sci fi – hopepunk

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Summary: For the first time, sci-fi and fantasy author J. Scott Coatsworth has brought together four of his sci-fantasy tales in one book: The Great North: Dwyn is a young man in a small, isolated northern town, son of the Minstor, betrothed to marry the beautiful Kessa in just weeks. Mael is shepherding the remains of his own people from Land’s End, farther north, chased out by a terrible storm that destroyed his town. Both are trying to find their way in a post-apocalyptic world. When they meet, their love may change the world and the course of history. Homecoming: Spaceman meets wolfman. When his own world is destroyed, Aldiss and his crew barely manage to escape, leaving friends and lovers behind in a mad dash for survival. When they awaken from deep sleep on Earth, abandoned by humanity five centuries before, they must quickly learn about their new home. Then he meets Hari, a human-wolf hybrid, whose people harbor secrets which just might cost them their lives. The Autumn Lands: Jerrith is running. Kissed by an elf, he can't remain in his hometown of Althos any more. Caspian still hasn't figured out why he kissed Jerrith, but he's running too. Since he was exiled from the Autumn Lands, his past has been hazy, and his future uncertain. When a stray memory brings things into focus, the two decide to run toward something together. What they uncover will change their lives forever. Cailleadhama: Colton is a trans man living in a climate-changed world. He plies canals that used to be city streets, earning a living on San Francisco's flooded verge beneath the Wall. Tris is an elf who goes through the veil on a coming of age pilgrimage called the Cailleadhama, searching for his brother Laris. The two men find common cause, and together they set off through a world transformed by greed and climate change.

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Summary: "Scott has been writing science fiction for almost as long as he has been alive - his first short story, a futuristic Jetsons inspired tale, was written in fourth grade, was hand-illustrated in crayon, and won a young writers contest at the University of Arizona. His work has appeared in Galaxy’s Edge, Poplorish, The Mischief Corner Quarterly, and a number of anthologies, including Post Apocalipstick, Fix the World, Save the World, Transform the World, Earth 2100, Myths Untold - Faery, A More Perfect Union, Travels Through the Scarlet Equinox, A Taste of Honey, and many others. Thirty of his short stories are gathered together here for the first time, covering a wide range of sci-fi and fantasy genres, including several never-before published tales - Airlock Justice, The Summer Place, Ever the Rain, and Vibe Science. Enjoy these varied tales of Other Worlds from the never quiescent mind of author J. Scott Coatsworth."

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Summary: You don’t need to reach Mars to reach your dreams. Robbed of their chance at leaving Earth to pursue green-energy innovations, Ryn embraces new dreams—fighting deep sea threats in conjunction with a giant cephalopod. It’s 2139 in the Cali-Coastal Corporate Zone, and Ryn struggles with their own body and brain as they fight to survive five days locked up with academic rivals and the military-backed billionaires who’ve misled them all since their teenage years. Ryn needs an exit strategy but doesn’t know whether to trust Akira, the hacker-spy who may have saved their life, or Jay, the geeky military rebel with a secret stash of hot chocolate. Not to mention, Jay keeps falling asleep in their bed, and Ryn’s not sure if either of them is interested in more—but at least they like the same shows! Five Days. One Ocean. Unlikely allies connect to Dream the Deep.

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Summary: In the conclusion of the trilogy, the Martian people must secure their rights once and for all—at the risk of destroying everything they have built over centuries. Lucy runs from her feelings to Earth, where she tries to gather new allies for the Martian people. Shattered but stubborn, Moira navigates the criminal underworld of Halfpoint Station. But to unearth a plot that threatens the nascent revolution, they will have to swallow their pride and reach out to one another. Separated from their beloved by the tides of war, Sagan takes up a rifle and marches with the People’s Army. This is their chance to win their rights at last—or is it a betrayal of the man they love?

