Month: December 2024

Review – You Will Drink Your Coffee and Like It

The basic idea for You Will Drink Your Coffee and Like it came from an idea my father had. He wanted me to write a story about a machine undergoing a mutation, much like we (and animals, plants, bacteria, viruses, etc.) do.

The prompt was the word ‘Yikes’. The story is told from Katie’s point of view.

I wrote this story during second quarter 2021.

Background

Some of the idea for this story came from thinking about the film 2001 where Hal 9000 is not only sapient, but also homicidal. I decided my machine wouldn’t necessarily be hostile. But it would be supercilious and insistent that everything should be its way—or the highway.

Plot

A mysterious coffee maker arrives. Is it a wedding present? But there’s no card and no return address.

Characters

The characters are the couple, Katie and Paul, and Katie’s sister Marci and her husband Greg. Oh, and the coffee maker. Yes, the coffee maker is totally, 100%, a character.

Memorable Quotes

After I closed the fridge door, I turned around to find another message.

The supply of ginger ale is dangerously low. The local market has been alerted. Delivery will be at precisely eight o’clock in the morning, local time.

“But tomorrow’s Saturday. I don’t want to get up that early.” I paused. “And I can’t believe I’m explaining myself to a coffee maker.”

This is for the best. The clock radio has been alerted, and will wake you at precisely six thirty AM, local time.

“I don’t want to get up that early,” I repeated.

This is the optimal time for delivery. The clock radio will wake you at precisely six thirty AM, local time.

“I still don’t want to get up that early.”

The screen went dark.

“So now you’re not talking to me?” I stared at the black screen. “You are one weird piece of machinery.”

Rating for You Will Drink Your Coffee and Like It

The story has a K+ rating. The coffee machine never really does anything violent, but its communications become more and more menacing and insistent.

Takeaways for You Will Drink Your Coffee and Like It

I really love the idea of a semi-sapient machine getting it in its head (circuitry?) that it knows someone far better than they know themselves.

By the way, I know I saw a TV movie where a man was essentially imprisoned by a computer that thought it was doing the best thing for this man, and may have also been in love with him. But I can’t find it! I think it was from the 70s….?

And no, it’s not Demon Seed.

Not quite the same story, but similar enough that it may have been a bit of my unconscious inspiration. I just wish I could remember the name of that film—so frustrating!

Oh, and my dad loved the story.

Want More of my Short Stories and Novellas?

If this story resonates with you, then check out my other articles about my shorter works.

Short Stories

Finally, for a complete list of my shorter works, please be sure to check out the Hub Page—Short Stories.

Review – Mike’s Grades

I wrote Mike’s Grades completely by the seat of my pants, but I still think it turned out pretty well. The original prompt was just the word ‘Question’.

I wrote this story during first quarter 2021.

Background

This story came from one idea. A tough kid, not so great student would take advantage of an open Q & A in class. Their question? Where do babies come from?.

Plot

When the teacher holds an open question and answer session, all of the students are invited to submit a question anonymously. Originally done to be disruptive, Mike just asks where babies come from. But he gets a lot more than he bargained for.

Because his teacher has just the book for him to not only read but write a long report on and present it. The book? Our Bodies, Ourselves..

Characters

The characters are Mike, his parents, his classmate Julie, and his teacher, Laura McDonald.

Memorable Quotes

“Mike! Supper!”

“Be right down!”

He shoved the book under his bed. The report was shaping up nicely. He didn’t think he had ever read anything so carefully or taken so many notes. It was … strange.

He washed his hands and face and got downstairs just as his father pulled out a whiskey bottle. “What took ya so long?”

“I was, I was studying.” For once, that was even true.

“You never studied a day in ya life,” his mother snarled.

“It’s a book report.”

“Oh? What kind of a loser book is it?” snapped his father between pulls from the bottle.

“It’s, it’s a book about, about the old west. Cowboys and Indians, that sorta stuff.”

“Oh,” his mother said. “Eat your peas.”

“Yes, Mom.” He would have to get his hands on a book with cowboys and Indians in it, just in case either of them pressed him for any more details. He’d have to go to the library, a place he rarely visited. Voluntary reading! As if things weren’t odd enough.

Rating for Mike’s Grades

The story has a K+ rating. Mike starts off reading something pretty risqué, and his parents are none too gentle with him.

Takeaways for Mike’s Grades

I really like the idea of redeeming Mike. He could have been (and pretty much was) just another nasty kid with a bad home life who wouldn’t make much of himself. This is how I originally wrote him, too.

But then I realized I kind of liked him.

And I also love that he’s being disciplined yet it has the very real chance to utterly change and make over his life.

Want More of my Short Stories and Novellas?

If this story resonates with you, then please check out my other articles about my shorter works.

Short Stories

Finally, for a complete list of my shorter works, please be sure to check out the Hub Page—Short Stories.

Review – Sarah’s Invention

I really love Sarah’s Invention, because its message is, in essence, that you can pull yourself out of poverty using just your ingenuity.

Because my father is an inventor, I know his experiences were in the back of my mind when I started to write this one.

