Snow is Crystal Water that Melts on Your Cheeks

Tread lightly.  You are on thin ice.

              Mushrooms and barbed wire.  Like peanut butter and chocolate.

Caleb Beechem returns with new photographs that illustrate beauty and darkness in the natural world.  His camera has captured a cloudy sky reflected by rippling waters, folded over the horizon's crease.  In another image, the frozen Willamette Pass stands cold and majestic.  Look through his lens into a new world.

                            Hard on the outside.  Harder on the inside.

Dordji continues to craft new creatures for his twisted menagerie.  Come into his gallery, and see a blind dinosaur, block-headed lizard, and a strange sea-man.  You can see even more of his art at Magar-Art.  We look forward to future creations of the sinister and sublime.  

                               Don't let her innocence fool you.

American Fantastic would like to welcome Leech , a young artist from Louisville, Kentucky.  Despite her name, Leech is a human being, not a parasite.  She creates compelling art from stencils and prints.  You can sometimes find her at the Flea Off Market in Louisville where she sells her work.  She is also an accomplished chalk board artist in case you need somebody to illustrate your restaurant menu.

John Beechem has written the first part of an ongoing post-apocalyptic, sci-fi serial The Adventures of Baxter and ROEBUCK.  The first installment is titled "Time to Remember What I Forgot".  It's about a gunslinger and his robot companion, two motorcycle riding drifters who offer their services to anybody who can afford them.  Fans of the video games Fallout and Borderlands will find much that is familiar.  There are also a few shootouts and car chases.

Thank you for visiting.  We hope this winter update keeps you warm through long nights.  When reality becomes a burden, enjoy a sojourn into the fantastic...

Introducing MC Grim Sickle with DJ Funkenstein and Vlad the Impala

Even a silver bullet won't save you now.  

 

This specimen is hella fly.  Art by Patti Alvey

Patti Alvey is an artist from Louisville, Kentucky.  She works in a few mediums including drawing and photography.  Her sense of humor is balanced with an eye for beauty and sadness.  These works reveal the playful and detailed way she looks at the world, a perspective that is skewed but honest.

Plato, are you in here?

Clarissa Allen is an educator, adventurer, and photographer from Seattle, Washington.  She spends much of her time outdoors in the wilderness of the Pacific Northwest or rolling down Seattle's steep hills on her bicycle.  Her photograph from the inside of a cave lets us see the world from an ancient perspective.

Green and golden

Poet and artist Chad Horn has graced us with three more textured silhouette paintings.  These works involve varied colors and textures that help bring their images to life.  The energy is dripping off the canvas.  Chad has also generously donated a few original works to American Fantastic that will be on sale soon in our webstore.  Thanks, Chad!

My Dordji's back and there's gonna be trouble.  Hey, hey, my Dordji's back.

Dordji returns with a trio of new pieces, including one drawn the old-fashioned way.  Dordji is primarily a digital artist these days, but he is master of more than one medium.  See his gallery to view the rest of his new work.

Selena McCracken has a new poem, "Hybrids" written about mental illness.  She read this piece live at Night of the Chupacabra and we've posted it here for you to read.  If you're in the mood for something spooky, her short story "The Science of Fate" is a twisted tale of the Victorian Era that features a mad scientist, a teenage prostitute, and all kinds of skull-duggery.

Lizzy Carraway has offered us two new short pieces, "Definitions for Your Mid- to Late Twenties" and "Comparisonitis".  These evoke the feminist and millenial experience in the 21st century with a dry wit and perceptive intelligence.  Her work can bring you down to earth so you can see it in a brand new way.

John Beechem continues his Halloween and horror writing tradition for the third year in a row with the plainly titled "Halloween and Horror".  This essay examines the origins of Halloween, why the writer loves horror, and how his childhood experiences shape how he enjoys and writes in the horror genre.  For horror stories of years past, read his homage to George Romero and Robert Kirman titled "The Good, the Bad, and the Dead" or visit Victorian Old Louisville with his ghost story "The Cottonwood Curse".  Look forward to next year, because John has already begun his new horror project "Choose Your Own Demise", a choose-your-own-adventure style horror story coming in 2015!

