Category Archives: Fiction

Friday read! “Cup and Table” by Tim Pratt

Posted on April 29, 2016 by Mandolin

“Cup and Table” is my favorite of Tim Pratt’s stories–and it has a lot of competition. To explain how much competition, let me tell an anecdote about the audio magazine I used to edit, PodCastle. I was no longer on … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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What Lies at the Edge of a Petal Is Love

Posted on April 25, 2016 by Mandolin

“What Lies at the Edge of a Petal Is Love” began with a dream. For a while, I was writing dream stories, such as this one and “How the World Became Quiet: A Post-Human Creation Myth.” It hasn’t happened lately. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Friday Read! “The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees” by E. Lily Yu

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Mandolin

“The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees” by E. Lily Yu is one of the most gorgeous, surprising and strange stories I’ve ever read. Some stories just seem to wing free of convention, to follow an unexpected trail to something excitingly … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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“I will be wild. I will be brutal. I will encircle you.”

Posted on April 20, 2016 by Mandolin

A few people have made graphics featuring a quote from one of my short stories. I’m including two of them below, which take the quote and make a narrative out of it (using movie images), which is neat. It’s awesome … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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The difference between draft 1 and draft 12ish of “Love Is Never Still”

Posted on April 4, 2016 by Mandolin

I thought it might be interesting to look at a passage from my most recent story, “Love Is Never Still,” as it existed in the first and last drafts. By the time I actually publish a story, I’ve often forgotten … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Flashback to 2008: “Marrying the Sun”

Posted on March 28, 2016 by Mandolin

For a while, I was linking weekly (from my twitter and facebook) to stories of mine from the past decade. I let it lapse, but I thought I’d pick it up again on some Mondays. So: “Marrying the Sun,” published … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Kind Words for My Stories

Posted on March 23, 2016 by Mandolin

Thank you to the reviewers. Quicksip reviews writes about “Love Is Never Still:” It’s mythic in its scope and in its characters but there’s also something deeply human about it (something that can be said about a lot of Greek … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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New to the Net: “Monstrous Embrace”

Posted on March 14, 2016 by Mandolin

Continuing my theme of reporting late on my news–for the first time, “Monstrous Embrace” is online in print, courtesy of Lightspeed Magazine. The first line came to me in one of those strange, clear moments: I am ugliness in body and … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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New Story: “Between Dragons and Their Wrath”

Posted on March 7, 2016 by Mandolin

February is always one of the busiest months for me. This February was so busy that I didn’t remember to click “post” on the entry I’d written about my new story in Clarkesworld Magazine, “Between Dragons and Their Wrath.” I … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Favorite Fiction Recommendation: “Her Husband’s Hands” by Adam Troy-Castro

Posted on March 4, 2016 by Mandolin

“Her Husband’s Hands” by Adam Troy-Castro, originally published in 2011, was honored with a Nebula nomination. The story was one of my picks as well as that of the membership at large. It’s a disturbing story, no doubt about it. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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