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Clarkesworld Magazine, Issue 218, November 2024
Clarkesworld is a Hugo and World Fantasy Award-winning science fiction and fantasy magazine. Each month we bring you a mix of fiction, articles, interviews and art. Our November 2024 issue (#218) fiction by Resa Nelson ("LuvHome™"), Claire Jia-Wen ("Mirror Stages"), D.A. Xiaolin Spires ("Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds"), A. W. Prihandita ("Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being"), E.N. Auslender ("Duty of Care"), Oliver Stifel ("The Slide"), Raahem Alvi ("Technicolor Bath"), and Michael Swanwick ("Unquiet Graves").Non-fiction includes an article by D.A. Xiaolin Spires, interviews with Nalo Hopkinson and Eliane Boey, and an editorial by Neil Clarke.
210 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 31, 2024
10 people are currently reading
32 people want to read
About the author
Neil Clarke
400 books398 followersNeil Clarke is best known as the editor and publisher of the Hugo and World Fantasy Award-winning
Clarkesworld Magazine.
Launched in October 2006, the online magazine has been a finalist for the Hugo Award for Best Semiprozine four times (winning three times), the World Fantasy Award four times (winning once), and the British Fantasy Award once (winning once). Neil is also a ten-time finalist for the Hugo Award for Best Editor Short Form (winning once in 2022), three-time winner of the Chesley Award for Best Art Director, and a recipient of the Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award. In the fifteen years since Clarkesworld Magazine launched, numerous stories that he has published have been nominated for or won the Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, Sturgeon, Locus, BSFA, Shirley Jackson, WSFA Small Press, and Stoker Awards.
Additionally, Neil edits Forever —a digital-only, reprint science fiction magazine he launched in 2015. His anthologies include: Upgraded, Galactic Empires, Touchable Unreality, More Human than Human, The Final Frontier, Not One of Us, The Eagle has Landed, , and the Best Science Fiction of the Year series. His next anthology, The Best Science Fiction of the Year: Volume Seven will published in early 2023.
He currently lives in New Jersey with his wife and two sons.
Additionally, Neil edits Forever —a digital-only, reprint science fiction magazine he launched in 2015. His anthologies include: Upgraded, Galactic Empires, Touchable Unreality, More Human than Human, The Final Frontier, Not One of Us, The Eagle has Landed, , and the Best Science Fiction of the Year series. His next anthology, The Best Science Fiction of the Year: Volume Seven will published in early 2023.
He currently lives in New Jersey with his wife and two sons.
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November 30, 2024Resa Nelson "LuvHome™" -- (3*) It's a feel-good story about a condo forcing its owner to perform some basic self-care. I suppose I appreciate the message, but it's pretty generic self-recrimination stuff.
Claire Jia-Wen "Mirror Stages" -- (5*) This one gave me all the feels of The Substance, with some nice Blade Runner 2049 imagery, but with the hard-hitting self-awareness of selling yourself hard. Honestly, I'm leaning to call this a gut-punch story for those willing to look hard at themselves.
D.A. Xiaolin Spires "Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds" -- (5*) I'm giving this 5 stars because of how it made me feel, giving me just the right kind of technological hopefulness, solar-punk, artistic awareness (glassblowing) and horticulture in a society that didn't destroy itself. So, thank you for this.
A. W. Prihandita "Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being" -- (5*) This one is likely going to be my choice for "best" anything. It's about understanding, or rather, about holding, caring for whatever you can never understand. It's a very beautiful story.
E.N. Auslender "Duty of Care" -- (3*) For the most of the read, I was struck by how much this was just about Simon and Garfunkel while doing monotonous maintenance in space. However, the end redeemed it.
Oliver Stifel "The Slide" -- (3*) This one was a bit weird for me. There was hardly anything SF or F about it. It WAS, however, a fine story about race car driving. Others will get more mileage out of this than me.
Raahem Alvi "Technicolor Bath" -- (4*) A rather creepy SF about post-life coping.
Michael Swanwick "Unquiet Graves" -- (5*) Easily my favorite of the month, and not just because it's by Swanwick, someone I've always enjoyed. The story, about post-death conversations and relationships, was a bright, vibrant story in a graveyard.
Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews might be interested in reading my own SF, I'm going to be open to DM requests. I think it's about time I get some eyes on them.
Arctunn.com
Claire Jia-Wen "Mirror Stages" -- (5*) This one gave me all the feels of The Substance, with some nice Blade Runner 2049 imagery, but with the hard-hitting self-awareness of selling yourself hard. Honestly, I'm leaning to call this a gut-punch story for those willing to look hard at themselves.
D.A. Xiaolin Spires "Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds" -- (5*) I'm giving this 5 stars because of how it made me feel, giving me just the right kind of technological hopefulness, solar-punk, artistic awareness (glassblowing) and horticulture in a society that didn't destroy itself. So, thank you for this.
