Anthologies and Collections from 2023: Bloodline
Novels are all very well, but is there anything more satisfying than a well-crafted short story? We don’t think so, here at PseudoPod towers. A gripping introduction, a compelling narrative and a hard-hitting ending, all in under six thousand words. A point well made and a story well told. Some may be nibbles while others are more… substantial, but they’re all, in a manner of speaking, bite-sized. They certainly all have teeth.
And because of this, we believe that short stories in anthologies (pieces by different authors) and collections (pieces from a single author) deserve to be seen by more readers. We never have enough slots to run everything we’d like to in a year and so, instead, we run our very favourites and use that as a way to draw your attention to the many, many books that feature terrific stories.
– by Kat Day
Here’s a summary of the books we plan to feature in 2023 and 2024:
Anthologies
Monstrous Futures, edited by Alex Woodroe
Published by Dark Matter Press
The publisher says: The future is now, and it’s not what we were promised. The optimistic science fiction of old was wrong. Progress is not linear, technology creates as many problems as it solves, and the concept of a better tomorrow has become an abstraction that is in no way guaranteed. When looking at the future now, we no longer ask what is possible, we wonder how we’ll cope. Contained within this anthology are 29 never-before-published works by supremely talented authors. Brace yourself for the all too real horrors of what could very well be our terribly monstrous futures.
We say: For some reason, there are a lot of apocalyptic anthologies out there right now. Looking at our dark future, we were crushed that we could only highlight one in the showcase. We could have picked several stories from this book, but The Body Remembers was so powerful that it refused to be ignored.
No Trouble at All, edited by Alexis Dubon and Eric Raglin
Published by Cursed Morsels Press
The publisher says: Politeness is the glue that holds society together. We are all expected to do our part – a pressure ripe with horror. Rotten, even. Whether we adhere to this contract or defy it, there are consequences. These fifteen stories respond to promises made for us, promises of compliance that cost too much to keep.
We say: We loved many stories in this anthology, with a particular honourable mention going to Welcome to the New You, by Gwendolyn Kiste – the story of a woman who lives in a world where everyone has a doppelgänger, and one day, she has to meet hers… But in the end, it was the deeply uncomfortable and hard-hitting Thirteen Ways of Not Looking at a Blackbird, by Gordon B. White, that won out.
Collage Macabre: An Exhibition of Art Horror, edited by Future Dead Collective
Published by Future Dead Collective
The publisher says: Your work will betray your secrets. Obsessions, hidden desires, and desperate wishes all woven into the fabric of what we make. A sculpture crafted with longing, a painting of a dream just barely articulated, the craving that cannot speak its name buried in a short film’s score. Old want only spoken aloud through someone else’s voice. Need etched on someone else’s lips for all the world to see. A false self created for the audience to claim as its own, still hiding what it knows. Through these eighteen stories, dread is the medium of choice, winding its way through each unsettling and terrifying tale about human creation, the artistic follies and triumphs we imbue with so much meaning.
We say: This is an unsettling anthology that really lives up to its promise of inspiring dread. Many of the stories have a dreamy quality that will linger with you long after the lights have come back up. Our final choice was The Red Lady, by Mob. Beware of unexpected parcels…
The Nameless Songs of Zadok Allen & Other Things that Should Not Be, edited by Jessica Augustsson
Published by JayHenge Publishing
The publisher says: It was just so much fun putting [this anthology] together. There were so many brilliant submissions, and we were lucky enough to be able to get a foreword by Elena Tchougounova-Paulsen, the editor of Lovecraftian Proceedings, a journal on academic Lovecraftiana. Mike Adamson’s work can be found in several other JayHenge anthologies, along with so many truly wonderful writers. We’re very excited to get even more eyes (and ears) on their work!
We say: Fun is exactly the right word for this anthology! You might imagine that a selection of stories inspired by the work of H.P. Lovecraft would feel similar, but the range of styles, tones and approaches here is vast. We really think there’s something here for everyone. We eventually chose Arcanum Miskatonica, by Mike Adamson, which is packed full of delightful little references, and we hope you love it as much as we did.
Anthologies: honourable mention
Howls from the Wreckage: An Anthology of Disaster Horror, edited by Christopher O’Halloran
Published by HOWL Society Press
The publisher says: Skies darken. Sirens wail. Buildings tremble with each distant boom. You grasp your loved ones close to you. Any second could be your last. Howls From the Wreckage will push you to the edge of imminent disaster – and drown you in the heartbreak of its fallout. HOWL Society Press presents its thrilling anthology of disaster horror, fittingly introduced by Nick Cutter, acclaimed author of The Troop and The Deep.
