Here they are: The best online short stories published during 2009.

Many thanks to the editors and readers who nominated stories. And a big thanks to the preliminary judges who screened the nominations and/or picked their own favorites: Beverly Akerman, Forrest Anderson, Thom Didato, Roxanne Halpine, Rusty Keele, Travis Kurowski, Dorothee Lang, Judah Mahay, Erica Naone, Karen L. Newman, Nick Ripatrazone, Alexis Enrico Santí, Beth Staples, D. Antwan Stewart, Wayne E. Yang (along with several judges who wished to remain anonymous).

The top ten stories of the year will be released around May 1st, with the public vote for the top story beginning then. Thanks to the support of our donors, the winners of the public vote will receive the following monetary prizes:

• $400, plus the $100 ThinkGeek gift certificate and a Greatest Uncommon Denominator subscription, for the first place winner;
• $200 for the runner-up, plus PDFs of GUD magazine;
• $50 for the honorable mention (third place), plus PDFs of GUD magazine.

If you are curious about my comments on these notable stories as I read them over the coming month, please check out my blog and website.

Thanks to everyone for their support of online literature.

Jason Sanford
founding editor
storySouth
www.jasonsanford.com

---

Top Online Magazines and Journals

Million Writers Award for best online publication

• The winner of this year's Million Writers Award for best online publication is Fantasy Magazine, by virtue of landing seven stories on the notable list. Fantasy Magazine started life in 2005 as a high-quality print magazine, but two years later they transitioned to online only. Their literary take and high standards with regards to fantasy stories has won them praise from a diverse group of readers, and showcases so perfectly why they are one of the premier online fiction magazines!

Million Writers Award for best publisher of novella-length fiction

• Subterranean Magazine is the winner of this year's Million Writers Award for best publisher of novella-length fiction. The magazine published three novellas and 11 novelettes in 2009, proving it is determined to find an online home for longer-length fiction. Runner-up is Prick of the Spindle, which published a number of longer-length novelettes and one novel. I should note that previous three-time winner The King's English continued to published good novella length fiction, but I had to honorably retire them from consideration to give other magazines a shot.

Million Writers Award for best new online magazine or journal

• The winner of this year's Million Writers Award for best new online magazine or journal is Kill Author. Since their debut last year, Kill Author has published an impressive line-up of authors, as shown by the four stories making our notable list. However, what is most impressive about Kill Author is their ability to publish fiction with a strong storytelling voice. Sometimes it seems as if the fiction published in different magazines all sounds the same, but this is not the case with Kill Author. Runner-ups for the best new online magazine or journal are Cerise Press, Knee Jerk Magazine, and Slush Pile.

---

The Notable Stories of 2009

3AM Magazine
http://www.3ammagazine.com

• "Reclining Nude with Machete" by Michael Loughrey
  http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/reclining-nude-with-machete/

42opus
http://www.42opus.com

• "Secondhand Objects" by Renee Simms
  http://42opus.com/v9n1/secondhand-objects

10,000 Tons of Black Ink
http://10ktobi.wordpress.com

• “Imprisoned with the Dead” by Alan Barstow
  http://10ktobi.wordpress.com/2009/01/05/barstow/

Absent Willow Review
http://absentwillowreview.com

• Anhedonia by Chris Deal
  http://absentwillowreview.com/archives/anhedonia

Abyss & Apex
http://www.abyssandapex.com

• "Murder" by Karl Bunker
  http://www.abyssandapex.com/200901-murder.html
• "The Midnight Girls" by Lisa A. Koosis
  http://abyssandapex.com/200904-midnight.html

Afterburn SF
http://www.afterburnsf.com

• "The Sixth Day" by Robey Jenkins
  http://www.afterburnsf.com/?p=133
  

Agni Online
http://www.bu.edu/agni/index.html

• "Knappenstrasse" by Karl Harshbarger
  http://www.bu.edu/agni/fiction/online/2009/harshbarger.html
• "Obituary" by Ihab Hassan
  http://www.bu.edu/agni/fiction/online/2009/hassan.html
• "The Boy" by Anthony Varallo
  http://www.bu.edu/agni/fiction/online/2009/varallo-boy.html

Annalemma
http://annalemma.net

• Swallow by Mel Bosworth
  http://annalemma.net/features/swallow.html

Anderbo
http://www.anderbo.com/

• "Alabamer Pianers" by Robert Warner
  http://www.anderbo.com/anderbo1/afiction-043.html

Apex Magazine
http://www.apexbookcompany.com/apex-online

• "After the Fire" by Aliette de Bodard
  http://www.apexbookcompany.com/apex-online/2009/11/short-fiction-after-the-fire-by-aliette-de-bodard/
• "Pimp My Airship" by Maurice Broaddus
  http://www.apexbookcompany.com/apex-online/2009/08/short-fiction-preview-pimp-my-airship-by-maurice-broaddus/
• "Starter House" by Jason Palmer
  http://www.apexbookcompany.com/apex-online/2009/01/short-fiction-starter-house/