Thank you for visiting American Fantastic.  If you'd like to submit (or know somebody who would) send original work to americanfantastic@gmail.com (submission details).  You can also like us on Facebook.

When reality becomes a burden, enjoy a sojourn into the fantastic...

Night of the Chupacabra Re-Cap

American Fantastic has celebrated its first ever live event!  If you were unable to come, listen to the audio version recorded and edited by Maplex Monk of the Creative Community:  

Hear poetry by Lizzy Carraway and Selena McCracken.  Listen to music by Maplex Monk and Dr. Rockwell.  DJ Mythos performed too, but his set has been lost to the aether.  Check out his mix on Soundcloud and at 11:00 P.M. every Sunday night on ARTxFM.

We've also posted the title poem by John Beechem.  Come journey through the desert with El Chupacabra.  Cross the border.  There is no going back...

Night of the Chupacabra

                      You are cordially invited.  Poster art by Dordji.

       The cicada cries                                                 Seventeen year pulse
In the heat of the day star                                      Bookmarks of a novella 
   Sweat drops like a tear                                           Marking my epochs

                     -A pair of haikus by John Beechem & Thomas Beechem

                  All hail the Harmoni King.  Long may he reign. -Art by Dordji

Dordji has created a series of new digital paintings, including some that resemble the majestic form of an Egyptian god, having the body of a human with the head of a beast.  They are certainly beautiful, but also cruel and unforgiving.  Watch your step, mortal.

      The result of a teleportation accident? An unholy union? -Art by Dordji

Plunge into the depths of Poseidon with "Ataraxia", a poem by literary editor Lizzy Carraway.  Lizzy has also contributed a pair of poems on behalf of her mother, and we are privileged to have two generations of poets sharing their work.  Judy's poems "Involuntary Solitary" and "Listening" are featured.

John Beechem has penned a new short story, "To Yellow Fever".  This tale follows a spy and a detective as they navigate their way through 1930s Harlem in search of a missing diplomat. They inhabit a world on the brink of war, one of robotic servants and weapons that fire spirals of deadly energy.  Private eye and British spy weave together a story of steampunk and noir, bourbon and bullets.  Read as you please.  

American Fantastic is proud to announce its first ever live event, "American Fantastic:  Night of the Chupacabra" on Friday, August 15th from 6:00-9:00 P.M. at Taco Punk in Louisville, Kentucky.  The evening will include an open mic, readings by John Beechem and other contributors to American Fantastic, live music, a set by DJ Mythos (host of the Mythic Beat on ARTxFM) art for sale,  delicious tacos and muchas cervezas (that means beer, gringo).  You are cordially invited to attend!  

 Listen to American Fantastic on the radio!  

Publisher of AmericanFantastic.com, John Beechem on Keep Louisville Literary by Keep Louisville Literary on Mixcloud

 

Rachel Short interviews site-creator John Beechem on the ARTxFM show Keep Louisville Literary.  Tune in every week from 1:00-2:00 for conversations and readings with local writers or catch the broadcast on Soundcloud.  After being a guest on the show, John was invited to co-host and now shares hosting duties with Rachel.  Listen to the archives on Soundcloud if you'd like to hear more!

Maplex Monk interviews John Beechem for parts 5 and 6 of American Fantastic:  The Podcast.  Listen to John and Maple meander through a variety subjects, and hear John read the first two parts of "To Yellow Fever".  Follow Maplex Monk on Soundcloud to hear even more.

Thanks for visiting!  We welcome comments and submissions of original work (any kind of art or writing that can be shared on-line) to americanfantastic@gmail.com.  

When reality becomes a burden, enjoy a sojourn into the fantastic...

The Dawn of Spring

Mud and blood
Pollen and flood 

Puddles, eggs and babies

Fear not the thunder
Nor hearts torn asunder

By the muddled pain of 'maybes'

                                    On the horizon.  Photo by Caleb Beechem

The deluge continues unabated.  Seek higher ground.  When the water subsides, we'll see what's left behind. 

               Another addition to our collection of the magnificently grotesque.  Art by Dordji.

