✩Mango-fueled and obsessed with speculative fiction, Richard D. Bailey alchemizes stories so wild they’ll make you question your sanity and your neighborhood scientist. Raised on Philip José Farmer, Arthur C. Clarke, Frank Herbert, et al., he now unleashes bizarre alien tales laced with dry (occasionally damp) humor. ✩As for any awards? Nope, none, nada. He’s graciously stepped aside to let New York Times bestselling authors hog that limelight. They need the ego boost more than he