Bascomb James's Blog, page 6

Anthology Call - Far Orbit: Apogee

For planning purposes, I'm giving you this information ahead of time. Please submit ONLY during specified dates.

Far Orbit: Apogee
[Not open until January 1, 2015]
Anthologist: Bascomb James

Our journey continues… World Weaver Press has agreed to publish a second edition of the Far Orbit science fiction adventure series.  We are once again looking for modern space adventures crafted in the Grand Tradition. We are not looking for slavish imitations of past classics. Rather, we would like to receive stories that establish a new tradition in the much maligned Scifi adventure genera — smart, modern stories built around the classic traditions.

We are looking for adventure stories that are creative, readable, and memorable. We are also looking for midnight indulgences; exciting stories that transport you from the everyday grind and leave you wondrously satisfied. All adventure-based sci-fi genera are welcome but stay away from fantasy elements unless they are genetically engineered or cybernetic. Stories can begin on Earth but the major action should happen out there, beyond the edges of our blue marble. Dystopia (Mad Max) and fantasy-like adventures (John Carter of Mars) have to be very special to be included in this anthology. Please, no fan fiction.

Because adventure stories often take more space to develop, World Weaver Press is accepting stories up to 10,000 words in length.

Previously published stories are acceptable but we will not publish stories that have been previously anthologized.

Want to know more about the editor’s preferences? Check out the links at the bottom of this post or pick up a copy of the first volume of Far Orbit. 

Rights and compensation: Payment: $0.01/word. All contributors will receive a paperback copy of the anthology. For previously unpublished works: Seeking first world rights in English and exclusive rights to publish in print and electronic format for twelve months after publication date after which publisher retains nonexclusive right to continue to publish for a fixed number of years. For reprints: Seeking non-exclusive right to publish in print and electronic formats for a fixed number of years. Previously unpublished stories preferred; reprints will be considered. No previously anthologized stories.

Open submission period: January 1 – March 31, 2015.

Length: Under 10,000 words

Submission method: Paste the story into the body of the e-mail message.  Include the approximate word count. Subject line:  Apogee – [Title].  Send submission to: farorbit [at] worldweaverpress [dot] com. 

Simultaneous submissions = OK. Multiple submissions = No. 

More information about what we want to see can be found at:
Far Orbit – Speculative Space Adventures  -- the first Far Orbit anthology! -- to see which stories made the cut in the previous edition.
Guest Blog on Fantasy Café (Grand Tradition SciFi)
Grand Tradition SciFi (published for the first edition but it applies to Far Orbit: Apogee)
My intro for the Far Orbit Anthology
Musings on NASA’s Asteroid Retrieval Project  and Sam Kepfield’s “Open for Business”
Bear Essentials by Julie Frost
Composition in Death Minor by K.G. Jewell
Spaceman Barbecue by Peter Wood

Spaceman Barbecue by Peter Wood

Spaceman Barbecue fully embraces the pulp fiction adventure stories of the 1940s, 50s and 60s. I am not talking about stories with lurid covers of scantily clad women being carried off by horrible monsters. I refer instead to stories found in Boys Life and other “Adventure” magazines. These stories usually had a softer science element and an underachieving protagonist who found new focus and confidence as the adventure progressed. I loved those stories and practically grew up on them.  In “Spaceman Barbecue,” the adventure begins with the event I prayed for as a child: a crippled spaceship landing in the nearby woods.

Kevin Bayer from Sporadic Reviews said:  Spaceman Barbecue, by Peter Wood, is a Twilight Zone-esque throwback with a happy ending.

Cyd Athens from Tangent Online Reviews said: Hank has withdrawn into depression since his father died several years ago. Commander Matt Brannigan of Space Command gets trapped in an alternate reality when his ship crashes behind Hank’s trailer. At first Matt doesn’t believe what has happened. Darlene, dropping off their son, Billy, for a visit with Hank, doesn’t believe what Hank tells her about Matt. The story pushes all the right emotional buttons—making the reader want to kick Hank in the butt to get him motivated, and hoping for a miracle for Matt.

