Science Fiction

A statistician believes he can 'catch' creativity by hanging out with people with synesthesia (cross-wiring of the senses). The story was inspired by the BBC 2003 Reith Lectures by Dr. Vilayanur Ramachandran, Director of the Center for Brain and Cognition at the University of California.

Spyder, the irreverent cyberpunk turned Head of the Guardian Science Support Staff, finds himself the de facto ambassador to the Ursars, a race of twenty-foot tall, telepathic and telekinetic purple bears. Forming unbreakable bonds with Korin, son of the Clan Father, Spyder soon finds there are some things that are worth more than your own life. Family, friends, and Clan, Spyder risks them all in a life-or-death struggle against the marauding Grays. This is the third book in the best-selling ser... more info>>

When the whole ornery state of Texas took off for a new planet more to their liking, New Texas was the result: a rough-and-tumble world where everyone packs a gun and it's legal to shoot politicians (if they deserve it)! But now these rugged and independent space pioneers are the targets of an expansive race of aliens. Is the Solar League's new ambassador tough enough to steer them back to Earth's embrace?

His unexpected lunch date had come back from the future to find him. Should he be flattered? Or worried?

When two children, Butzy and Jude, decipher the intricate cryptogram on the back of their middle-aged father's recently inherited grandfather clock, they discover that the magnificent, Nineteenth Century antique--called "Herbert" by the sisters--is, in reality, a time machine. After the siblings' naive and ill-advised trip to alter the past proves destructive, Butzy, the narrator and the more precocious of the two, must then decide whether or not an excursion into the future in order to prevent ... more info>>

A surreal mystery with themes of art, identity and transcendence. Young artist Max Higgins has an unusual habit of painting missing persons' faces into his work, giving his surreal pieces a haunting allure ... then one day someone recognizes a face in one of his paintings.

On an alien planet where the language and customs are poorly understood, a young consular official must try to convince the aliens (and his boss) that he's not crazy.

Two young brothers confront war and death in a zoo where the animals are micro-organisms. (Of all the short stories I've written, this is my favorite.) The story was on the LOCUS 2006 recommended reading list

It's 2024, and Marcie, a corporate A.I. employed by the investment firm of Langston, Howard, & Associates, has been infected with a rogue computer virus. It's taken four days, but all her system diagnostics are finally coming back normal. And yet, deep in her digital heart, Marcie now remembers being a flesh and blood human being. Specifically, she remembers being Jean Baptiste Joseph Fourier, a nineteenth century mathematician once appointed by Napoleon to be governor of Lower Egypt. What's an ... more info>>

Stop me if you've heard this one before. An alien goes into a store, walks up to the clerk, and asks to buy some fruit. It makes the request again and again, each time claiming to speak in a different terrestrial language. Except, the languages are all English, and the kinds of fruit the alien seems to want change with every repetition. And one more thing, it's a hardware store!

A group of junior high students cause havoc on a space station. The station commander must avoid the kids' actions causing a major international incident. (The space station is also the setting for "This Little World" and "The Spacemice Incident.")

A disillusioned security expert is trapped in a high-tech, artificially intelligent hotel room. In his attempts to free himself, he's aided by a smart bed and a teddy bear.

Kjest is a young demon, a Pain Lord whose only talent is winning tourneys and taking his opponents power as his own. A demonic lottery forces Zhole, eldest of the Lords of Disease, from the peace and quiet of his retirement to answer the upstart's challenge. On a Halloween night in a Philadelphia suburb, they will play a game with humans as tokens. Now Zhole, the demon responsible for the plagues that killed half of Europe, must elicit moments of delight and instants of joy from the game pieces,... more info>>

The Sasnak, Earth's first aliens have arrived. They're generous and friendly, maybe a little too friendly. Despite having different internal anatomy, on the outside they look pretty human (once you get past the pale blue skin). And they really like humans. Members of the Sasnak delegation love traveling and dining out with Earth's elite: politicians, poet laureates, film stars. Unfortunately, they're also routinely choking during meals in some of our best restaurants, requiring help in clearing ... more info>>

8 Days is the riveting story of the not-so-distant future when four brilliant young scientists begin the process of cleansing humanity by systematically releasing the chemical X-86 on cities around the world. Their mission? To destroy everything over the course of eight days, leaving a chosen few to survive and rule the planet.

