Hot Dish #2

Edited by Dark End

Some foods take longer to cook. Some stories take longer to tell. Sometimes people come back for a second helping.

The Hot Dish series started a collection of stories that arose from submissions to Heat, our all-orientations anthology of romantic and erotic short stories, comics and poetry. Mixed in among the submissions were great stories that we had to reject simply because they were too long for the Heat format. We squirreled these submissions away in our cold cellar, and we kept in touch with the authors in hopes of finding a suitable recipe for their stories.

Eventually, we had enough stories to whip up a full anthology. We called it Hot Dish in homage to the gooey, Midwestern casserole that is slow-cooked to let flavors deepen and meld — in contrast to the more crispy, flash-fried tales found in Heat. The length of Hot Dish's stories allows for more complex and subtle flavors to develop, leading to a deeper, more satisfying reading experience.

Due to the success of the first volume of Hot Dish we decided to put out a call for more stories in hopes of compiling a second volume. After several years of reviewing, editing and art direction, this second edition is the result.

Art direction and layout by Black Teagan.

Cover art by Merystic.

• Loops and Knots by Tempe O'Kun : A golden retriever turns his fridge into a time machine and entertains his girlfriend with his future selves. Illustrated by Anyare
• Spaces to Breathe by Slip-Wolf : An otter investigating a mysterious alien probe finds himself falling for an alien just as mysterious. Illustrated by Kalahari
• The Theorist by Huskyteer : A Victorian scientist is shunned by the public for his theories, but not by his mysterious new apprentice. Illustrated by Anyare
• The Favor of the Gods by Kyell Gold : A child of Hermes seeks to impress his brother's lady but instead gets entangled with a lonely winged horse. Illustrated by Kalahari
• The Hound and the Tree by Kandrel : In a world overtaken by robotic hounds, a wolf stumbles upon another survivor who is more than she seems. Illustrated by Teagan Gavet
• The Years of Living Dangerously Happy by Patrick ""Bahumat"" Rochefort : Loyalties are tested when an otter's lovers return after a long absence from the inn he's managed for them. Illustrated by Kalahari
• Cold Sleep by Faora Meridian : An engineer responsible for a sleeper ship copes with training a replacement for his lost partner. Illustrated by Teagan Gavet
• Reunion by Sisco Polaris : A tiger at a highschool reunion reminisces on a lengthy anonymous relationship he experienced via a glory hole. Illustrated by Anyare