Micro-interview with Justin Taroli

This week we welcome Justin Taroli, author of “Unblooded Gospel” in The Future Fire #74, for a super brief chat about his story, dreams and writing.

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Art © 2025 Toeken

TFF: What does “Unblooded Gospel” mean to you?

Justin Taroli: “Unblooded Gospel” is a story that's been lingering in my brain for over a decade. I think I was waiting for permission to write it. I gave myself that permission earlier this year.

TFF: Have you ever used your dreams as inspiration for your writing or art?

JT: Yes. My dreams are generally very vivid, so I regularly take inspiration from my dreams.

TFF: What is the most important thing to remember about writing?

JT: You don't need anyone’s permission to write. Write whatever you want, whenever you want. Rejections mean nothing. Stand on your work.

TFF: What are you working on next?

JT: I’m currently seeking representation for my book of short stories. I’ll continue writing stories and eventually begin working on a new novel.

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Extract:

There’s a guy at the bar with lips like wet marble and a credit score you can feel in your spine. He orders vodka neat. Who drinks vodka neat? People who don’t need mixers, or feelings, or food. People who glide.

“Don’t,” says Marcus, leaning into me. “He’s one of them.”

I laugh loud enough that it startles the couple next to us. “One of what?”

Marcus just says, “They drink. But they don’t piss. Think about it.”

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Reminder: You can comment on any of the writing or art in this issue at http://press.futurefire.net/2025/09/new-issue-202574.html.

Micro-interview with Eleanor Glewwe

We’re delighted to be joined by Eleanor Glewwe, author of “Limue’s Alphabet” in The Future Fire #74, for a quick chat about alphabets and languages, in this week’s installment of our micro-interview series.

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Art © Barbara Candiotti

TFF: What does “Limue's Alphabet” mean to you?

Eleanor Glewwe: I was inspired to write this story when an author I followed on Twitter—I wish I could remember who—urged writers to “go weird.” I don't remember where the idea for the plot came from, but “Limue’s Alphabet” is the closest I’ve ever ventured toward horror. I’m also pleased by how its non-linear structure came together, and I always like being able to infuse my fiction with some linguistics.

TFF: What language or writing system would you most like to learn?

EG: Thanks to my newish research focus, I’ve learned to read the Georgian Mkhedruli alphabet, but I would love to be able to understand everything I can sound out. Separately, I wish I could speak Taishanese, the language of my mother's family. There's one Taishanese word tucked into “Limue’s Alphabet.”

TFF: Is there an art-form or creator from distant history that you still look at with admiration or awe?

EG: Johann Sebastian Bach came to mind, but I’m not sure he belongs to “distant” history. I could also say Georgian traditional polyphony, which I think is pretty ancient (sorry, I’m a bit of a Kartvelophile).

TFF: What are you working on next?

EG: I think “Limue’s Alphabet” is the last piece of fiction I’ve finished; I’ve been writing very slowly lately. But I am working (on and off) on another linguisticky short story set in a near-future Upper Midwest (U.S.).

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Extract

In the dappled shade of a stand of bamboo, an old woman takes a stick and scratches two curved lines in the dusty yellow earth.

“Pai is for pera
Limue’s plucked eye”

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Reminder: You can comment on any of the writing or art in this issue at http://press.futurefire.net/2025/09/new-issue-202574.html.

Micro-interview with Rowley Amato

Rowley Amato, author of “The Sons of Victor Levitak” in The Future Fire #74, joins us to talk about his story and other speculative matters in our micro-interview series.

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Art © 2025, Toeken

TFF: What does “The Sons of Victor Levitak” mean to you?

Rowley Amato: “The Sons of Victor Levitak” is a wistful look back at a time when the American Jewish Left was muscular, organized, and unapologetically radical. I am a proud Jew, and with global fascism on the march and genocide being committed in our name, I sort of see this story as an attempt to reclaim and assert that radical history, and perhaps show that an alternative world is possible. I was primarily influenced by three texts: a 2020 article in Jewish Currents magazine about leftist co-op developments of the Bronx; Cynthia Ozick’s 1997 novel The Puttermesser Papers; and the rabbi Joshua Trachtenberg’s writings on Jewish magic and folklore. Each of these works move me deeply, and they inform the voice, content, and general vibe of my story in different ways. 

TFF: Have you ever wished you could go back in time and change just one thing?

RA: Yes, and I think about this question all the time. There are lots of “big” things I would change (e.g., killing Hitler, thwarting the assasination of Lincoln, etc.), but I will keep things local: I would go back in time to the early 1930s and stop the New York City urban planner Robert Moses from seizing control of the Triborough Bridge Authority. This would deny him the source of power and funding that allowed him to inflict his wildly destructive agenda on the Bronx and New York City as a whole. Of course, the unintended consequences could be dire, so the only responsible answer is that I am not one to meddle with time travel. 

TFF: What are you working on next?

RA: I’m currently working on a few horror short stories. I’ve also started planning a science fiction/mystery novel.

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Extract

Victor Levitak was not well-loved by the other residents of the Coop, but we sat a feeble shiva for him anyway.

Marty Feinberg worked with Victor on the fabric cutters’ line down at the Lefcourt lofts and was, by our estimation, the closest thing he had to a friend. We looked to him to deliver the mourner’s kaddish. He stared at his shoes and quickly rushed through words that held no meaning for us, until, eventually, his Hebrew failed him.

“Well, anyway… he found peace.” He shrugged. “A great blessing, in my opinion.”

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Reminder: You can comment on any of the writing or art in this issue at http://press.futurefire.net/2025/09/new-issue-202574.html.