A. W. Prihandita "Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being" -- (5*) This one is likely going to be my choice for "best" anything. It's about understanding, or rather, about holding, caring for whatever you can never understand. It's a very beautiful story.
E.N. Auslender "Duty of Care" -- (3*) For the most of the read, I was struck by how much this was just about Simon and Garfunkel while doing monotonous maintenance in space. However, the end redeemed it.
Oliver Stifel "The Slide" -- (3*) This one was a bit weird for me. There was hardly anything SF or F about it. It WAS, however, a fine story about race car driving. Others will get more mileage out of this than me.
Raahem Alvi "Technicolor Bath" -- (4*) A rather creepy SF about post-life coping.
Michael Swanwick "Unquiet Graves" -- (5*) Easily my favorite of the month, and not just because it's by Swanwick, someone I've always enjoyed. The story, about post-death conversations and relationships, was a bright, vibrant story in a graveyard.
Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews might be interested in reading my own SF, I'm going to be open to DM requests. I think it's about time I get some eyes on them.
Arctunn.com
partially-read
June 13, 2025Of this issue I only read, so far Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being by A. W. Prihandita, a novelette category story that won the Nebula award.
Far future, a very rare alien seeks a doctor, who finds the limitations of the software she uses (and extortionate fees charged) and oh there is a lesson there about the importance of connection and the evil of software licenses and companies licensing those. It won the Nebula, to me it seemed mediocre but hey what do I know? (Though I will argue that objectively it is too long for what is there, that we for example do not need so much about the houseplants but needed more about that concept of negative scholars and active rebellion and that our main character was a bit dim for an experienced practioneer..)
I am more and more out of synch with most awards particularly the Nebulas - the Hugos are still the awards which make more sense to me, maybe because there are more voters and it averages out bubbles of influence, maybe.
Far future, a very rare alien seeks a doctor, who finds the limitations of the software she uses (and extortionate fees charged) and oh there is a lesson there about the importance of connection and the evil of software licenses and companies licensing those. It won the Nebula, to me it seemed mediocre but hey what do I know? (Though I will argue that objectively it is too long for what is there, that we for example do not need so much about the houseplants but needed more about that concept of negative scholars and active rebellion and that our main character was a bit dim for an experienced practioneer..)
I am more and more out of synch with most awards particularly the Nebulas - the Hugos are still the awards which make more sense to me, maybe because there are more voters and it averages out bubbles of influence, maybe.
November 24, 2024
LuvHome™ by RESA NELSON, 3890 words
🏠🏠🏠🏠
“Naked except for her pink fluffy robe and slip-on shoes, Dyna stumbled when her own front door shoved her out into the condo building’s fourth-floor hallway.“
A sentient condo with an attitude™. Dyna has to figure out how to logic her way back into her apartment, whilst her condo is trying to improve her life… 😝
Mirror Stages by CLAIRE JIA-WEN, 5240 words
“The man in the navy Cosmo Corp suit calls it Self-Reconciliation Therapy, this place they’ve dumped you, where the walls are made of mirrors.“
💣
I bounced off the writing and struggled to understand the plot.
Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds by D.A. XIAOLIN SPIRES, 5010 words
“Around me polyglass that mimics birch, downy woodpeckers, and honeysuckle lay in piles, glittering from light from the fire as I reach into the solar kiln and pick out the remains of a goldfinch.“
🐦🤖🍞½
Climate fic and glass sculptures. Poetic. Nice scenes. A spot of smuggling and growing of heirloom somethings. Hm.
Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being by A. W. PRIHANDITA, 8730 words
💧💧💧💧💧
‘“Doc, there’s a . . . hole growing in me,” the alien said through the spherical interpreting machine hovering over them.“
An alien. Medical SF, it seems. But not really. A doctor is looking for a cure beyond what is known or allowed. Very nice. Lovely ending.
Duty of Care by E.N. AUSLENDER, 8490 words
🌍🌎🌏🌍
“The universe shines brilliantly in the sky when the atmosphere crunches under one’s feet.“
Post-apocalyptic. A wandering Earth and the last humans alive. Good, engaging story. The twist was unexpected and a little jarring, the ending felt disjointed. Still, I liked this and would pick up a sequel. It was depressing in the middle, but ended on a hopeful note.
The Slide by OLIVER STIFEL, 7940 words
🚘🚘
“Rally is a dance on wet gravel to the roar of six cylinders and the flutter of turbochargers but I say again, Rally is a dance.“
A story about car racing, a „South American War“ the US is leading against Brazil and a conspiracy. Very near future or potentially alternative history, other than that I am not sure what this is doing in a SF magazine.
