Envision: Future Fiction

by Kathy Steinemann, John Bryant, Katie Stephens (Foreword)

Buckle your flightbelt and prepare for an unprecedented voyage of speculation through future worlds and distant galaxies. Be careful if you choose Pod Class, though. It provides only recycled tubes for your orifices, although we are equipped with the best monitoring equipment, including state-of-the-art Stabilization of Life Units.Our journey will circumvent that brown, scabbed planet with a single oasis of green over there. Zeta Sector is off limits as well.Settle back in your seat and enjoy our selection of entertainment on your holovid while we enter the Envision Future Fiction will transport you through universes of possibilities, probabilities, and what-ifs. Some of the pieces are presented in experimental formats like memory cards, training manuals, or instruction sheets.Can you imagine what would happen if androids learned emotion? Could an AI develop dignity? Could it learn to forgive? Five of the stories in Envision explore android or AI interactions with humans.What does it take to win the Model Citizen Medal or to qualify for a Procreative License? Careful! It might not be as simple as you expect.Why do transitioners feel like there is a higher purpose in dying? Is population control a good thing--or could it have unexpected repercussions? In a world without fertility clinics, why would men leave sperm samples with The Ministry? Do aliens live among us? And if they do, what are their intentions?What would a parent do if their child began to display the dreaded symptoms of creativity in an artless world bereft of painters, singers, and dancers? How might a man react if he could tap into all the knowledge of the Internet, wireless networks, and media broadcasts? Would he embrace his aberration?Are humans the blight of the universe, destroying every celestial body they touch--like schoolyard bullies? Or are they so insignificant that they leave no trace when they become extinct--except, perhaps, for garbage? Future Fiction will entertain you with humor and horror, love and hate, desperation and hope--shaped by the imaginations of nine authors with diverse voices.

180 pages, Paperback

Published November 16, 2015

About the author

Kathy Steinemann, Grandma Birdie to her grandkids, lives near the Rocky Mountains in the land of Atwood and Shatner and Bieber. A writer and retired editor, she loves words, especially when those words are frightening or futuristic or funny.

Her career has taken varying directions, including positions as editor of a small-town paper, computer-network administrator, and webmaster. She has also worked on projects in commercial art and cartooning.

Join her at KathySteinemann.com for word lists, how tos, and sometimes irreverent reviews of writing rules.

Reviews

[Elizabeth Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Envision: Future Fiction has a little bit of everything. There are aliens and robots and dystopian possibilities. There is a little romance, a little warfare, possibilities of extinction and hope for survival. In short, all of the traditional ground of science fiction is covered handily. This is good news for fans of the genre who will know what to expect. The few surprises in this volume come from character driven action, either emotional heft or humor. I'll not summarize each story here. Suffice it to say this contains some solid sci-fi, nothing to offend the sensibilities of the fandom, but little to challenge established tropes either.
A striking aspect of this collection is that it's all good. I liked some stories more than others, but I didn't dislike any of them. I will single out "Salvation" by John Bryant for special recognition. One of the shorter pieces, this was my favorite. A haunting story of a young girl under the care of the supernatural being that destroyed her world, its emotional ambiguity made it a stand out.
Kathy Steinemann wrote the bulk of the book, but plenty of other authors contributed, making this a varied read and a good opportunity to discover new authors.

[Десислава Сивилова · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read some of the authors' work-in-progress on Scribophile, so I was really curious about this collection. And it did not disappoint. As the contents vary in themes, style and quality, I'll say a few words about each story.

Artifice - portal to the past. Nothing special. Lacked suspense so I couldn't bring myself to care for the mystery. I wouldn't have chosen this one for an opener.
The Ministry of Procreation - dystopian flash. Short, but powerful; like a punch in the gut.
Serve and Protect - magnaminous secret agency. A little hit or miss. Liked the idea, but the main character was a little flat.
Salvation - post-apocaliptic. Liked the high-fantasy style and the message.
The Persistense of Silica - far-future alien. Not my type. Unfortunately didn't get the key reference, so the message was lost on me.
Evolution - sentient robots. A favourite subgenre! Sadly, nothing original in terms of plot or style.
Unknown Scyphozoa - covert alien invasion. The Jellyfish of Doom are here to infest us! Nice arc, but the idea is too overused to make me care.
Settlement Standards - alien invasion parody. Great style and superb ending. I also liked the math problems, even if they were a bit superflous to the plot.
What Comes After - space colonization/horror. Too much gory detail for my taste. Nice mystery and unexpected ending.
Alien Irony - apocalipse/alien invasion. Intriguing POV. And really nice twist.
Artless - dystopian. Great world-building for a short story. Reminded me of Ender's Game, in a good way. Depressing ending.
Unwired - urban sci-fi (is there such a thung?). Nice twist on expected priorities/definition of happiness.
The Demise of Great Expectations - sentient computer. Great dynamic between the characters. I have a soft spot for stories made up entirely of dialogue.
Easy As - teleportation. Great idea and implementation; a mixture of suspence and mystery with a dash of horror. Very coincise, leaves a lot to the imagination. My first favourite in the volume.
You Bet Your Life - futuristic/ high-tech. The well-known human abilities vs. machine capabilities debate. Ironic ending.
Home - I won't disclose the subgenre so I don't ruin the story for you. Started a bit slow, the futuristic setting seemed uncalled-for ... until the big reveal. A really original take.
Memory Card - aliens in our midst; humorous. Liked the monologue format and the gradual build-up towards the culmination. Funny and authentic narrative voice.
The Perils of Traveling Interplanetary Pod Class - aliens/space travel; humorous. Reminded me of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Nice narrative voice and great ending; the MC just had it coming.
Minus - historical sci-fi. The Picture of Dorian Gray with a twist. Liked the idea; too bad things didn't work out for the MC.
Newton's Second Law - space travel meets Desperate Housewives. I guess the ending was supposed to be funny, but to me it felt flat.
Quid Pro Quo - alien encounter. Hidden mystery and a joke you don't get till the very end. Intriguing idea, but I'd have appreciated more clues/telltale details you are expected to notice on second read.
Sanitation Protocols - again, I'll leave the subgenre out so I don't spoil this really short flash for you. I'm afraid the punchline didn't quite work for me; I needed more detail.
Window Washers - benevolent aliens infiltrate society. Too convoluted a plotline; felt like random scenes extracted from a novel and hastily patched together. Needs lots of fleshing out. Plus, the superhero theme felt forced.
Square-Fare - sci fi parody. Great structure, great humor, great ending. Another one of my favorites.
Still Here - teleportation. Short and sweet. Yet another unexpected ending; I admit I didn't see it coming.
Competing for Callista - high-tech dystopian meets Nora Roberts. Oh well, I'm a sucker for romance, so I really enjoyed that. Male characters were awfully cliched, but I suspect that's on purpose.
Fluxxatron Malfunction - parallel universes, I guess. Details are a bit sketchy; too many holes left for the reader to fill. I liked the recurring gulls though.

On the whole, a great, really varied collection for all tastes and moods. If you enjoy sci fi short stories, especially flash fiction, I highly recommend.