Ignition!: science fiction stories by debut authors

by B. Morris Allen (editor), J.S. DiStefano, Jacob Coffin

From the Metaphorosis Library Collection, an anthology of science fiction stories by debut authors.

Might oaks from tiny acorns grow. For many of the authors here, this was their first published story. For some, it's the first they were paid for, or their first story paid at a 'semi-pro' rate. Sometimes it's all the above. These are their acorns, though they're not all that tiny. In terms of talent and creativity, there are a lot of oak trees in here.

This collection of 17 stories is drawn from Metaphorosis magazine's first nine years of publication. From eerily prescient predictions of how frozen embryos become an inevitable paradox to the consequences of a population addicted to virtual reality to artificial intelligence so well made it feels alive, these are stories that predict futures near and far, hopeful and cautionary!

Contents

Silo - J.S. DiStefano
The Frozen Generation - Jacob Coffin
The Bookseller of Mars - Gaby Brogan
Rock-Adda's World - Chloe Smith
Chasing the Light - Gloria Wickman
Superbloom - Lynne Peskoe-Yang
Joy (Unplugged) - B.C. van Tol
Radical Abundance - Angie Lathrop
Through the Middle - J.B. Kish
Indicative of Future Results - C.H. Rosenberg
The Waves In Which We Drown - Rubella Dithers
My Synthetic Soul - Karris Rae
Going Home - Martin Westlake
Bas Relief - Joshua Grasso
Any Day Now - K.E. Redmond
Shortcut to Happily Ever After - Ben Wan
An Aftertaste of Earth - Pauline Yates

312 pages, Hardcover

Published August 1, 2024

About the author

B. Morris Allen is a biochemist turned activist turned lawyer turned foreign aid consultant, and frequently wonders whether it's time for a new career. He's been traveling since birth, and has lived on five continents. When he can, he makes his home on the Oregon coast. In between journeys, he edits Metaphorosis magazine, and works on his own speculative stories of love and disaster. His dark fantasy novel Susurrus came out in 2017.