Dordji's deadly quill has produced a veritable menagerie of doom, creating a variety of monstrous creatures one should be glad do not exist outside of the realm of imagination (at least as far as we know).  Check out his tumblr, and you can even learn how to incorporate these monsters into your table-top RPG of choice--an excellent idea for anybody who would like their characters to die swift but horrible deaths.  Dordji has also continued to provide illustrations for The Chronicles of Trivo:  Phoenix Ranger.

                                     Keep your third eye open.  Art by Jodie Beechem

Jodie Beechem has created a number of new black and white illustrations including a series of collages, a few portraits, and some more abstract art.  Her style has continued to evolve, but Jodie's art remains playful yet sophisticated, full of humor and darkness, much like the artist herself. 

                                                  Dance in color.  Art by Chard Horn

Chad Horn has made a series of colorful paintings using silhouettes to create a beautiful and fascinating series.  These static images somehow create a sense of movement and joie de vivre for a world that often seems much too gray.  Chad is also a very talented poet. 

                                          Mt. Pisgah.  Photo by Caleb Beechem

Caleb Beechem has posted a number of new nature photos.  His love of adventure and eye for the transcendent shine through these images, and become a portal into our wide world.  With the spring in full flourish and summer quickly approaching, we look forward to seeing what else is about to catch Caleb's attention.

Thanks to the hard work of our literary editor Lizzy Carraway, we have published a wealth of new essays, short fiction and poetry by a group of talented writers.

Anais Corrales and Mary Beth Harral have each contributed an essay.  In "Exercise is a Privilege", Mary Beth writes about how her relationship with her body changed once she began to move it.  Anais examines the nature of life-altering changes that one so quickly becomes accustomed to in "The Lemon Tree".  Both of these essays are very personal, but contain ideas and feelings that are universal.

Carly Luk, David Potsubay and Selena McCracken have shared some new poems with us.  Carly has penned a series of five poems that examine race, identity, self-expression, temptation, and even life's simple pleasures.  David's poem "1:43 (The Quiet Eruption)" evokes all the lust and debauchery of the Louisiana bayou and alludes to a libertine master from centuries past.  Selena imagines a new incarnation of Voltaire in "Voltairine's Vision", one that is beautiful and botanical.

Maggie Kast, Jo Niederhoff and John Vanderslice have published new short fiction.  Maggie sings a "Song of Cities" that describes the ravings of a mad profit spat out from the belly of one beast and into the belly another.  Jo chronicles the journey of a wanderer and a troubador in "The Blind Poet".  John invites you to follow Christiana in her journey upriver in "Around the Bend".

A special thank you to all of our new contributors!  To submit work to American Fantastic, e-mail americanfantastic@gmail.com (click here for submission details). 

Linger long in our digital wonderland!  When reality becomes a burden, enjoy a sojourn into the fantastic...

This World is a Tomb of Ice

Winter has come with all the vengeance of the North.  An angry wind howls its frozen breath, and the leafless trees are like empty hands.  The frivolity of yuletide has surrendered to the grief of a new year.  

Dry your tears, kind stranger, and warm yourself in the electric glow of our digital wonderland!

                Even penguins know how to party (Art by Sammi Hatcher) 

Sammi Hatcher is a multi-talented writer and artist who currently lives in Michigan.  Her art is keleidoscopic and playful (at least this time), but in her poem "The Darkness that Watches and Waits" she reveals the hidden evil that lurks inside us all.  Let's hope Sammi's spark keeps the darkness at bay.  

                                      Blue, yellow, green...

Caleb Beechem is a photographer with an eye for natural beauty and a spirit so adventurous that he's constantly seeking it out.  His skills as a natural and wildlife photographer are growing with each new shot.  Living in the gorgeous Pacific Northwest (Eugene, Oregon) also gives him an advantage. 

            Yin Yang squared.  There is a moral in here, somewhere...

Sasha is another talented young artist contributing this month.  Her black and white graph paper piece weaves words, symbols and patterns together to create an image that looks like it could blow any second.  Her single image teases with the promise of more yet to come.

 "...an enormous black dragon, cloaked in scales of ebon and scarlet.  Parts of her were different; open and visible." From The Chronicles of Trivo:  Phoenix Ranger by John Beechem (Art by Dordji)

Dordji has become the illustrator of The Chronicles of Trivo:  Phoenix Ranger and this illustration depicts an enormous undead dragon involved in the story's exciting climax.  You can read the first two thirds of the rough draft here (for the time being), but to get a full preview, volunteer to be a reader and offer feedback.  You'll get a free copy of the upcoming novel including Dordji's art.  Make sure to check out the rest of Dordji's art portfolio (if you haven't already). You can even pay him to draw your portrait at Distorted Vanity!

 Lizzy Carraway has written two poems, "We Are Not Stewards" and "Driving Through West Virginia".  Her poems evoke the reflections of a wise and knowing soul, expressed in a style that is both sophisticated and direct.  Lizzy is a free-lance writer and American Fantastic's new literary editor.  We are lucky to have her!

Chad Horn is a veteran poet who has shared three poems, "Earth On My Radar (Praying For A Peaceful Passing)", "Isolation Physics 101", and "Curtains For a Round Window".  His poetry involves themes of technology and isolation, but also joy and optimism.  This is not a contradiction, but balance.  True fact:  Chad was often Hunter S. Thompson's designated driver (I am not making that up).

John Beechem sings "A Song For Winter", a rhyme that describes Midgard trapped inside a frozen heart. "Wrong Door Raid" is a prose poem that describes the clumsy brutality of the Man, and is based on a real event. "Bicycle Meditation" is flash fiction that revels in the thril of descent on two wheels.  John has also appeared on several local radio programs and internet podcasts including two with Maplex Monk. Listen to part 1 and part 2. Visit Maplex Monk and the rest of the Creative Community here.

Maplex Monk is also a filmaker.  Check out his collaboration with Dr. Rockwell, Bike Wars Parts 1, 2 & 3, a musical exploration of Louisville, Kentucky from behind handlebars.  Maplex and Dr. Rockwell blend bike tricks, point of view shots, creative editing and boundless spirits to craft an exhilerating ride for the viewer.  Check out the rest of Maplex Monk's videos on his Youtube channel.

Tyler "Mr. Prolific" Walker a.k.a. Young Kavi is a young rapper from Huntsville, Alabama, the Rocket City.  Tyler is a talented M.C. who raps about U.F.O.'s, conspiracies, spiritual evolution, truth, heartache, and everything in between.  He also makes his own beats.  Check out the rest of Tyler's music on Soundcloud.

Thank you for visiting!  Remember, American Fantastic is always seeking new content, including but not limited to visual art, writing, music and film.  Please submit your work to americanfantastic@gmail.com.  Submission details can be found here.  We are also looking for editors, interns and anybody else who is willing to work for free.  An imminent goal for American Fantastic is fund-raising, including money for artists, so anybody who would like to help in this (or any other endeavor) is more than welcome to help and possibly earn some money (someday) too!  Help us grow our artistic commmunity, and be a part of it.  Remember:

When reality becomes a burden, enjoy a sojourn into the fantastic...

Fear and Loathing in Transylvania

Samhain approaches, and the breath of autumn chills the air. A fog thick with the steam of witches' cauldrons cloaks evil deeds, ghouls step over a thousand fallen leaves, and the pens of the moonstruck stir.  To celebrate this season of madness and decay, American Fantastic welcomes you to our showcase of new creations.  

Skulls, nails, and bulbs.  Luckily, the dead feel no pain.

Mike Maes continues his 365 Days project, and has let us showcase this photograph of his work.  Mike altered this skull with light bulbs and nails, its jaw set in an eternal grin.  It reminds me of a Steam Punk celebration of Dio de los muertos, but whatever Mike's intentions, it is a welcome addition to our macabre menagerie.  

                                     More bodies than one.

Dordji continues to add to his collection of digital art.  Dordji's talent has grown like the spiked tail of a dragon, becoming more monstrous and impressive with each turn of the moon.  The creatures he invents are beautiful and terrifying, much like Dordji's own mind.  We are eagerly anticipating more glimpses into his dark imagination.

