2016
Welcome Travelers!
Here you can journey back in time to explore the stories of 2016
Stories and articles marked with this sign 
are Free to Read.
Please subscribe to read all others.
You can get one year subscriptions, or subscriptions for calendar year 2017 or 2016 here.
Visitors to and Wanderers through, the Main Terminal of Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores, beginning April 17, 2016
On small screens please scroll down to see the stories here for the reading and those coming up soon.
A Day in the Life of…
Events, Interviews, and Reviews
Events, Interviews, and Reviews Just for Fun
Art and Artisan Crafts
Articles
Tutorials
Experiments Fascinating Facts Interviews Magazines, Museums, Websites Events
Literature and Media Articles, Reviews, Interviews — — Movie — Music — Events Literature and Media Forum
Inspiration
Inspiring People
Amazing Places
Cool and Little-Known Facts
Quotes
For Laughs
Writing Articles Tutorials Seminars, Groups Cool Words Writer’s Forum Art Articles Tutorials Supply Sources Artist’s Forum
Here for the Reading, 2016:
You can subscribe to have continuous access to all of 2016 here: Subscribe 2016
Dec 31, 2016: Science Fiction: “Life, Or Something Like It”, by J. Michael Neal
Salazar Niskanen had just initiated the burn that would take him out of the system when a voice he’d never heard before began a conversation with him. It was his ship, and she had some unexpected news for him.
Dec 29, 2016: Fantasy: “On Rising One Snowy Evening”, by Karen Bovenmyer
When she clawed her way up out of the frozen earth she tried to gauge how much time had passed – were all her kin asleep, gone this time? Her husband had died before his time and she had vowed never to leave her children, for death or nobody — she’s always come back when they had need of her.
Dec 28, 2016: Young People of All Ages: “Dead Things“, by Lawrence Van Hoof
My grandmother picks up dead things. She brings them home. Sometimes she scares people because they don’t understand. Nobody does. Except me. And that’s the scariest thing of all.
·
·
Lead illustration “Peregrine Ghosts” photograph © Dave Cox
Dec 17, 2016: Science Fiction: “The One and the Many”, by William Ledbetter
Opono had spent the entire first third of her life convincing peers and family that there was sentient life in the cosmos and she could find it. They had finally believed her, financed her, and some had even contracted future offspring to combine with hers so their lineage would have memories of the momentous occasion. She had failed them all.
Dec 3, 2016: Fantasy: “The Tears of the Dead”, by Mark Rookyard
I think Father has forgiven me now. He’s been telling me of upstairs, where people live in buildings taller even than Joe’s tunnel. He says they have ‘windows’, big holes filled with glass that they can look through and watch the City. He says there is no sludge up there, and people have soft skin and clothes that aren’t torn and muddied. He said he once saw one of the Four that came on the Ship and rule over the City with an iron fist. I don’t know what iron means…
Young People of All Ages: “Sea Full of Stars”, by Siobhan Gallagher
digital illustration by Alexander Rommel
Zef was finishing up repairs on the space telescope when a stream of glittering, translucent bodies passed overhead.
Hallowe’en 2016, Eldritch, “Mr. Pony”, by Stephen S. Power
The bus wheezes to a stop, the door squeaks open, and Mr. Pony trots on.
This time, the bus isn’t empty.
All the way in back, a skull mask peeks out of the last seat.
He’s always there, you just can’t always see him.
·
Happy Hallowe’en
Oct. 18, 2016, Myths, Legends, & Fairy Tales: “Laila Tov — Good Night — “, by Robert B. Finegold, MD
·
The small sward of earth and patchwork hut where the crippled tailor and his demon bride once lived was shunned for its evil, or so the villagers would claim.
But whether it was for the evil that once dwelt there or the evil that was inflicted upon it —
none would say.
·
Sept 10: Science Fiction, “Word from Home”, by Mark Rookyard
·
They didn’t hear it, but it was always there.
Then the ship from home arrived, with the people from Earth.
And some of them heard it all too well.
·
·
·
·
photomanips and digital illustrations by Fran Eisemann
·
·
Oct. 4, 2016, Eldritch: “My Heart Is a Prayer”, by Ryan Row
·
·
My heart is a prayer.
My heart is a temple, is a church to an absent god.
Is an egg for all the misery of the universe…
·
Oct. 1, 2016, Science Fiction: “Mobius”, by Elian Crane
·
If Ahab captained a starship
— a brief, lyric vision
·
·
Sept. 25, 2016, Science Fiction: “Leon’s Last Meal”, by Shayna Coplan
·
·
·
Leon liked human law.
Just not the meals it served him.
But there was someone who decided
to help improve the situation for him.
·
·
Sept. 22, Fantasy: “Hunters of the Dead” by Laurie Tom
·
When the wild magic meant to the win the war backfired, the king abandoned the people of the wild borderlands. Now there were only hunters between the living and the wandering dead.
Sept. 19, 2016, Science Fiction: “Time Trial”, by Liam Hogan
·
The device appeared in his parlor. He was only trying to make it work. And now here he was, somewhere and somewhen, charged with perverting the course of time and space.
