Introducing the April 2025 Issues of Worlds of Possibility

The April 2025 issues of Worlds of Possibility have gone out to paid subscribers, who can get their copy here: https://www.juliarios.com/the-april-2025-issues-of-worlds-of-possibility/.

If you would like to buy individual copies of these issues instead of subscribing, you can do that here: https://www.patreon.com/juliarios/shop/worlds-of-possibility-april-2025-special-1612139 (Note: I have made them both available for the same price as one regular issue!)

This issue is special, as it’s actually two issues releasing at the same time. Basically what happened was I got a lot of things in my open submissions period that I really liked, but that I also knew might be hard for various people in different ways. So I collected some stories and poems and art that are hopeful, but with a dark edge, and then I paired them with a handful of stories and poems featuring creepy crawlies. This became April 2025 — Version One.

To be clear, I do think this assortment ultimately highlights hope, resilience, acceptance, and even joy at times. But, I also know that maybe some of the readers who come to Worlds of Possibility want something less clouded with hard, scary, or potentially icky things. So I did the only sensible thing under the circumstances: 

I created an alternate April 2025 issue! That one, April 2025 — Version Two, is also available to you, and it contains a lot of fun pieces that are much less complicated by potential triggers like death and bugs. 

Both of the April 2025 issues feature cover art by Andrea Bures, who also had a piece in the February 2025 issue. I am including the contents and editors notes for both issues below:

April 2025 — Version One

This issue contains Seven stories, five poems, and two illustrations. Uncredited art is designed/curated by me using stock art. I do try to ensure I am using stock created by humans. To the best of my knowledge, I do not use AI.

Table of Contents:

• Hope: art by Ojo Olaniyi.
• Night Dance: a poem by Zaynab Ilyasu Bobi, 18 lines.
• Diary of a High School Necromancer: a story by Spencer Orey, 3,700 words.
• The Face of a God: a story by H. V. Crow, 1,000 words.
• All the Lights We Cannot See: a poem by Jonathan Chibuike Ukah, 38 lines.
• Soldier On: a story by Peter Duchak II, 1,335 words.
• Gargoyle Girl: a story by Sylvia Heike, 2,000 words. 
• When the Clubs Close: a poem by Jeff Reynolds, 21 lines.
• Together in the Rain: art by Andrea Bures. This piece also serves as the cover for this issue.
• My First Name was Droplet: a story by Akis Linardos, 1,000 words.
• I Pupated by Accident on a Cold Night: a poem by Tehnuka, 26 lines.
• Until the Great Experiment Ends: a story by Keyan Bowes, 1,055 words.
• Two Views of an Unexpected Flight: a drabble by Marc A. Criley, 100 words.
• The Last Time I Went on a Prowl with Farrell Jenkins: a story by David Anaxagoras, 765 words.
• I'll Be Your Balloon: a poem by Alina Sidorova.

The cover of Version One is a closeup of “Together in the Rain” featuring a snail atop a mushroom in the rain. Cute, but also slimy and a little moody! You can see all of “Together in the Rain” later in this issue. Please note that it marks the transition from the first part of the issue, which features death heavily, to the second part, which features creepy crawlies. If you’re cool with one, but not the other, I encourage you to use Andrea’s art as your dividing line!

We open with hope, literally, as “Hope” is the title of the artwork by Ono Olaniyi that helps set the tone for our first several pieces. This piece is simultaneously dark and light. People gather together in a marketplace, but they have a strangely ragged quality to them, with holes in their surfaces. And yet, the piece is not entirely dark. It also contains bright tones. From this we move into a poem, “Night Dance” by Zaynab Ilyasu Bobi, which also explores both darkness and light. 

Our first story of the issue is “Diary of a High School Necromancer” by Spencer Orey. This one has the lighter tones of a fun teen movie and the darker tones of parental neglect, loneliness, and … well, necromancy. This is the first piece that really shows death, often in graphic and gory ways. It also includes lots of bones, and also rats. There are some gross moments, but also there’s some really nice character growth and found family in there. 

Next we have “The Face of a God” by H. V. Crow. This is a meditative look at a couple of dark moments in Greek myth, as Icarus and Persephone have a conversation with each other about their fates, their choices, and ultimately, self-acceptance. “All the Lights We Cannot See” by Jonathan Chibuike Ukah is a poem about life, death, reincarnation, and family relationships, and, like “The Face of a God”it does contain some graphic imagery of a person being burned.

“Soldier On” by Peter Duchak II is an ultimately heartwarming story of a veteran and a kitten, which begs the question: who rescued who? Though this one does end on a hopeful note, it contains suicidal ideation and PTSD as well as some details of animal injury. 

Continuing the theme of misfits finding one another, “Gargoyle Girl” by Sylvia Heike features a lonely monster child who is trying to fit in with humans. She finds an understanding adult in her new piano teacher, who has some secrets of her own. Keeping up with that monster theme, “When the Clubs Close” by Jeff Reynolds celebrates several kinds of monsters with a look at how they spend their late nights/early mornings. 

