A lot of my most recent blog posts have centred on long-form writing like novels, memoirs, and how-to books. The reading challenge I’m doing is being monitored through Goodreads, and that site tends to consider the long-form book the primary unit of reading/writing measurement. It’s a major goal of mine this year to read at least 40 books and write reviews for all of them.

However,the world of fantasy and sci-fi literature contains much more than just novels! There are short stories in magazines, and a surprisingly vast array of podcasts too. So in the interest of showing that there is way more out there than just books (print or digital), I want to list off some of the short stories that I’ve read or listened to recently. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but I know that it could become exhaustive if I decided to subscribe to at least half of the fantasy and sci-fi magazines I know of.

These lists are of stories I’ve enjoyed recently. The titles in bold are my favourites.

Source: Podcastle

I started listening to all 3 Escape Artist podcasts (including Escape Pod and Pseudopod, listed below) about 2 months ago, and have been burrowing through their archives since then. I enjoy all 3 podcasts because I think they all showcase quality writing, but I think Podcastle wins out because they have the most seamless combination of introductory music, hosting, feedback, and storycraft.

  • Household Spirits, by C.S.E. Cooney
  • Gone Daddy Gone, by Josh Rountree
  • The Landholders No Longer Carry Swords, by Patricia Russo
  • A Hunter’s Ode to His Bait, by Carrie Vaughn
  • Five Rules for Commuting to the Underworld, by Merrie Haskell
  • Stereogram of the Gray Fort, in the Days of Her Glory, by Paul M. Berger
  • Zauberschrift, by David D. Levine
  • The Duke of Vertumn’s Fingerling, by Elizabeth Carroll
  • Doors, by Rajan Khanna
  • Who in Mortal Chains, by Claire Humphrey
  • The Parable of the Shower, by Leah Bobet
  • Middle Aged Weirdo in a Cadillac, by George R. Galuschak
  • Braiding the Ghosts, by C.S.E. Cooney
  • The Gateway of the Monster, by William Hope Hodgson
  • The Witch’s Second Daughter, by Marissa K. Lingen
  • Still Small Voice, by Ben Burgis
  • Beyond the Sea Gate of the Scholar Pirates of Sarskoe, by Garth Nix

Source: Escape Pod

This podcast needs only three words of introduction: Mur Fucking Lafferty. I’ve gone on and on before about I Should be Writing, but it is so incredibly comforting to hear her voice whenever she hosts or reads. I find that whatever the story is, her voice is so versatile and engaging that I nearly always enjoy what she reads, regardless of topic. Plus, it’s introductory music is pretty rockin’.

  • Future Perfect, by LaShawn M. Wanak
  • Shannon’s Law, by Cory Doctorow
  • A Small Matter, Really, by Monte Cook
  • For Want of a Nail, Mary Robinette Kowal
  • Amaryllis, by Carrie Vaughn
  • The Things, by Peter Watts
  • Union Dues – Sidekicks in Stockholm, by Jeffrey R. DeRego
  • Midnight Blue, by Will McIntosh
  • Soulmates, by Mike Resnick and Lezli Robyn
  • Kill Me, by Vylar Kaftan
  • Playing Doctor, by Robert T. Jeschonek
  • Movement, by Nancy Fulda
  • Honor Killing, by Ray Tabler
  • Chicken Noodle Gravity, by J. Daniel Sawyer

Source: Pseudopod

Pseudopod has been sort of the odd duck out. Podcastle does fantasy stories, and Escape Pod does sci-fi stories. But rarely do I mention horror, although all three genres mix and comingle, and are in some ways indistinguishable from each other. A Holy Trinity of genre fiction, if you will. Pseudopod’s stories are good, but of the three, I find the non-story elements of the podcast to be the least engaging.

  • Lives, by John Grant
  • Man Eat Man, by Mike Irwin
  • On Being Mandy, by Sandra M. Odell
  • Girls Gone Insane, by John Jasper Owens
  • Association, by Eddie Borey
  • Dearest Daughter, by Kate Marshall
  • The Line, by Grady J. Gratt
  • In Bloom, by Caspian Gray
  • The 7 Garages of Kevin Simpson, by Alan Baxter
  • Bruise for Bruise, by Robert Davies
  • The Eater, by Michael J. DeLuca
  • The Cord, by Chris Lewis Carter
  • The Blood Garden, by Jesse Livingston

Source: Daily Science Fiction

I found out about DSF through a Facebook group that I’m part of. It’s always a pleasure to see a bite-sized piece of sci-fi or fantasy in my inbox every weekday morning. DSF also has a Facebook page, which provides a great venue for daily discussion.

  • Inflection, by Tina Connolly
  • Are You There? Are You Safe? Is the Flock Safe? by D. Robert Hamm
  • Naughty or Nice? by James S. Dorr
  • Ten Seconds, by Scott W. Baker
  • Lists, by Annie Bellet
  • Calling Down the Moon, by Diana Sherman
  • Things Exist by Imitation of Numbers, by Benjamin Rosenbaum
  • All or Nothing, by Nancy Fulda
  • The Death and Rebirth of Anne Bonny, by Nancy Fulda
  • +1, by James Luke Worrad
  • The Long Con, by Megan R. Engelhardt
  • Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Monkey, by Ruth Nestvold