Amazon.com: The Retirement of Prometheus: A Short Story from the Red Planet eBook : Bron, Heather: Kindle Store

A blog post about the next few months of my writing life, or a blog post about how I need to take my writing life seriously.

A scifi micro-story in 100 words...

A scifi micro-story in 100 words...

A scifi drabble based on the WordPress daily prompt...

A scifi drabble based on the WordPress daily prompt...

Write about your most epic baking or cooking fail. "And then..." Jan says, spitting out the orange pits. "And then, Halliway comes out of the galley..." She stands, all four meters of her, and it's glorious. "Covered in flour and Vkenophil blood..." She waves her hands over her body as if slathering herself in the story. "With a string of Acklammel pearls in one hand and a spatula in the other..." Jan's face flushes and disappears into the sunset behind her.

A scifi drabble based on the WordPress prompt...

A drabble based on the WordPress prompt...

A drabble based on the WordPress prompt...

Read My Mother, the Supervillain at Lightspeed Magazine This is a great short story about family and legacy. The superhero elements never occlude the relationship dynamics of the characters, nor make them less relatable. Delightfully sad and promising.

Read What else, What Else, in the Joyous City at Lightspeed Magazine I am embarrassed it took me a minute to understand what was going on. I feel as blind as some of the citizens of varying nations. There is no way to say more about the story, specifically, without giving up the conceit and I think it's far better to discover on your own - probably much faster than I*. *"I" sometimes stands for idiot.

This feels like a letter from the future, but is actually a letter written in present time talking about the persistence of humanity and how we consistently go through cycles of destroying ourselves and restarting because we’re insane. Brown’s short piece here is really thought-provoking and something that I will probably think about for a while. The Phoenix metaphor is perfect, and the idea that we are just somewhere towards the end of another cycle of humanity, going through its insane motions is compelling. This one stands to test the time I believe.

The story had good characterization throughout the letters. Reading this in 2025, I would have needed more dreadful foreshadowing about the outcome to get a full sense of its emotional appeal. Unfortunately, 44 years from its first publication, "Damn Shame"'s final message leaves me with a nihilistic sigh. This quote though: She's been bed-hopping for years, and has never been pregnant--makes a classic case for breast cancer, and she's got it in both barrels. Wow, so glad that women's medicine has come a long way, right, baby?

What an emotional and haunting story. The point of view is pivotal and I am having a hard time thinking how I can describe it in a way that gives nothing away. All I will say is I truly felt I was at the table, listening in, and trying to come to terms with the consequences. A delight to read.

“Earthworms” as a euphemism for Earthlings!  This is a great satire of the space opera, in particular with the connection of Ray Russell and Playboy magazine. It’s over the top, exceedingly misogynistic and sexual, and funny as heck. I knew a twist was coming, but I wasn’t exactly sure the shape of it. Really enjoyed it.

This story must feel different in its own time (1947 original pub). The discussion of what is and isn’t human wouldn’t have been so far mainstream as it is during the A.I. hype train. There are undertones to who gets to decide who is what that may also appeal to 2025, but the story ends a bit flatly for me. 

This first story is a great lesson in dialect and characterization. Tough Tony is clear from the first paragraph and his adventures in the rural wilds of Pennsylvania make for a great short piece. The supernatural element comes late and swift, but I think it works well. 

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