Writer of speculative fiction that's often queer, sometimes political, and always full of wonder.
Updates
New Story: Something Lost
My short story "Something Lost," a quick fantasy piece about family, just came out in Abyss & Apex! Read it here.
Website Renovation Underway
I'm working on a bit of renovation for this site in both design and content, including improved accessibility features. Updates should be complete and live by the end of April!
About me
I'm non-binary, asexual, neurodivergent, and anti-fascist. I'm also a white settler in the U.S. and have lived most of my life on Gayogo̱hó:nǫˀ (Cayuga) and Umonhon (Omaha) & Otoe-Missouria land. I say so because these things influence my writing. I believe in the value of representation for the disempowered, and I believe in the power of fiction to move people and ultimately move societies. So I tend to write stories with a lot of queer, PoC, neurodiverse characters, exploring themes of identity and family, survival and recovery, resistance, justice, and self-determination. And I like to wrap it all together with magic and majesty, physics and futures, with that speculative sense of wonder and vastness that reminds us we're all part of something bigger than ourselves.
After earning a PhD in linguistics, I took up copy editing for an educational non-profit, and I recently joined that non-profit's research team. When I'm not writing queer fantasy and sci-fi or occasionally venturing into other genres, I also like to make art and conlangs (constructed languages), read books, ride bikes, sing in a queer chorus, and teach myself web development. (Like the site? Why thanks, I made it myself!)
Find me around
My particular neurodivergences make social media difficult for me, but I try to check in there periodically. A better way to reach me is by email, riley.neither@gmail.com.
I've also put up a separate website to serve as a combination art portfolio and craft shop: www.neitherwise.com
Pronouns & pronunciations
Gender-neutral pronouns, please. I'll accept most any (other than "it"), so if there's a set you're already familiar with (like singular "they"), feel free to use those for me. All else being equal, though, I prefer ze/zim/zer, and so do some of my characters. They work like this:
| ze | ~ she/he/they | Ze used to play flute. |
| zim | ~ her/him/them | You might still catch zim at it now and then. |
| zer | ~ her/his/their | Zer flute is old and tarnished. |
| zers | ~ hers/his/theirs | This flute is too shiny to be zers. |
| zimself | ~ herself/himself/themself | Ze tries not to take zimself too seriously. |
(If your screen is too narrow for this table, it scrolls horizontally. So do other tables throughout the site.)
As for the name, I pronounce Neither with the first vowel like "eye," not like "see."
© Riley Neither