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Bewildering Stories’
Annual Review, 2020

Year 19 of Bewildering Stories

The Mariner Awards: issues 838-884

Mariner2 launch
The launch of Mariner 2
to Venus, August 27, 1962

The Mariner Awards are named for one of the first successful interplanetary missions.

The 51 titles listed — out of 296 for the year — are the ones that the Review Editors have rated most highly in 2020. They have earned Bewildering Stories’ most signal honor.

We know that all readers can cite other titles they feel belong on these lists; fair enough. Please write and tell us what else you would include and, most importantly, why. Discussions are welcome at Bewildering Stories, and we like to publish them.

Bewildering Stories was originally founded to give new writers exposure in a field dominated by print publication. Since Bewildering Stories was a pioneer, we knew that times would change. Accordingly, Year 1 set a standard by making accessible a classic work by a historically “established author.” Contributors have risen to the challenge by sending us works of high quality, and frequency of publication has made “BwS” probably the largest literary webzine on the Internet.

Submissions often run in cycles, where one genre or another predominates for a while. In the past year, the average length of prose submissions has increased markedly. Meanwhile, flash fiction is distinguished by four authors without whom the exceedingly difficult genre might all but vanish. The trends show every sign of continuing in the coming year.

Like the Quarterly Reviews, the Annual Review lists titles alphabetically by author and multiple titles in chronological order. The year was enlivened by thoughtful discussions. However, the Departments remain in the Quarterly Reviews and are easily accessible.

We resume regular publication with issue 885 on January 4, 2021. Meanwhile, as we like to say, “There is no story so truly Bewildering as reality.” The Crew of Bewildering Stories wishes our contributors and readers a healthy and pleasantly Bewildering New Year!

Everything in green is a link. Links open in a new window, so you won’t lose your place.

Novels

Natan Dubovitsky, Near Zero
Bill Kowaleski, Creative Destruction

Novellas

Mickey J. Corrigan, Trigger Warnings
Amber Ray, If Wishes Were Horses

Serials

Daniel Stride, A Breath Through Silver

Short Stories

Théodore de Banville, Fire Stealer
Gary Clifton, Patrick Creek, Master Fairchild’s Garden
Jeffrey Greene, C. J. Heckman, The Stranger from Scyllamar
Salim Kingo, The Widow
Samuel Oladele, Two in One
James Penha, James Rumpel, Addi and the Unicorn
Dan Sexton-Riley, The Skein of a Life
DL Shirey, Magic Nation
Charles David Taylor,

Flash Fiction

Gary Clifton, Charles C. Cole, Gary Inbinder, The Sketch
Jeremy N. Marks, Sturgeon Sea

Poetry & Short Poetry

Edward Ahern, Richard Fleming, Red Umbrella
Emerson Gilmore, The Boxing Match
Gary Inbinder,
Boris Kokotov, Auld Acquaintance
Bill Kowaleski, Dumping in the Woods...
Nick Pipitone, Spirit and Flesh
James Robert Rudolph,

The Quarterly Reviews of 2020

Fourth Quarterly Review, issues 873-884
The Third Quarterly Review, 2020 issues 861-872
Second Quarterly Review, issues 849-860
First Quarterly Review, issues 838-848

Editors’ Choices, Year 1 to the present

The Annual Reviews, Quarterly Reviews, and Retrospectives

Return to top
Go to issue 837
Go to the All Issues index
Go to the Schedule “In Times to Come”

Available at Bewildering Press

Bewildering Press
Jack Alcott, Grim Legion
Sam Ivey, Gilboy’s Quest
Martin Kerharo, The Dohani War
Harry Lang, The Mountains of the Eldritch Sea
Danielle L. Parker, In a Pig’s Eye
Slawomir Rapala, Aezubah, the Crimson General
Bertrand Cayzac, Floozman in Space
Michael E. Lloyd, Donna’s Men
Michael E. Lloyd, Missing Emilie
Michael E. Lloyd, Observation One
Michael E. Lloyd, Observation Two
Michael E. Lloyd, Observation Three

Bewildering Press

Grim Legion   Gilboy's Quest   The Dohani War   Mountains of the Eldritch Sea

Donna's Men Missing Emilie   Observation One   Observation Two   Observation Three

In a Pig's Eye   The Crimson General   Floozman in Space   Floozman dans l'espace

Copyright © December 30, 2019 by Bewildering Stories

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