About Adam

Adam Fout is an author of science fiction, dark fantasy, horror, literary fiction, and poetry — he has been published in 365 Tomorrows, Anti-Heroin Chic, The Courtship of Winds, Déraciné, and Borrowed Solace.

My Story “Black Glass” was published in Issue 24 of Pulp Literature

December 11, 2019 by Adam

Pulp Literature is one of my favorite Canadian lit mags and does an excellent job of supporting writers from all over the world.

I’m particularly grateful that they chose to publish my story Black Glass. They’ve been extremely supportive and helpful throughout the publication process.

You can read my story Black Glass by purchasing Issue 24 here.

This story was reviewed by R. Graeme Cameron at Amazing Stories, who had this to say about Black Glass:

“Okay, this is the particular sort of concept-driven SF I especially like, the discovery of an alien artifact and the mystery of its hidden purpose. In most such stories the function of the artifact turns out to make perfect sense once its secrets and the alien motivation behind its creation are discovered and understood.

“But what if the underlying concept is literally too alien to be understood? What if all you can discover is the “what” but not the “why?” Dare you risk activating it? What if the consequences are utterly unmindful of your existence, yet impact you regardless of whether you want it to or not? This makes for an extremely interesting, albeit frustrating, story. A pattern of sorts is revealed, but not a clear cut explanation. There is a resolution, but not a solution. We are right to feel humble before a power beyond our ken. I found this story fascinating.”

You can read the entirety of this review here.

My Story “Correction” Was Published in Factor Four Magazine

July 18, 2019 by Adam

“Imperator” by Holly Heisey From Factor Four Magazine Issue 6

Factor Four Magazine has been super supportive of my writing and is an incredible venue. I’m disappointed that it had to close down but hopeful it may be revived some day.

Correction can be read for free in its entirety here. While quite short, this story traces the current trends in incarceration in the United States to their logical conclusion, particularly condemning the attitude promoting/fetishizing punishment (and not rehabilitation) that is prevalent in our country.

My Story “We Are Cherished” Was Published by DreamForge

July 18, 2019 by Adam

The awesome new speculative fiction magazine DreamForge recently published my short story “We Are Cherished.” This one was a lot of fun to write and was an attempt to break out of the mode of depressing fiction I’d been writing to create something hopeful.

I am forever grateful to Scot at DreamForge for building something so inspiring and hopeful and then inviting me to be a part of it in this small way.

To read the story, you’ll need to subscribe to the magazine. You can get a small discount on the issue I appear in here.

Here’s what reviewers had to say:

“We Are Cherished is a story about a person guiding a woman through the process of translation: leaving the human body and becoming digital. It depicts a world in ruins and promises that we will be cherished. I liked this story because of the creepy-yet-beautiful setting.”

You can read the full review here.

My Story “Living, as They Do, at the Bottom of the Sea” was published today in Breath & Shadow

January 15, 2019 by Adam

My story Living, as They Do, at the Bottom of the Sea was published today in Breath & Shadow.

Breath & Shadow is a wonderful publication out of Maine that publishes work focused on disability.

Because my disabilities are “invisible,” I often feel compelled to convince myself that they don’t exist (dangerous), and so, in reaction to this feeling, I do what I can to give them voice and call them what they are. Being published in a magazine of this sort might be helpful to other people who suffer from the same disabilities that I do, but it mostly helps me to remember who and what I am, which in turn helps me do the things I need to do to properly deal with my disabilities.

This story came out of the phrase “Underwater Basket Weaving,” the idiom referring to the supposed absurdity of college classes that don’t teach a definable skill, and the umbrella assumption above this that anything we cannot immediately find a use for (or make money from) must be worthless.

There are many things, in my mind and in the world, that have uses beyond the obvious, or that have value despite a lack of “usefulness.”

Living, as They Do, at the Bottom of the Sea is the result of my exploration of these ideas. Read it here.

Vicious Neon — A Speculative Flash Fiction Story

November 11, 2018 by Adam

A digitized sword with the words "Vicious Neon" sticking out of it. Read this flash science fiction story for free.

Her hand sparkles with emerald pixels, the silver blade winking in and out of digital existence. Her smile is vicious, flecks of zeros and ones flashing behind lips of neon purple.

His face is sharp, angles of radiation and phosphorescence, his grimace a slash of fury. He raises a severed hand in defense, bleeding golden binary, jade fractals, pink tessellations. Her blade descends, trailing twin tails of orange and crimson particles that pop and flare.

His grimace becomes a smirk. From his chest, a holographic cannon etches itself into reality. Its boom echoes across a cerulean landscape of infinite lines.