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After the Fires
Reality burns away in this short story collection, revealing captivating, fantastical elements characteristic of Ursula Pflug. In this first collection of her extraordinary stories, worlds unfold like waking dreams where what was forgotten is remembered. The narrators accept these shadow worlds as their truth, seducing the reader into following to see what has been refashioned and lies waiting to be discovered.
150 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 2008
2 people are currently reading
27 people want to read
About the author
Ursula Pflug
36 books47 followersBorn in Tunis to German parents, Ursula Pflug grew up in Toronto and attended the University of Toronto and The Ontario College of Art and Design. She travelled widely, living on her own in Hawai'i and in New York City as a teen in the late seventies. Formerly a graphic artist, Pflug began concentrating on her writing after moving to the rural Kawarthas to raise a family with the internationally known new media sculptor Doug Back.
Her first novel, the critically acclaimed magic realist/fantasy Green Music was published by Tesseract Books in 2002.
Her long awaited story collection After the Fires was published by Tightrope Books in 2008. ATF received advance praise from Matthew Cheney and Jeff VanderMeer and an Honourable Mention from the Sunburst Award jury. It was short-listed for the Aurora Award.
Her second novel, the YA/Adult crossover The Alphabet Stones (Blue Denim, 2013) received advance praise from Charles DeLint, Tim Wynne-Jones, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, Candas Jane Dorsey, Jan Thornill and more. The Alphabet Stones was a finalist for the ReLit.
In 2014 a YA/Adult flash novel, Motion Sickness (illustrated by SK Dyment) appeared from Inanna, and was also a finalist for the ReLit Award. Motion Sickness received advance praise from Heather Spears.
In addition, a new story collection, Harvesting The Moon, was published by PS in Great Britain, with advance praise from Jeff VanderMeer and an introduction by Candas Jane Dorsey.
Also in 2014, Pflug`s first edited book, the fundraiser anthology They Have To Take You In, appeared from Hidden Brook Press. The beneficiary was The Dana Fund, administered by the CMHA, a no-overhead fund to benefit women and families in transition. THTTYI includes stories from Michelle Berry, Jan Thornhill, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, Silvia Moreno-Garcia and more.
2015 saw the publication of Playground of Lost Toys (Exile) co-edited with Colleen Anderson. Playground was shortlisted for the Aurora Award.
2017 and 2018 saw the publication of two novellas, Mountain and Down From (Snuggly). Mountain (Inanna) was a finalist for The Sunburst Award, and received advance praise from Heather Spears and Candas Jane Dorsey.
In 2020 her third story collection, Seeds, appeared from Inanna and received a starred PW review, as well as accolades at Black Gate and Strange Horizons.. 2021 saw the release of a new anthology, Food of My people, co-edited with Candas Jane Dorsey.
A writer of both genre and literary short fiction, Pflug has published over ninety stories in award winning publications in Canada, the United States and the UK, including Strange Horizons, Fantasy, Lightspeed, Now Magazine, The Nine Muses, Quarry, Tesseracts, Leviathan, Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet, Nemonymous, Back Brain Recluse, Transversions, Bamboo Ridge, Bandersnatch, Postscripts, Herizons, Chizine and many others.
She has had several solo or co-authored plays produced by professional companies, and was a contributing editor at The Peterborough Review for three years. Pflug’s first published short story, “Memory Lapse at The Waterfront” has been reprinted in After The Fires. Pflug wrote the script and storyboard for the short film version, directed by Carol McBride. “Waterfont” toured festivals and was purchased by WTN.
Pflug has received numerous Canada Council, Ontario Arts Council and Laidlaw Foundation grants in support of her novels, short fiction, criticism and plays. She has previously been a finalist for the KM Hunter Award, the Descant Novella Contest, the Three Day Novel Contest, the Aurora Award and others. She is a Pushcart Prize nominee.
Pflug mentors private clients in creative writing and has taught short fiction writing at Loyalist College, The Campbellford Resource Centre, and Trent University (with Derek Newman-Stille.)
For several years she was artistic director at Cat Sass Reading Series, in Norwood, Ontario, showcasing local, national, and international
Her first novel, the critically acclaimed magic realist/fantasy Green Music was published by Tesseract Books in 2002.
Her long awaited story collection After the Fires was published by Tightrope Books in 2008. ATF received advance praise from Matthew Cheney and Jeff VanderMeer and an Honourable Mention from the Sunburst Award jury. It was short-listed for the Aurora Award.
Her second novel, the YA/Adult crossover The Alphabet Stones (Blue Denim, 2013) received advance praise from Charles DeLint, Tim Wynne-Jones, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, Candas Jane Dorsey, Jan Thornill and more. The Alphabet Stones was a finalist for the ReLit.
