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Friday, November 23, 2012

STUPEFYING STORIES 2.1 (1.10) RELEASED



From the Editor-in-Chief’s Desk
By Bruce Bethke 

Along with discovering new writing talent, another part of our mission at STUPEFYING STORIES is to find and foster new editorial talent. Therefore for the November edition, we turned the reins over to promising newcomer M. David Blake, who has long been playing several crucial roles behind the scenes here.

The result is our first double-length book, which includes some of Mr. Blake's latest experiments in e-book design. We wanted to call it STUPEFYING STORIES 2.1, but our distribution channel had trouble with that, so we ended up having to give it the parenthetical designation of 1.10. And with that preamble out of the way...


From the (Guest-)Editor’s Desk
By M. David Blake

Welcome to Stupefying Stories 2.1

That's it, really. A dozen syllables tell you all you need to know to enjoy this issue. Those who want to ignore the preface and skip ahead to the stories are entitled to do so.

Still here? Since I am as well, I'll share a secret. Several months ago, when our chief editor asked if I'd be willing to assemble the November issue on my own, I wasn't going to accept. He lured me in by dangling a budget and a deadline in front of my face, with the promise of complete autonomy.

He gave it to me, too. No one else has seen all of the pieces, as they were being assembled... and that includes the regular Stupefying staff.

Autonomy is a nice concept, but it comes with a price. In all likelihood, no other combination of our associate editors would have selected these same stories from the (deep!) slush I processed. My instructions were simply to produce the best issue possible, given the available resources and time. “Best” is a subjective valuation.

While approaching that task, I had the privilege of working with an incredibly creative group of writers. To the extent that you enjoy the result, all the credit goes to them.

On the other hand, if you notice any typographical errors, or if you are unable to suspend your disbelief long enough to get through the next sixty-four thousand words, that’s my fault.

There is no guarantee you will enjoy all of these stories. But here’s another secret: I love each of them. Should you wind up seeing any of the same inscrutably beautiful things I did, I’ll feel pretty good about my selections.

There is one other thing that makes me feel good about this collection: I think my grandfather would have enjoyed reading it. He introduced me to science fiction, and to fantasy, and he loved this world.

Today would have been his ninety-third birthday.
— M. David Blake, 16 November 2012 


STUPEFYING STORIES 2.1 FEATURES:

Beauty & Loss (I)
  • “Queen of Sheba” by Samuel M. Johnston
  • “Wednesday’s Child” by Damien Walters Grintalis
  • “Snatching Baby Delilah” by Travis Daniel Bow
Lore & Speculation
  • “Nonsense 101” by Gary Cuba
  • “Lucky” by Bill Ferris
  • “The Ants Go Marching” by Sarah Pinsker
Folk & Superstition
  • “Lover’s Knot” by Ada Milenkovic Brown
  • “Girl Without a Name” by Courtney Valdes
  • “Toilet Gnomes at War” by Beth Cato
Loss & Beauty (II)
  • “Moondust” by Elizabeth Berger
  • “Citizen Astronauts” by Holliann R. Kim
  • “Heartbreath” by E. Catherine Tobler
Angels & Demons
  • “Revolver” by Clarence Young
  • “Office Demons” by Christie Yant
  • “Number Station” by Alex Shvartsman

NOW AVAILABLE AT THESE LINKS:

For Amazon Kindle: 
US: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AAPC1CU
UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00AAPC1CU
DE: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B00AAPC1CU
FR: https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B00AAPC1CU
ES: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B00AAPC1CU
IT: https://www.amazon.it/dp/B00AAPC1CU
JP: http://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B00AAPC1CU

For Barnes & Noble Nook:
Worldwide: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stupefying-stories-m-david-blake/1113834598?ean=2940015769166

Apple iTunes iBookstore and other links coming soon!

Monday, November 5, 2012

STUPEFYING STORIES 1.9 RELEASED


STUPEFYING STORIES 1.9, originally scheduled for release on October 15 but delayed for three weeks by Forces Beyond Our Control, is officially released today. We still don't have live links yet, but when we do, we'll post them here. With this edition we add India and Japan to the list of countries where STUPEFYING STORIES is available, so here's hoping Amazon resolves their technical issues soon and Barnes & Noble doesn't follow their usual pattern of taking four times longer than Amazon.

Featuring the awesome cover story, "The Jade Box," by Stephen G. McDonald (and correspondingly awesome original cover art by Aaron Bradford Starr), as well as new stories by fan favorites Chuck Bordell, Jamie Lackey, and Gary Cuba, STUPEFYING STORIES 1.9 presents thirteen original tales of ghosties and ghoulies, spirits and specters, and things that go bump in the night, by an outstanding assemblage of American, Canadian, Irish, and Swedish authors. Including:
  • "Between Life and Oblivion," by Samuel R. George
  • "The Florence," by Chuck Bordell
  • "Door in the Darkness," by David Steffen
  • "Streaming," by Sharon Irwin
  • "The Flint Indenture," by Tim W. Burke
  • "Not Everything Goes Bump," by Robert W. Hobson
  • "Ashes to Diamonds," by Jamie Lackey
  • "Blood and Saltwater," by Cassandra Rose Clarke
  • "A Homeowner's Dilemma," by Mark Hill
  • "The Ghost Train," by Fox McGeever
  • "The Jade Box," by Stephen G. McDonald
  • "Going Out With a Bang," by Gary Cuba
  • "The Old-Fashioned Way," by Thomas Pluck
From a haunted hotel room in Seattle to the waiting room of the afterlife; from a quietly chilling meditation in a country cemetery to an ambitious plan to revive entire dying cities with industrial-scale necromancy; from a heart-breaking tale of a love that lives on after death to a side-splitting story about a funeral gone horribly wrong that, as one early reviewer said, "puts the black in black humor," you'll find it in this edition of STUPEFYING STORIES.

Enjoy,
~brb

Now available for Amazon Kindle and Kindle Reader apps at these links!

US  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A1WYKEO
UK  https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00A1WYKEO
DE  https://www.amazon.de/dp/B00A1WYKEO
FR  https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B00A1WYKEO
IT  https://www.amazon.it/dp/B00A1WYKEO
ES  https://www.amazon.es/dp/B00A1WYKEO
JP  http://www.amazon.jp/dp/B00A1WYKEO

More links coming soon!