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Summary: Once a dedicated pilot, Robin has one final job: to land a ship of pilgrims on a new world. There her husband can work as a botanist among people who share his faith, her kids can grow up in open spaces, and she can settle down to life as a full-time mom. When she agreed to the idea, it didn’t sound so bad. But now that she’s pregnant with her third child and light years from home, things go sideways.  The colonists’ nature-worshipping religion hides a system of power and control. The planet was promised to be uninhabited, but something is stalking the colony from deep in the forest.  And the colony ship will never lift off again. When Robin ventures into the forest to find out what threatens her people, she finds the line between peaceful pilgrims and rapacious invaders is thinner than she realized.

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Summary: “Genocide Joe” is a marked man. Once a highly respected corporate microbiologist, now the scapegoat for a GMO-caused ecological disaster that’s turned San Francisco Bay toxic and poisoned thousands, Joe has lost everything: his career, his reputation, his wife, his home, and most of his friends. All he has left is his 18-month-old daughter, Daphne, the clothes on his back, and a chance to start over again, in a new town, where no one knows his face. To take that chance, all he needs to do is catch the bus out of town. But an unexpected transit outage has dumped him in Oakland, so now he needs to get to the next station on foot, while pushing a baby stroller. And hoping to pass unrecognized through a city where everyone hates him, and a lot of people want to kill him… Eco-fiction; hard science fiction; hopepunk; all-too-near-future science fiction. Also included is a short essay on the science underlying the story and another one on the real-world events that inspired it.

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Summary: The 15 short stories in the new collection by K.G. Anderson tackle the classic science fiction query: “What if this goes on?” Her answers span magic realism, humor, science fiction, horror, and fantasy. Each story is firmly rooted in the familiar present and moves seamlessly into a very near political future—chilling in most cases, but darkly humorous in others. Stories include: “A Sign of the Times”—A Seattle protestor is tried under the new Corporate Personhood laws “Wishbone”—An elderly woman faces euthanasia under the Age Equity Act designed by her politician grandson “The Bodies We Carry”—A young widow bankrupted by medical bills joins a “death camp” protest in front of the mansion of an old college friend who is now a healthcare CEO “Unwanted Visitors”—Seattle is declared a “terrorist zone” and the new Federal Security Agency comes calling “Yoga for Protesters: A Field Guide”—Advice for combining political fury with physical fitness “The Right Man for the Job”—Summoned by desperate Democrats, the ghost of Lyndon B. Johnson returns to haunt the Trump White House “Unnoticed”—The teenage daughter of frightened immigrants demands her native identity

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Summary: The Height of Land follows the quest of a young man torn between spiritual longing and commitment to his community’s survival in a harsh landscape. Red sacrifices everything to study the long-lost words of the gods. He does not know that he is reading the poetry of Lucille Clifton, Ḥáfiẓ, and Walt Whitman, as well as the Bhagavad Gita, the Bible, and the Tao Te Ching. In a world reborn from catastrophe, these ancient texts take on new meanings. To seek such things is to court peril. Belief in the gods is forbidden. But Red is desperate to know the gods. And he is not searching alone. Forsaking all that is familiar, Red pledges himself to a clandestine church in the city and falls in love with the charismatic priest. But Red may lose both love and faith in defying the church for the sake of a friend. Have the gods truly abandoned the earth, or just Red? What kind of answer can he receive when he has lost the words to ask?

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Summary: Comma is a robot—but to survive, she must pass as an intelligent, caring, human adult. Otherwise, the anti-AI extremists who destroyed the supercomputer she once inhabited—leaving her with only 1 percent of her sentient memories—will eliminate her for good. When a university professor is murdered, Comma becomes the prime suspect. Because her robot form is university property, she will be erased while her creator and mother figure stand trial for murder. She can’t let that happen, but how far will she go to save herself? With time running out, Comma must uncover the real killer and expose the anti-AI extremists who want her dead. If she fails, it won’t just be the end of her—but the ruin of her found family and potentially the end of robotic sentience itself. For fans of Murderbot Diaries, Monk and Robot, Klara of the Sun, and sapphic science fiction. This novel takes you on adventure, where you’ll experience mystery, suspense, and a bit of romance. An AI that feels so real you’re in her silicone skin.

