Note from the editor
Merry Christmas! (Or other seasonal holiday of your choice.) Christmas Eve for me is a time to eat traditional foods, unwrap presents, and rejoice in not having to go in to work tomorrow. My belly is full of semmel, cherrymus, and blue cheese; I have more tea, coffee, and totes than I will use for at least a year; and for once the entirely unpredictable work schedule of my day job is firmly settled. Time to count my blessings and enjoy reading some holiday speculative fiction.
Happy holidays,
Abra Staffin Wiebe, Editor
2008 Spec the Halls Winner!
The human race may perish, the stars themselves may fade and die, but what if Christmas went on and on forever?
Last Christmas by Graham Storr
It was at least a thousand years since Solvay had had toes or fingers. And now her toes and fingers were cold.
So she made her boots and gloves warmer and pressed on through the deep snow towards the house she could see across the fields. The Moon was full and the sky as clear as space itself. The snow sparkled as if sprinkled with fairy dust and the elves giggled as they played in the hedgerows. She called out with a voice that rattled the icicles in the trees but no-one heard and no-one called back.
Read more. Read all recommended submissions. Read all submissions. 2008 Spec the Halls Honorable Mention!
What happens when Santa and the reindeer wake up to find the human race has disappeared? He's a bit grumpy with the first person he encounters...on the Moon.
Wormhole Magic by Marianne Plumridge
There was a structure with a sharply inclined roof, all lit up from inside, and something long in the sky behind it. I looked at it for a long time, but couldn't make believable sense of it, so I turned my attention to the label. The script was so ornate, that it was even more difficult to fathom. After some minutes, I managed to decipher "T'was The Night Before Christmas".
"Who, or what, is Christmas?" I mused aloud.
Read more. Read all recommended submissions. Read all submissions. Holiday Tip
Enjoy.
Handy Links
Abra Staffin Wiebe's main webpageAbra Staffin Wiebe's blog Aswiebe's Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Market ListSpec the Halls Main Page - http://www.aswiebe.com/specthehalls.html Submission Guidelines - http://www.aswiebe.com/specthehalls/guidelines.html Recommended Submissions - http://www.aswiebe.com/specthehalls/recommended.html All Submissions - http://www.aswiebe.com/specthehalls/submissions.html FAQ - http://www.aswiebe.com/specthehalls/faq.html You have been added to this list by your request or because you submitted an entry to the Spec the Halls contest. From now to Christmas, you will receive the Spec the Halls weekly email, containing contest news and featured submissions. You are encouraged to forward these emails in their entirety to other individuals you believe may be interested either in reading the contest entries or in submitting an entry themselves. Spread the holiday cheer...the strange, twisted, weird holiday cheer. To unsubscribe, send an email to
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Spec the Halls: A Winter Celebration of the Weird and the Fantastic
http://www.aswiebe.com/specthehalls.html