What do you think?
Rate this book
Dark Dispatch Issue#1
Dark Dispatch publishes dark fiction, including dark fantasy, sci-fi, horror, and crime fiction. The first issue of Dark Dispatch features short stories centered on the theme of redemption by writers Rebecca Burton, Christina Delia, Lena Ng, and dave ring. Nonfiction articles by Laurel Hightower, Donyae Coles, Brian Lindenmuth, Lena Ng, Christina Delia, and David Webb explore themes of redemption in different forms of fiction, such as comedies and comics, and the challenges of writing about redemption. Dark Dispatch is published by Brian Lindenmuth and edited by Sandra Ruttan. This issue also features an interview with writer and publisher dave ring. Table of Letter from the Editor by Sandra Ruttan Redemption or Revenge by Sandra Ruttan Insidious Guilt by Laurel Hightower The Huntsman by Lena Ng To Hold Fast a Fading Mote of Warmth by dave ring Butcher, Baker, Widower Maker by Christina Delia Confession by Rebecca Burton He’s Just a Bad Man by Donyae Coles Top Five Redemption Arcs in Dark Comedies by Christina Delia Redemption in Storytelling by Lena Ng Four Redemption Arcs from Comics We’re About to See in Live Action by David Webb Self-Sacrifice and the Redemption of John Creasy by Brian Lindenmuth An Interview with Writer and Publisher dave ring by Sandra Ruttan
89 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 13, 2021
11 people want to read
About the author
Sandra Ruttan
24 books21 followersSandra Ruttan was a walking disaster in her formative years. At age eight she was hit by a car while riding her bike home and her head was cut open. Just before her ninth birthday she was running along the beach and landed on broken glass, and her foot was partially severed. The muscle had to be stitched back together, leaving some uncertainty about whether she'd walk again, and the doctor was so fed up with her screaming he told her if she didn't shut up he'd cut her foot off. She went to school with the doctor's son, and forever felt sorry for him.
After her tenth birthday she fell down a waterfall and almost drowned. Her later adventures have included being in Seville when they found 4.5 tons of explosives set to blow up the Semana Santa parade and being in a car crash in the Sahara Desert. There is absolutely no explanation for how she's managed to stay alive as long as she has.
After her tenth birthday she fell down a waterfall and almost drowned. Her later adventures have included being in Seville when they found 4.5 tons of explosives set to blow up the Semana Santa parade and being in a car crash in the Sahara Desert. There is absolutely no explanation for how she's managed to stay alive as long as she has.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
April 28, 2021
TLDR:
Worth your $2, fiction is well done, ranging from well-written stories to quick thematic stories. Non-fiction articles feel like they were meant for a web page
The Good:
Letter from Editor/Redemption Or Revenge - by Sandra Ruttan: Set's the tone for the magazine and discusses what redemption is. Prep's reader for the fiction pieces.
The Huntsman - By Lena Ng: Fantastic written story that is a retelling of snow-white. Slightly disappointing for an opening story, as I wanted new idea, new stories, but cannot deny how well it is written.
To Hold Fast a Fading Mote of Warmth - By Dave Ring: Fantasy story that kept me guessing about the motives of people. Neat twist, neat protagonist.
Confession - By Rebecca Burton: Neat short story that gets a dark mood going.
Redemption in Storytelling - By Lena Ng: Conveys its main point without making pop culture/self references. By the time the article references pop culture I understood what the article was trying to tell me.
The Confusing:
Formatting (Bought on kindle). The change from Fantasy stories --> "Modern Age" stories felt abrupt.
Butcher, Baker, Widower Maker -- I couldn't make head or sense of the starting page, and this is the start of the "modern age" stories. Lot of references to modern pop culture that I missed.
The Bad
Most of the non-fiction articles were not my cup of tea. The articles range from listicles to articles that almost read like self promotion.
He's just a bad man: The main argument, that Foster in Falling Down is not someone we should be cheering on is not a new idea, nor is it an esoteric one. Weak take. Very confusing article that needed focus, and seems to get redemption mixed up with how to make an evil character sympathetic.
