Welcome to issue 9! Included in this issue, we have short stories by Audrey T. Carroll, R. Lee Fryar, C.M. Fields, Kathleen Myers, and Colin Fisher, with poetry by Ismim Putera. Additionally, we have an interview I did with Mara Johnstone. This is a very full issue and one that we had a lot of fun putting together.

However, before we go further, I feel like I should say something about the state of the world. We’re in the middle of a global pandemic, and have been for a little over a month, so this is the first issue we’ve published during all of the stay-at-home mandates and quarantines. I’ll admit it: I’m scared, I’m scared for my spouse and my mother, who are immuno-compromised, I’m scared for my grandparents, and I’m scared for all of the people I work with both at my day job and at the magazine, but we can’t give up.

Here at Prismatica, we have readers and fans all over the world, and our staff is no different. One of our readers lives in South Korea, an editor lives in Australia, and a few of us are scattered across Europe. I myself live in the United States. Still, every month we are able to publish amazing content from authors just as diverse as our staff. None of us have ever met face to face but every one of us is dedicated to the magazine.

What that means to me is that we are not alone, even when we are stuck inside our houses and feel like we’re going insane. Every single one of the people who work on the magazine with me, I’ve come to call a friend. We form meaningful relationships and even when members have left the magazine, we’ve stayed in contact and promoted each other’s work. It’s honestly amazing; we live in an age where we have direct communication with people on the other side of the world, which is a feat of technology that our magazine would not be able to do without. So, please, use that line of communication and reach out to others. Don’t let the isolation get to you. If you need someone to talk to, email us at contact@prismaticamagazine.com or join our Discord. We’re here for you.

From your Editor-in-Chief,

Annaelise Montez

I know that a lot of people are going through financial hardships, but if you can, please support our magazine by purchasing this issue in eBook format on Amazon or in print on Etsy. We can’t keep this magazine going without your generous support.

DEDICATIONS

This month’s issue is dedicated to all who made it possible.

Christine Alderman

Lara Ameen

Cassandra Andresky

Aidan Budd

Malinda Christensen

Vera Elwood

Laurent Gauchon

Li Lu

Gretchen Martin

Morgan Miller

Mark Mohr

Kathryn Moore

Briar Ripley Page

Vanessa Parris

Daniel Putney

Abigail Stewart

Dean Suttles

Eleanor Teach

Finley Wilson

To see your name on next issue’s dedications, make sure to purchase a copy of our magazine on our Etsy page to support Prismatica Magazine!