Thank you to our cover artist! Thank you to all our authors! Woo hoo! We appreciate you!
Thank you so much to the entire Electric Spec editorial team! Woo hoo! We appreciate you!
Thank you especially to the readers! We wouldn't exist without you. :)
31 August 2023
29 August 2023
From Author Alapati
We are excited to announce one of our featured stories in the awesome August 2023 Electric Spec is "The Last Deal" by Sophia Alapati. Sophia was kind enough to send us some comments about the story:
The Last Deal was brewed from three ingredients: a queer witch, a powerful ex, and a noir setting. I intended to write this for an anthology of positive queer witch stories, but by the time I finished writing, the submission deadline had passed and I had written something a little too dark and twisty to fit the bill.
Interesting! Thanks, Sophia! Be sure to check out all the new stories on Aug 31, 2023!
The Last Deal was brewed from three ingredients: a queer witch, a powerful ex, and a noir setting. I intended to write this for an anthology of positive queer witch stories, but by the time I finished writing, the submission deadline had passed and I had written something a little too dark and twisty to fit the bill.
As an author who is more pantser than plotter, all I knew when I sat down to write was that protagonist Cas was salvaging his life in the aftermath of a tortured history with a god. I wanted to explore the idea of trying to escape a relationship with something that feels omnipotent--whether that’s a religion, a job, or another person. I also love concocting magic systems, and had fun researching chemical and symbolic properties of potential potion ingredients.
The genre was the final component that made this piece come together. To me, a warlock--etymologically from the Old English wærloga, meaning "oathbreaker"--fits right in with the noir setting, where we often see a morally dubious protagonist haunted by the deeds of their past. Noir also gives me the chance to write lush similes, which I'll never turn down.
My best little piece of writing advice for fiction writers is to read nonfiction. All my best short stories have been sparked or made richer by learning about things from breeding apples to bank heists to immortal mushrooms. So go forth, read, and stay curious!
Interesting! Thanks, Sophia! Be sure to check out all the new stories on Aug 31, 2023!
24 August 2023
From Author Grunwald
We are excited to announce one of our featured stories in the awesome August 2023 Electric Spec is "Amber" by Clarissa Grunwald. Clarissa was kind enough to send us some comments about the story:
When I was in third grade I was obsessed with Bruce Coville. I read everything I could find by him. And while I've aged out of his core demographic and moved on to other authors, I still have tremendous respect for his ability to write fascinating, challenging stories for early chapter book readers. When I wrote "Amber", I wasn't intentionally writing a tribute to his Magic Shop series, but that's what it turned out to be. It's a little shorter, and a little more cynical, but I can't deny the inspiration.
The boutique itself is inspired by a souvenir shop in my town. I have nothing against the shop and go there for gift cards sometimes, but I have to admit that I have no idea how they stay in business. We are not a tourist destination, so there can't be many people in the market for souvenirs. If they are hawking dangerous magical items on the side, that at least explains how they get the rent paid.
Interesting! Thanks, Clarissa! Be sure to check out all the new stories on Aug 31, 2023!
22 August 2023
From Author Wall
We are excited to announce one of our featured stories in the awesome August 2023 Electric Spec is "The Ring of Contradictions" by Allison Wall. Allison was kind enough to send us some comments about the story:
Deconstruction is a big theme in my work. I've gone through waves of deconstructing beliefs and values, and consequently, my perceptions of myself and my life. On a larger scale, I think the pandemic stripped people of what we thought the world was. Stability, predictability, disappeared. In the void of post-deconstruction, what do we believe in? Where is the line between faith and subjective reality? Is there any such thing?
Interesting! Thanks, Allison! Be sure to check out all the new stories on Aug 31, 2023!
Deconstruction is a big theme in my work. I've gone through waves of deconstructing beliefs and values, and consequently, my perceptions of myself and my life. On a larger scale, I think the pandemic stripped people of what we thought the world was. Stability, predictability, disappeared. In the void of post-deconstruction, what do we believe in? Where is the line between faith and subjective reality? Is there any such thing?
Interesting! Thanks, Allison! Be sure to check out all the new stories on Aug 31, 2023!
17 August 2023
From Artist Quinn
We're excited to feature another piece of art from Brian Malachy Quinn, "Dragon Kingdom." Brian was kind enought send along a few words about his piece...
"Dragon Kingdom" was a piece I did in a recent series of fantasy art. I generally do that in one type of genre when I have some sort of inspiration from a dream or see a striking image. This was inspired by a worker at a grocery store I frequent that had just gotten a dragon tattoo on his forearm that does designs for skateboards and we share our work from images from our phones. The tattoo had very vibrant, contrasting colors and the greens really were beautifully prominent. When I was in high school, I was into the whole Dungeons and Dragons craze and created a lot of fantasy art and it really helped me through those difficult years – all that teenage angst. I would come home from school and paint for hours - barbarians, elves, dragons, wizards - all the wonderful denizens of that world– it soothed my soul. So, fantasy art has a deep and cherished place in my heart.
