Cast of Wonders is the leading voice in young adult speculative short fiction. Every week we present short stories from some of today’s best genre fiction writers, featuring everything from hard science fiction, to urban fantasy, horror, steampunk, superheroes and more. Our stories are defined by their deep emotional resonance and that critical spark of wonder.
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Cast of Wonders is the leading voice in young adult speculative short fiction. Every week we present short stories from some of today’s best genre fiction writers, featuring everything from hard science fiction, to urban fantasy, horror, steampunk, superheroes and more. Our stories are defined by their deep emotional resonance and that critical spark of wonder.
Author : Thomas Ha Narrator : Rish Outfield Host : Katherine Inskip Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter First published in Clarkesworld in August 2023 Window Boy by Thomas Ha The tenth time Jakey broke the rules, he put a sandwich in the mailbox where the window boy could get it. Mom had taken her […]
Author : Rae A. Shell Narrator : Jordan Kurella Host : Katherine Inskip Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter Cast of Wonders 638: A Spell of Grief is a Cast of Wonders original. A Spell of Grief by Rae A Shell The library was closing in ten minutes. Lucas stared at the picture books, paralyzed by […]
Author : Catherine George Narrator : Kaitlyn Zivanovich Host : Katherine Inskip Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter First published in Translunar Travelers Lounge in February 2020 Calling on Behalf of the Dark Lord by Catherine George It’s only part-time — you can always quit if you don’t like it. That’s what you told yourself when […]
Author : Lyndsey Silveira Narrator : Kara Grace Host : Alicia Caporaso Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter Cast of Wonders 636: Whatever Remains of the Dead is a Cast of Wonders original. Gun violence, aftermath of a school shooting, grief. Whatever Remains of the Dead by Lyndsey Silveira I fish a black dress from the […]
Author : Ryan Cole Narrator : Joe Moran Host : Katherine Inskip Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter Cast of Wonders 635: What the God Mouth Wants is a Cast of Wonders original. Homophobia, body horror, risk of drowning What the God-Mouth Wants by Ryan Cole They call it a homecoming: when your own severed tongue […]
Author : J. L. Akagi Narrator : Essie Batz Host : Katherine Inskip Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter Cast of Wonders 634: Pearl Diving is a Cast of Wonders original. Pearl Diving by J L Akagi Makoto Matoba is enduring her third ever “scaly day” when her mother drives her down to the shore. She […]
Author : Jameyanne Fuller Narrator : Charlotte Moore-Lambert Host : Katherine Inskip Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter Cast of Wonders 633: Born in Flame and Song is a Cast of Wonders original. Born in Flame and Song by Jameyanne Fuller They will tell me, later, I was born singing. I wasn’t. I was born like […]
Author : P H Low Narrator : Rebecca Wei Hsieh Host : Katherine Inskip Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter First published in the anthology Death in the Mouth: Original Horror by People of Color, in October 2022 Image by StockSnap from Pixabay intrusive thoughts Tongue is a Void by P H Low enter Late at […]
Author : Jamie Lackey Narrator : Jason Arquin Host : Katherine Inskip Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter Cast of Wonders 631: Sometimes It Happens That Way is a Cast of Wonders original. Sometimes it happens that way by Jamie Lackey I stood on the platform bundled up in one of my pa’s old work coats, […]
Author : Kate Francia Narrator : Katherine Inskip Host : Katherine Inskip Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter First published in Augur Magazine issue 6.2 in December 2023. Poets of Painswick by Kate Francia Monday, 1st of June Dear Mama, I am sorry to tell you that Fanny is out hunting Poets again. It’s such a […]
Author : Eleanor Glewwe Narrator : Diane Severson Mori Host : Alicia Caporaso Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter Cast of Wonders 629: The Otter Woman’s Daughter is a Cast of Wonders original. Off-screen historical domestic violence The Otter Woman’s Daughter by Eleanor Glewwe In the stories, when the selkie finds her skin, she always leaves […]
Author : Charlie Jane Anders Narrator : Marguerite Kenner Host : Ryn Yee Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter First published in the anthology A People’s Future of the United States edited by Victor LaValle and John Joseph Adams, and in Cast of Wonders 593 in July 2024 Image by Mirko Stödter from Pixabay War, political […]
Author : Beth Goder Narrator : Katrin Kania Host : Alicia Caporaso Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter First published in Diabolical Plots, April 2024, and as Cast of Wonders 604 in September 2024 The Restaurant of Object Permanence by Beth Goder Kazia files a folder of correspondence and closes the manuscript box. She leaves the […]
Author : Liam Hogan Narrator : Matt Dovey Host : Becca Miles Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter Previously published by The Dragon’s Roost Press, December 2022, and as Cast of Wonders 601, August 2024 Episode image by intographics from Pixabay Bullying; implied neglect Bokrug and the Boy by Liam Hogan “You know we don’t […]
Author : Emma Victoria Narrator : Tanja Milojevic Host : Jeremy Carter Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter First published as Cast of Wonders 587, May 2024 The Game of Mao by Emma Victoria The Game of Mao has only one rule: don’t explain the rules to the game of Mao. It’s the only rule we […]
Author : A. W. Prihandita Narrator : Omega Francis Host : Katherine Inskip Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter Colonialism; Generational Trauma My Mother’s Voice and the Shadow by A. W. Prihandita I pressed my palm onto my chest and said, “Marie.” I pointed at my mother, took a deep breath and braved her abyssal eyes, […]
Author : Dan Peacock & Rachel Peacock Narrator : Mike Boris Host : Amy Brennan Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter First published as Cast of Wonders 583, April 2024 Image by Aleksandar Cvetanović from Pixabay The Cat That Worked From Home by Dan Peacock and Rachel Peacock Macaroni’s workstation is set up just the way […]
Author : Olivia B. Chan Narrator : Justine Eyre Host : Rebecca Ahn Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter First published as Cast of Wonders 582, April 2024 Bombs, terrorism Open Skies and Hellfire by Olivia B. Chan I liked to think of myself as a morally sound individual. It was easier to do when I […]
Author : Plangdi Neple Narrator : Brent Lambert Host : Katherine Inskip Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter First published in Cast of Wonders 580 in April 2024 Transphobia, abusive parents Bodies of Sand and Blood by Plangdi Neple Sneaking into your father’s shrine is one of the most stupid things you have ever done, yet […]
Author : Megan Ng Narrator : Amanda Ching Host : Denise Sudell Audio Producer : Jeremy Carter First published as Cast of Wonders 577, February 2024 Abusive relationships, dysfunctional families Fording the Milky Way by Megan Ng There’s a festival celebrated in China that’s dedicated to young lovers. It is not one celebrated here, but […]
Cast of Wonders is the leading voice in young adult speculative short fiction. Every week we present short stories from some of today’s best genre fiction writers, featuring everything from hard science fiction, to urban fantasy, horror, steampunk, superheroes and more. Our stories are defined by their deep emotional resonance and that critical spark of wonder.