In 2014 a YA/Adult flash novel, Motion Sickness (illustrated by SK Dyment) appeared from Inanna, and was also a finalist for the ReLit Award. Motion Sickness received advance praise from Heather Spears.
In addition, a new story collection, Harvesting The Moon, was published by PS in Great Britain, with advance praise from Jeff VanderMeer and an introduction by Candas Jane Dorsey.
Also in 2014, Pflug`s first edited book, the fundraiser anthology They Have To Take You In, appeared from Hidden Brook Press. The beneficiary was The Dana Fund, administered by the CMHA, a no-overhead fund to benefit women and families in transition. THTTYI includes stories from Michelle Berry, Jan Thornhill, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, Silvia Moreno-Garcia and more.
2015 saw the publication of Playground of Lost Toys (Exile) co-edited with Colleen Anderson. Playground was shortlisted for the Aurora Award.
2017 and 2018 saw the publication of two novellas, Mountain and Down From (Snuggly). Mountain (Inanna) was a finalist for The Sunburst Award, and received advance praise from Heather Spears and Candas Jane Dorsey.
In 2020 her third story collection, Seeds, appeared from Inanna and received a starred PW review, as well as accolades at Black Gate and Strange Horizons.. 2021 saw the release of a new anthology, Food of My people, co-edited with Candas Jane Dorsey.
A writer of both genre and literary short fiction, Pflug has published over ninety stories in award winning publications in Canada, the United States and the UK, including Strange Horizons, Fantasy, Lightspeed, Now Magazine, The Nine Muses, Quarry, Tesseracts, Leviathan, Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet, Nemonymous, Back Brain Recluse, Transversions, Bamboo Ridge, Bandersnatch, Postscripts, Herizons, Chizine and many others.
She has had several solo or co-authored plays produced by professional companies, and was a contributing editor at The Peterborough Review for three years. Pflug’s first published short story, “Memory Lapse at The Waterfront” has been reprinted in After The Fires. Pflug wrote the script and storyboard for the short film version, directed by Carol McBride. “Waterfont” toured festivals and was purchased by WTN.
Pflug has received numerous Canada Council, Ontario Arts Council and Laidlaw Foundation grants in support of her novels, short fiction, criticism and plays. She has previously been a finalist for the KM Hunter Award, the Descant Novella Contest, the Three Day Novel Contest, the Aurora Award and others. She is a Pushcart Prize nominee.
Pflug mentors private clients in creative writing and has taught short fiction writing at Loyalist College, The Campbellford Resource Centre, and Trent University (with Derek Newman-Stille.)
For several years she was artistic director at Cat Sass Reading Series, in Norwood, Ontario, showcasing local, national, and international
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 3, 2015
There have been some nice reviews including Sue Dyment at The Peterborough Examiner and Katelynn Schoop at the now sadly defunct Danforth Review.
"Pflug’s impressive control of language creates a manageable framework for the imaginative content of her stories in which reality is shifted slightly, turned on its axis. Characters confront the impossibility of true communication with another person as their various relationships are mediated or perhaps enabled by letter-writing, drugs, and parallel worlds. The highly visual and often abstract prose makes for an uneasy reading experience in which the narrative begins to interrogate the reader’s perception of reality. This is the kind of reading that requires a little, god forbid, work – it forces thought and reconsideration and discomfort in a great way. It’s often the case that writing that seems difficult or challenging on a formal level manages to best articulate the complexities of human life, and Pflug’s collection is no exception."
-Katelynn Schoop, The Danforth Review
"While the world Pflug creates is tensioned with useful allusions to oppression as well as cauchemar horror, the counter-placement of people next to unexpected objects and within strange settings is beautiful, bizarre and bleeding in a bright red way more dignified than a lie...
We know these characters, they are quizzical, human, endearing. They write letters on air-sickness bags, Saran Wrap, pages torn from magazines. They are our punk roommates, they discuss arrangements, want to bring one more friend to sleep over on the hideabed couch."
-Susan Dyment, The Peterborough Examiner
Here is the link to the rest of it.
http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.co...
Des Lewis on his British Fantasy Award nominated site:
https://dflewisreviews.wordpress.com/...
"Pflug’s impressive control of language creates a manageable framework for the imaginative content of her stories in which reality is shifted slightly, turned on its axis. Characters confront the impossibility of true communication with another person as their various relationships are mediated or perhaps enabled by letter-writing, drugs, and parallel worlds. The highly visual and often abstract prose makes for an uneasy reading experience in which the narrative begins to interrogate the reader’s perception of reality. This is the kind of reading that requires a little, god forbid, work – it forces thought and reconsideration and discomfort in a great way. It’s often the case that writing that seems difficult or challenging on a formal level manages to best articulate the complexities of human life, and Pflug’s collection is no exception."
