Crush the Maple's Fire
/The pale moon casts blurred shadows. Luna’s face sheds tears amidst the leaves, as the rugged possum feasts upon fallen apples. Footsteps crush the maple’s fire like so many shattered dreams. Welcome to American Fantastic’s 2024 fall update.
American Fantastic welcomes Bruce Whearty who graces us with this breath of fall. He’s a photographer and retired elementary school teacher from Louisville, KY. Come visit his gallery to catch a blue jay in flight, and the pale face of our shadowed moon.
Jack Scally IV returns with images from this year’s Inktober series. He reflects our love of the written word, and its primal fury, in this illustration appropriately titled “The Summoning”. View his gallery for more of his images, and follow Eradelphic on Instagram.
American Fantastic also welcomes the poet Claude Les Champs. Claude publishes his poems as images, so we’ve included the full text of his Untitled I below. They are a Louisville activist and writer who creates poems that walk the tight rope of beauty and revolution. Visit his gallery to view more from his bibliotheque.
Forbidden Archives, our podcast that dives deep into a number of nerd topics, has new episodes, including ones about the movie I Saw the TV Glow, the dimension of the Fey Wild within Dungeons and Dragons, and the comic book about rabbit samurai Usagi Yojimbo. Unwind with hosts John Beechem and Nicholas Mazat as they guide you through the strange and wonderful.
And last but not least, writer John Beechem has penned a new short story, “The Good, the Bad and the Dead: Part 2: Lone Wolf and Cub” (you don’t need to have read Part 1). Join the gun-wielding Sylvia and the girl Remi whom she protects (and is sometime protected by), as they journey in a raft along the Ohio River to the city of Cairo. Along the way, they fight river pirates, plenty of zombies and the tension of failures best left forgotten.
For more of John’s writing, check out the rest of his works on this website, or purchase his short story and poetry anthology Delusions of Grandeur: Stories and Poems from Amazon, the bookstore Carmichael’s in Louisville, KY or email americanfantastic@gmail.com to purchase from his directly.
Thanks for visiting American Fantastic! Please share this content with a friend (or enemy), like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, share us on social media and become a member on Patreon for as little as $1 a month. Anything helps.
And remember, when reality becomes a burden, enjoy a sojourn into the fantastic…