LIGHTSPEED MAGAZINE - Science Fiction and Fantasy Story Podcast (Sci-Fi | Audiobook | Short Stories)
Adamant Press
Edited by bestselling anthologist John Joseph Adams, LIGHTSPEED is a Hugo Award-winning, critically-acclaimed digital magazine. In its pages, you'll find science fiction from near-future stories and sociological SF to far-future, star-spanning SF. Plus there's fantasy from epic sword-and-sorcery and contemporary urban tales to magical realism, science-fantasy, and folk tales. Each month, LIGHTSPEED brings you a mix of original short stories and flash fiction featuring a variety of authors, from the bestsellers and award-winners you already know to the best new voices you haven't heard yet. When you read LIGHTSPEED, you'll see where science fiction and fantasy have come from, where they are now, and where they're going. The LIGHTSPEED podcast, produced by Grammy Award-winning narrator and producer Stefan Rudnicki of Skyboat Media, features original audio short stories 6-8 times a month.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Mar 26, 2026 • 1h 1min
"When We Loved Giants" by Sara S. Messenger + "Terms of Enlightenment" by Patrick Hurley
This episode features "When We Loved Giants" by Sara S. Messenger (©2026 by Sara S. Messenger ) read by Susan Hanfield, and "Terms of Enlightenment" by Patrick Hurley (©2026 by Patrick Hurley) read by Jack Turner. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mar 19, 2026 • 1h 11min
"An Encounter at the Dawn of the Time War" by JT Petty + "Lotus Dew for the Emperor's Tea" by Vanessa Fogg
Susan Hanfield, a versatile audiobook narrator known for rich accents, reads a time-warp tale about a predictive lens, shifting memory and the peril of rewriting history. Su Chen, a stage and screen actor, narrates a mythic fable of lotus dew, imperial immortality, stolen magic, and a tea master’s lifelong quest. Short, vivid stories blend science-tinged danger and lyrical mythic longing.
Mar 12, 2026 • 45min
"The Tide Folk" by Jennifer Hudak + "Espie Droger Dreams of War" by Matthew Kressel
A dusk-lit tale of tide folk drawn to land by liminal beauty and the peril of staying after dark. An insomnia-haunted protagonist relives apocalyptic war dreams and faces a future officer’s grim reckoning. Memory, duty, and guilt collide as a devastating choice about erasing the past and remaking the world unfolds.
Mar 5, 2026 • 1h 20min
"Eat, Prey, Love..." by Jilly Dreadful + "The Devourers Of War..." by Oluwatomiwa Ajeigbe
This episode features "Eat, Prey, Love: A Modest Proposal for Ensuring Gender Equality Through Selective Dietary Practices; or, a Geriatric Millennial’s Guide to #GirlDinner" by Jilly Dreadful (© 2026 by Jilly Dreadful) read by Susan Hanfield, and "The Devourers Of War, or, An Excerpt From The Cookbook Of The Gods" by Oluwatomiwa Ajeigbe (©2026 by Oluwatomiwa Ajeigbe) read by Stefan Rudnicki. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 26, 2026 • 38min
"Warren's Tentacle" by Susan Palwick + "A Handbook To Spirit-hunting" by Modupeoluwa Shelle
Paul Boehmer narrates Susan Palwick’s surreal tale about surgery, AI bots, and a man who wakes with new fingers, a tentacle, and a third eye. Stefan Rudnicki, award-winning audiobook producer and narrator, reads a folkloric spirit-hunting handbook full of eerie entries and dangerous spirits. Short, strange, and vividly told scenes alternate between techno-rehab and uncanny supernatural lore.
Feb 19, 2026 • 43min
"The Salt and the Cure" by Rukman Ragas + "Sensor Ghosts" by Deborah L. Davitt
This episode features "The Salt and the Cure" by Rukman Ragas (©2026 by Rukman Ragas) and "Sensor Ghosts" by Deborah L. Davitt (©2026 by Deborah L. Davitt), both read by Stefan Rudnicki Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 12, 2026 • 50min
"The Worldbuilder" by Phoenix Alexander + "Dream Destinations (From the Lost Traveler's Tour Guide)" by Alexander Weinstein
This episode features "The Worldbuilder" by Phoenix Alexander (©2026 by Phoenix Alexander) read by Justine Eyre, and "Dream Destinations (From the Lost Traveler's Tour Guide)" by Alexander Weinstein (©2026 by Alexander Weinstein) read by Paul Boehmer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 5, 2026 • 59min
"Six Sides of a Fairy Tale" by Audrey Zhou + "Death Echoes Overlapping" by Megan Chee
This episode features "Six Sides of a Fairy Tale" by Audrey Zhou (©2026 by Audrey Zhou) read by Justine Eyre, and "Death Echoes Overlapping" by Megan Chee (©2026 by Megan Chee) read by Stefan Rudnicki. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jan 29, 2026 • 36min
"A Brief Public Announcement" by Eli Brown + "The Moving Finger" by Adam-Troy Castro
This episode features "A Brief Public Announcement" by Eli Brown (©2026 by Eli Brown) and "The Moving Finger" by Adam-Troy Castro (©2026 by Adam-Troy Castro) both read by Stefan Rudnicki. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jan 22, 2026 • 45min
"Academic Neutrality" by M.R. Robinson + "Hunter, Hunter" by Oluwatomiwa Ajeigbe
This episode "Academic Neutrality" by M.R. Robinson (©2026 by M.R. Robinson) read by Stefan Rudnicki, and "Hunter, Hunter" by Oluwatomiwa Ajeigbe (©2026 by Oluwatomiwa Ajeigbe) read by Janina Edwards. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