-Katelynn Schoop, The Danforth Review
"While the world Pflug creates is tensioned with useful allusions to oppression as well as cauchemar horror, the counter-placement of people next to unexpected objects and within strange settings is beautiful, bizarre and bleeding in a bright red way more dignified than a lie...
We know these characters, they are quizzical, human, endearing. They write letters on air-sickness bags, Saran Wrap, pages torn from magazines. They are our punk roommates, they discuss arrangements, want to bring one more friend to sleep over on the hideabed couch."
-Susan Dyment, The Peterborough Examiner
Here is the link to the rest of it.
http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.co...
Des Lewis on his British Fantasy Award nominated site:
https://dflewisreviews.wordpress.com/...
November 27, 2011
If you want some bang for your buck, this is the book! This collection of shorts will take you into many worlds, and you'll find them coming back to you (or, perhaps, you will be going back to them) again and again in memory. I absolutely loved it!
Read
October 11, 2009A collection of strange, wonderful stories that immerse the reader in streams of fantastic experience in urban settings, carry you along, and then spit you back out.
August 13, 2010
I loved every story in this book...engaging, challenging, crafted with metaphorical brilliance and pleasurable to read. I could see myself or aspects of my life in every one.
January 21, 2021
For my personal taste, a mind-tantalising book, and when coupled with the ‘Harvesting the Moon’ collection, evidence of a significant North American short-story writer in the history of general literature, I propose.
The detailed review of this book posted elsewhere under my name is too long or impractical to post here.
Above is one of its observations at the time of the review.
The detailed review of this book posted elsewhere under my name is too long or impractical to post here.
Above is one of its observations at the time of the review.
March 21, 2009
Call me a literary slob, but I just don't get it. I understand the art of writing should always push the borders, delve into experimentalism. But, for me, like visual art, or any art for that matter, if we fail to communicate with our audience, if our art has become so internal as to be insular and isolated, if we fail to communicate, then our art has to some degree failed.
And that's how I feel about Ursula Pflug's incendiary, relentless anthology of speculative short stories, After the Fires.
Now, don't get me wrong; the stories are brilliant from a technical point of view. Pflug's work is reminiscent of what avaunt guard bad boys of the '60s and '70s like Harlan Ellison were doing. But as a reader, and perhaps after all not a very perspicacious one, Pflug's internalising and metaphor was lost on me. I felt adrift in her sea of gritty, dystopic worlds to the point I had no landmarks, no clues, no common points of reference by which I could steer and make sense of what I read. All I as left with was a sense of desolation, frustration and extreme oppression. And I still can't tell you really what the stories are about. Lost love? Perhaps. Social commentary? Maybe. Futuristic visions? Beats me. I can't really say the stories were definitely about any of that.
I can say Pflug's stories are deeply personal, shattered windows into her mind and world.
Would I recommend After the Fires? I'm not sure. Did I enjoy reading After the Fires? Definitely not. Would I look for anything else of Pflug's? Probably not.
However, if you, as a reader, enjoy the surreal, the incomprehensible, the gritty to the point of suicidal meanderings, then by all means read Pflug's anthology.
It should be noted After the Fires has been short-listed for the Prix Aurora.
And that's how I feel about Ursula Pflug's incendiary, relentless anthology of speculative short stories, After the Fires.
Now, don't get me wrong; the stories are brilliant from a technical point of view. Pflug's work is reminiscent of what avaunt guard bad boys of the '60s and '70s like Harlan Ellison were doing. But as a reader, and perhaps after all not a very perspicacious one, Pflug's internalising and metaphor was lost on me. I felt adrift in her sea of gritty, dystopic worlds to the point I had no landmarks, no clues, no common points of reference by which I could steer and make sense of what I read. All I as left with was a sense of desolation, frustration and extreme oppression. And I still can't tell you really what the stories are about. Lost love? Perhaps. Social commentary? Maybe. Futuristic visions? Beats me. I can't really say the stories were definitely about any of that.
I can say Pflug's stories are deeply personal, shattered windows into her mind and world.
Would I recommend After the Fires? I'm not sure. Did I enjoy reading After the Fires? Definitely not. Would I look for anything else of Pflug's? Probably not.
However, if you, as a reader, enjoy the surreal, the incomprehensible, the gritty to the point of suicidal meanderings, then by all means read Pflug's anthology.
It should be noted After the Fires has been short-listed for the Prix Aurora.
January 11, 2011
It was....mystifying. For the person who is analytical, this is not the book for you. This collection of short stories is well written and imaginative but it only really suited for the right brained type of individual. Time is often relative, one impossibility flows into the next to make something else altogether....and then that newly formed idea is seemingly dropped, never to appear again.
Is the lack of coherence artistic? Is there a deeper meaning that I'm just to mechanical to fleece out? Shrug. I'll never know.
Is the lack of coherence artistic? Is there a deeper meaning that I'm just to mechanical to fleece out? Shrug. I'll never know.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews