[Hey RoyalRoad, this is the same CKMo.] Lucy dashed down the hallway, the building’s alarms blaring red. She rounded a corner, sliding on her knees as she sprinted past a confused guard, swiveling to snatch his phone along the way. A bullet ricocheted off the wall, sparking down the walls of the hall. She zigzagged […]
Tara’s skydiving instructor winked at me. “For a bit extra, I can tell Tara I forgot a parachute.” I gave it some thought. “Twenty seconds before you need to open it?” “Sure.” I pulled out a twenty dollar bill. “Do it.” Now, you might be thinking: That’s mean, Carl. What if your girlfriend panics?! I […]
Microstory prompt: /dev/shm is a Linux-specific directory usually meant for in-memory files, hence the “shm”, which stands for “shared memory”. Because of the volatile nature of computer memory, the contents are inherently destroyed upon shutdown/restart/crash. Story: Amidst the gentle hum of the night, a small group of sentient robots had gathered around a flickering campfire. […]
Well, it’s in the title. There seems to be two camps of people when it comes to AI: Doomsayers saying it’s coming to take all our jobs and Naysayers who think AI will never replace them. I have a message to both camps: (Exact timeline conveniently omitted) That’s because Doomsayers are focused on scientific advancement […]
[Longform venting] Creative pursuits have been gradually and relentless undermined in a public flogging, sentenced to a death by a thousand cuts. Every industry, from print to film to gaming has been brutally beaten into submission by the bloody fists of Metrics named ROI. We are all participating witnesses, standing by and watching this ceremonious […]
Once upon a time, there was a little girl who was lost in the woods. The moonlight sparsely lit her way, and she had no idea how to get back home. The little girl saw a pure-white glow off in the distance between the trees, and decided to follow that light. Soon, she stepped into […]
Every relationship should prepare for the hard times when they’re in the good times. I think that once a relationship is established, we should write letters to each other, and to our future selves. The letters should then be sealed and opened if it ever feels as though everything is over. Letter 1: This letter […]
Readers like a vicarious sense of accomplishment through characters. It’s satisfying to see characters we root for suffer and struggle with a goal in mind and then reach that goal, usually having cost them tangible or intangible things. Stories I particularly enjoy include aspects of being forced to choose between the most complicated of choices […]
Hopeful. That’s the word. We’re so hopeful when we meet someone. Things are good. Quirks are cute. Minor annoyances are just minor — after all, why let small things get in the way? They’re great! They’re amazing! They’re… Human. With flaws, yes. That’s fine. But they’ll work on it, right? For me. For themselves. Everyone […]
It’d been just a bit over three years since the Great Blinding, when the entire world suddenly became unable to see for no reason. Doctors, scientists, and religious zealots could find no explanation for the event, and though there was a drastic period of adjustment people eventually came to rely on their other senses. Until […]
Monadic Storytelling 