If you want to feel hope for the state of speculative short fiction, I highly recommend you read the work of Rachel Swirsky. She's incredibly talented, has a knack for beautiful language, and is a fearless storyteller.
"Eros, Philia, Agape" was nominated for the Hugo, the Locus, the Story South Million Writers Award, the Theodore Sturgeon Award, and the Tiptree Award. As you might guess from that list, it is amazing. "Eros, Philia, Agape" was originally published in March 2009 at Tor.com.
