Table of Contents
Acknowledgments v
Editor’s Note: Alessandro Manzetti, 2021 Rhysling Chair xi
About the Rhysling Awards xii
Donations to the 2021 Rhysling Anthology xiv
Short Poems First Published in 2020 (99 poems)
Summer Time(lessness) • Linda D. Addison 1
Timegeddon • Francis W. Alexander 2
The Void Blends in Your Hands (El vacío se conjuga entre tus manos)
• Carmen Lucía Alvarado 4
The Tree of Eyes • Colleen Anderson 5
They Made My Face • Sara Backer 6
Sealskin Reclaimed • Alison Bainbridge 6
a siren whispered in my ear one night • Ashley Bao 7
Chrono-Man • F. J. Bergmann 8
Lesser Eternity • F. J. Bergmann 10
Chronovisor Wanted • Robert Borski 10
The Monster Maker • Bruce Boston 11
When Change Comes • Karen Bovenmyer 12
The Edge of Galaxy NGC 4013 • Warren Brown 12
He Sold What He Had Left • Diane Callahan 13
Three Triolets • Anna Cates 15
The Luck Eaters • Beth Cato & Rhonda Parrish 16
Post-Obit Cautionary Tale • G. O. Clark 17
Zodiac Girl • Carolyn Clink 18
Back Story • David Clink 19
The dead couple of Blenheim • William Clunie 20
an alien axiom • Gerald L. Coleman 21
Mouthing off • PS Cottier 22
The Memory of Summer • Jennifer Crow 23
The Old God Dies • Jennifer Crow 24
The Man with the Corpse on His Shoulders • James Cushing 24
Isotopical • d’Ores&Deja 26
A Hand Against My Window • Deborah L. Davitt 27
A Touch of Lightning in the Soul • Deborah L. Davitt 28
The Witch’s Cat • Deborah L. Davitt 28
Beneath the Fullest Moon • Ashley Dioses 29
Dragons Guard Our Family Fortune • Adele Gardner 30
Last Contact • Jean-Paul L. Garnier 31
The Mollusk God • Maxwell Ian Gold 32
Tree Limbs Block the Road • Patricia Gomes 32
Lucky & His Dad • Alan Ira Gordon 33
The Crib • Vince Gotera 34
A Soldier Writes His Wife • Vince Gotera 35
First Contact • Robin Rose Graves 36
Teddy Bear Diner • Michael H. Hanson 38
Hungry Ghost • Millie Ho 38
Ignorance, my prophylactic • Akua Lezli Hope 40
Dolly Waits • Juleigh Howard-Hobson 41
That is not what I meant at all • Brian Hugenbruch 41
“Flee”—The Last Dispatch from the Jemison Station • Maya C. James 42
Requiem • Clay F. Johnson 42
Form Factor • Tim Jones 44
Family Historian • Herb Kauderer 45
Cave Painting • Bran Keane 46
Posle Nas • Rosalie Morales Kearns 46
Star Trip(tych) • M. X. Kelly 48
Witching • Erin Kirsh 48
Life Goes On • David C. Kopaska-Merkel 49
We sell skin on sale • Rachel Lachmansingh 51
The Forest in the Full of the Moon • Geoffrey A. Landis 51
Snow White and the Seven Deadly Sins • Geoffrey A. Landis 52
The Cat’s Epilogue • Mary Soon Lee 53
Cavall • Mary Soon Lee 55
What Phoenixes Read • Mary Soon Lee 55
Darning • Sandra J. Lindow 56
Rapunzel at Seventy • Sandra J. Lindow 57
Grass Whisperer • Lynne M. MacLean 57
Lovely Ludwig Van • Alessandro Manzetti 59
Kings and Queens of Narnia • Meep Matsushima 60
Black Water, Black Bones • Michelle Muenzler 60
Libations • Soonest Nathaniel 61
Cento for Lagahoos • Brandon O’Brien 62
Mountain • Cindy O’Quinn 63
You Were With Me • Cindy O’Quinn 63
The Krakeness • K. A. Opperman 64
On the Edge of Forever • Josh Pearce 65
Fin • Terese Mason Pierre 66
Like Clockwork • Christina M. Rau 67
Bar Scene • John Reinhart 68
It Feels Like Drowning • Terrie Leigh Relf 68
fear of police, but as sci-fi, because /that/ you can understand -or, less
passive aggressively- get these fucking phasers out of my face
• J. C. Rodriguez 69
invocation of my guardian angel in six sexts • Camille Rosas 70
Arrival Mind • Louis B. Rosenberg 71
Of fairy tales— • David F. Shultz 73
People Dropping Dead in the Mall Parking Lot • Alan Ray Simmons 74
