Plugs

Kat Beyer has just illustrated a new children's book, The Poet's Journey, by Amirthi Mohanraj.

Read Rudi's story "Detail from a Painting by Hieronymus Bosch" at Behind the Wainscot.

"Drowning Atlantis" is a collection of new flash fiction by David Kopaska-Merkel, published by spechouseofpoetry.com.

Sara Genge's "story Godtouched" may be found in Strange Horizons.

Luc Reid's book Talk the Talk: The Slang of 65 American Subcultures is in bookstores now and is full of odd insights.

Jeremiah's latest story is "Captain Blood's B00ty" appears in Shimmer Magazine and can be read online here.

Edd Vick's latest, "Reb the First" may be found at Jim Baen's Universe.

Trent Walters has a poetry chapbook, Learning the Ropes, forthcoming from Morpo Press

Alex D M's latest story is "Jumping over the Moon" in Sporty Spec: Games of the Fantastic

Read Daniel Braum's story siteMystic Tryst at .

Ken Brady's most recent story "Tagging" can be read at Darker Matter.

Jason Fischer has a story appearing in Jack Dann's new anthology Dreaming Again.

Susannah Mandel's columns in Strange Horizons on the fantastic in classic literature can be found here.

Angela’s story ‘The Jacaranda Wife’ is appearing in Dreaming Again, and ‘The Hummingbird Heart’ is in the new Shimmer.

Jason Erik Lundberg's latest book (co-edited with Janet Chui), A Field Guide to Surreal Botany, has just been released, and can be ordered at SurrealBotany.net.

Jonathan is now co-editor of Behind The Wainscot.

« The Mad Scientist's Evil Twin | Main | POSTCARDS FROM PANDEMONIUM »

How Captain Mojo Struck the Wrong Note

by Kat Beyer

Powered almost entirely by whiskey and attitude, Captain Mojo’s ship "Chastity’s Bottom" sailed its way across the sky in search of trouble and rock 'n roll—but more importantly, in search of her.

The crew had sold all the cannon for hammocks and guitars. The First Lieutenant gave herself the nickname "Ten-Shot Hammond," the Second Lieutenant called himself "Six-string Butler," and everybody called the Third Lieutenant names that could not be printed in the presence of gentlemen—or ladies, for that matter.

They swept through the air, and the other travelers of the skies feared them, especially when they started to play.

"Tell us where she is," they would shout across the range of clouds, "or we will start a fifty-minute guitar solo!"

So folk in their air boats would lie rather than listen.

"She’s in the City of Rain!"

"She’s dead!"

"She’s joined a band and they’re on tour in the Twelve Currents!"

"She never wants to talk to you again, she hates you, and she wants all her sheet music back!"

"Who the heck are you looking for? Who is she?!"

Only fools asked this question: Captain Mojo would answer them in song, before he burst into tears and hurled empty whiskey bottles across the abyss between ships; he would tell them of her red, red hair, and her glow-in-the-dark tattoo, and her smile like a thunderhead looking for a fight.

The last whiskey bottle flung, he would always end by leaning his elbows on the gunwale and sobbing, "If you see her, tell her I meant it as a compliment!"


Post a comment