The Apple Valley Review
http://www.leahbrowning.net/Apple/Home.html

• "Family Style" by Matthew Grice
  http://www.leahbrowning.net/Apple/Spring_2009/Matthew_Grice.html

Atomjack Magazine
http://atomjackmagazine.com/

• "Dark Coffee, Bright Light and the Paradoxes of Omnipotence" by Ben Burgis
  http://atomjackmagazine.com/2009/20091011_Dark_Coffee.html

Barrelhouse
http://www.barrelhousemag.com

• "An Open Letter to Fans of Southplains Football" by Stephan Clark *
  http://www.barrelhousemag.com/word/?p=901
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

The Barcelona Review
http://www.barcelonareview.com

• "Twenty-seven Uses for Imaginary Numbers" by Buzz Mauro
  http://barcelonareview.com/67/e_bm.html

Bartleby Snopes
http://www.bartlebysnopes.com

• "Bringing the War Back Home" by Jac Cattaneo
  http://www.bartlebysnopes.com/bringingthewarbackhome.htm

Beneath Ceaseless Skies
http://beneath-ceaseless-skies.com

• "The Pirate Captain's Daughter" by Yoon Ha Lee
  http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/story.php?s=56
• "Thieves of Silence" by Holly Phillips *
  http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/story.php?s=43
• "The Orangery" by K. D. Wentworth
  http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/story.php?s=25
• "The Mathematics of Faith" by Jonathan Wood
  http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/story.php?s=54
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Blackbird
http://www.blackbird.vcu.edu/

• "January" by Michelle Brafman *
  http://www.blackbird.vcu.edu/v8n2/fiction/brafman_m/january_page.shtml
• "Insulation" by Michael Croley
  http://www.blackbird.vcu.edu/v8n1/fiction/croley_m/insulation_page.shtml
• "1-800-BUTTERBOLLY" by Adrian Dorris
  http://www.blackbird.vcu.edu/v8n2/fiction/dorris_a/butter_page.shtml
• "I Am My Rooster" by Taylur Thu Hien Ngo
  http://www.blackbird.vcu.edu/v8n1/fiction/ngo_t/rooster_page.shtml
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

BluePrintReview
http://www.blueprintreview.de

• " The Library" by Jolie Braun
  http://www.blueprintreview.de/21library.htm

Bosphorus Art Project Quarterly
http://bapq.net

• "ROLLING IN MY SIX-FO’—DAA DAA DAA—WITH ALL MY NIGGAS SAYING: SWING DOWN SWEET CHARIOT STOP AND LET ME RIIIIDE. HELL YEAH." by Rion Amilcar Scott
  http://bapq.net/fall-09/fiction_rolling-in-my-six-fo.pdf

Cafe Irreal
http://cafeirreal.alicewhittenburg.com

• "The City and Heaven" by Michal Ajvaz, translated by G.S. Evans
  http://cafeirreal.alicewhittenburg.com/ajvaz2.htm

Carve Magazine
http://www.carvezine.com

• "How the Tiger Got Its Stripes" by Nicholas Hogg
  http://www.carvezine.com/issue/2009/summer/hogg.htm
• "Zero Pressure" by Soma Mei Sheng Frazier
  http://www.carvezine.com/issue/2009/summer/frazier.htm

Cerise Press
http://www.cerisepress.com

• "Freedom, WI" by Quan Barry
  http://www.cerisepress.com/01/02/freedom-wi
• "Inheritance" by J.M. Villaverde
  http://www.cerisepress.com/01/01/inheritance?view=all

Cha: An Asian Literary Journal
http://www.asiancha.com/

• "Improv" by Drew Calvert
  http://www.asiancha.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=496&Itemid=221
• "Coming of Age" by Caitlin Militelo
  http://www.asiancha.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=356&Itemid=177

Chiaroscuro (ChiZine): Treatments of Light and Shade in Words
http://chizine.com

• "The Angel of Fremont Street" by Shira Lipkin
  http://chizine.com/angel_of_fremont_street.htm
• "Fossils" by Sunil Sadanand
  http://www.chizine.com/fossils.htm

Clarkesworld Magazine
http://www.clarkesworldmagazine.com/

• "Celadon" by Desirina Boskovich *
  http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/boskovich_01_09/
• "Non-Zero Probabilities" by N. K. Jemisin
  http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/jemisin_09_09/
• "Spar" by Kij Johnson *
  http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/johnson_10_09/
• "From The Lost Diary Of TreeFrog7" by Nnedi Okorafor
  http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/okorafor_05_09/
• "The Dying World" by Lavie Tidhar
  http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/tidhar_04_09/
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Clapboard House
http://clapboardhouse.wordpress.com

• "A Pile of Shirts, Ripped from the Body" by Kevin Wilson
  http://clapboardhouse.wordpress.com/welcome/a-pile-of-shirts-ripped-from-the-body-by-kevin-wilson/

The Coachella Review
http://www.thecoachellareview.com

• "And the Joker Got Away" by Robert Repino
  http://www.thecoachellareview.com/fiction/andthejokergotaway_robertrepino.html

