Beth Dean
Writes speculative fiction. Builds tools for writers.
About
I spent twenty years in tech, the last stretch of it leading the ethics organization for a large company. I left a few years ago to reconnect with my creative self. Mostly that means writing fiction: speculative, queer, and creepy. In a previous life I was a comic artist and illustrator. I'll always be a maker and tinkerer at heart, so I also build things—now that I'm not too tired. Most of what I build is what I want as a writer and reader.
The longer version
I've variously been a (bad) engineer, (mediocre) researcher, and (hopefully good) designer. I created a lot of firsts along the way, like the first algorithmic transparency standard on the internet, and I'm also the reason you can pull up your car insurance on your phone. I've spoken all over the world about responsible and emotionally intelligent design and served as a White House LGBTQ Tech Innovation Fellow.
I used to make zines, comics, and prints. I've spoken at San Diego Comic-Con and Stumptown about queer comics, and my work has been featured in SPIN magazine and at La Luz de Jesus Gallery.
When I'm not making things, I'm reading, baking, playing video games, and getting slowly pushed off my couch by a small dog.
Fiction
Short speculative fiction, usually queer, often strange.
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In the meantime, cultivating a very lovely pile of personalised rejections.
Making
- Queer Speculative Fiction A monthly newsletter and database of queer speculative fiction, researched by a human. It is me and a pile of Python scripts.
- Obsidian plugins for short-fiction writers Standard manuscript format export from Obsidian, with more of the submission workflow on the way.
Drawing
I used to make comics, zines, prints and other ephemera.