Emma and the Weeping Spirit by Matthew S. Cox

Cox reframes the classic haunted house trope for middle grade readers without sacrificing the complexities and uncertainties of spectral visitations. This is the fifth book in Cox’s Tales of Widowswood series. Potential spoilers for previous volumes lurk past this point. When a harpy attack drives ten-year-old Emma deep into unknown forest, her experiences help her …

Janna of Castle Ambrose by Jordan Elizabeth

Elizabeth riffs on the classic image of the monster in the lake to create an accessible fantasy tale about the difference between the clarity of stories and the reality of life. As the daughter of the Earl’s butler, Janna had a happy life at Castle Ambrose playing with the Earl’s children—until a conquering army sacked …

The Gryphon and the Mountain Bear by Stephanie Flint

Flint redresses a classic confidence trick in fantastical raiments to create a short story that is likely to appeal to fans of both cunning ploys and mystical worlds. After a card player cheats Nuaka, she uses her shapeshifting magic to steal a treasure map from his room and heads straight for the ruins. Her expedition …

Cirsova: Heroic Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine, Volume 1, Issue 5, ed. P. Alexander

Alexander gathers a series of tales that suggest what might happen if people of violence and cunning rather than book-learning faced Lovecraftian threats. This edition contains eight short stories, one novelette, and one poem, The majority of the prose works are set in the Eldritch Earth, an alternate prehistoric era that blends classic swords-and-sorcery with …

Really Real?

One of the most common statements in writing advice (and something that I mention in my book reviews) is that readers are likely to enjoy a story more if events and actions are realistic or plausible. One of the theories for why this is is that it allows readers to better imagine they are there. …

Fears of a Clown Anthologies Released

Happy Friday the 13th. Both volumes of my Fears of a Clown anthology project are now available from major retailers in paperback and eBook. While actual coulrophobia is rare, many people find clowns scary rather than amusing; and modern media fans that fear. But, what if—instead of being serial killers and Scooby-Doo villains—they were victims …

The Tidings of Ravens

While I make no claim to those high peaks conquered by Lovecraft, I have not—as is considered modern—foregone correspondence entirely in favour of texts and apps. And it is fortunate I have not, for otherwise I might not have received tidings anent a strange and unusual thing. This weekend past, I received a letter from …

A Plague of Peskies by Jefferson Smith

Smith pairs a curmudgeonly saviour with a world that would turn a saint cynical to create gritty fantasy (literally: deserts are full of blasted sand) that is seasoned with darkly uplifting humour. This novella is part of Smith’s The 13th Advocate series. While each tale is designed to stand alone, it might contain mild spoilers …

Submission Call: All These Shiny Worlds III

Following the success of All These Shiny Worlds and All These Shiny Worlds II, anthologies showcasing some of the best independent fantasy and science-fiction short stories, Jefferson Smith is compiling a third volume. Unlike the previous two, which were nomination-only, this one will be open to all subscribers to his Liar's Hearth Newsletter. Further details …

Impossible Hangout

As I mentioned last week, my story "Shoulders of Giants" appears in the newly available Impossible Hope anthology. Last night several of the contributors recorded a hangout to discuss inspirations. Unfortunately, I couldn't make it but there's plenty of interesting insight into other people's contributions: https://youtu.be/H_Yz6QQ-MP4 For those interested in my inspirations, I posted an …