Marlee tells us a story in which no one is safe – and it’s not just the virus that endangers them. It’s the way communities fracture, the food scarcity, and the lack of infrastructure in place to handle a disaster. This is a rupture in the fabric of society. 

The vision of plague Marlee creates is told in just a few small vignettes. Specifically, ones focused on meal time. First, there are rustlings in the new while she makes baked risotto. Later, they’re lucky to have beans. Soon, they’re grateful for a meager mix of flour and water. It’s desperate, and real.  … More Starving to Death in Brunswick West by Marlee Jane Ward

This Is How is a contemplation on the fall from grace, the tragedies of untimely death, the horror of abuse, and the road to redemption. Valravns are created through a tragedy that is not in any way their fault. A child dies because others did not care for them. The raven does as ravens do – it feeds. Neither of these two parties are responsible for this. They are innocents. Yet, a monster is nevertheless created by the lack of care on the part of others. This mirrors the cycles of abuse that we see in families; although children aren’t at fault because their parents abused them, a new monster may well be created as the child continues the cycle of abuse once they become adults as well. The abused become abusers. Where valravns are concerned, the killed become the killers.  … More This Is How by Marie Brennan

If you ever wanted a love story across multiple reincarnations between an occult detective and a demon, well, here you have it folks. This is a beautifully realized, off-beat love story between two people with quite unusual tastes. As they connect and reconnect across their lives, their love grows ever deeper and ever stronger – two halves of the same rather unusual whole.  … More Black Flowers Blossom by Vina Jie-Min Prasad

For the month of December, Short Fiction Friday is being upgraded to feature daily stories as part of an advent calendar exchange I’m running with a friend! Every week, Black Forest Basilisks will be shining a spotlight on each of the short stories, novelettes, or flash fics that we exchanged for each day of advent. All of these stories will be available online for free.  … More Christmas Advent: Short Story Edition! (Part 1)

John Wiswell has crafted a careful, delicate vignette of pain, lies, and a parent’s desire to protect their children. A white lie can grow until it becomes reality, until it ultimately becomes a painful reminder to everyone involved that the past is just that: the past.  … More The Lie Misses You by John Wiswell

Sarah Pinsker eases you in to an unexpected future in her short story, Sooner or Later Everything Falls Into the Sea. It begins with a woman living alone along the beach; Bay scavenges that which washes ashore for a living. She uses the flotsam and jetsam that falls overboard from the large cruise ships which now dominate the seas to sustain her meager lifestyle. One day, it’s not a few odds and ends of supplies which wash ashore… but rather a young rock star. A bassist.  … More Sooner or Later Everything Falls Into the Sea by Sarah Pinsker

Mohlere takes Caro’s story across many facets of her life, painting with a broad, abstract brush to fill in the details that can’t fit into a short story. We see her painful family situation, we see the hurt in her soul when she sees a family she could have had. Most importantly, we also see her redemption. We see the power of care and loyalty in those we love. I would highly recommend this story to anyone looking for a little chicken soup for the soul. … More The Thing in the Walls Wants Your Small Change by Virginia M. Mohlere