Meet the WEIRDo's: BRAVE NEW WEIRD Award Winner M. L. Krishnan

M. L. Krishnan originally hails from the coastal shores of Tamil Nadu, India. She has been awarded Fellowships and Residencies from Tin House, MacDowell, Millay Arts, and the Clarion West Writers Workshop. Her stories and essays have appeared, or are forthcoming, in Strange Horizons, Black Warrior Review, Diabolical Plots and elsewhere. Her work has been anthologized in The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, Afterlives: The Year’s Best Death Fiction, Wigleaf Top 50, Best Microfiction, Best Small Fictions and more. You can find her at: mlkrishnan.com.

Her BNW-winning story “Measurements Expressed as Units of Separation” originally appeared in The Crawling Moon: Queer Tales of Inescapable Dread (Neon Hemlock).

BRAVE NEW WEIRD is out now! You can order it here.

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Give us the elevator pitch of your BNW-winning story.

Set in a remote South Indian college, "Measurements Expressed as Units of Separation” is a circuitous, queer love story about obsessions that fester, a snake, a long-forgotten prince, and a large body of water.

This world is friggin' Weird in a lot of ways right now, and many of those ways are not the fun kind. What secret tips can you share to help others navigate this mess on a daily basis?

I’m going to say it, because I’m terrible at it: staying off social media. The days I put a moratorium on relentless scrolling and actually commit to anything else that does not involve a screen, are the days where my brain breaks free from the incessant guilt-doom-guilt-doom-guilt-doom hamster wheelies. This is how I remember that I’m still a human person, and not an anxious swarm of wasps trapped in a meat suit. 

Gotta say, Guilt Doom Hamster Wheelies is a great band name.

Do you take naps?

I do, and I always feel less-rested and worse after taking a nap. 

Ah, a human after my own heart! “This isn’t making me feel better, but if I keep doing it I can at least learn to ignore how unpleasant it is.” It’s a can’t-lose-don’t-research-further solution.

On the Tenebrous Discord board, we ask everyone to introduce themselves as a Film-meets-Music Artist (Citizen Kane x Metallica, f’rinstance). It doesn’t have to be your favorite, and don’t spend too much time overthinking it; now GO.

I didn’t even have to think about this, my hands moved on their own. Only Lovers Left Alive x INXS. 

What's the capital-W Weirdest thing that's ever happened to you (that you're comfortable sharing)?

When I was a kid, I rode an elevator at a construction site that was not completely installed. It was not connected to any source of power. I stepped into it with the ignorance and bravado of an average ten-year-old, pressed the button for the fourth floor, and it took me up to the fourth floor. I remember my parents panic-screaming as they ran up the (unfinished) stairs. I remember that I was too short for the stairs that were laid too far apart, and that’s why I stepped into the elevator in the first place. I remember being grounded for an entire month. I was fine. I took the partially-installed, disconnected elevator. It worked for me. 

I remember that elevator. I’m still in that elevator!

…we’re all still in that elevator. We always were. We always will be.

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BRAVE NEW WEIRD: The Best New Weird Horror + More, Vol. 3, is out now!

You can order it here.

Meet the WEIRDo's: BRAVE NEW WEIRD Award Winner Hannah Greer

Hannah Greer’s work has been featured in Solarpunk Magazine, Radon Journal, and elsewhere. She is a first reader for Fusion Fragment, hoards books, and competes in combat sports. She resides in North Carolina with her partner, a trio of cats, a small flock of pigeons, and several geckos. Find her on Bluesky or at hannahgreer.carrd.co.

Her BNW-winning story “To Be Human” originally appeared in PseudoPod.

BRAVE NEW WEIRD is out now! You can order it here.

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Give us the elevator pitch of your BNW-winning story.

Growing organs for the wealthy means living like livestock. It means missing out on what it is to be human. But there are acts, rebellious acts, that offer a level of humanity otherwise unattainable. Are they worth it?

Yeah but to be fair, if we don’t let the wealthy sustain themselves with our organs, how will they live long enough to bestow upon us all that sweet sweet trickle-down wealth that they swear is on its way?