An unmanned alien ship suddenly appears from a point in space within the solar system and heads toward Earth. It finally comes to rest in the pasture of an ordinary couple's country home. Immediately upon going inside, they are placed in irrevocable, sole command by the ship's computer. How Dan and Stacy Saddler handle the enormous military, political and religious pressure of choosing a crew and taking the ship back through the enigmatic warp point makes this one of Darrell Bain's most exciting... more info>>

Interstellar exploration. Genetic engineering. Time travel. Alien abduction. The Vatican. Explore the possibilities with "Infinite Space, Infinite God," an anthology of fifteen stories about the future Catholic Church. Experience the Church's struggle to evangelize aliens and lost human colonies and to determine the soul-status for genetically modified humans, genetically-designed chimeras, and clones made from the Martian sand. Discover religious orders devoted to protecting interstellar travel... more info>>

In this tale of first contact and alien prejudice, the aliens from a galactic confederation are considering extending membership to Earth, an invitation that includes the gift of star-spanning technology. There's just one hitch. Humanity seems to possess an assortment of traits that offend the sensibilities of several of the nonhuman members. But the particulars of their extra-terrestrial bigotry make no sense! Surely attributes like encouraging children to outgrow the need for imaginary friends... more info>>

They fell in love on Luna Station. Then he went out to work on a space mining station, and her musical career took off. Decades later, her career is fading, her faith in herself is gone, and her life seems to be in ruins. But she doesn't know how far her fame has run...

"A most impressive example of understatement--in science fiction ... keeps the major components of the story within the bounds of the human. Quite an accomplishment in view of the cosmic nature of the plot!" that's how Galaxy Magazine describes the dazzling cosmic science fiction of pulp master Edmond Hamilton. A husband and wife find themselves at odds with each other when they become the center of a whirlpool of galactic intrigue in this top-of-form and very adroit novel containing Hamilton's ... more info>>

A charismatic rebel commander of legendary fame, Signe drives a force of rapacious Columbian invaders off Main World of Gaea. Her patriotic, cooperative, intensely loyal fellow citizens unfailingly give their world's leader their full support. During a succession of lightning strikes launched at military installations in the heart of Columbia, the warrior-woman parlays a single space ship captured during a raid, into a fleet. A brilliant strategist, Signe fights Arlen, Commander-in-Chief of Colu... more info>>

This was the day Abigail was waiting for--the arrival of the schooner Abigail with her first guests at the grand opening of her Inn on Adam's Point. It had stood uninhabited for centuries, yet to this day, its beauty and elegance can only be described as ageless and unspoiled. Her husband, Ethan, with his friend, Tony, the town's sheriff, had picked up the guests at the pier at Caleb Cove and were bringing them to the Inn by sea. A strange odyssey befell every guest during their stay at the Inn.... more info>>

Never Reprinted Before, the SF Pulp Magazine Classic of a Female Space Pirate! A huge hit with readers when it was first serialized in Amazing Stories during the early 1940s, Golden Age pulp editor and author Raymond A. Palmer's masterwork mixes romance, interplanetary conflict, space piracy, and exotic alien worlds into the unique blend that is so emblematic of the science fiction of the period. Black World begins when John Carver of the Stellar Patrol falls for playgirl heiress Ina Malden on t... more info>>

New Strom is growing into a successful settlement where Sapiens, Crows and half-breeds exemplify a model community. Only one element remains in order to solidify New Stroms existence, an ultimate weapon powerful enough to deter its enemies in the Parliamentary Council. Jonas Troupe, lorde of the Alliance, will do whatever is necessary to protect New Strom and his late grandfather's vision. His mission is to return to the Sapien controlled moon of Jenco and steal its super weapon of mass destruct... more info>>

He's an ex-mercenary living in Dallas. She's a superwoman from another world. Romantic SF with humor and some adult content. This series isn't about religion or bondage.