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How do you introduce someone to the concept of stories? Or to the value of sharing them?

Me + Stories

When I was a kid I was a big fantasy nut. I read every book I could get my hands on, basically, but especially the little cheap fantasy novels they crammed into my limited school library, a lonely brick affair on the only paved crossroads for miles. I did read the standards for the time - Harry Potter, Narnia, The Lord of the Rings, Dragon Riders of Pern, A Wizard of Earthsea, et cetera. More importantly, I devoured a hundred other less notable, shlocky little paperbacks. I held dear wizards and dragons, but what I really wanted was a different world. For a long time, books were the only portals I knew.

Reading was an escape from a painful childhood. It's a story that's depressingly common. I won't go into detail. You've heard it all before, I promise. What I will say is that as hard as that time was for me, I had powerful allies. I don't think I understood, being so young, but my prayers of escape were being answered. Not with the answer that I wanted, but it was the best the mythical creatures called "authors" could provide. They taught me what could be, not what was. I won't call that hope - that's a mistake a lot of people make. I will just call that knowledge, because that's what it is.

Stories offer a different sort of knowledge than just about anything else can. The magic of stories is that they give you something as a little bonus, quietly, almost without you noticing. It's not until you've read many, many stories over the course of years that you start to piece it together. Stories hold, inside each one, the worldview of the author. After hundreds, thousands of these, you begin to unravel themes, not unlike a wizard in his tower researching the latest -mancy.

Little truths hidden in plain sight. Currents of energy connecting ideas. Inside a hundred fantasies is a reality they are all trying to escape, and if you map out each one, you can estimate the shape of the real world. All of its corners, even ones you couldn't see before. This is the definition of hidden knowledge.

We are all explorers here. Let me help send you on your way.

Did I miss something, or got some recs for me? Send them here.

Genre Awards (Lists of good stories!)

  • World Fantasy Award: Considered one of the most prestigous awards in fiction, the World Fantasy Award is given out annually to fiction from any country in the English language. Voted on by a panel of judges.
  • The Hugo Award: The Hugo Award is a broad-reaching award across both science fiction and fantasy. It presents awards not only for novels, but for anything from zines to novellas to graphic stories. This award is unique in that it is voted on by all members, and includes any work that is either written in, or translated to, English. This is considered to be one of the "big three" fiction awards, along with the World Fantasy Award and the Nebula.
  • Nebula Award: An annual award to recognize the best works of science fiction or fantasy in the United States.
  • British Fantasy Award: An annual award to recognize the best fantasy works in Britain.
  • Locus Award: This set of annual awards is voted on by readers and hosted by Locus magazine. It presents awards for Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Horror.

MY Recommended Books

  • "The Lord of the Rings" Series by J.R.R. Tolkien: THE most definitive fantasy series of all time. There's no way I wouldn't recommend this series. In the magical fantasy land of Middle Earth, we follow the epic quest of a band of adventurers as they look to bring an evil ring to where it must be destroyed - at the heart of the land of the very enemy who would see them dead.
  • "The Earthsea Cycle" Series by Ursula K. Le Guin: Okay, technically I haven't read this one, but I'm recommending it because it truly is a staple in fantasy, and Ursula K. Le Guin has quite possibly won more writing awards than any other author. I plan on reading it soon!
  • "Discworld" Series by Terry Pratchett: This is one of those fantasy series that are EXCELLENT, but so complex with so many installments you will need a guide to read it all. I recommend reading the eight "Rincewind" novels. If you are crazy enough to read all 50+ novels, here's a guide.

Short Stories n 'Zines

  • Fantasy Magazine: Unfortunately, this magazine has discontinued. :( But all its content is still available online, and it's a great way to get reading if you're in a rut.
  • Lightspeed Magazine: Very popular magazine with MANY different genres, but primarily it includes both science fiction and fantasy short stories.
  • GigaNotoSaurus: Publishes one fantasy or sci-fi short story a month!
  • Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine: Founded in 1949 (!) this magazine shares 20 stories every 2 months. A treasure trove of short stories.
  • Beneath Ceaseless Skies: Non-profit pro-rate magazine dedicated specifically to literary adventure fantasy.
  • Nightmare Magazine: Includes both horror and dark fantasy, with the specific intent to publish a wide variety of different types of horror short stories.

Genre Awards (Lists of good stories!)

  • List of Awards from StopYoureKillingMe.com: This is an up-to-date list of mystery awards! Lots of good content to look at here. I'd also say check out the site for all things mystery fiction and writing related.

MY Recommended Books

Apologies because I don't read much of this genre!

Short Stories n 'Zines

  • Mystery Magazine: A monthly anthology of mystery fiction for a very low monthly price. Also plenty of short stories to whet your whistle.
  • The Strand Mystery Magazine: A quarterly collection of quality mystery short fiction.
  • Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine: Launched all the way back in 1941, this magazine is released on a bimonthly basis, and includes a podcast. They have had 113 of their stories win awards!

Genre Awards (Lists of good stories!)

  • List of Old Fanfiction Awards: Fanfiction awards have really gone the way of the dodo, but there's some very interesting fanfiction history here to dig into, if that's your thing!
  • r/Fanfiction: They host an annual award every year for fanfiction. Here's for 2021, 2022. I couldn't find any other than those two years, but please reach out if you find more!
  • AO3's Most Kudos'd Fanfics: AO3 is THE site for fanfiction, and they have a legendary filtering system to find what you're looking for. This is a search for the fanfics that have recieved the most kudos (likes) on the site.

Popular Sites for Fanfiction

  • Archive of Our Own (AO3): This is THE last word in fanfiction. Incredibly huge selection, fantastic filters, no advertisements... like a dream come true for fanfiction writers and readers alike.
  • Fanfiction.net: This is a bit of an older site, but it does have a loyal following that continues to upload fiction to it. It was the big name before AO3 came along, and it has a lot of older fanfiction from before AO3's time.
  • Wattpad: A fanfiction site famous for some of its most popular fictions being made into actual show adaptations. Has a more "professional" feel, and some content is paywalled.

Genre Awards (Lists of good stories!)

  • The Hugo Award: The Hugo Award is a broad-reaching award across both science fiction and fantasy. It presents awards not only for novels, but for anything from zines to novellas to graphic stories. This award is unique in that it is voted on by all members, and includes any work that is either written in, or translated to, English. This is considered to be one of the "big three" fiction awards, along with the World Fantasy Award and the Nebula.
  • Nebula Award: An annual award to recognize the best works of science fiction or fantasy in the United States.
  • Locus Award: This set of annual awards is voted on by readers and hosted by Locus magazine. It presents awards for Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Horror.

MY Recommended Books

  • "The Broken Earth" Trilogy by N. K. Jemisim: Not only my top series of science fiction, but possibly my top series of all time. Also one of the rare series where all books won a Hugo award.
  • "Neuromancer" by William Gibson: What I will say about this book is that even though it came out in the 80's, it is best approached almost as a period piece. The language and style differs from modern books heavily (despite the fact that the author made up some VERY futuristic sounding words), but it's still worth the read. This is THE book that founded the Cyberpunk genre.
  • "The Hitchhikers Guid to the Galaxy" Series by Douglas Adams: A hugely fun series, but it is somewhat older and so some of the humor feels a little aged. I'd say if you like 80's and 90's vintage and dorky humor (like I do), pick it up.

Short Stories n 'Zines

  • Clarkesworld Magazine: A long-standing staple in the science fiction community. This magazine has one award, but that's far too few. Definitely check it out if you're interested in pushing the boundaries of sci-fi.
  • Lightspeed Magazine: Very popular magazine with MANY different genres, but primarily it includes both science fiction and fantasy short stories.
  • GigaNotoSaurus: Publishes one fantasy or sci-fi short story a month!
  • Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine: Founded in 1949 (!) this magazine shares 20 stories every 2 months. A treasure trove of short stories.

Genre Awards (Lists of good stories!)

  • Bram Stoker Award: These awards have been given since 1988 in honor of Bram Stoker, the author of Dracula. They present awards for all sorts of fiction, from novels, to short fiction, to poetry.
  • The Aurealis Awards: These Australian awards have several categories for fiction in multiple genres, including horror. There's an award for the best Australian horror novel, horror novella, and horror short story.
  • Locus Award for the Best Horror Novel: Award presented by Locus Magazine to the best horror novel of the year. It can also sometimes include Dark Fantasy.

MY Recommended Books

  • Universal Classic Monsters: Okay, I recognize that this is not a book. Not even a single book, in fact, but many of the Universal Classic monsters (think Dracula and Frankenstein) were based on popular novels. This Wikipedia article does a great job of summarizing those films, and if any of those catch your fancy, I recommend taking a look. My personal favorite is Dracula (of course).
  • "The Shining" by Stephen King: This is a modern classic in horror as well. The first book I ever read where I felt genuine fear.

Short Stories n 'Zines

  • Nightmare Magazine: Includes both horror and dark fantasy, with the specific intent to publish a wide variety of different types of horror short stories.
  • Horror Magazine: One of the top horror magazines. They also have podcasts and artwork on their site, and a really wide selection of fiction, of course.
  • Apex Magazine: Focusing primarily on dark fantasy. They include short fiction as well as interviews with authors and nonfiction essays.

Genre Awards (Lists of good poems and anthologies!)

Short Stories n 'Zines

  • Poetry Magazine: Collection of poetry released on a monthly basis from the Poetry Foundation. Also includes their podcasts, events, articles, and videos.
  • Plume Poetry: Plume focuses on excellence in contemporary poetry. Poetry is presented in English, but international works are welcome.
  • American Poets Magazine:: Quarterly collection of poetry within America. Includes poems and essays by many different American poets.