Maps and Therapy

Every Map Starts With A Lie

Betsy Mason | Last Word On Nothing | 9th September 2026

All maps have to distort geography in order to render the three-dimensional planet in two-dimensional form. There are five qualities that can be tweaked — area, shape, distance, direction, and angle — and each projection balances them differently, with different results. None of them are perfect. The maps we carry in our heads do not accurately represent the world as it really is (1,900 words)

Puzzle: Play Nomido, the Browser’s daily word game.

The Couple’s Therapist

Ellika Lagerlöf & Saskia Vogel | Granta | 8th September 2026

Short fiction with a tinge of body horror to it. A wife fears that her husband is pulling away from her; he spends a lot of time at the gym and is rapidly gaining muscle mass. They even eat their meals separately now. They go to couple's therapy and take the recommendation to spend more time together, cooking and eating. The husband takes it a little too far, perhaps. There's a dark twist to the tale (3,100 words)