Does every plot require a romantic angle? Nicole Kornher-Stace examines why so many unnecessary relationships are shoehorned into stories.
Read MoreSex Is Great, But Have You Ever Seen Your Real-Life Relationship Depicted in Fiction?
Oddly, the one character who absolutely bores me? Merlin. Whether depicted as a real wizard, a Druid, a mystic, or simply a man with more sense than most, Merlin is, without a doubt, a failure.
Read MoreThe Enduring Ensorcellment of King Arthur
I spent three or four years giving every dead creature I found in our yard or along our narrow country road a proper burial. Instead of joining Girl Scouts or 4H, I devoured books about ghosts and the undead. Instead of becoming horse crazed, as so many second- and third-grade girls do, I developed a passion for war, weapons, and Romantic poetry. I eschewed pink for a palette of all-black.
Read MoreTelling Stories of Ghosts
Until only recently, the World Fantasy Award, both the winner’s trophy and the nomination pins, were a bust of the author H.P. Lovecraft. Howard Phillips Lovecraft, someone who clearly had zero compunctions against being the worst he could be under the most specious of excuses, is well-known for pointedly toxic, virulent racism.
Read MoreJimi Hendrix Sang It
Stories are good; stories are dangerous. We know this, if from nothing else, then from stories themselves. Stories save Scheherazade; stories drive Don Quixote mad. How do we tell the difference?
Read MoreTrapped In Stories
The text came in the evening: a colleague I’d met at a business meeting four days before my symptoms started had tested positive for COVID-19.
Read MoreStory-Less: A Forethought
Co-EiC Jason Sizemore shows why practicing assertive writing is one of the most successful ways of escaping the slush pile.
Read MoreAssertive Writing
It’s been the center of much debate and conversation lately due to the concept entering the mainstream public consciousness. This is even truer now that Black Panther has broken all sorts of box office records. Honestly, this an exciting time for someone like me, as I believe that Afrofuturism is an ideology and practice that every Black person can benefit from.
Read MoreLet’s Talk About Afrofuturism
This month’s stories all explore the mixed emotions of hope and despair
Read MoreWords for Thought #35