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These Broken Worlds: A Mini-Kōsalogy of Flash Fiction Stories
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Their home world is gone, their planet cut from existence. They traveled eons searching for a new home. But their new home, Earth, was already taken. From quiet stories of longing and love to tales of tragic nuclear war and brutal inter-species conflict, these narratives portray sometimes startling snapshots of a new universe, with an intensity that only flash fiction can convey. Each author's unique stories enrich the shared, singular vision of a science fiction saga that is just beginning.
10 stories
4 authors
1 universe
Their home world is gone, their planet cut from existence. They traveled eons searching for a new home. But their new home, Earth, was already taken. From quiet stories of longing and love to tales of tragic nuclear war and brutal inter-species conflict, these narratives portray sometimes startling snapshots of a new universe, with an intensity that only flash fiction can convey. Each author's unique stories enrich the shared, singular vision of a science fiction saga that is just beginning.
10 stories
4 authors
1 universe
- GenresScience Fiction
43 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 10, 2015
About the author
Ally Bishop
10 books30 followersWhen you do something effortlessly and people commend you continuously, you have found your gift.
That's what I tell people all the time. And it's true.
I get story. I always have. I started writing when I was eight on a Smith Corona (the electronic kind -- I'm not THAT old). I wrote stories in every spiral notebook I had. Eventually, I graduated to a Mac (yes, I'm one of THOSE people). I imagined new worlds, emotional conflicts, and HEAs while I waited at stoplights or wandered the grocery store. But here's the thing: I didn't just dream it up and write it down -- I critiqued what I read. I knew when ideas were good, and when they stunk. I ran writing groups, judged creative contests, and eventually got two graduate degrees in writing. That's right: I love it that much.
So here I am, years later, writing kickass heroines and devastating good guys, along with some mystery and vampires thrown in (I promise: THEY'RE COMING). And what's really cool? I do what I love. Wanna write a success story for your life: I promise you, that's it. Do what you love. And hopefully, you can make a living at it too. That's the golden ticket, Charlie.
And chocolate doesn't hurt, either...
That's what I tell people all the time. And it's true.
I get story. I always have. I started writing when I was eight on a Smith Corona (the electronic kind -- I'm not THAT old). I wrote stories in every spiral notebook I had. Eventually, I graduated to a Mac (yes, I'm one of THOSE people). I imagined new worlds, emotional conflicts, and HEAs while I waited at stoplights or wandered the grocery store. But here's the thing: I didn't just dream it up and write it down -- I critiqued what I read. I knew when ideas were good, and when they stunk. I ran writing groups, judged creative contests, and eventually got two graduate degrees in writing. That's right: I love it that much.
So here I am, years later, writing kickass heroines and devastating good guys, along with some mystery and vampires thrown in (I promise: THEY'RE COMING). And what's really cool? I do what I love. Wanna write a success story for your life: I promise you, that's it. Do what you love. And hopefully, you can make a living at it too. That's the golden ticket, Charlie.
And chocolate doesn't hurt, either...
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
August 4, 2015
I’m a fan of flash fiction, but this has to be my favourite collection to date. It’s a novel idea: stories by four writers set within an alien world. They pull it off seamlessly. Words are strung together like sharpened pearls, beautiful and effective, poetry and horror combined. The scifi elements are creative and fresh. These stories are about loss, loss, prejudice and survival. The subtle nods to history are clever. This is a collection you can learn from. The stories perform a sort of domino play and the overall impact outweighs the sum of its parts. I can’t wait to see the next offering from this quartet of writers and their editor.
August 5, 2015
Disclosure: I edited this mini-anthology.
When I was initially approached with a sci-fi anthology to edit, I might have rolled my eyes. Just a little. Not because I don't love sci-fi. Quite the opposite. But I've read so many poorly written collections and stand-alone stories riddled with clichés and unoriginal approaches in recent years, I'd given up hope on finding a modern tale written with care.
These authors went beyond impressing me and straight to respect with their determination to create something new in a genre where everything has been written, it seems. Is the world in These Broken Worlds unique and unusual? Filled with unheard of concepts that have never been imagined before? No...and yes. While their tales are familiar in scope--alien species invade Earth and shake up everything as we know it--their approach is one of emotional complexity and cultural exploration as they examine the effects of an invasion both at year zero and centuries into the future. What will happen when similar-yet-different values collide while there's the luxury of time to bemoan the atrocity? What happens when that privilege is fleeting, and the darkness encroaches? What will befall two species so vastly opposed and yet both equally vulnerable to an oppressive threat? And more importantly, *why* do we care? What causes these great divides in ideologies when the basics of species' needs are the same? And why must we always define our power in terms of barbaric tradition when another answer may lurk just outside our vision?
You will not regret spending time on this anthology. As someone who read it several times due to editing, I looked forward to each reread...and I rarely reread a book for pleasure. But Kelley and his team did an incredible job on interlinking their stories, and their response to my feedback was to take the critique and go create even more awesome on the page.
It was my honor to work on this collection, and I highly recommend it to any fan of science fiction, alien invasion, and strong writing. You'll be hooked, and, just like I am, waiting impatiently for the next installment.
When I was initially approached with a sci-fi anthology to edit, I might have rolled my eyes. Just a little. Not because I don't love sci-fi. Quite the opposite. But I've read so many poorly written collections and stand-alone stories riddled with clichés and unoriginal approaches in recent years, I'd given up hope on finding a modern tale written with care.
These authors went beyond impressing me and straight to respect with their determination to create something new in a genre where everything has been written, it seems. Is the world in These Broken Worlds unique and unusual? Filled with unheard of concepts that have never been imagined before? No...and yes. While their tales are familiar in scope--alien species invade Earth and shake up everything as we know it--their approach is one of emotional complexity and cultural exploration as they examine the effects of an invasion both at year zero and centuries into the future. What will happen when similar-yet-different values collide while there's the luxury of time to bemoan the atrocity? What happens when that privilege is fleeting, and the darkness encroaches? What will befall two species so vastly opposed and yet both equally vulnerable to an oppressive threat? And more importantly, *why* do we care? What causes these great divides in ideologies when the basics of species' needs are the same? And why must we always define our power in terms of barbaric tradition when another answer may lurk just outside our vision?
You will not regret spending time on this anthology. As someone who read it several times due to editing, I looked forward to each reread...and I rarely reread a book for pleasure. But Kelley and his team did an incredible job on interlinking their stories, and their response to my feedback was to take the critique and go create even more awesome on the page.
It was my honor to work on this collection, and I highly recommend it to any fan of science fiction, alien invasion, and strong writing. You'll be hooked, and, just like I am, waiting impatiently for the next installment.
August 22, 2015
A wonderful post-apocalyptic anthology of flash fiction centering around a race of aliens who have been trying to find a new world where they can finally live in peace.
Such a plan rarely ever goes without a hitch.
I really liked the stories taking place along such a wide spread of time. There is so much room here for more and I can't wait to get my grubby hands on 'em as they're published!
Such a plan rarely ever goes without a hitch.
I really liked the stories taking place along such a wide spread of time. There is so much room here for more and I can't wait to get my grubby hands on 'em as they're published!
August 24, 2015
review to follow
March 14, 2016
The first time I saw the cover for THESE BROKEN WORLDS, the first “Kosalogy” released by Kosa Press, I knew I had to read it. I freely admit that I am a sucker for cool covers. The cover for THESE BROKEN WORLDS was designed by Pavarti K. Tyler, and you better believe I was impressed from the get-go. Clearly, these writers were taking themselves very, very seriously.
I signed up for the newsletter to receive updates about the status of Kosa Press, and in exchange was gifted a free copy of the debut mini-Kosalogy. It’s a very quick read – just over thirty pages – comprised of ten different short stories by four authors. None of the stories is more than five pages long. It took me about an hour to read. It begins with a one-page introduction that sets the scene: aliens seek refuge on Earth from a genocidal species that has pursued them across galaxies and millenia, and humans are none too happy about it. With a kind of District 9 sensibility and rich with classic sci-fi themes, THESE BROKEN WORLDS is a remarkable collection for both its brevity and its intensity.