I wrote this story during first quarter 2021.

Background

Sarah and her family are poor. Her mother and her brother both work several jobs. She’s just a nine year old kid in elementary school, so she’s not working. Yet.
Like a lot of kids, she mainly wants to use her after school time to play. And maybe do a bit of her homework. She is certainly not trying to change anyone’s life.

Plot

Alone in the family trailer after school, Sarah combines the contents of a few dozen different flavors of toothpaste and some coarse salt. When she brushes her teeth with her new concoction, it tastes horrible. But her teeth are the whitest they have ever been.

When her invention whitens her mother’s teeth, and it completely clears up the chewing tobacco stains on her brother’s teeth, Sarah’s mother LaToya decides they need to talk to someone about what to do next.

Characters

The characters are Sarah, her brother Randy, her mother, and the members of the law firm—Jenkins, Rollins, and Joan, a legal secretary.

Memorable Quotes {This Section is from the POV of Jenkins, a Lawyer}

It has been the weirdest day in the history of days, or at least it sure as hell feels like it.

I was having one of these days where I just have no idea how or if I’ll ever make it in the firm. You’re supposed to be a damned rainmaker, and bring business in. But it’s not exactly easy. I’ve been having a lot of those doubtful days lately.

Then in walks this woman—Joan said she didn’t have an appointment but hey I was free, so could I? Sure, what the hell.

Her name was LaToya Carling. And she had a tube of toothpaste with her. At least, that’s what she told me it was, but it was in one of those old guacamole tubes from the local fast food place.

She told me it could whiten teeth, and it had cured her toothache.

Now, I’m skeptical by nature, so I asked a bunch of questions. But at least I have the mental wherewithal to not laugh at the poor woman.

She said if someone brushed their teeth with it, that she could prove the stuff worked.

I called Joan back in, and she said she’d do it. She’s an older woman, with the weight of the world on her face and, a bit, on her teeth, which were dull.

And I said ‘were’ because I’ll be damned. The stuff worked as advertised. The moment Joan had rinsed her mouth, I swore her to secrecy. I would have to talk to old man Rollins. Mrs. Carling gave me the tube and I promised to have it analyzed.

It was maybe seven before Rollins could see me. Joan, God love her, stayed late. And we showed it to him. He was impressed.

It was his idea to see if the invention could be duplicated. It’s the only really good way to secure a patent. He was truly flabbergasted when I related what Mrs. Carling had told me: it was the work of her nine-year-old daughter.

The next few days were kind of a blur. I spent half my time working with Mrs. Carling to help her get the raw materials together for her daughter—and not to say why she was doing so.

The other half was divided between working with an analytical chemist, sending both Joan and Mrs. Carling to a dentist to be checked out, and discussing money with Rollins.

I even went to the trailer to watch the girl, Sarah, mix up the stuff again. This time, I tried it, and it worked like a charm. A little too well, I’d say. I look like a damned Osmond.

Rating for Sarah’s Invention

The story has a K rating.

Takeaways for Sarah’s Invention

Sarah is just a kid and has no idea what she is doing. She isn’t trying to invent anything. She really just wants to combine a bunch of different toothpaste types and flavors to see what they taste like.

I like to think that if something like this ever really happened, that lawyers like Jenkins and Rollins would have the wherewithal to not only help the family get the invention to market, but to also not exploit them.

Want More of my Short Stories and Novellas?

If this story resonates with you, then check out my other articles about my shorter works.

Short Stories

Finally, for a complete list of my shorter works, please be sure to check out the Hub Page—Short Stories.

So, Lizzie Borden is Vital to the Timeline is a short story I wrote to try to get into an anthology.

Review – Lizzie Borden is Vital to the Timeline

Yes, it’s really about that Lizzie Borden, from Fall River, Massachusetts.

I wrote this story during third quarter 2024.

Background

The Lizzie Borden House and Riverdale Avenue Books teamed up to create an anthology all about Lizzie. One of the suggested genres was time travel. So, I took that and ran with it.

Plot

When temporal criminal Franklin Milhouse goes back to the 1890s to try to save the Bordens from their daughter’s axe, it’s not to help them out. Rather, it’s to get Lizzie’s father to slay Joseph Kennedy, the father of JFK. And by doing so, propelling Milhouse’s ancestor, Richard Nixon, to the White House in 1960 rather than 1968.

But this is going to mess up so much of the timeline that time traveler Julia Rosen has to go back and undo it all. For bad news for the elder Bordens is good news for the timeline.

Characters

The future characters are time traveler Julia Rosen, her boss Sylvia Kowalsky, and Chief Engineer Kevin. Plus temporal criminal Franklin Milhouse. Future robotic AI characters are Grant and Betsy.

The characters from the past are Lizzie Borden, Andrew Borden, Emma Borden, and Abby Borden. These were all very real people.

Memorable Quotes {Julia’s Cover Story is She’s a Maid Named Julia Doherty}

A younger woman, her hair coming undone, looked in on the kitchen. “Are you the new maid?”

“Yes,” I said, elbows deep in suds.

