Aurealis #112

By Michael Pryor (Editor)

Aurealis #112 has a feast of tasty fiction—Michael Gardner’s juicy piece of Australian Gothic with ‘The Offering,’ Andi C Buchanan’s evocative offworld dream, ‘Under This Strange Sky’ and Russell Hemmell’s powerful yet nuanced ‘The Eobshin Song.’ Our absorbing non-fiction includes ‘The Guardian: a Tale by an Australian’ from Gillian Polack and the first part of a landmark interview with Fantasy giant, Raymond E Feist by Chris Large. With our stunning internal artwork and our lively and comprehensive reviews, Aurealis #112 raises the spec fic bar yet again.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chimaera Publications
• Release date: Jul 3, 2018
• ISBN: 9781922031693

Book preview

AUREALIS #112

Australian Fantasy & Science Fiction

Edited by Michael Pryor

Published by Chimaera Publications at Smashwords

Copyright of this compilation Chimaera Publications 2018

Copyright on each story remains with the contributor

EPUB version ISBN 978-1-922031-69-3

ISSN 2200-307X (electronic)

CHIMAERA PUBLICATIONS

Smashwords Edition License Notes

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Hard copy back issues of Aurealis can be obtained from the Aurealis website: www.aurealis.com.au

Contents

From the Cloud—Michael Pryor

The Offering—Michael Gardner

Under This Strange Sky—Andi C Buchanan

The Eobshin Song—Russell Hemmell

The Entertainer: An Interview with Raymond E Feist (Part 1)—Chris Large

The Guardian: A Tale by an Australian—Gillian Polack

Reviews

Next Issue

Credits

From the Cloud

Michael Pryor

Fantasy and Science Fiction are the best for a number of reasons. For a start, Fantasy and Science Fiction are the most challenging forms of writing to undertake. Fantasy and SF writers have to do everything that other writers do, like have convincing, multi-dimensional characters and engaging, lucid prose PLUS incorporate all the imaginative elements that are the hallmark of Fantasy and Science Fiction. Then they have to deal with the consequences of this, making sure they don’t fall foul of inconsistencies because of the scenario they set up at the beginning of their story. Fantasy and Science Fiction writers simply juggle more balls at the one time than other writers.

Also Fantasy and Science Fiction writers are the best because they get to deal with profundities.

Fantasy and SF are the Literature of the Profound. Writers who spend their times documenting the trials of everyday life don’t have the opportunity to grapple with the philosophical questions that have intrigued us all since the dawn of time. Who are we? What are we? Where did we come from? What makes us what we are? These fundamentals about our existence are meat and drink to Fantasy and SF writers as they imagine other worlds where Normal Rules Do Not Apply. Situations like this give them ample room to explore what it means to be human or the basis of moral choice or the place of aesthetics in our society.

Time to pluck an example. We can’t imagine a mainstream novelist producing a work that examines the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis of the interaction between language, culture and cognitive abilities, but that’s just what Jack Vance did in his 1958 novel The Languages of Pao by positing ruthless overlords who created a global experiment to test how imposition of languages could shape various societies into ultimate warriors, consummate merchants or brilliant scientists. Not only did Vance explore this fascinating possibility, but he embedded this speculation in a rattling good yarn.

One example, decidedly non-random, but our point is that Fantasy and Science Fiction don’t just allow exploring such matters, they actually enable this exploration. This is because one of the strengths of these related genres is their limitlessness. Nothing is out of bounds for a Fantasy or SF writer to speculate about. In fact, any hint of boundaries prompts Fantasy and SF writers to wonder what lies on the other side. They imagine. They create.

It helps, of course, that Fantasy and SF writers have the best readers in the world. That isn’t blatant sucking-up, either, even though it might sound like it. Whenever Fantasy or SF readers open a new book, they know that that they have to be on their toes, that they have to do some work. In this book, things will be different—and they have to read carefully to understand the world, the society, the magic system or the political milieu that the writer has created. Fantasy and SF readers are ready for this, and they rise to the challenge.

This of course, is the reason why one hears, so often, from non-genre readers who say about Fantasy and Science Fiction: ‘I couldn’t get into this.’ This is because they’ve become weak and flabby, unable to work even a little bit hard. Their reading antennae have been dulled by years of reading mainstream novels where they can take the setting for granted—and not be worried about having to keep up with anything as grubby as an actual plot.

Fantasy and Science Fiction readers work hard and are prepared to work hard. They know this is part of the unspoken pact they have with the writer of the book they have in their hands. They rise to the challenge of new worlds, new cultures, new social structures and new biologies because they understand the joy that comes of participating in such reading.

Writers and readers. They’re what make Fantasy and Science Fiction great.

All the best from the cloud.

Michael Pryor

Back to Contents

The Offering

Michael Gardner

I stood at the edge of the dam holding a small esky, surveying the dark water in which Tommy had disappeared six months ago. It was the first time I’d been back since that night and my stomach felt heavy and empty at once.

The heat of the day was oppressive. The air was filled with the scent of dry grass and eucalyptus, and the water was so still that it reflected a perfect image of the cloudless sky bordered by the surrounding gum trees—green blue leaves weeping lazily from white, mottled branches.

I flicked my fringe from my eyes, squinting against the harsh sunlight. I don’t know what I was hoping