Synthetic Voices #23 – October 2013 Top Picks

*Top Picks from October 2013* "Flying On My Hatred of My Neighbor's Dog" by Shaenon Garrity The Drabblecast Ep. 298 ~27 mins -- This is just the kind of genius I expect to see on The Drabblecast. You may have felt burning, seething rage at someone or something before, but are you a hater? That is, could you hate something so much that power companies could actually harness that hatred and power the globe? Our protagonist is one such hater and his misadventures are recounted in this hilarious story. I was personally giggling throughout most of it! "Event Horizon" by Sunny Moraine Strange Horizons' October Issue ~42 mins -- Good news, I'm happy to feature a new podcast on the show! Strange Horizons has been a longtime voice in the short fiction world and now they have a fiction and poetry podcast. I urge you to check out their full feed on iTunes. There seems to be a Podbean page for the podcast, but very little specifically on the Strange Horizons website, if you're looking for more details. Or, of course, you can always click through from the Synthetic Voices show notes. Personally, I have a special place in my heart for stories that call to the spirit of Fall. The rustle of fallen leaves, the chill in the air, and hungry living houses. Oh is that just in this story? Yes, our protagonists, both of whom incidentally fall along the gay/queer spectrum, have found themselves in charge of feeding a house. Combine this with their difficulties in fending off the bullies at school, and you'll be able to see your way to a grisly conclusion. What separated this hungry house story from the pack was, for me, the look inside our female-bodied protagonist's head, seeing her contemplate not only her role in keeping the house fed, but also balancing that against her secret passion for our emotionally distant, male-bodied hero. Her lack of true fear toward the house keeps the story fresh and true to her young, if somewhat self-absorbed, voice. "The Creature Recants" by Dale Bailey Clarkesworld Magazine's October Issue ~42 mins -- Here's another beautifully written story from Clarkesworld, where the grotesque Creature from the Black Lagoon looks for love and purpose in Hollywood. Surely he's not so different from us, aside from the diet of fish and the amphibious physiology. This Tinsel Town tale is told out of chronological order, but eventually provides the rationale for his final decision: whether to stay with humans and follow human dreams, or return to his swamp and a life of meaningless serenity. "The Master Conjurer" by Charlie Jane Anders Lightspeed Magazine's October Issue ~39 mins -- Setting aside the plot of this story for a moment, I loved how the world was set up. Everyone has access to magic, just like in our world how everyone has access to technology. Is everyone good at using technology? The same concept applies to magic in our story, though; the negative effects of a powerful spell are a bit more dire than a fried hard drive. Enter our protagonist who somehow finds the key to performing spells without a magical downside. This launches him into a world of unwelcome celebrity and eventually sends him running from the media-crazy public. I loved the way he is forced to face his past and come to terms with both his public status and his private demons. "Bits" by Naomi Kritzer Clarkesworld Magazine's October Issue ~29 mins -- The quirky world of sex toys gets a bit quirkier as aliens look for ways to connect with their human partners. A hapless sex toy manufacturer is forced to face her discomfort with the idea of inter-species romance and then must create a product that will suit everyone. This isn't some kind of tentacle-strewn nightmare, if that is what has popped into your head already,