Curious canines contend with space pirates, a wicked warlock, and a carrot creature. Storyfeather Gazette.

Published 2 months ago • 3 min read

August 2026 Issue 1

In this issue: A space opera novel recommendation, and short stories & podcast episodes from the first half of August.

Circle format, a three-quarters view of Nila's smiling face from a photo with an oil paint filter applied.

A GOOD DAY TO READ 💥

I just finished reading The Photonic Effect by Mike Chen. In a year where I'm reading a lot of fantastic fiction, this is one of my favorites. If you're into space operas, and stories about captains and crews, and their struggles, and science, you might want to check it out. All of that stuff is in my fiction wheelhouse. I'll say no more, so you can go in fresh if you decide to read the book.

I've got a couple of my own space-themed stories for you this issue, in podcast form. So, here's hoping you feel it's a good day to listen.

✒️ 🪶 🎙

Greetings! I'm Nila. Every week, I release a new short story and a new podcast episode spanning the genres of science fiction, fantasy, mystery, mythology, fairy tale, fable, and horror.

Whether you're in the mood to read or listen, I've got stories to tell you.

🐕 Dog-gust 🚀

✒️ For this month's theme, dogs. Because they're special. And August is special.

🎙 The podcast episodes are about a laser battle at a space bar and a runaway prototype spaceship.

Titles and taglines below. Enjoy!

Short Stories

Digital drawing. Heads of three dogs facing left, tilted and looking up. From top to bottom, an Alaskan Malamute, a Rottweiler, and a Jack Russell Terrier. The fill colors are not natural to the breeds, but are vivid purple, magenta, orange, red, and yellow, with accents of blue and green suggesting clothing. At bottom left, background, partial view of a ringed planet. Watermark of “Storyfeather” along curve of planet at left. Copyright notice along right side top reads “Copyright © 2026 Nila L. Patel.”

Year 13. This year's theme is WildCards. Cards pulled from games. Maybe characters who are wild cards? I'll figure it out as I go.

Each link below leads directly to the story post.

HAZARD IN THE HEXAGON GALAXY

A canid crew, whose mission is to sail outer space in search of sentient species, visits a galaxy where they encounter pirates, patrols, and a possibly pernicious people. ☄️

Genre: Science Fiction

CLOVER THE DOGMOTHER

A dog vows to protect the human baby born to her family, after a warlock marks them both for death. 💖

Genre: Fairy Tale

LENNY AND THE CARROT CREATURE

Something is haunting Lenny's apartment at night, and the beagle must intervene before his human takes an action they both might regret. 🥕

Genre: Mysterious Fairy Tale

Find more Year 13 stories at the button below.

Podcast Episodes

Digital drawing. Two figures in silhouette stand in front of a car seen in three-quarters view from back. The car’s headlights are on. The figure at left holds up a device. They’re in an open field at night. The sky is full of stars. Before them appears a large glowing shape that extends out of frame. Watermark of “Storyfeather” along the car’s rear bumper.

The Wheel of Fiction turns and decides each story's theme. Thirteen spokes total. Eight are the themes of past seasons, one is a Wild Card, one is "Turn Again," and three are a mystery.

The text links below go to the Explore page on Storyfeather, where you can listen to the episode and find more info about the story

Pressing on the Spotify embed image leads to the episode's Spotify page.

SHOWDOWN AT THE CINNA-BAR

A crew assigned to repossess a precious and undefined item end up in the midst of a suspicious bar fight in a far-off sector of space. 🍺

Genre: Science Fiction

Showdown at the Cinna-bar

Aug 7 · Storyfeather

32:26

THE DISTANT PROXIMITY

A technician monitoring the trajectory of a long-lost spaceship with an experimental engine finds a troubling piece of data. 🚀

Genre: Science Fiction

The Distant Proximity

Aug 14 · Storyfeather

38:48

Find more episodes at the button below.

🪐

“Back to stations! Strap in!” Gray called out.

Goldie’s paws were securely on the throttle. “Something just hit us.”

“But we’re in im-space,” Dora said. The young technician gazed out the window at the warm red-orange swirls that were quickly cooling to yellow.

As if in answer to her incredulity, they were struck again. This time, not as hard.

Alarms began to blare. “Hull breach!” someone called.

“Captain, we’re being boarded.”

In imaginary space.

Rod drew in a breath and braced himself. Who would be so reckless?

—From "Hazard in the Hexagon Galaxy"

Attention Fiction Writers ✒️

Did you know I have a dedicated area of the Storyfeather site just for fictioneers? You'll find articles, a resources page, my book. You can even sign up for my newsletter, Fictioneer's Field Guide. I pick a topic or theme for the month. Then, I send out a short weekly email with tools, tips, techniques, troubleshooting, and typically a demo using one of my stories. On signing up, you'll get a PDF download to help you spark your story, and a short welcome series of emails walking you through that PDF.

Visit the 🌿 Fictioneer's Field Station today!

Reminder: You can always customize and change what emails you receive from me by using the "update preferences" link at the bottom of each email.

Parting words🪶

Next time, August's story theme expands into the podcast episode, when one canine takes a casual trip to a car wash, and ends up on the other side of the galaxy.

Happy reading and listening! 📚
—Nila

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