Joyce Ferguson sat across from the devil⁠—or more accurately⁠—a devil. She was sort of glad not to be considered important enough to be seen by the big guy himself. She was only meeting with a caseworker of Hell.“Looking over your record, I see you traded your soul in exchange for a car that never needed to go to a...

—Ellie Black

resembling a pair of acorns as theypushed against the fabric of her blouse⁠— Han Kang, The Vegetarian: A NovelYou wake up in the morningwith the sap run outof your veinsinto a bucket at your bedsidethe sunrise has already come and swept away.You whistle for the feet you’dcurled like rootsinto the steep of dreamsbut...

Any weird things going on in your home lately, H.C.?I’m continuously clearing black gunk out of my bathroom sink, but it keeps coming back, almost immediately. I suspect it’s evolving.If you had to use a word that was not a color to describe how the portal looked, what comes to mind?Radiant, and blindingly so. Or,...

Derek G.Glendale, CA★★☆☆☆ March 30, 2024 | 11:54 PMtook my girlfriend to cheesecake factory tonight for our 2 year anniversary cause it’s her favorite and i was trying to make it a thing even though she’s been all moody lately. we got the buffalo blasts and 2 vodka sodas to start. she ordered her usual chicken...

1. Distract YourselfDoug did just about anything he could to avoid thinking about the giant interdimensional hole in his living room. He tried mediation, pottery, weight lifting, even tai chi. His therapist told him the hole didn’t exist. Doug generally agreed, but found that position harder to maintain when an...

The hands have been pulled out of all the clocks in the world.⁠—Tristan TzaraGrains et IssuesThe clocks wait, naked. Hands left late last night.Now vacant time can’t name later or now.Your floor is too orderly⁠—black squares, whiteoblongs stare back with evil smiles to spiteloose clocks. You’re naked and your...

💡Go read Flanders, George and His Pimavanserin now!Are you a big fan of crows?I confess my obsession is more with pigeons⁠—my favorites! But writing a story from the POV of a bird is hard enough without benefitting from the intelligence of a crow. It’s hard to imagine Pimavanserin snatching french fries off the...

All crows are smart, but Pimavanserin is the smartest. It was she who long ago domesticated the fierce coyotes of the desert. Now, she perches atop the highest spire of their roost, the most splendorous cactus in this land of red clay, and waits⁠—every day⁠—for Flanders, George.Crows have no equals except, perhaps,...

Art by Rusty Epstein

straddling the crunchof ice cube buoysadrift in his frozen milkshake,I can’t help but wonder,how did we get so small?✱she assumes every head nodsin solidarityas she reads her scifaiku⁠—but I’ve never seeneven a single episodeof star trek✱orbital traffic’s nonexistentrubbery whine ⁠—no airborne atmosphericsto...

Entries received 76 Longlist finalists 15 stories Honorable mentions 5 writers $10 entry fee returned Total prizes $555 paid to the three winners Welcome! Another year; another contest; another set of (extra)ordinary results.Before we get into things, I want to give a ginormous gallon of gratitude to our amazing...