Best SF/F short fiction, January through June 2018

Here are my picks for the best science fiction and fantasy short fiction published in the first half of 2018.

I originally set out to read a short story a day this year but massively failed in that attempt. That said, I still read more than 130 short stories, novelettes and novellas published between January and the end of June.

That doesn’t mean I haven’t missed some great stories — I’m certain I did. In particular, I read relatively few novellas this go around. I’ll try to make up for that in the coming months and will add any stories I missed to my next listing of the year’s best short fiction, which will be released in December.

If you like what I'm doing, consider backing my Patreon. And to check out my current short story reviews, go to the Twitter hashtag #JasonReads.

Best SF/F short fiction, January through June 2018

Note: All stories sorted alphabetically by title.

2018 Novella

  • Gods, Monsters, and the Lucky Peach by Kelly Robson
    Tor
    Time travel and environmental collapse collide in this imaginative story of the far future. Beautiful writing, captivating world-building, and characters you deeply care about pull you through this fast-paced story. Wow!

  • Umbernight by Carolyn Ives Gilman
    Clarkesworld
    An exciting hard SF tale of colonists on an alien world with tons of sensawunda, danger, and insight. Once I started reading this story I couldn't put it down. "Umbernight" merges Golden Age SF excitement with modern sensibilities as this world's new generation of colonists pay for their parents' sins. Also a great look at the clash between the rationalists & dreamers in every society & how both are needed. Highly recommended.

2018 Novelette

  • A Dog of Wu by Ted Rabinowitz
    Fantasy and Science Fiction, Mar/Apr 2018
    In a far future where families of genetic clones control Earth, a culler searches for those who have gone against the pre-ordained way. An excellent story, mixing Brave New World with modern ideas.

  • El is a Spaceship Melody by Maurice Broaddus
    Beneath Ceaseless Skies
    Forget space opera, this story is pure space jazz as the starship Arkestra and her captain discover the human spirit is as limitless as the cosmos. For optimum enjoyment of Maurice Broaddus' jazz creation, I suggest playing Sun Ra while reading this story.

  • Endless City by David Gerrold
    Analog Science Fiction and Fact, Jan/Feb 2018
    A hard-boiled detective is hired to investigate a client's murder moments before it happens in this merging of cyberspace & reality, where performance is everything & nothing. This novelette is hypnotic and dazzling, with something to insult everyone in a world where privacy might be the only unobtainable dream.

  • My Base Pair by Sam J. Miller
    Analog Science Fiction and Fact, May/June 2018
    I’m fascinated by the world in this story, where the DNA of celebrities is hacked and sold so fans can raise designer kids in their idols' image. A disturbing yet thought-provoking tale.

  • Sea of Dreams by Cixin Liu (translated by John Chu)
    Asimov's Science Fiction Jan/Feb 2018
    A hard science fiction classic with strong sensawunda, where powerful alien artist nearly destroys Earth to create the ultimate work of art. "Sea of Dreams" showcases why Cixin Liu is the greatest living hard science fiction author. Even readers who don't like hard SF might like this story — there's a page in the middle where the story digs deep with scientific detail, but keep going and you'll be rewarded.

  • The Barrens by Stephanie Feldman
    Fantasy and Science Fiction, May/June 2018
    A group of teenagers follow a pirate radio station's signal into a dark forest — and the woods are hungry. This new take on a familiar horror trope is a beautifully haunting story.

  • The Ghoul Goes West by Dale Bailey
    Tor.com
    The brother of a dead screenwriter discovers a video of Ed Wood & Bela Lugosi's never-completed film. Haunting story about Hollywood destroying lives through delusion.

  • The Substance of My Lives, the Accidents of Our Births by José Pablo Iriarte
    Lightspeed
    Gender becomes even more fluid when you reincarnate & the man who maybe murdered you in a previous life moves into your trailer park. A wonderful story — part slice of life, part mystery. I loved the narrator and embraced their struggles and dreams. A great read which so reaffirms the beauty of life. 