Technicolor Bath by RAAHEM ALVI, 5820 words
☠️☠️
“I see you on the other side. Stardust. A strikingly blue supernova leaving drift tracks in my night sky.“
A story about loss and death and uploaded consciousness. The glimpses of the character and her partner going through the process were interesting, but I didn’t like how the story was told and skimmed.
Unquiet Graves by MICHAEL SWANWICK, 3130 words
🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦
“George Massey drove up the twisty roads of Granite Hill Cemetery with a fresh new body in the trunk of his eCar.“
How about self-aware programs mimicking people instead of uploading a consciousness? George visits his dad and wife at the cemetery. This one I really liked. Nice amount of black humour. Fun to read. I have read something else by Swanwick that I liked, so I had a look and just added his The Dragons of Babel to my want-to-read shelf, as it‘s included in my Audible subscription.
Martial Arts and Fight Scenes in Zero-G: Research, Training, and Depictions in Film and Reality TV by D.A. XIAOLIN SPIRES, non-fiction
🥋🥋🥋🥋
The title says it all. Besides other things, NASA and their huge water pool for astronaut training made an appearance. This was interesting.
🏠🏠🏠🏠
“Naked except for her pink fluffy robe and slip-on shoes, Dyna stumbled when her own front door shoved her out into the condo building’s fourth-floor hallway.“
A sentient condo with an attitude™. Dyna has to figure out how to logic her way back into her apartment, whilst her condo is trying to improve her life… 😝
Mirror Stages by CLAIRE JIA-WEN, 5240 words
“The man in the navy Cosmo Corp suit calls it Self-Reconciliation Therapy, this place they’ve dumped you, where the walls are made of mirrors.“
💣
I bounced off the writing and struggled to understand the plot.
Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds by D.A. XIAOLIN SPIRES, 5010 words
“Around me polyglass that mimics birch, downy woodpeckers, and honeysuckle lay in piles, glittering from light from the fire as I reach into the solar kiln and pick out the remains of a goldfinch.“
🐦🤖🍞½
Climate fic and glass sculptures. Poetic. Nice scenes. A spot of smuggling and growing of heirloom somethings. Hm.
Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being by A. W. PRIHANDITA, 8730 words
💧💧💧💧💧
‘“Doc, there’s a . . . hole growing in me,” the alien said through the spherical interpreting machine hovering over them.“
An alien. Medical SF, it seems. But not really. A doctor is looking for a cure beyond what is known or allowed. Very nice. Lovely ending.
Duty of Care by E.N. AUSLENDER, 8490 words
🌍🌎🌏🌍
“The universe shines brilliantly in the sky when the atmosphere crunches under one’s feet.“
Post-apocalyptic. A wandering Earth and the last humans alive. Good, engaging story. The twist was unexpected and a little jarring, the ending felt disjointed. Still, I liked this and would pick up a sequel. It was depressing in the middle, but ended on a hopeful note.
The Slide by OLIVER STIFEL, 7940 words
🚘🚘
“Rally is a dance on wet gravel to the roar of six cylinders and the flutter of turbochargers but I say again, Rally is a dance.“
A story about car racing, a „South American War“ the US is leading against Brazil and a conspiracy. Very near future or potentially alternative history, other than that I am not sure what this is doing in a SF magazine.
Technicolor Bath by RAAHEM ALVI, 5820 words
☠️☠️
“I see you on the other side. Stardust. A strikingly blue supernova leaving drift tracks in my night sky.“
A story about loss and death and uploaded consciousness. The glimpses of the character and her partner going through the process were interesting, but I didn’t like how the story was told and skimmed.
Unquiet Graves by MICHAEL SWANWICK, 3130 words
🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦
“George Massey drove up the twisty roads of Granite Hill Cemetery with a fresh new body in the trunk of his eCar.“
How about self-aware programs mimicking people instead of uploading a consciousness? George visits his dad and wife at the cemetery. This one I really liked. Nice amount of black humour. Fun to read. I have read something else by Swanwick that I liked, so I had a look and just added his The Dragons of Babel to my want-to-read shelf, as it‘s included in my Audible subscription.
Martial Arts and Fight Scenes in Zero-G: Research, Training, and Depictions in Film and Reality TV by D.A. XIAOLIN SPIRES, non-fiction
🥋🥋🥋🥋
The title says it all. Besides other things, NASA and their huge water pool for astronaut training made an appearance. This was interesting.
June 14, 2025
I read "Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being" by A. W. Prihandita. It was lovely.
December 18, 2024
As always, more comprehensive reviews here. I want to say that I really enjoy Neil Clarke's little check-ins at the end - I like to hear how the magazine and the industry are doing in general, so they're always interesting. Happy to hear the magazine is on more solid ground!
