A young writer and teacher has a fling with a buff, mysterious man who keeps showing up at his door every night with groceries.

“Wanderlust” by LP Kindred (2023) — 3,788 words (about 16 minutes for the average reader)

I first heard it on Escape Pod, published 1 June 2023.

A transgender man struggles with form and identity after an experimental procedure that allows them to see and experience what their partner does.

“Want Itself Is a Treasure in Heaven” by Theodora Ward (2023) — 5,477 words (about 22 minutes for the average reader)

Originally published in Uncanny magazine issue #52, May/June 2023

A woman who escaped from slavery trying to repair dead ships returns to save others.

“The Mausoleum’s Children” by Aliette de Bodard (2023) — 5,411 words (about 22 minutes for the average reader)

Originally published in Uncanny magazine issue #52, May 2023.

People whose minds have been connected and embedded in ships learn the truth about their past.

“Blood for a Stranger” by Timothy Mudie (223) — 9,434 words (about 38 minutes for the average reader)

Originally published in Lightspeed magazine issue #156, May 2023.

A touching story of love and family.

“She Blooms and the World is Changed” by Izzy Wasserstein (2023) — 2,337 words (about 10 minutes for the average reader)

Originally published in Lightspeed magazine issue #156, May 2023.

A woman remembers what happened years ago when a former colleague tries to force her back to her old life.

“The Spoil Heap” by Fiona Moore (2023) — 6,640 words (about 26 minutes for the average reader)

Originally published in Clarkesworld magazine issue #198, March 2023.

A chronically ill woman learns at the same time something about the labor under her command on a moon and about her father.

“An Ode to Stardust” by R.P. Sand (2023) — 14,616 words (about 59 minutes for the average reader)

Originally published in Clarkesworld magazine issue #197, February 2023.

A Jesuit enclave on the moon discovers something that could shake the earth and the church.

“The Father Provincial of Mare Imbrium” by E. Lily Yu (2023) — 3,545 words (about 15 minutes for the average reader)

Originally published in Uncanny magazine issue #50, January 2023.

“Primitive” depends on your perspective.

“Learning Letters” by Carrie Vaughn (2023) — 4,384 words (about 18 minutes for the average reader)

Originally published in Lightspeed magazine issue #153, February 2023.