“The Cold Equations” is a 1954 science fiction novelette by Tom Godwin. It is about a pilot who finds a stowaway girl on his Emergency Dispatch Ship.

continue reading "The Cold Equations by Tom Godwin"

“Second Skin” is a 1997 science fiction novelette by Paul J. McAuley. It is about a man who visits Proteus as a secret spy of a trade delegation.
continue reading "Second Skin by Paul J. McAuley"

“Wang’s Carpets” is a 1995 science fiction novelette by Greg Egan. It is about a group of cloned beings who discover an amazing life form on a planet orbiting Vega.

continue reading "Wang’s Carpets by Greg Egan"

I recently stumbled upon a treasure trove of free online science fiction short stories while browsing Greg Egan’s website.
continue reading "Online short stories from Greg Egan"

“Mortimer Gray’s History of Death” is a 1995 science fiction novella by Brian Stableford. It is about a nearly immortal man, living in a far future Earth, who writes a life defining Magnum Opus about – you guessed it – death.

continue reading "Mortimer Gray’s History of Death by Brian Stableford"

“The Real World” is a 2000 science fiction short story by Steven Utley. It is about a scientist who has the distinguished honor of being the first person to travel back in time using a recently discovered time funnel. The question is: did he come back to the same world he left?

continue reading "The Real World by Steven Utley"

Ever wondered how difficult it would be to communicate with aliens? Probably a bit harder than Star Trek makes it appear – in fact a person might have to change her whole view of the space-time continuum to truly understand their point of view.

continue reading "Story of Your Life by Ted Chiang"

The Ghost Pit

by Stephen Baxter

• Word count: 5070
• Page count: 15

“The Ghost Pit” is a 2001 science fiction short story by British author Stephen Baxter. It is about a team of alien hunters who crash land on a moon containing an amazing structure.

continue reading "The Ghost Pit by Stephen Baxter"

The Very Pulse of the Machine

by Michael Swanwick

• Page count: 21

“The Very Pulse of the Machine” is a 1998 science fiction short story by Michael Swanwick. It is about an astronaut who survives a crash on Io and has to walk 45 miles back to her lander.

continue reading "The Very Pulse of the Machine by Michael Swanwick"

Blood Music

by Greg Bear

• Page count: 18

Blood Music is a 1983 award winning science fiction novelette by Greg Bear. It is about a scientist who injects himself with billions of tiny biological computers, and then gets nervous when they start changing his body.

continue reading "Blood Music by Greg Bear"

A Walk In The Sun

by Geoffrey A. Landis

• Word count: 6424
• Page count: 15

A Walk In The Sun is an award winning science fiction short story by Geoffrey A. Landis. It is about an astronaut stranded on the moon who must stay in the sunlight until she is rescued.

continue reading "A Walk In The Sun by Geoffrey A. Landis"

Falling Onto Mars

by Geoffrey A. Landis

• Word count: 2296
• Page count: 4

Falling Onto Mars is an award winning science fiction short story by Geoffrey A. Landis. It is a story about violent and non-reforming prisoners who are sent to Mars rather than sentenced to death on Earth. Falling Onto Mars won the 2003 Hugo Award for Best Short Story.

continue reading "Falling Onto Mars by Geoffrey A. Landis"

Titanium Mike Saves the Day

by David D. Levine

• Word count: 5611
• Page count: 9

Titanium Mike Saves the Day is a science fiction short story by Hugo Award winning author David D. Levine. It is about a series of tall tales set in space that follow the adventures of the amazing Titanium Mike – a man bigger than life, whose exploits in the solar system range from incredible to absolutely unbelievable.

continue reading "Titanium Mike Saves the Day by David D. Levine"

The Clockwork Atom Bomb

by Dominic Green

• Word count: 7367
• Page count: 19

The Clockwork Atom Bomb, a science fiction short story by Dominic Green, was nominated for the 2006 Hugo Award for Best Short Story. It is about a UN Weapons Inspector who finds several powerful and illegal devices deep in the heart of Africa.
continue reading "The Clockwork Atom Bomb by Dominic Green"

The House Beyond Your Sky

by Benjamin Rosenbaum

• Word count: 3835
• Page count: 11

The House Beyond Your Sky is a science fiction short story by Benjamin Rosenbaum that was nominated for the 2007 Hugo Award for Best Short Story.

The story follows Matthias, a priest of an extremely ancient and highly advanced race of beings. As he watches a sorrowful little girl in one of his own virtual worlds, his parakeet and him prepare for the arrival of a pilgrim who has an interesting proposal.
continue reading "The House Beyond Your Sky by Benjamin Rosenbaum"

Eight Episodes

by Robert Reed

• Word count: 3870
• Page count: 10

Eight Episodes is a science fiction short story by the prolific Robert Reed. Nominated for the 2007 Hugo award, it is a story about a short lived web series that proves to be much deeper than anyone initially suspects.
continue reading "Eight Episodes by Robert Reed"

—And He Built a Crooked House

by Robert A. Heinlein

• Word count: 7589
• Page count: 20

—And He Built a Crooked House is a science fiction short story from one of the big names among classic science fiction authors: Robert Heinlein. First published in 1941, this story explores the idea of using mathematics and the fourth dimension to build a new type of house.
continue reading "—And He Built a Crooked House by Robert Heinlein"

Beyond the Wall

by Justin Stanchfield

• Word count: 8443
• Page count: 23

Beyond the Wall is a science fiction short story about a UN security team that chases a pirate ship to a forbidden area on one of Saturn’s moons. At the base of a controversial alien wall the team experiences several mysterious events as they first search for the pirates and then deal with the strange effects of the colossal artifact.
continue reading "Beyond the Wall by Justin Stanchfield"

Raft

by Stephen Baxter

• Word count: 5951
• Page count: 16

Raft is a science fiction short story that first appeared in issue #31 (Sep/Oct 1989) of the British science fiction and fantasy magazine Interzone. The story is about a group of humans that accidentally entered an alternate universe where gravity is much stronger than it is in ours. It follows a young man named Rees who is apprenticed to a scientist after one of his pranks nearly kills a fellow crewmember. It takes place over several years as Rees learns more about their universe and tries to overcome its limitations so he can save his crew.
continue reading "Raft by Stephen Baxter"

A Spy in Europa

by Alastair Reynolds

• Word count: 7354
• Page count: 20

This is a cool science fiction short story about how far a spy will go to accomplish his mission. Set in the far future it takes place on Europa, one of the moons of Jupiter. There are some familiar Alastair Reynolds ideas here: hyperdiamonds, buckyballs and some very detailed descriptions of biological life on alien worlds – so ingenious its easy to believe that he is just describing something he has seen hundreds of times. Ah – that is why I like his writing!

continue reading "A Spy in Europa by Alastair Reynolds"