“Anti-Social” came from thinking about how we are losing personal contact as the internet and social media evolve. We’re also creating ridiculous quantities of data. What if in the future all data is transitory – statisticians determined that there will always a copy of anything somewhere (a PC, a server, a phone), so permanent storage … Continue reading
“Close Enough” came from the expression “close enough for government work.” What would that look like over galactic or planetary distances? How badly could a non-responsive agency botch things, and what kind of NORMAL people might put themselves in a position to depend on that agency? Here’s the blurb: Could a Messier object be any … Continue reading
The expression “The Wolves Will Come” was supposed to be a negative and represent a danger; colonists are on the run from their enemies, and they are forced to leave their home and their elderly behind. I wanted the elder to be abandoned by necessity, but proudly, not as a victim. It wasn’t until I … Continue reading
Today is the …10th day since I officially lost my day-job. For most of my adult life, the existence of external employment, with its accompanying schedule, has helped to keep me anchored to a weekly calendar all these years. Now I am unmoored. Days run together, bearing no particular name to reference. Time is suspended. … Continue reading
I wrote “Flee Markets” just to play around with the unoriginal notion of a transitory shop, but it became a story about escapes. Samantha wants to escape from a humdrum summer – she’s mostly thinking in terms of escaping into fantasy literature, but encounters Phineas – a renegade shop-owner who has more to offer than … Continue reading
“Cannabis alienus ‘alien dope’” originated from something that really happened to me (no, not the alien slug.) My family moved out of state before my junior year of high school, and two years later (after graduation) I made a trip back to what used to be home to try reconnecting with people I knew. Aside … Continue reading
Mental invasion and mind-control keeps cropping up in my work. “My Brother’s Keeper” took the medieval notion of demon possession, which some “science” now tries to explain away as probable psychological disorders – I’m not sure I buy into that. What if there is such a thing as possession, but it’s a little more commonplace … Continue reading
I love time travel stories, especially the variety of theories on how it could work (if it could work – I’ve heard that the idea is now discredited, and should be moved from science fiction to fantasy. Snobs.) We all have things we regret about our lives, and that we wish we could do over, … Continue reading
Last week’s progress: My blog postings and comments were done as required. I had another story return from market; I sent it back out in a day (Literarium really helps when it comes to finding markets. I still don’t know how to use the tool to keep track of my submissions, but I’m happy to … Continue reading
I’m stretching here to try and offer an explanation for where “The Body” came from. If you neglect people in your life and only pay attention to what YOU want, don’t expect those people to sit idly by without exercising their own, alien agendas. Admit it – for most people, it’s all about ME (without … Continue reading