Favorite story: Technicolor Bath, which was so good I'd give it more than 5 stars if I could. Emotionally devastating. Loving and letting go - accepting the change in yourself and others, in life and in death. The little details really got to me. I can't expound on this too greatly because I am at work and I don't want to start crying again, but the desperation of loving someone enough to hurt them, hurting them because you love them, comes through with cutting clarity. I really, really enjoyed it, in the sense that it made me cry so hard I had to go wash my face afterwards.
Runner-up: Mirror Stages. 5 stars. It's a testament to Technicolor Bath that I almost forgot about this one until I looked over my reviews. Delicately told, with spun-glass worldbuilding that lets you fill in the gaps as you please. Toes that line between the real and the unreal perfectly; cyberpunky in a terrifyingly realistic way. Compelling characters, great story, delightfully edible sensory descriptions, if I may say.
Least favorite story: I have to say Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds, even though normally I try not to count ones I skipped entirely... everything else in this book more or less passed muster. I just found it tedious. I didn't enjoy the style of writing, and I often find that ecopunk/solarpunk like this misses the mark for me with its kumbaya vibe. I know some people find the hopefulness soothing but it's simply not for me.
Favorite story: Technicolor Bath, which was so good I'd give it more than 5 stars if I could. Emotionally devastating. Loving and letting go - accepting the change in yourself and others, in life and in death. The little details really got to me. I can't expound on this too greatly because I am at work and I don't want to start crying again, but the desperation of loving someone enough to hurt them, hurting them because you love them, comes through with cutting clarity. I really, really enjoyed it, in the sense that it made me cry so hard I had to go wash my face afterwards.
Runner-up: Mirror Stages. 5 stars. It's a testament to Technicolor Bath that I almost forgot about this one until I looked over my reviews. Delicately told, with spun-glass worldbuilding that lets you fill in the gaps as you please. Toes that line between the real and the unreal perfectly; cyberpunky in a terrifyingly realistic way. Compelling characters, great story, delightfully edible sensory descriptions, if I may say.
Least favorite story: I have to say Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds, even though normally I try not to count ones I skipped entirely... everything else in this book more or less passed muster. I just found it tedious. I didn't enjoy the style of writing, and I often find that ecopunk/solarpunk like this misses the mark for me with its kumbaya vibe. I know some people find the hopefulness soothing but it's simply not for me.
July 1, 2025
Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being
by A.W. Prihandita
A lovely story about loss of language, tyrany of bureaucratic state, marginalisation and being seen for who you really are. I really enjoyed this one. I think it would appeal to fans of Becky Chambers and Annalee Newitz. This was my first story by this Indonesian Author and I'm going to be reading more by her for sure.
Read for free here: https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/prih...
Listen to an audio version here: https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/audi...
BRed at WBtM: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
A lovely story about loss of language, tyrany of bureaucratic state, marginalisation and being seen for who you really are. I really enjoyed this one. I think it would appeal to fans of Becky Chambers and Annalee Newitz. This was my first story by this Indonesian Author and I'm going to be reading more by her for sure.
Read for free here: https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/prih...
Listen to an audio version here: https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/audi...
BRed at WBtM: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
November 9, 2024
A better than average issue, with interesting stories by Resa Nelson, A. W. Prihandita, E.N. Auslender and a funny one by Michael Swanwick.
- "LuvHome™" by Resa Nelson: a humorous story of a home that locks its owner out 'for her own good'. Left with little choice, she explores the neighborhood, something she hasn't done since moving in, and starts to discover she likes being out and about.
- "Mirror Stages" by Claire Jia-Wen: a fashion model in the future reflects on the life she had and what she had to do to get to where she is now.
- "Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds" by D.A. Xiaolin Spires: a story set in a future where the world is recovering from the climate crisis, an artist who works with glass is asked to help transport a rare seedling using her portable (and intelligent) annealer to keep the seedling in a controlled environment.
- "Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being" by A. W. Prihandita: an interesting story of a doctor who get an alien patient with an unexplained condition. Trained only to do diagnosis using a diagnostic machine, she is forced to not use the machine (which is against the medical rules) as the alien and its condition are not listed. What she discovers, by listening to the patient, is a condition that requires a special treatment from a companion: one that she can give is she is willing to continue breaking the rules.
- "Duty of Care" by E.N. Auslender: a touching story of a future where the Earth is no longer inhabitable after being flung out of the solar system by an encounter with a rogue planet. The last two people on Earth maintain a signal array, in hopes of contacting the fleet of ships that left many years ago. But an event would change what one person would know about the actual history of the ships and what really happened to the Earth.
- "The Slide" by Oliver Stifel: the story about a World Rally and a racer preparing for it. But in this world, reality intrudes in the form of an ongoing war, which the racer later discovers may be an instigator of the war. Sadly, her brother was involved in the war, and now she has to decide whether to continue racing to further the cause of the war, or honour her brother.
- "Technicolor Bath" by Raahem Alvi: a story about two people, one of whom gets uploaded into a cloud storage. Questions of identity and taking care of the uploaded personality get asked in story.