Wendy Sparrow said on Goodreads:  A spaceman lands on Earth with his alien accoutrements which mean nothing to him if he can’t get home. His plight inspires the man he lands near.

McKenzie Richardson said on Goodreads:  There was not a single story that I did not like, some I felt were just okay, most were good, and a few were extremely amazing. Four fell into the last category and include "Compositon in Death Minor", "Spaceman Barbeque", "From a Stone", and "A Trip to Lagasy". I would strong recommend these four stories.  “Spaceman Barbecue” - 4 stars- Very funny. Charming story.

Peter Wood, an attorney in Raleigh, North Carolina, lives with his surly cat and forgiving wife. Growing up in Ottawa, Canada, and Tampa, Florida, he watched Star Trek and Outer Limits episodes and listened to vintage radio shows like X Minus One. Pete’s literary heroes include Bradbury, Vonnegut, and Hemingway. His stories have appeared in Stupefying Stories, Daily Science Fiction, and Bull Spec. He hopes “Spaceman Barbecue” heralds a new genre, Southern Fried Science Fiction.
Other Far Orbit posts featured on this blog:

Musings on NASA’s Asteroid Retrieval Project  and Sam Kepfield’s “Open for Business”
Bear Essentials by Julie Frost
Composition in Death Minor by K.G. Jewell
Spaceman Barbecue by Peter Wood
Far Orbit Interview on SciFi4Me.com
Great News from Sporadic Reviews!
Guest Blog on Fantasy Café (they wanted to hear about Grand Tradition SciFi
Good Choice Reading Interviews Far Orbit Authors Tracy Canfield, Jacob Drud, and Kat Otis
My intro for the Far Orbit Anthology
Launch Day!!!
Inspiration… perspiration… exhilaration…  

Bear Essentials by Julie Frost

Julie Frost’s entertaining story Bear Essentials can be found in the Far Orbit anthology.  Bear Essentials is a spaceship voyage story – one of the most familiar Grand Tradition science fiction tropes.  Spaceship voyage stories were a logical progression from the popular sailing ship adventures of last century that featured daring captains who visited strange locations populated by even stranger inhabitants.  Bear Essentials falls within a subset of these spaceship stories; one that revolves around a small vessel crewed mostly by family members. Well ­known SF stories featuring family ­owned or operated ships include The Rolling Stones (The Family Stone in Great Britain) published in 1952 and the TV series Lost in Space (1965 -­1968).

Author Julie Frost continues in this tradition by introducing us to Captain Russell Fisk and his daughter Mandy who pilot the tramp freighter the Inquisitive Tamandua from one potential catastrophe to another. The character of Captain Fisk resonates with the empathetic reader because he isn’t the aloof steely­eyed adventurer. Instead, he is a harried fallible father who worries about everything—his ship, livelihood, crew, passengers, cargo, and his daughter's changing relationship with the mechanic.

In Kevin Bayer’s review of the Far Orbit anthology (Amazon, Goodreads, and Sporadic Reviews) he tells us,   “… And I think my favorite was Bear Essentials, by Julie Frost, about a small trading vessel run by a grumpy man and his adult daughter, along with their small crew. This tale has them transporting a live bear from one world to another, along with an unusual passenger, and discovering something amazing along the way. I definitely want to read more stories about this crew (especially if that bear comes back).”

Cyd Athens’ review at Tangent Online Reviews called Bear Essentials “a fun romp.”

Julie Frost lives in the beautiful Salt Lake Valley in a house full of Oaxacan carvings and anteaters, some of which intersect. Her work has appeared in Cosmos, Azure Valley, Stupefying Stories, and Plasma Frequency. She whines about writing at www.agilebrit.livejournal.com, or you can follow her on Twitter via @JulieCFrost. A prior adventure in this timeline, “Illegal Beagles,” is available for free download at the author’s website www.agilebrit.livejournal.com.

