Fighting off that hot July weather...
...with some cool updates.
Welcome to the July edition of my free, monthly newsletter! Before I get into my most recent publishing news, I wanted to begin by addressing a question I often get. That question is, “Where can I find your work?”
I always find this question baffling because I feel like I promote my work quite a bit. I also include a Linktree in all my social media bios, and my website is my name. But somehow, even people close to me will miss what I assume is obvious.
With that in mind, I just wanted to point out that you can find all my work via my website pacornell.com. If you haven’t been there in a while, I’ve recently updated it with a cleaner look that’s easier to navigate.
There’s a page for my upcoming (and past) solo books and there’s a page listing my entire short fiction bibliography. I have another page for my non-fiction. I even have a page for all my stories that are free-to-read online. And yes, all these pages have links to make it easy for you to find what you’re looking for.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Now that we’re halfway through 2025, here are the things I’ve published so far this year that you may have missed:
Once Upon a Time at The Oakmont (reprinted in Nebula Awards Showcase 59)
Twelve Things the Will Occur Immediately Following Your Invention of Teleportation
Fire & Flight (Keep an eye out for the free-to-read version, coming soon)
So Many Things to See (free-to-read on August 22)
Feathers (Keep an eye out for the free-to-read version, coming soon)
RECENT FICTION SALES
Last month I sold another story to Short Édition. You may recall that they publish stories both online and through their story dispensers around the world.
For this second sale to them, the story’s called, “What Happened That Night.” It’s supernatural horror, if you’re into that sort of thing (and who isn’t?). I’m looking forward to seeing this one out in the world soon.
I also sold my SF story, “And I Will Read to You About Butterflies,” to Canadian magazine, Heartlines Spec. This is my first sale to them and I’m excited to see this story about the parent-child bond published at the end of this month.
FORTHCOMING PUBLICATIONS
I still have more stories coming out this year, and in the near(ish) future. Here’s what’s on deck:
COVER ART
As you may know, I have two books coming out in 2026. The first is my novelette, Shoeshine Boy & Cigarette Girl in February. Then in August my short story collection The Astronaut Among the Flowers and Other Stories will be published.
In the meantime, there’s still a lot of work involved behind the scenes, but one of the most fun things is working with artists for my covers. That’s one of the reasons I like working with Stars and Sabers Publishing, since they insist on working with human artists who don’t use AI in their process.
Artist Kim Herbst (whose clients include Google, Tor Books, National Geographic, and others) recently turned in final art for Shoeshine Boy & Cigarette Girl and it’s so great! I can’t wait for the cover reveal. She perfectly captured the retro-futuristic feel of this book. I’m excited for you all to see it.
Kim recently designed another cover for one of my fellow Stars and Sabers authors. Because of this, Stars and Sabers did a profile on her, which you can read here. I encourage you to check it out and get to know Kim’s work, which is outstanding.
And recently work has begun on the cover for The Astronaut Among the Flowers. I don’t want to say too much about the artist for this one yet, because there’s a bit of a story there that I’ll probably share when the cover is made public. Let’s just say this collaboration has been a long time coming, so it’s a bingo square I was thrilled to tick off.
FOR YOUR AWARDS CONSIDERATION
If you’re currently reading for awards consideration, you can find my eligibility post here. It includes information on many of the awards I’m personally eligible for, as well as all the details you may need when nominating.
There are links to the stories as well as links to their respective pages on the Nebula Reading List for those stories that have been added there, should SFWA members want to upvote them.
Those not in SFWA can still keep my work in mind come nomination time, of course, and if you really like any of my stories, social media shares are always appreciated to help me get more eyes on my work.
If you only have time to read one of my stories, the one I’d most like people to keep in mind for awards season is, “Through the Machine,” which came out earlier this year in Lightspeed magazine and was featured by Gizmodo.
Thank you in advance for reading.
THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY: “Face the Music”
*Warning. Spoilers ahead, so read the story first.
I talk a lot in this newsletter about stories that got their start during Codex’s annual Weekend Warrior contest. I’ve also mentioned that some of my stories were inspired by my kids. Well, this one is a combination of both, but it really starts with my daughter.
For most of her life, my daughter’s been pretty musical. From the womb, you might say, as I made sure music was part of her life when I was still pregnant with her and her twin. Later, I’d play music around the house or in the car, as did other family members, so it’s not surprising she grew up enjoying many different genres, and both vocal and instrumental forms of music.
She first performed live just before her twelfth birthday, and since has not only honed her vocal skills, but has also taught herself to play so many different instruments I can’t even remember them all to list them here.
So it’s not unusual to hear her singing or playing something as we go about our daily lives. And that’s how we discovered her super power.
That’s right, my daughter is the inspiration for “The Earworm.” She has some kind of supernatural ability to get a song stuck in just about anyone’s head. You can try to resist, to no avail. She doesn’t even need to sing the whole song, or a significant portion of it. Just a few notes—or even just a word or two from the title—are enough, and then you find yourself singing it in your head on a loop for the next three days.
So when I participated in Weekend Warrior 2023, and came across one particular prompt for round two of the contest, I knew what I had to write. That prompt was:
“What’s Your Superhero Name?”
I grew up with superheroes. In my childhood it was mostly the DC heroes. Superman and Batman, among others, introduced to me first through TV and film. But then Marvel made a comeback with the X-Men and the MCU and I’ve been watching those movies ever since too. I’ve read some of the comics, as well, and I’ve also read some superhero fiction written by other authors, but until “Face the Music” I’d never written a superhero story myself.
I’d floated around an idea of one day writing a story about superheroes with quirky powers, but it had never really materialized into a fully fledged plot. During the contest, all those elements came together, and the result is this story.
Fun Fact: The Earworm buys his pregnant wife a black forest cake. I included this detail because when I was pregnant with my twins, one of my main cravings was for this particular flavor of cake. I won’t tell you how much I ate of it in a single sitting, except to say that you should remember I was eating for three, and cut me some slack.
For a story that stems from a silly little concept, there’s a lot that’s personal behind it. The inspiration coming from my daughter, the detail of the cake from my past, even the fact that I too am at the age where the grocery store plays my jam. And yes, if you were to shop where I do, you might actually find me singing along as I push my cart up and down the aisles. I have no shame, in that regard.
When writing this story, I decided that while the superpowers would be lighthearted, the story itself would have some real serious undertones. Unlike in many, if not most, superhero stories, I decided not to include a villain. Instead the antagonist is just the unexpected toll the powers take on those who happened to get them. It’s random, and it’s tough for them to face, but that’s just how life is, sometimes.
It’s a harsh reality, but bad things do happen to good people. Through no fault of their own, and often with nothing they can do about it.
I know that sounds dark and depressing, but that wasn’t my aim when writing this. The ending isn’t the point. What matters more is what the characters (or any of us) do with the time we have before our end arrives. That’s what truly defines a hero, “super” or otherwise.
“Face the Music” ended up scoring fairly well during the contest, but despite that I wasn’t sure it would find a market very quickly. Superhero stories can be a tough sell. Many markets won’t consider them at all. So it was actually a very pleasant surprise when I managed to sell it after just a few submissions.
This story became my first sale to Factor Four, a magazine that has since bought two more stories from me, “Twelve Things that Will Occur Immediately Following Your Invention of Teleportation,” and “The Futility of Warning You.” I’ve come to think of Factor Four as the place to send these weird or quirky stories. I’m not saying they buy everything I send them, but they certainly seem open to a lot of stories that are maybe too offbeat for other markets.
For this same reason I enjoy reading what they publish. The stories are always fun, or strange, in the best way. Currently, I have another story sitting in their submissions queue. It’s another weird one, and hopefully one they’ll like so I can share it with you all soon. In the meantime, I hope you’ve enjoyed this one.
“Face the Music” was originally published in January 2024 in Factor Four.
I’ll be back with another newsletter in August. If you like what you’ve read so far and haven’t already subscribed, please do so. It’s free and this way you won’t miss anything.
P.A. Cornell