Selfies from the End of the World: Historical Accounts of the Apocalypse

Edited by Dawn Vogel and Jeremy Zimmerman

by Rhoads Brazos, Samantha Bryant, Garrett Croker, Nathan Crowder, Matthew R. Davis, Kate Elizabeth, Mathew Allan Garcia, Sylvia Heike, B. T. Joy, Herb N. Legend, Samuel Marzioli, Mary Mascari, Nick Nafpliotis, Shivangi Narain, Brandon Nolta, Alexis J. Reed, Natalie Satakovski, J. C. Stearns, Charity Tahmaseb, Nicole Tanquary, Kristopher Triana, Dusty Wallace, MJ Wesolowski, Caroline M. Yoachim

Cover Art for Selfies from the End of the World
Editions:Paperback - Print Edition: $ 11.30
ISBN: 978-0692514702
Size: 5.50 x 8.50 in
Pages: 306
Kindle - Amazon Edition: $ 4.99
ISBN: B013MUS13W
ePub - Smashwords Edition: $ 4.99
ISBN: 9781311426710

"It would be our duty, as citizens on this earth
to document its end the best way we know
and if that means a second by second update
of the world going up in flames, or down in rain, or crushed under the feet of invading monsters
so be it."
-- Shivangi Narain

No one understands an apocalypse like the people who have experienced it. Mad Scientist Journal has brought together twenty-three tales of people who have seen the world end. These accounts range from irreverent to surreal to heartbreaking. Zombies share space with global wars, superviruses, canned peaches, and the death of the sun.

Included in this collection are Rhoads Brazos, Samantha Bryant, Garrett Croker, Nathan Crowder, Matthew R. Davis, Kate Elizabeth, Mathew Allan Garcia, Sylvia Heike, B. T. Joy, Herb N. Legend, Samuel Marzioli, Mary Mascari, Nick Nafpliotis, Shivangi Narain, Brandon Nolta, Alexis J. Reed, Natalie Satakovski, J. C. Stearns, Charity Tahmaseb, Nicole Tanquary, Kristopher Triana, Dusty Wallace, MJ Wesolowski, and Caroline M. Yoachim. Includes art by Errow Collins, Amanda Jones, Shannon Legler, and Luke Spooner.

About the Authors

Rhoads Brazos

Rhoads has written stories across the entire spectrum of speculative fiction, from light fantasy to the most decrepit tales of horror to quirky sci-fi. His works can be found in Ellen Datlow’s The Best Horror of the Year, Vol. 7; Apex Magazine; Death’s Realm by Grey Matter Press; Pantheon Magazine’s Gaia: Shadow and Breath, Vols. 1 & 2; and a dozen other magazines and collections. He currently lives in Colorado with his wife and son.


Samantha Bryant

Samantha Bryant believes in love, magic, and unexplainable connections between people. She is a middle school teacher by day and a novelist by night. She also raises two kids, a dog, and a husband in a small town in North Carolina. That makes her a superhero all the time. You can find her online at samanthabryant.com and on Twitter @mirymom1. Her debut novel Going Through the Change: A Menopausal Superhero Novel, with Curiosity Quills Press, features another mad scientist.


Garrett Croker

Garrett Croker studied writing at UC Berkeley and received his MFA in creative writing from Mills College. He is a monster of the genus Homo Scriptorus, a much feared species known for subsisting on caffeine-based nutrients and possessing a particularly thick epidermal layer. Find him online at garrettcroker.com and on Twitter at @garrettcroker.


Nathan Crowder

Creator and curator of the superhero universe of Cobalt City, Nathan lives in the wilds of North Seattle, where he writes his weird stories and survives on a diet of coffee and irony. He draws inspiration from Kurt Vonnegut who reminds us, "God damn it, you've got to be kind."


Matthew R. Davis

Matthew R. Davis can never just walk past a second-hand bookshop, so his home increasingly resembles one. He’s had over forty short stories published thus far, with his first collection, If Only Tonight We Could Sleep, due in 2019. He has acted as a judge for the Australian Shadows Awards and the Aurealis Awards, and his work has been shortlisted for both (these occurrences are unrelated). A dossier on his behaviour and crimes has been assembled at matthewrdavisfiction.wordpress.com.


