March 2026 Mechsplo Jam Wrap Up!

2026: March | April | May | June

So I mentioned the other day how during the Mechsplo Writing Jam that happened in October there were over 50 entries and that it was like impossible to read them all. Well the one that happened this March only ended up having 9, which mean over the course of two evening I could read them all!

I'm going to put down some thoughts on all of the entries and some reasons why you might want to check them out so if you're interested in a recommendation then check out this list as there might be something in here for you!

Sibling Rivalry

by Jeannedsnark (link)

As soon as I clocked on to the premise of this story I was kinda shocked that I hadn't read it before. It is so obvious and idea, so natural a plot for the genre, that it feels a little absurd that I hadn't seen something like it before (Maybe I'm not all that well read, I dunno): a sibling rivalry where the two of them are both trying to beat each other out in the trials to become a handler's latest hound.

The coming twist is obvious from the start in a way that really lends a bleak inevitability to the whole competition, there's the further bleak inevitability that we, as genre savvy readers, all know what it actually is they're competing for. We all know that the reward at the end is not fun or nice or happy and I think that reader knowledge really enhances the twist by letting our emotions and the emotions of the characters intermingle and recontextualise.

I really recommend this one to pretty much anyone that has interest in mechsploitation. It's a pretty straight up mechsplo setting with two really great characters.

The Sarthapocalypse

by AriaGenisi (link)

So I haven't read the HELLHOUND preview and I don't post that much on bluesky so I'll be honest I have no idea what is being referenced here! I'm probably not the best person to comment on it then so I'll keep it short.
This is fun! It's silly. It feels like both the plot and the framing device that would be used in one of those old horror movies—I'm thinking like The Thing or The Fly. The piece is told from the perspective of a mad scientist's assistant as she recounts the events that led to the apocalypse that has engulphed the world. There are a few little easter egg details scattered around that are fun to spot. It's not serious, it's not trying to be, read it for a quick and amusing b-horror experience or if you're a bit more plugged in to the bluesky community and are just here for the in-jokes.

Scratch Out My

by BloopyBloopz (link)

So I feel mechspoitation is a really big tent. When the tent is big you find that not every story you come across is for you, sometimes an author is going for something that you just don't really get. This one though? This is my kind of food. We've got a load of religious imagery tied in these dreamlike nightmare visions of the past. It's filled with such vibrant imagery and those dreamlike qualities as the black tar comes to strip away the memories are just exactly the sort of thing I want to see.

I think I'm going to have to check out some of the author's other stories because this one really did it for me. BloopyBloopz also mentioned being inspired by Tarakute, I'm not super familiar with her work either so maybe now I want to check that out too. Like if it's not clear I really recommend this one. If you like my stuff with Sursum Corda you'll probably dig this too. If you like weird stories filled with evocative imagery you'll love it. I did.

Pack

by LocalWawaCoyote (link)

So this one wasn't really for me. That's not to say it isn't good and there's nothing that I liked in it but its not the particular niche of mechsplo that appeals to me. I don't want to say too much because of that as I don't want to give a bad impression but if you are into queer fiction, a story about an egg getting cracked and a transbian romance this one might be for you! I think even if, on the whole, I didn't click with it, there are some really good moments that made me glad that I read it anyway.

It's very Warhound, straight up, in it's setting, taking place pretty firmly in the world of Warhound or very similar and the perspective of the trans imperial pilot is, I think, a really good choice. The sort of radical queerness at the centre of the plot is a nice balm if you're looking for something that isn't as grim and depressing as most mechsplo tends to be.

I Sexually Identify as a Giant Combat Robot

by ZoeySolstice (link)

For me this story is really carried by two excellent aspects: the voice of the narrator and the execution of the central conceit. The narrator has a great style of keeping things light even amidst the often quite dense descriptions that are needed as part of this story. It's conversational and you really get a feel for the character of Phoebe (or was it Pelerinage? hard to tell....). The descriptions of the post-procedure sensations of not feeling herself outside the mech and then the joy she experiences when she gets to be it are all great. There's something that this story is really capturing.

Setting is very Warhound, straight up. There's none of the sex or the misery which could honestly be a real breath of fresh air. This is a great story about piloting a mech and what that might feel like and if you're interested you should definitely check it out.

Fame Is The Dog Dicks

by colecosapphicvision (link)

Unfortunately, being the evil asexual I am, the further a story goes in the sex direction the less I can really get into it and this one contains a large amount of sex. If that's what you're looking for, lesbians who might also be dogs in a Disneyland employee type setting, then go for it. I feel completely unequipped to talk about this one so if you are looking for something like this then please give it a read an offer up your own commentary!