The Collagist
http://www.thecollagist.com

• "Full Metal Jhacket" by Matthew Derby *
  http://www.thecollagist.com/archive/October2009/Derby/index.html
• "Even If You Were Here" by Angi Becker Stevens
  http://www.thecollagist.com/archive/September2009/BeckerStevens/index.html
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Crossed Genres
http://crossedgenres.com

• "Deacon Carter’s Last Dime" by Nathan Crowder
  http://crossedgenres.com/archives/007/deacon-carters-last-dime-by-nathan-crowder/

Dead Mule
http://www.deadmule.com

• "Waiting For Jesus" by J. B. Hogan
  http://www.deadmule.com/fiction/2009/11/j-b-hogan-waiting-for-jesus/

decomP
http://www.decompmagazine.com

• "Barnacles" by Laura Isaacman
  http://www.decompmagazine.com/barnacles.htm

Diamonds in the Sky anthology
http://www.mikebrotherton.com/diamonds/?index

• "End of the World" by Alma Alexander
  http://www.mikebrotherton.com/diamonds/?page_id=28
• "Galactic Stress" by David Levine
  http://www.mikebrotherton.com/diamonds/?page_id=41

Dispatch Litareview
http://litareview.com

• "Mule Factory" by Steve Goerger
  http://litareview.com/09/15augsgoerger.shtml

Drunken Boat
http://www.drunkenboat.com

• "Evolution" by Beth Couture *
  http://www.drunkenboat.com/db11/02fic/couture/index.php
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Eclectica Magazine
http://www.eclectica.org

• "Semolinian Equinox" by Svetlana Lavochkina
  http://www.eclectica.org/v13n1/lavochkina.html
• "Being Chased by the CIA on a Warm Summer Night" by Allan Richard Shapiro
  http://www.eclectica.org/v13n3/shapiro.html
• "Along the Fault Line" by Anna Sidak
  http://www.eclectica.org/v13n2/sidak.html

The Edge of Propinquity
http://www.edgeofpropinquity.net

• "Inspirations" by Seanan McGuire *
  http://www.edgeofpropinquity.net/library.asp?id=256
• "The Sound of Gears" by Ferrett Steinmetz
  http://www.edgeofpropinquity.net/Archives/Guest-Quarters-Archives/36---The-Sound-of-Gears
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Electric Spec
http://electricspec.com

• "Bright Wings in the Ebony Hall" by Dale Carothers
  http://electricspec.com/issues/volume-4-issue-3-october-31-2009/bright-wings-in-the-ebony-hall-by-dale-carothers.asp
• "The Boogie-Woogie, Time-Traveling, Cyborg Blues" by Barton Paul Levenson
  http://www.electricspec.com/issues/volume-4-issue-1-february-28-2009/the-boogie-woogie-time-traveling-cyborg-blues-by-barton-paul-levenson.asp

failbetter
http://www.failbetter.com

• "Stranger Things Have Happened" by Alex Ohlin
  http://www.failbetter.com/32/OhlinStranger1.php?src=ppNomList
• "Winter Register" by Jason Schwartz
  http://www.failbetter.com/33/SchwartzWinter.php?src=ppNomList&docheck=yes

Fantasy Magazine
http://www.fantasy-magazine.com/

• "Shades of White and Road" by Camille Alexa
  http://www.fantasy-magazine.com/2009/04/shades-of-white-and-road/
• "Early Winter, Near Jenli Village" by J. Kathleen Cheney
  http://www.fantasy-magazine.com/2009/04/early-winter-near-jenli-village/
• "The Most Dangerous Profession" by Sergey Gerasimov
  http://www.fantasy-magazine.com/2009/04/the-most-dangerous-profession/
• "A Song to Greet the Sun" by Alaya Dawn Johnson
  http://www.fantasy-magazine.com/2009/10/a-song-to-greet-the-sun/
• "Superhero Girl" by Jessica J. Lee
  http://www.fantasy-magazine.com/2009/06/superhero-girl/
• "In Dreams Tangible" by Su-Yee Lin
  http://www.fantasy-magazine.com/2009/10/in-dreams-tangible/
• "Light On The Water" by Genevieve Valentine
  http://www.fantasy-magazine.com/2009/10/light-on-the-water/

Farrago's Wainscot
http://www.farragoswainscot.com

• "The Non-Epistemological Universe of Emmaeus Holt" by Forrest Aguirre
  http://www.farragoswainscot.com/2009/11/emmaeus_holt.html

Fanzine
http://thefanzine.com

• "Identical City" by Joshua Cohen
  http://thefanzine.com/articles/fiction/377/%27indentical_city%27/1

Fiction Weekly
http://www.fictionweekly.com

• "The Nocturnal Habits of American White People, Case Study #31" by Michael Knight *
  http://www.fictionweekly.com/CaseStudy31.htm
• "Like Everyone Else" by Tara Laskowski
  http://www.fictionweekly.com/LikeEveryoneElse.htm
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Five Chapters
http://www.fivechapters.com

