amysisson's Short Story reading list

Started August 22, 2013.

1. (2011) Marine Biology by Gail Carriger. Standalone e-book - Kindle for iPad. Published October 3, 2011 according to Amazon. Fantasy. Read 8/22/13.

2. (2013) A Brief History of the Trans-Pacific Tunnel by Ken Liu. Read in Fantasy & Science Fiction, Jan/Feb 2013. Science fiction (alternate history). Read 9/10/13.

3. (2013) Fairy Debt by Gail Carriger. Standalone e-book - Kindle for iPad. Published August 26, 2013 according to Amazon. Fantasy. Read 9/17/13.

4. (2010 in anthology, not sure if reprint) "The Tiger Fortune Princess" by Eugie Foster. Read in collection titled Returning My Sister's Face. Fantasy (fairy tale). Read 9/17/13.

5. (2013) "The Astronaut Who Stole My Sharpie" by Rhonda Eudaly. Read in FenCon 2013 program book (listing under "print magazine" for stats since the program book comes out once a year).

6. (2013) If You Were a Dinosaur, My Love by Rachel Swirsky. Read online, date and location unknown. Originally published 3/13 in Apex Magazine. Would need to re-read to determine genre. Hugo 2014 finalist in short story category.

Genre:

Fantasy: 3
Science Fiction: 2
Undetermined: 1
TOTAL: 6

Format:

E-book collection or anthology - Kindle for iPad: 0
E-book collection or anthology - Kindle for PC: 0
E-book collection or anthology - PDF: 0
E-book standalone - Kindle for iPad: 2
E-book standalone - Kindle for PC: 0
E-book standalone - PDF: 0
Print Magazine: 2
Print collection or anthology: 1
Unknown: 1

TOTAL: 5

Hello! I hope it's OK for me to start this thread here. I am doing the 75 books challenge as well as the 50 states challenge, and have appropriate list threads in those groups, but would like to start logging my short story reading as well. (It will be almost all science fiction and fantasy, I'm afraid -- which is not the case for me with novels, but it most certainly is for short fiction!) This seemed to be the best group in which to put this....

I attend the World Science Fiction convention most years and am a member of SFWA, so this will also help me keep track of things for when award nomination season rolls around.

I plan to update the first post in this thread with new information, and add more details in separate posts.

1. "Marine Biology" by Gail Carriger

This is a short story presumably in the Parasol Protectorate universe (the werewolf rules/dynamics seem to operate the same way), but is set in modern-day United States instead of Victorian-steampunk-alternate England. A werewolf is worried that someone in his pack is about to "out" him, but just what aspect of his life might that outing be about?

Enjoyable story, 4 stars.

2. "A Brief History of the Trans-Pacific Tunnel" by Ken Liu.

Short story appearing in the Jan/Feb 2013 issue of Fantasy & Science Fiction.

I thought this alternative history story started out beautifully, but for me, the direction it went felt a little cliched. I'd still give it 3 1/2 stars for beautiful writing and good imagination.

I will say that based on other fiction I've read by this author, most notably "Paper Menagerie" and "Mono No Aware", I'm happy to read anything he writes.

You can probably touchstone a lot of the stories in F&SF for this year as I have been trying to read a lot of short fiction for next year's Hugos.

A Brief History of the Trans-Pacific Tunnel

^Thanks, I should have thought of that!

I'm trying to work out what my short fiction goal is -- maybe reading 3 short works per week, in addition to the novels I read. I don't want to limit to stories potentially eligible for upcoming award nominations.... Maybe I'll make it that 1 out of 3 per week should be current year for next year's nominations.

I do seem to love setting goals and making lists! ;-)

3. "Fairy Debt" by Gail Carriger.

Bought this as a standalone short, Kindle for iPad. Amusing story of fairies, dragons, and princesses.

4. "The Tiger Fortune Princess" by Eugie Foster. Read in collection titled Returning My Sister's Face.

Fantasy (fairy tale). Read 9/17/13.

5. "The Astronaut Who Stole My Sharpie" by Rhonda Eudaly.

Read in the FenCon 2013 program book.