Aphelion Issue 301, Volume 28
December 2024 / January 2025
 
Editorial    
Long Fiction and Serials
Short Stories
Flash Fiction
Poetry
Features
Series
Archives
Submission Guidelines
Contact Us
Forum
Flash Writing Challenge
Forum
Dan's Promo Page
   

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Issue 235 Volume 22 December 2018 - January 2019

Cover

Archives Editorial Serials and Long Fiction Poetry and Filk Music Short Stories Flash Fiction Features Series

Editorial

Dan L. Hollifield

The Senior Editor's usual rants about whatever…


Serials and Long Fiction

Reunion
Martin Lochman
Sometimes your past catches up with you no matter how hard you try to escape it.

Scowboys
Richard Tornello
Bringing respectability to the waste-disposal business can mean cleaning up monetarily, too.

Best Long Fiction of 2018

That Devil Cantori
T. Richard Williams
A lot of people on Mystic Base had motives for killing Reverend Whitby. Finding out who actually did it was no easy task. Note: Adult themes and language.

God Tears
Milos Dumbraci
If we ever do meet a deity, will we be able to communicate with them? And, should we?

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Short Stories

Clap Clap
Nikhil Kshirsagar
When you think of military aviation, what do you think of?

I Won't Mention Apophasis
J. B. Toner
Are we ready to meet them?

One Hundred Percent
Denis Winston Brum
One hundred percent efficiency…a wistful dream or an actual possibility?

The Remotest Recollection
Honza Vojtíšek
You don't want to go to the woods? Don't be afraid, it's here, just round the corner, a short way… Look.

A Steamy Ale From Sthmefla
Sergio Palumbo
Some things are just too good to be true.

Best Short Stories of 2018

The Lady of the Stars
T. N. Allan
She is beautiful, unforgettable, otherworldly; the perfect muse for an artist.

The Rainbow Construction Co.
Jerry Petersen
When you're dealing with a leprechaun, always read the fine print.

The Trap Master
Rab Foster
Treasures on the battlefield.

All Paths Lead Home
Stephen Faulkner
Chartering new paths in the search for home.

The Rusalka's Embrace
Christopher Palmer
The sea is always the temperature of the sea and it's never too cold nor too warm for those such as me.

The Touched
John Powers
When superpowers are a curse, all you want is to live a normal life.

Hegemon of the Honeycart
Tony Colella
Yeah, Jurassic Park is great for tourists. But what about the janitors?

Bookworm
Jim Mountfield
My father always told me to be nice to the people you meet on your way up. You might meet them again on your way down.

The Alley
Gene Turchin
The cold is like some kind of persistent demon.

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Flash Fiction

Us and Them
Swylmar dos Santos Ferreira
They were arrogant…

Levels
Denny E. Marshall
Time to level up!

Draft Dodging
C. E. Gee
It's all in the timing

The Best Flash Fiction of 2018

Warning: "Best" is a relative term. These are the ones I, the Editor, most enjoyed. Feel free to argue eloquently in the forum if you disagree!

The Last Dawn
Susan Anwin
The Condemned writes a final letter

Family Crisis
Ron Guell
Our story begins in a wilderness caught
in the grip of a harsh and scalding winter.

X-tra
Denny E. Marshall
It always pays to have a spare!

Lothar’s Head
William Squirrell
Be careful what you ask for.

The Real Me
Susan Anwin
Love is a terrible thing.

Nineteen
Andrée Gendron
Count the gargoyles.

First Flight
C. E. Gee
If you believe this, can I interest you in a Phlogiston pump?

The Replacement
R. Gene Turchin
Is it my fault if I'm an early adopter?

The Aphelion Flash Fiction Contest

We run a monthly flash fiction contest in the "Fun and Games" folder in Aphelion's forum. In the contest we post a challenge with a specific theme and genre and participants write a flash story based on the challenge guidelines. The contest is a great place to hone your writing skills, meet some fellow writers, receive some feedback, and possibly win a prize. New participants are always welcome. Submissions for the contest are done through the forum. Flash stories from all of our previous contest challenges are archived in the forum as well.

Over 500 stories are included in our archive. To start reading some of these great flash stories, check out either Index 1 or Index 2.

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Poetry and Filk Music

Hell Opened Up
by S. T. Eleu

Mable’s Roach Coach Diner on Wheels
by Richard Tornello

Poets and Storytellers
by Richard Tornello

Rock On Space
by Robin B. Lipinski


The Best Poetry and Filk Music of 2018

Warning: "Best" is a relative term. These are the pieces that amused and engaged Ye Editor. If you feel I have missed something, the forum is this way...

scifaiku
by John Hawkhead

My Monstrous Apology
by Toni Leamon

What is life?
by Jean Jones

When The Pale Horse Came
by Chastity Heather King

Damaged Gods
by Alexis Child

POSSESSION Is Nine Tenths Of The Law
by Richard Tornello

Something Came Up
by Denny E. Marshall

SciFaiku
by Rafał Zabratyński

Darkest Demons
by Alexis Child

Night Hunt
by Maria DePaul

Ashes to Ashes
by Jean Jones

Viewing the Cloud Plain
by Michael H. Brownstein

Ballad of the Restless Grave
by Nerio Vespertin

Superpower
by S. T. Eleu

Bare Willow Witch
by Robin B. Lipinski

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Articles and features

Alas, there were no feature articles this month.