This world is friggin' Weird in a lot of ways right now, and many of those ways are not the fun kind. What secret tips can you share to help others navigate this mess on a daily basis? 

It's not really a secret, but it is easy to forget that you need to take care of yourself. Turn off the news. Get yourself a sweet treat. Take a nap. Go to a rage room. Whatever taking care of yourself looks like for you. It can feel like we need to be on top of everything all the time, but with so much going on, that's not really possible. And that's okay. Do what you can, when you can. And when you can, maybe fuel all those messy emotions into a story! It helps me, but only when it's not quite so fresh.

You’re speaking my love language. “Costco-sized Box of Hostess Cupcakes + Napping in the Rage Room” and I’m swept away on an ocean breeze.

Speaking of… Do you take naps? 

Of course! It's the only way to get through the day!

On the Tenebrous Discord board, we ask everyone to introduce themselves as a Film-meets-Music Artist (Citizen Kane x Metallica, f’rinstance). It doesn’t have to be your favorite, and don’t spend too much time overthinking it; now GO. 

Oh no, I don't really listen to music! Do I even know any artists? Hmm. Oh, quickly? Uh, Lilo and Stitch x Girl in Red

What's the capital-W Weirdest thing that's ever happened to you (that you're comfortable sharing)? 

Maybe when this big peking duck developed an unhealthy obsession with me. And by that, I mean unhealthy for me. He would chase me down and attack me on sight. I couldn't go outside in shorts for years because his bites could hurt! I also had to take care of him, which led to some other interesting animal encounters. Specifically, I regularly had beef with an opossum who would steal the duck food. We'd get into hissing matches from my ground-level bedroom window.

Okay yeah, granted, that’s Weird, but I’m still stuck back on “I don’t really listen to music”. Hearing you say that is officially the capital-W Weirdest thing that’s ever happened to me. 

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BRAVE NEW WEIRD: The Best New Weird Horror + More, Vol. 3, is out now!

You can order it here.

Meet the WEIRDOs: BRAVE NEW WEIRD Award Winner Angela Liu

Angela Liu is a Chinese-American writer/poet from NYC who writes about intergenerational trauma and weird things. She is a 2x Nebula Award finalist and has also been nominated for the Hugo, Astounding, Ignyte, and Rhysling Awards. She formerly researched mixed reality storytelling at Keio University in Japan. Her stories and poetry are published in Strange Horizons, Clarkesworld, The Dark, Interzone Digital, Lightspeed, khōréō, and Logic(s), among others. Check out more of her work at liu-angela.com or find her on Twitter/Instagram @liu_angela and on Bluesky @angelaliu.bsky.social.

Angela’s BNW-winning story, “A Contract of Ink and Skin,” originally appeared in Uncanny Magazine.

BRAVE NEW WEIRD is out now! You can order it here.

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Give us the elevator pitch of your BNW-winning story. 

Cursed tattoos. Body horror. Inexplicable creatures are in love with you. Inexplicable things want to be with you forever. 

Look, we all want love and companionship; sometimes cursed and inexplicable are just baked into that.

This world is friggin' Weird in a lot of ways right now, and many of those ways are not the fun kind. What secret tips can you share to help others navigate this mess on a daily basis?

Take long walks in nature. Try to cook something amazing you had at a restaurant. When the bad thoughts get too overwhelming, I try to play an instrument (or Tetris)—the precise finger movement and intense focus help stimulate/distract the brain in a good way.

Also, write a poem instead of a social media hot take. I've never regretted writing more poetry, but I have definitely regretted posting things on social media. 

I have nothing sarcastic to say; I love all these tips. 

Do you take naps?

No. I barely even sleep at night.

On the Tenebrous Discord board, we ask everyone to introduce themselves as a Film-meets-Music Artist

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind x Shiina Ringo 

What's the capital-W Weirdest thing that's ever happened to you (that you're comfortable sharing)?