• "Tesla and His Wife" by Lydia Millet
  http://www.fivechapters.com/2009/tesla-and-wife/

A Fly in Amber
http://www.aflyinamber.net/

• "A World in Rubber, Soft and Malleable" by Aaron Polson
  http://www.aflyinamber.net/?p=480
  

Flurb
http://www.flurb.net

• "There Is No Comte de St. Germain For I Am He" by Brendan Byrne
  http://www.flurb.net/8/8byrne.htm
• "My Only Sunshine" by Emily C. Skaftun
  http://www.flurb.net/8/8skaftun.htm

Freight Stories
http://freightstories.com

• "Wreckers" by Alicia Gifford
  http://freightstories.com/Gifford.html

Fried Chicken and Coffee
http://www.friedchickenandcoffee.com

• "Justice Boys" by Sheryl Monks
  http://www.friedchickenandcoffee.com/2009/07/24/justice-boys-by-sheryl-monks/

FRiGG: A Magazine of Fiction and Poetry
http://www.friggmagazine.com

• "Fat" by Z.Z. Boone
  http://www.friggmagazine.com/issuetwentysix/fiction/boone/fat.htm

Front Porch Journal
http://www.frontporchjournal.com

• "Try Mailing This to Alpha Centauri" by Aaron Gilbreath
  http://www.frontporchjournal.com/issue110_fiction_gilbreath.asp

The Future Fire
http://futurefire.net

• "Galatea's Stepchildren" by Sam S. Kepfield
  http://futurefire.net/2009.16/fiction/galatea.html
• "Neap Tide" by Don Norum
  http://futurefire.net/2009.17/fiction/neaptide.html

Girls with Insurance
http://girlswithinsurance.com

• "The Octopus" by Ben Loory
  http://girlswithinsurance.com/index.php/prose/short/56-bl-0709-octopus

Gray Sparrow Press
http://greysparrowpress.net

• "Mozart and I" by Alex Braverman
  http://greysparrowpress.net/FALLSHORTSTORYBraverman.aspx

Guernica Magazine
http://www.guernicamag.com

• "The Genius Meetings" by Elizabeth Crane
  http://www.guernicamag.com/fiction/1194/geniusmeetings/
• "A Meeting" by Marie Myung-Ok Lee
  http://www.guernicamag.com/fiction/941/a_meeting/

Hot Metal Bridge
http://hotmetalbridge.org

• "Triggers" By Rachel Belloma
  http://hotmetalbridge.org/return-to-earth/triggers/
• “Falling Bodies to Light” by Melissa Moorer
  http://hotmetalbridge.org/return-to-earth/falling-bodies-to-light/

Identity Theory
http://www.identitytheory.com

• "Third Lesson" by Summer Block Kumar
  http://www.identitytheory.com/fiction/block_third.php
• "Life of the Mind" by Ryan Mazer
  http://www.identitytheory.com/fiction/mazer_life.php

JMWW
http://jmww.150m.com

• "Maki's Dead" by Kevin Spaide
  http://jmww.150m.com/Spaide.html

Joyland
http://www.joyland.ca

• "Swimmers" by Alex Leslie
  URL no longer working
• "Sissy" by Zoe Whittall *
  http://www.joyland.ca/stories/toronto/sissy
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Juked
http://juked.com

• "Wolf Island" by Stephen Graham Jones *
  http://juked.com/2009/12/wolfisland.asp
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Kenyon Review Online
http://www.kenyonreview.org

• "Fem Care" by Elliott Holt
  http://kenyonreview.org/kro_full.php?file=holt2.php
• "Head Case" by Nance Van Winckel
  http://www.kenyonreview.org/kro_full.php?file=van-winckel.php
• "Shark" by Rachel Yoder
  http://www.kenyonreview.org/kro_full.php?file=yoder.php

Kill Author
http://killauthor.com

• "Proxy" by Emma J. Lannie
  http://killauthor.com/issuetwo/emma-j-lannie/
• "The Need for Other People Faded" by Richard Santos
  http://killauthor.com/issuethree/richard-santos/
• "Gossamer" by Ben Spivey
  http://killauthor.com/issuetwo/ben-spivey/
• "Sky's Notes from the Center of the World" by Jesse Tangen-Mills
  http://killauthor.com/issuetwo/jesse-tangen-mills/

Killing the Buddha
http://killingthebuddha.com

• "Flood" by Alex Rose
  http://killingthebuddha.com/mag/crucifiction/flood/

The King's English
http://www.thekingsenglish.org

• "Willoughby" by Donald J. Modica
  http://home.comcast.net/~wapshot1/spr09/Fiction.Modica.html
• "Escape to Bird Island" by David J. Schwartz
  http://home.comcast.net/~wapshot1/spr09/Fiction.Schwartz.html
  

