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You seek an urn
I can tell before you even
Head to that part of my shop
And as always
I can’t resist the urge to reach
For your sorrow—or lack thereof
To determine
What kind of pottery
Would suit you best
Terracotta for a lifelong love
Porcelain for a love that was yet new
Raku for a tumultuous union
Pit-fired for an arranged marriage
That somehow proved to be a love match
But no—this is no unexpected loss
The dearly departed died by your hands
I’d offer black raku
But I feel this was no crime of passion
You planned it
The same way I planned the intricate
Carvings of my chattered pieces
And there—my gift never lies
You’re drawn to the gouged slip
As surely as a cat is to catnip
Fortunately for you I am but a potter
And not a detective
As I ring you up, I whisper softly
“Your secret's safe with me”



Gerri Leen is a Pushcart- and Rhysling-nominated poet from Northern Virginia who's into horse racing, tea, collecting encaustic art and raku pottery, and making weird one-pan meals. She has poetry published or accepted by The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Dark Matter, Dreams & Nightmares, Liquid Imagination, NewMyths.com, and others. Visit gerrileen.com to see what she's been up to.
Current Issue
16 Jun 2025

When I met the young Mr Turing, I had not yet ascended as Autumn’s King. Nowadays it has become fashionable for the sons and daughters of the lesser fey gentry to improve their position in the shifting hierarchy of the Courts by virtue of intrigue, scandal, and the naked blade; but in those times, it was the custom to advance one’s position through the collection of human bagatelles.
When women cross the border, / coyotes get rooms at motels.
With their noses shaped like rockets and ancient vacuum cleaners
By: Ariel Marken Jack
Podcast read by: Emmie Christie
In this episode of the Strange Horizons Fiction podcast, Michael Ireland presents Ariel Marken Jack's 'Sister, Silkie, Siren, Shark' read by Emmie Christie. Subscribe to the Strange Horizons podcast: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠
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