- "Unquiet Graves" by Michael Swanwick: a humorous story of a man who visits a graveyard with the intention of uploading the personality of his wife into a new body. The wife doesn't like the idea, and neither does the dead father of the man. A twist at the end of the story reveals that not all dead personalities deserve to be revived.
- "LuvHome™" by Resa Nelson: a humorous story of a home that locks its owner out 'for her own good'. Left with little choice, she explores the neighborhood, something she hasn't done since moving in, and starts to discover she likes being out and about.
- "Mirror Stages" by Claire Jia-Wen: a fashion model in the future reflects on the life she had and what she had to do to get to where she is now.
- "Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds" by D.A. Xiaolin Spires: a story set in a future where the world is recovering from the climate crisis, an artist who works with glass is asked to help transport a rare seedling using her portable (and intelligent) annealer to keep the seedling in a controlled environment.
- "Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being" by A. W. Prihandita: an interesting story of a doctor who get an alien patient with an unexplained condition. Trained only to do diagnosis using a diagnostic machine, she is forced to not use the machine (which is against the medical rules) as the alien and its condition are not listed. What she discovers, by listening to the patient, is a condition that requires a special treatment from a companion: one that she can give is she is willing to continue breaking the rules.
- "Duty of Care" by E.N. Auslender: a touching story of a future where the Earth is no longer inhabitable after being flung out of the solar system by an encounter with a rogue planet. The last two people on Earth maintain a signal array, in hopes of contacting the fleet of ships that left many years ago. But an event would change what one person would know about the actual history of the ships and what really happened to the Earth.
- "The Slide" by Oliver Stifel: the story about a World Rally and a racer preparing for it. But in this world, reality intrudes in the form of an ongoing war, which the racer later discovers may be an instigator of the war. Sadly, her brother was involved in the war, and now she has to decide whether to continue racing to further the cause of the war, or honour her brother.
- "Technicolor Bath" by Raahem Alvi: a story about two people, one of whom gets uploaded into a cloud storage. Questions of identity and taking care of the uploaded personality get asked in story.
- "Unquiet Graves" by Michael Swanwick: a humorous story of a man who visits a graveyard with the intention of uploading the personality of his wife into a new body. The wife doesn't like the idea, and neither does the dead father of the man. A twist at the end of the story reveals that not all dead personalities deserve to be revived.
July 6, 2025
I really liked and would recommend "Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being" by A. W. Prihandita from this issue. Plenty of food for thought in the other stories, though "LuvHome™" from Nelson and "Unquiet Graves" from Swanwick were the funniest ones.
June 18, 2025
interesting that this issue is all science fiction
LuvHome™ by Resa Nelson
It's good to go outside sometimes, even when technology can make you be comfortable inside. I need this app for my house! 4 ⭐
Mirror Stages by Claire Jia-Wen
This is a bit dark, about exploiting someone who is considered invaluable for research. I love that when she sees the mirror, she sees herself. 3 ⭐
Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being by A. W. Prihandita
Two subplots here: criticism of healthcare, and knowing something unknowable, which leads to accessible healthcare. The writing, and the subtle nuance is everything I love in stories. 4 ⭐
Unquiet Graves by Michael Swanwick
Just let the dead stay dead ffs. 3 ⭐
Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds by D.A. Xiaolin Spires ❌
Duty of Care by E.N. Auslender❌
The Slide by Oliver Stifel ❌
Technicolor Bath by Raahem Alvi ❌
LuvHome™ by Resa Nelson
It's good to go outside sometimes, even when technology can make you be comfortable inside. I need this app for my house! 4 ⭐
Mirror Stages by Claire Jia-Wen
This is a bit dark, about exploiting someone who is considered invaluable for research. I love that when she sees the mirror, she sees herself. 3 ⭐
Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being by A. W. Prihandita
Two subplots here: criticism of healthcare, and knowing something unknowable, which leads to accessible healthcare. The writing, and the subtle nuance is everything I love in stories. 4 ⭐
Unquiet Graves by Michael Swanwick
Just let the dead stay dead ffs. 3 ⭐
Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds by D.A. Xiaolin Spires ❌
Duty of Care by E.N. Auslender❌
The Slide by Oliver Stifel ❌
Technicolor Bath by Raahem Alvi ❌
November 16, 2024
A collection of eight short stories unified by a theme of how we care for each other and the world...or at least, what we care about each other. Various forms of therapy appear...and two of these stories mention war between the United States and Brazil. There is also an interesting essay on zero-gee martial arts and interviews with Nalo Hopkinson and Eliane Boey.
