by Waiting for the Machines to Fall Asleep- The Best New Science Fiction from Sweden (retail) (epub)
My legs feel like mud. Home.
"It's an hour's walk. I'm sorry, but I'll never make it."
A shadow falls over her face as she crosses the room to me, it looks like she's smiling, weakly. She hands me a small glass vial.
"This will take you as far as you need. But change your eye. The nerve is heavily damaged already."
What does it matter if I lose my sight if I'm dying today? I don't ask. I hold the drugs tight in my fist.
"Will they be there?"
"Your family? No. They will be kept away."
That should feel like a relief. But still. They will never know. Mum will think that she lost me. And my brother will never stop asking what happened.
"And when I get back? What then?"
"Maybe fourteenth time is a charm. There's talk of trying to get you into the financial sector. It should be possible to stop disaster from there."
"You think?"
I look out the window. The sun has let go of the towering structures of the fifth hill, but there's still a reddish glow as of a sunrise. The garbage fires. Maybe the world is really burning. And they think the bankers can save it? I shake my head.
"It won't work. You said it yourself. I'll get a taste for power. Lose purpose."
"Maybe." She's still a few steps behind me. "But what's the alternative?"
"I stay. I fight. I figure it out."
"You're just afraid. Death can do that to you."
"I'm not dying. Not today."
She clicks her tongue.
"How much time do you have? Six months at this rate. If you don't run into something dirty. That could be next week."
"I know. But I can't do this. I can't give up."
The sun hurts my eyes, I squint and make out the people moving in the streets. All the people suffering.
"I've been waiting for this," she says.
It sounds weak and I glance back. Then I turn on my heel. The room is empty.
I let out a sigh.
It never felt like a dream. But they never do, do they?
Something hurts my skin as I clench my fist. The vial. I turn it with my thumb, feel jagged edges of an engraving. It catches the red light from outside and I see what it is.
A rose.
The Authors
Hans Olsson
Hans Olsson is the author of one fantasy trilogy and two horror themed short story collections. Books are a big part of his life and he likes to read as much as possible. A few of the most inspiring authors, according to Hans, are Stephen King, Joe Abercrombie and Terry Brooks. In his own writing he is inspired by folklore as well as video and computer games, such as Dark Souls and Final Fantasy. He has studied computer science and, when not writing, works with software testing. Hans would like to thank Johan Olsson, Therese Karlsson, Stefan Nerby, Adam Steiger and Nickolas Reynolds for proofreading and helping with "Melody of the Yellow Bard".
hansolsson.net
Boel Bermann
Boel Bermann has a background as a reporter for several large newspapers in Sweden. On top of that she is a member of the Swedish writers' collective, Fruktan ("Fear"), which blogs and produces a podcast of science fiction, fantasy and horror short stories. Boel Bermann's debut novel Den nya människan ("The New Children") was published in Sweden in 2013. She has also contributed to several anthologies, such as Stockholms undergång ("The Downfall of Stockholm"). Besides writing, Boel works at a gaming company, and she has previously studied journalism, criminology, social science, film science and social anthropology at Stockholm University. She always closes her wardrobe before she falls asleep to stop the monsters from crawling out.
boelbermann.se
Erik Odeldahl
Erik Odeldahl is a writer and game developer who lives in Stockholm with his family. He is very interested in how ordinary people act in extraordinary circumstances, and finds science fiction and horror to be perfect venues to explore those themes. He has had short stories published in the science fiction anthology Maskinblod 3 ("Machine Blood 3") and in the horror anthology Stockholms undergång, co-written with members of Fruktan, the writers' collective he is a proud member of. Erik spends a little too much of his income on comics, books and video games, and doesn't plan to stop doing that any time soon.
odeldahl.se
Ingrid Remvall
Ingrid Remvall is a writer and art director with degrees in psychology and communication. She mostly writes fiction where she is not restricted by the laws of reality. Thrilling adventures with a touch of humor and unexpected twists are her trademark. She has had three science fantasy novels and a couple of short stories published. Apart from storytelling she is also interested in new ways of using technology. In her latest novel she let her readers illustrate the characters and monsters, and in the e-book you bounce between the story and 647 images in a linked illustration index. Ingrid consumes loads of books, mostly in the fantastic area, and eagerly awaits the new episodes of Twin Peaks to hit the screen.
ingridremvall.se
Love Kölle
Love Kölle has been writing since childhood and cares as little for genre divisions as he does for the limits of realism. In 2013 he released his debut novel, followed by a bizarro short story collection in 2014. His short fiction has been published by indie presses such as Affront Publishing, Epok Publishing and Oneiros Books. He lives with his fiancée and two cats, prefers Dr. Pepper to any other soft drink, has a bachelor's degree in history and finds immense enjoyment in watching black and white movies of questionable quality. His first name isn't pronounced the way you think.
