Edward Barnfield @edbarnfield

A Roundtable Discussion on Climate Change and Crime Fiction’s Role in Meeting the Moment The new anthology On Fire and Under Water sets out to show how devastating the effects of climate change are for everyday people. Discuss the growing urgency of the climate emergency and the ongoin…

What is our role as writers and artists in meeting the moment? Nine On Fire and Under Water contributors discuss this and more about the climate change crisis. Thank you to @crimereads.bsky.social for hosting this roundtable.

02.10.2025 18:04 — 👍 7 🔁 5 💬 1 📌 0

Thank you!

30.09.2025 15:45 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

And to you! Seriously - great job in getting us all here.

30.09.2025 14:06 — 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

I’m in this. I’ve read this. You should buy this.

Seriously, one of the best anthologies I’ve ever had a story in.

30.09.2025 12:59 — 👍 6 🔁 3 💬 2 📌 0

Find the beef, the beer, the bread, then look behind.

RIP Tony Harrison.

27.09.2025 08:29 — 👍 2 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0

Thank you so much, and thanks also for the generous Goodreads review. It’s a fantastic anthology, so I’m really pleased to see it get out there.

24.09.2025 03:53 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Thank you. The anthology is full of bangers, so I’m excited to see it out in the world.

17.09.2025 04:29 — 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Boom. I have a story in this fantastic anthology. Huge thanks to @curtisippolito.bsky.social and @rhppress.bsky.social. Order your copy at the link below.

17.09.2025 03:37 — 👍 8 🔁 2 💬 1 📌 1

"You will write stories that accurately predict future trends but very few people will read them," is probably an ancient Minoan curse somewhere...

11.07.2025 06:03 — 👍 4 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Open up places with air-con to help in heatwave, say Lib Dems Buildings like gyms, leisure centres and libraries allow the public in to help them cope with soaring temperatures, the party says

So, I wrote a story about 'cool banks' for @galleybeggars.bsky.social back in 2023, thinking it was exaggerated social satire/ecological dystopia.

www.galleybeggar.co.uk/ssp-story-1

And then, today...

www.bbc.com/news/article...

11.07.2025 06:03 — 👍 3 🔁 1 💬 1 📌 0

'Today is the New Tomorrow' by Edward Barnfield In Hall 4, Ranbir is shocked to see three men beating a robot dog. They have it on its back, strike it again and again, but the tail still wags in spite of the onslaught. The stand is festooned with slogans promising a brighter future, so that language seems to bend under the weight of superlatives. ‘Performance without boundaries.’ ‘Success without compromise.’ Hall 4 is for AI and Automation. It has a virtual factory with digitized assembly lines, and a smart airport simulation where imaginary passengers emigrate through online gates. The central section hosts this imposing display of robust mechatronic agents – serious tools for a dangerous world, albeit anthropomorphically gifted with facial features and distinguishing characteristics. Tails that won’t stop wagging. “As you can see, our Go50 model can withstand all kinds of punishment.” A saleswoman with a microphone is extolling the robotic virtues. “Let’s give a big hand to our volunteers.” The dog flips back onto its paws, and the men stop, suddenly self-conscious. Ranbir recognises their tribal markings of expensive watches and cheap cologne, knows that they are software salesmen like himself. It is amusing and disturbing in equal measure to see how easily such men are cajoled into public violence. He feels a surge of sickness. There are faces at the back watching the spectacle impassively – cleaners, technicians, executives. An army in service of the sale of machines designed to replace them. A woman collects visitor feedback by the exit. Her desk is opposite a virtual receptionist, created by the same company, so that her digital equivalent flickers in her eyeline all day, smile never fading. “Thank you for coming,” the animation says as Ranbir passes. The other woman, the real one, is silent. --- Edward Barnfield is a writer and researcher living in the Middle East. His stories have appeared in Third Flatiron, Roi Fainéant Press, Ellipsis Zine, The Molotov Cocktail, Retreat West, Strands, Leicester Writes, Galley Beggar Press, and Shooter Literary, among others. He’s on X at: @edbarnfield

FlashFlood: 'Today is the New Tomorrow' by Edward Barnfield #nffd2025

14.06.2025 04:51 — 👍 6 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 1

I'll have a story in the upcoming FlashFlood 2025. 'Today is the New Tomorrow' goes live at 5.50am (BST) on 14 June.

Big thanks to the team @natflashfictionday.bsky.social

17.05.2025 13:04 — 👍 6 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0

And One Day We Will Die: Strange Stories Inspired by the Music of Neutral Milk Hotel (unofficial soundtrack) by Patrick Barb on Apple Music Playlist · 21 Songs

Check out the songs that inspired the tales in AND ONE DAY WE WILL DIE: STRANGE STORIES INSPIRED BY THE MUSIC OF NEUTRAL MILK HOTEL. All featured songs included except “I Hear You Breathe” the inspiration for @edbarnfield.bsky.social’s “The Oxygen Thief” (link to that in next post)

23.01.2025 19:38 — 👍 9 🔁 1 💬 1 📌 0

The Molotov Cocktail Butterflies in the Stomach by Edward Barnfield Simeon’s mind is elsewhere when Adam crawls upon him. Sleep is impossible in this place, where every surface oozes and burns, where the rush of blood …

Feeling a bit bloated after Christmas dinner? Take your mind off it with my latest on the mighty @molotovlitzine.bsky.social

themolotovcocktail.com/vol-15/flash...

25.12.2024 16:47 — 👍 4 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0

Boom! Jumping into the Bluesky to celebrate a top ten monster story with the mighty @molotovlitzine.bsky.social!
Huge thanks to the team and congrats to all the winners.

21.12.2024 03:50 — 👍 8 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0

Edward Barnfield

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