The Readers’ Guide

What’s in Issue 490

Novel	Arthur’s birthday starts with a bang, but things get serious and Xérus is suddenly forcing his hand. Arthur feels he’s getting close to unmasking him, and then the clues pile up and he is certain. He must evacuate Julia and mount guard on his buried treasure ... Michael E. Lloyd, Missing Emilie Book II: Reparations Chapter 9: A Better Rat Trap, part 3; part 4
Novella	Young “Flo” Jones has a beautiful singing voice. She attracts the attention of the right man, Tucker Waters, and of the wrong man, the mayor of Black Water Swamp: Ron Van Sweringen, Flotation Jones, Chapter 1; Chapter 2.
Short Stories	New contributor Martin Bayne introduduces Mark Richter, who stops to help Joel, a stranded motorist. They strike up a friendly relationship that lasts until Mark meets Jude, who reveals the horror behind Joel’s smile: Exoskeletons in the Closet, part 1; part 2; conclusion. Michele Dutcher introduces wanderers from another dimension who leave an undecipherable manuscript on a doomed Earth: Of Two Minds, part 1; part 2; conclusion. A supernatural love can be most effective by what it leaves behind: Julie Eberhart Painter, The Faerie Flag.
Flash Fiction	New contributor Ankit Govil spins a lively tale about the bond between a pet and owner: To the Pier.
Poetry	Rebecca Lu Kiernan, Nobody’s Hell
Prose Poetry	Hongping Liu, Into the Mountains
Drama	The afterlife may offer a chance to settle unfinished business: Mel Waldman, Dark Metamorphosis.

Departments

Welcome	*Bewildering Stories* welcomes Martin Bayne and Ankit Govil.
Interview	*Bewildering Stories* interviews Danielle L. Parker.
Challenge	Challenge 490 consults the Users’ Magical Manual.
The Art Gallery	A randomly rotating selection of Bewildering Stories’ art NASA: Picture of the Day Previous NASA photos Earth Observatory Picture of the Day Our Earth as Art *Sky and Telescope*, This Week’s Sky at a Glance

Randomly selected Bewildering motto:

Randomly selected classic rejection notice:

Bewildering Stories’ official mottoes:

“Poems are not made with ideas; they are made with words.” — Stéphane Mallarmé
Ars longa, vita brevis. Rough translation: “Proofreading never ends.”

To Bewildering Stories’ schedule: In Times to Come

Readers’ reactions are always welcome.
Please write!

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