Knee-Jerk Magazine
http://kneejerkmag.com

• "Six Chicago Stories" by Michael Czyzniejewski
  http://kneejerkmag.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=48%3Asix-stories-by-michael-czyzniejewski&Itemid=11
• "Gravity at the End of the World" by Roxane Gay
  http://kneejerkmag.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=30%3Agravity-at-the-end-of-the-world-by-roxane-gay&Itemid=11
• "Marrow Meth" by David Peak
  http://kneejerkmag.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=56%3Amarrow-meth-by-david-peak&Itemid=11

Literal Latte
http://www.literal-latte.com/

• "Mares Eat Oats" by George Dila
  http://www.literal-latte.com/2009/06/mares-eat-oats/
• "Elsie and the Ladder" by Abraham Schneider
  http://www.literal-latte.com/2009/03/elsie-and-the-ladder/

LitNImage
http://www.litnimage.com

• "Formation" by Gary Moshimer *
  http://www.litnimage.com/moshimer.htm
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Lone Star Stories
http://literary.erictmarin.com/

• "On the Human Plan" by Jay Lake
  http://literary.erictmarin.com/archives/Issue%2031/plan.htm

Matchbook Literary Magazine
http://www.matchbooklitmag.com

• "About Me and My Cousin" by Scott Garson
  http://www.matchbooklitmag.com/garson.html

Memorious
http://www.memorious.org

• "McGuffy's Third Eclectic Reader" by Abby Frucht
  http://www.memorious.org/?id=306

Menda City Review
http://mendacitypress.com/

• "The Spirit of Shackleton" by Gavin Broom
  http://mendacitypress.com/5.2009Broom.html

Mississippi Review Online
http://www.mississippireview.com

• "Conquistadors of Los Angeles" by Kim Ponders
  http://www.mississippireview.com/2009/Vol15No3-July09/1503-071009-00Ponders-Conquistadors.html
• "Mercy Lavinia Warren Bump; or, Three Variations on My Father as Seamster" by Fortunato Salazar
  http://www.mississippireview.com/2009/Vol15No3-July09/1503-071009-00SalazarMercyLavinia.html
  

Monkeybicycle
http://monkeybicycle.net/

• "Bread and Butter" by Karen Dietrich
  http://www.monkeybicycle.net/archive/Dietrich/bread.html

Moulin Review
http://moulinreview.wordpress.com

• "Blue Shells" by Naoko Awa (Translated by Toshiya Kamei)
  http://moulinreview.wordpress.com/2009/06/25/blue-shells-translated-fiction-and-interview-with-toshiya-kamei/

Narrative Magazine
http://www.narrativemagazine.com

• "The Brother" by Eugene Cross
  http://www.narrativemagazine.com/issues/winter-2009/brother
  

Necessary Fiction
http://www.necessaryfiction.com

• "Things I Know About Fairy Tales" by Roxane Gay *
  http://www.necessaryfiction.com/stories/roxane-gay-things-i-know-about-fairy-tales-
• "Inside Job" by Jeff Vande Zande
  http://necessaryfiction.com/stories/JeffVandezandeInsideJob
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Night Train
http://www.nighttrainmagazine.com

• "The Mark of Cain" by Roxane Gay
  http://www.nighttrainmagazine.com/contents/gay_9_2.php

NOÖ Journal
http://www.noojournal.com

• "At the End Of This Story Three Months Will Pass" by Crispin Best
  http://www.noojournal.com/view.php?mode=1&issue=ten&id=205
• "One Below" by Kim Chinquee *
  http://www.noojournal.com/view.php?mode=1&issue=ten&id=206
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Orson Scott Card's Intergalactic Medicine Show
http://www.intergalacticmedicineshow.com
(Note: These stories can only be accessed with a one-issue purchase)

• "Vanishing" by Peter S. Beagle
  http://www.intergalacticmedicineshow.com/cgi-bin/mag.cgi?do=issue&vol=i11&article=_001
  

Our Stories
http://www.ourstories.us

• "Winter's Coming" by Mark Wolsky
  http://www.ourstories.us/Fall2009Issue/Wolsky_FA09.html

PANK
http://www.pankmagazine.com

• "Measure of a Man" by Kevin Catalano
  http://www.pankmagazine.com/?p=49
• "The Ugliest Drowned Man in the World Washes Ashore Lake Michigan" by Janet Freeman
  http://www.pankmagazine.com/?p=1209

Pindeldyboz
http://www.pindeldyboz.com

• "The Fatima Sisters" by Chris Evangelista
  http://www.pindeldyboz.com/cefatima.htm
• "Between Things" by Roxane Gay
  http://www.pindeldyboz.com/between_things.htm

Plots with Guns
http://www.plotswithguns.com

• "Crazy Larry Smells Bacon" by Greg Bardsley
  http://plotswithguns.com/5bardsley.htm
• "Ill Nature" by Kyle Minor, Plots With Guns:
  http://plotswithguns.com/6minor.htm

Prick of the Spindle
http://www.prickofthespindle.com/

• "The Foul-Friendly Sea" by Katie Cortese
  http://www.prickofthespindle.com/fiction/3.3/Cortese/the_foul_friendly_sea.htm
• "What Darla Does When the Tooth Fairy Dies" by Ann Rosenquist Fee
  http://www.prickofthespindle.com/fiction/3.2/fee/what_darla_does.htm
• "The Bra Maker" by Natasha Grinberg
  http://www.prickofthespindle.com/fiction/3.1/grinberg/the_bra_maker.htm

