My short story, "Shadows in Sakamura," is now available at Heroic Fantasy Quarterly. It's a fantasy story set in a world based on Edo-period Japan. Katsu and Tsukiko attempt to restore a town that's downtrodden in an unusual and mysterious way.
Check it out!
Showing posts with label Heroic Fantasy Quarterly. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Heroic Fantasy Quarterly. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 02, 2016
Thursday, April 14, 2016
Story Accepted by Heroic Fantasy Quarterly
I just had a short story accepted by Heroic Fantasy Quarterly! "Shadows in Sakamura" will appear in a future issue. The story takes place in a fantasy setting based on the Japanese Edo period. This will be my second story published in Heroic Fantasy Quarterly. My previous story, "Aldrom", was published in 2010. For those interested in reading "Aldrom", click here.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Heroic Fantasy Quarterly - Issue 2
“The Hand of Afaz” by Euan Harvey – Farid apprehends Hasan, who is accused of patricide. Hasan tells Farid that he is innocent, but Farid doesn’t want to believe his testimony, even though he can tell that Farid isn’t lying. Farid decides to investigate the matter further, trying to understand how to best serve Afaz and his superior without bringing shame to their House.
I liked the protagonist’s inner struggle through the story, and how he changes over time. Well written and engaging. I’d like to read more stories about Farid.
“Monster in the Mountains” by William Gerke – A man with a monstrous appearance named Gowther seeks shelter from a winter storm with a farmer and his family. Repulsed by his visage, they order Gowther to stay in the attached barn. During the night, the farmer tries to kill Gowther, and though Gowther is peerless in strength, he struggles against the farmer. After the fight, he learns that something on the mountain possesses the farmer, so Gowther departs from the house to seek the source of evil.
This was my favorite story in this issue. The details were vivid; I felt like I was there. Nice tension towards the end of the story to build up to the climax.
“The Waking of Angantyr” by Marie Brennan – Haunted and pestered by spirits of murdered men, Hervor seeks to silence their voices by traveling to their gravesite. Through the use of dark arts, she’s able to communicate openly with them at last to find out how she might finally be rid of them. The answer from the men’s leader, Angantyr, confronts her with a difficult reality and a path towards doom.
This tale is a retelling of an Old Norse poem (from the Poetic Edda). I might have liked it more if it had continued; at the point that the story ended, too little had been concluded. Likely this would have been difficult to do while staying somewhat true to the original poem, but I didn’t feel like there was enough plot churning with this one.
I liked the protagonist’s inner struggle through the story, and how he changes over time. Well written and engaging. I’d like to read more stories about Farid.
“Monster in the Mountains” by William Gerke – A man with a monstrous appearance named Gowther seeks shelter from a winter storm with a farmer and his family. Repulsed by his visage, they order Gowther to stay in the attached barn. During the night, the farmer tries to kill Gowther, and though Gowther is peerless in strength, he struggles against the farmer. After the fight, he learns that something on the mountain possesses the farmer, so Gowther departs from the house to seek the source of evil.
This was my favorite story in this issue. The details were vivid; I felt like I was there. Nice tension towards the end of the story to build up to the climax.
“The Waking of Angantyr” by Marie Brennan – Haunted and pestered by spirits of murdered men, Hervor seeks to silence their voices by traveling to their gravesite. Through the use of dark arts, she’s able to communicate openly with them at last to find out how she might finally be rid of them. The answer from the men’s leader, Angantyr, confronts her with a difficult reality and a path towards doom.
This tale is a retelling of an Old Norse poem (from the Poetic Edda). I might have liked it more if it had continued; at the point that the story ended, too little had been concluded. Likely this would have been difficult to do while staying somewhat true to the original poem, but I didn’t feel like there was enough plot churning with this one.
Sunday, July 05, 2009
Heroic Fantasy Quarterly
A new online fantasy magazine has made a strong appearance, deubuting earlier this month. Heroic Fantasy Quarterly publishes short works (poetry and stories) of heroic fantasy and strives "to hearken an older age of storytelling - an age when a story well told enthralled audiences." The premier issue was an impressive one, and I highly recommed checking them out. I will bestow the small honor of adding their link to this blog site.
