It's a Jumble

The year draws to its close tonight, and I'm joining others with my list of favorite books read in 2015! Fiction, nonfiction, novels and short story collections. . . I didn't read as much as I would have liked (I never do) but these are the ones that stayed most powerfully with me. Fiction Novels Best Novel— Pen Pal by Francesca Forrest The best novel I read this year was a hard-to-pigeonhole, slipstreamish epistolary novel self-published in 2013. I first heard of Francesca Forrest when I came across her lovely short story, Seven Bridges , in the archives of the digital magazine, The Future Fire . Pen Pal is her first published novel (I think). It is gorgeous and affecting. These are the first lines: Dear person who finds my message, I live in a place called Mermaid's Hands. All our houses rest on the mud when the tide is out, but when it comes in, they rise right up and float. They're all roped together, so we don't lose anyone. I like Me

I am happy to announce two new stories out this month. " Moon Story" was published in October in the fall issue of Mythic Delirium . It is now available for free reading online as the featured December story. It is a fairy tale about questing, about growing up and letting go, and yes, it takes place on the Moon. A magical Moon of  "snow and ice, of frozen lakes and deep blue shadows." Also bats and rats. The featured poetry of this month, "Star Fishing" by Shveta Thakrar and "Jupiter Dis(mis)ed" by J.C. Runolfson beautifully round out the celestial theme. Read the entire fall issue--it's all great stuff! My second story this month is "Knife and Sea," a little flash piece in the winter issue of Mirror Dance . This is also a fairy tale, but decidedly darker than "Moon Story." The winter issue of Mirror Dance is always devoted to flash fiction, poetry, and pieces that straddle the definitions of poetry and prose. Darkne