Toll Booth by Michael Aronovitz

I’ve tried, but I just can’t enjoy Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw. My main problem’s with the excessively Continue reading →

Standing Water by Caitlin R. Kiernan

H.P. Lovecraft is always a good source for quotes, so let’s take a look at how he defines different types Continue reading →

This Villain You Must Create by Carlie St. George

Stories that embrace the surreality of a world filled with superheroes are difficult to do well. It’s all too easy Continue reading →

The Bound Man by Ilse Aichinger

Here’s an idea I had a while ago for a series of columns: take two completely unrelated stories that happen Continue reading →

The Specialty of the House by Stanley Ellin

You might have noticed things have been sporadic here for a while. The truth is, this website is an outlet Continue reading →

Esther Gordon Framlingham by Anthony Mann

While I don’t deny that Google’s wholesale scanning of books is a flagrant abuse of copyright and all that, I Continue reading →

Touchstone by Terry Carr

The ‘be careful what you wish for’ story has been a staple of folk tales long before such classics as Continue reading →

. . . By Good Intentions by Carrie Richerson

Here’s an intriguing stylistic trick: never naming something in a story, while making it perfectly clear what the something is Continue reading →