I was once in a Tokyo McDonalds with a classmate around 3AM, waiting for the first train of the day when this old guy sleeping nearby suddenly woke up and scooted over to our table. He asked if I’d ever worked for the army. His voice was real low and serious. He proceeded to say the government had cloned me and sent me out to fight because they knew I could be a powerful fighter. 

“You could still lead them," he said and told me to seriously consider this.

Then he just left.

I smell a film franchise, and I’m sending thoughts and prayers that you get that sweet, sweet adaptation money.

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BRAVE NEW WEIRD: The Best New Weird Horror + More, Vol. 3, is out now!

You can order it here.

Meet the WEIRDOs: BRAVE NEW WEIRD Award Winner Leo Oliveira

Leo Oliveira hails from Ontario, Canada, where he studied psychology and creative writing. He nurses a soft spot for rats, prehistory, and flawed queer characters. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in Fusion Fragment and Heartlines Spec, among others. His work has also been nominated for the PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize for Emerging Writers and Best Horror of the Year.

Leo’s BNW-winning story, “They Remember Faces”, originally appeared in Radon Journal.

BRAVE NEW WEIRD is out now! You can order it here.

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Give us the elevator pitch of your BNW-winning story.

The former research director of a company dedicated to industrializing endangered species confesses why he killed his boss. (Spoilers: it has something to do with ravens)

This world is friggin' Weird in a lot of ways right now, and many of those ways are not the fun kind. What secret tips can you share to help others navigate this mess on a daily basis?

Don't punch your ticket early is number one. Don't give up. Find joy where you can, be creative, be thoughtful. I've adopted the politics of spite. Absurdism. Do whatever you have to to get through the day, and hopefully something that'll make you look forward to the next one.

Do you take naps?

Sometimes. Usually past my first alarm and up to my second.

Multiple alarms? Masochist (I have them too).

On the Tenebrous Discord board, we ask everyone to introduce themselves as a Film-meets-Music Artist (Citizen Kane x Metallica, f’rinstance). It doesn’t have to be your favorite, and don’t spend too much time overthinking it; now GO.

Jurassic Park x Glass Animals

What's the capital-W Weirdest thing that's ever happened to you (that you're comfortable sharing)?

Oh, there's been a few. One I'll always remember was when I was approached by a woman outside a computer store while waiting for my uncle to arrive and help me get all the stuff back home. She started up a conversation about clothing brands, pointing to the sweater I was wearing. She watched videos and followed groups that talked about different brands like that, she said, and uncovered their secrets. By cutting into the clothes, they revealed that many companies sewed patches inside the lining of their products. Devil patches. You know, to summon the devil. And probably steal your soul. She looked up at me with tears in her eyes and told me that, unfortunately, the sweater I was wearing was one of those. Now, I live in the city, right? I've been around. I'm no stranger to street preachers yelling about the end times. So soul-stealing patches sewn inside the fabric of factory-made clothing behind secret hatches wasn't the weird part in context. This was during the pre-covid, pre-QAnon era. Conspiracism had not reached its heights, but the internet prepared me for it. No, what got me was the imploring way she looked at me, leaning into my personal space, grabbing my shoulder. Have you ever had one of those something-is-not-right-here feelings that activates every one of your sympathetic nervous system reactions? They all went off at once. She was measuring my reaction, it felt like. I expressed a suitable degree of horror at the idea that devil patches might've been sewn into all my clothes, promised I'd look into it, and then she was on her way. I think about her sometimes. I don't imagine the pandemic was kind on her mental health (whose WAS it kind to?), especially with how brutally people more susceptible to conspiracism were/are taken advantage of. No, it wasn't the content of her irrational beliefs I found Weird (though I did find it lowercase weird), it was why she approached me. She didn't talk to anyone else. She wasn't proselytizing or spreading the good word. I wasn't the only person on the street or wearing something that'd been mired in controversy. I think she genuinely believed it. She genuinely wanted to help. That's the part that gets me.

…I have nothing to add to this, other than I hope you went home and cut those patches right the f&$k out of that devil sweater.

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BRAVE NEW WEIRD: The Best New Weird Horror + More, Vol. 3, is out now!

You can order it here.