Space, Inc

by Julie E. Czerneda (Editor / Contributor)

HELP WANTED:Position open for goal-oriented professional.  Must be willing to work in zero gravity.  MAY THE WORK-FORCE BE WITH YOU.

In this all-new, original anthology, today's top sf talents tackle tomorrow's jobs-in space and beyond.  Each story in this intriguing collection begins with a Want Ad-and ends up revealing a space-age working world of headhunters, applicants, bosses, and employees.  So punch the timeclock-and get to work...

It's not just a job.  It's the future.

9 • Introduction (Space Inc.) • essay by Julie E. Czerneda
11 • The Eightfold Career Path; or Invisible Duties • short story by James Alan Gardner
23 • Porter's Progress • short story by Isaac Szpindel
43 • Catalog of Woe • short story by Mindy L. Klasky
63 • Ferret and Red • short story by Josepha Sherman
82 • A Man's Place • novelette by Eric Choi
108 • Dancing in the Dark • novelette by Nancy Kress
130 • The Siren Stone • novelette by Derwin Mak
154 • Feef's House • novelette by Doranna Durgin
179 • Attached Please Find My Novel • novelette by Sean P. Fodera
202 • Field Trip • novelette by Janet Stirling and S. M. Stirling
236 • Come All Ye Faithful • short story by Robert J. Sawyer
252 • Riggers • short story by Michael E. Picray
272 • Suspended Lives • novelette by Alison Sinclair
297 • I Knew a Guy Once • novelette by Tanya Huff
320 • Editor's Bio (Space Inc.) • essay by Julie E. Czerneda

 

Genres: Science Fiction, Anthologies, Short Stories, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy

319 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published July 1, 2003

About the author

Having written 25 novels (and counting) published by DAW Books, as well as numerous short stories, and editing several anthologies, in 2022, Julie E. Czerneda was inducted in the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame. Her science fiction and fantasy combines her training and love of biology with a boundless curiosity and optimism, winning multiple awards. Julie's recent releases include the standalone novel To Each This World, her first collection Imaginings, and A Shift of Time, part of her Night's Edge fantasy series. For more visit czerneda.com Julie is represented by Sara Megibow of Megibow Literary Agency LLC.

Reviews

[Bascomb James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Space Inc. was published in 2003 but it is still available from Amazon as a mass market paperback and as a Kindle file. This is story collection features future jobs in space, not the highly publicized explorer jobs, but rather, those of doctor, priest, cook, space rigger, mechanic, bartender, librarian, porter, dance instructor, tour guide, and other professions. Each story begins with a Help Wanted advertisement or other document describing the company version of the job description. The anthology provides an interesting and wide-ranging look at the work-a-day worlds of our future workforce.

My favorite stories included:
Tanya Huff’s “I Knew a Guy Once.” A bartender is hired to improve morale and productivity in a mining station in Jupiter orbit. A wonderful and interesting romp that will leave you smiling.

Eric Choi’s “A Man’s Place.” A lonely cook on a lunar mining installation asks the right questions in an emergency. A really nice mix of technology and human interest. Even a cook’s job is highly technical in this environment.

Doranna Durgin’s “Feef’s House.” A space drifter struggles to adapt to the world of permanent residents and their exotic pets as she works to repay her medical expenses. Perfectly juxtaposes the duster’s creed and her vigorously-suppressed desire for permanency. Pleasantly poignant and uplifting.

All-in-all, this is an enjoyable collection of 14 SF short stories. I highly recommend this book.

