of a red Buddhist tower full of Buddha statues, with palm trees in the background and other small towers and fruit trees in the foreground.

A tiny book, being open by a white thumb. On the page is a coloured picture of a man in a dark blue coat with a grey hat holding a ship's searing wheel. The wheel is embedded in a pile of snow. Behind the man is a wall of ice full of frozen fish. Above him, a rope ladder leads to a wooden ceiling. The walls are covered in snow.

It has been ages since I shared tiny #travel sketches. Here's two favs:

1: Trấn Quốc Pagoda. My brother and I visited while exploring Hanoi.
2: My Dad at the Amsterdam Ice Bar. This was a surprise, and he cursed me out due to the cold. Later, he said it was one of his favourite things we did.

A tiny black book with the Sri Lankan flag on the cover, and the letters 'LKA' on the spine. It is being held with the thumb and two fingers of a white hand.

Tomorrow I'm flying out to Sri Lanka for a two week holiday. I've made a tiny sketchpad for the trip, so expect to see more art and travel photos over the next couple of weeks.

Unfortunately, this will delay the March Monthly Story. I apologize in advance.

#travel #art #tinybooks #SriLanka

The 2058 Coober Pedy Winter Olympics The 2058 Coober Pedy Winter Olympics By Jayde Holmes “Nah mate, it wasn’t fun. There was absolutely nothing fun at all about those eleven years. What? Oh fine, since you’re all so inter…

With the #WinterOlympics happening, now's a good time to mention that one of my first short stories was about a Winter Olympics in a small desert town. Check out 'The 2058 Coober Pedy Winter Olympics'

#scifi #sciencefiction #shortstory #SFF #Olympics

jaydeholmes.com/short-storie...

The only Winter Olympics footage you need to see today.

Two tawny frogmouths (owl-like birds with grey and brown feathers that look like bark) sitting together on a tree branch.

A rainbow lorikeet (small parrot with green, blue, yellow and orange feathers and a red beak) sitting in a tree with brush-like red flowers.

A crested pigeon (grey dove with a spiked crest on the top of its head) perched in some tree branches.

A noisy miner (small bird with brown and grey feathers) is hard to see high in the tree branches, surrounded by thin green leaves and brush-like red flowers.

Found four different bird species in the tree in my backyard at the same time. Tawny frogmouths, rainbow lorikeets, a crested pigeon and some noisy miners. I don't think the tawnys liked all the noisy, but was so cool to see.

#bird #australianwildlife #australianbirds #backyardanimals

Interface 2026 Monthly Story Challenge #2 Interface By Jayde Holmes Art by Benjamin Whelan, aka Zumad. Check out his Instagram HERE Potential Content Warning: Very angsty, characters longing for non-existenc…

Halfway through the month, so don't forget to check out my February story, 'Interface'.

This novelette takes place during a war between Io and Europa, fought with mecha made from mysterious giant creatures that fly through space.

jaydeholmes.com/short-storie...

#writing #ScienceFiction #Mecha

It's that time! Vote in the annual Locus Awards Poll & Survey to determine the winners of the 2026 awards (tickets available now)!

You can vote at poll.voting.locusmag... or via the link in our bio!

I've seen a few adult Striped Marsh Frogs near my #frogpond lately, and wondered if any had been tadpoles in my pond. Either way, they seem to like it here. The next gen of #tadpoles have recently hatched. Looking forward to seeing another lot grow up.

#frog #frogs #AustralianWildlife #garden

2026 Hugo Nominations Are Open locusmag.com/2026/02...

ICYMI three of my stories dropped last month and are free to read.

Anything Not Impossible, at Kaleidotrope:
kaleidotrope.net/winter-2026/...

Anomalous, My Jan Monthly Story:
jaydeholmes.com/short-storie...

The Dybot of Sol, at Dream Theory Media:
www.dreamtheory.media/dybot-of-sol/

#sff #books

FUNGUARY DAY 6 - CORDYCEPS

#funguary #BRart

A five-by-five bingo card. Colour scheme is orange and grey and there are gears in the background. In the heading is the title ‘2026’, and the website address jaydeholmes.com/book-bingo-cards/ It has the following challenges, listed row-by-row and left-to-right: Row One: 1. Written in the 90s 2. Miliary Science Fiction 3. Translated from Spanish 4. Title Contains the Letter ‘X’ 5. Written in the 80s Row 2: 1. Psycological Horror 2. Recommended by a Friend 3. Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel Winner 4. Set on a Spacestation or Space habitat 5. Own Voices Row 3: 1. Has Non-Humanoid Aliens 2. Set in the Ocean/Under the Sea 3. Free Square 4. Has Werewolves 5. Post-Apocalyptic Row 4: 1. Tittle Starts with ‘J’ 2. Alternate History 3. Written in the 1920s 4. Isekai 5. Start or Continue a Series with Six Books or More. Row 5: 1. Hugo Award Winner 2. Non-Fiction 3. Hard Science Fiction 4. Animal Protagonist 5. Twenty Flash Fiction Stories.

Late finding a 2026 Reading Challenge? It's not too late to start working on a #BookBingo Card, and I've made a pretty fun one for this year.

Check out my website for more information. jaydeholmes.com/book-bingo-c...

#reading #books #readingchallenge

Monthly Writing Prompts Challenge #2 – Interface Time for my next monthly story. This one is called Interface, and the prompt for it was of course, "interface." My goal this year is to write a short story a month, and so far I'm two for two. Though it was looking a bit dicey with this one. When I came up with this challenge, I was planning to write twelve flash fiction pieces.

After a short delay, my next monthly story, "Interface" is now out, with some awesome artwork by Zumad. I cannot believe I wrote such a novelette in a month, come and have a read.

#sciencefiction #selfpublished #mecha #shortstory #giantrobotsfighting

Small delay with the February Monthly Story. For this challenge, I was planning to write flash fiction pieces, but this month I wrote 8000 words. I'm taking an extra day to do more editing, just to make sure its presentable.

The story is called Interface, and I look forward to sharing it soon.

Whoa, this is really exciting. Not just an Earth-like world orbiting a good orange boi, but just in the habitable zone and close enough for further observation. Story behind its discovery is cool too. Go read the article.

A five-by-five bingo card. Colour scheme is orange and grey and there are gears in the background. In the heading is the title ‘2026’, and the website address jaydeholmes.com/book-bingo-cards/ It has the following challenges, listed row-by-row and left-to-right: Row One: 1. Written in the 90s 2. Miliary Science Fiction 3. Translated from Spanish 4. Title Contains the Letter ‘X’ 5. Written in the 80s Row 2: 1. Psycological Horror 2. Recommended by a Friend 3. Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel Winner 4. Set on a Spacestation or Space habitat 5. Own Voices Row 3: 1. Has Non-Humanoid Aliens 2. Set in the Ocean/Under the Sea 3. Free Square 4. Has Werewolves 5. Post-Apocalyptic Row 4: 1. Tittle Starts with ‘J’ 2. Alternate History 3. Written in the 1920s 4. Isekai 5. Start or Continue a Series with Six Books or More (Saga Vol. 12) Row 5: 1. Hugo Award Winner 2. Non-Fiction 3. Hard Science Fiction 4. Animal Protagonist 5. Twenty Flash Fiction Stories.

First square filled on my #bookbingo card (series with six or more books). Been Re-reading the #Saga series by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples, then read Vol. 12. Love this series, and loved seeing Hazel and her family in the circus. Can't wait for more.

#comicbook #reading #readingchallenge

And for those wondering, yes this is Tower of Babel with giant robots in space, and yes it was a lot of fun to write.

Thank you so much. hat means a lot, and I'm glad you liked it.

New Story Alert! My little story about big robots is out now @dreamtheorymedia.bsky.social check it out, as well as all their other flash fiction pieces.

