Editors’ Note
Folktale by Elizabeth Bodi
A woman curls inside
the warm belly of a tiger, eaten
for refusing a toll of two sticky rice cakes.
Mr. Gibbers, Groceries, The Problem with Exes by Cathleen Calbert
Of ex-husbands the Lady Vampire has but one:
a goblin, from the north country, by the name of
Harry Leopold Gibbers.
Petal-Eater by Ranylt Richildis
Petals sweeten her mouth and sow a garden in her
shrinking gut.
Hunger—The Witch has a Purpose by Liz Kay
I was born hungry, choking on dirt,
and when I opened my mouth to scream
the villagers were afraid.
The Baku's Bride by Jon David Stroud
Each night, her husband returns with a bellyful
of other people’s nightmares. She,
who seldom rests now, waits for his return.
The Perils of Forbidden Delicacies by Sara Cleto
And so Rapunzel’s mother thinned and bulged
as she spun herself inexpertly from human fiber into
something rare and ravenous.
Chestnut by Elizabeth Bodi
Approach
with cautious feet; toe them gently
and begin with burrs already kissed
open.
Raw Vegetables On The Go by Rhonda Eikamp
“You shouldn’t have left him alone.”
Burckhardt was our police, or thought he was.
Eating Game by Danielle Sellers
Young wife I was, didn’t know he owned a knife so accessible.
Letter from the Velvet Ditch #4 by Danielle Sellers
how ginger is a cure-all for stomach
and heart pain.
Public Service Announcement by Jeffrey H. MacLachlan
It didn't bleed as much as split
open to reveal a diorama: tiny stars drizzled
Andrei by Matt Jones
The mayor had his barely-gone body exhumed from
an unmarked plot in the woods, a plot that only
the dogs could find.
Some to Nothing by Matilda Young
It was convenient,
and I was hungry,
and the men
were already dead.
Gone The Great Dark by Matilda Young
Be a nice little monster, a good little monster,
a nice little good little thing.
Wretches by Lutivini Majanja
Next to Obwocha’s blue house with red clay tiles on the roof,
there is a shed made of tall green corrugated iron sheet walls
surrounded by twisted barbed wire.
How Greta Came to Belong by David Elsensohn
Yet the warnings were earnest: human children
would bring about her downfall.
Soul Harvest by Hillary Joubert
wear ugly hats,
forget to visit your mother in the nursing home,
are a member of a secret society,
Audubon by Skye Shirley
(all foragers
must know the name of that which fills us)
Art by Jen Muir
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