How far would you go to find where you belong?
A shapeshifting alien changeling raised by humans. The “wicked” child selected as the village sacrifice. People trapped in rigid belief systems, oppressive regimes, well-intentioned families, complicated relationships, and their very own bodies.
Is it better to succumb and survive, or escape by staking everything on a slender hope?
What triumphs in the end, love or vengeance?
And if all that remains is ashes, is it still worth it?
Grapple with these questions by diving into twelve new science fiction and fantasy stories. Together is a Distant Star is a collaborative anthology that encompasses authors hailing from Europe to Australia, South Africa to South America, and celebrates a kaleidoscope of perspectives—female, nonbinary, BIPOC, queer, and more.
Featuring stories from: A.J. Calvin, C.B. Lansdell, Nancy Foster, V. Carvajal Leiva, Karen Lykkebo, Erika McCorkle, Branwen OShea, Alyse Steves, Delilah Waan, and Isabelle Wagner.
About the Art
The cover and all the interior art was made by one of the authors in the anthology: C.B. Lansdell. Her art is beautiful. Check out her Ko-Fi.
About Fire Burns the Night
My short story in the anthology is called Fire Burns the Night. It’s an origin story of sorts for Beatrix from my Red Society series. It’s a dark tale of how her magic exploded into being when she was only twelve years old. It’s a story of trauma, abuse, and a child’s feminine rage. Be sure to check the trigger warnings.
Tropes
- Alien CEO looking for love
- “Wicked” child selected as village sacrifice
- Golem created for obedience discovers purpose
- Disillusioned flesh alchemist risks everything
- Intergalactic agent hunts her terrorist ex
- Rebels with giant war mechas
- Empathically noble twins defy family & duty
- Famished girl tries to escape her cannibalistic family
- Postpartum woman embarks on a perilous voyage to assume her dying father’s throne
- Time-traveling shapeshifter tries to stop genocidal war
- Unwanted daughter with burgeoning powers breaks cycle of abuse
- Trans twins on a military mission
Content warnings
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TIIV KAADAN: some profanity, economic disparity and poverty (discussed)
FLIGHT OF THE GUILDMASTER: magic-induced mutilation (mentioned), mental intrusion and facial disfigurements (depicted), socio-economic disparities (implied)
LIFE OF GOLEM: verbal abuse, psychological abuse, trapped in a small dark closet (depicted); mild electrocution (depicted); heinous crimes (mentioned: murder, rape); execution by force feeding poison (depicted); disfigurement of corpse (depicted)
VÄTTER CHILD: child abuse (depicted); domestic violence (depicted); bullying (mentioned/depicted), prior child death (depicted), child corpses (depicted), eating bugs (depicted)
POLARIS: murder/violence/war (depicted); themes of colonization, including prejudice, banning of cultural practices, destruction of tradition, forced relocation, intergenerational trauma, economic exploitation, theft of resources, and forced separation from family (depicted); grief (depicted); themes of abandonment (depicted); infant/child death (discussed); postpartum maternal death (mentioned); strangulation (mentioned); death of a parent or loved one (mentioned); disownment (implied)
THE IRON QUEEN: mature themes and language (explicit); cannibalism (mentioned); war (explicit); murders/violence (explicit); amputation (explicit); death of parent (depicted); self-harm (mentioned); pregnancy (mentioned); incest (discussed)
MARAUDING WAYS: cannibalism (depicted); murders/violence (depicted); starvation (explicit); toddler/child death (mentioned); rotting limbs and amputation (explicit)
FIRE BURNS THE NIGHT: child abuse (depicted); attempted child sexual assault (depicted); strangulation (depicted); immolation (depicted); death of parent and children (off-page); disownment (depicted)
TRUE COLORS: abuse (mentioned); attempted suicide (depicted)
DEEP SNOW: past child abuse (mentioned); transphobia (explicit); slavery (explicit); suicidal ideation (discussed); war (explicit)
THIS IS THE WORST TIMELINE: biological weapons (mentioned); profanity (depicted); attempted genocide (depicted); war (depicted); gun violence (depicted); threats of physical harm (depicted)
RYSERE’S GLORY: mature themes, language, and violence (explicit); emotional manipulation (explicit); mental intrusion (explicit); dubious consent/non-consent (explicit); mind control (explicit); child neglect and abuse (explicit); menstruation (discussed); postpartum hemorrhage gore and related medical procedures (explicit); threatened ritual suicide (explicit); forced self-mutilation (explicit); death of a parent (mentioned)
Andrea Marie Johnson 