‘A Collection of Secrets’ by Rhea Rose

‘A Collection of Secrets’  is now out in Pulp Literature #35! In this new story by SFC member Rhea Rose, a young collector discovers the power of nature — and nurture.

Rhea says: “I know mermaids are popular, and many stories are written about them. When writing about popular creatures, a writer wants a new twist, a new lens through which to experience them. … I wanted my mermaids to have agency and power, be a force for the planet, and get some payback for the damage done to their world from polluting plastics. I wanted them to be more than sexy sirens.“

Rhea is also the featured author of this issue — be sure to read the interview too!

Rhea Rose has published many Canadian speculative short-fiction stories and poems. She is a three-time Aurora Award nominee, and is currently nominated a fourth time, for her editorial work and writing in Polar Starlight, an online zine of speculative poetry by Canadian authors.

Be sure to read an excerpt from ‘A Collection of Secrets’ here, and buy Issue #35 here!

“Boomer Trap” by Dale L. Sproule

Dale L. Sproule’s latest publication is “Boomer Trap” appearing now in Dark Recesses Webzine!

Dale L. Sproule has over 50 published stories and hundreds of articles, interviews, and poems. His work has most recently appeared in The Exile Book of New Canadian Noir; That is SO Wrong; Emanations 9; Theme of Absence and The Colored Lens. He is the author of four books; short story collections Psychedelia Gothique and Psychedelia Noir and the novels The Human Template and Escape from the Carnivorous Forest (Oct 2022).

His website is dalelsproule.com and his blog is dlsproule.blogspot.com

“Warning” by Bernadette Gabay Dyer

SFC member Bernadette Gabay Dyer‘s latest publication is “Warning”, a poem in I Become The Beast, the Australian horror and speculative poetry magazine.

Bernadette Gabay Dyer was born in Kingston Jamaica, and has lived in Toronto, Canada for many years. She is a poet, a storyteller, an artist, a playwright, and the author of four novels and two short story collections. Her work has been widely anthologized, and her poetry and short stories have appeared in the University of Miami Journal, as well as in Wasafiri from St Mary’s University in London England.

Bernadette’s latest novel, Santiago’s Purple Skies at Morning’s Light, is available here, and her two collections, Stone Woman and Segovia Stories, are available at Mosaic Press.

New S&S stories by Geoff Hart!

SFC member Geoff Hart has just published a Fritz Leiber homage, with gender-swapped Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser and a few other flourishes, in Sword and Sorcery Magazine!

He’s also got a story in Crunchy with Ketchup — this one features Mouse with Freya!

Another story with the two protagonists is upcoming in Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 4, with a homage to M. Asterix and M. Obelix woven in!

Find more of Geoff’s work at geoff-hart.com

The Quiet Dead by Darke Conteur

SFC member Darke Conteur’s latest publication, The Quiet Dead, is a zombie thriller!

In the middle of a deadly pandemic, forty-five-year-old Jolene Sadler hides out at her trailer in Wasaga Beach with her daughter and a few neighbours. Mainly it’s to get away from her abusive ex, but as the world falls apart, it becomes a refuge where they can ride out the pandemic in relative security, but things are never what they seem.

The world descends into a chaotic madness and desperation seeps into the camp along with the virus. Rumours spread that the illness makes people go mad, but Jolene witnesses another frighting affliction firsthand; resurrection of the dead. To complicate matters, her ex arrives at the campground and she is forced her into an ugly confrontation. Soon, their haven devolves into a graveyard and she and her small group are forced out onto the open road with few supplies and even fewer options.

As her ex and the dead haunt their every step, their journey culminates into a showdown for their lives, but sometimes a bad situation can turn the tide, especially when hopelessness leaves Jolene with only one option.

Available at all ebook retailers.

Darke Conteur is a writer at the mercy of her Muse. The author of stories in several genres, she prefers to create within the realms of Science Fiction and Dark Fantasy. A pagan at heart, her personal goal is to find her balance within nature; exploring the dark through her stories and the light through her beliefs. When not writing, she spends her time collecting crystals, knitting, gardening, cooking and listening to very loud music. Find her at darkeconteur.wordpress.com

New publication from Robert Runté!

SFC member Robert Runté recently had a story in Sirens Call magazine!

“Grandfather’s Birthday Barbeque” appears in issue #58, the Summer 2022 release. The story is based on a real incident, but takes one step further into cozy horror…!

The issue is free to download from Sirens Call .

Robert Runté is Senior Editor with EssentialEdits.ca where he edits SF&F. Back in the day, he published nearly 150 issues of various fanzines, such as The Monthly Monthly (it was monthly), Neology, and New Canadian Fandom, which led to his being Fan GoH at the 1994 Worldcon. A former professor, he would like to be clear he is not mansplaining…he pontificates to all genders equally.

Find Robert at runte.blogspot.com