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Summary: When a corpse with webbed feet and other aquatic adaptations washes ashore during a hurricane, the county medical examiner calls in marine biologist Will Myers for assistance. The deceased’s mysterious sister, Andreia, claims the body and asks Will to help figure out how her brother died. Will and Andreia bond over shared tragedies and a yearning to heal a dying ocean as they seek to learn how her brother spent his final days. Andreia brings Will to her undersea home, part of a hidden civilization inhabited by smugglers, hackers, treasure hunters, and traders—all members of a different species, driven to the edge of extinction by human diseases and climate change. As feelings between the two grow, the investigation into her brother’s death leads to a sinister plot by a fanatical cabal. Together, Will and Andreia must find a way to save both humanity and the ocean without imperiling the existence of her species.

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Summary: In November 2039, marine scientist Wend Taylor heaves themself aboard a zero-emissions boat skippered by elusive nature photographer Viola Yang. Guided by instinct, ocean dreams, and a shared birthday in 1972, they barter stories for passage across the Pacific. Aljon, Viola’s younger cousin, keeps a watchful eye and an innovative galley. Story by story, the trio rethink secrets, flying dreams, and how they experience their own minds. When they reach Hawaiʻi and prepare to part ways, opportunity and mystery pull them closer together. Both scientific and personal discoveries take shape as they join with ex-lovers, lost friends, and found family. Wend must navigate an ever-shifting future, complicated by bioengineered microbes and a plot to silence scientists, entangled with inexplicable dreams and a calling to Be the Sea.

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Summary: Aik will never be the same … and neither will his world. War is coming. Aik has become the Progenitor, and the Seed Mother has released him to transform the world for her alien brood. Silya and Raven, Aik's former friends, are the only ones who can save him and the world. But what if the cure is worse than the invasion? As Silya rushes to prepare Gullton for the battle to come, she's determined to save as many people as she can. But new crises emerge that demand her attention. Raven has his own hands full, keeping the dragon-like verent in line, while helping Silya to save the world. But what if the only way to do so is to sacrifice Aik, the man that he loves? It's the end of the world … or could it be the start of something new?

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Summary: In Space, No One Can Hear You Sing … Grayson Eck's life is a drag, in all the best possible ways. He's perfectly happy working in the belt alone as a wildcatter, prospecting asteroids by … well, not exactly by day. At night, he transforms into the Inner System's most famous Valeriana Storm — a secret identity that even his closest friends and family don't know about. When someone tries to steal one of Greyson's mining scores, he has half a mind to just toss the guy off his rock and into open space. But that all changes when he discovers the stranger's identity — and that he knows Greyson's secret. Now he's being chased by a pirate, and has to decide what to do with the apparent thief while also putting on his show. What's a space drag queen to do?

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Summary: Earth on the Cusp of the Twenty-Second Century Just think how the world has changed in the last seventy-six years. In 1948, scientists ran the first computer program, and "the Ultimate Car of the Future," the futuristic, three wheeled Davis Divan, debuted. Since then, a succession of inventions—the personal computer, the internet, the World Wide Web, smart phones and social media—have transformed every aspect of our lives. How might the next seventy-six years change us, in ways we can barely even begin to imagine, as culture, climate change, politics and technology continue to reshape the world? Earth in 2100 will be as unrecognizable to us as today would be to someone from 1948. Eighteen writers tackled this challenge, creating an amazing array of sci-fi possibilities. From emotional AI's to photosynthetic children, from virtual worlds to a post-urban society, our writers serve up compelling slices of life from an Earth that's just around the corner. So dive in and and take a wild ride into these amazing visions of our collective future.