  • The Sweetness of Honey and Rot by A Merc Rustad
    Beneath Ceaseless Skies
    When Jiteh’s twin brother is sacrificed to the Life Tree, she decides to change the world. An inspiring story that also broke my heart because, as we all know, our plans and dreams in life rarely work out as they would in an ideal universe.

  • Three Dandelion Stars by Jordan Kurella
    Beneath Ceaseless Skies
    A fairy tale romance which both lives within the world of fairy tales and transcends them. I loved the story’s world-building and how the romance took me in directions I’d never have expected.

  • Widdam by Vandana Singh
    Fantasy & Science Fiction, Jan/Feb 2018
    As heavy pollution and climate change push human civilization to the brink, hyper-intelligent machines are now used to ravage the Earth. A fascinating, all too plausible future which also remembers that hope is one of the defining aspects of humanity.

2018 Short Story

  • A Lumberjack’s Guide to Dryad Spotting by Charles Payseur
    Flash Fiction Online
    A bittersweet yet beautiful slice of life about a lumberjack who will do anything to keep his dream of life and love. I don't read many stories twice in one hour, but I did with this great flash fiction story.

  • A Night Out at a Nice Place by Nick Mamatas
    Apex Magazine
    A sadistic god-like transhuman returns to reality for a first date with a regular human. Delightfully funny SF mixing philosophy & borderline nonsense while dancing on infinity.

  • A Witch’s Guide to Escape: A Practical Compendium of Portal Fantasies by Alix E Harrow
    Apex Magazine
    Because all true librarians are witches who help readers connect with the book they need most. I love this story!

  • All the Time We've Left to Spend by Alyssa Wong
    Robots Vs Fairies
    A former idol in Japan visits robot versions of her former band, desperate to reconnect. A story about the damage life and fame brings to people, and their desperation to both touch who they once were and change the actions they took. A disturbingly painful yet always true story.

  • And Yet by AT Greenblatt
    Uncanny Magazine
    A theoretical physicist tries to determine if haunted houses are merely doorways to parallel versions of your life. A moving & emotional look at the choices we make. And I so love the story's opening line: "Only idiots go back to the haunted houses of their childhood. And yet."

  • Barleycorn by Cae Hawksmoor
    Abyss & Apex
    A modern-day fairy both consumes a suicidal man & shows him the beauty of life. A melodic story about how life, death & the harvest remain, no matter how our world changes.

  • Being an Account of The Sad Demise of The Body Horror Book Club by Nin Harris
    The Dark
    What are those horrifying sounds in the apartment upstairs? A wonderfully gothic story exploring our fears of isolation & the unknown.

  • Bread and Milk and Salt by Sarah Gailey
    Robots Vs Fairies
    The most disturbing, nightmarish fairy story I've ever read. Brilliant. A story to haunt your dreams. Gailey perfectly captures fairy amorality, such as how they lead young kids to their deaths, or worse. But the story then cranks the fantasy dial to 11 when a geeky boy turns the tables, and flips it again in a chilling ending which shatters all power dynamics. Wow.

  • Carouseling by Rich Larson
    Clarkesworld
    Ostap loses the love of his life in a explosion at a quantum test facility in Mombasa. But why is he still linked to her? A moving SF story with strong sensawunda.

  • Cosmic Spring by Ken Liu
    Lightspeed Magazine
    A sailor steers an island-ship through the heat death of the universe while trying to remember all that was. "Cosmic Spring" is a beautiful story of eternity, memory & spending time with friends as the universe ends. The sense of wonder in this story — wow. One of the year's best. And so many great lines like "It’s not home, but at least we don’t have to die alone."

  • Domestic Violence by Madeline Ashby
    Slate
    An HR manager at a future workplace counsels a domestic violence victim to keep her performing like any good employee. Or is the manager really counseling herself? A subtle, eye-opening story which demonstrates how abusers can and will use technology to maintain control and hurt people. A must-read story of a troubling future.

  • Four-Point Affective Calibration by Bogi Takács
    Lightspeed Magazine
    An insightful story about how human conformity and neurotypical thoughts/emotions can hinder attempts to communicate with aliens. As the story shows, human communications are always tied in with emotions & cultural contexts. But humanity's neurodiversity also means there's a range of amazing ways to see, experience & communicate about our world. I wish more people understood that.

  • Godmeat by Martin Cahill
    Lightspeed Magazine
    A chef cooks the meat of the divine beasts who maintain his world's reality. An imaginative, must-read story of ambition conflicting with the greater good, and the choices we all make.

  • Leviathan Sings to Me in the Deep by Nibedita Sen
    Nightmare
    This lush, dark story grabbed me from the start and refused to let go. Set on a whaling ship, the world is so disturbingly and beautifully captured that the reader believes that this nightmarish tale could have really happened. And the ending — wow!

  • Me, Waiting for Me, Hoping for Something More by Dee Warrick
    Shimmer
    The ghost of who you never were haunts your life while exploring an impossible basement under the basement. A deep, bone-chilling story.

  • Mother Tongues by S Qiouyi Lu
    Asimov's Science Fiction Jan/Feb 2018
    A touching SF tale of the importance of language to both our lives/sense of self, & what happens if this is commodified. A story to make you cry.

  • Obscura by Yoon Ha Lee
    Strange Horizons, Short Story
    A 14 year old searching for connections meets a man whose camera destroys them. This disturbing, powerful story burned its way into my mind.

  • One For Sorrow, Two For Joy by LaShawn M. Wanak
    Fireside Fiction
    An undertaker gifts sky burials to children who die before their time, magically giving relief to their grieving families. "One For Sorrow, Two For Joy" is a magically touching fantasy which made me cry before moving me to joy. This story is proof of the power of great fantasies. One of the year's best and a story which will stay with me for a lifetime.

  • Opium for Ezra by T.R. Napper
    Interzone 274
    The commander of a nearly indestructible tank has survived for 9 months on a devastated battlefield. Now he battles a new enemy along with reality. A powerful, gritty and painful SF war story, with a heck of a plot twist at the end.

  • Salt Lines by Ian Muneshwar
    Strange Horizons
    A jumbie comes for a man as he leaves a club. An exquisite story of loneliness, family and the past which haunts us all. Another must-read.

  • Sour Milk Girls by Erin Roberts
    Clarkesworld
    SF story about memory becoming just another commodity. Story has a gripping, visual voice, which makes the outcome all the more painful. I believe this story is one of those which will truly stick in my memory.

  • Strange Waters by Samantha Mills
    Strange Horizons
    A fisherwoman lost at sea keeps returning home at different points in time. A fascinating & touching time travel story with a deep sense of wonder. Days after I finished this story I was still thinking about it. Highly recommended, and the most emotional time travel story I've read this year

  • The Court Magician by Sarah Pinsker
    Lightspeed Magazine
    A young man learns the price of going from sleight of hand tricks to true magic. And the worst trick? That those in power never pay the same price. This story accomplishes more in 3000 words than many novel-length tales, and showcases how at its best fantasy can touch on deeper issues than much of what passes these days for "realistic" or "literary" mainstream fiction.

  • The Library is Open by Beth Cato
    Daily Science Fiction
    It's the end of the world but the local library is still open and will always be. A flash fiction story about hope which will touch the heart of every library lover.

  • The Mansion of Endless Rooms by L. Chan
    Syntax and Salt
    A man carries his dead father to a mansion outside time, where his father's memories can live forever. a beautiful merger of truth & words, reaching deeper into sorrow and pain than stories a hundred times the length. A must read tale & one of the year's best.

  • The Root Cellar by Maria Haskins
    Beneath Ceaseless Skies
    A young girl returns from the dead to save her little brother. But their grandmother keeps trying to kill them. A lyrical, disturbing story which continually keeps the reader off balance even while forcing you to keep reading.

  • The Secret Lives of the Nine Negro Teeth of George Washington by Phenderson Djèlí Clark
    Fireside Fiction
    A moving story melding ghosts and magic and humanity into something far truer than either fantasy or history. "The Secret Lives of the Nine Negro Teeth of George Washington" proves that Clark is a writer to both watch and read. I wouldn't be surprised if this story earns award nominations and reprints in various year's best anthologies.

  • The Sharp Edges of Anger by Jamie Lackey
    Apex Magazine
    A young woman deals with a world where anger is physically removed from her body. A dangerously powerful tale full of deep truths. Read this story!

  • Traces of Us by Vanessa Fogg
    GigaNotoSaurus
    A beautiful, touching science fiction story of two people embracing each other across eternity. This is me crying over this joyous song of a love story.

  • We Will Be All Right by Carolyn Ives Gilman
    Lightspeed Magazine
    In a world where sex between men and women kills the man, a mother watches with regret as her son falls in love. A powerful flash which left me shuddering and pained.

  • With These Hands: An Account of Uncommon Labor by LH Moore
    FIYAH Literary Magazine Jan 2018
    A free black man helping build the White House learns of the changes two enslaved stonemasons will willingly undergo to escape bondage. A compelling look at history — all of history — and how those who do the work of building the world's monuments and mansions are often the first to be ignored by history.

Genre Grapevine columns on Patreon

I haven't been posting news and information on my website lately because I now write a weekly Genre Grapevine column for my Patreon supporters. The column provides insider news and information for people in the science fiction, fantasy, and horror genres along with submission information on new and current markets.

One of my frustrations when I first began writing fiction was not knowing what was going on in the genre. I'd submit a story to a magazine then hear, months later, that the magazine was closing. Or I'd submit to a publisher only to learn the publisher had a two-year backlog of submissions.

This information was known to genre insiders, who talked about it among themselves. At conventions and on private forums you'd hear the inside scoop on markets and editors and so much more. But for a beginning author this information was so scattered or hard to find as to be unknowable.

My Genre Grapevine column is an attempt to provide this insider information to everyone. The column is available for only $1 a month.

For a sample column, go here. Also check out my original reporting around genre issues, such as on Spectacle Magazine and Dream Foundry.

To back my Patreon and receive access to the weekly columns and much more, go to www.patreon.com/jasonsanford. 

Schedule for Nebula Awards Conference in Pittsburgh, May 17 to 20

I'm attending the Nebula Awards Conference from May 17 to 20 at the Pittsburgh Marriott City Center. I'll be taking part in the two sessions below. I'll also be part of the general autograph session, which is on Sunday, May 20 from 1 to 3 pm and is open to the public.

I look forward to seeing everyone there.

  • Thursday, May 17 (during a 5-minute period between 3:30 and 4:30pm)
    Ignite Talk: The Emotions of Archaeology and History
     
  • Saturday, May 19 from 4:00pm - 5:00pm
    What science fiction can learn from archaeology
    Panelists: Arkady Martine, Annalee Newitz, Jason Sanford, Rosemary Claire Smith
    Worldbuilding requires us to imagine societies that are radically different from our own. This is also what archaeologists do when they explore ancient civilizations. What can archaeological discoveries and methods teach us as writers? What does archaeological science fiction look like? Let's talk about the science of creating fictional civilizations.

 

 

Where to find SF/F criticism and reviews

This is a listing of where to find quality science fiction and fantasy criticism and story reviews. For the backstory on why I created this list go to my Patreon. But in short, I've been reviewing SF/F short stories, someone complained, so I decided to showcase the other reviews/criticism found online.

If you like what I'm doing, consider backing my Patreon. And to check out my own short story review, go to the Twitter hashtag #JasonReads.

Please note this list only focuses on English language reviews and criticism, and doesn't include book-length criticism released by publishers such as the University of Illinois Press (with their Modern Masters of Science Fiction series) and NESFA Press.

If my list missed anyone please let me know.

#JasonReadsShortStories for March 2018

One of my goals this year is to read and review a short story every day. And here we go with the second month of the year — 31 days in March, 31 short stories read and reviewed.

Below are the reviews for all 31 stories, arranged by author's name. Also listed are the publication and story classification.

If you like my reviews, consider supporting my Patreon.

March 2018 Reviews

"And Yet"
A. T. Greenblatt, Uncanny Magazine, Short Story
A theoretical physicist tries to determine if haunted houses are merely doorways to parallel versions of your life. A moving & emotional look at the choices we make. And I so love the story's opening line: "Only idiots go back to the haunted houses of their childhood. And yet."

"Because Reasons"
Alexandra Renwick, Asimov's Science Fiction, Mar/Apr 2018, Short Story
Two future teenagers love historic punk rock but unfriend each other when one leaves to help settle Mars. A funny and insightful story about how cultural trends come and go but truth remains.

"baleen, baleen"
Alexandra Renwick, Interzone 274, Short Story
Zeke hates his life, but every time he almost drowns at sea the world changes. Maybe he can learn to change it for the better. A hypnotic story which dances like an ocean current.

"Four-Point Affective Calibration"
Bogi Takács, Lightspeed Magazine, Flash
An insightful story about how human conformity and neurotypical thoughts/emotions can hinder attempts to communicate with aliens. As the story shows, human communications are always tied in with emotions & cultural contexts. But humanity's neurodiversity also means there's a range of amazing ways to see, experience & communicate about our world. I wish more people understood that.

"A Priest of Vast and Distant Places"
Cassandra Khaw, Apex Magazine, Short Story
Airplanes are actually gods and you are their priest in this emotional tribute to the joys and pains of both home and travel.

"Five Tangibles and One"
D.A. Xiaolin Spires, Vice Motherboard, Short Story
A sexbot helping humans with marital counseling falls for a fellow bot. Or is their love merely a virus? A touching, insightful tale. And I absolutely love how @spireswriter created a world where bots are addicted to smoking kudzu leaves! This is a perfect example of how small, creative details in world building can make a story click into the deeper consciousness of readers.

"The No-One Girl and the Flower of the Farther Shore"
E. Lily Yu, Clarkesworld, Short Story
A girl abandoned by her village learns the truth known by the flowers of the farthest shore, which is that no one is ever truly alone.

"All the Time in the Sky"
H. L. Fullerton, Daily Science Fiction, Flash
The sun splits in two, as seen through the relationship of two people among the billions watching this cosmic mystery. A moving flash story about how every historic or cosmic change is witnessed and felt on a very personal level. Even if we don't understand why it happened.

"Your Damnation Will Be Infinite"
Hadeer Elsbai, The Dark, Short Story
A young woman in Cairo kills her abusive husband as part of a strange ceremony. But now she wonders about what she may have unleashed. A lush, darkly troubling story which presents no easy answers.

"Dragon Meat"
Helen French, Flash Fiction Online, Flash
When a family's dragon dies, the dragon's meat isn't to be wasted. A short, deep tale about the painful results when those we love are degraded by being a mere possession.

"Unplaces: An Atlas of Non-existence"
Izzy Wasserstein, Clarkesworld, Short Story
A woman hiding from a fascist militia writes her story in a book describing imaginary and lost places. This story is fascinating and well told, and a painful look at how any place or ideal can vanish — just as the America in the main character's time likewise becomes a dream which no longer exists.

"Braving the Morrow Candle’s Wane"
J.W. Alden, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Short Story
An old woman who lost her religious faith in the foolish wars of her youth has learned to believe in something far better — other people.

"Bury Me with Broken Love Light Bulbs, Bury Me in Shattered Glass"
Jack Westlake, Black Static 62, Short Story
A man addicted to alcohol becomes friends with a man addicted to eating glass. A disturbing and horrifying look at addiction and loneliness.

"Beautiful Quiet of the Roaring Freeway"
James Sallis, Interzone 274, Flash
What does the freedom of the road mean when only self-driving vehicles travel on the freeways? A short, lyrical look at our dreams of driving away.

“A Very Large Number of Moons”
Kai Stewart, Strange Horizons, Flash
A collector of moons shows how much of life is illuminated by moonlight. A touching, beautifully moonlit slice of flash fiction.

"Cosmic Spring"
Ken Liu, Lightspeed Magazine, Short Story
A sailor steers an island-ship through the heat death of the universe while trying to remember all that was. "Cosmic Spring" is a beautiful story of eternity, memory & spending time with friends as the universe ends. The sense of wonder in this story — wow. One of the year's best. And so many great lines like "It’s not home, but at least we don’t have to die alone."

"Tool-Using Mimics"
Kij Johnson, Clarkesworld, Short Story
The many different versions of the life of a girl with tentacles. In this story as in life, truth is a colorful, many limbed thing, just like an octopus. A beautiful, subtle story which moved me even as it flits beyond simple explanations or narratives. One of the best stories I've read this year.

The Mansion of Endless Rooms"
L. Chan, Syntax and Salt, Flash
A man carries his dead father to a mansion outside time, where his father's memories can live forever. a beautiful merger of truth & words, reaching deeper into sorrow and pain than stories a hundred times the length. A must read tale & one of the year's best.

"Crave"
Lilliam Rivera, Nightmare Magazine, Short Story
To stop a monster from feeding on people, families gift her food. But one starving girl hates being part of this. A moving, disturbing story on the horror of mistreating women.

"Domestic Violence"
Madeline Ashby, Slate, Short Story
An HR manager at a future workplace counsels a domestic violence victim to keep her performing like any good employee. Or is the manager really counseling herself? A subtle, eye-opening story which demonstrates how abusers can and will use technology to maintain control and hurt people. A must-read story of a troubling future.

"A Swim and a Crawl"
Marc Laidlaw, Fantasy and Science Fiction, Mar/Apr. 2018, Short Story
A man allows himself to be swept away to sea but eventually he swims back to shore and the cliff leading to safety. But what is that voice he hears? A disturbing little horror story.

"The Ghost In Angelica’s Room"
Maria Haskins, Flash Fiction Online, Flash
A young woman's ghostly father visits her every evening and asks how her day went. a painful scream of a story, begging us to remember that everyone lives alongside the ghosts of those who were as scared as we are. And that living can be far harder than dying.

"Never the Twain"
Michael Reid, Interzone 274, Short Story
A person living simultaneous lives in the present & far future faces the death of one self, even if their future half knows how to save them. A touching time paradox story.

"Child of Snow"
Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Daily Science Fiction, Short Story
A young man born of snow goes out into the world with his father, who aims to do him harm.

"In Event of Moon Disaster"
Rich Larson, Asimov's Science Fiction, Mar/Apr 2018, Short Story
After a strange asteroid hits the moon, a 2-person spaceship finds person after person knocking on their airlock door. Echoes of "The Cold Equations" in this story.

“The Triumphant Ward of the Railroad and the Sea”
Sara Saab, Shimmer, Short Story
A competitive eater travels endlessly by train along a coastal sea. A chillingly beautiful slipstream story of loneliness and the hunger which eating can never fill. And I love Saab's writing: "Loneliness is not the consistency of coal — it is not dry or porous or easy to palm. It is a fish, a thing of the ocean, slapping forever in the chest, eroding a space in the heart shaped like its own body."

"Do As I Do, Sing As I Sing"
Sarah Pinsker, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Novelette
A young cropsinger is determined to aid her village despite her brother's jealousy. I love Pinsker's storytelling as I fell in love with the main character & setting. And the story showcases how envy and anger are bad reasons to aim to change the world, even if they're behind so many of our world's technological advances.

"Occasionally in the Night, a Vague Craving Arose"
Sean Ennis, Tin House, Short Story
Benny the Therapist & everyone in an extended rehab decide candy helps them fight their addictions. A quirky, insightful look at how so much of life is addiction.

"Opium for Ezra"
T.R. Napper, Interzone 274, Short Story
The commander of a nearly indestructible tank has survived for 9 months on a devastated battlefield. Now he battles a new enemy along with reality. A powerful, gritty and painful SF war story, with a hell of a plot twist at the end.

"A Dog of Wu"
Ted Rabinowitz, Fantasy and Science Fiction, Mar/Apr 2018, Novelette
In a far future where families of genetic clones control Earth, a culler searches for those who have gone against the pre-ordained way. An excellent story, mixing Brave New World w modern ideas.

"Traces of Us"
Vanessa Fogg, GigaNotoSaurus, Short Story
A beautiful, touching science fiction story of two people embracing each other across eternity. This is me crying over this joyous song of a love story.