Collected Short Stories Volume 1

In this collection of short stories.

Colour Blind

A short story written in Autumn 2024 during a Writer's Retreat. We were tasked with writing on the theme of Colour after talking about the autumn leaves and how they made us feel. The discussion continued touching on how we use colour in many ways when describing a scene. Things like "the red mist descended" and "he woke up feeling blue again." Of course I had to take it in a different direction and this short story was the result.

JURI-9000

Isaac Asimov defined the Laws Of Robotics that many other writers have adopted as being gospel truth handed down from on high. But what happens when a robot designed to administer the law and justice by aiding a human judge decides to take matters into its own hands? Can you try a robot for murder?

THE GEMINI CONSPIRACY

In the future, the science of enhancing human attributes has become a reality. The humans who are enhanced are known as Derivs, and there has been a lengthy debate about their rights. One company, Omnicron, leads the way, but questions soon arise about its ethics.

SOPH-1E

With an increasingly ageing population, the provision of suitable care for those in later life has become a significant issue for society. While funding was always a concern, the bigger issue turned out to be finding enough staff for care facilities. The robotics industry stepped forward with a range of robot caregivers. But what happens when the robots interpret their instructions a bit too literally?

If I Could Turn Back Time

Just occasionally, my mind drifts off into bizarre places. I had a dream one night about Time, who, as it turns out, are a family living in Liverpool. Who knew?

Whisper Drift

It may seem that I have a love of stories about a dystopian future, and I confess I do like examining what might go wrong in the future. The last story in this collection shines a slightly different light on the future. I hope you like it.

 

Collected Short Stories Volume 2

I am trying something new here, and I would love to hear your thoughts on whether my idea works. I am trying to write several stories that are all based in the same world. Each story has its own characters (though some characters make more than one appearance, to confuse you!) and each story is written in a specific sub-genre of the overall Sci/Fi heading. There is something for all tastes in here, whether it be romance, western, horror or just plain dystopian vanilla.

Henry Was Here

This idea originated from a well-known writer's trick used to overcome writer's block. Just write whatever comes into your head and take no notice of the particular piece of work you are currently blocked on. It doesn't take long as an exercise, maybe 10 minutes or so, but it is incredible how often the blockage is broken.

Of course, you are not expected to publish it….

This isn't a stream of consciousness explosion from my head, but I think you should be able to see how I got from there to The Stream.

Please Remain Seated While We Experience an Emotional Anomaly

I don't usually write Romance, as you can probably tell from this short story. Not many Sci/Fi writers ever do. But it strikes me that just occasionally, we all should write about love. It is a fact of life, and the genre is weaker in my opinion without it. I wish I were better at it! But at least it is short….

Where Is Henry Now?

Henry's life is about to change in ways he cannot even imagine.

The Last Ballad Of FirstFont

When was the last time you saw an author try to write science fiction in a Western style? This is the first time I have ever tried, so let's see what you think of it. I think it works quite well, but then I am biased anyway. 

The Author Beneath

How about a little horror to finish our trip to the Stream? Don't panic, this isn't full-time edge-of-your-seat don't-expect to be able to sleep tonight kind of horror. There isn't a massive amount of sci-fi horror out there and I think there should be more.