Aphelion

Another excellent story, and to me, this one had staying power. There's a deeply affecting tragedy involved, but also an almost shocking contrast between the values of the humans' trade organization and those of the natives of the planet. It's a fresh look at how soul-destroying the pursuit of money can be. The main character's arc takes him very painfully through the extremes of this contrast, but he ends up enriched by his experience.

I have a luxury in my post as Long-Fiction Editor in that I usually only work on one story a month (and don't have a day job), and I'm able to work with the authors. I especially enjoyed working with this one, and hope to see more of his work.