Other Far Orbit stories featured on this blog:

Musings on NASA’s Asteroid Retrieval Project  and Sam Kepfield’s “Open for Business”
Bear Essentials by Julie Frost
Composition in Death Minor by K.G. Jewell
Far Orbit Interview on SciFi4Me.com
Great News from Sporadic Reviews!
Guest Blog on Fantasy Café (they wanted to hear about Grand Tradition SciFi
Good Choice Reading Interviews Far Orbit Authors Tracy Canfield, Jacob Drud, and Kat Otis
My intro for the Far Orbit Anthology
Launch Day!!!
Inspiration… perspiration… exhilaration…  

6 Tech-Based SciFi Writing Prompts

Embrace the Bugs

About a trillion microorganisms colonize our bodies making each of us a walking, talking “superorganism.”  Our microscopic passengers play an important role health as well as disease. When our microbiome is imbalanced, we are prone to inflammation, arthritis and toxic megacolon.  We also have a decreased ability to digest and utilize vital nutrients.  Rebalancing the microbiome seems to be important and medical scientists are now using fecal transplant pills—yup, pills containing concentrated fecal bacteria -- to stop recurrent Clostridium difficile infections of the gut. Our sanitized, disinfectant- and antibiotic-laden Western culture is waging war on the superorganism and the bugs are fighting back!  What would happen if we embraced the bugs?  Could we use bioengineering to augment our individual microbiomes?  Would we become superbeings or organic sludge? Could this be used for nefarious purposes?

The Plastisphere

Scientists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution have discovered a diverse group of microbes thriving on flecks of plastic that pollute the oceans.  Most of the flecks are about a millimeter in diameter.  This newly dubbed “Plastisphere” has created new habitats for microorganisms that are different from those found in the surrounding seawater.  Researchers have found at least 1000 different types of bacteria thus far including many individual species that have not been previously identified.  How will these new microbial communities affect the ecosystem?  Can we exploit the plastisphere to sequester carbon dioxide and combat global warming?  Will someone exploit the plastisphere for nefarious purposes (i.e., transporting toxigenic or pathogenic organisms, plugging up harbors, polluting beaches, or contaminating water intakes)? 
http://www.whoi.edu/news-release/plastisphere

Micoorganisms That Eat Fireworks

Every year millions of people flock to their local parks to watch firework celebrations. We’re not the only species that likes fireworks; some some bacteria are able to eat the oxidizers (perclorates) used to generate these pyrotechnic displays,   What if there were bugs that could eat gunpowder, explosives, and other things that go boom?  How would that change our world?
http://www.biotechniques.com/news/A-Microbe-that-Likes-Fireworks/biotechniques-344646.html?utm_source=BioTechniques+Newsletters+%26+e-Alerts&utm_campaign=b0f4ef3d71-daily&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_5f518744d7-b0f4ef3d71-87750825

High Tech Space Debris

When NASA landed the one-ton, nuclear-powered Curiosity rover on the Red Planet, heaps of debris were scattered across the Martian landscape.  We have landed tons of foreign substances (including radioisotopes) on the surface of Mars since 1971.  We know that organisms adapt to new challenges.  What if this new set of foreign nutrients stimulates the growth of organisms that thrive on these substances?  How would that affect colonization? How would they affect spacecraft returning to Earth from the red planet?  Does Mars need its own Environmental Protection Agency?  Other foreign objects have been landed or crashed on other planetary bodies, the moon being the largest receptacle of space debris.
http://io9.com/5966206/this-is-all-the-beautiful-space-litter-left-on-mars-by-nasas-curiosity-rover/ 

Tatoo-based Biobatteries

Sounds strange but the science is real.  Could these be used to power wearable or implantable electronic devices? 
http://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/tech-edge/4433475/Tattoo-bio-batteries-produce-power-from-sweat- 