[Jacqueline]

- "The Eightfold Career Path; or Invisible Duties", James A. Gardener
- "Porter’s Progress", Isaac Szpindel
- "Catalog of Woe", Mindy L. Klasky
- "Ferret and Red", Josepha Sherman
- "A Man’s Place", Eric Choi
- "Dancing in the Dark", Nancy Kress
- "The Siren Stone", Derwin Mak
- "Feef’s House", Doranna Durgin
- "Attached Please Find My Novel", Sean P. Fodera
- "Field Trip", S. M. & Janet Stirling
- "Come All Ye Faithful", Robert J. Sawyer
- "Riggers", Michael E. Picray
- "Suspended Lives", Alison Sinclair
- "I Knew a Guy Once", Tanya Huff

[Des · Rating 4 out of 5]

Certainly among the best of these sorts of anthologies. Starts strong and maintains that strength, though the last couple of stories drop off severely in terms of holding reader interest.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice anthology of stories about different jobs that would be available once people start living in space.

[Anne Patkau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quirky, sad, hopeful, all over the map. Most authors are worth reading again. Typos.

[Mark · Rating 2 out of 5]

A collection of job-related taking-place-in-space short stories -- like "what would it be like to be a doctor in space? Or a bartender? Or a tour guide?" I picked this up because I like the editor (Julie E. Czerneda) and I liked several of contributing authors. Plus, it's good to step away from novels now and again.

Overall, disappointing. The quality of the short stories was, for the most part, low with a few high points. I Knew A Guy Once was a brilliant of how a short story can really work. Catalog of Woe was quite nice and I also enjoyed Attached Please Find My Novel. The rest of them were pretty much filler. Thankfully, the relative investment of time for a short story is low plus I was stuck on an airplane.

[Susan]

The Eightfold Career Path; or Invisible Duties by James Alan Gardner
Porter's Progress • shortstory by Isaac Szpindel
Catalog of Woe • shortstory by Mindy L. Klasky
Ferret and Red • shortstory by Josepha Sherman
A Man's Place • novelette by Eric Choi
Dancing in the Dark • novelette by Nancy Kress
The Siren Stone • novelette by Derwin Mak
Feef's House • novelette by Doranna Durgin
Attached Please Find My Novel • novelette by Sean P. Fodera
Field Trip • novelette by S. M. Stirling and Janet Stirling
Come All Ye Faithful • shortstory by Robert J. Sawyer
Riggers • shortstory by Michael E. Picray
Suspended Lives • novelette by Alison Sinclair
"I Knew a Guy Once" by Tanya Huff collected in Finding Magic reread 4/1/2015

[Carolyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice book of short stories looking at the 'everyman' - the different kinds of worker bees out in space.

The ones I liked the best:
"Catalog of Woe", Mindy L. Klasky - librarian in space and alien troubles...
"Ferret and Red", Josepha Sherman - interesting twist on relationships between alien races...
"Attached Please Find My Novel", Sean P. Fodera - alien contact in the publishing world...
"Come All Ye Faithful", Robert J. Sawyer - this one's for those cynical about the self-serving nature of organized religion...
"I Knew a Guy Once", Tanya Huff - an unorthodox tale of how a bartender saves a company space station...

[Adrienne Kern McClintock · Rating 5 out of 5]

There was a short story in here by Derwin Mak, whose short stories I had seen previously in obscure magazines. This was his first big sell. Despite being a Robert J. Sawyer fan, I thought Derwin's story was better, and because I was only Canadian in spirit, I could not vote for the Aurora awards. I had a talk with Julie Czerneda on how to autograph a book, saying Derwin Mak could use a few pointers, and I'm pleased to see Derwin selling more stories since this anthology.

[DaughterDaDa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusing speculations about jobs in the future.

[A · Rating 2 out of 5]

Only liked a few of the stories.

[Jeremy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was intrigued by the concept of the book, but unfortunately it was a collection of short stories. For the most part they had intriguing ideas, but they just weren't long enough to be compelling.

[Ragnarok · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mostly mediocre to average, but worth a read for some of the ideas. The ones that stand out for me are Dancing in the Dark (alien ballet) and Attached Please Find My Novel (alien sci-fi).

[Daria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent stories. Touching, well written and funny.

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars really. I like the gimmick of using a want ad to begin each story in this themrd anthology about jobs in space. An entertaining read.