Rough Copy
http://roughcopy.net

• "The Power of Fiction" by Benjamin Chadwick *
  http://roughcopy.net/?p=87
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

The Rumpus
http://therumpus.net

• "The Forgotten Movie Screens of Broward County " by Richard Grayson
  http://therumpus.net/2009/05/the-forgotten-movie-screens-of-broward-county/

SFReader.com
http://sfreader.com

• "On a Clear Day You Can See All the Way to Conspiracy" by Desmond Warzel *
  http://sfreader.com/contest-2008-1.asp
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Slush Pile Magazine
http://slushpilemag.com

• "Australia" by Rick Rofihe
  http://slushpilemag.com/?p=360

Stirring: A Literary Collection
http://www.sundress.net/stirring/

• "Viewing" by Tai Dong Huai
  http://www.sundress.net/stirring/archives/v11/e3/huait.htm
• "Marge Pulls a Heist" by Don Shea
  http://www.sundress.net/stirring/archives/v11/e1/shead.htm

storySouth
http://www.storysouth.com

• "The Cancer Diet" by Daniel Wallace
  http://storysouth.com/2009/03/the-cancer-diet.html

Storyglossia
http://www.storyglossia.com

• "The Moose Head Haus" by Tom Burkett
  http://www.storyglossia.com/36/tb_moose.html
• "True Hair" by Nick Ostdick
  http://www.storyglossia.com/37/no_true.html
• "Pieces of Animal" by Hannah Pass *
  http://www.storyglossia.com/35/hp_pieces.html
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)

Strange Horizons
http://www.strangehorizons.com

• “Greetings from Kampala” by Angela Ambroz
  http://www.strangehorizons.com/2009/20090112/kampala-f.shtml
• "Salt's Father" by Eric Gregory
  http://www.strangehorizons.com/2009/20090803/salt-f.shtml
• "The Yeast of Eire" by Alaya Dawn Johnson
  http://www.strangehorizons.com/2009/20090907/yeast-f.shtml
• "Nira and I" by Shweta Narayan
  http://www.strangehorizons.com/2009/20090316/nira-and-i-f.shtml
• "The Shangri-La Affair" by Lavie Tidhar
  http://strangehorizons.com/2009/20090119/shangri_la-f.shtml

Subterranean
http://www.subterraneanpress.com/magazine

• "Seventh Fall" by Alex Irvine
  http://subterraneanpress.com/index.php/magazine/summer-2009/fiction-seventh-fall-by-alex-irvine/
• "Crimes and Glory by Paul McAuley
  http://www.subterraneanpress.com/index.php/magazine/spring-2009/fiction-crimes-and-glory-by-paul-mcauley/
• "Her Voice in a Bottle" by Tim Pratt
  http://subterraneanpress.com/index.php/magazine/winter-2009/fiction-her-voice-in-a-bottle-by-tim-pratt/
• "Conquistador de la Noche" by Carrie Vaughn
  http://subterraneanpress.com/index.php/magazine/spring-2009/fiction-conquistador-de-la-noche-by-carrie-vaughn/
• "Under the Honey" by Liz Williams
  http://subterraneanpress.com/index.php/magazine/spring-2009/fictionunder-the-honey-by-liz-williams/

Summerset Review
http://www.summersetreview.org

• "Baby's Breath" by Jason Kapcala
  http://www.summersetreview.org/09summer/baby.htm
• "The Affair" by Jennifer Oh
  http://www.summersetreview.org/09spring/affair.htm
  

Swink Magazine
http://www.swinkmag.com

• "Benefactor" by Greg Ames
  http://www.swinkmag.com/gregames.html
• "We Must Feed the Children" by John Oliver Hodges
  http://www.swinkmag.com/johnoliverhodges.html

Theaker's Quarterly Fiction
http://www.silveragebooks.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/mag/tqf/tqf.htm

• "Anatomy of a Wounded House" by Douglas Thompson
  http://www.silveragebooks.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/mag/tqf/issues/TQF28.pdf

Thieves Jargon
http://www.thievesjargon.com

• "That Which Dreams Does Not Sleep" by Andrew S. Taylor
  http://thievesjargon.com/workview.php?work=1341

Thoughtcrime Experiments
http://thoughtcrime.crummy.com

• "Friar Garden, Mister Samuel, and the Jilly Jally Butter Mints," Carole Lanham
  http://thoughtcrime.crummy.com/2009/Mints.html

The Thrilling Detective Web Site
http://www.thrillingdetective.com

• "Shot Back" by Kieran Shea
  http://www.thrillingdetective.com/fiction/09_01_02.html