 This self-portrait reflects Nick's talent and humor (I only wish reality more closely matched his perception).

American Fantastic welcomes a new artist, Nick Mason.  Nick is a student at the University of Louisville, and hails from Northern Kentucky, the same surroundings that saturated my own childhood and adolescence.  His impressive talent is on full display in his gallery, and I look forward to seeing more of his work.  Nick's art also includes painting in addition to black and white drawings, and his use of different mediums is a testament to his talent.  Welcome to the madhouse, Nick!

Wholesome activities, artfully renderd.

Jodie Beechem has created a few new pieces.  Some of her new works reflect a love for geometric beauty, and others show more of her sophisticated, realistic style too.  Jodie is also a new intern at the snowboarding blog yobeat.  You can check out the site and play in the powder while you're there.  

Last, but certainly not least, site author John Beechem has crafted a Victorian ghost story set in Old Louisville.  A lover's quarrel leads to more than hurt feelings, and the wages of sin are death in this ghastly Halloween tale.

Thank you for visiting.  When reality becomes a burden, enjoy a sojourn into the fantastic...

The Dawn of Spring

Strawberry Fields, Central Park, NYC.  
Photo by John Beechem (Photoshop CS 6).

Persephone awakes from her slumber, and wipes red pomengranite juice from her lips.  She bids farewell to Hades, and rises with the groundhog to return to the Earth.  Crocuses bloom and fat robins bounce on the grass.  Autumn's decay has fed the life of spring...

Site co-creator Dordji has created two new illustrations with his digital art tablet:

Dordji often glimpses worlds not fit for human eyes.  

An angry crocodile (alligator?) howls in righteous fury.

Mike Maes has granted us the privilege to post one of the snapshots from his 365 Days Project.  Mike is taking a picture every day for a year to create this collection.  If you know Mike, check out the rest of his album on Facebook.  Celebrate the Year of the Snake one image at a time.

Mike used an Impala toy car and a book about graffiti to pull off this shot.  
 
Krista Wade has created concept art and a CGI model for a character (Who Wants Ice Cream?) she made for Creature Box.

Krista is learning how to make video games, and designed this for one of her assignments.  How cool is that?

Jodie Beechem has been acting squirelly lately.  Check out a couple of her new illustrations:

Black eyes, bushy tail.  "What are you looking at?"

"Quoth the raven, 'Nevermore'." -Edgar Allen Poe

Site Author John Beechem has penned the 18th chapter of his fantasy epic The Chronicles of Trivo:  Phoenix Ranger.  Trivo and his companions find passage aboard the St. Lucia, a merchant ship of the Tidewater Trade Company.  All is well until a furious storm comes upon them in the night--they must fight for their lives or be swallowed by the sea...

John has also posted a new rhyming poem about meditation and consciousness, "3rd Eye Open".  Feel the vibrations.

Thank you for visiting.  Feel free to submit original writing or art to americanfantastic@gmail.com.  

When reality becomes a burden, enjoy a sojourn into fantastic...

Voices of the Damned Howl 'Happy All Hallow's Eve'

Welcome back to the realm of ghouls and goblins.  The time for witches' cauldrons, rotting corpses and blood sacrifice has come again.  Savor the autumn sunshine, for this very day could be your last...

Artist Jodie Beechem has crafted a couple of new black and white portraits. Only a mind as decadent and diseased as Jodie's could craft such horrific, fascinating images.  Do not stare too long into the abyss...

Writer John Beechem has penned two recent works.  One is an update to his on-going fantasy saga, The Chronicles of Trivo:  Phoenix Ranger.  In the most recent chapter, Trivo and his companions face off against an evil necromancer and his minions within the lost dwarven city of Buhad.  Sharpen your blade and fill your quiver, for evil has flourished.

John's other tale is a new horror short story, "The Good, the Bad, and The Dead".  A squad of soldiers searches the ruins of Brooklyn for a new drug needed to cure the zombie outbreak.  Not all is as it seems in this story of life, death, bloodshed, and deceit.  Board the windows and gather your canned goods, because this is a story to wake the dead.

