Longing to Play the Oboe

My not-particularly-speculative bit of flash fiction "Longing to Play the Oboe" is in the July issue of Jersey Devil Press.

The oboe players across the street were in the midst of a blistering ecumenical argument. Their voices were muted by the glass but I caught enough words to figure out they had severely divergent views on the Book of Job... (read the rest at Jersey Devil Press)

Pointland

My very-short piece Pointland is online at Bewildering Stories. It should be extra-enjoyable if you've ever read Edwin A. Abbot's classic with a similar name. 

After failing to find moksha beyond the Calabi-Yau manifold, I went the other way. I dodged tesseracts going left and right, ana and kata on my way to Spaceland...(read the rest at Bewildering Stories)

I'm also intrigued that the editors have included a series of questions to accompany the piece which really get at some of the themes and allusions I tried to fit into it. So, take the Bewildering Stories Challenge for this issue if you feel inspired.

Polaris Schedule

Over the last few years, I've come to associate the Polaris convention with the arrival of summer. Thanks to my work schedule I've had lots of free time before and after to make sure I can arrive early and stay late. This is my first year as a participant and I'm excited about the discussions and activities that have been lined up by the programming staff (whom I'd like to thank in advance for the lighter schedule on Sunday).

Here is a tentative list of the discussions and events I'll be at during the Polaris convention next week.

• Sherlock: A New Game Is Afoot - Friday 7pm 
• "Duel at Badlands Junction" (film screening and Q&A) - Saturday 12pm
  
• Let's Have A Death Match - Saturday 4pm
• When Live Action Gets Animated - Saturday 5pm
• The Evil Dead-Third Time's the Charm  - Saturday 11pm
• Bonding Over Books and Beer - Sunday 3pm

"Estimated Time of Arrival" - Review

Adam Shaftoe at Page of Reviews has been kind enough to write a thoughtful review of "Estimated Time of Arrival".

I have to agree with just about everything he wrote and was pleasantly surprised at a few readings I hadn't considered. Getting to read a thoughtful and insightful response to one's work is truly one of the joys of writing and I'm very appreciative of Adam taking the time to look at my bit of light fare about near-light speed travel.

"Estimated Time of Arrival" can be read at Ray Gun Revival.

Ad-Astra Panel Schedule

My tentative schedule for Ad-Astra is as follows:

Chi-Zine Table

- Saturday 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM

A Bit of the Old/New Ultra-Violence?

- Saturday 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM

The Future is Fascist 
- Sunday 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM

Rapid Fire! Flash-length Fiction 
- Sunday 12:00 PM - 01:00 PM
Book Trailers: Sale or Fail?

- Sunday 01:00 PM - 02:00 PM 

Duel at Badlands Junction Screening

- Sunday 02:00 PM - 03:00 PM

Estimated Time of Arrival

Raygun Revival has just published my story Estimated Time of Arrival.

It's one of the first stories I wrote when I decided to start submitting last year. My intention was to write a story that might have appeared in Stephen Leacock's Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town if that book had been set in the far future on some terraforming colony in deep space. It fell slightly short of that mark but it does have a few laughs and you can read it here.