Hey there! Somehow, it has been an age since I’ve updated this site. These things happen, and by the goddess do I have a lot to say about why it’s been happening at this point in time in particular…but let’s table that for another day, because there’s something I need to tell you about before my mind chases a bunch of squirrels off into the forest:
I have a book coming out next month! A short story in a new anthology, to be more precise: ZNB PRESENTS: YEAR TWO.
It’s a testament to how bad the case of burnout I’ve been dealing with has been that I’m only just now getting to talking about this, less than a fortnight before it releases. But hey, better late than never, right?
ZNB Presents is the online magazine component of Zombies Need Brains, an excellent indie fantasy and sci-fi publisher run by author Joshua Palmatier. Each month for the past two years, they’ve been debuting new short stories on their Patreon, each with a bespoke piece of art created to accompany it. ZNB PRESENTS: YEAR TWO collects all the stories and artwork from the magazine’s second year and binds them into an anthology for the first time, available in ebook and trade paperback.
My story, “Preserving Phylais,” is one of the stories in this anthology. It’s a sci-fi short story about a human colony struggling to adapt to life on a planet ruled by sentient plants, called Preservers. These Preservers are intrinsically linked to the ecosystem of Phylais, with an absolutist view about protecting their environment that puts them into conflict with humanity. Oh, and they communicate by latching onto your face and shooting hallucinogenic spores up your nose. Can’t forget that bit. It was probably inspired by the love of Alien nestled deep in my subconscious.
“Phylais” follows two characters: Elona, an acolyte whose job it is to serve as a diplomat between human and Preserver, and Miko, an engineering foreman whose life takes a sudden turn after the latest mandate from the plants.
If you follow me on Twitter you may have heard me talk about “Phylais” last year, when it was first published on the Zombies Need Brains Patreon. This anthology is the first time it’s being published in an actual book which you can put on your shelf or e-reader — plus it will be accompanied by its original artwork by Ariel Guzman. Needless to say, I’m super excited and can’t wait to share this release with you!
ZNB PRESENTS: YEAR TWO releases on July 1, 2024. You can preorder the trade paperback and ebook from the official Zombies Need Brains website. The ebook is also available for preorder on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo. (I believe the trade paperback will be available on Amazon on release day as well, but there’s no preorder for that.)
I’m looking forward to talking a bit more about ZNB PRESENTS: YEAR TWO and “Preserving Phylais” in the coming days, but for now I’ll let the official synopsis for the book close us out:
Welcome to the second year’s-worth of stories from the online magazine ZNB Presents published by the small press Zombies Need Brains. In these pages, you will find original science fiction and fantasy stories of awe and wonder, darkness and light, ranging through all of the subgenres, including urban fantasy, alternate history, space opera, future fairy tales, and more. They come from the most talented authors in the field today—new voices as well as trusted and familiar names. Join us as we explore visions of the past, present, and future, as we encounter strange new creatures, both in our own backyard, in the depths of space, and our own imagination. Here you will:
–Search for a cryptid in the mean streets of the city that tricks you into walking into its mouth
–Scavenge in a world where AI has passed the singularity
–Relive the scents of a recently lost world at a near-future carnival
–Fleece the rich in a South African suborbirail
–Hunt vampires in the crypts beneath the Kremlin with a saint by your side
–Bargain with the sentient plants in a precarious alliance on a colonized world
–Uncover the alternate assassin of Abraham Lincoln
–Concoct potions as an apprentice with just a touch too much flare
–Become an AI struggling to complete its mission after crashlanding on an alien world
And so much more! Twenty-four stories written by Daniel Roman, Ty Lazar, L.P. Melling, Nathan W. Toronto, Caias Ward, Jonathan Robbins Leon, Marie Vibbert, Rob Cornell, Mike Jack Stoumbos, J.L. George, Brian Hugenbruch, Andrew Gudgel, Alicia Cay, Elektra Hammond, Derrick Boden, Alma Alexander, Melinda Brasher, Louis Evans, Niall Spain, Brian Crenshaw, S.C. Butler, Sam Robb, Liam Hogan, and Christine Lucas, each with its own illustration by artists Kat D’Andrea, Ariel Guzman, or Greg Uchrin.
Welcome to the multifaceted worlds of ZNB Presents.
Find us on Patreon at: http://www.patreon.com/zombiesneedbrains
Daniel Roman 