"LuvHome™" by Resa Nelson is a story about a woman who is locked out of her apartment by her apartment so she can learn to be happier in a robotic, controlling manner. 3/5
"Mirror Stages" by Claire Jia-Wen is about eating disorders and body dysmorphia fueled by destitution and virtual technology. 3/5
"Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds" by D.A. Xiaolin Spires is a story following a glass maker who gets involved smuggling illegal seeds. 3/5
"Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being" by A. W. Prihandita is a story about a physician in the future trying to help an alien. This is one of the strongest stories in the issue. It also mixes in a terrifying vision of future medicine where doctors can't use intuition and judgement to make a diagnose and do what is best for a patient, but rely on a digital diagnostic system. This story made me angry, sad, and cheerful at the prospect that healthcare in the future is guaranteed to have a multitude more problems than now. 4/5
"Duty of Care" by E.N. Auslender follows the last two humans on Earth and their AI caretaker who is helping them survive. 4/5
"The Slide" by Oliver Stifel follows a man who races cars to the joy of the nation while the U.S. is at war with Brazil. 3/5
"Technicolor Bath" by Raahem Alvi is another stand-out piece where a lover has had her girlfriend's consciousness digitized post-mortem to recreate her. This definitely merits several reads. The language is beautiful. 4/5
"Unquiet Graves" by Michael Swanwick also deals with digitization after death. In this case, cemeteries can hold on to the personalities of our family and loved ones, so we can still talk to a facet of them. That doesn't mean we will enjoy the conversation. 4/5
"LuvHome™" by Resa Nelson is a story about a woman who is locked out of her apartment by her apartment so she can learn to be happier in a robotic, controlling manner. 3/5
"Mirror Stages" by Claire Jia-Wen is about eating disorders and body dysmorphia fueled by destitution and virtual technology. 3/5
"Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds" by D.A. Xiaolin Spires is a story following a glass maker who gets involved smuggling illegal seeds. 3/5
"Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being" by A. W. Prihandita is a story about a physician in the future trying to help an alien. This is one of the strongest stories in the issue. It also mixes in a terrifying vision of future medicine where doctors can't use intuition and judgement to make a diagnose and do what is best for a patient, but rely on a digital diagnostic system. This story made me angry, sad, and cheerful at the prospect that healthcare in the future is guaranteed to have a multitude more problems than now. 4/5
"Mr. Txyzna, I'm sorry, but my health model apparently isn't equipped to diagnose illnesses of your species. Would you want me to refer you to another doctor?"..."You can always just diagnose his illness on your own," Mrs. Achterberg said. "That's illegal"
This was a person who had a heart like storm clouds and salt, who spoke in a symphony of ocean waves.
"Duty of Care" by E.N. Auslender follows the last two humans on Earth and their AI caretaker who is helping them survive. 4/5
"I just want to control something, for once. Just once. Even if it leads me nowhere at all."
"The Slide" by Oliver Stifel follows a man who races cars to the joy of the nation while the U.S. is at war with Brazil. 3/5
"Technicolor Bath" by Raahem Alvi is another stand-out piece where a lover has had her girlfriend's consciousness digitized post-mortem to recreate her. This definitely merits several reads. The language is beautiful. 4/5
"My biggest fear, huh? I guess my biggest fear is walking through my front door, seeing and not recognizing you. Then myself. Then the home I sit in and the life we're living. And having all of that coalesce into falling out of love with you."
Feeling is an experience associated with organic human senses. Feeling is a bit different digitally. Your consciousness will perceive colors and codes which imitate warm, happiness, love. You're still getting used to it.
"Miss Ijazi, the organism is an animal. It is not human. Humanity is your thoughts. Humanity is a psychological phenomenon. When you proclaim your humanity, the one speaking is you, not the organism. The organism is a host for your consciousness. Everything that comprises the sum of all parts of your humanity is here in El Paraiso."
The organism is the one who felt Neha. The organism is the one who wanted to make love to her. The organism is the one who craved her lips and her tongue. I just showed it how and kept the conversation going. and Neha, the organism, is the one who wanted Sumaira. The organism is gone. She doesn't recognize me.'
"Unquiet Graves" by Michael Swanwick also deals with digitization after death. In this case, cemeteries can hold on to the personalities of our family and loved ones, so we can still talk to a facet of them. That doesn't mean we will enjoy the conversation. 4/5
October 4, 2025
I enjoyed the stories in this issue very much, especially “Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being” by Anselma Widha Prihandita.
LuvHomeTM by Resa Nelson - Near future with smart homes…or shall we say smartass homes? Sometimes AI is good for you. A fun story! 4.3 stars.
Mirror Stages by Claire Jia-Wen - a world of algorithms and a new reality they create. This story has many interesting things to say, but arrives there in too convoluted a way. 3.5 stars.
Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds by D.A. Xiolin Spires - a story about reversing climate change, glass artists, seeds, and bots. It’s wonderful and poetic. 4.8 stars.
Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being by Anselma Widha Prihandita - an alien comes to a human doctor seeking help. This is a wonderful and luminous story of friendship, memory, and courage. Loved it. 5 stars.
Duty of Care by E.N. Auslender - this one is about the last two humans left on Earth (after humanity departed) and their AI. Nice, 4 stars.
The Slide by Oliver Stifel - near future: there is a World Rally, there is a horrific war. Slightly too ”obvious” for my taste, but it did make me emotional. An encouraging hurray to a young author! 3.8 stars.
Technicolor Bath by Raahem Alvi - let’s digitalize human consciousness. This is a horror story. It is heartbreaking and maybe beautiful. 4 stars.
Unquiet Graves by Michael Swanwick - a digital version of you behind a gravestone? It can talk to people? This universe has this. A very short story with lots of twists and turns. Macabre! I liked it. 4 stars.
LuvHomeTM by Resa Nelson - Near future with smart homes…or shall we say smartass homes? Sometimes AI is good for you. A fun story! 4.3 stars.
Mirror Stages by Claire Jia-Wen - a world of algorithms and a new reality they create. This story has many interesting things to say, but arrives there in too convoluted a way. 3.5 stars.
Luminous Glass, Vibrant Seeds by D.A. Xiolin Spires - a story about reversing climate change, glass artists, seeds, and bots. It’s wonderful and poetic. 4.8 stars.
Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being by Anselma Widha Prihandita - an alien comes to a human doctor seeking help. This is a wonderful and luminous story of friendship, memory, and courage. Loved it. 5 stars.
Duty of Care by E.N. Auslender - this one is about the last two humans left on Earth (after humanity departed) and their AI. Nice, 4 stars.
The Slide by Oliver Stifel - near future: there is a World Rally, there is a horrific war. Slightly too ”obvious” for my taste, but it did make me emotional. An encouraging hurray to a young author! 3.8 stars.
Technicolor Bath by Raahem Alvi - let’s digitalize human consciousness. This is a horror story. It is heartbreaking and maybe beautiful. 4 stars.
Unquiet Graves by Michael Swanwick - a digital version of you behind a gravestone? It can talk to people? This universe has this. A very short story with lots of twists and turns. Macabre! I liked it. 4 stars.
March 2, 2025
A review of A. W. Prihandita's luminescent "Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being", in which Practitioner-doctor Semau, on the planet of Nusatara finds that Interspecies Health Model INT-HealthGTT version 8.5, the "AI' they are required to use to diagnose patient, ain't worth the quantum chips in its innards when called apon to diagnose a complaint bedevilling a member of a very rare alien species. Even an expensive expansion pack produces an all but useless 'sliver of silence'. Negative scholarship indeed.
And it is illegal for practitioner-doctors to freelance. Very illegal. And in seeking to assist this alien to describe and feel the indescribible and numinous, at a momentous and transformative time of their life, so to does Semau find a new and more useful vocation.
There are important themes in this story of the inherent risk of compelling the use of so-called 'expert systems' and losing our inherent quality of inspiration and thinking outside of the box. In an age of fanatical tech-bros all would up about their so-called 'AI' as yet another way of extracting value from the rest of us whilst enriching themselves. And Prihandita does it without slamming it into the reader with a sledgehammer, but rather with the ease of slipping into a swimming pool at sunset.
Winner of Clarkeworld's readers poll for best Novelette/Novella (work count is novelette).
You can find the story here https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/prih...
And it is illegal for practitioner-doctors to freelance. Very illegal. And in seeking to assist this alien to describe and feel the indescribible and numinous, at a momentous and transformative time of their life, so to does Semau find a new and more useful vocation.
There are important themes in this story of the inherent risk of compelling the use of so-called 'expert systems' and losing our inherent quality of inspiration and thinking outside of the box. In an age of fanatical tech-bros all would up about their so-called 'AI' as yet another way of extracting value from the rest of us whilst enriching themselves. And Prihandita does it without slamming it into the reader with a sledgehammer, but rather with the ease of slipping into a swimming pool at sunset.
Winner of Clarkeworld's readers poll for best Novelette/Novella (work count is novelette).
You can find the story here https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/prih...
December 11, 2024
A fairly good issue. The ones I enjoyed the most were LuvHome, Duty of Care and The Slide, with Duty of Care being the favourite of the bunch.
Duty of Care is a fairly classic "What is the (possibly evil) AI hiding?" story, but I think that it makes enough changes to the formula to keep it fresh and fun.
The Slide surprised me a bit with how well it managed to keep my interest. I thought that a story told from the perspective a racing driver would lose me quickly, but it worked out pretty well. I found that the ending lacked some substance though, and didn't quite succeed in motivating the events of the story.
I thought both Mirror Stages and Technicolor Bath had some promise, and they tackle some heavier topics. But I found that the way they were written didn't really connect with me, feeling a bit disjointed at times or just uninteresting. The main premise and story was good, but the execution didn't quite connect with me.
