Nominated for a 2011 World Fantasy Award in the short fiction category, writer Mercurio D. Rivera’s spec-fic stories have appeared in a wide range of markets such as Asimov’s (forthcoming), Year’s Best Science Fiction #17, edited by Hartwell & Cramer (forthcoming), Unplugged: The Web’s Best SF and Fantasy for 2008, edited by Rich Horton, Interzone, Black Static, Nature, Electric Velocipede, Abyss and Apex, Sybil’s Garage, Murky Depths, Aoife’s Kiss, Otherworlds Anthology and Northwest Passages: A Cascadian Anthology.

He is a regular contributor to the acclaimed British magazine Interzone (with stories appearing in issue ##204, 214, 219, 226, 227, 235, 236). His story about unrequited alien love, “Longing for Langalana” was voted favorite story of 2006 in Interzone‘s annual readers’ poll (and can be heard at Transmissions from Beyond.)  His SF/horror tale, “The Scent of Their Arrival,” which appeared in Interzone #214, explores the themes of science and faith in a post-apocalyptic world overrun by interdimensional creatures.  It finished in second place in the Interzone readers’ poll for 2008.  And his story “Snatch Me Another,” was included on the Locus Recommended Reading List for 2008 (finishing at #25 among all short stories)  and the storySouth Million Writers Award Notable Stories for 2008.  A podcast of the story can be heard at StarshipSofa.   His story “Dear Annabehls,” which is set in the same universe as “Snatch Me Another” can be heard at Beam Me Up.

Six of his stories have received “Honorable Mentions” in Gardner Dozois’s Year’s Best Science Fiction anthologies.

Mercurio has appeared on the radio show Hour of the Wolf on WBAI, where he read a first draft of his story “The Fifth Daniel” and subjected it to a live, on-air critique from his writing group, Altered Fluid.  The revised story, re-titled “The Fifth Zhi,” later appeared in Interzone; a podcast of the story can be heard at Escape Pod.

Mercurio has been a member of the highly regarded Manhattan writing group Altered Fluid since 2004.  He is proud to call this talented team of the brightest, up-and-coming genre writers in the SF/fantasy/horror community his friends. He serves as an Associate Editor with Sybil’s Garage magazine where he enjoys searching for gems in the slush pile and collaborating on the direction and look of the magazine.

RECENT AND FORTHCOMING STORIES:

“Missionaries” — Asimov’s (June 2012) (forthcoming)

“Tethered” — Interzone # 236 (Sept/October 2011); to be reprinted in Hartwell & Cramer’s YBSF (May 2012)

“For Love’s Delirium Haunts the Fractured Mind” – Interzone #235 (July/August 2011)

“Tu Sufrimiento Shall Protect Us” — Black Static #18  (August 2010) – NOMINATED FOR THE 2011 WORLD FANTASY AWARD – FREE DOWNLOAD AVAILABLE HERE

SF SIGNAL writes:  “[T]he story is elegantly written, beautifully atmospheric and filled with some wonderful local colour. “Tu Sufrimento Shall Protect Us” is not only the strongest story in the issue, it is also one of the most atmospheric, disturbing and thought-provoking short stories I have ever encountered. If Rivera’s work does not get picked up by one of the Year’s Best anthologies then there really is no justice in the world.