Journey’s End • Marge Simon 75
Old Playfellow • Noel Sloboda 76
Riding the Exhale • Angela Yuriko Smith 77
The Deer • Christina Sng 78
Dream Weaver • Blaize Kelly Strothers 79
The Selkie Wife • Marcie Lynn Tentchoff 80
Andromeda’s Lament • Gretchen Tessmer 81
End Credits • Gretchen Tessmer 82
A Tempest • Sheree Renée Thomas 83
Why did white people conquer the world for spices and then never use
them? • R. Thursday 84
King Pest • Richard L. Tierney 86
Athena Holds Up a Mirror to Strength • Ali Trotta 87
Persephone’s Sneakers • Amanda Trout 88
Extinction No. 6 • Morgan L. Ventura 88
Unlooping • Marie Vibbert 89
Acacia • Holly Lyn Walrath 90
we are all energy • M. Darusha Wehm 90
The Paper Effigies Shop • Deborah Wong 91
[hand-me-down] • Greer Woodward 92
Long Poems First Published in 2020 (64 poems)
And It Was Bad • Anne Carly Abad 95
The Looking Glass • Colleen Anderson 96
Snow White’s Apples • Colleen Anderson 98
Time Traveller’s Memory • Davian Aw 100
Regarding • F. J. Bergmann 105
The Riches of the Cloud Country • Ruth Berman 108
Eleven exhibits in a better Natural History Museum, London
• Jenny Blackford 110
The priestess’s daughter • Jenny Blackford 112
The Third Sister • Andrea Blythe 116
Parabiont • Robert Borski 117
Devilish Incarnations • Bruce Boston 120
Wishes • Jennifer Bushroe 123
Learning the Way • Sarah Cannavo 124
Mrs. Housekeeper • Beth Cato 126
My Cat, He • Beth Cato 128
Cursebody • May Chong 130
Municipal Ghosts • May Chong 132
La Bête: The Beast of Gévaudan • Frank Coffman 134
The Wheel of the Year • Frank Coffman 138
The Imp and the Bottle • Sharon Cote 146
The King of Eyes • PS Cottier 148
Twisted Sayings • Ashley Dioses 149
After the Decipherment • FJ Doucet 151
Penelope, the truth • Clarabelle Fields 154
The Mad Scientist to the Muse of Her Dreams • Adele Gardner 156
Odysseus Grins at Fate and the Gods • Adele Gardner 158
Seven Steps to Reach Your Father across the Great Divide • Adele Gardner 159
Cellars, Caskets, and Closets • Maxwell I. Gold 162
The Secret Ingredient is Always the Same • Sarah Grey 164
Fermi’s Spaceship • Jamal Hodge 167
Igbo Landing • Akua Lezli Hope 169
First Turn • Juleigh Howard-Hobson 170
The Finger • Abi Hynes 172
An Offering • Michael Janairo 174
The Emerald Witch Stone • Clay F. Johnson 176
The First Dragon • Herb Kauderer 179
The Unicorn Insane • Herb Kauderer 181
Dictionary of the Lost • Luke Kernan 183
Robo Sapiens Thinks He Thinks • Geoffrey A. Landis 185
Ford • Mary Soon Lee 187
Jumble • Mary Soon Lee 193
Two Weeks • Mary Soon Lee 196
Invisible Ink • Gerri Leen 198
Social Graces • Lori R. Lopez 201
The Whistle Stop • Lori R. Lopez 204
The Son-in-law from Hell • LindaAnn LoSchiavo 208
Budapest • S. Qiouyi Lu 210
Alice • Alessandro Manzetti 215
The Cage • Alessandro Manzetti 217
The Believers • Meep Matsushima 219
Nephele, On Friday • Elizabeth R. McClellan 221
There Must Be Blood • Elizabeth R. McClellan 224
lagahoo culture (Part I) • Brandon O’Brien 226
Mise-en-scène • Suphil Lee Park 229
Next! • Michael H. Payne 231
Caged • Marsheila Rockwell 233
Our Lady of the Acherontia • Allan Rozinski 236
Such Monstrous Births • Emily Smith 238
All That I Have Lost • Christina Sng 240
Dark Forest • Christina Sng 243
Hansel and Gretel • Christina Sng 245
Love Song of the Swamp Witch Scorned • Alena Sullivan 248
A Song from Bedlam (with apologies to Christopher Smart) • Nike Sulway 250
A Dish Best Served • Lisa Timpf 253
Daughters Saving Mothers • Holly Lyn Walrath 256
Rhysling Award Winners 1978–2020 259
SFPA Grand Master Award Winners 263
How to Join SFPA 264
