Coming October 2026!
HOW TO LOSE AT LONGING
A. K. HERMAN
How to Lose at Longing is a collection of insightful, sensual and unsettling stories that explore longing, that peculiar human ache.
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In Keepsake, a waitress and a sailor form an erotic bond out of survival and maybe a little help from the supernatural. In The Rules a daughter follows her mother’s twelve strict rules to secure a husband. A young woman in Dance uses seduction to create rules of her own. In Speedo, a necklace heals a man’s mind, and reveals truths he wants to forget.
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In Up Down, indigenous people revolt against the Capuchin forced labor system with deadly and disturbing results. A devoted husband in The Both, searches for a way to keep both his wives, and himself, happy.
A live-in nanny in Small Castles, is caught between fraying bonds with her host-family and powerful external forces. And in the title story, a lover’s sudden death forces an old man to return to the past and confront the roots of his own painful longing.
". . . A welcome voice to the rich Caribbean literary tradition.
The Believers is a gift to lovers of short fiction everywhere."
— Rémy Ngamije, author of The Eternal Audience Of One
and Only Stars Know The Meaning Of Space
"The Believers is a compelling collection, with characters exploring their own power in multifaceted ways. "
— Mslexia Magazine
“With incisive prose, Herman dexterously renders each character
with admirable nuance, delivering emotionally resonant,
illuminating and indelible stories.”
— Mubanga Kalimamukwento, author of Obligations to The Wounded
The Believers is Shortlisted for the 2025 OMC Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature, Fiction!
Each story . . . delivers with integrity and verve . . . confidently and persuasively.” — 2025 OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature Judges
“The Believers is a collective unsettling — an invitation to release yourself from the tales you think you know.
— Caribbean Beat Magazine
“Herman's language reaches for you . . .
Your eyes can only stray from the pages for so long.”
— T. J. Benson, author of The Madhouse​
Biography
A. K. Herman is a Caribbean poet and fiction author, born in Scarborough, Tobago. Her debut collection, The Believers: Stories, is shortlisted for the 2025 OMC Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature, Fiction. ​
A. K.’s writing appears or is forthcoming in various print and online journals, including Doek! Literary Journal, Lolwe, The Waterstone Review, Obsidian, Shenandoah Literary Journal and others. A. K. lives in Brooklyn.