Kate Elizabeth

Kate Elizabeth lives in Melbourne, Australia. When she isn't working, she likes to write the occasional short story.


Mathew Allan Garcia

Mathew Allan Garcia is the fiction editor of Pantheon Magazine. His fiction has appeared or is forthcoming in Mad Scientist Journal, Kasma SF, NewMyths.com, and the Suspended In Dusk anthology from Books of the Dead Press. You can find his complete bibliography on www.mathewallangarcia.wordpress.com


Sylvia Heike

Sylvia Heike lives in Finland and loves her pet rabbits even when they nibble on her books. She writes short fiction, poetry, and is working on her novel. Her work has appeared recently in Flash Fiction Magazine and is forthcoming in three anthologies: Indies Unlimited Flash Fiction 2014, Seven Deadly Sins: Pride, and Selfies from the End of the World. Check out her website at www.sylviaheike.com.


B. T. Joy

B. T. Joy is a British horror writer whose short fiction has appeared within the printed pages, internet presences, and podcasts of markets such as Static Movement, Surreal Grotesque, James Ward Kirk Fiction, Human Echoes, MicroHorror, Flashes in the Dark, SQ Magazine, Forgotten Tomb Press, and Chilling Tales for Dark Nights, among others. He is also a practicing poet and his poetry can be found in magazines and anthologies produced worldwide. He is currently working as a high school English teacher in Heilongjiang, China. He can be reached through his website: http://btj0005uk.wix.com/btjoypoet or on Tumblr: http://btj0005uk.tumblr.com/.


Herb N. Legend

Herb is a budding, twenty-year-old African-American wordsmith from Chicago with a penchant for fiction, poetry, music, and trees. Perhaps you’ve seen him—a skinny red-eyed kid sipping a scalding cup of tea, completely engrossed in a paperback or tarnished notebook. Or maybe you’ve read some of his previously published works, which include a self-published collection of poems--but let’s be honest--you probably haven’t. One thing’s for sure, whether or not you’ve heard of Herb or not, he’s an author to keep your eyes on.


Samuel Marzioli

Samuel Marzioli is an Italian-Filipino author, born and raised in the drought-ridden state of California. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in numerous publications, including Apex Magazine, Shock Totem, and Intergalactic Medicine Show. He currently resides in Oregon with his family. For more information about his upcoming works, visit: marzioli.blogspot.com.


Mary Mascari

Mary first fell in love with Science Fiction when Luke turned on his lightsaber.

After getting a highly impractical degree in Performance Studies from Northwestern University, Mary has held a variety of careers ranging from programmer to clown. Now she's pursuing her MFA at Seton Hill University in Writing Popular Fiction.

She and her husband are raising their two boys to be geeks, and proudly display their life-size replica of Han Solo in Carbonite in their family room. You can follow Mary on Twitter at @geekyMary.


Nick Nafpliotis

Nick Nafpliotis is a music teacher and writer from Charleston, South Carolina. During the day, he instructs students from the ages of 11-14 on how to play band instruments. At night, he writes about weird crime, bizarre history, pop culture, and humorous classroom experiences on his blog, RamblingBeachCat.com. He is also a television, novel, and comic book reviewer for AdventuresinPoorTaste.com. You can follow Nick on Twitter, where he brings shame to his family on a daily basis.


Shivangi Narain

Shivangi Narain is a young adult running wild on the internet, with dreams of working in either AV production or journalism. She is a student by day, and a writer by night. Her first published works can be found in So You Think You Can Write, a collection of works by the OCE future author's program. She was raised in Florida, but currently lives in Bangalore, India, with her parents, brother, and dog.


Brandon Nolta

Brandon Nolta is a writer, editor, and professional curmudgeon living in the transportation-challenged wilds of north Idaho. After earning an MFA, he went slightly mad. Nothing much happened with that, so he gave it up and started working for respectable companies again, which he still does when he wants to pay his bills. His fiction and poetry have appeared in The Centropic Oracle, Stupefying Stories, The Pedestal Magazine, Every Day Fiction, Perihelion, and a cacophony of other publications. Iron and Smoke, his first novel, was published by Montag Press in 2015; he has yet to admit to a second.


Alexis J. Reed

Alexis J. Reed is a UK-based writer who self-published her first novel, Searching For You, in 2012. Two of her plays were performed in festivals in London and Cambridge. She has also had two stories shortlisted for the International Aeon Award for speculative fiction as well as having short fiction published both in the UK and abroad.


Natalie Satakovski

Natalie is an ex-English teacher who's turned to copywriting to support her fiction habit. Her fictional work has appeared in Infernal Ink and AntipodeanSF, and is upcoming in the anthology In Sunshine Bright and Darkness Deep. She loves reading all things creepy, from southern gothic to the new weird.


J. C. Stearns

After a long and failed career in alchemy yielded nothing but a time consuming and expensive formula for turning gold into lead, J. C. Stearns was forced into freelance writing to make ends meet. Currently he dwells with his wife, child, and menagerie of animals in the swamps of Southern Illinois, where he seethes with resentment against the world that has denied him the fame and glory he feels is rightfully his, and gleefully plots his revenge. His work has previously been published in Under the Bed and Selfies from the End of the World, and he is a regular contributor to Quoth the Raven.


Charity Tahmaseb

Charity Tahmaseb has slung corn on the cob for Green Giant and jumped out of airplanes (but not at the same time). She’s worn both Girl Scout and Army green. These days, she writes fiction (short and long) and works as a technical writer.


Nicole Tanquary

Nicole Tanquary lives in upstate New York State, where she has worked variously as a geochemistry lab assistant, a teaching assistant, and a non-fiction editor and writer, and is currently employed as a writing tutor for Syracuse University. She has sold and published short stories to a menagerie of venues, the most recent of these including work with Fantasia Divinity Magazine, Grievous Angel, and Deadman's Tome. Other things she likes to do include long hikes, playing with her pet rats and cats, and eating ice cream.


Kristopher Triana

Kristopher Triana is the author of Growing Dark, and his novel The Ruin Season will be published in 2016. His work has appeared in countless magazines and anthologies. He is also a professional dog trainer and runs the popular horror webpage Tavern of Terror, where he rambles on and on about how much he loves 80s horror and forgotten VHS treasures. He lives in North Carolina with his wife.


Dusty Wallace

Dusty Wallace lives in the Appalachians of Virginia with his wife and two sons. He enjoys reading, writing, and the occasional fine cigar. Find him on Twitter: @CosmicDustMite


MJ Wesolowski

Matthew John Wesolowski is a writer from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. His first ever book, written and illustrated by himself at age 11 was entitled Attack of the Killer Flytraps and whilst his writing style has possibly matured since then, his themes and content almost certainly haven't.

His short horror fiction has been published in Ethereal Tales magazine, The Midnight Movie Creature Feature anthology (May December Publications), the 22 More Quick Shivers anthology (Cosmonomic Multimedia), the Short Not Sweet anthology (Iron Press), the Kitchen Sink Gothic anthology (Parallel Universe Publications), the Selfies from the End of the World anthology (Mad Scientist Journal), and the Play Things & Past Times anthology (Great British Horror)

His debut novella, The Black Land,a horror set in the Northumberland countryside was published by Blood Bound Books in 2013.

You can find Matt on twitter: @ConcreteKraken

He blogs about horror, books and strange things here: https://mjwesolowskiauthor.wordpress.com


Caroline M. Yoachim

Caroline M. Yoachim lives in Seattle and loves cold, cloudy weather. She is the author of dozens of short stories, appearing in Lightspeed, Asimov's, Clarkesworld, and Daily Science Fiction, among other places. She likes avocados in burgers or sandwiches, but not in smoothies. For more about Caroline, check out her website at http://carolineyoachim.com.