July 27, 2016: Science Fiction: “How Your Mother Killed Me”, by Evan Dicken
Illustration: “Star Citizen” photomanipulation by Enrico Frehse
A quest of many lifetimes begins with a single slice
July 24, 2016: Science Fiction — “Negotiations”, by Matthew J. Streett
·
·
·
Where does the commercial domain end
What can it take when you’re not looking
How do you get it back
?
·
·
July 18, 2016: Stories For Young People from 4 to 499: “The Mountain Farmer’s Bootlace”, by David Sklar
Sometimes, when you’re planting mountains, you may not notice the little things.
June 14, 2016, Myths, Legends, and Fairy Tales: “The Wild Hunt of Sliabh Mannan“, by Philip Brian Hall
When a Goddess asks you to stop a God…
June 8: Fantasy: “Gatekeeper, What Toll?“, by Mike Reeves-McMillan
·
·
Photograph: “The Final Gate” by Mark Humphreys
June 6, Science Fiction: “Derelict“, by Derrick Boden
·
What you remember when you forget everything else
·
Illustration: “Legacy” by Norbert
June 4, Science Fiction: “Mister Bob“, by Dan Campbell
·
Like it says on the door, when you need to know the unknowable… ask Mister Bob
·
Illustration: “Crab Mutant Creature“by sParzZ
The price of change
·
·
Illustration by Mark Purzycki
Stories for Young People from 4 to 400: The Lady and the Moon, by Matt Dovey
·
·
Why we must love the sea
·
·
·
Illustration by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law
·
·
April 25, 2016: Science Fiction, Sonical — Locker X This fractal animation video was created by Brian May. He wrote the music first. While writing it, images of science fiction scenes came to him, and inspired him to make the video! Sonical — Locker X has found it’s way into six festivals so far, in Germany, Australia, UK, Martinique, and Hong Kong! Sonical Locker X images and sound © Brian May
April 23, 2016: Fantasy, “Lacrimae Knows“, by C..J. Jessop Even in the dark, especially in the dark, she knows.
illustration by Omnia
April 9: Science for Young People from 4 to 400: “Touching the Stars – Primordial Hydrogen”, by J. Eckelkamp
·
·
·
A very short history of our universe, and a cool experiment you can do at home with Hydrogen, that very ancient element that was created just about at the beginning of the big bang — nearly 14 billion years ago.
·
·
·
·
·
·
April 9, Science Fiction: “With the Taste of Oblivion in Her Mouth“, by M.E. Garber
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
illustration: “Cosmic” © Leozo
·
·
·
·
March 23, Fantasy: “Dawn Blossom“, by John Eckelkamp
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
March 6, Fantasy: “The Magpie of Souls” by David Tallerman
·
Sword, sorcery, and enchanted castle
·
·
·
·
March 5, Myths, Legends, & Fairy Tales: “Out of Brambles“, by Leenna Naidoo
·
A short, spooky Halloween story to make you smile.
·
·
Feb 28, Eldritch: “The Clockwork Sky“, by Alexandra Davydova, translated by Anatoly Belilovsky.
·
·
Repairing the World, one page at a time…
And here it is in the original Russian version: Нажмите здесь для языковой версии русской..
·
Feb. 27, Science Fiction: “Boomerang Zone”, by Robert Dawson,
·
When even that thin lifeline is cut, what do you rely on?
Illustration “Make a Wish” by Karim Fakhoury, photographs courtesy of NASA
Feb. 17, Science Fiction, “Then We Stood Still“, by Bojan Ratković
·
An homage to the works of Isaac Asimov
·
Digital Painting “Silence” by Priya Johal.
Feb. 14, Eldritch, “Lunatic“, by Kate O’Connor
·
Oh, what the moon can do to you…
·
·
·
Photograph, “She, Eidolon”, ©Jennifer Rhoades
Photograph of Moon © Wyldraven
·
·
·
·
Feb. 10, Interviews, A Talk with Howard David Johnson
·
We talk with David about his latest projects, and he shares with us special previews of his paintings of Norse mythology he’ll be sending on international tour, and images from his latest project — a fantasy book on Atlantis.
·
David combines media and legends to bring us his own take on the fabled city.
·
·
·
Feb. 10, Science Fiction: “Bob, JustBob”, by Liam Hogan.
·
A reprise of the story of Bob, who carries a spaceship in his pocket.
·
Jan 23, Eldritch: “Tryst”, by Brian K. Lowe —
·
Why won’t you forsake me, oh my darling?
·
photos of women © Peter Allert
photo of stairway © stengchen
photo of candle © Jeet Sen
·
·
·
January 14, 2016: Science Fiction: ” A Walk in the Sun”, by Geoffrey Landis
·
Reprise of the classic hard science fiction story.
·
·
·
·
January 5, 2016: Article: “A Practical Guide to the Proper Positioning of Space Stations”, by Nancy Fulda —
For those of us writing a story that includes a space station, or have a space station but just don’t know where to park it, here is a handy little article to help out.
·
·
January 4, 2016: Eldritch: “The Wendigo”, by Algernon Blackwood,
·
·
The classic, chilling tale
·
·
illustrated by Cathal Ó Hanlon and Alexandre Mahboubi.
·
·
·
Midnight, New Year’s Eve, 2015 into 2016.
Greetings and Happy New Year. Here is the very first of our stories — Fantasy:
“TO THE MONSTERS WITH LOVE”, by A. Merc Rustad,
·
·