Speculative Fiction and Poetry
Speculative Poetry: Past, Present, and Future Richard H. Fay Occasionally shoved into a dark, stuffy corner of the literary attic by its critics, speculative poetry actually possesses a heritage and current potential at least as rich and exciting as that claimed by its mainstream…
Beyond the Mad/Funhouse David C. Kopaska-Merkel Kendall Evans She is underlit There atop the cathedral madhouse As if by the floor lights of a stage Illumination ascending, spotlighting mercilessly Casting crowraven shadows of features and form All in…
Recursion David C. Kopaska-Merkel Kendall Evans Where’s this starship been Resembling a pretzel Infinite figure 8 Maybe a moebius Nor-easterlies, or their 4D equivalent From another universe Might be responsible Or some minor deity’s Momentary inattention Its unscarred surface Belies the great age That…
The Station Master Nearly Always Runs the Trains on Time David C. Kopaska-Merkel Kendall Evans In the morning’s roaring rain The driving outrageous migraine pain I disobeyed the Station Master’s instructions Despite his threats of Post-mortem punishments And repercussions yet more dire I never…
Corrected Maps of your City David C. Kopaska-Merkel Kendall Evans Every convenience store has them: So shiny and bright, Each street name legible, They fold and refold perfectly (Your first clue they are alien technology) Behind your building, no-name alley, You know, the one…
Robot/Worker David C. Kopaska-Merkel Limestone opens eroding eyes / kudzu drags a gray shack Into a verdant mound / while skulls peep back at stony eyes Groaning into a world of glades, And ghosts, and raddled condominia_ Eyes rotate, focus, scan for human survivors…
Robo-Cat® David C. Kopaska-Merkel No messy hairballs with Robo-Cat® Pet is pre-programmed and pre-trained, but be forewarned: Though great to have around the house, Robo-Cat® Is extremely playful; be sure to secure your computer mouses This is one high-maintenance mechanical pet Picking mouse gears…
In Answer to your Relic Query David C. Kopaska-Merkel Kendall Evans His day in court proved a kangaroo trial They found his sin to be most vile For sipping his gin from the Holy Grail They sentenced his ass to an orbital jail Somewhere…
Elegy for Iain Banks Vince Gotera First published in Star*Line 39.3 For Iain M. Banks (1954-2013) Scottish science fiction writer known for fanciful spaceship names. The Irish corvette Macha – a small warship – was dispatched to France to bring William Butler…
Within The Asteroid Belt Lyn McConchie first published in The Fractal There ghosts among the asteroids, The nameless dead of many races, creeds and laws, Miners, whose bodies float in deep black space, and colonists, where some forgot, the environment is hostile, and died…
Pharaoh’s Eye John C. Mannone Sacrilege. Intrusion into Egyptian chambers, looting the relics: rubies, emeralds, gold scepters, the king’s sarcophagus. No one’s watching but the scarabs that scurry down the stone maze of passageways now choking with sand falling as rain. Darkness closes in,…
You Always Said You Could Swim Like a FishJohn C. Mannone You, in that black cocktail dress,red heels stiletto-ing floor. Legs,sinuous in the ballroom. We embrace, my hands on the arch of your back. Outside, salt water sings. Beckons.Caribbean air mists its magic over…
Entreaty of the AncientJennifer Ruth Jackson Describe it, scribe How the mountains tasteThe sound the moon makesAs it sees its faceStark, in ocean mirrors Give me the scent of griefSo I can press it to me,A dead flower preservedTo still resemble life Return memories…
Dorothy DeliveredKathleen A. Lawrencespiraling abecedarian
Alice AbbreviatedKathleen A. Lawrencespiraling abecedarian
I Am He As You Are They And We Are All TogetherDavid C. Kopaska-MerkelKendall Evans In the beginning the word was, I’m told,We all wanted to be a part of something biggerWe sacrificed mobility but gained collective strength,Our numbers covering a great deal of…
The Third Planetor, Something Had to be Done David C. Kopaska-MerkelKendall Evans The blues of seas, the aquamarinesWhite whorls of cloudThe sun-struck tans and brownsOf continents with tailsAnd trailing islandsAs if the Coriolis force affects them too–The third planet: thin-skinned, touchy,Not a particularly good…
SuperheroVince Gotera for Kathy Tiger Woman loped through green jungle. Hum of insects, bird song, monkey chatter paused as she drew near and passed, though she was quiet as a breeze, a wisp of smoke. That memory filled…
Dragon-in-TrainingVince Gotera —terza rima Rawrr. Oh, that isn’t nearly loud enough. Ahem . . .RAWRRRR. Ahem ahem. That’s rough on the throat.My windpipe is sore from practicing breathing flame. Listen, I’m a dragon, yes, but jeez, I’m only thirteen.A teenage dragon, I guess you’d…
Dragon’s TeethDavid C. Kopaska-Merkel and Kendall Evans Our teeth fell out like seedsThe new children of Medea Canines:Extinct species resurrecting,White-feathered dinosaurs,Albino Dire Wolves and Deadly ManticoresProwling the arctic’s equatorial islands Incisors:Our own ancestors,Giant rats,Camels like giraffes Bicuspids:Rhinos 11 feet high at the shoulderSabred…