diff --git a/publisher.go b/publisher.go
index bd4ab73..8442318 100644
--- a/publisher.go
+++ b/publisher.go
@@ -712,12 +712,13 @@ func stripHTML(s string) string {
 
 // DeriveHandleFromFeed generates an AT Protocol handle from a feed URL
 // Format: {domain}-{category}.1440.news
-// AT Protocol allows up to 63 characters per label
+// AT Protocol allows up to 63 characters per label, but the PDS
+// restricts the first segment to 18 characters for local handles.
 // Examples:
 //   feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/technology/rss.xml → bbc-technology.1440.news
 //   news.ycombinator.com/rss → ycombinator.1440.news
 func DeriveHandleFromFeed(feedURL string) string {
-	const maxSubdomainLen = 63
+	const maxSubdomainLen = 18 // PDS limit for first segment
 
 	// Ensure we have a scheme for parsing
 	if !strings.Contains(feedURL, "://") {
@@ -806,6 +807,20 @@ func DeriveHandleFromFeed(feedURL string) string {
 		mainDomain = "bbc"
 	}
 
+	// Abbreviations for long category names to fit 18-char limit
+	categoryAbbrevs := map[string]string{
+		"science-and-environment": "sci-env",
+		"entertainment-and-arts":  "ent-arts",
+		"science-environment":     "sci-env",
+		"entertainment-arts":      "ent-arts",
+		"technology":              "tech",
+		"business":                "biz",
+		"international":           "intl",
+		"environment":             "env",
+		"entertainment":           "ent",
+		"politics":                "pol",
+	}
+
 	// Build subdomain: domain + category (from path)
 	var subdomain string
 	if len(pathParts) > 0 {
@@ -815,6 +830,13 @@ func DeriveHandleFromFeed(feedURL string) string {
 		if category == "news" && len(pathParts) == 1 {
 			subdomain = mainDomain
 		} else {
+			// Try to abbreviate if the full subdomain would be too long
+			fullSubdomain := mainDomain + "-" + category
+			if len(fullSubdomain) > maxSubdomainLen {
+				if abbrev, ok := categoryAbbrevs[category]; ok {
+					category = abbrev
+				}
+			}
 			subdomain = mainDomain + "-" + category
 		}
 	} else {