Urban heat’s effect on the environment

Urban environments are hotter than rural environments.  This changes the normal flora and fauna.  Urban vermin (a catchy name) are not subjected to the harsh temperatures that their rural brethren face so the city dwellers live longer and breed more.  What happens to us as the world becomes more urbanized?  Sounds like a dystopian theme.
http://www.rdmag.com/news/2014/07/urban-heat%E2s-effect-environment?et_cid=4064233&et_rid=490707858&location=top

Self-healing smart beads detect and repair corrosion

What if humans are considered corrosive influences to buildings and pipes?
http://www.battelle.org/media/press-releases/battelle-develops-self-healing-smart-corrosion-beads

Composition in Death Minor by K.G. Jewell

Composition in Death Minor is a mélange of American noir fiction, dystopian fiction, and modern tech-based world building – characteristics that upon first blush, appear to be more closely associated with cyberpunk motifs than science fiction in the Grand Tradition.   Noir science fiction emerged at the end of the Golden Age (1938-1950) when a number of established writers began to explore new themes and new science fiction styles.  The cynical and stylized perspective of classic noir fiction became increasingly popular in the 1950s and 1960s.   Jack Finney’s The Body Snatchers (1955), Harry Harrison’s Make Room! Make Room! (1966), and Phillip K. Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?  (1968) are some of the best known examples of noir science fiction from this era. 

Noir science fiction had a significant impact on science fiction films and they had a formative effect on the cyberpunk movement that emerged in the early 1980s.   Composition in Death Minor continues the noir tradition and author K. G. Jewell introduces us to Sophie Devine, a hard-as-nails assassin and concert cellist.  She has a job to do and she does not like assholes.

K.G. Jewell lives and writes in Austin, Texas.  His stories of short speculative fiction have appeared in Daily Science Fiction, Orson Scott Card's InterGalactic Medicine Show, and Unidentified Funny Objects.  He's working on novel relating the further adventures of Sophie Devine, cello player and intergalactic assassin.  His website, which is rarely updated, is lit.kgjewell.com.

5 Books for Aspiring SciFi Writers

I wanted to share a few unusual book titles from my reference library that may be useful for aspiring science fiction writers.

Guesstimation 2.0 :  Solving today’s questions on the back of a napkin by Lawrence Weinstein.  Published in 2012 by Princeton University Press. 

No, you don’t need to be a mathematician to be a science fiction writer, but it is helpful if you can make rough, common sense estimates to check “facts” obtained from the internet.  Crowd sourcing facts on the internet is easy but many times the result is based upon word-of-mouth solutions, implausible factoids, and false assumptions. Most editors will not check your math so the ability to do a little fact-checking can keep some smarty pants from pulling the wings off your latest creation after it shows up in print. The first volume of this duo, Guesstimation :  Solving the world’s problems on the back of a cocktail napkin is more readable and elementary but Guestimation 2.0 has more examples an author might need to address in an SF story. Written by math and physics professors at Old Dominion University, these delightfully concise works remind us that a close answer - an estimate - is often good enough for everyday activities. 

Working with Bitches:  Identify the 8 types of office mean girls and rise above workplace nastiness by Meredith Fuller.  Published in 2013 by Da Capo Press. 

Before you start giving me the stink-eye, let me explain. Stories are about people their passions and anger, revenge and redemption, adversities and triumphs, and how the characters are shaped by, and relate to their environment. The more we know about people, the more believable our characters can be. Writers with a dangling Y chromosome sometimes have difficulties writing believable female characters and creating a believable mean female can be even more difficult. I am not recommending this as a self-help book but rather, a study of negative female archetypes in the workplace. The book provides some potential motivations for these archetypes and examples of how others react to them. The author, a psychologist and career counselor with 30 years’ experience dealing with workplace nastiness, provides an interesting mix of motivations and descriptions that could help your characterizations.

Wondrous Beginnings edited by Steven H. Silver and Martin H. Greenberg (2003) and Before They Were Giants edited by James L. Sutter (2010). 