Thanks, Brian! Very interesting! Without further ado, here's a tiny sneak peek at our cover art for the August 2023 issue of Electric Spec:
"Dragon Kingdom" was a piece I did in a recent series of fantasy art. I generally do that in one type of genre when I have some sort of inspiration from a dream or see a striking image. This was inspired by a worker at a grocery store I frequent that had just gotten a dragon tattoo on his forearm that does designs for skateboards and we share our work from images from our phones. The tattoo had very vibrant, contrasting colors and the greens really were beautifully prominent. When I was in high school, I was into the whole Dungeons and Dragons craze and created a lot of fantasy art and it really helped me through those difficult years – all that teenage angst. I would come home from school and paint for hours - barbarians, elves, dragons, wizards - all the wonderful denizens of that world– it soothed my soul. So, fantasy art has a deep and cherished place in my heart.
Thanks, Brian! Very interesting! Without further ado, here's a tiny sneak peek at our cover art for the August 2023 issue of Electric Spec:
15 August 2023
From Author Spahn
We are excited to announce one of our featured stories in the awesome August 2023 Electric Spec is "Eye Contact" by A.C. Spahn. A.C. was kind enough to send us some comments about the story:
I was diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum at the age of thirty. It answered a lot of questions about the way my brain works, and it explained multiple experiences I had growing up, but for years it didn't make it into my writing.
Interesting! Thanks, A.C.! Be sure to check out all the new stories on Aug 31, 2023!
I was diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum at the age of thirty. It answered a lot of questions about the way my brain works, and it explained multiple experiences I had growing up, but for years it didn't make it into my writing.
Then, as such ideas generally arrive at random moments, I had the first inkling of "Eye Contact" while brushing my teeth. At first I thought it might be a horror story about a house coming to life with nightmare body parts, but that didn't fire my interest. Then, a few days later, I wondered, "What would I do if an eyeball suddenly opened in my floor right now?" My answer came immediately: "Have a meltdown." I thought, "That's probably pretty relatable." And so, for the first time, one of my characters became neurodiverse.
The rest of the story fell into place over time, from realizing the main character's art preferences to recognizing the need for humor. Thematically, it might hit you as being "about" various things, depending on your own life experiences. I'll keep its exact personal meaning to myself, but in general, I think it's an exploration of the faces we wear when others are looking at us, how we move between them, and whether they can ever integrate into a whole.
It's one of my weirdest pieces to date, and I cherish it immensely. I'm so excited for Electric Spec to share it with you. Thank you for reading, and take good care of your giant eyeballs.
Interesting! Thanks, A.C.! Be sure to check out all the new stories on Aug 31, 2023!
08 August 2023
From Author Daley
We are excited to announce one of our featured stories in the awesome August 2023 Electric Spec is "King For A Day" by Ray Daley. Ray was kind enough to send us some comments about the story:
This story was written when I was exploring a period of creating stories involving the topic of homelessness. As I'm a veteran myself, I wondered what life would be like for someone who'd left the military and had no money or anywhere to live. How would they survive, or could they? Setting this in the future on the edge of the known universe gave me room to play with a little, and once I had the idea of the loophole, this came together fairly easily. According to my archive copy, this was written on May 29th 2015. It looks like I wrote quite a few stories that month, but oddly enough left no records regarding this one on Facebook.
Interesting! Thanks, Ray! Be sure to check out all the new stories on Aug 31, 2023!
This story was written when I was exploring a period of creating stories involving the topic of homelessness. As I'm a veteran myself, I wondered what life would be like for someone who'd left the military and had no money or anywhere to live. How would they survive, or could they? Setting this in the future on the edge of the known universe gave me room to play with a little, and once I had the idea of the loophole, this came together fairly easily. According to my archive copy, this was written on May 29th 2015. It looks like I wrote quite a few stories that month, but oddly enough left no records regarding this one on Facebook.
Interesting! Thanks, Ray! Be sure to check out all the new stories on Aug 31, 2023!
01 August 2023
Propitious Production Meeting!
Writers and readers will be happy to hear we had a propitious Electric Spec production meeting this past weekend!
We had a lot of very good stories to choose from and consequently selected six stories! Woo hoo! It's always very exciting when we can give readers an extra story.
Authors are receiving editor emails this week with either a yay or nay. The yays also get a contract. Once those are returned, editors will get to work editing stories! In addition, once those are returned, we can start blogging about the stories and art right here. :) So, stay tuned.
Authors are receiving editor emails this week with either a yay or nay. The yays also get a contract. Once those are returned, editors will get to work editing stories! In addition, once those are returned, we can start blogging about the stories and art right here. :) So, stay tuned.
In other news, we wish associate editor Lauren Slawson best wishes as she moves on to new challenges. Thank you for all your contributions to Electric Spec, Lauren! You rock!
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