We have four fantastic new stories in this issue: “A Portal Fantasy for Grown-Ups” by Catherine George taps into the darker desires of a mother and wife as she explores the supernatural; “Bright Lights, Dark Millenium” by E. C. Dorgan, is a haunting tale of capitalism framed in the uncanny, and how we often lose ourselves in the pursuit of the unknowable; “The Bass Drops” by Rodrigo Culagovski, is a disorienting, visceral tale that won’t let up; and “Up on Pikes, Smoldering Clowns, Still Twitching” by J. Brian Reed—well, it tells you all you need to know right there in the title. As for reprints, we have one exceptional novelette by Brian Hodge, “It’s All the Same Road in the End.” This is a story and experience I haven’t been able to shake since I first read it many years ago, and it may be my favorite story of his to date. We have two original non-fiction essays this month: “How to Breakup with the Ghostly Partner You Did Not Ask For” by Ailyn Koay and “The Freakiest Phone Calls Ever” by Staci Layne Wilson. Both essays tap into strange and unexplainable phenomena with authority, humor, and haunting imagery. And finally, our reprint non-fiction is the Bram Stoker winner for Superior Achievement in Short Nonfiction: “Becoming Ungovernable: Latah, Amok, and Disorder in Indonesia” by Nadia Bulkin. It’s a powerful essay and we’re honored to reprint it at Gamut. And of course our fantastic cover art again this month is by Daniele Serra. Enjoy!
—Richard Thomas
Editor-in-Chief / Creative Director
