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From Star Trek to Star Wars, from Dune to Foundation, science fiction has a rich history of exploring the idea of vast intergalactic societies, and the challenges facing those living in or trying to manage such societies. The stories in Federations will continue that tradition. What are the social/religious/environmental/technological implications of living in such a vast society? What happens when expansionist tendencies on a galactic scale come into conflict with the indigenous peoples of other planets, of other races? And what of the issue of communicating across such distances, or the problems caused by relativistic travel? These are just some of the questions and issues that the stories in Federations will take on.
From Star Trek to Star Wars, from Dune to Foundation, science fiction has a rich history of exploring the idea of vast intergalactic societies, and the challenges facing those living in or trying to manage such societies. The stories in Federations will continue that tradition. What are the social/religious/environmental/technological implications of living in such a vast society? What happens when expansionist tendencies on a galactic scale come into conflict with the indigenous peoples of other planets, of other races? And what of the issue of communicating across such distances, or the problems caused by relativistic travel? These are just some of the questions and issues that the stories in Federations will take on.
Award-winning author James Alan Gardner evokes a sense of wonder that is synonymous with great speculative fiction. Now, in his first short-story collection, he brings together the numerous tales that have made his reputation, ranging from the everyday experience to the cosmic, from peanut butter sandwiches to space drives. There are stories of wonder, imagination, humanity, and the unknown and tales that remind us of the importance of possibility.
Some of the stories in this collection have won the Aurora Award and the grand prize in the prestigious Writers of the Future contest and been nominated for both the Hugo and Nebula Awards, while others are completely new and undiscovered.
“Hardware Scenario G-49” was first published in Amazing Stories, Vol. 66, #8, No. 565, December 1991
First published in Amazing Stories, Vol. 69, #3, No. 592, Winter 1995. Published in 2005 as part of Gravity Wells short stories collection.
“Lesser Figures of the Greater Trumps” was first published in The New Quarterly, Vol. XI, No. 4, Winter 1992.
First publiched in On Spec (Canadian SF magazine) in April 1990. Published in 2005 as part of Gravity Wells short stories collection.
First published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Vol. 80, #2, No. 477, February 1991. Part of Gravity Wells short stories collection (2005).
“Sense of Wonder” was first published in Amazing Stories, Vol. 70, #1, No. 593, Summer 1998
“Shadow Album” was first published in Amazing Stories, Vol. 66, #3, No. 560, July 1991.
Need a Job, Go to Mars… or the nearest space station or colony world. But what kind of career opportunities will you find on the ever-expanding frontiers of space? And how many alien beings will be vying for the same positions? To discover some of the possibilities, check out Space, Inc., and such entertaining and original tales as:
“Attached Please Find My Novel”—Sometimes you found tomorrow’s best-sellers in the most unexpected places…
“The Siren Stone”—Their mission was to blow up an asteroid before it could destroy a space station and its entire population, but nothing could prepare them for what they discovered when they rendezvoused with this giant piece of rock…
“Come All Ye Faithful”—Finding a real congregation on Mars wasn’t going to be easy—in fact he had to admit it would be a miracle if it ever happened…
First publiched in L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future anthology (vol. VI) in 1990. Published in 2005 as part of Gravity Wells short stories collection.
First published in Amazing Stories, Vol. 69, #3, No. 592, Winter 1995. Published in 2005 as part of Gravity Wells short stories collection.
“The Reckoning of Gifts” was first published in Tesseracts 4, November 1992
“The Young Person’s Guide to the Organism” was first published in Amazing Stories, Vol. 67, #1, No. 569, April 1992
“Three Hearings on the Existence of Snakes in the Human Bloodstream” was first published in Asimov’s Science Fiction, Vol. 21, #2, No. 254, February 1997
Life under the thumb of the Spark Lords – the League's Earthly representatives – is dull but comfortable for Philemon Abu Dhubhai and the other teachers at a third-rate private school for second-rate rich kids. But all that changes when a female student is found murdered by an unknown alien organism, and her boyfriend, the prime suspect, goes missing. Suddenly an unofficial homicide investigation has snared Philemon and five other "misfits" – plus one of the planet's most powerful criminals, the mother of the murdered girl – trapping them all in a web of terrifying conspiracy that could involve the Spark Lords… and even the League of Peoples itself. For all is perilously not what it seems, on Earth and in the heavens. But then again, neither are Phil and his compatriots…