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That old Pugditch tome,
Evolution For Immortals, remember?
Biggest seller of the age?
No? I’ll remind you.
It taught eternals to undergo
severe brain injuries to:
• wipe memory,
• see life afresh,
• and relieve a little of the boredom,
that bane of perpetual life.

These self-harms became popular—
and mutilation routine—
leading to innovations in evermore
creative and maiming modes of self-renewal.

Then, topping the lot—and do stop me
when this sounds familiar—
a technique was invented:
complete disintegration, followed by growth
within—and birth from—the body of another.
This method caught on, became
widespread, in fact, till everyone forgot
it was self-mutilation.

Jog any memories?
Fine, go on banging those heads of yours
in uteri and on labia
for a thousand more lives—
see if that knocks any sense into you!



Soren James is a writer and visual artist who recreates himself on a daily basis from the materials at his disposal, continuing to do so in an upbeat manner until sumptuously throwing his drained materials aside to resume a stillness without asking why. More of his work can be seen here: https://sorenjames.wordpress.com
Current Issue
17 Mar 2025

Strange Horizons will have three open fiction submissions throughout 2025.
In this whole ocean, not a single reply.
We are men making machines, making men.
The customer shakes me until his disc drops into the bin below. Please take your receipt, sir. He kicks me in the side and says, “Thanks for nothing, you piece of shit vending machine!”
In this episode of Strange Horizons at 25, we present a soundscaped reading of the poem, 'this tree is a eulogy', and afterward Kat Kourbeti chats to the author Jordan Kurella about his writing process, the wonders of New Weird fiction, and the magic of writer friendships.
Friday: Nophek Gloss by Essa Hansen 
Issue 10 Mar 2025
By: Holli Mintzer
Podcast read by: Emmie Christie
Issue 3 Mar 2025
Issue 24 Feb 2025
Issue 17 Feb 2025
Issue 10 Feb 2025
By: Alexandra Munck
Podcast read by: Claire McNerney
Issue 27 Jan 2025
By: River
Issue 20 Jan 2025
Strange Horizons
By: Michelle Kulwicki
Podcast read by: Emmie Christie
Issue 13 Jan 2025
Issue 6 Jan 2025
By: Samantha Murray
Podcast read by: Jenna Hanchey
Issue 23 Dec 2024
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