These books contain the first published stories of some of the best known SF authors, past and present – stories written when these superstars were just like us, SF fans with stories and dreams. The interviews (Giants) and introductions (Beginnings) provide glimpses into the genesis of these first stories and the beginnings of a writer’s career. Wondrous Beginnings includes 22 first sales from writers Murray Leinster, Julie E. Czerneda, Orson Scott Card, Hal Clement, Anne McCaffrey, Arthur C. Clarke, L. Sprague de Camp, George R. R. Martin, Lois McMaster Bujold, Jack McDevitt, Stephen Baxter, and others.  Before they were Giants has stories and contributions from Ben Bova, Charles Stross, China Mieville, Cory Doctorow, David Brin, Greg Bear, Joe Haldeman, Kim Stanley Robinson, Larry Niven, Michael Swanwick, Nicola Griffith, Piers Anthony, R. A. Salvatore, Spider Robinson, and William Gibson.

Skinny Dip

Up North Stories. It is amazing how smells and fragrances can trigger old memories and feelings. I was in a crowd of people one evening and a familiar fragrance transported me to another time…

Cathy was two years behind me in school. Her delighted laughter greeted anything that caught her imagination—leaves artfully tangled in a spider web; the smell of wet sidewalks after a summer rain; dandelion wishes; and lightning bugs. 

Hopscotch marks had to be honored whenever they were discovered—it didn't matter what she was wearing, where she was going, or how late she might be. One two one - two one - two one and return.     

Her enthusiasm was infectious. She danced and twirled to music from the radio, singing the lyrics fearlessly; unabashedly enjoying the moment. Cathy loved modern music from exotic, far away AM stations; WOWO in Ft. Wayne, CKLW in Canada. Delicious, frowned-upon music that reached our town only after sunset.

Her perfume reflected her personality. Skinny Dip was exuberant, uncomplicated, unmistakable. It caught your attention like the tickle-belly hills near Black River or an unexpected giggle in the back of the theater. That smell, her smell would follow me for days. It permeated my clothing, it lived in my pores. I could smell it when no one else could.

Skinny Dip has long been discontinued but it found me that evening, wafting on the night breeze. It tickled, it comforted. It made me smile. 

What Were the First SciFi Stories You Read?

I was recently asked to recall the first science fiction story I ever read. That question really got the WayBack machine whirring. There are so many books. I can picture them whizzing by as I go back in time. As we finally slow, I see three images – Red Planet,Tunnel in the Sky, and Men, Martians and Machines. Red Planet and Tunnel in the Sky are juvie (Young Adult) books written by Robert Heinlein.  These books appealed to me because they featured bright, resourceful young protagonists who struggle to overcome dangerous situations and dismissive authoritarian adults. The protagonists always save the day through ingenuity, persistence, and by bending the rules.  I still enjoy these themes.

Men, Martians, and Machines had  a more traditional SciFi motif.  Written by the British author Eric Frank Russell, this straight adventure series revolves around an exploratory spacecraft and its crew.  I just re-read this book a few months ago and I still enjoyed it.  

I am sure there are other stories lurking amongst the mental cobwebs, but these are the earliest stories I remember.  What are your earliest SciFi memories?

Red Planet, the original 1949 version that was “sanitized” by Scribners. In this story, two friends at a Mars boarding school uncover a plot by the colonial administrator to prevent the annual colony migration which is necessary to avoid life-threatening Mars winter. They also learn that the administrator is planning to sell Willis their volleyball-sized pet bouncer, to the London Zoo. The bouncer turns out to be a juvenile Martian. The boys rescue Willis and set off, skating cross-country on the frozen Martian canals to warn their parents.

Tunnel in the Sky, published in 1955 by Scribners. This is a story of a student who wants to become a professional colonist. As part of his Advanced Survival class, he and his classmates are teleported to another planet for a 2-10 day survival trial. They become stranded and the story tracks the two-year social and personal development of the students as they struggle to survive without technology. The group is eventually rescued but the rescue is tainted because these self-sufficient young adults are treated as kids by the rescuers.