And with that, it’s time to transition from violence and death to all things creepy crawly! “Together in the Rain” by Andrea Bures shows us the cute side of traditionally frightening animals with a snail, a toad, and a mouse, all perched on some poisonous mushrooms on a rainy day.

We have a trio of pieces about transformation: “My First Name Was Droplet” by Akis Linardos takes a look at cycles of life and weather in a poetic story which does include some squirming things, while “I Pupated by Accident on a Cold Night” by Tehnuka is a poem about pupating, but perhaps not into what you might expect … and finally, “Until the Great Experiment Ends” by Keyan Bowes takes us on a chrysalis journey. 

Next we move into a couple of pieces that feature some more ordinary invertebrates. “Two Views of an Unexpected Flight” by Marc A. Criley stars a spider, and “The Last Time I Went on a Prowl with Farrell Jenkins” by David Anaxagoras involves some fireflies. 

We end on a poem. Alina Sidorova’s “I’ll Be Your Balloon” is something to pull us up out of our rainy and brooding mood.

April 2025 — Version Two

This issue contains Seven stories, two (or three? depending on how you count?) poems, and three illustrations. Uncredited art is designed/curated by me using stock art. I do try to ensure I am using stock created by humans. To the best of my knowledge, I do not use AI.

Table of Contents:

• Fairy Ladder: art by Andrea Bures.
• When You Think No One Can See You: a story by Lettie Prell, 800 words.
• To Undertake a Quest: a poem by Mary Soon Lee, 15 lines.
• The Regrettable Loneliness of the Great Wizard Graveblossom’s Door: a story by Michael M. Jones, 1,500 words.
• Catch of the Day: a story by Brian Hugenbruch, 900 words.
• Dragon Bed and Breakfast: a poem by Allison Burris, 10 lines.
• The Slayer’s Descent: a drabble by Ayida Shonibar, 100 words.
• The Case Against Raven Mail: a story by Wen Wen Yang, 800 words.
• The Ambassador: art by Michelle St. James.
• Invasibility: a story by Ellis Nye, 700 words.
• Stone Soup Colony: a story by Jennifer R. Povey, 550 words.
• After: art by Jenna Hanchey, which is also a poem, 14 lines.

The cover of Version Two is a closeup of “Fairy Ladder” featuring a lavender fairy climbing a lily of the valley. Lighthearted and fun, which is in keeping with the mood of the other pieces in this issue. 

What better follow up to “Fairy Ladder” than a sweet fairy story?“When You Think No One Can See You” by Lettie Prell shows us a tooth fairy and her relationship with a human child.

From fairies, we move to a pair of lighthearted quest fantasy pieces. First is “To Undertake a Quest” by Mary Soon Lee, a poem that sets the spirit for cozy adventure. Next, we get to see a little slice of just such a quest in “The Regrettable Loneliness of the Great Wizard Graveblossom’s Door” by Michael M. Jones.

Quest fantasy always makes me think of dragons, so we’re following the quest pieces with a trio of dragon pieces. We start with “Catch of the Day” by Brian Hugenbruch, which explores how finding a dragon behind your family’s alehouse might be the best thing for your future happiness. Then we have a poem by Allison Burris. “Dragon Bed and Breakfast” is what you get when you lean into the dragon theme instead of trying to get rid of it. Finally, “The Slayer’s Descent” is a drabble by Ayida Shonibar. What happens when your lover gets swallowed by a dragon, and you’re a lady knight? You follow her into the dragon’s mouth, of course!

Our final piece of Fantasy themed fiction is “The Case Against Raven Mail” by Wen Wen Yang. In this one, a group of unhappy people travel to confront their ruler, with ultimately excellent results! I found this one particularly hopeful for this period in particular, since it highlights how working together in solidarity, and getting personally involved in politics can truly make a positive change.

We wrap up this issue with four science fiction themed pieces. 

Kicking us off is an illustration by Michelle St. James. “The Ambassador” shows a whimsical take on first contact. Following that is another first contact themed piece in “Invasibility” by Ellis Nye. 

Our last piece of fiction is “Stone Soup Colony” by Jennifer R. Povey, which, like Wen Wen Yang’s story, shows us the value of people working together to make life better for everyone. And, also on that theme, our last piece is art by Jenna Hanchey. “After” is both a visual and also a poem, both created in a collage style.  

I hope this issue makes you smile, and also laugh in some places.

As a reminder:

I will be wrapping up the magazine with the June 2025 issue.

There are content notes at the end of each volume for anyone who is worried about what they may find in the stories. Although my goal for Worlds of Possibility is to publish works that soothe, inspire, and delight, I recognize that many subjects are difficult for different readers at different times, and that version one of this issue especially includes many potentially difficult things. I encourage you to make informed decisions about what you choose to read and when. 

All Best,

Julia Rios