Nov. 2015 (Issue 66)

In this issue, we have original science fiction by Rahul Kanakia (“Here Is My Thinking On A Situation That Affects Us All”) and Caroline M. Yoachim (“Rock, Paper, Scissors, Love, Death”), along with SF reprints by Brian Stableford (“The Pipes of Pan”) and Kameron Hurley (“The Light Brigade”). Plus, we have original fantasy by Helena Bell (“When We Were Giants”) and Kenneth Schneyer (“The Plausibility of Dragons”), and fantasy reprints by Toh EnJoe (“Printable”) and Karen Joy Fowler (“The Black Fairy’s Curse”). All that, and of course we also have our usual assortment of author and artist spotlights, along with a feature interview with Ernest Cline, and of course, the latest installment of our book review column. For our ebook readers, we also have a reprint of Elizabeth Hand’s novella “The Least Trumps,” and a pair of novel excerpts.

Cover art by John Brosio

Nov. 2015 (Issue 66)

Editorial

Editorial, November 2015

by John Joseph Adams

Be sure to read the Editorial for all our news and updates, as well as a run-down of this month’s content.

Science Fiction

Here is My Thinking on a Situation That Affects Us All

by Naomi Kanakia

Author spotlight

I am a spaceship. My insides are oozy, and my outsides are metal. If you were to cut me open with a laser-gun, then it would not precisely hurt, but it certainly wouldn’t be a nice thing to do.

Illustrated by Galen Dara

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight: Rahul Kanakia

by Xander Odell

I don’t know that it’s possible to really have a nonhuman point of view. No matter what we describe, we anthropomorphize it. For instance, would an alien spaceship really fall in love with a man? Probably not.

Fantasy

The Black Fairy’s Curse

by Karen Joy Fowler

Author spotlight

She was being chased. She kicked off her shoes, which were slowing her down. At the same time her heavy skirts vanished and she found herself in her usual work clothes. Relieved of the weight and constriction, she was able to run faster.

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight: Karen Joy Fowler

by Xander Odell

There is no point and no juice in a retelling that doesn’t cast the original material in a different light. The impulse to retell is simply not there without that sense that something new can be said. So I’m always hoping for a story that surprises, but this desire is central in a retelling.

Science Fiction

The Pipes of Pan

by Brian Stableford

Author spotlight

In her dream, Wendy was a pretty little girl living wild in a magical wood where it never rained and never got cold. She lived on sweet berries of many colors, which always tasted wonderful, and all she wanted or needed was to be happy.

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight: Brian Stableford

by Jude Griffin

The notion of children who remain children permanently inevitably called up the idea of Peter Pan, who inevitably invoked the phantom of the Great God Pan and his seductive pipes.

Fantasy

When We Were Giants

by Helena Bell

Author spotlight

There was a game we played at my primary school called “Giant in the forest.” Every day, even if it rained, the fourth and fifth grade teachers took us to this small playground with a jungle gym, swings, and a big grassy space where we could run if we wanted to.

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight: Helena Bell

by Liz Argall

I never really lived near the woods, but I had friends who did. We’d run around and skin our knees and climb boulders and jump into sand pits and it never occurred to us that anything we did was remotely dangerous because little girls are immortal, after all.

Artist Showcase

Artist Showcase: John Brosio

by Henry Lien

It was David Mamet (I think) who said something about the audience member being the smartest person in the room, and when someone likes a piece or connects with it, I feel that they may be saying that I got that one “right.” I trust that feedback.

Science Fiction

Rock, Paper, Scissors, Love, Death

by Caroline M. Yoachim

Author spotlight

Rock crushes scissors. Nicole sat on a crowded bus to Spokane, knitting a turquoise scarf. The gray-haired man sitting next to her stared obsessively at his wristwatch.

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight: Caroline M. Yoachim

by Laurel Amberdine

Most of my story ideas come from mashing together whatever I’ve got in my head, and sometimes the things in my head are close to home. Around the time I was drafting this story, there was a rockslide at Snoqualmie Pass. That particular slide involved relatively small rocks, but in the past there have been rockslides involving boulders the size of cars.

Fantasy

Printable

by Toh EnJoe
Translated by David Boyd

Author spotlight

Sometimes I set stories in San Francisco because I have friends who live there. No family yet, sadly. I like to imagine them reading what I write and maybe smiling. I’m setting this story in Tokyo-Tokyo for the same exact reason. Greg, for one, lives in Tokyo-Tokyo.

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight: Toh EnJoe

by Jude Griffin

A news story I saw about being able to print a gun with a 3D printer [was the seed for the story]. I just didn’t realize it would happen for some reason, even though it was obvious that we’d end up being able to print guns down the line.

Nonfiction

Book Reviews: November 2015

by Sunil Patel

This month we review Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho, Updraft by Fran Wilde, The House of Shattered Wings by Aliette de Bodard, and Serpentine by Cindy Pon.

Science Fiction

The Light Brigade

by Kameron Hurley

Author spotlight

The war has turned us into light. Transforming us into light is the fastest way to travel from one front to another, and there are many fronts, now. I always wanted to be a hero. I always wanted to be on the side of light. It’s funny how things work out.

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight: Kameron Hurley

by Xander Odell

I wanted this story to have a very accessible point of view character—someone we could recognize and empathize with whether they were male, female, or other. Choosing the right narrator—and right distance from that narrator, whether it’s first person, third person, close third person, or omniscient—changes the overall emotional effect of the story, so I think that’s key.

Fantasy

The Plausibility of Dragons

by Kenneth Schneyer

Author spotlight

Of course it would rain. Hungry and footsore after three days of walking, his back and shoulders aching from carrying his heavy pack, all Malik needed now was to be soaked in water that barely resisted becoming ice.

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight: Kenneth Schneyer

by Jude Griffin

In recent years there’s been a lot of good conversation about representation in adventure fantasy. One of my favorite critiques has been a response to people who claim erroneously that the presence of nonwhites and combatant women in medieval Europe isn’t “plausible.”

Nonfiction

Interview: Ernest Cline

by The Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy

Ernest Cline is the author of the best-selling science fiction novel Ready Player One, which is currently being adapted for film by Steven Spielberg. Cline also wrote the screenplay for Fanboys, about a group of hardcore Star Wars fans, and he recently appeared in the documentary film Atari: Game Over, about the collapse of the once mighty video game company Atari, which was forced to bury hundreds of thousands of unsold game cartridges in the New Mexico desert. Cline’s new novel, Armada, about video game champs battling aliens, is out now.