Greetings, sapients! Are you ready for a tale of spaceships, knitting, and the evils of capitalism in space? Whether you are or not, this week we have "Knit Three, Save Four" by @reasie.bsky.social for your eyes, ears, and other sensory organs!

Rocky Cornelius is back in a new story about friendship, three dimensional fandom hyperobjects, and trying not to die in the state of Texas!

Hail, sophonts! Today we've got a series story for you, following up on episode 941 from May 2024. "The Love Pyramid: A Rocky Cornelius Consultancy" by @solarshades.club is an Escape Pod original, so go on! Witness it! What're you waiting for?

I'll be launching a new feature, The Queer AF Short Fiction Reading Club, early in November, and our first story to talk about will be Esther Alter's amazing "Magical Girl Antifa War Machine" from @escapepod.org #994 (May 22, 2025) escapepod.org/2025/05/22/e...

I’M A LITTLE BABY BUT I STILL LIKE TO RUMMAGE IN THE TRASH SOMETIMES 😽

Featuring stories from @clarkesworldmagazine.com, @smallwondersmag.com, @pseudopod.org, @escapepod.org, @lightspeedmagazine.com, @diabolicalplots.com, @flashpointsf.bsky.social, @thefuturefire.bsky.social, @lunastation.bsky.social, and Moonday Mag.

Mellow greetings, all: it's time to press F for another Flashback Friday! Today, for its third appearance in Escape Pod's pages, we have "Valedictorian" by @nkjemisin.bsky.social for your experiential exuberance. Check it out!

I AM SO GOOD AT HIDING HEE HEE HEE

Announcement: PodCastle Is Trialling a Six Month Submissions Window!! We will open in November and close in April. See our announcement on the website for details. All our usual Submissions Guidelines still apply. podcastle.org/2025/10/17/a...

EMBRACE YOUR FEROCITY THIS #CATURDAY

Hail, observers! Sometimes a title wins the game from the get-go, and that's certainly true of today's reprint, "Space Pirate Queen of the Ten Billion Utopias" by @ellybangs.bsky.social. So go experience it! Even the trilobites agree!

SO I SEE YOU’RE EATING BREAD

Rejoice, sophont observers: part 2 of "Here Instead of There" by @matociquala.bsky.social is now live for all your cliffhanger-resolution needs!

Hey guess what? My 2023 novelette "Here Instead Of There" is available at @escapepod.org in two parts! It's about ethics, meteorology, crony capitalism, and some courageous dirtbags. escapepod.org/2025/10/02/e... escapepod.org/2025/10/09/e...

Sure, we all know Buckaroo Banzai's wisdom: "no matter where you go, there you are." In case you'd rather be somewhere else, this week we bring you part 1 of "Here Instead of There" by @matociquala.bsky.social, complete with grade-A cursing! Great for wherever in spacetime you find yourself.

SQUIRL OUTSIDE I CAN HEAR HIMS BUT NOT SEE HIMS?!!?? WHAT IS HIDING PROLLY STOLEN GOODS

Fiasco am on the Fiasco colour blankie NO ONE CAN FIND HIMS HERE Fiasco am... incog... uh... inog... cog... u know. Eggnogito.

Sure, we all know Buckaroo Banzai's wisdom: "no matter where you go, there you are." In case you'd rather be somewhere else, this week we bring you part 1 of "Here Instead of There" by @matociquala.bsky.social, complete with grade-A cursing! Great for wherever in spacetime you find yourself.

Dear Patreon subscribers: we’re aware of the multiple Patreon notifications/emails. We’re working on it. We recommend you turn off notifications for the moment and, if you can, set up a filter for emails. Please bear with us while we chase down the trilobites chewing on the wires! {{}}<

FIASCO WAS IN JAIL HAD TO YELL IT CARCERAL STATE

If you're not a supporter of Escape Pod and you're looking to be, lock in your subscription before October 1st, lest you hear the ads crackling against the cosmic microwave background. More details here! www.patreon.com/posts/lock-i...

HELLO WHO WILL COME TRICK-OR-TREAT AT MY HOUSE?

If you're not a supporter of Escape Pod and you're looking to be, lock in your subscription before October 1st, lest you hear the ads crackling against the cosmic microwave background. More details here! www.patreon.com/posts/lock-i...

HILL HOUSE, NOT SANE, STOOS BY ITSELF AGAINST THE HILLS, HOLDING DARKNESS WITHIN…

Now that the northern summer has ended and the southern summer is still months away, it's perfect timing for this week's Escape Pod original: "Hot Bot Summer" by @jrdewitt.bsky.social. Experience this story with C&C Music Factory's advice in mind, and sweat!

No srsly when are we giving her back Fiasco cannot see out of hims preferred seeing spot U kept receipt right U keep receipts for EVERYTHING

THE VOID CALLS

Rejoice, sophont observers, as it's time for story! This endweek we have for you a tale about the relevance of the Goldilocks zone in astrobiology: "Once Upon a Planet" by Kelsey Hutton. Perceive it as you wish!

Catsitter am gone for the day... Fiasco am once again solitary ruler of hims domain... king of castle. Only problem is, all hims subjects consist of fluffy clown with boundary isues

Attention, sophonts! We've finished changing the locks and Escape Pod is now OPEN to all your amazing, amazing submissions! Consult our submissions page if you want to refresh your minds on what we're looking for - ignore that "CLOSED" bit at the top - and we hope to see rad work from you all!

Scams and grifts: they're not just for humans anymore! Please welcome the endweek with this new original story about just that: "Grifting the Zaxonite" by Cooper C. Wilms for episode ten-ten.

ONE OF MY LOVE LANGUAGES IS “FISH” AND ANOTHER IS “CHIPS.”

It's a new month, and with it a new story, but really we'd have a new story for you even if it was August 36th. Today we have for you "The Combat Pilot’s Dictionary" by @absenceofgravitas.bsky.social, and like any given dictionary, it's full of words!

First off: there is nothing wrong with the pod bay doors. Second: someone jammed gum in the pod bay door locks, so they won't be opening to story submissions until September 15th. Meaning that all of you eager submitters will have an extra two weeks to polish your stories!

It's approximately the endweek, which means it's time to bring you our 1008th story: "Observer Effects" by @timpratt.org, which contains harsh language - that's how you know it's a story that contains harsh language! Also, there's a headphones ad in the show notes, in case you need headphones.

Welcome to another endweek, blazing sophonts! For our 1007th episode we've got for you another fresh original, "35 / F / Lane’s Creek, Oklahoma" by @hansew.bsky.social. Follow the author's suggestion: "come for the robots, stay for the romance!"

Very happy to share that my story 35 / F / Lane's Creek, Oklahoma is out on @escapepod.org! Come for the robots, stay for the romance! escapepod.org/2025/08/21/e...

Hail, sophonts! If you sent us an email expressing interest in being an associate editor for Escape Pod, a response email has just been sent; if you don't see anything from us after a couple of hours and there's nothing in your spam folder, please reach out to [email protected]. Thanks!

Thanks for all the interest! The pod bay doors will be closing at the end of the day, so if you are interested but haven't sent us an email yet, time to get on it!

Hail, sapient observers, your patience has been rewarded! Part 2 of 2 of "When the Oracle Speaks" by @chubertwrites.bsky.social is now up for your experiential amazement.

"The Dame with the Earth at Her Back" in @escapepod.org. queer retrofuturist noir set under a midnight sun. if you think you're seeing mrs. maisel fanfic....keep it to yourself escapepod.org/2021/03/25/e...

If you missed the only new piece of fiction I’ve written/published this year, and my first published short story in many years, it had the honor of being @escapepod.org’s 1,000th episode, it’s about creating in the face of unimaginable adversity, it’s kind of funny? And you can listen for free.

Greetings, sophonts and trilobites! {{}}< The smoke is finally under control, so this week we've got part 1 of 2 of "When the Oracle Speaks" by @chubertwrites.bsky.social. Behold! Also, please check the batteries in your smoke alarms. >{{}}

This story is very of the moment. As I was listening to this imagined dystopia I was also thinking about our current one where we have to mask up to go outside in Chicago, but our cars can talk to us and drive(some) on their own like KITT.

I’ve been reading stories for escape pod for three years now and this is one of my favourites in that time. read it! (or listen to it)

Greetings, sophonts! Today, we've reached deep into the Vat to bring you a story of cloning, identity, and goblins -- okay, no goblins, but still! Please experience "The Girl Who Came Before" by David von Allmen, and mind the trilobites. {{}}<

WHAT A FANTASTIC DAY TO READ MY ANGRY STORY ABOUT A PLAGUE THAT KILLS BILLIONAIRES

This is the perfect story for this moment in time. We've all daydreamed about putting billionaires' money to better use. This story imagines a way to get there.

Hail, observers! Are you in the mood for a story about billionaires dying? If so, you're in luck: our latest original, "Billionaire’s Tears" by @vriccithode.bsky.social, is all about that!

Mellow greetings, sapients! Today we've got a tale of a secret-keeping station opening doors between dimensions: "Tigers for Sale" by @risawolf.bsky.social. Note: Escape Pod does not recommend buying tigers for personal use, unless you are ready and willing to have your face clawed off.