Benefits of a Hound

by Maolong (link)

First off, before you go looking at this one, the author has mentioned wanting to have another look at editing it in the next few days so if this does sound interesting then maybe wait a bit and come back!

So I haven't read any magical girl mechsplo before. I have heard it exists and I guess it makes sense that it exists. I'm not super familiar with magical girls but I love Sailor Moon and Princess Tutu and I have seen Madoka which I think is the one that this draws most inspiration from. Even if it isn't finished yet there's still some great ideas on display in this story. I like the idea of mechs fighting magical girls, that's just a very fun fusion. Also I know its like a really common trope of our genre for the hounds to have a two-personality system where there's like a shell of the person that is left over and also an animalistic drown/off the leash personality but I think this story adds a kinda interesting twist on that which I hadn't seen before.

But yeah, if any of this sounds interesting, maybe give it a few days, but definitely check this out.

Falling From Favor

by Selinica (link)

This is a fairly melancholy story about a hound past her prime, about being replaced and about the big end. I thought it was really good. I found the relationship between the handler and T10 really charming without having the handler come off as anything other than a handler. I really appreciate it when mechsplo stories do that. People love their dogs, especially working dogs and I can't imagine a handler not having affection for their dogs. It doesn't make her a good person, plenty of evil people own dogs, but its nice to see someone who cares even if unable to really show it fully.

I think the narration is great. There's a bunch of moments where you really feel the anguish the point of view character is going through as their world slowly collapses around them. I loved it. Big recommend to anyone who is looking for a melancholy trip with a hound past the limits of her useful life.

Crystal Glass

by Me, Rosie, the one writing this (link)

Would be a bit wanky to write about my own entry so instead I'll just ask a question: Where did that stripey shirt go? Did Kat lose it?

Overall Thoughts

So I mentioned the other day having some complicated feelings around the October jam. Obviously things were very different this time in terms of number of people active in the discord server and writing but I think it's still a great place and if you want to join and want to maybe get a beta reader or two it is a great place for it!

For me this month was really fraught. I'd been working on two stories (the orange juice one is still to come) and then a couple of weeks back our rabbit Maple got injured in a cat attack and these things can be really deadly to rabbits and though she's doing well it's still a stressful situation. Because of that I didn't get either of the stories finished that I wanted to finish this month but this one had the tight deadline so after some frantic editing I decided it was good enough and just put it out there. I'm happy with how it came out even if it didn't quite end up like I wanted and I think it stands well on it's own two feet.

At the start of the month I was thinking that these two stories might be the last things I wrote within the mechsplo scene. I've talked before about how important it is to me as a creative to have some form of feedback, to know that my work had been read, and I just wasn't getting that feeling from these stories in the same way that I had from my other writings elsewhere. As mentioned yesterday nobody had read To the Violence Magnificent for the first few months of its existence. I wasn't sure anyone would read Burn With Me, something I had put countless days of work into. So that was pretty much my thought in February: this would be a last hurrah.

Things changed though. First thing was I had reached out to a tumblr mutual to chat about writing stuff and, I don't know, she was really kind and made me feel a bit less alone in the darkness. Also, by coincidence, in that same week my stories were stumbled upon by the bluesky BNOCs and suddenly I was getting flustered/overwhelmed by the praise and such. Getting notifications of people telling me how wonderful Mackenzie is at the same time as I'm sitting the vet hospital waiting to hear if Maple is even alive was just bizarre and dreamlike and it still doesn't feel all that real.

Like I'm nobody, I'm the littlest name on campus, and then to have people following me on bluesky that I really look up to, writers whose stories I've loved, talking about me like I'm one of them... Like I don't even know how to interact with these people. Sometimes I want to reach out, talk about the things I liked in their work or ask for advice or friendship, like we're apparently mutuals now but that gap remains terrifying. You don't see the follower numbers on tumblr, I think that's part of why I don't feel so intimidated here, why I find it easier to interact with people and play off their ideas. I wouldn't have written Turpentine if I had found Snakeskin from bluesky.

I don't know what my future is in the genre. Orange Juice is still coming in the next couple of weeks as soon as I find time to sit down and edit it to a standard I'm happy with. After that though? I do have an outline for the next Sursum Corda story and unlike a month ago when I had no real motivation to continue now I kinda feel like I do. I've had so many nice comments and messages and I do like that: it makes things feel meaningful. I don't think it will be soon, it is likely to be around the same length as Burn With Me so it's going to take time to write and I do have other projects that I want to work on too.

Will this be my last time entering the mechsplo jam? Maybe not, maybe I'll come back for the next one. Maybe the next one will be huge again. Even if I don't come back though I'll probably read the stories that come out of it. These events are little crucibles of creativity and you can find some real things of beauty.