We say: This is a physically beautiful book with cool artwork and amazing author bios. To quote our own Alex Hofelich: “This is how all books can and should be made.” Between us, we pulled out several stories that we could have run in the showcase, but, sadly, we only had so many slots. Curses. Kat thinks you will love Heavy Rain, by T. J. Price, and Jamie and Alex both particularly enjoyed Detritus, by Lindsey Ragsdale. Pick this book up because it’s beautiful, take it home for its great stories.
Collections
No One Will Come Back for Us and Other Stories, by Premee Mohamed
Published by Undertow Publications
The publisher says: Here there be gods and monsters – forged from flesh and stone and vengeance – emerging from the icy abyss of deep space, ascending from dark oceans, and prowling strange cities to enter worlds of chaos and wonder, where scientific rigour and human endeavour is tested to the limits. These are cosmic realms and watery domains where old offerings no longer appease the ancient Gods or the new and hungry idols. Deities and beasts. Life and death. Love and hate. Science and magic. And smiling monsters in human skin.
We say: We chose The Evaluator from this collection and we could have chosen many others. As our own Meghan Ball says: “Premee Mohamed is a force of nature; like a cryptid spotted rushing between two trees in a dark forest or a giant beetle fighting Godzilla in a Toho movie. She writes like a woman possessed, infusing every story in her collection, No One Will Come Back For Us, with an equal balance of quiet horror and deep human understanding. It’s a breathtaking collection of work, unsettling and beautiful, told with a wry cleverness and unflinching eye that has become the hallmark of her writing. Each story is a well crafted piece of cosmic horror, taking us to the darkest depths of the ocean, to science labs on the verge of greatness (or madness), and to the most desolate reaches of the human mind.”
Who Lost, I Found, by Eden Royce
Published by Broken Eye Books
The publisher says: In these Black Southern speculative fiction tales, the author weaves together several subgenres like a sweetgrass basket: Southern Gothic, weird fiction, dark fantasy, and folk horror. All inspired by her Gullah Geechee heritage and its cautionary stories, and the hoodoo that runs throughout, whether everyone acknowledges it or not.
We say: This book is packed full of glorious, powerful stories with strong characters that will linger in your mind long after you’ve finished turning the pages. We eventually settled on The Stringer of Wiltsburg Farm because, at the end of the day, we do love a monster here…
Skin Thief, by Suzan Palumbo
Published by Neon Hemlock Press
The publisher says: The stories in this collection of dark fantasy and horror short stories grapple with the complexities of identity, racism, homophobia, immigration, oppression and patriarchy through nature, gothic hauntings, Trinidadian folklore and shape-shifting. At the heart of the collection lie the questions: how do we learn to accept ourselves? How do we live in our own skin?
We say: The stories in this collection form an arc from Canadian English/Western settings to Trinidadian. The culminating story is Douen, a heartbreaking ghost story set in Trinidad. We hope you love it; we’d love it even more if you picked up the whole book and experienced Suzan Palumbo’s dark magic for yourself.
The Inconsolables, by Michael Wehunt
Published by Bad Hand Books
The publisher says: In his first collection, Greener Pastures, Michael Wehunt introduced the world to his singular voice – a poetic, resonant force of darkness and unique terrors. He returns with The Inconsolables, a chilling selection of stories sure to brighten this star of literary horror. Inside, meet masterfully rendered characters who grapple with desires as powerful and personal as the monsters that stalk them from the edges of perception.
We say: There are many monsters in this collection, some inhuman, some… not. Michael Wehunt is a master of his craft, a writer who regularly keeps you guessing until the end, and then still, somehow, hits you with something unexpected. We adored the twisty-turny complex ambiguity of Slow Sips, and we think you will, too.
Collections: honourable mentions and other highlights
A Meeting in the Devil’s House a collection by Richard Dansky
Published by Twisted Publishing (Haverhill House)
The publisher says: Welcome to the imagination of Richard Dansky, where legends walk, angels whisper, and unicorns are forced into impossible hopes. Explore the darkest chambers of the human heart or meet face-to-face with evil beyond understanding, as the stories in this collection will terrify and delight in equal measure.
