There were several themes bandied about for this first Neon Sunrise anthology, but the one we kept coming back to was hope. In our current moment in human history it has seemed to be a lot darker and people are looking for something to help pull them through the muck and mire of this existence and provide a little bit of light in the midst of it all. As 2020 has unfolded, the feeling that hope was something we all desperately need a little more of became even more prevalent. Even so, this can feel like tricky business sometimes because hope can be somewhat slippery and nebulous. Does that mean I think hope is a bad thing? No, absolutely not. Hope is a warmth that we yearn for, and it's a light that we move towards. I don't think having hope is ever a vain thing to do. It's something that can keep pushing us forward and it can be the catalyst we need to get to the next stage. I heard it said somewhere - and can't remember where offhand - that as long as there is still light there is hope. That struck me because, with the rotation of the Earth, there is always light somewhere on the planet - therefore there is always hope. It's also where the title of the book comes into play (and yes, it is a nod to the song by the Smiths). - David Greshel (from the introduction)