written by David Steffen
Podcastle, the fantasy branch of the Escape Artists podcast, has been running for almost eight years now. And this has been an eventful year for the podcast for several reasons:
- They upgraded their pay rate for new fiction to professional rates. The other Escape Artists sister publications are now all pro-paying as well. I’m hoping that will draw ever wider talent (and hopefully get more award interest).
- They are now paying their voice acting talent for the first time.
- Dave Thompson and Anna Schwind have stepped down from co-editor positions.
- Kitty Niclaian and Dawn Phynix were chosen to co-edit, but were unable to fill the roles.
- Finally, Rachael Jones and Graeme Dunlop are now the co-editors.
Podcastle published 69 stories in 2015.
After years of submitting, I finally sold a story to Podcastle, a flash story written as a brochure for adoptive parents of crash-landed alien infants: “So You’ve Decided to Adopt a Zeptonian Baby!”.
And, late in the year my second story appeared as well, another flash story, this one title “My Wife is a Bear in the Morning”. That one is well described in the (literal) title.
The List
1. “The Sea of Wives” by Nathaniel Lee
A tale of selkies, where the fishing of selkies has become a major industry.
2. “Testimony Of Samuel Frobisher Regarding Events On Her Majesty’s Ship CONFIDENCE, 14-22 June, 1818, With Diagrams” by Ian Tregellis
First hand explanation of a ship’s encounter with the “tentacled bride”, a monster at sea.
3. “The Machine that Made Clothes” by Nathaniel Lee
Horror-ish story about the drive for fashion.
4. “Who Binds and Looses the World With Her Hands” by Rachael K. Jones
Two women, one a prisoner and the other a captive, are visited on their island by a stranger. Interesting developing story, with deaf protagonist.
5. “Super-Baby-Moms Group Saves the Day” by Tina Connolly
Very fun full cast recording, about an online forum group of mothers of superpowered children.
6. “Makeisha in Time” by Rachael K. Jones
Makeisha takes reflexive jumps back to random points in time, and each time lives a full lifetime before returning to the exact moment in the present when she left.
7. “Wet” by John Wiswell
Immortal helps a ghost girl move on to the other side.
Honorable Mentions
“Sticks and Stones” by Nathaniel Lee
“The Newsboy’s Last Stand” by Krystal Claxton
“Congratulations on Your Apotheosis” by Michelle Ann King
