Vol. 1_ Number 4 (Autumn 2003) - Cover art by Amanda Burkinshaw
Vol. 1_ Number 4 (Autumn 2003) - Cover art by Amanda Burkinshaw

Volume 1 Number 4

Autumn 2003

Stories for Peace Contest

We did have a designated winner, and a runner up. Unfortunately, both stories had previously appeared in an open online group, and so neither meet the terms of the contest and cannot be declared winners. Still, both pieces were the most excellent in keeping with our contest theme Stories for Peace, so we're providing links to [Only Sky] and A Slit in the Wall, parts 1234, & 5.

Autumn Issue

Welcome back to the fourth issue of our quarterly publication. We've invited submissions to compliment this issue's theme of Stories for Peace, but we haven't made that a strict criteria for inclusion. We've also allowed the interpretation to be broad, including images of war and of false security. We've desired to live up to the life described by poet Grey Walker, "making peace every day like bread", with the firm belief that telling stories and making myth is a way of peacemaking. We'll let you, the reader, decide if, after reading the work of these fine authors, you agree.

Feeding Time

Could it be that our safety and rest was achieved at the expense of our only voice -- and that looking back at us, if we don't pull the covers over our heads, is another self, in whom the serenity is hollow and can only devour? Brian Ames' bedtime story asks us to risk looking into the dark. Perhaps there is something to fear, after all...

Ex Libris

Sometimes what one needs is just a little... inspiration. Elizabeth Barrette's sexy poem goes looking in the library after hours. You'll find it... educational.

Where the Old Road Runs

What happens when the woods grow up around our memories? Perhaps every road that takes us back into that growth, like the one in Charles Lipsig's story, leaves us either lost, comforted, or wondering where the time went. This tale looks for the right road by coming from a different direction.

The Truth is Out There

Maria Cecile's poem suggests that if you don't believe in monsters, at least they believe in you.

Silence

Ryan Nutick considers whether the only thing that can bring us together is our own ending.

The Mission

Perhaps the greatest contribution to peace is the gift of sight through enemy eyes. Tim Hoke gives us one such look.

Mermaid

Plunge deep with Nancy Ellis Taylor's saline poem, and come out shaking off the drops of it.

For Those Who Have Died In His Feet

We walk heavy on the earth, but there are things that walk heavier. William Lengeman's story sees other feet stalking our footsteps, and leaves us wondering whether to look up at the too long shadow.

The Mirror Not in Flames, But Dust

Mari Miller-Lamb's vivid dream suggests that life is not something to lay down as easily as we lie down to sleep.

The Dawn of the Crone Age

A look at blood and fire, Thomas Zimmerman's visual poem speaks, or shows, for itself.


Editor Piece

Did you ever think that no matter how much the strain, however much we falter beneath the weight of our burdens, we could keep from sinking if someone, anyone, said that we're not alone and they'll never leave us? MYTHOLOG Editor Asher Black's soliloquy Restraint (an example of 'sudden fiction') suggests that the world often rests on something that simple -- that perhaps we can bear even the banal individuality of living, and become Titans in our suffering, if even one voice can reach past the bone.

Congratulations

We'd like to take this opportunity to welcome our newest staffer, Anthony Miller, as a Contributing Editor. Mari Miller-Lamb became our Fiction Editor for last issue and we'd like to mention our appreciation for her continued work on the present lot of stories. Once again, we'd like to thank visual artists Amanda Burkinshaw and Mike "Warble" Finucane for their contributions to this issue. Likewise, special thanks to Craig Clarke our Copy Editor for his diligence and speed, and Tim Hoke and Naomi deBruyn our Proofreaders for constant and timely vigilance. Lastly, we're making it official: Tim Hoke is being promoted to Senior Proofer effective with this issue. Congrats, Tim. And thanks, Team, for pulling together. You're a monument to collaborative publication.

Staff Openings

If you'd like to join our staff, especially if you're an excellent illustrator, please see our staff needs. The best thing about being a staffer at MYTHOLOG is getting to read the submissions, seeing the finished work, and having a lot of fun producing it.

If you enjoyed our work

Consider placing an ad with us, large or small, or making a donation to our Pay the Writers Fund -- again, large or small. I know the writers would appreciate it, and you'll feel good about it, too.

Next Issue

On December 1st, we'll be publishing our First Anniversary Issue, marking our publishing rite of passage, if you will. Submissions are already coming in, and we're interested in hearing your voice too. If you're interested, read our required guidelines. We hope you've enjoyed our selection for this time. Drop us a line, and let us know. In the meantime, if you're a newer reader of MYTHOLOG, why not browse our archived issues. We've been priviledged to publish some amazing work. -- Asher Black, Editor-in-Chief

For broken links or other errors, contact Asher Black via his website.