“We don't see things as they are, we see them as we are.”
--Anaïs Nin
Issue 2012.24
![[ Issue 2012.24; Cover art © 2012 Cécile Matthey ]](http://futurefire.net/images/f24cover.jpg "[ Issue 2012.24; Cover art © 2012 Cécile Matthey ]")
- ‘Je me souviens’, Su J. Sokol (illustrated by Soussherpa)
- ‘Secrets of the Sea’, Jennifer Marie Brissett (illustrated by Creative Commons photographs)
- ‘The Harpy’, Laura Heron (illustrated by Rebecca Whitaker)
- ‘Safecracker, Safe’, J.C. Hsyu (illustrated by Christina Cartwright)
- ‘Arrow’, Barry King (illustrated by Cécile Matthey)
- ‘Courtship in the Country of Machine-Gods’, Benjanun Sriduangkaew (illustrated by Tais Teng)
I thoroughly enjoyed reading all of the stories in this issue and feel honoured to be included in such good company. The illustrations are fabulous too. A special thanks to Soussherpa, who illustrated my story. What a thrill to see my characters come to life under your able hand! To J. C. Hsyu: Have you ever read anything by the Québécois science fiction Elisabeth Vonarburg? She wrote a story called something like “Run, Katherine, Run” (“La Course de Kathryn” in the original French) which I recalled when reading your wonderful story. Do you know this writer, Djibril? To Benjanun Sriduangkaew: Is your story part of a larger work, or have you thought about that? I could easily imagine a novel based on this story and would love to read more of the world that you have created. --Su
ReplyDeleteSu Sokol: I adored ‘Je me souviens’; it's a nuanced, challenging story that tackles a few subjects close to my heart.
ReplyDeleteYou're wonderfully kind about 'Courtship,' thank you. I haven't done more with the world yet, but I've toyed with the idea of at least another story, though the perspective would be fairly different.
Reading through the stories in this recent issue is like eating a box of chocolates, each story is a surprising, tasty delight! I've always loved how TFF doesn't dwell on depictions of a fantastical past as so many others in the field are currently doing--afraid to see the problems of the future and all the different people who will inhabit that future. As Paul Kincaid recently said in a review for the LA Review of Books, "The genre has become a set of tropes to be repeated and repeated until all meaning has been drained from them." Not so here at TFF! This magazine casts an unflinching eye to the future and says, "I see you" with new and original voices telling their stories with freshness and insight.
ReplyDeleteK. Tempest Bradford has reviewed three of the stories in this issue in her Favorite Stories of September 2012 roundup.
ReplyDeleteCosmic Vinegar has published a detailed review of Benjanun Sriduangkaew's Courtship at http://cosmicvinegar.com/past-issues/reviews-connection-in-the-land-of-disconnection/
ReplyDeleteBogi Takács briefly discusses Jennifer Marie Brissett's Secrets of the Sea in her latest Short story reviews.
ReplyDeleteBogi Takács also reviews Benjanun Sriduangkaew's Courtship in her Women Writing Novelettes blog post.
ReplyDeleteNic Clarke includes Benjanun Sriduangkaew's "Courtship" in her 2012 Year's Best round-up (with some critique) at http://thebooksmugglers.com/2012/12/smugglivus-2012-guest-blogger-nic-of-eves-alexandria.html.
ReplyDeleteBit late to the game but just wanted to say that I just discovered "Je me souviens" since the link was going around on Twitter--and the title caught my eye as I've been madly in love with Quebecois music for months now and am studying French because of it. When I clicked over to read and saw that the story was set during the Montreal protests, I was quite engrossed!
ReplyDeleteGave it some linkage on my social networks!
Thanks! I also love Québecois music ever since hearing it for the first time at the Francofolies the summer that we moved here from New York. It also goes so well with the beautiful musicality of the Québecois accent.
ReplyDeleteA.J. Fitzwater gives a brief (positive) review of "Je me souviens" in her 365 stories project at Pickled Think.
ReplyDeleteIn this issue, I've only read "Je me souviens" so far...very riveting and moving, and among many other things, accurately recalling the courage and camaraderie to be found in our numbers!
ReplyDeleteI'm happy to report that the cover story, "Arrow" has been selected for inclusion in this year's "Best Canadian Speculative Writing" anthology from CZP: http://chizinepub.com/books/imaginarium/imaginarium_2013.php
ReplyDeleteThat's great! Congratulations and thanks for providing the link.
ReplyDeleteI'm particularly happy to say that "Arrow" has been reprinted in "Outpouring: Yolanda Relief Anthology" edited by Dean Francis Alfar as a charity anthology to support the Philippine Red Cross. This is a great "coming home" for the story since, although it's set in a fictional Philippines-like country during an alternate period of imperial expansion, most of the elements in it draw directly and indirectly from the three years I lived in the Philippines and there is a lot of story elements that anyone who had been there with me would recognize. I'm glad to be able to give back a little in exchange for all the rich experiences I had there, and hope that he anthology brings in enough donations to make a difference. To that end, though, please consider buying a copy!
ReplyDeleteAmazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00I3BCNGW
Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/outpouring
Wizard's Tower Books: http://www.wizardstowerbooks.com/products/outpouring-typhoon-yolanda-relief-anthology-dean-francis-alfar
Flipreads: http://flipreads.com/outpouring
Thanks!
Congratulations, Barry!
ReplyDeleteJennifer Marie Brissett's Secrets of the Sea was one of the finalists for the 2013 Million Writers Award from Story South. Many congratulations to Jenn--very deserving, and a very good pack of finalists to be among!
ReplyDeleteBenjanun Sriduangkaew's Courtship in the Country of Machine-Gods has been reprinted in The Apex Book of World SF 3, edited by Lavie Tidhar. An excellent anthology, and a very deserving inclusion!
ReplyDelete