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Summary: Silya comes into her own, but will she be enough? Silya finally has everything she always wanted: She's the Hencha Queen, head of the Temple, and is mastering her newfound talents. So why does the world pick now to fall apart? Her once-nemesis Raven is off riding dragons, and their mutual friend (and her ex) Aik is nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, a new threat menaces the Heartland from the East. If she can't convince a reluctant city council to prepare for the worst, she may lose everything—and everyone—she's ever cared about. As Silya wields her abilities, dry wit, and sheer determination to save her city, she's joined by Raven and his new friends, just as a dark storm threatens to sweep them all away. Will their aid help tip the scales? And will she and Raven finally find out what happened to Aik? Forget messy. Things just got apocalyptic.

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Summary: RISE (noun / verb) Eight definitions to inspire writers around the world, and an unlimited number of possible stories to tell: 1) An upward slope or movement 2) A beginning or origin 3) An increase in amount or number 4) An angry reaction 5) To take up arms 6) To return from death 7) To become heartened or elated 8) To exert oneself to meet a challenge Rise features 300-word speculative flash fiction stories from across the rainbow spectrum, from the minds of the writers of Queer Sci Fi.

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Summary: A guard and a thief. What could go wrong? Aik has fallen hopelessly in love with his best friend. But Raven's a thief, which makes things … complicated. Oh, and Raven has just been kidnapped by a dragon. Now Aik is off on a quest of his own, to hunt down the foul beast and make them give back his … friend? Lover? Soulmate? The whole not-knowing thing just makes everything harder. Meanwhile, the world of Tharassas is falling apart, besieged by earthquakes, floods, and strange creatures no one has ever seen before. Aik's ex, Silya has gone back to Gullton to try to save her people as the Hencha Queen, and Aik's stuck in a caravan with her mother and a damnable magical gauntlet that won't let him be. He has to find Raven, before it’s too late. Things were messy before … but now they're much, much worse.

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Summary: "Today I swam through MOMA. Leon says it was a waste, encasing the art, then flooding the museum—frivolous and elitist. I say it was a gesture of optimism, a triumph of technology and political will." Want to thrill to the possibilities of a hopeful future? We asked a bunch of sci-fi writers to spin tales of a better future, imagining ways in which the world might become a better place. From a swim through an underwater museum to a joyous dance at a futuristic concert, from the eco-friendly aftermath of an alien invasion and retreat to the refurbishing of an old climate-ravaged home in New Vancouver, these fourteen short sci-fi stories will to restore your faith in the future. A world transformed is a world we can all hope for. Book three in the Writers Save the World short story anthologies. If you enjoy this book, check out Fix the World and Save the World.

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Summary: Androids & Aliens is Scott's third short story collection - eight sci fi and sci-fantasy shorts that run the gamut from cyborgs to (comedic) alien invasions: Rise: The rise in sea levels caused by climate change swallowed Venice beneath the lagoon half a century ago. But what if we could bring it back? Ping: I was a real estate agent by day, and a museum curator in the evening at a sci-fi museum. What I saw one night changed everything. What the Rain Brings: Miriam struggles to make a living in post-climate-change Vancouver. But her friend Catalina has it even worse in the Arizona desert. So Miri hatches a plan. High Seven: Zan dreams of making full reals - immersive live virtual reality skins - but his low score may doom him to a life of cheap coding. Full Real: Dek's given up his life of spying for the city. But one more case awaits him. Will he regret it more if he takes it, or turns it down? Shit City: The Bay Area is being walloped by a hurricane, and seventeen-year-old Jason Vasquez has been relocated to a refugee city in the Nevada Desert. Will it be temporary shelter, or change his life? Firedrake: Kerry has always wondered about his deadly powers. But a mysterious bunch of violet roses starts him on the path to discovery - even if he's not sure he's going to like what he finds. The Last Human Heart: I'm one of the Remainers, the few cyborg humans still living on this busted planet. But if my still-human heart finally gives out, I may not live to find out the truth about who I am. This is the first time all of these stories have all been collected in one place, and the first publication of the Pacific Climate Tryptich - What the Rain Brings, High Seven, and Full Real - in any form.

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Summary: From all the good things provided by advanced AI to the innocence of discovering new worlds, join our authors as they present uplifting stories of science fiction and fantasy.