Thuglit
http://www.thuglit.com/

• "Ditch" by Eric Beetner
  http://www.thuglit.com/zine/thug30/docs/ditch.pdf
• "Doak's Creek" by Schuyler Dickson
  http://www.thuglit.com/zine/thug31/docs/Doak%27s%20Creek%20_wbio_.pdf
• "Little Gun" by Mike MacLean
  http://www.thuglit.com/zine/Thug33/docs/Little.pdf
• "Chickens" by Matthew Quinn Martin
  http://www.thuglit.com/zine/Thug33/docs/chickens.pdf

Toasted Cheese
http://tclj.toasted-cheese.com/

• "Stowaways" by Kimberley Idol
  http://tclj.toasted-cheese.com/2009/9-4/idol.htm
• "After Seven Long Years" by Sheela Jaywant
  http://tclj.toasted-cheese.com/2009/9-3/jaywant.htm
• "The Oaten Hands" by Nathaniel Tower
  http://tclj.toasted-cheese.com/2009/9-1/tower.htm

Tor.com
http://www.tor.com

• "The Cat Who Walked a Thousand Miles" by Kij Johnson http://www.tor.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=story&id=37684
• "Eros, Philia, Agape" by Rachel Swirsky
  http://www.tor.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=story&id=13221

Twelve Stories
http://www.readtwelvestories.com

• "This Program Contains Actual Surgical Procedures" by Roxane Gay
  http://www.readtwelvestories.com/gay2/
• "After the Fall" by Rebecca Serle
  http://www.readtwelvestories.com/serle2/

Underground Voices
http://www.undergroundvoices.com

• "Marvelous Time Starving" by Zachary Amendt
  http://www.undergroundvoices.com/UVAmendtZachary6.htm
• "The Face" by Sean Hayden *
  http://www.undergroundvoices.com/UVHaydenSean.htm
  
  (* Selected by more than one preliminary judge)
  

Web Conjunctions
http://www.conjunctions.com

• "An Index of How Our Family Was Killed" by Matt Bell
  http://www.conjunctions.com/webcon/bell09.htm
• "Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Fur-Covered Teacup" by Priscilla Long
  http://www.conjunctions.com/webcon/Long09.htm

Wheelhouse Magazine
http://www.wheelhousemagazine.com/

• "Hospitality" by Summer Block
  http://www.wheelhousemagazine.com/prose/hospitality.html

Wily Writers
http://www.wilywriters.com

• "Nothing Left to Salvage" by Jennifer Brozek
  http://www.wilywriters.com/blog/?p=1086

Word Riot
http://wordriot.org

• "Anna and the Rain" by Zdravka Evtimova
  http://www.wordriot.org/template_2.php?ID=1756
• "Bone Density" by Roxane Gay
  http://www.wordriot.org/template_2.php?ID=1871
• "Missionaries On The Porch" by G. K. Wuori
  http://www.wordriot.org/archives/338

Words Without Borders
http://www.wordswithoutborders.org

• "The Knowledge Holder Doesn’t Choke on Cleverness" by Feridun Zaimoglu http://wordswithoutborders.org/article/the-knowledge-holder-doesnt-choke-on-cleverness/

Writers' Bloc Magazine
http://www.writersblocmag.org

• "Swim Meet" by Matthew Dexter
  http://www.writersblocmag.org/archives_03/fiction/dexter_swim-meet.html
• "The Cotton Man" by Timothy Raymond
  http://writersblocmag.org/archives_05/raymond_cotton.html

You Must Be This Tall to Ride
http://www.youmustbethistalltoride.net

• "In Which Sam Martone Attempts His Father's Exercise" by Sam Martone
  http://www.youmustbethistalltoride.net/stories/view/52
  

---

Preliminary Judges

Many thanks to the preliminary judges who selected these notable stories. To avoid any conflicts of interest or peer pressure, these judges remained anonymous to both each other and the general public until they made their selections. In addition, they were not allowed to select stories or authors with which they had a conflict of interest (this means, for example, that judges could not select their own stories for inclusion on this list).

After decades in molecular genetics research, Beverly Akerman realized she'd been learning more and more about less and less. Skittish at the prospect of knowing everything about nothing, she turned, for solace, to writing. Her short story collection, The Meaning of Children, is under consideration. It pleases her strangely to believe she’s the only Canadian writer ever to have sequenced her own DNA.

Forrest Anderson studied creative writing at Florida State University, where he worked as Robert Olen Butler’s assistant for two years. His fiction has appeared recently in Blackbird, the South Carolina Review, The North Carolina Literary Review, The Louisville Review, and elsewhere.

Thom Didato is the publisher and founding editor of the award-winning online literary and arts magazine failbetter. He has published stories in many literary journals and is the co-editor the widely used classroom text, The Fiction Gallery (Bloomsbury USA). The former Program Manager at The Council of Literary Magazines and Presses, Thom currently serves as the Graduate Programs Coordinator at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Roxanne Halpine graduated from the MFA program at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro . Her work has appeared in the Greensboro Review, Hawai’i Pacific Review, and Zoland, among others. She lives and writes in Philadelphia

Rusty Keele is a computer programmer who lives in northern Utah with his wife and three kids. He has spent most of his life reading science fiction, comics and anthropology books. He runs several web sites, including one where he reviews a science fiction short story each week. You can find his blog at BestScienceFictionStories.com.