Enjoy your sojourn into the fantastic.  Happy Halloween.  Remember to say your prayers...

March Mania

The frost thaws, and once frozen ground has transformed itself into a mess of grass, mud and puddles.  Slowly, new shoots appear from the earth and sprout buds.  As they open, a few sleepy eyes peer out.  Gossamer wings glitter in the morning sun.  The creatures take flight, and herald the dawn of the new spring.  

New art and stories have been posted.  John Beechem has created a short story about a young man in the throes of madness.  See the world through the eyes of the moonstruck in "Delusions of Grandeur".

Selena McCracken has penned a tale of love and death in "The Science of Fate".  A research-driven, grave-robbing doctor meets a reluctant teenage prostitute on the streets of Victorian London.  This bitter-sweet love story features an unlikely couple in a grim setting, discovering much about themselves and each other.

Artist Jodie Beechem has added two water-color paintings, quite different in style but sharing an excellent use of color and the medium.  She has also posted her first collage, "Get Crunched Up" combining a keen sense of geometry with a rush of explosive energy.

Welcome back to American Fantastic.  Enjoy the madness...

Plenty of Pleasing Pictures for your Perusal

American Fantastic has added a photography section!  The first two selections are shots by site co-creator John Beechem.  They are divided between urban photos:

and natural photos:

so whether you're a gargoyle or a fairy at heart, there's bound to be something for you.

American Fantastic is also excited to introduce its audience to Seattle artist Krista Wade.  Krista creates in a variety of mediums including ink, acryllic, soapstone sculpting, and is even learning video game design.  Check her out!

 

For submissions, please e-mail americanfantastic@gmail.com with your content included as an attachment.

American Fantastic Strikes Back

After a six month hiatus, new content has been added to American Fantastic. We are extremely pleased to post new material, and hope to continue to update more regularly through the savage heat of summer, the sun's fire lighting the flame of our muses.

John Beechem has posted chapter 15 of his on-going fantasy novel, The Chronicles of Trivo:  Phoenix Ranger.  In the latest installment, Trivo and his allies enter the Drulag Caverns, home to the deepest, darkest evils in the realm.  In an uneasy alliance, the companions join warriors of the local tribe, the Kel ta Ko and a clan of vampyrs who call the caverns their home.  Together, they battle a horde of the undead under the control of a necromancer's apprentice, in a fight for the future of their homelands.  

Dordji  has added three new pictures of speculative evolutionary art about a world in which life has evolved on a hostile planet filled with toxic gas and seas of acid.  Dordji specializes in drawing fantastic creatures whose anatomies are based on a blend of biology and imagination.

Thank you for returning to American Fantastic.  

The Collection of Curiosities Has Expanded

American Fantastic continues to grow like the majestic horn of a newborn unicorn or the all-consuming darkness of a black hole, depending on your sensibilities.  The insane architects of this website would especially like to thank those contributors who have made this update possible.  

Dordji has updated his gallery to include some black and white pencil sketches that feature dark creatures only his twisted imagination could fathom.

Jodie Beechem has added three new pictures to her gallery, including abstract pieces that combine elements of geometry and abstract symbology.

Gary Boyd has shared two of his literary oddities, "A Tanae Solium".  The prior is a short story about a man infected with an intelligent tapeworm, and the absurd world that they inhabit.  The latter is about a fabricated person named Ayeen and the room that he inhabits.

Last but not least, John Beechem has posted two recent chapters to his swords and sorcery epic, The Chronicles of Trivo:  Phoenix Ranger .  Follow Trivo and his companions as they journey through the foggy foothills of the southern highlands, battle a cave dwelling cyclops, and combine forces with a blood sucking vampyr against the evil necromancer, Count Benedict.

A special thanks to our contributors this week.  This is the largest update we've had since the site's creation, and this makes American Fantastic a truly collaborative effort.  Remember, we crave new content like a zombie hungers for human flesh, so please submit any original works you would like to see posted to americanfantastic@gmail.com.

Thank you for visiting, and please enjoy your time in this realm of wonder and darkness.

A Tale of Woe, a Poem, and New Art

Gary Boyd has written a short story called "Spiegelgrund" told from multiple perspectives about heartbreak and its aftermath. His characters are as flawed as his writing is not, and he has provided us with a compelling read.  

Jodie Beechem's art gallery has been expanded to include a few new pictures of black and white art she has created including a sea gull drawn in the style of a Native American woodcarving, a pair of spectacles, and some rootin' tootin' boots and spurs.

A young artist draws in the style of the ancients.

John Beechem has posted a poem about the beauty and darkness in his neighborhood in Seattle, WA titled "Aurora".  

Thank you for visiting American Fantastic, and remember, we love those who submit writing and/or art to americanfantastic@gmail.com.

New art by Jodie, and new fiction by John

A modest update adds to the menagerie of works by artist Jodie Beechem and writer and site co-creator John Beechem.

Jodie continues the tradition of humor, strageness, and surreal beauty of her gallery while adding new works that involve eye-popping color and a black sketch pad.

John has posted the first part of a work of urban fantasy about a young woman named Lynlea, balancing her life as a stressed out teenage hipster scholar with her fight against dark supernatural forces intent on using her "gift" for evil.  It's called The Hat Man's Shadow and it takes place in the same darkly fantastic Seattle as John's previous urban fantasy short story Scorch.  Lynlea, is the daughter of Ryu Murikami, a homicide detective who is not constrained by conventional notions of possibility.

Thank you for coming back to American Fantastic, and remember, we are always looking for contributors, so any aspiring creators should send digital versions of original works of art or fiction to americanfantastic@gmail.com.  Tread lightly in the shadows...

Updates, updates, updates...

Hello, fantaseekers, sci fi-nauts, fictioneers, and gazers into the abyss. 

Author Jeremy Garrett has posted a piece of flash fiction about people living through the aftermath of the Christian Rapture, titled Scenes from the Rapture. 

Dordji has posted some new art, an illustration of a creature from John's story, The Chronicles of Trivo:  Phoenix Ranger.  This creature, a terraphaunt, stalks the burning plains.  The figure underneath provides some helpful scale (the saw-toothed tusks are for ingesting dead and withered trees).

.

John Beechem has posted new chapters to The Chronicles of Trivo:  Phoenix Ranger.  Read the latest entries here, or go back to the beginning to catch up.

Thank you for coming, and do mind the terraphaunts; their terrific rumbling has been known to rattle bones.

FANTASTIC ART!

We've received our first outside art contributions:
http://americanfantastic.squarespace.com/jodies-art/ and /mike-maes-colored-pencil. 

First is a series of unique pencil sketches by Eugene, OR artist Jodie Beechem.  Jodie has a surreal, humorous style, and has promised to create more art for the site. 

Our second new artist is Mike Maes, an illustrator from Louisville, KY.  Mike designed a graffiti style colored pencil illustration that we hope is his first of many contributions. 

Thank you for visiting American Fantastic!  Enjoy your time in the phantasmagoria...

Fantastic News!

American Fantastic has a new look.  There is also a lot of new content on the site.  "Illegal Aliens" is a recently posted science fiction short story by site co-creator John Beechem.  John has also continued to post updates to his fantasy story, The Chronicles of Trivo:  Phoenix Ranger, including a colored map of Tyrn and its surrounding countries.  Continue checking for new chapters of this story and for new stories by John and other writers.

Jo'n Beachum is only an apprentice member of Tyrn's cartographer's guild.

Dordji (co-creator) has added a new banner, a new background and continues to post his art work on the site.  See his work in "Dordji's website elements" from the link just below the banner.  Keep an eye out for new art from Dordji and other artists.

We are always looking for new content and contributors to the site.  Please submit original artwork and writing to americanfantastic@gmail.com. 

Enjoy your sojourn into the realm of the fantastic...

Visual Things

This is Dordji.

I recently finished the title banner, as well as a few background pictures. I'm going for a feel of energy and imagination, but with a pleasing overall color scheme. I'll put all my finished stuff on the site so folk can take a gander. Words of critique would be appreciated.

Embryonic Web-Site

This website is still gestating.  Check back regularly to see future stages of development.