What is said, and precisely how it is said, hold incredible implications in speculative fiction, as in life. Here are some stories that explore, specifically, how individual words can hold power, manipulate reality, change how we feel, and even who we are…
“By the Far Salt Lake” by Portia Elan
When our protagonist’s father notices her interest in his books, he teaches her to read, but abandons her education when she informs him that she can see the words outside the pages. They mean something to her, something she only understands when her father dies and she sits mending a shawl: she can hear the angels, and they grant her their name in blessing. No one else can hear them. They guide her, protect her, and it is then that the girl recognizes that she can do something with the words they’ve offered her. An optimistic story about doing good in the world.
“A Better Way of Saying” by Sarah Pinsker
Back in the 1910s, movie theatres used to hire people to shout out the title cards displayed in silent films. Our young protagonist, hired for the job along with his sister, finds the wording inelegant, so he makes little changes as he reads them aloud. To his surprise, when the movie plays next, the title cards show his words, instead of whatever the makers originally wrote. He experiments with this effect, which works with movies, but not anywhere else—he can’t, for instance, speak into existence a job for himself at the newspaper office. Then, while substituting for a journalist, taking notes on a press event with the famous and charming actor Douglas Fairbanks, he gets the chance to test out his little magic trick when things seem to be taking a dangerous turn. But will it work? And what consequences will result?
“An Open Letter to Bakers” by Teresa Milbrodt
How many of us have answered the question “What would you wish for, if you knew it would be granted to you?” with something like “World peace” or “Ending world hunger”? Our narrator actually got the chance to do make such a wish, but not without including dozens of clauses to make sure their innocent wish wouldn’t impact anyone in the world negatively. It seems to have worked—though not entirely. A letter of apology is due, at the very least, and our narrator meant well, so we ought to listen to their side of the story too.
“Letters from Yours” by Em Liu
Our narrator has moved to an alien city, exchanging their life for their father’s health. They write letters to their Papa, letters they can’t send, but which afford them some comfort. Then the aliens find out what they’re doing, and want to know more. What does the written word mean to a people who don’t have written language, but who love stories? What does it mean to the ones who can understand the words but have no one to hear what they have to say? Liu explores both themes in this moving story about family, stories, and separation.
“The Words on My Skin” by Caroline M. Yoachim
In this curious little story, words determine what traits people have. Very few individuals, strictly monitored, are allowed to be skinwriters, giving people words that will shape their personality.
Being the daughter of a skinwriter gives our narrator access to her pens. The first time she snuck words onto her skin she was just a child. But then, as she grows up, she takes matters into her own hands, deciding that she’d choose what kind of person she wanted to be.
It’s common knowledge now that the words we use to speak to others—especially to our kids and loved ones—sometimes affect them in profound ways, far more than we might suspect; I really loved Yoachim’s unique take on this concept, written in very few words but with a lot of faith in humanity.
“The Bone Poet and God” by Matt Dovey
Ursula, a bone poet, has a question for God: “What kind of bear am I meant to be?”She feels insecure, often ashamed, and needs to know her purpose. What can she do for others? How can she be useful?
She carries with her bones—the tools of her craft—which belong to her family. Every bear has four runes carved on their bones over the course of their life. Ursula, for example, was given HOME and WATER by her parents. The third will be given by God, known only at one’s passing, and the fourth each bear chooses for themself. This is what Ursula wants God to help her with. But will she able to reach the top of the mountain where the right word can be found? And will she be content with what she gets?