“Of course she is. You’re such an ignorant girl, Lizzie,” said Mrs. Borden. “And you! Those dishes had better sparkle when you’re through with them. Don’t be taking all day, either. Oh, and, Doherty, a broken plate means you’re fired.”

“I understand.” Yeah, it’s official. I hate her.

“Could you also clean the front steps, please?” Lizzie asked me. “The pigeons made a bit of a mess.”

“You’ll do that on your own time,” said Mrs. Borden.

“Which one of us will?” I asked.

“Doesn’t matter to me. But while you’re paid by me, you’re working for me.”

I turned to Lizzie. “Sorry, but you’re on your own.”

“Ah, well, it was just a thought.”

“See, that’s your problem,” scolded Mrs. Borden. “Always trying to think when you haven’t got half a brain in your head. Such a stupid girl, don’t you think, Doherty?”

Well, this is awkward. “I, er, well, you don’t pay me to provide my opinions, ma’am.”

Mrs. Borden raised a hand as if to strike me, but then laughed. “See, Lizzie? You pay attention and you’ll get things right from time to time. Oh, and Doherty, you missed a spot.”

“I’ll go over that part again carefully. Thank you for your instruction.” And kiss my future ass.

Rating for Lizzie Borden is Vital to the Timeline

The story has a K rating. Even though Borden probably really was a murderer, there’s nothing really about it on screen.

Takeaways for Lizzie Borden is Vital to the Timeline

I think it’s okay. I was under a time crunch, and that probably shows. Also, while rereading, I discovered an inconsistency. Oh, well.

Short Stories and Novellas

Want More of my Short Stories and Novellas?

If this story resonates with you, then check out my other articles about my shorter works.

Short Stories

Finally, for a complete list of my shorter works, please be sure to check out the Hub Page—Short Stories.

Out of the Work Camp Frying Pan could have been just another escape story. But I think it’s a bit more.

Review – Out of the Work Camp Frying Pan

I wrote this story during second quarter 2021. This was a year when I was writing every day, and I started the year off with various short stories. These were mainly from one-word prompts I wrote myself. For this particular story, the prompt word was X-axis.

Background

The vast, vast majority of the short stories from 2021 had no outline. There was no background, and no plan. I was flying by the seat of my pants.

But then again, so were the characters.

Plot

When four humans escape from a Ziranqui forced work camp, they do so in a stolen alien craft. They don’t understand the written language, and the instruments are unfamiliar.

And, they don’t even know how to point the craft toward Earth. But at least they’re free.

And then, they come across a planet…

Characters

The human characters are Chris Delaney, Lana Marshall, Zach Peyton, and Gail Aronovich. Tronian characters include White Wing, Golden Beak, Gray Down, Bright Plumes, and Gentle Whisper. If you haven’t guessed it by now, the Tronians are birdlike.

The story is from Lana’s point of view.

Memorable Quotes from Out of the Work Camp Frying Pan

Outer space is three dimensional. If you really want to get technical, all space is. But driving along on a country road on Earth, even if the road goes up and down in altitude, all you really need to know are two dimensions. Horizontal, the x-axis. And vertical, the y-axis. All the myriad variations on that particular theme are our directions. West, east, north, and south.

But space has more up and down, no matter what your garden variety science fiction show might lead you to believe. The familiar compass rosette goes in all directions, almost like a dandelion that’s gone to seed.

And so, our breakout from the forced labor camp is an extraordinary thing. I won’t deny that. But Delaney really has no idea where we’re going. I would tell him to pull over and ask directions, but I doubt speaking the right language for asking is possible. Or anyone knowing directions, anyway.

Or even effectively and semi-safely pulling over, for that matter. I’m sure he really doesn’t know how to fly this thing. We could be flying the alien version of going backward, and we would never know.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I don’t blame Delaney, and I don’t mean to sound so critical. He got us out of the camp, and that was truly amazing all by itself. We all owe him a debt of gratitude. We all owe him our lives. But never has the expression ‘going from the frying pan to the fire’ ever been more apropos.

Rating

The story has a K+ rating. The characters have just gotten out of a horrible place. But they don’t really talk about it all that much.

Takeaways for Out of the Work Camp Frying Pan

One rather subtle bit is a callback to another short story I wrote in 2024, Alix’s Apocalypse.

When Gail mentions the Earth being hit with a ‘poisoned radiation beam’, it’s the exact same weapon which hits the planet in Alix’s Apocalypse. I like to think of them as being in the same universe and timeline.

Maybe Chris, Lana, and the others can come back and save Alix in some possible future sequel? I currently have no intention of writing a sequel. But never say never!

And as for the bad guys, the Ziranqui? I’ve used them in a few different stories, and I do believe they will show up in the third Obolonk trilogy as well.

Want More of my Short Stories and Novellas?

If this story resonates with you, then check out my other articles about my shorter works.

Want more stories featuring the Ziranqui? Then be sure to check out:

• A School for Scavengers
† Alix’s Apocalypse
• Message in an Odd Bottle
† Nuremberg Redux

Short Stories

Finally, for a complete list of my shorter works, please be sure to check out the Hub Page—Short Stories.