Monday, July 27, 2020

Science Fiction Short Stories to Read Online (And Where to Find Them)

Science Fiction Short Stories to Read Online (And Where to Find Them) Were really in a second golden age of science fiction short stories, with multiple excellent outlets that not only publish these stories, but put them online for free. Heres a list of a few good stories to get you startedâ€"which, trust me, is just scraping the surface of all that was excellent in 2017â€"and more importantly where you can look for more! So rather than as a long list of just stories, well link you to a publication and give you a couple examples of their offerings. Please note that this list, presented in no particular order, is non-exhaustive and Ive focused mostly on places that pay their writers pro rates. Lightspeed Lightspeed is an online magazine that publishes both science fiction and fantasy short stories. Theyre also the originators of Women Destroy Science Fiction, a immensely successful project that was a reaction to jerks on the internet whinging that women were ruining science fiction with their lady something-or-others. (Which launched into other great Kickstarted special issues,  Queers Destroy Science Fiction and People of Colo(u)r Destroy Science Fiction.) The Greatest One-Star Restaurant in the Whole Quadrant by Rachael K Jones Later, Lets Tear Up the Inner Sanctum by A. Merc Rustad Uncanny Uncanny is the official magazine of Space Unicorns everywhere. They publish a mix of science fiction and fantasy thats weird and meaty and always beautifully written. Theyve also taken up the  Destroy mantel from Lightspeed, with their upcoming  Disabled People Destroy Science Fiction  successfully kickstarted in July (and about to enter its reading period for stories). Fandom for Robots by Vina Jie-Min Prasad Henosis by NK Jemisin Daily Science Fiction Daily Science Fiction  not only publishes all their stories online, but if you sign up for their mailing list theyll send them directly to your email, one per weekday. Because of the frequency of publication, they mostly publish flash fiction. And it should be noted that even though science fiction is in their name, its actually a mix of scifi, fantasy, and borderline horror. Two lists discovered folded in the wallet of space explorer Jorge Finnegan after the Reliant wreckage was recovered from Tau Ceti e by Sylvia Spruck Wrigley Saudade by Cassandra Khaw Apex Magazine Apex Magazine tends toward the darker end of the science fiction and fantasy spectrum, sometimes going into borderline horror. But the darkness can be so lovely, and when they step into the light theyre delightfully strange and bitingly beautiful. Welcome to Your Authentic Indian Experienceâ„¢ by Rebecca Roanhorse Say, She Toy by Chesya Burke Escape Pod Escape Pod is a little different because their emphasis is on publishing audio science fiction in a free-to-download podcast. The text of each story is also available on their website, however. Red in Tooth and Cog by Cat Rambo The Wind You Touch When You Run by James Beamon Shimmer Shimmer cover, 2017 Shimmer publishes fantasy, science fiction, and some almost-unclassifiable-but-still-definitely-genre stuff, with the emphasis on it having an indefinable but still definite shimmery quantity. Feathers and Void by Charles Payseur The Atomic Hollows and the Bodies of Science by Octavia Cade Strange Horizons Strange Horizons is venerable as online magazines go and tends to look for the different, daring, and unusual. They publish a mix of science fiction, fantasy, and the occasional bit of horror that catches their ear, ranging from the deep to the sublimely ridiculous. Krace is Not a Highway by Scott Vanyur Airswimming by Aisha Phoenix These Constellations Will Be Yours by Elaine Cuyegkeng Clarkesworld Clarkesworld is another long-running magazine that has a particular stylistic twist of weirdness to its stories, both science fiction and fantasy. Back issues are easily available on the website under the appropriately named tab. Prasetyo Plastics by DA Xiaolin Spires The Secret Life of Bots by Suzanne Palmer GiGaNoToSaurus GigaNotoSaurus is a bit of an oddity because its not really short fiction as such…it tends to publish novellettes and novellas, really focusing on great fiction that tends to be a bit too long for most of the other venus. Because of the mighty length of most of the stories, they only tend to publish one per month. They publish both fantasy and science fiction. With Perfect Clarity by Wendy N. Wagner Salvage by Tracy Canfield Tor.com Tor.com has already made its name publishing SFF novellas with its imprint, but it also has a lot of great essays on its siteâ€"and regular installments of science fiction short stories and fantasy as well. Theyve got the freedom to do a lot of lengths, so youll find both very short and nearly novella-length on the site. Original fiction index can be found here, labeled for ease of finding the flavor you like. The Future of Hunger in an Age of Programmable Matter by Sam J Miller Waiting on a Bright Moon by JY Yang Sanctuary by Allen Steele Fireside Fiction Fireside Fiction is a very fierce outlet with a strong point of view (check out their statement of values, which is A+) that does absolutely ferocious science fiction and fantasy. They do quite a bit of flash fiction to go along with their short stories. Also worthy of noting that since 2015 they have been commissioning yearly reports on the representation of Black authors in speculative fiction to track the very real underrepresentation problem. Caesura by Hayley Stone Regarding Your Future With The Futures Planning Consortium by Raq Winchester Fran Wilde We Who Stay Behind by Karl Dandenell Terraform Terraform is a project of Motherboard that focuses on science fiction short stories, particularly near-future work. What they publish has a broad tonal range even if its one of the most focused in terms of its genre. Dark was the night, and cold the ground by Miguel Fernández-Flores The Wretched and the Beautiful by E. Lily Yu If youre looking for a place to check out science fiction short story reviews (also fantasy and horror) to get recommendations or ideas on other places to look, I heartily recommend Charles Payseurs Quick Sip Reviews. Natalie Luhrs has a short fiction review series at her blog. Locus Online also does short fiction issue reviews. Also worth noting: Book Riot has a great list of science fiction short story collections by authors of color that you might want to check out! Sign up to Swords Spaceships to  receive news and recommendations from the world of science fiction and fantasy.

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