"The Black Flowers of Sevan" by James Lecky - Tulun serves the Melik in Sevan as a mercenary, captaining soldiers in various skirmishes as he attempts to bring peace to the Ten Kingdoms. When Tulun hustles one of his soldiers, Abbas Bedvian, out of a considerable amount of gold, Abbas asks for a final wager as a double-or-nothing. The stakes are that Tulun must bring Abbas black poppy from around the neck of Lady Shimshal, who is the Melik's woman. It is a risky proposal, and as Tulun considers the beautiful and secretive lady, he finds himself more interested in her than in the wager itself.
This was an intriguing tale of passion. Though somewhat predictable, the characters and well-written prose carried the story along quite well. Everything came together nicely for the ending.
"Man of Moldania" by Richard Marsden - The last dragon slayer, Golorus von Zekwit, follows rumors into the east in hopes of finding employment. The aged man enters the small town of Moldania, boasting of his experience with slaying dragons and offering to solve their problem with a local dragon for a certain fee. Dimitru, the town's leader, has his doubts, but he's willing to let Golorus try so long as he can accompany him. When the two men find the dragon's lair, Golorus finds that his previous experience cannot compensate for the beast he encounters.
It isn't often that I come across original dragon slaying tales, but this is a good one. I liked the limitations an older dragon slayer and felt his surprise at the dragon he attempts to slay. Humorous at times with ample tension, Marsden shares a fun story.
"Beyond the Lizard Gate" by Alex Marshall - After watching his father slain at the hands of his older brother, Agenor, Prince Inarus has sought revenge for the past eleven years, draining all of the resources of his kingdom to the point of poverty. With the final battle won, his sister begs him not to pursue Agenor further, but the hatred Inarus feels for his brother overrides his reason. Unable to dissuade him, his sister joins the other forty soldiers who follow Inarus into a valley for a final confrontation with Agenor.
This was my favorite story of the issue. Great tension, flow and angst. Highly entertaining.
"The Black Flowers of Sevan" by James Lecky - Tulun serves the Melik in Sevan as a mercenary, captaining soldiers in various skirmishes as he attempts to bring peace to the Ten Kingdoms. When Tulun hustles one of his soldiers, Abbas Bedvian, out of a considerable amount of gold, Abbas asks for a final wager as a double-or-nothing. The stakes are that Tulun must bring Abbas black poppy from around the neck of Lady Shimshal, who is the Melik's woman. It is a risky proposal, and as Tulun considers the beautiful and secretive lady, he finds himself more interested in her than in the wager itself.
This was an intriguing tale of passion. Though somewhat predictable, the characters and well-written prose carried the story along quite well. Everything came together nicely for the ending.
"Man of Moldania" by Richard Marsden - The last dragon slayer, Golorus von Zekwit, follows rumors into the east in hopes of finding employment. The aged man enters the small town of Moldania, boasting of his experience with slaying dragons and offering to solve their problem with a local dragon for a certain fee. Dimitru, the town's leader, has his doubts, but he's willing to let Golorus try so long as he can accompany him. When the two men find the dragon's lair, Golorus finds that his previous experience cannot compensate for the beast he encounters.
It isn't often that I come across original dragon slaying tales, but this is a good one. I liked the limitations an older dragon slayer and felt his surprise at the dragon he attempts to slay. Humorous at times with ample tension, Marsden shares a fun story.
"Beyond the Lizard Gate" by Alex Marshall - After watching his father slain at the hands of his older brother, Agenor, Prince Inarus has sought revenge for the past eleven years, draining all of the resources of his kingdom to the point of poverty. With the final battle won, his sister begs him not to pursue Agenor further, but the hatred Inarus feels for his brother overrides his reason. Unable to dissuade him, his sister joins the other forty soldiers who follow Inarus into a valley for a final confrontation with Agenor.
This was my favorite story of the issue. Great tension, flow and angst. Highly entertaining.
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