Asian Fantasy & Science Fiction
Today's Mythical Drabble by Gabriella Balcom is based on Japanese folktales of the river-dwelling kappa. Enjoy! Come Play Gabriella Balcom Nine-year-old Fumio heard splashing and ran toward the Mogami River. Glimpsing children playing in the water, he smiled. But his eyes widened when he neared them and saw their yellowish-blue skin. Although small, the beings... Continue Reading →
Please enjoy this month's INSTINCTS poem, 'Torrid Turnabout' by regular contributor, John H. Dromey! Torrid Turnabout John H. Dromey Slay a ryu or go Out in a blaze of glory Goku’s plan backfired He turned tail and ran The dragon’s breath scorched the seat Of Goku’s trousers John H. Dromey was born in northeast Missouri,... Continue Reading →
It's my pleasure to share a Japanese myth-inspired drabble today by Chris Bannor. Chris has 3 drabbles in Mythical Creatures of Asia, and also features in Southeast Asian Fantasy Drabbles. The Feast Chris Bannor They ran from the village, their feast of charcoal and embers complete. They danced in glee, the noisy basabasa of their... Continue Reading →
Today's Author Spotlight is presented by regular contributor and translator, Toshiya Kamei. I take great pleasure in introducing to you one of the brightest up-and-coming Japanese writers. Originally from Osaka, Yuki Fuwa later moved to Tokyo and studied Chinese literature at Waseda University. Her favorite writers include Shinichi Hoshi (1926-1998, a master of short shorts)... Continue Reading →
Kosuke Fujiki is a new Insignia Stories contributor from one of my favorite areas of Japan, Okinawa! I was thrilled to receive 3 Okinawan-myth drabbles for the Mythical Creatures of Asia anthology. Here is one today. Enjoy! She Saw Shisa Kosuke Fujiki When Machiko saw Shisa, a big, mottled viper was about to attack her.... Continue Reading →
It's Week 4 of Horror Matsuri, and this is Therese Choon's second publication in the series! Check out her poem 'Qingming; Clarity' if you haven't already. Today, enjoy a very creepy yōkai story 🙂 DECEPTION Therese Choon Yokohama comes alive at nine PM, thriving on flickering neon signs and the faint buzz from low-lying electric... Continue Reading →
This excerpt is from a story by John H. Dromey, who is also a contributor in both Japanese Fantasy Drabbles and the upcoming Southeast Asian Fantasy Drabbles (Out Sept 24th). And look out for his poetry during Horror Matsuri in October! 'DREAM SEQUENCE' BY JOHN H. DROMEY Excerpt: Hoshiko was a born dreamer. As she... Continue Reading →
Today's excerpt is from me, Kelly Matsuura! It's a little weird promoting as the editor and also being a contributor, but this particular anthology is special to me because I LOVE Japanese castles, plus I have 2 stories in this collection. I also have a story in Japanese Fantasy Stories called 'The Waiting World' that's... Continue Reading →
This second excerpt from 'Castles & Kimono' is from Japanese SFF author, Tetsuya Sato. Translated by Toshiya Kamei, it's a traditional-style Japanese piece and I'm proud to include it in the anthology. There was a short write-up about Tetsuya's story on the Japanese site Virtual Gorilla Plus recently (in Japanese only): https://virtualgorillaplus.com/nobel/king-anisika-insignia/ 'KING... Continue Reading →
As you might have noticed, I love sharing excerpts! Well, Insignia: Castles & Kimono was just released on Sep 27th, so I'd like to introduce the authors and share a few teasers from the wonderful Japanese fantasy stories in this collection. This first excerpt is from new contributor, Carmen Indalecio. She also has work featured... Continue Reading →
INSIGNIA STORIES 