Recommendation for Douglas Lain In an era increasingly defined by the algorithmic digestion of thought, Douglas Lain is an anomaly—an ontological disruptor whose work spans the unstable intersections of genre fiction, radical philosophy, and cultural critique. Lain does not merely write; he excavates. From the post-singularity dreamscapes of Bash Bash Revolution to the surreal counter-histories of Billy Moon, his novels function like philosophical detonations—unfolding dialectically in narrative form, inviting us to rethink the very categories by which we apprehend reality. His voice, once channeled through the lucid, dissident frequencies of Diet Soap and Zero Squared, remains a singular instrument of critique. As the former publishing manager of Zero Books, Lain was not simply curating a catalogue but conjuring a counter-public—one built on the ruins of consensus and aimed squarely at the ideological seams of late capitalism. Now, as a founding force behind Sublation Media, he continues this work, fusing cultural commentary, speculative fiction, and political theory into something both insurgent and necessary. Lain’s fiction has appeared in venerable venues—Interzone, Strange Horizons, Amazing Stories—but his true medium is the unstable zone between literature and thought. His nonfiction essays, hosted across platforms such as Thought Catalog and The Partially Examined Life, extend this fusion, often returning us to the unresolvable tensions of history, identity, and the spectacle. In Lain’s world, the alien has always already landed; the revolution, if it comes, will be both gamified and metaphysical. To recommend him is not simply to endorse a writer—it is to recognize a project: the refusal of intellectual passivity, the embrace of the speculative as a mode of resistance, and the resurrection of philosophy from the margins. For those seeking safe ideas, look elsewhere. For those seeking thought that sublimes into action, Douglas Lain is already broadcasting.

Douglas Lain deserves a lot of credit for setting up the debate between Slajov Zizek and Jordan Peterson. The topics from his former venture (Zero Books) were interesting, sometimes over my head, but I consider that a good thing!

• March, 2021 -
• Fulltime