Travis Kurowski is editor of Luna Park Review and soliciting editor for Opium Magazine. He teaches fiction at York College of Pennsylvania.

Dorothee Lang is a writer, web freelancer, traveller, gardener, and the author of “in transit”. She lives in Germany, edits BluePrintReview and Daily s-Press, and has been published in literary journals of the eclectic nano crow metazen kind. For more about her, visit her at http://www.blueprint21.de.

Judah Mahay was born and raised in the rustic backwoods village of Talkeetna, Alaska, and currently lives on Long Island. His writings have been published in numerous journals. In 2008, he won the North Shoreian Yearly Writing Contest and had his story “Lord of the Dome” made into a short film after winning a contest by WeMakeYourMovie. He is also the founder of the business community and resource BeYourArt.com. The website has grown to over seven hundred artists and has published eleven video/audio podcasts, co-published ten articles with North Shoreian Magazine, and hosted the annual Be Your Art Writing Contest. In 2010, he was accepted to Robert Wilson's Watermill Center residency by a panel of internationally acclaimed artists to write his Watermill Grimoire. Find out more at www.judahmahay.com.

Erica Naone is an assistant editor at Technology Review, where she covers topics related to the Internet and computer software. Her novel Needle and Fang was shortlisted in the 2009 International 3-Day Novel Contest. She lives with her husband in Allston, MA. Her blog lives at http://ericanaone.wordpress.com.

Karen L. Newman lives in Kentucky where she's an active member of Horror Writers Association and edits Illumen and Afterburn SF. Over three hundred of her short stories and poems have been published both online and in print in places such as Star*Line, Dreams and Nightmares, and The Pedestal Magazine. She writes a column for The Black Glove: Horror Culture and Entertainment and blogs for the Apex Book Company. Her poetry collections include EEKU (Sam’s Dot, 2005), ChemICKals (Naked Snake Press, 2007), and Toward Absolute Zero (Sam’s Dot, 2009). She won the 2005 Kentucky Mary Jane Barnes Award and two of her poems received honorable mention in The Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror. She's been nominated for a Rhysling Award, James B. Baker Award, and twice nominated for a Dwarf Star Award. Please visit her online at http://home.zoomnet.net/~karennew.

Nick Ripatrazone’s recent work has appeared in Esquire, The Kenyon Review, West Branch, The Mississippi Review, and Beloit Fiction Journal. He holds an MA in English Literature from Rutgers-Newark, where he is currently pursuing an MFA. He is a staff writer for the Luna Park Review. His site is http://nicholasripatrazone.blogspot.com.

Alexis Enrico Santí earned his MFA in Creative Writing from George Mason University.  His work has been published in the Word Riot, In Posse Review, Dark Sky Magazine, Prick of the Spindle, Cubista Magazine, Revista 22 and The Plum Ruby Review. He has masthead credits for over a dozen newspapers, newsletters and other publications.  Previous to founding Our Stories in 2006, he served on the boards of Phoebe, So to Speak, United and THEL.  He recently finished his first novel: a book about drug running, Hungarian gangsters and rock-and-roll entitled The Song of the Midnight Rider. He is the editor in chief of Our Stories (www.ourstories.us) the only peer review literary journal of its kind.  Every quarter he publishes an essay about his thoughts on writing, aimed at assisting developing writers.  He was a Peace Corps volunteer in Romania where he took care of street children, raised money for Outward Bound and taught English at a local school.  In 2006 he was awarded a prestigious translation grant from the Romanian Cultural Institute.  He's gave the following interview in 2007 to Mason's fiction program blog where he discuss the founding of Our Stories, publishing, MFA programs and "the craft". In the 2008 he was profiled the Pulteney Street Survey.

Beth Staples received her MFA in fiction writing from Arizona State in 2007, where she now works full time as Managing Editor for Hayden's Ferry Review and teaches an an intermediate short story writing class. Her work has recently appeared in Phoebe and The Portland Review, and she’s trying very hard to finish her novel.  

D. Antwan Stewart is the author of The Terribly Beautiful (2006) and Sotto Voce (2008), both Editor's Choice Selections in the Main Street Rag Poetry Chapbook Series. Recent poems appear in The Best Gay Poetry 2008, Callaloo, Meridian, Many Mountains Moving, Verse Daily and others. He is an assistant editor for the online poetry journal Anti- and lives in Knoxville, Tennessee, where he waits tables while working on his first full-length poetry manuscript.

Wayne E. Yang grew up in South Carolina, where he learned to eat grits the proper way: smothered with butter and sprinkled with salt. You can imagine his horror when he went to graduate school in upstate New York and saw people eating their grits with milk and sugar. His writing and photography have appeared in The North American Review, The Christian Science Monitor, The Asian Review of Books, The New York Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, AOL.com, ESPN.com and other publications. He is a former associate editor at literary magazine Night Train. His web site is http://www.wayneyang.com.

There were also several judges who wished to remain anonymous.

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