Two Fic Tuesday for March 17th

Hi, hello and welcome!

I have two very different stories for you this week, but I think that's part of the fun of getting to share stuff with all of you each week. These both stirred feelings in me, though they were also very different. Still, each time I was pulled into strong emotions, and I thought that experience was valuable, so here we are.

Recs

Five Medicines You Found in the Garden of Unfinished Poems - Jenna Hanchey - Strange Horizons
This was just such a beautifully crafted story. It was lush and sprawling and alive, and I adored it. I love garden and growing themes, but also I'm such a sucker for when people talk about writing, or art, or anything like that. This married emotion with lovely words and I loved every moment of it.

Mr. ASMR - Sean Dowie -Hex
The concept of this story is strange and unsettling and I both hated and loved it. The world made me wince a little, but also there was a familiarity to part of having to live a life this way that unnerved me even more. At first, I didn't know if I liked this one because of how I came away from it, but it settled into something I truly appreciated and found myself wanting to share with others.

I wish all of you many good stories,

• Vale

PS: If you want to find me elsewhere, I'm on Bluesky at @howsweetthewords and I have a Ko-fi and Patreon where I post prompts, more personal/writing updates, microfiction, and miscellany. Tiers start at $1, but there is the occasional free post as well.Hi, hello and welcome!