“Fiction is a wonderful arena for dealing with some really complex topics and some difficult issues in a safe space.” - Alex Kingsley

In the latest How To Write the Future podcast episode titled, “Alex Kingsley: Writing Speculative Futures,” host Beth Barany chats with Alex Kingsley, a science fiction writer, playwright, game designer, and more exciting roles that inform their fiction writing.

Together they talk about AI cognition, the importance of human intelligence in creating for the future, how speculative fiction can help readers cope with complex issues, and why compassion matters in sci-fi.

ABOUT ALEX KINGSLEY

Alex Kingsley (they/them) is a writer, comedian, game designer, and playwright. They are a co-founder of the new media company Strong Branch Productions. They are the author of Empress of Dust, Relic of Haven and The Strange Garden and Other Weird Tales, as well as short fiction appearing in Translunar Travelers Lounge, Radon Journal, Sci-Fi Lampoon, and more. Alex’s sci-fi plays have been produced in LA, Philadelphia, and Chicago. Alex’s SFF-related non-fiction has appeared in Interstellar Flight Magazine and Ancillary Review of Books. Their games can be downloaded pay-what-you-will at alexyquest.itch.io. Alex is currently a graduate student studying speculative fiction at the University of Illinois, Chicago.

Website: http://alexkingsley.org

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hitchhikersguidetothealexy

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-kingsley-56342a139/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@alexyquest

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/alexyquest.bsky.social

Newsletter: Newsletter: https://alexkingsley.substack.com

SHOW PRODUCTION BY Beth Barany
SHOW CO-PRODUCTION + NOTES by Kerry-Ann McDade
EDITORIAL SUPPORT by Iman Llompart

c. 2026 BETH BARANY

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