lovekolle.se
Lupina Ojala
Lupina Ojala is a freelance graphic designer and copywriter. She absolutely adores the long Nordic winters and finds them inspirational – dystopian and apocalyptic stories are best written in such a dark environment. Other favorite genres of hers are fantasy and steampunk. She has participated with short stories and poetry in a number of Swedish anthologies and her debut novel saw the light of day in the spring of 2015. When not reading or writing fantastic fiction she enjoys practicing Japanese martial arts and spending quality time playing MMO games with her teenager.
lupinaojala.se
Christina Nordlander
Christina Nordlander grew up in Kalmar, Sweden, but lives with her husband in the small town of Stalybridge near Manchester in the UK. She has a doctoral degree in classics and ancient history from the University of Manchester. Since graduating, she has held various office and freelance jobs. Christina has loved stories ever since she learnt how to read and started writing in order to give something back in return. In 2007, she became one of the semi-finalists in the Swedish televised writing competition "End of Story". She has published several fantasy and horror short stories and is one of the writers working on the Tempus Ren module for the tabletop RPG Pathfinder. She likes playing computer games, reading books of all kinds and walking in the hills.
ananke-adraste.livejournal.com
Pia Lindestrand
Pia Lindestrand has a a bachelor's degree in history and a master's in literary science. Her biggest guilty pleasure is horror stories – movies, books and TV shows. In her own writing she likes to combine horror with a working class perspective and a rather dystopian view of the future. So far some twenty or so of her short stories have been published in anthologies and magazines. Pia also writes reviews of new books and theater plays. Her favorite TV shows are Supernatural and American Horror Story.
Jonas Larsson
Jonas Larsson began his career as a professional author in 2014 when he had his first novel published, an urban fantasy story about subterranean viking pirates. He has also had a few short stories published, and written for the Swedish gaming magazine Fenix. When not writing, Jonas works as a librarian, which includes helping adventurers fight Eldritch horrors and reading aloud to children.
trevligascenarion.se
Tora Greve
Tora Greve is mainly a writer of science fiction, fantas
y and steampunk or alternative history, based on scientific theories. For example, "The Philosopher's Stone" was inspired by Sir Isaac Newton's writings on alchemy. In Sweden, Tora has published three science fiction novels, one fantasy novel and numerous short stories, one of which appeared in a German anthology on rising Scandinavian authors. She is interested in traveling, mountaineering and astronomy, especially solar eclipses. The latter interest takes her to all parts of the world. She is the leading female solar eclipse hunter in Sweden.
toragreve.se
Andrew Coulthard
Andrew Coulthard first saw the light of day in the wind-lashed, eastern coast of Northumbria. He later spent much of his childhood in the westernmost shadow of Scotland's highland boundary fault. For the past twenty-four years, however, he has been living north of the land of the Geats where it can sometimes get very cold. A college lecturer and communication trainer, he enjoys exploring heroic landscapes and partaking of good food and drink in his spare time. His short stories have been published by Eibonvale, The Alchemy Press, Morbidbooks, Trevor Denyer's Hellfire Crossroads, Oneiros Books and in the Ironic Fantastic.
Alexandra Nero
Alexandra Nero lives with her husband and son in the countryside of western Sweden. She studied literature and English at college, where she found a passion for constructing stories rather than only reading them. She works in administration by day and writes science fiction and fantasy by night. When she is not working or writing she can be found haunting the shelves of second hand book stores, looking for the next book to read. She has published a portal fantasy novel and short fiction in Swedish.
myotherblogisatimemachine.wordpress.com
Johannes Pinter
Johannes Pinter lives in Stockholm with his wife and two teenage kids. He has been working in the Swedish film industry all his life as a director (two feature films), screenwriter and editor. He debuted in 2014 with the horror novel Vackra kyrkor jag besökt ("Beautiful churches of Sweden") from Eskapix Press and will be releasing his second novel, 1007, in August from the same publisher. He has published eighteen short stories in various Swedish and American horror anthologies. He also teaches the writing class On Writing Horror.
johannespinter.se
Andrea Grave-Müller
When Andrea Grave-Müller was a little girl, she learned how to write. She started to write stories. She hasn't stopped so far. Now, several of her fantasy stories have been published in Swedish magazines and anthologies. Her first collection of short stories was published in 2014 and received excellent reviews. Andrea has a university degree in archaeology, works in administration and has two children. Her interests include literature, history, gaming, music, martial arts, yoga, crafting, and a whole bunch of other things. Apparently, she still hasn't realized that the day only has 24 hours.
vinterdotter.se
AR Yngve
AR Yngve is a writer, illustrator, cartoonist, satirist and computer game designer. He writes in both Swedish and English and his short fiction has been published in Sweden, Britain and China. In his native country, Yngve has published several novels, children's books and comic strips. He currently lives in Norway, where he has written a radio series (broadcast and podcast in 2009).
aryngve.com
My Bergström
My Bergström is a freelance writer and translator with a bachelor's degree in Japanese. Most of her stories are born when she travels. As a student, she spent three years in Tokyo, Japan, which became a major source of influence. Her writing often explores themes of identity, expanding horizons and Japanese folklore. She has previously published essays, articles and reviews in various magazines, but "Mission Accomplished" is her first short story to be published. When not writing, she's been known to enjoy reading, daydreaming and writing about comics.
