May was a month unexpectedly filled with sad and controversial news items. The most widely read story told how SFWA removed Mercedes Lackey from the annual Nebula Conference for a code of conduct violation the day after celebrating her as their latest Grand Master.

In the second most-read story, Balticon 56 Chair Yakira Heistand apologized for staff’s mistreatment of Stephanie Burke, an author taken off panels following a CoC complaint by what Heistand calls an “overzealous volunteer” who Burke says spoke to her “with much disrespect” and then “proceeded to yell at me.”

Thoroughly overshadowed was what started out to be the month’s top story. Jon Del Arroz’ attempt to join the Game Manufacturers Association was met with protest from members, resulting in his ouster. And shortly afterwards JDA also was bounced from Twitter (“JDA Out of GAMA, Suspended by Twitter”).

Here are the 10 most-read posts of May 2022 according to Google Analytics.

1. Mercedes Lackey Removed from the Nebula Conference
2. Balticon Chair Apologizes After Author Stephanie Burke Removed From Panels
3. Mercedes Lackey Publishes Apology
4. SFWA Asks New Grand Master Mercedes Lackey to Clarify Past Statement on Writing Trans Characters
5. Pixel Scroll 5/23/22 Cosplaying And Straying In Pixel Scroll Land, To The Sounds Of The Pixel Scroll Band
6. Several GAMA Members Protest Addition of Jon Del Arroz to Organization
7. Barkley — So Glad You (Didn’t) Ask: A Column of Unsolicited Opinions #65
8. Numerous Russian SFF Writers Support Ukraine Invasion in Open Letter
9. SFWA Members-Only Directory Info Exposed
10. SFWA Announces the 57th Nebula Award Winners

The Hugo Award finalists were the biggest story of the month, and that was good news, especially for Filers Chris Barkley and Cora Buhlert. However, there was some sad news on the other side of the ledger, with Chicon 8 GoH Charles de Lint needing to step down, and centenarian actor Nehemiah Persoff dying, which brought a lot of readers to Steve Vertlieb’s article about his 102nd birthday last August.

Here are the 10 most-read posts of April 2022 according to Google Analytics.

1. 2022 Hugo Award Finalists
2. Pixel Scroll 4/18/22 You Get A File, I’ll Get A Troll, We’ll Head Down To The Pixel Scroll, Honey, Enemy Mine
3. Pixel Scroll 4/2/22 We Don’t Talk About Pixel (Scroll, Scroll, Scroll)
4. Charles de Lint Steps Down as Chicon 8 GoH
5. Celebrating The Wonderful Nehemiah Persoff At 102
6. Pixel Scroll 4/1/22 This Title Contains A Non-Fungible Tribble
7. Pixel Scroll 4/5/22 Now That’s A Pixel I’ve Not Scrolled In A Long Time. A Long Time
8. Pixel Scroll 4/25/22 Mrs. File You’ve Got A Lovely Pixel, Scrolls As Sharp As Her Are Something Rare, But It’s Sad, She Doesn’t Read My Books, I’d Give Her Free Copies, But It’s No Good To Beg
9. Pixel Scroll 4/26/22 I Don’t Want A Pixel. I Just Wanna Scroll On My Motorcycxel
10. Pixel Scroll 4/4/22 Just A Pixel Boy, Lots Of Planets Have A South, He Took The Tardis Box Goin’ Anywhere

SCROLL-FREE TOP 11

1. 2022 Hugo Award Finalists
2. Charles de Lint Steps Down as Chicon 8 GoH
3. Celebrating The Wonderful Nehemiah Persoff At 102
4. 2022 Rondo Awards Nominees
5. Chengdu Worldcon Publishes Q&As to Explain Their Membership and Admission Structure
6. 2022 Philip K. Dick Award
7. Numerous Russian SFF Writers Support Ukraine Invasion in Open Letter
8. Barkley — So Glad You (Didn’t) Ask: A Column of Unsolicited Opinions #64
9. R.M.S. Titanic … “A Night To Remember”
10. 2022 Recommended SF/F List
11. What the Heinleins Told the 1950 Census

The BSFA Awards Shortlist announcement needed only the last few hours of February 28th to become the month’s most-read post. This was also a rare month where the majority of items in the Top 10 are news articles and opinion pieces, outshowing the daily Pixel Scrolls 6-4.

