Time for some scifaiku and tanka now from Francis W. Alexander, Robert Shmigelsky, Brittany Hause, Herb Kauderer, and Denny E. Marshall. Their bios appear as closing credits.


time-lapse photography             
the bat’s graceful shapeshift                             
to a vampire                              

...Francis W. Alexander


space-time eddy
wormhole TV in the hands of
a channel clicker
 
...Robert Shmigelsky


field trip        

smoking phoenix nest
as we crowd around
my classmate picks his nose

...Brittany Hause


detour
 
Lunar cab driver
unintentionally hits
escape velocity
takes long route around L5
with his meter still running


Lost in Translation
 
Martian restaurants
named from Terran atlases
conjure atmosphere
but add no flavor to meals
of replicated proteins.

...Herb Kauderer


aliens approach
three body parts join and say
“we come in pieces”

time machine magazine
negative two day
response time

...Denny E. Marshall


The bios...

* Francis Wesley Alexander has had stories and poems published in Grievous Angel, The Martian Wave, Night to Dawn, Scifiakuest, Space and Time, The Drabbler Anthologies, and numerous other publications. 

* Robert Shmigelsky runs over all things in his mind. Some of it squeaks out as short poetry. And onto his Facebook account.

* Brittany Hause is a linguist with a lifelong love of science fiction and fantasy. When not wrapped up in research on language contact phenomena, she can usually be found reading and writing SFF poems and stories. She makes the occasional appearance on Twitter: @BrittanyHause. Her speculative poetry has most recently appeared in Star*Line and Grievous Angel and is forthcoming in Abyss & Apex, Scifaikuest, and Blossomry.

* Herb Kauderer is an associate professor at Hilbert College. He won the 2017 Asimov's Readers' Award for Best Poem, and has had 15 books and chapbooks published. More can be found at http://HerbKauderer.com

* Denny E. Marshall has had art, poetry, and fiction published. One recent credit is poetry in Weirdbook #37 Sept. 2017. See more at http://www.dennymarshall.com

We've just had the Shortest Day (up here in the Northern Hemisphere) so what better than some short-form poetry, touching everything from time and space travel to primeval horror, to see us into the Festive Season. Our contributors are Robert Shmigelsky, Brittany Hause, Vince Gotera, and Bruce Boston.


temporal archaeology
digging up my own skeleton
from the bedrock


Christmas
window shopping
looking for the right gift
something heartfelt but misplaced in
the past
 
...Robert Shmigelsky


cenotaph

bits of shattered hull
twirling in zero gee
her favorite bear

...Brittany Hause


Snowman

eyes
chunks of
charcoal

arms
black
branches
reaching out

from
under
​the bed

...Vince Gotera


Full Moon Forecast

A ginger sky at twilight,
rich in effluence. 
At dusk a blood moon
on the horizon.
A bestial cry in the dark
trembles the night.

...Bruce Boston

Remember, remember the 5th of November, Gunpowder, Treason and Plot was the verse we used to sing in England when I was young. Sorry, no gunpowder, treason or plot today – just some very good scifaiku from Pat Tompkins, David Kelly, Kelly Sauvage Angel, Gabriel Smithwilson, Susan Burch, Greg Schwartz, and David Shultz. But just don't ask where the USB plug goes!


trying to grasp
the something of nothing
quicksilver

the Milky Way
feeds on dwarf galaxies
big business model

by Pat Tompkins


improved recipe
a new number on
my green pills

by David J. Kelly


chemical shower
still, your need for me
betrays your scent
 
abandoned bunker
how sweet the syrup
of rotting peaches

by Kelly Sauvage Angel


Full moon fever
Stirs sickened mind
Bestial feeling breathes inside

by Gabriel Smithwilson


absolute zero
you couldn’t have been
any colder

by Susan Burch


USB Toilet

you don't
want to know
where the plug goes

by Greg Schwartz


the morning star
the evening star
yellow fog on venus

by David F. Shultz

These are not the sonnets you were looking for: today sees part 1  of our Great Fall Scifaiku Fest, featuring sci-fi and fantasy haiku from Robert Shmigelsky and Guy Belleranti  http://www.guybelleranti.com/  We'll be back with part 2 in a fortnight...

 
Five by Robert Shmigelsky

decommissioned frigate
snippy ship’s AI
calling everyone Bob

brain-splattering round
Computer playing
Russian roulette

vending machine bot
on derelict space liner
still emptying change

haunted skies
ghost planet's
fiery death

black hole bomber
diaphanous driver
bending space


Four by Guy Belleranti

lunch with aliens
avoid seat at head of table
it bites

my alien dog
pulling hard on the leash
commands me to heel

my marvelous clone
even I cannot tell
if I’m me or it

voices in his head
mad scientist opens skull
so others can hear