“There are three things I have learned never to discuss with people: religion, politics, and the Great Pumpkin.” — Linus Van Pelt

The good news is this special Halloween Issue doesn’t have very much to do with religion or politics; you can probably get your fill of both elsewhere these days. The bad news is the Great Pumpkin doesn’t make an appearance, but we do have plenty of great stories to keep you company while you wait in your favorite (and most sincere) pumpkin patch on Halloween night. We’ve got not one, but two ghost stories, some creepy Gaelic dog people, a really sad Scottish mermaid, one surprisingly sweet (for us) story about first kisses, and a Halloween magic show unlike any other.

No rocks here, folks. The October Issue of Jersey Devil Press is all treats.

Maybe it’s because we published two novellas last month, but for the September Issue we’ve decided to put the “short” back in short story. Twelve – count ‘em twelve – lovely little tales, none more than sixteen hundred words and most considerably shorter.

But just because they’re short doesn’t mean they don’t have big ideas at work: existentialism, transcendentalism, cultural genetics, time travel paradoxes, and the challenges of sobriety, to name a few. All that and alligator wrestling. It’s quite a ride, so make sure your jetpack’s strapped on tight and you’re wearing your sunglasses. Issue 34 of Jersey Devil Press is flashtastic.

Read it online, download the PDF, or just watch the Queen video.