Global Dystopias
Meniscus
“'I felt no hunger but the habit of food struck me intensely. My nightgown was grubby and torn. My limbs were scraped, spotted with yellow bruises, but I felt no pain.” Short Story
What Used to Be Caracas
Years after an extinction event nearly wiped out humanity, a team of scientists search Venezuela for signs of life and evidence of what caused the tragedy. Short Story
Memoirs of an Imaginary Country
In a lost tale of Casanova, the citizens of a country at the center of the Earth must give up their home—and their women—to colonizers. Short Story
Adora
An aging AI researcher, alone with her robot companion, must make a difficult decision when the android begins to malfunction. Short Story
Philip K. Dick and the Fake Humans
We live in Philip K. Dick’s future, not George Orwell’s or Aldous Huxley’s.
My Last Client
“I wanted his body to begin and end elsewhere, at home, meaning his home, wherever that was, meaning even I, whose job was to include him, wanted him out.”
History Is a Dystopia
A conversation with novelist Tananarive Due on writing the past—and a way out of it.
Sunflowers
Eventually, it became obvious that we didn’t have a mission. Or our mission, for what it’s worth, was the lack thereof.
Don’t Press Charges and I Won’t Sue
“The intake process begins with dismantling her personal space, one mantle at a time.”
Waving at Trains
Nalo Hopkinson on the politics of dystopia, writing from the Global South, and the enduring importance of black mermaids.
Saving Orwell
He has been pressed into service of all sorts of causes, but the real Orwell remains unknown.
Fashion Week: Central Occupied Territory
So the thing about the Death Squads is that their outfits are super cute.
All Rights Reserved
Every word is Trademarked™, Restricted® or Copyrighted©. Why was this something to celebrate?
Get our newsletter
Vital reading on politics, ideas, and culture to your inbox
A political and literary forum, independent and nonprofit since 1975
Registered 501(c)(3) organization
Help Us Stay Paywall-Free
Become a Member