Short Fiction Watch: THE LONG TAIL by Aliette de Bodard


In this instalment of Short Fiction Watch, we wanted to draw your attention to Aliette de Bodard‘s THE LONG TAIL — originally published as part of Wired’s Future of Work series, in November 2020, it has now been included in Neil Clarke‘s THE BEST SCIENCE FICTION OF THE YEAR, Volume 6.

“Everyone onboard the scavenging habitat knew there was no correlation between the unreality and what lay underneath.”

IT WAS JUST a room.

Another one on the wreck of the Conch Citadel: holes in the walls and in the ceiling and floor, floating debris and rusting furniture that must have once been pristine and polished, the state of the art of Đại Ánh. A series of disc-shaped auxiliary robots and larger maintenance mechs parked in the walls, gleaming in the light projected by Thu’s lamp. Nothing out of the ordinary…

Aliette is the multi-award winning author of a number of novels, series, and shorter fiction. Her latest novella, the acclaimed FIREHEART TIGER is published by Tor.com.

The author’s Dominion of the Fallen trilogy is published by Gollancz in the UK, and Roc Books/JABberwocky in North America.

Short Fiction Watch: Aliette de Bodard, Ian McDonald & Lavie Tidhar among the BEST SF OF THE YEAR…


Today we have a bit of a smorgasbord of short fiction to draw your attention to, from Aliette de Bodard, Ian McDonald, and Lavie Tidhar.

Let’s start with Aliette de Bodard, who has stories featuring in three different publications (pictured at the top). First, Aliette has a story in MISSION CRITICAL, an anthology edited by Jonathan Strahan, due to be published by Solaris. Here’s the collection’s synopsis…

HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM…

Life is fragile. The difference between success and failure can come down to nothing – the thread of a screw, the flick of a switch – and when it goes wrong, you fix it. Or someone dies.

Mission Critical takes us from our world, across the Solar System, and out into deep space to tell the stories of people who had to do the impossible.

And do it fast.

In addition to this, Aliette has stories in the latest issue of Clarkesworld (“Two Sisters in Exile”, also available online), and also the first anthology from New Accelerator (“A Dance of Dust and Life”).

THE BEST SCIENCE FICTION OF THE YEAR: VOL. 4 has stories from Aliette, Ian McDonald, and Lavie Tidhar. Published by Night Shade Books, here’s the relevant content…

  • “Ten Landscapes of Nili Fossae” by Ian McDonald (2001: An Odyssey in Words, edited by Ian Whates and Tom Hunter)
  • “The Buried Giant” by Lavie Tidhar (Robots vs. Fairies, edited by Dominik Parisien and Navah Wolfe)
  • “Among the Water Buffaloes, a Tiger’s Steps” by Aliette de Bodard (Mechanical Animals, edited by Selena Chambers and Jason Heller)

Ian McDonald is the author of, most recently, the Luna series — NEW MOON, WOLF MOON, and MOON RISING — published by Gollancz (UK) and Tor Books (US). He is also the author of the novellas TIME WAS and the forthcoming THE MENACE FROM FARSIDE (Tor.com).

Lavie Tidhar is the author of a number of award-winning and critically-acclaimed novels and novellas, including UNHOLY LAND (Tachyon), CENTRAL STATION (Tachyon), A MAN LIES DREAMING (Hodder/Melville House), THE VIOLENT CENTURY (Hodder/Tachyon), OSAMA, and his first novel for young readers, CANDY (Scholastic).

Aliette is also the author of the Dominion of the Fallen series, published by Gollancz in the UK and Roc Books in North America (1-2): THE HOUSE OF SHATTERED WINGS, THE HOUSE OF BINDING THORNS, and the upcoming THE HOUSE OF SUNDERING FLAMES. She is also the author of IN THE VANISHERS’ PALACE (JABberwocky), THE TEA MASTER AND THE DETECTIVE (Subterranean Press/JABberwocky), and OF WARS, AND MEMORIES, AND STARLIGHT (Subterranean Press).

Short Fiction Watch: BEST SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY OF THE YEAR…


In this instalment of Short Fiction Watch, we wanted to draw your attention to THE BEST SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY OF THE YEAR, VOL.11. Published today by Solaris Books, this mighty tome includes the following stories by our clients…

Here’s the book’s official synopsis…

The internationally-acclaimed Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year series moves into its second decade with the very best science fiction and fantasy from around the world. Hard science fiction, space opera, epic fantasy, dystopia, alternate history, swords and sorcery – you can find it all in the more than two dozen stories carefully chosen for this book by award-winning anthologist Jonathan Strahan to give readers a captivating and always-entertaining look at the very best the genre has to offer.

Aliette’s latest novel, THE HOUSE OF BINDING THORNS is out this week in the UK (Gollancz) and the US (Roc Books).

Ian R. MacLeod’s latest novel, RED SNOW is out this month, published by PS Publishing (check back tomorrow for details).

Lavie’s critically-acclaimed latest novel, CENTRAL STATION, is published by Tachyon Publications.

Anthology Featuring Zeno Authors’s Work…


BestScienceFiction&Fantasy8-BlogEdited by Jonathan Strahan, THE BEST SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY OF THE YEAR, Vol.8, due to be published by Solaris Books in May 2014.

Here’s the anthology’s synopsis…

From the inner realms of humanity to the far reaches of space, these are the science fiction and fantasy tales that are shaping the genre and the way we think about the future. Multi-award winning editor Jonathan Strahan continues to shine a light on the very best writing, featuring both established authors and exciting new talents.

Within you will find twenty-eight incredible tales, showing the ever growing depth and diversity that science fiction and fantasy continues to enjoy. These are the brightest stars in our firmament, lighting the way to a future filled with astonishing stories about the way we are, and the way we could be.

Three Zeno clients are featured in the anthology: