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  John Scalzi has decided he really needs a refrigerator exclusively for cheese.

  David Wellington is the author of over twenty novels, which have appeared around the world in eight languages. His horror series include Monster Island, 13 Bullets, Frostbite, and Positive. His thriller series starring Afghanistan war veteran Jim Chapel includes Chimera, The Hydra Protocol, and The Cyclops Initiative. He also writes fantasy under the pseudonym David Chandler, and science fiction, including the hit Forsaken Skies trilogy, as D. Nolan Clark. He lives and works in New York City.

  Troy L. Wiggins is a writer and editor from Memphis, Tennessee. His short fiction has appeared in the Griots: Sisters of the Spear, Long Hidden: Speculative Fiction From the Margins of History, and Memphis Noir anthologies, and has appeared or is forthcoming in Expanded Horizons, Fireside, Uncanny, and Beneath Ceaseless Skies. His essays and criticism have appeared in the Memphis Flyer, Literary Orphans Magazine, People of Colo(u)r Destroy Science Fiction, Strange Horizons, PEN America, and on Tor.com. Troy is Co-Editor of Fiyah Magazine of Black Speculative Fiction, and he blogs frequently about writing, nerd culture, and race at afrofantasy.net. Troy lives in Memphis with his wife, Kimberly, and their two dogs. Follow him on Twitter at @TroyLWiggins.

  Fran Wilde’s novels and short stories have been nominated for three Nebula awards, two Hugos, and a World Fantasy Award, and include her Andre Norton- and Compton-Crook-winning debut novel, Updraft (Tor 2015), its sequels, Cloudbound (2016) and Horizon (2017), and the novelette “The Jewel and Her Lapidary” (Tor.com Publishing 2016). Her short stories appear in Asimov’s, Tor.com, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Shimmer, Nature, and the 2017 Year’s Best Dark Fantasy and Horror. She writes for publications including The Washington Post, Tor.com, Clarkesworld, io9.com, and GeekMom.com. You can find her at franwilde.net.

  Chet Williamson has written in the field of horror, science fiction, and suspense since 1981. Among his many novels are Second Chance, Hunters, Defenders of the Faith, Ash Wednesday, Reign, and Dreamthorp. His most recent publications are The Night Listener and Others (PS Publishing), and Psycho: Sanitarium, an authorized sequel to Robert Bloch’s classic Psycho (St. Martin’s Press). Over a hundred of his short stories have appeared in such magazines as The New Yorker, Playboy, Esquire, The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, and many other magazines and anthologies. He has won the International Horror Guild Award, and has been shortlisted for the World Fantasy Award, the HWA’s Stoker Award, and the MWA’s Edgar Award. Nearly all of his works are available in ebook format at the Kindle and Nook Stores. A stage and film actor, he has recorded over fifty unabridged audiobooks, both of his own work and that of many other writers, available at www.audible.com. Follow him on Twitter (@chetwill) or at www.chetwilliamson.com.

  Daniel H. Wilson is a Cherokee citizen and author of the New York Times bestselling Robopocalypse and its bestselling sequel Robogenesis, as well as nine other books, including How to Survive a Robot Uprising, Guardian Angels & Other Monsters, and Amped. He earned a PhD in Robotics from Carnegie Mellon University, as well as master’s degrees in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics. His latest novel is called The Clockwork Dynasty. Wilson lives in Portland, Oregon.

  Charles Yu is the author of three books, and has published work in The New Yorker, Wired, The New York Times, and Slate, among other publications. He has also written for HBO, AMC and FX. His next book is forthcoming from Pantheon.

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  The editors wish to thank the incredibly talented and dedicated people who made this book possible, many of whom donated their time, effort, and considerable skills:

  M.S. Corley for his stunning cover design; Matthew Bright of Inkspiral Design for the gorgeous interior layout and design for both print and ebook; Jane Davis, the Helpful Translator, for proofreading this massive tome after the rest of us had gone cross-eyed; Meghan Hoffman and Danielle Silber at the ACLU for being so receptive to the project; Kelley Allen at Humble Bundle for embracing the book and making it available through the Humble Bundle program; and John Joseph Adams for support and advice throughout. Thank you all so much. This book would not exist without you.

  All have worked tirelessly and with flawless professionalism. Any errors that remain are entirely the fault of the editors.

  ABOUT THE EDITORS

  Gary Whitta is a screenwriter and author best known as co-writer of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. He also wrote the post-apocalyptic thriller The Book of Eli starring Denzel Washington, co-wrote the Will Smith sci-fi adventure After Earth, and served as writer and story consultant on Telltale Games’ adaptation of The Walking Dead, for which he was the co-recipient of a BAFTA award. Gary has also written for the animated TV series Star Wars Rebels. His first novel, Abomination, was published in 2015 to critical acclaim. His original comic book series Oliver debuts in January 2019 from Image Comics.

  Hugh Howey is the New York Times bestselling author of Wool, Sand, Beacon 23, and Machine Learning. He also co-edited THE APOCALYPSE TRIPTYCH with John Joseph Adams. Look for another triptych from this dastardly duo soon, coming to a dystopia near you.

  Christie Yant writes and edits science fiction and fantasy on the central coast of California. In 2014 she edited the Women Destroy Science Fiction! special issue of Lightspeed Magazine, which won the British Fantasy Award for Best Anthology. Her stories have been published in magazines and anthologies including Analog, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Armored, and Year’s Best Science Fiction and Fantasy (2011, ed. Horton). She is presently hard at work on a historical fantasy novel set in 19th century Paris, and is learning more about architecture and urban planning than she ever thought she would need to know.

  Acknowledgement is Made for Permission to Print the Following Material:

  “America the Ride” by Charles Yu. © 2018 Charles Yu. Original to this anthology.

  “The Defense of Free Mind” by Desirina Boskovich. © 2018 Desirina Boskovich. Original to this anthology.

  “Aware” by C. Robert Cargill. © 2018 C. Robert Cargill. Original to this anthology.

  “Black Like Them” by Troy L. Wiggins. © 2017 by Troy L. Wiggins. Originally published in Fireside Fiction Magazine Issue 39. Reprinted by permission of the author.

  “Monster Queens” by Sarah Kuhn. © 2018 Sarah Kuhn. Original to this anthology.

  “Morel and Upwright” by David Wellington. © 2018 David Wellington. Original to this anthology.

  “While You Wait” by Fran Wilde. © 2018 Fran Wilde. Original to this anthology.

  “Clay and Smokeless Fire” by Saladin Ahmed. © 2017 by Saladin Ahmed. Originally published in Slate. Reprinted by permission of the author.

  “The Arc Bends” by Kieron Gillen. © 2018 Kieron Gillen Limited. Original to this anthology.

  “The Blast” by Hugh Howey © 2018 Hugh Howey. Original to this anthology.

  “Excerpts from the Records” by Chet Williamson. © 1999 by Chet Williamson. Originally published in 999. Reprinted by permission of the author.

  “Horatius and Clodia” by Charlie Jane Anders. © 2007 by Charlie Jane Anders. Originally published in Strange Horizons. Reprinted by permission of the author.

  “The Nothing Men” by Jason Arnopp. © 2018 Jason Arnopp. Original to this anthology.

  “Catcall” by Delilah S. Dawson. © 2015 by D.S. Dawson. Originally published in Uncanny Magazine. Reprinted by permission of the author.

  “Liberty” by Samuel Peralta © 2014 by Samuel Peralta. Originally published in Help Fund My Robot Army and Other Improbable Crowdfunding Projects. Reprinted by permission of the author.

  “Mona Lisa Smile” by Beth Revis. © 2018 Beth Revis. Original to this anthology.

  “The Waters” by Kevin Hearne. © 2018 Kevin Hearne. Original to this anthology.

  “Five Lessons in the Fattening Room” by Khaalidah Muhammad-Ali. © 2016 by Khaalidah Muhammad-Ali. Originally published in An Alphabet of Embers. Reprinted by permission of the author.

  “The Tale of the Wicked” © 2009 by
John Scalzi. Originally published in New Space Opera 2. Reprinted by permission of the author.

  “The Processing” by Leigh Alexander. © 2018 Leigh Alexander. Original to this anthology.

  “The Well” by Laura Hudson. © 2018 Laura Hudson. Original to this anthology.

  “Bastion” by Daniel H. Wilson. © 2018 Daniel H. Wilson. Original to this anthology.

  “What Someone Else Does Not Want Printed” by Elizabeth Bear. © 2017 by Sarah Wishnevsky. Originally published in Slate. Reprinted by permission of the author.

  “Three Points Masculine” by An Owomoyela. © 2016 by An Owomoyela. Originally published in Lightspeed Magazine. Reprinted by permission of the author.

  “Where the Women Go” by Madeleine Roux. © 2018 Madeleine Roux. Original to this anthology.

  “Three Speeches About Billy Grainger” by Jake Kerr. © 2018 Jake Kerr. Original to this anthology.

  “The Venus Effect” © 2016 by Violet Allen. Originally published in Lightspeed Magazine. Reprinted by permission of the author.