They sat in their deck chairs, watching their son fish. “Has he caught one?” she asked, gently rocking.
Walter squinted out at the lake. “I don’t think so.”
“I think he did.”
“Did you see it?” Ellen had the sight, but to Walter’s constant exasperation, she made no distinction between things she saw and things she saw.
“No.”
He looked at her. Her eyes were on her knitting. “How could you know, Ellen? You’re not even looking at him.”
“I just know.”
They sat in their deck chairs, watching their son fish. “Has he caught one?” she asked, gently rocking. Walter squinted out at the lake. “I don’t think so.” “I think he did.” “Did you see it?” Ellen had the sight, but to Walter’s constant exasperation, she made no distinction between things she saw and things she saw. “No.” He looked at her. Her eyes were on her knitting. “How could you know, Ellen? You’re not …
L’Erin Ogle’s story “Nobody’s Daughter and the Tree of Life” was published in Metaphorosis on Friday, 8 June 2018. The idea for “Nobody’s Daughters and the Tree of Life” was about the lengths people go to for children. What if you could just pluck a baby from a tree, but paid a heavy price? When I wrote it, I only had the tree in mind, and a curse, but it became about Alvie, his devotion …
Q: How does writing speculative fiction affect your daily life (not as a writer but as a person)?
A: Being a speculative fiction writer means that life is rarely boring. I’ve always got some plot point to chew on, and the oddest details in life might inspire a story. I’m always asking, “What if?” and spinning thoughts from that. But it’s also entertaining because (at least for me), it’s fostered a tendency to take metaphor literally. You have no idea how disappointed I was to find out that “Entertaining Silverware” just sits there. I also find that writing speculative fiction makes me both more open-minded and more skeptical. Speculative fiction is about what-if, considering what could be true or become true, so it tends to break down the tendency to say, “This is impossible.” On the other hand, when everything could be true in some world, I find I’m less inclined to proclaim (even to myself) that “this is so” in our world. My reaction to a theory or belief that sounds plausible is not so much to accept it as to acknowledge that it could make a good story.
Lindsey Duncan’s story “Family Tree” will be
published on Friday, 21 December 2018.
Subscribe to our e-mail updates so you’ll know when new stories go live.
Kathryn Yelinek works as a librarian in Pennsylvania. In addition to the required hobbies of reading and writing, she enjoys bird watching, star-gazing, gardening, and going to see Broadway musicals. She and her husband share their home with one adorable parakeet, whom they are actively striving to make into the most spoiled bird in the Western Hemisphere. The bird doesn’t seem to mind. Her works has appeared in Daily Science Fiction, Deep Magic, Metaphorosis, Andromeda Spaceways Magazine, and Beneath Ceaseless Skies.
Kathryn Yelinek’s story “Cinders and Snow” will be
published on Friday, 28 December 2018.
Subscribe to our e-mail updates so you’ll know when new stories go live.
25 December, being the Birth-day of Isaac Newton, Physicist: Madam, Your stepdaughter has arrived and been installed in the tower chamber, per your instructions. This has already led to the predicted difficulties, as my dinosaurian bulk cannot fit within the narrow tower. When she refused to descend for supper this evening, I was reduced to flying outside her window and poking my face in. I found her combing her long hair, which raises my second …
Q: Do you have a garden? Have you ever grown your own food?
A: I have often gardened, although I have never been a great success. Moving every few years, raising kids, and teaching school made it hard to find the time and energy. We got lucky a few times. We moved into one house in Western Oregon with well-established and highly productive raspberries. When the kids were young, we planted peas and beans in Western Washington and learned to battle slugs every morning. Now that I have an empty nest, we are living in my husband’s family home and benefit from well-established blueberry bushes. We compete with the birds for those. I am still trying to grow peas and beans, but now have to keep away the deer and wild rabbits. We also grew a wide variety of squash this year. My husband is a wonderful cook and we’ve been enjoying baked squash and squash soup.
Susan McDonough-Wachtman’s story “I Will Go Gently” will be
published on Friday, 14 December 2018.
Subscribe to our e-mail updates so you’ll know when new stories go live.
