Science Fiction & Fantasy

The Orbital Drop

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In This Issue: June 2010 (Issue 1)

Editorial

Editorial, June 2010

by John Joseph Adams

Our debut issue features four all-new, never-before-published stories: from newcomer Vylar Kaftan, we have an interstellar love story dealing with the perils of communication and time-dilation; from veteran, award-winning author Jack McDevitt, we have a tale about Earth’s moon and the mysteries it might still possess; from David Barr Kirtley, an adventure of a young catman who must face the last of the dogmen and something else entirely unexpected; and from bestselling author Carrie Vaughn, a cautionary tale of the near future that shows some of the extremes we might be pushed to if we don’t start implementing now the seeds for a sustainable future.

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight: Vylar Kaftan

by Christie Yant

“I have some friends in a multi-decade on-again/off-again relationship. Like the characters in the story, they get together, break up, see other people, reconnect, and do it all over again. They love each other, but they’ve never been able to make it work. [...]“

Vylar Kaftan

Science Fiction

Lightspeed Magazine

by Lightspeed Magazine

Lightspeed is an online science fiction and fantasy magazine. In its pages, you will find science fiction—from near-future, sociological soft SF, to far-future, star-spanning hard SF—and fantasy—from high fantasy, contemporary urban tales, and surrealism, to magical realism, science fantasy, and folktales. When you read Lightspeed, it is our hope that you’ll see where science fiction and fantasy comes from, where it is now, and where it’s going.

Lightspeed

Science Fiction

I’m Alive, I Love You, I’ll See You in Reno

by Vylar Kaftan

We have a history of missed connections, you and I. Years ago, when you called goodbye from the shuttle launch, my flight was landing in Zurich. I’d changed planes, been re-routed from Frankfurt. That’s why you got my voicemail. I’d have answered if I could, and would’ve wished you luck, even if you wanted a life without me. I never managed to see Europa, like you did—just Europe, where I met my first husband. The one I wished was you.

I’m Alive, I Love You, I’ll See You in Reno

Nonfiction

Is There Anyone Out There Who Wants To Go Fast?

by Mike Brotherton

That’s the question posed in the movie Talladega Nights. Ricky Bobby wants to go fast and thinks that driving NASCAR fits the bill. Now that is a comedy for the general public, and to the general public, NASCAR is fast. For scientists, and science fiction fans, however, that’s a ridiculous position. So, what is fast, then? And how fast can we go?

Is There Anyone Out There Who Wants To Go Fast?

Science Fiction

The Cassandra Project

by Jack McDevitt

It’s an odd fact that the biggest science story of the twenty-first century—probably the biggest ever—broke in that tabloid of tabloids, The National Bedrock.

The Cassandra Project

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight: Jack McDevitt

by Christie Yant

“SETI has been trying to pick up signs of technological civilizations for more than half a century. I can remember thinking when they first started that it wouldn’t take long. Too many stars out there. But here we are, a couple of generations later and we haven’t heard so much as a hiccup. Why not? [...]“

McDevitt, Jack

Nonfiction

The High Untresspassed Sanctity of Space: Seven True Stories about Eugene Cernan

by Genevieve Valentine

In 1941, John Gillespie Magee, Jr. is nineteen. He has joined the ranks of the Royal Canadian Air Force as a pilot, and during his training that June he passes the time by writing poetry.

The High Untresspassed Sanctity of Space: Seven True Stories about Eugene Cernan

Science Fiction

Cats in Victory

by David Barr Kirtley

Lynx awoke before dawn. He got out of bed, brushed his whiskers, and licked his fur clean. He dressed in boots and a tunic, then donned his rucksack and set out into the dusty streets. The sun was just beginning to peek up over the thatched rooftops. Most of the other catmen of the village were still asleep.

Cats in Victory

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight: David Barr Kirtley

by Christie Yant

“The version of history I was taught in school as a child was wildly inaccurate: Columbus proved that the world was round, the pilgrims and Indians were best friends, and America is the best at everything and is always on the right side of everything, and so on. [...]“

David Barr Kirtley

Nonfiction

Top Ten Reasons Why Uplifted Animals Don’t Make Good Pets

by Carol Pinchefsky

From Cordwainer Smith’s “The Ballad of Lost C’Mell” to the Pern series to Alan Dean Foster’s Taken trilogy, animals gifted with genetically-enhanced intelligence have been, and still are, a popular science fiction trope.

Top Ten Reasons Why Uplifted Animals Don’t Make Good Pets

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight: Carrie Vaughn

by Christie Yant

The initial seed of inspiration was my ocean-going characters, who made their livelihood by the sea. I had to find a world to put them in, and I thought about what a positive post-apocalyptic future would look like. That is, the civilization-shattering disaster happened, but humanity didn’t lose its technology.”

Carrie Vaughn

Science Fiction

Amaryllis

by Carrie Vaughn

I never knew my mother, and I never understood why she did what she did. I ought to be grateful that she was crazy enough to cut out her implant so she could get pregnant. But it also meant she was crazy enough to hide the pregnancy until termination wasn’t an option, knowing the whole time that she’d never get to keep the baby. That she’d lose everything. That her household would lose everything because of her.

Amaryllis

Nonfiction

Every Step We Take

by Amanda Rose Levy

Climate change. Over-fished oceans. Killer hurricanes. Species extinction. Polluted air and water. Not a pretty list, is it? And a hell of a legacy we’re leaving behind for the kids. But these are the harsh realities we’re facing now as the consequences of our decades of planetary abuse finally come a-callin’. So what, if anything, can we do to fix this fine mess we’ve gotten ourselves into?

Every Step We Take

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