This story originally appeared in Splatterlands in 2013 under the title “The Artist” ART: The quality or expression or performance of that which is pleasing to the senses; that which is raised to more than ordinary importance. ARTIST: One who produces art. Is art permanent? I seem to remember they said that in school, but what about music? I mean, I know there are…

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“Tree of the Forest Seven Bells Turns the World Round Midnight” originally appeared in Sleeping Under the Tree of Life and was reprinted in Sycorax’s Daughters Hounds of Tindalos Strange Things Happen at the 1-2 Point Sarah Conner Chronicles Sarah Conner Chronicles Episode 210-Strange Things Happen At The One-Two Point Poison Ivy Thistle stepped over an upturned…

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PseudoPod 970: At the God Show is a PseudoPod original. 6:15 A.M. “It’ll be Pternoch the Fisher,” Sheila overheard one pilgrim say to another. “Why did we bother coming?” “May the Green Damsel stitch your mouth shut until your blasphemies cease,” said the other. “We come to honor Her and reveal Her glory.” There was a silence as the two filled out their name tags, then, “Where’…

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First published in Opportunity in 1925. When Hurston arrived in New York City in 1925, the Harlem Renaissance was at its zenith, and she soon became one of the writers at its center. Shortly before she entered Barnard, Hurston’s short story “Spunk” was selected for reprint in The New Negro, a landmark anthology of fiction, poetry, and essays focusing on African and African-American art and…

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PseudoPod 968: The Vibrations, Louder is a PseudoPod original. Insanity? Sure, why not. My lawyer advised me to plead insanity, and maybe it will help me. At least I’ll be able to talk to somebody qualified. The state of mental health care is deplorable in this country. My insurance certainly doesn’t cover it, and I couldn’t afford to pay a therapist, even one as borderline…

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PseudoPod 967: Two’s Company, Three Might Be A Sign of Demonic Possession is a PseudoPod original. CW: Intimate partner death; Second person point of view Also narrated by Pine Gonzalez: A Relationship in Four Haircuts, by Ai Jiang Tales from the Fringes of Reality podcast The Screwtape Letters You didn’t take the usual precautions when Lin died.

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“Fat Betty” originally appeared in Shock Totem Issue 8 in 2014 From the author: “The story is meant to be set in a slightly dystopian near-future.” Fat Betty Listed Monuments The Watchers Ghost Stories The Woman in Black They say it’s God’s own country, and He’s always had a thing for rain. I’m high and soaked, looking over the valley with a sea of heather at…

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PseudoPod 965: The Ecstasy of the Saints is a PseudoPod original. CW: body horror; self-harm From the author: I was raised Catholic and went to Catholic school through the seventh grade. That meant I spent three days a week in church, plus Sunday mass with my family. I spent a lot of time staring at the ornate religious icons in the church, marveling at the lurid colors…

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“The Darkness Carried by the Beasts” was originally published in The Sunday Morning Transport in 2023. CW: cancer, death of a family member From the author: This story came to me, at first, with the image of a man and his dog in the woods, somewhere in northern Sweden where I grew up, confronted by a shadowy creature in a snowstorm. The other inspiration, of course…

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PseudoPod 963: Mavka is a PseudoPod original. CW: cannibalism, suicide, starvation, use of second person perspective You pray to forget this. You pray to forget the cold. Even under two wool blankets you’re always cold now. Skin and bones, you. A February moon hangs high in the starless sky when Andriy slips on the boots, soaked through from when you wore them…

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“Hemorrhage” was originally published in the Book of Queer Saints Volume 2 CW: self-harm, drug abuse, addiction, physical abuse and coercive control It’s a dumb fight to pick, but I only learn that later. By the time they drag me out the back door of the bar, my face feels the way a Picasso painting looks. All rearranged, and probably the wrong colors.

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