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In this episode of the Strange Horizons podcast, editor Ciro Faienza presents Betsy Aoki's “A crowd of yakubyō gami (pestilence yōkai)” as read by guest reader Paul Starr.



Betsy Aoki is a 2019 National Poetry Series Finalist. She has received fellowships from the City of Seattle, the Artist Trust Foundation, and Hedgebrook. Her poetry publications include Uncanny Magazine, Hunger Mountain, The Seattle Times, Nassau Reviewterrain.org (Letters to America), and Southern Humanities Review. Find more at http://www.betsyaoki.com.
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Tempered And Spiced: A Recipe for Mythic Fiction 
I have been told over and over that no one would be interested in what I have to say, that I am the “wrong kind” of minority to count. That my ancestors’ tales of enchantment and wonder—and so, mine—are irrelevant. Yet I know better, and I refuse to listen to anyone except the little girl inside me, the one who needed to see herself and share her magic, to know she belonged and that her brown skin was as beautiful as her Sanskrit name. Who believes that myths and mythic fiction are meant for, and reflect, all of us.
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