We say: We’ve run several of Richard Dansky’s stories over the years, including two in 2023 (Billy’s Garage and Swing Batter Batter) and so, much as we loved A Meeting in the Devil’s House, we felt it had to be someone else’s turn. Do pick this book up for yourself: we especially enjoyed the Jewish pirate rabbi horror, Reb Palache and the Dibbuk.
The Best of Our Past, The Worst of Our Future, by Christi Nogle
Published by Flame Tree Publishing
The publisher says: The Best of Our Past, the Worst of Our Future collects Christi Nogle’s finest psychological and supernatural horror stories. Their rural and small-town characters confront difficult pasts and look toward promising but often terrifying futures. The pieces range in genre from psychological horror through science fiction and ghost stories, but they all share fundamental qualities: feminist themes, an emphasis on voice, a focus on characters’ psychologies and a sense of the gothic in contemporary life.
We say: We love Christi Nogle’s work at PseudoPod, and we reprinted The Old Switcheroo in May of last year and re-ran the terrific Resilience this year. As Chelsea Davis said in her hosting track for that episode: “The Best of Our Past, the Worst of Our Future brings together Christi’s new and reprinted short fiction, and it cements her as a master of slow-burn dread. Those moments in Resilience where you realise that something is well and truly wrong, but you don’t… yet… know…what? Well, those moments are the metronome that this whole collection marches to. The threats range from the supernatural to the mundane […] Sorry in advance for the weird dreams you’ll be having.”
Cold, Black & Infinite: Stories of the Horrific & Strange, by Todd Keisling
Published by Cemetery Dance Publications
The publisher says: Down here in the dark lies a vast and twisted landscape where the wicked, wistful, and profane coalesce. This is where the lonely and lost face their demons, where anxious paranoias are made manifest, and where mundane evil wears a human face. For readers, the sixteen stories found within Cold, Black, & Infinite serve as a harrowing glimpse into the nightmarish imagination of Todd Keisling, Bram Stoker Award-nominated author of Devil’s Creek and Scanlines.
We say: Another show favourite, we ran Todd Keisling’s Midnight In The Southland in October this year, and We’ve All Gone to the Magic Show in September of 2022. And, again, we felt we had to shine a light on other authors this time around. But we loved this collection – in particular, there are some great pieces of holiday horror here. If you’ve ever found yourself watching a saccharine TV Christmas movie and thought it would be much improved by a brief interlude of graphic horror, this is absolutely the book for you.
Gordon B. White is Creating Haunting Weird Horror(s)
Published by JournalStone
The publisher says: From Gordon B. White, finalist for the Shirley Jackson and Bram Stoker Awards, come fifteen tales of evocative prose and unparalleled imagination. From spirit-possessed postcards in the award-nominated title story to the eco-terror of Dandelion Six and riot-fuelled nightmare of One of the Good Ones, the armed invasion of a deity’s corpse in Godhead and a drink with the damned in Devil Take Me, these stories are haunted by weird ghosts and contemporary horrors.
We say: The prose in this collection is perfectly put together and the story construction is fantastic. Unfortunately, we had already selected Thirteen Ways of Not Looking at a Blackbird from the Anthology No Trouble at All, and so we felt we had to feature a different author for this part of the showcase. However, we loved this collection’s mixture of body horror, ghosts other cryptids and general weirdness. Every step takes you further away from the path of reality and towards something dark and shadowy and… terrifying.
Have You Seen the Moon Tonight? and Other Rumors, by Jonathan Louis Duckworth
Published by JournalStone
The publisher says: Louis Duckworth’s debut story collection, Have You Seen the Moon Tonight? [is] comprised of 16 supernatural short stories in a shared universe. Many of the stories explore a kaleidoscope of possible world ending scenarios: the moon becoming a vector for madness, a book that infects and corrupts any writing it touches, the forgotten inhabitants of the ocean rising up to drown humanity’s toxic empire, and language itself becoming a mind-blasting plague. These stories explore damaged and jaded people reconnecting with their lost humanity, or discovering the inhuman multitudes hiding beneath their skin.
We say: We ran the opening story from this collection, Darke’s Last Show, in October 2023 and felt it was, truly, the perfect almost-Halloween piece. You really feel you’re in safe hands with this story, and so with the collection as a whole. There is magic and madness in these stories that often feature what is underneath, hidden and unseen, and Jonathan Louis Duckworth is that rare writer who constructs prose that is both beautiful and eminently readable. We’re sure you’ll love this debut collection. We can’t wait to see what’s coming next.