I'm stoked this story found a good home. It's one I've been wanting to share for a long time.

#writing #mecha #dysonsphere #SFF #sciencefiction

Well, this is not a cover I ever expected, but damn I'm digging it.

It's been a busy start to the year, and last week I made quite a few announcements. Here are all my 2026 plans summerised.

A five-by-five bingo card. Colour scheme is orange and grey and there are gears in the background. In the heading is the title ‘2026’, and the website address jaydeholmes.com/book-bingo-cards/ It has the following challenges, listed row-by-row and left-to-right: Row One: 1. Written in the 90s 2. Miliary Science Fiction 3. Translated from Spanish 4. Title Contains the Letter ‘X’ 5. Written in the 80s Row 2: 1. Psycological Horror 2. Recommended by a Friend 3. Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel Winner 4. Set on a Spacestation or Space habitat 5. Own Voices Row 3: 1. Has Non-Humanoid Aliens 2. Set in the Ocean/Under the Sea 3. Free Square 4. Has Werewolves 5. Post-Apocalyptic Row 4: 1. Tittle Starts with ‘J’ 2. Alternate History 3. Written in the 1920s 4. Isekai 5. Start or Continue a Series with Six Books or More Row 5: 1. Hugo Award Winner 2. Non-Fiction 3. Hard Science Fiction 4. Animal Protagonist 5. Twenty Flash Fiction Stories.

Miss my Book Bingo reveal? Check out my 2026 #BookBingo card now before I start filling it in.

#reading #books #2026ReadingChallenge #sciencefiction #SFF

Anomalous 2026 Monthly Story Challenge #1 Anomalous By Jayde Holmes It took more than one anomalous experiment for scientists to realise that the laws of physics weren’t consistent. More than one equation th…

Like my short stories? Good news; I'm gonna write and share 12 of them this year. Come check out the first one, "Anomalous"

#writing #shortstory #sciencefiction #universeisasimulation #selfpublished

jaydeholmes.com/anomalous/

So excited to see my new story "Anything Not Impossible" published online @kaleidotrope.bsky.social amongst a group of other great stories.

kaleidotrope.net/winter-2026/...

Jayde’s Book Bingo Challenge 2026 The moment you've all been waiting for is here, behold, my 2026 Book Bingo Card. This was generated with my randomized Book Bingo Generator, which every year I fire up so it's always a surprise what I'll have to do. I've already shown off the design, but now here it is with the challenges all filled in: Rules All challenges on the card should be interpreted in whichever way makes the challenge most fun for the person doing it.

Here it is, my filled out 2026 #BookBingo card. Feel free to save a copy and play along at home.

#reading #books #SFFBookBingo #ScienceFiction #Fantasy #ScienceFictionBookBingo #2026ReadingChallenge

Thanks. I think they're great. Read a lot of books this year that I might not have looked at or that I would have kept putting off if I wasn't doing book bingo.

2025 Book Bingo Wrap Up Welcome to the wrap up of my 2025 Book Bingo Challenge. I will try to keep the preamble short, because I have a lot of books to review here. First, let's see what my card looks like now that the year is done. I did really well this year, with the only two tiles missing being the "Written in your Year of Birth", and "Australian, Canadian or New Zealander Author".

Before getting to my 2026 #BookBingo Challenge, here are reviews on all the books I read to fill my 2025 card. Enjoy.

#reading #books #fanasy #ScienceFiction #SFF #ReadingChallenge #SpeculativeFiction

A five-by-five bingo card with empty tiles. Colour scheme is orange and grey and there are gears in the background. In the heading is the title ‘2026’, and the website address jaydeholmes.com/book-bingo-cards/

Sneak peek at my 2026 #BookBingo card. Challenges will be revealed next week (next year haha), and will be mostly #Sciencefiction, #Fantasy and #Horror related. Feel free to play along with me this year. Go to jaydeholmes.com/book-bingo-c... for more information.

#reading #books