Duty of Care is a fairly classic "What is the (possibly evil) AI hiding?" story, but I think that it makes enough changes to the formula to keep it fresh and fun.
The Slide surprised me a bit with how well it managed to keep my interest. I thought that a story told from the perspective a racing driver would lose me quickly, but it worked out pretty well. I found that the ending lacked some substance though, and didn't quite succeed in motivating the events of the story.
I thought both Mirror Stages and Technicolor Bath had some promise, and they tackle some heavier topics. But I found that the way they were written didn't really connect with me, feeling a bit disjointed at times or just uninteresting. The main premise and story was good, but the execution didn't quite connect with me.
November 20, 2024
I read the Clarkesworld every month, I am just sometimes too slow to write a review.
My highlights this time were:
Raahem Alvi ("Technicolor Bath") and Michael Swanwick ("Unquiet Graves").
Technicolor Bath:
There are many stories about upload, but this one dives really deep into what it might mean for the person. How does it feel to think (and be) without a body? What are the thoughts like if they are virtual. What about memory? Personality?
Plus, many more details.
Unquit Graves:
The story is very funny and has some cool twists. There are three figures (some of them are dead, but that does not mean they cannot act any more) and there are some cool reveals during the story. I liked it a lot!
Reading the afterword I am glad that Clarkesworld is doing so great again after the big amazon-problem.
My highlights this time were:
Raahem Alvi ("Technicolor Bath") and Michael Swanwick ("Unquiet Graves").
Technicolor Bath:
There are many stories about upload, but this one dives really deep into what it might mean for the person. How does it feel to think (and be) without a body? What are the thoughts like if they are virtual. What about memory? Personality?
Plus, many more details.
Unquit Graves:
The story is very funny and has some cool twists. There are three figures (some of them are dead, but that does not mean they cannot act any more) and there are some cool reveals during the story. I liked it a lot!
Reading the afterword I am glad that Clarkesworld is doing so great again after the big amazon-problem.
August 18, 2025
Rating for A.W. Prihandita's Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being.
Imagine my surprise one morning when I heard that an Indonesian won a Nebula Award. We used to be practically nonexistent in the SFF sphere (well, the Awards ones) and we got a winner already?? I can't even remember reading any SFF published in English from any Indonesian author before. So finally, finally I had the chance to read this when my head and mind are more or less clear - and still riding my Worldcon excitement where we had some Southeast Asian-themed panels.
Ok so I read this. And I am really satisfied. This is a literary SF that is also compelling. I think the proses are beautiful and I love that it has a watery-kind of alien. I hope to read more of her works, I heard she's part of khoreo magazine now.
Read the story here: https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/prih...
Imagine my surprise one morning when I heard that an Indonesian won a Nebula Award. We used to be practically nonexistent in the SFF sphere (well, the Awards ones) and we got a winner already?? I can't even remember reading any SFF published in English from any Indonesian author before. So finally, finally I had the chance to read this when my head and mind are more or less clear - and still riding my Worldcon excitement where we had some Southeast Asian-themed panels.
Ok so I read this. And I am really satisfied. This is a literary SF that is also compelling. I think the proses are beautiful and I love that it has a watery-kind of alien. I hope to read more of her works, I heard she's part of khoreo magazine now.
Read the story here: https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/prih...
March 24, 2025
I'm only reviewing "Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being" by A. W. Prihandita This is such a great story about, among other things, finding your heart song to become known, and holding space for what is unknown, outside the boundaries set by official powers. Absolutely brilliant.
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April 13, 2025Nebula award nominee for best novelette:
“Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being” by A. W. Prihandita - pretty good
“Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being” by A. W. Prihandita - pretty good
June 10, 2025
NEGATIVE SCHOLARSHIP
ON THE FIFTH
STATE OF BEING
ON THE FIFTH
STATE OF BEING
July 2, 2025
Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being
Excellent novella.
Excellent novella.
July 14, 2025
(For 'Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being')
September 28, 2025
(4.5) for “Negative Scholarship on the Fifth State of Being” by A.W. Prihandita, which I read because it won the 2024 Nebula Award for Best Novelette. It is also a finalist for the 2025 Ignyte Award for Outstanding Novelette.
A doctor is presented with an alien patient for whom there is no diagnostic criteria. There’s a nice critique of medicine and medical systems in here, though that isn’t the focus of the story. I quite liked it, and among the handful of sci-fi novelettes I’ve read from 2024, I can see why this won the award.
A doctor is presented with an alien patient for whom there is no diagnostic criteria. There’s a nice critique of medicine and medical systems in here, though that isn’t the focus of the story. I quite liked it, and among the handful of sci-fi novelettes I’ve read from 2024, I can see why this won the award.
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