Anders Blixt
Anders Blixt is a political scientist and a linguist. He has designed numerous role-playing games, worked as a science journalist, served as a civilian specialist in multinational nation-building operations, e.g. in Afghanistan, and written two non-fiction books about United Nations peacekeeping. In 2011, he published a science fiction novel and a fantasy novel. His fiction is characterized by carefully crafted social milieus and sand-in-the-boots storylines that draw on his experiences in the field. The protagonists often get entangled in turmoil beyond their control and thereby have to face tough moral decisions, such as "What constitutes decent behavior in the chaos of war?" or "When facing a Hobson's choice, how does one identify the lesser evil?" Anders enjoys role-playing games with his buddies and keeps an eye on the exploration of the solar system, in particular NASA's Mars rovers. He is also one of Sweden's most successful Jeopardy contestants.
gondica.wordpress.com
Maria Haskins
Maria Haskins is a writer and translator with a lifelong interest in, and passion for, science fiction. She was born and grew up in Sweden, but since the early 1990s she lives just outside Vancouver on Canada's west coast. She has had several books published in Sweden (as Maria Larsson), including three books of poetry, a novel, and a collection of short stories. Inspired by past and present science fiction masters like Ray Bradbury, Ursula K Le Guin, Arthur C Clarke and Isaac Asimov, she writes about the human condition in a future where space travel, cloning, genetic manipulation and other technological advances affect the world and every human being in it, allowing her to explore both outer space and the inner workings of the human mind.
mariahaskins.wordpress.com
Patrik Centerwall
Patrik Centerwall lives with his patient wife and lovely daughter and son on the rainy west coast of Sweden. He works with communication and public relations for the city of Gothenburg and holds a holds a bachelor's degree in philosophy from the University of Lund. His collection of short stories, Skymningssång ("The Twilight Song"), was released in 2013. He has also been published in various Swedish magazines and anthologies.
skymningssang.wordpress.com
Björn Engström
Björn Engström is a film director and writer with a background in applied physics and interactive media. His short films "This Glorious Life" and "Unanimous Decision" have competed and won at festivals all over the world. Obsessed with story structure and new technology, he strives to twist scientific theories into entertaining fiction. Movies are an endless inspiration, from Star Wars to Tati, from Terminator to Tarkovskij. He lives in a suburb of Stockholm with his wife and two children.
bluemarblestories.se
KG Johansson
KG Johansson was born at about the same time as rock music, which became an important part of his life. He obtained his doctorate with a thesis on playing music by ear in 2002; in 2005 he became Sweden's first tenured professor in rock and roll. Since 2006, he's been writing and playing full-time: young adult novels, fiction, film scripts, opera libretti, translations, music books. He seems unable to stop writing and playing. Which somehow brings to mind the story of how Edward Gibbon proudly presented yet another volume of his magnum opus The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire to Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh, and the Duke tiredly said: "Another damned thick book! Always scribble, scribble, scribble! Eh, Mr. Gibbon?"
kgjohansson.se
Oskar Källner
Oskar Källner is a trained theologian and computer scientist. He is as fascinated by folk tales and mythology as by astrophysics. In his writing he often mixes speculative ideas with fast action and existential issues. He has had two fantasy novels published and is currently working on the third. He is also an award-winning short fiction writer and recently published his first collection of science fiction and horror stories. Oskar enjoys playing video games and watching anime. Favorite shows include Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead.
munin.kallner.com
Sara Kopljar
Sara Kopljar grew up in the academic circles of Lund, a Swedish university town. Inspired by the history and international culture of the aca
demic world, her writing brings up the darkness below the surface of a seemingly perfect world, and explores human interactions from a new standpoint. Sara's engagement in feminism brings another dimension to her work, allowing her to bring out the voices of women and LGBTQ people and break with the male domination of the world of literature.
sarakopljar.se
Eva Holmquist
Eva Holmquist is an engineer with a master's degree in computer engineering. She works with test strategy and architecture. Everything about the human condition fascinates her and she uses science fiction, fantasy and horror to explore what it means to be human. So far she has had four novels published – three science fiction and one fantasy – as well as numerous short stories, both science fiction and horror. Eva loves to read; among her favorites authors are Cherie Priest and Kelley Armstrong. Cooking and dancing are two other activities she enjoys in her spare time.
evaholmquist.ordspiran.se
Markus Sköld
Markus Sköld has always been interested in the supernatural, strange phenomena and speculative fiction – interests reflected in his writing, which often contains elements of horror and a touch of the unknown. His debut novel, a horror story set in the deep, dark forests of northern Sweden, is no exception. His second novel, Kalldrag ("Cold Draft"), will be published in 2015. He has also written a number of short stories, lauded by several reviewers as fast-paced page-turners. Markus also likes superheroes, the concept of intelligent robots and watching documentaries.