Worth your $2, fiction is well done, ranging from well-written stories to quick thematic stories. Non-fiction articles feel like they were meant for a web page
The Good:
Letter from Editor/Redemption Or Revenge - by Sandra Ruttan: Set's the tone for the magazine and discusses what redemption is. Prep's reader for the fiction pieces.
The Huntsman - By Lena Ng: Fantastic written story that is a retelling of snow-white. Slightly disappointing for an opening story, as I wanted new idea, new stories, but cannot deny how well it is written.
To Hold Fast a Fading Mote of Warmth - By Dave Ring: Fantasy story that kept me guessing about the motives of people. Neat twist, neat protagonist.
Confession - By Rebecca Burton: Neat short story that gets a dark mood going.
Redemption in Storytelling - By Lena Ng: Conveys its main point without making pop culture/self references. By the time the article references pop culture I understood what the article was trying to tell me.
The Confusing:
Formatting (Bought on kindle). The change from Fantasy stories --> "Modern Age" stories felt abrupt.
Butcher, Baker, Widower Maker -- I couldn't make head or sense of the starting page, and this is the start of the "modern age" stories. Lot of references to modern pop culture that I missed.
The Bad
Most of the non-fiction articles were not my cup of tea. The articles range from listicles to articles that almost read like self promotion.
He's just a bad man: The main argument, that Foster in Falling Down is not someone we should be cheering on is not a new idea, nor is it an esoteric one. Weak take. Very confusing article that needed focus, and seems to get redemption mixed up with how to make an evil character sympathetic.
July 29, 2021
This really made me re-think my stance on redemption arcs, in fiction and real life!
The introductory essays by the editors set the stage by asking what redemption is, and why we prefer revenge to it so much that we sometimes present revenge stories as redemption, as if the person enacting revenge is in fact participating in a redemption arc for themselves. But, one then considers, what happens to the perpetrator of harm, and why do we consider those who experience harm to need redemption in the first place? Plenty of cultural ideas spring to mind.
I liked all of the stories in this collection, which had unique, batshit, weird, Other voices throughout. I'm personally a bit burned out on dark/inverted fairy tales, so while I balked at first at Lena Ng's The Hunstman, it was so well written I enjoyed it. dave ring's story was probably my favorite, being so thickly queer, guilt-ridden, and full of saucy betrayal and strong, messed up characters.
The essays I thought were interesting, mostly in the juxtaposition of Donyae Cole's essay to the others. She rightly points out that in fiction and real life, only white men "get" redemption arcs that serve to erase their harm done, and (me extrapolating now) the stories we tell about non-white people, and black people in particular, are more like "rags to ruin" arcs. It's made me think about the purpose of redemption versus accountability, versus justice, all conversations we are having anew in the moment where abolition and transformative justice are once again under discussion.
Great stuff!
The introductory essays by the editors set the stage by asking what redemption is, and why we prefer revenge to it so much that we sometimes present revenge stories as redemption, as if the person enacting revenge is in fact participating in a redemption arc for themselves. But, one then considers, what happens to the perpetrator of harm, and why do we consider those who experience harm to need redemption in the first place? Plenty of cultural ideas spring to mind.
I liked all of the stories in this collection, which had unique, batshit, weird, Other voices throughout. I'm personally a bit burned out on dark/inverted fairy tales, so while I balked at first at Lena Ng's The Hunstman, it was so well written I enjoyed it. dave ring's story was probably my favorite, being so thickly queer, guilt-ridden, and full of saucy betrayal and strong, messed up characters.
The essays I thought were interesting, mostly in the juxtaposition of Donyae Cole's essay to the others. She rightly points out that in fiction and real life, only white men "get" redemption arcs that serve to erase their harm done, and (me extrapolating now) the stories we tell about non-white people, and black people in particular, are more like "rags to ruin" arcs. It's made me think about the purpose of redemption versus accountability, versus justice, all conversations we are having anew in the moment where abolition and transformative justice are once again under discussion.
Great stuff!
August 16, 2021
I may be a touch biased because my story is in this issue, but I do think the whole issue is well worth your time, and I hope you enjoy reading it!
July 19, 2021
Not good. Avoid. Absolute waste of time. This team really don't know what they are doing. Bad editing lot's of it makes very little sense. They are also very rude if you contact them about this. Not very professional. They don't deserve custom.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews