January, Bitch!

50_Veggie_Bacon

Nothing says “Celebrate!” like facon.

Not only is this our first issue of 2014, but it’s JDP’s FIFTIETH(!) issue, which is rather amazeballs for an online speculative fiction magazine, we think. In order to help you create a suitable party atmosphere, we have put together a soundtrack in the form of recommended song pairings for each story:

“Ash Wednesday” by Jacob Euteneuer: David Bowie’s “Ashes to Ashes” (It’s inevitable, of course, but some of us get there faster than others. “Dust in the Wind” might have stayed on theme slightly better, actually, but we like you too much to make you listen to Kansas.)

“Fox and Tiger” by Charlie Harmon: Green Jellÿ’s “Three Little Pigs” (Two fun, irreverent takes on classic fairy tales.)

“He Was, After All, a Gopher” by Andra Skaalrud: Simon & Garfunkel’s “Sparrow” (Different attitudes towards sparrows, same agonizing need for love and a home.)

“Are You Man or Aquatic Ectotherm?” by h. l. nelson: Bruce Springsteen’s “Cowboys of the Sea” (Imaginative, fishy fantasies. Charles Trenet’s “La Mer” would also work here.)

“Why’s Wally” by Mark A. Rayner: Rockwell’s “Somebody’s Watching Me,” featuring Michael Jackson (There’s a fine line between paranoia and being right about everything all along.)

Read, listen, enjoy.* A big thank you to all of our readers and contributors for fifty great issues, and here’s to a new year filled with more weird and lovely fiction!

*You can also go right to the full issue or download the .pdf.

Sparkly . . .

fireworks

Whee.

We plan to greet 2014 in the usual way: several boisterous rounds of Magic: The Gathering fueled by Klingon warnog and grilled cheese sandwiches, followed by something from the mid-80s’ Schwarzenegger oeuvre.

We’ll have a new issue ready for you in just a couple of days, and until then, there are plenty of excellent stories to read in the last issue of the year and among this year’s Pushcart Prize Nominees. After all, there’s nothing like the warm glow of an electronic screen on a cold winter’s night.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Chilly? Snuggle into the December Issue

tauntaun

We think these stories smell even better than a freshly sabered Tauntaun.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year: lakes of blood in the basement, death and mayhem in a convenience store, and being stuck in the endless halls of an empty hotel with only deteriorating, sentient snack machines for company. For you traditionalists, there is a special guest appearance from one of the season’s biggest stars. Consider yourself warned.

So grab a big ol’ cup of eggnog (or hot cocoa, if you are like me and find the idea of putting undeveloped chicken embryos in beverages disgusting), throw another log on the fire (and remember, if your landlord has a problem with that, then that lunkhead should have installed a fireplace in your apartment), and curl up with some good stories.