My story, “The Great Game at the End of the World” is up now at Hex Publishers. After a bizarre apocalypse that shatters Russell’s neighborhood into floating chunks of property and unleashes horrid creatures into the world, he must protect his sister Jenna at all costs, even if that means giving up everything he loves. Here’s the intro paragraph:
The Creepy playing second base is a hell of a fielder, but his arm’s for shit, so they can forget about the double-play. My sister Jenna swings a doughnutted bat in the on-deck circle, chewing strawberry gum we found in the drawer of a wrecked house, her Mets cap turned around backwards, her yellow hair flowing in the constant breeze. Seeing her like this makes me happy. She shouts at the Ken up at bat, “You’d better hit the goddamned ball, loser!” Mom wouldn’t ever let that language fly. Jenna’s only ten. But I let it slide. Lately, I let everything slide.
The Creepies’ pitcher looks like a seven-foot tall furless cat with giant yellow eyes that glow no matter what angle you look at them, and rows and rows of toothpick teeth longer than my fingers. But her arm’s the real killer. She’s struck out four batters already, and it’s only the third inning. (These Creepies learn fast.) Bottom of the third inning, actually, and the last. Three innings was all we could coax from these creatures who seem to be more interested in the strange stars spinning wildly above the field than the game. Its Jenna, me, the Kens and Barbies vs. the Creepies, and we’re down, 1-0.
You can read the full story here.
Also, my story “The Last Novelist,” which will appear at Tor.com on March 15, 2017, is now available for pre-order. Here’s the jacket copy:
“The Last Novelist (or A Dead Lizard in the Yard)” by Matthew Kressel is a science fiction story about a dying writer who is trying to finish one final novel on the distant planet he settles on for his demise. His encounter with a young girl triggers a last burst of creativity.
You can purchase your early copy here.
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