Here are the 10 most-read posts of February 2022 according to Google Analytics.

1. 2021 BSFA Awards Shortlist
2. SF Canada Votes To Require Peter Halasz to Resign
3. SF Canada Board Statement on Vote to Expel Peter Halasz
4. Pixel Scroll 2/9/22 I Have Tasted The Pixels In The Scroll Of The Universe, And I Was Not Offended
5. Mary Robinette Kowal Wins Skylark Award
6. Pixel Scroll 2/1/22 Pixelled In The Scroll By A Chuck Tingle Pixel Scroll Title
7. Pixel Scroll 1/31/22 But It Is The Plotted Truth, That Really Drives You Insane! Let’s Scroll The Pixel Again!
8. Pixel Scroll 2/14/22 Our Files Are Protected By Mutual Assured Pixellation
9. Religious Aspects of DisCon III’s Opening Ceremonies
10. Sergei Lukianenko Defends Russian Policy Towards Ukraine

SCROLL-FREE TOP 10

1. 2021 BSFA Awards Shortlist
2. SF Canada Votes To Require Peter Halasz to Resign
3. SF Canada Board Statement on Vote to Expel Peter Halasz
4. Mary Robinette Kowal Wins Skylark Award
5. Religious Aspects of DisCon III’s Opening Ceremonies
6. Sergei Lukianenko Defends Russian Policy Towards Ukraine
7. Michael Swanwick Resigns International Union of Writers Presidency in Response to Russian Invasion
8. 2022 World Fantasy Awards Judges Announced
9. Tolkien: An Unexpected Sainthood
10. Review of Moonfall

Have File 770’s top three stories of the month ever all been good news before? It happened in January.

David Gerrold’s good news about winning the 2022 Robert A. Heinlein Award was widely celebrated – by thousands of fans who read it here, and many more around the world. 

Don Blyly’s announcement that he’s found a new home for Uncle Hugo’s Bookstore – the previous one lost to vandalism in 2020 – has been universally cheered.

And what else can I say but congratulations again to Nehemiah Persoff, who celebrated another birthday last August, his 103rd. Did the Baltimore Jewish Times profile that appeared in December send people Googling for more, and lead another large audience to Steve Vertlieb’s 2021 tribute written for his previous birthday? Don’t know. Something did!

Here are the 10 most-read posts of January 2022 according to Google Analytics.

1. David Gerrold Wins 2022 Robert A. Heinlein Award
2. Blyly Finds New Building for Uncle Hugo’s Bookstore
3. Celebrating The Wonderful Nehemiah Persoff At 102
4. Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki Calls Out Amazon KDP For Shutting Down His Account
5. Pixel Scroll 1/14/22 Do Starros Work As Facemasks? What About Tribbles?
6. Pixel Scroll 1/15/22 Pixelpunk Scrollcore
7. Pixel Scroll 1/3/22 Barsoomian Rhapsody
8. Pixel Scroll 1/16/22 I Hereby Dub The Current Dominant Genre (Whatever It May Be) Punky McPunkcore
9. Pixel Scroll 1/17/22 In Five Years, The Pixel Will Be Obsolete, Said The Salesman
10. Pixel Scroll 1/27/22 All Ringworlds Great And Small

SCROLL-FREE TOP 10

1. David Gerrold Wins 2022 Robert A. Heinlein Award
2. Blyly Finds New Building for Uncle Hugo’s Bookstore
3. Celebrating The Wonderful Nehemiah Persoff At 102
4. Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki Calls Out Amazon KDP For Shutting Down His Account
5. Winnipeg Exploring Bid for 2023 NASFiC
6. Chicon 8 Hugo Nominations Open Soon; Forms Will Be Solely in English
7. The Greatest Motion Picture Scores Of All Time
8. 2022 Philip K. Dick Award Nominees Announced
9. Ron Goulart (1933-2022)
10. Arisia 2022 Is Cancelled

The most-read stories last month were two obituaries about people of interest to Filers for very different reasons.  

The Top 10 also included stories about two former SCA kings, one recently removed for undisclosed causes, and another who resigned his crown in 2019 after being charged with murder and was recently convicted.

Here are File 770’s ten most-read stories from October 2021 according to Google Analytics.

1. Lou Antonelli (1957-2021)
2. Mary Kay Kare (1952-2021)
3. Pixel Scroll 10/04/21 DIY Pixels
4. SCA Removes King of An Tir
5. Pixel Scroll 10/13/21 Filed Gruntbuggly, Thy Pixelations Are To Me
6. Pixel Scroll 10/12/21 The Scroll It Stole Was The Scroll Of Scrolls Called The Scroll Of Neverending
7. Luis Rondon Convicted of Murder
8. Pixel Scroll 10/20/21 Roll Over Harkonnen And Tell Shai-Tchovsky The News
9. Pixel Scroll 10/6/21 Magical Mystery Scroll
10. Pixel Scroll 10/25/21 I Am The Pontiff Of Pixel, Scroller Of All I Survey

Here is the Scroll-free Top 10:

1. Lou Antonelli (1957-2021)
2. Mary Kay Kare (1952-2021)
3. SCA Removes King of An Tir
4. Luis Rondon Convicted of Murder
5. Last Dangerous Visions Progress Report
6. Meschke Calls on DisCon III to Correct Fanhistorical Note in Press Release
7. Celebrating The Wonderful Nehemiah Persoff At 102
8. Memphis In 2023 Worldcon Bid Has Folded
9. DisCon III Opens 2023 Site Selection
10. Texas in 2031 Worldcon Bid Begins Taking Presupports

[Illustration by Teddy Harvia.]

Especially with the Hugos pushed off until December, fans approached the Dragon Awards announcement with the eagerness of kids awaiting a visit from Santa Claus. Santa was especially good to the T. Kingfisher household this year, leaving two Dragons.   

And high on the Scroll-Free Top 10 was Chris Barkley’s column about his many adventures running Worldcon Press Offices.

Here are the ten most-read posts for September 2021 according to Google Analytics.

1. 2021 Dragon Awards
2. Pixel Scroll 9/21/21 I Wish They All Could Be California Scrolls
3. Pixel Scroll 9/1/21 Pixel At The Well Of Scrolls
4. Pixel Scroll 9/3/21 If It Doesn’t Scroll Naturally, File It
5. Pixel Scroll 9/15/21 You Load Fifteen Pixels, What Do You Get?
6. Pixel Scroll 9/4/21 I Have Become Pixel, Scroller Of Worlds
7. Pixel Scroll 9/22/21 Or I Will Scroll Thee In The Gobberfiles With My Pixelcruncheon, See If I Don’t!
8. Pixel Scroll 9/8/21 HR Pixeling Stuff! Whose Your File When Things Get Rough
9. Pixel Scroll 9/13/21 Headcanon: The Universe Will Come To An End Following The Generation Of Nine Billion Pixel Scroll Titles
10. Pixel Scroll 9/12/21 The Old File-Hidden-In-The-Pixel-Scroll Trick

SCROLL-FREE TOP 10

1. 2021 Dragon Awards
2. Barkley — So Glad You (Didn’t) Ask: A Column of Unsolicited Opinions #62
3. Vox Day’s Blog Offline
4. British Fantasy Awards 2021
5. Celebrating The Wonderful Nehemiah Persoff At 102
6. Carol Carr (1938-2021)
7. Russell T Davies Returning as Doctor Who Showrunner
8. Rondon Murder Trial Begins
9. Jon Del Arroz Permabanned from Twitter
10. N.K. Jemisin on TIME100 List

[Illustration by Teddy Harvia.]

Jon Del Arroz banned by Twitter. Vox Day ousted from Blogger. Any doubt why these were last month’s two most-read posts?

And here are the rest of the top 10 posts for August 2021 according to Google Analytics.

1. Jon Del Arroz Permabanned from Twitter
2. Vox Day’s Blog Offline
3. DisCon III Team Announces Covid-19 Policy for December Convention
4. 2021 Dragon Awards Ballot
5. Celebrating The Wonderful Nehemiah Persoff At 102
6. Pixel Scroll 8/14/21 WandangerousVisions
7. Pixel Scroll 8/18/21 Science Fiction Grand Pixel Banned From Scroll
8. RWA Rescinds One of the Inaugural Vivian Awards
9. Pixel Scroll 8/7/21 Do Not Taunt Happy Fun Scroll
10. Pixel Scroll 8/9/21 The Wards Are All In Place, But The Junes Are Busting Out All Over

An 18-month-old reaction roundup from January 2020 — “Clarkesworld Removes Isabel Fall’s Story” – returned as July’s most-read post after Vox linked to it in Emily VanDer Werff’s “How Twitter can ruin a life: Isabel Fall’s complicated story”, an interview with author Fall.

Among the month’s new posts, Jason Brock’s obituary for the late William F. Nolan had the most readers.

Here are the top 10 posts – with and without Scrolls – for July 2021 according to Google Analytics.

1. Clarkesworld Removes Isabel Fall’s Story
2. William F. Nolan (1928-2021)
3. BasedCon Planning for Dozens of Attendees
4. Pixel Scroll 7/28/21 So Put Another File In The Jukebox, Baby
5. Pixel Scroll 7/16/21 All Scrollnanas Make A Pixel, And So Do Many More
6. Pixel Scroll 7/21/21 No Gods Were Stalked In the Making Of This Scroll Title
7. Pixel Scroll 7/6/21 And Why Are There So Many Files About Pixels?
8. Pixel Scroll 7/18/21 Please Pixel Carefully As Our Menu Scrolls Have Recently Changed
9. Pixel Scroll 7/15/21 This Pixel Will Self-Destruct In Five Parsecs
10. Pixel Scroll 7/14/21 Still Crazy After All These Light-Years

SCROLL-FREE TOP 10

• Clarkesworld Removes Isabel Fall’s Story
• William F. Nolan (1928-2021)
• BasedCon Planning for Dozens of Attendees
• UMass Amherst Evicts Historic 9200 Volume SFF Library Belonging to 3 Student Clubs
• Ursula K. Le Guin Stamp Will Be Issued July 27
• Ed Meskys (1936-2021)
• 2021 World Fantasy Awards Final Ballot
• Mary Robinette Kowal Is New DisCon III Chair
• Fantasy Forest Festival
• Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2021 ToC Released

[Art credit: Teddy Harvia.]

Some red/blue politics leaked into the May 18 Scroll, firing up the commenters and making that the post with the most hits for the month; saying it was “most read” probably would put the spotlight in the wrong place.

Outside of the daily Scroll, the updates about Jon Del Arroz’ lawsuit against Worldcon 76 were the most closely-followed posts — in May, the court rejected the defendant’s motion for summary judgment. A mandatory settlement conference is set for June 9, and the jury trial is calendared for June 14. Del Arroz continues to milk publicity from the suit, taunting the defendants in a YouTube video with his absurd settlement demands.

Here are the posts in May that had the most traffic according to Google Analytics.

1. Pixel Scroll 5/18/21 Manic Pixel Dreamsnake And The Scrollers Of Doom
2. Pixel Scroll 5/9/21 Scrolled In The Pixel Was – Oh! Oh! Oh!
3. Pixel Scroll 5/27/21 We Sell Mobius Scrolls, In Klein Bottles
4. Pixel Scroll 5/1/21 This Scroll Is Infested With Killer Pixels
5. Del Arroz Suit Will Go To Trial; Court Rejects Worldcon 76’s Motion for Summary Judgment
6. Pixel Scroll 5/5/21 Soon May The Filerman Come To Bring Us Books And Cats And Rum
7. Pixel Scroll 5/26/21 Buy Me Some Pixels And Shadowjack, I Don’t Care If I Never Loop Back
8. Pixel Scroll 5/24/21 Pixelback Scroller
9. Pixel Scroll 5/3/21 The 770 File Cabinets Of Dr. Credential
10. Pixel Scroll 5/14/21 I Plan To Read All The Hugo Nominees Tonight, Said Tom Swiftly.

SCROLL-FREE TOP 10

1. Del Arroz Suit Will Go To Trial; Court Rejects Worldcon 76’s Motion for Summary Judgment
2. JDA Broadcasts His Settlement Demands
3. #DisneyMustPay Task Force Updates
4. Where To Find The 2021 Hugo Award Finalists For Free Online
5. Worldcon 76 Files Last Round of Responses to Del Arroz Before Summary Judgment Hearing
6. London Comic Mart Resumes
7. Dan Simmons Criticized for Remarks About Thunberg
8. Waiting For Online Hugo Voting And The 2021 Voter Packet
9. DisCon III Declines to Comment on Code of Conduct Issue About Hugo Finalist
10. DisCon III Opens Online 2021 Hugo Voting