It's a Jumble

I first came across Nancy Au’s work when I read her short story, “Odonata at Rest” in the (now sadly on-hiatus) speculative fiction journal, Liminal Stories. “Odonata at Rest” remains one of my favorite stories from that brilliant journal: a gentle, shimmering story of unexpected connections, with a delicate air of fabulism. When I found that Nancy Au’s first collection of short stories was out, I was thrilled for the chance to read it. Spider Love Song and Other Stories does not disappoint. These seventeen stories slide from realism to outright fantasy, and all points in between. They are centered primarily upon Chinese-American communities in contemporary California, and many, like “Odonata at Rest,” seem to occupy a liminal space between realism and fantasy; even when events are wholly explainable by reality, they seem outlined by the uncanny. In “How to Become Your Own Odyssey, or The Land of Indigestion,” a father eats in his sleep, cleaning out the refrigerator, eating “w

Well, it’s that time of year when writers make posts about their award eligibility for the year. I had four new stories published in 2019. I admit that “The Message” and “The Red Cloak” are particularly dear to my heart, but I’d be honored if you took a look at any of them.  “The Bone Lands”  (fantasy, 3821 words).  Kaleidotrope , January 2019. I sought you on a plain of whistling bones. I walked through towers made of giants’ femurs, and under the great curved arches of a leviathan’s ribs. A journey to the underworld. A story about what love can and cannot do. Reviewed by SFRevu: “A beautiful tale about the power of love.”  “The Message”  (science fiction, 4236 words).  The Future Fire , February 2019. They say I’m too young to remember what this country once was. They say I don’t remember that brief period of hope and freedom, which bloomed just briefly between dark ages. When it seemed like the world might actually come together to solve its problems. Whe