“No, our fight to save the planet didn't start today with the #ClimateStrike and it doesn't end today either. Many of us have been putting in the work for years to save our planet. Don't just amplify our voices today but every day, and support our solutions to save us.”

—Mari Copeny (“Little Miss Flint”)

Issue 2020.52

Flash fiction

• ‘The Lime Monster’, Shelly Jones - art by Martin Hanford

Short stories

• ‘Pleiades for a New Generation’, Kathryn Allan - art by Grace P. Fong
• ‘The Third Angel Poured’, Julie Reeser - art by Katharine A. Viola
• ‘La ruta de la sal’, Malena Salazar Maciá - art by Jason Baltazar
• ‘The Salt in Her Kiss’, Malena Salazar Maciá
  (translation Toshiya Kamei) - art by Jason Baltazar
• ‘The Wasteland Review’, Aurelia Gonzalez - art by Cécile Matthey

Poetry

• ‘Spare the Fire, Spoil the Brute’, Gerri Leen - art by Rachel Linn
• ‘Lost’, Adele Gardner - art by Toeken
• ‘Drown Me’, Hester J. Rook - art by Carmen Moran
• ‘Eden’, Stephen Whitehead - art by Dr. T. Eratopo
• ‘Lucky Fact’, Stefani Cox - art by Dr. T. Eratopo

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A new year begins, and the need to resist is stronger than ever. Climate denial is still rife, even while half the world burns and half the world drowns. Even massive public movements can’t seem to change the results of national elections. Is it because children don’t vote? Is it because our governments and media are owned by multinational corporations who care only about putting a few more billions in some old man’s bank account? Protesting and campaigning doesn’t seem to be enough, but we can’t afford to stop.

We can never afford to stop resisting, to stop shouting when we see abuse, to stop singing at the tops of our voices, to stop telling stories.

And so we have stories. We have speculative stories, because worlds other than our own are sometimes easier to see the truth in. We have ecological stories, whether they’re beautiful and full of renewal and hope, or whether they presage death, or whether they remind us that nature is wild and will outlive us, whatever we do to it. We have feminist stories, whether they’re magical allegories, folktales, narratives of horror and resistance or visceral combat. We have stories with monsters, of course, who bring hope and community and conflict. We have stories of survival, be they quiet, furious, hopeful, desperate. And we have stories full of beauty, because sometimes we need to be reminded to love and live, whether twisted fairytale, fireside fable or family saga.

Sometimes stories, even—or especially—those very far from a realistic world, are the truest things we can say. This month I hope you enjoy the truths brought to us by Adele, Aurelia, Gerri, Hester, Julie, Kathryn, Malena, Shelly, Stefani and Stephen, the lovely illustrations by Carmen, Cécile, Grace, Jason, Katharine, Martin, Rachel, Toeken and Valeria. We’re delighted by the beauty and talent showcased in this issue.

Thanks to Brian Olszewski and Hûw Steer for copyediting, and all my co-editors for being brilliant.

See you all next time!

Djibril al-Ayad, January 2020

Comment on the stories in this issue on the TFF Press blog.