Alternative Liberties, Alternative Liberties

Alternative Liberties gathers together some of the finest minds in speculative fiction to address the implications of current politics.Adam-Troy Castro answers the classic question “What happens if this keeps on?” in a riveting story of a quiet citizen undergoing an increasingly surreal house arrest. Renowned fantasy author Louise Marley writes from the perspective of a future academic, proposing a Ph.D. thesis about our times. Harry Turtledove, a master of alternate history, gives us the tale of a woman enthralled by the Terrific Leader. In Brenda Cooper’s “A Better President,” she tells the story of a Black D.C. teenager who, passing as white, ends up play a key role in a fascist riot. In the thoughtful “Afterward,” science fiction legend David Gerrold presents an all-too-relatable figure: a man estranged from his neighbors in an increasingly paranoid society. Elwin Cotman gives us a hack writer whose specialty is gutting American literary classics so they will appeal to a contemporary rightwing audience—and comply with the government’s AI censor, named Liberty.As frightening as our times appear, these writers envision daring, resistance, and hope. DP Seller’s tale of resistance at the Port of New Orleans has magical overtones. Voss Foster celebrates queer teens whose courage and collaboration enable them to survive in their ultra-conservative communities.Alternative Liberties is the latest in the Alternatives series from B Cubed Press that includes Alternative Truths, More Alternative Truths, Alternative Theologies, and Southern Truths. The editorial team for Alternative Liberties includes Debora Godfrey, Lou Berger, Cliff Winnig, K.G. Anderson, and B Cubed’s founding editor Bob Brown and Irene Radford.