The collection opens with a story by Woelf Dietrich, who, along with Pavarti Tyler, Jessica West, and MJ Kelley, wrote and assembled all the stories in the anthology. Dietrich’s story sets the stage as two spaceships crash into the surface of the Earth, one destroying Los Angeles, the other carving a swath out of Arizona to rival the Grand Canyon. An old man, reminiscing on the night he watched the stars blink out as the spaceships careened through the atmosphere, immediately makes it clear that the path forward is not bright: he wishes humans had been wiped out and spared the pain yet to come.
That sets the tone for the rest of the anthology. If you’re looking for feel-good, uplifting material, look elsewhere. THESE BROKEN WORLDS is unflinching in its portrayal of the clash between the drilodytes – the aliens fleeing annihilation from elsewhere – their attackers, and humans. With stories about half-breed children being hanged at an orphanage by human children, and the drilodytes taking human women as sex slaves to create a superior, interbred race, this collection is not for the faint of heart. But if you can brave these broken worlds, the reward is great: every story is powerful and unique, and the world the authors have drawn is broad and diverse. Clearly, there is far more to be mined from the world they have built thus far.
If you are a science fiction fan and are looking for something quick, easy, and very intense, I highly recommend you scoot on over to Kosa’s page and sign up for their newsletter so as to get yourself a free copy, or do the writers a favor and nab it on Amazon.
I signed up for the newsletter to receive updates about the status of Kosa Press, and in exchange was gifted a free copy of the debut mini-Kosalogy. It’s a very quick read – just over thirty pages – comprised of ten different short stories by four authors. None of the stories is more than five pages long. It took me about an hour to read. It begins with a one-page introduction that sets the scene: aliens seek refuge on Earth from a genocidal species that has pursued them across galaxies and millenia, and humans are none too happy about it. With a kind of District 9 sensibility and rich with classic sci-fi themes, THESE BROKEN WORLDS is a remarkable collection for both its brevity and its intensity.
The collection opens with a story by Woelf Dietrich, who, along with Pavarti Tyler, Jessica West, and MJ Kelley, wrote and assembled all the stories in the anthology. Dietrich’s story sets the stage as two spaceships crash into the surface of the Earth, one destroying Los Angeles, the other carving a swath out of Arizona to rival the Grand Canyon. An old man, reminiscing on the night he watched the stars blink out as the spaceships careened through the atmosphere, immediately makes it clear that the path forward is not bright: he wishes humans had been wiped out and spared the pain yet to come.
That sets the tone for the rest of the anthology. If you’re looking for feel-good, uplifting material, look elsewhere. THESE BROKEN WORLDS is unflinching in its portrayal of the clash between the drilodytes – the aliens fleeing annihilation from elsewhere – their attackers, and humans. With stories about half-breed children being hanged at an orphanage by human children, and the drilodytes taking human women as sex slaves to create a superior, interbred race, this collection is not for the faint of heart. But if you can brave these broken worlds, the reward is great: every story is powerful and unique, and the world the authors have drawn is broad and diverse. Clearly, there is far more to be mined from the world they have built thus far.
If you are a science fiction fan and are looking for something quick, easy, and very intense, I highly recommend you scoot on over to Kosa’s page and sign up for their newsletter so as to get yourself a free copy, or do the writers a favor and nab it on Amazon.
December 16, 2015
This collection of short fiction creates a shared universe, based on an alien invasion of Earth. I like that the aliens are not portrayed as overtly evil, although their plan to seek sanctuary on Earth doesn't go especially well. The general theme indicates that aliens and humans are fighting a war that neither side is winning. All of the stories are engaging, some more loosely established on the timeline than others. I did find a couple of them a bit confusing, I think because there are so many different elements being explored, spaced widely apart on the timeline. But all of the stories are well-written and entertaining. I'd like to know what else happens with this overall story.
May 26, 2016
Fantastic writing in this little compilation.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews