Quick Sips - Terraform April 2018

It's a full April for Motherboard's Terraform line, with five stories (and none of them flash). And what strikes me the most about the stories this round are the ways that they play with expectation and form. For many of the pieces, there is a very conscious engagement with form and with what those forms traditionally mean. From nonfiction articles to academic papers to social media posts and beyond, the stories feature people working through future worlds where things are on the verge of disaster. Where extinction might be only a step away. Where the slide into dystopia seems well on its way. Except that for some there's also this hope that not every slide is into death and chaos. That sometimes a leap forward comes right at the moment when everything seems to be going wrong. So let's get to the reviews!

The Monthly Round - September 2017

The Monthly Round, which pairs my favorite short SFF with booze, tasting notes, and reviews, is now live at Nerds of a Feather, Flock Together, covering my selections for September 2017. Please go check it out here.

For those just wanting a list and links, though, I've provided those below.

Tasting Flight - September 2017

“Pan-Humanism: Hope and Pragmatics” by Jess Barber and Sara Saab (Clarkesworld)
“The Last Spell of the Raven” by Morris Tanafon (Glittership)
“On The Other Side of the Sea” by Nerine Dorman (Omenana)
“Feeding Mr. Whiskers” by Dawn Bonanno (Fireside Fiction)
“They, We, Me” by Ryan Bloom (Terraform)
“Stories We Carry On The Back Of The Night” by Jasper Sanchez (Mithila Review)

Cheers!

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Quick Sips - Terraform September 2017

So Terraform appears to be back! I guess I missed a story at the very end of August and so this go-round there are four pieces to look at. The structure has changed to pair each story with a piece of nonfiction that explores something from the piece. The nonfiction reads are quite interesting and I must say I think the format plays more to Terraform’s base and larger place in the landscape, though I perhaps wish there was a bit more communication from the editorial staff about what’s going on. Still, for now I’m rather happy that the publication is picking up again and the stories are right back to the normal quality that I expect. It’s a great mix of stories this month, and without further hesitation, I’ll get to reviewing them!