Sam J. Miller‘s “
Tyrannosaurus Hex” posits a future in which alternative realities can be all too real. The story is particularly chilling (and resonates as true) with children as the “early adaptors.” “
A House Full of Voices Is Never Empty” by
Miyuki Jane Pinckard also deals with reality of a sort. Two sisters flee the chaos of Vietnam as the US withdraws. The elder is consoled by familiar objects that speak to her; the younger does not have that comfort but is also “free to imagine a new life.” As time passes, Pinckard offers a beautiful perspective on the solace and burden of memories. The children in
Magazines Received, February 2021 locusmag.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from locusmag.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Fall 2020 brought a new online magazine, a new print periodical, and the return of a digital magazine.
Baffling launched October 1, 2020 with four “unapologetically queer and unashamedly weird” stories of under 1,200 words. (Going forward they will publish one flash story a month on Patreon, compile the offerings quarterly, then publish that for free online.)
Baffling #1 offers a welcome glimpse of
Jewelle Gomez‘s vampire Gilda in the future with “
Merida, Yucatan: 2060” and a terrifying tale of suburban wildlife in “
Velvet” by
From the Deep, the Music Rises” by
Izzy Wasserstein and
Cellars, Caskets, and Closets“, a story of madness.
Weird Horror #1 also debuted in October. It is a handsome new print periodical featuring “pulpy dark fiction in the weird fiction and horror genres” with plans to publish twice yearly. The inaugural issue is something of a mixed bag. “
The inaugural FIYAHCON took place online October 17-18, 2020, held via Zoom and Dacast, and hosted by
FIYAH magazine. Guests of honor were Yasser Bahjatt, Cassie Hart, and Rebecca Roanhorse. According to convention director L.D. Lewis, the event was conceived mid-year, in the midst of protests, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the trend of conventions switching to virtual events; it was “formally launched” July 7, 2020, and the Ignyte awards were conceived following the 2020 Hugo Awards ceremony. In her retrospective on her site, Lewis said, “It would be virtual, it would be inclusive, and it would, as all things FIYAH, prove to the community that such a thing as an inclusive, accessible, diverse, dynamic convention where people and entities have their names properly announced and see more than one brown face on a panel at a time on anything other than a Diversity Panel, could exist.” There were 1,128 registered members and 978 active attendees. “I’d considered the even