Men, Martians, and Machines by Eric Frank Russel.  Published in 1955.  The book contains a series of shorter works describing the travails of the crew of the space exploration ship, Upsadaska City as they battle against the hostile life forms on the various planets they visit.

Radio and the Fabric of our Lives

Montgomery Ward radio, circa 1936. Up North Stories.  I borrowed this tombstone style radio from a colleague for a photography project and it brought back a lot of memories. This particular model (Model number 62-185) was manufactured around 1936 by Montgomery Ward and Company (remember Monkey Wards?) in Chicago, Illinois.

The date reminded me of stories my Mom would tell about listening to the radio.  On Friday evenings, her family would go down the road to Aunt Nellie’s house on Helmer Lake and both families would sit close to the radio and listen to programs from far away. It was an important social event. They listened to variety shows and serials sponsored by soap companies (hence the name “soap operas”).

Mom is gone now so I cannot ask her what programs they listened to most, but she told us about the Jack Benny Show and Fibber McGee and Molly. The Shadow was so disturbing that some people wouldn't listen to it.

Radio transformed America because it brought strangers and strange ideas right into the American home, the bedrock of the American gestalt. Radio personalities from far off cities were discussed as if they were members of the community and some, like they were family members.

Radio continued to be important even after TV became available. The radio brought us news throughout the day--local happenings, breaking events, weather, and sports.  I remember my Dad and uncles listening to Detroit Tiger games on the radio. My father-in-law did too. My Mom had the radio playing in the kitchen almost all the time.

AM signals didn’t travel far during the day but when the sun went down, we would get signals from all over. My favorite stations were WOWO in Ft. Wayne, CKLW out of Windsor Ontario, and of course WLS from Chicago. They played rock and roll and Top 40 songs all night. This was our “secret” vice. My Dad didn’t like “Rock and Roll crap.” His derision made the music even more delicious. More importantly, we could listen to our heart's content using an inexpensive transistor radio and an ear phone. Many of us strung wires in our bedroom to improve reception. We got even better reception with the car radio.

Ah, the car and the car radio. Two freedom machines, one inside the other. We could go where we wanted and play our music out loud!  We could howl with Wolfman Jack, drum along with Wipeout, and sing with everything. Sometimes we even sang the right words! And who could forget submarine races and making out while the radio played in the background? (Mom would be saying “Oh my!” right about now.) 
Multiband dial with station call signs When I looked closely at the dial of this old radio, I was surprised to see radio station call letters printed on the dial. No manufacturer would do that today. Things change too quickly. I am also struck by the amount of empty space between the stations. Those of us who use the scan button to find new stations know it takes forever to scan through the frequencies. In cities, there is almost no space between signals. There are more frequency gaps Up North, but they too are filling up.

Radio has been with us for a long time. Today we have many radio options--FM, AM, satellite radio, and internet radio just to name a few. We can listen to radio stations from around the world in real time. We also get uber-local information from the same device. Radio has changed a lot since my Mom’s time but it's still woven into the fabric of our lives.

New Feature - Up North Stories

I am pleased to present Up North Stories, a series of conversational vignettes describing life in a Northern tier state.  Some of these stories will be personal, some general.  Some stories will remind you of where you live, and others will be decidedly alien.  It’s all good. 

You see I come from a family of storytellers.  When we get together, we sit at the kitchen table and share stories and experiences.  Some stories are as familiar as an old pair of boots that fit perfectly because we have traveled the long road together. We may all know the story by heart, but the telling is the important thing.  The shared laughter, love, and exasperation bind us together into a patchwork quilt of shared experience.  And like a quilt, the interlocked pieces are stronger and more comforting than any individual element. Our stories remind us of who we are and how we are connected. They remind us that we are family. 

Welcome to the kitchen table.  You too can participate by posting a comment or by sending me a message.  It’s all good.