Silicon Minds

The book Silicon Minds: Tales from the Frontiers of Artificial Intelligence contains three short stories following the activities of a group called the D.A.W.N. (Digital Aged World Nexus)—consisting of hackers, activists, and rebels. The stories revolve around their efforts to challenge the dominance of the tech company GDC and expose its dark secrets, exploring themes such as identity, power, and the ethics of hacking in a digital age. The tales involve characters like a journalist, a hacker, a security agent, and a scientist, whose lives intersect and intertwine as they question the role of technology in society and contemplate the future of humanity.

Short Stories to Go: Book 1

Short Stories to Go: Book 1 consists of a collection of stories that can be appreciated in their entirety, in a single sitting, or enjoyed one story at a time. This trilogy was assembled from many years of random writings and the stories were selected more for their differences than for their similarities. The content addresses scenarios that range from the unfortunate to the unexpected and concludes with the impossible. This book begins with a fact-based dramatization of a tragic love story which owes its unfortunate outcome to the slow and untrustworthy word-of-mouth communications channels that prevailed in many parts of the world during the early 20th century. This emotional tale of love and loss is followed by a completely fictional account that encompasses a farm town’s battle with Mother Nature, as viewed through the eyes of three young storm chasers who have been sponsored by a Canadian university. This exciting adventure leads into an entirely imaginative and enticing science fiction drama which hopefully leaves you, the reader, looking for more.

She Howled

Walking along the trails and trials of life, there is a story that must come out. In She Howled, author Anne Julia takes a journey woven into the bones of an old Inn in Vermont, to the shores of a lake and the fog of an ocean, all the while writing her experiences of the world around her into a collection of fictional and non-fictional stories.

Seeing and Hearing Imaginary Things

Diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, Jeffrey Andrew writes about hallucinations and delusions as they occur in his mental state. His girlfriend inspired Jeffrey to write about his mental condition. While analyzing his delusions, Jeffrey tends to wonder if they are real or not, as sometimes these hallucinations turn out to be creepy and fictitious. Will they ever go away so that he may have a normal life?

Saint Margaret & Wagener

Embark on a captivating journey through this collection of short stories that unveil one of the Southeast’s hidden gems: Charleston. Immerse yourself in the essence and spirit of this Palmetto State jewel and its surroundings, as you learn the vitals and jargon unique to the area. Follow the imperturbable heroines and heroes as they lead you on diverse ventures, offering a glimpse into the distinctive ways of life in this charming corner of the world.

Each easy-to-read account within these pages features a melting pot of people and places, showcasing the local features and deep-rooted traditions of this historic city on the peninsula. Here, affability and sarcasm intertwine, underpinned by an unwavering foundation of respite and respect, all interlaced with a rebel mentality of continency that spans generations.

This book is a breath of fresh air, a celebration of non-conformity that is both salty and sweet, offering an interjective contrast to the routine of our daily lives.

Out of Bounds

Out of Bounds features Montreal women of different ages and cultural backgrounds facing a range of contemporary challenges and adventures at home and in other countries. Indigenous individuals, immigrant women, aging women, victims of domestic violence, addicts, and Holocaust survivors face making difficult choices at dramatic turning points in their lives. The stories are linked partly through one character who appears at key stages of her life, starting when she is sixteen and finishing when she is a retired anthropology professor and meets a fascinating but mysterious man she knew when she was a young reporter. She plays a role in the lives of several women featured in the book.

One of the women, who starts as an accountant and ends up helping poor women in Mexico start small businesses, has a rambling Montreal house where she welcomes women needing a safe place to escape to while making life-changing decisions. Settings include Montreal, Vancouver, and New York, as well as Portugal, Mexico, Antigua, Tunisia, Morocco, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and rural India.

Nove

These nine stories, scenes from a now-faraway youth, necessarily would have been misremembered, truncated, and therefore come into the present morphed into an entity quite distinct and separate from what they once were; however, they still bear the better telling. Thus, memory often shall bend the tale into something new, and apart from mere fact. Still, their telling is well-warranted, since all nine tales, snatched away from Mercury, do knit and meld themselves together to form a better, more fanciful whole to create a most pleasing portrait of the distant past.

New York Bestiary

Roberta Albrecht has discovered an adept way to transform fiction into truth. As in the familiar beast fable, the subjects of her alchemy are a series of animals or animal-like creatures, all of whom lack the experiences essential to transformation. Albrecht invites her readers to join them in the decision-making process when she situates them in a specific alembic, that is, in the widely heterogeneous society of New York City where they suffer and learn to survive.

All of her subjects begin or end their lives within the geographical confines of New York’s five boroughs: The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island. All are confronted with serious questions: Where can I find a friend? How can I join a group? (Or should I?) Where can I be safe? How can I find happiness? Albrecht’s illustrations focus on details particular to these moments, marking the challenges, failures, and successes of each. Her drawings serve as vignettes that enrich the text, making a complete experience, making the visual and verbal arts converge. Readers of these fables will sometimes ponder and sometimes laugh. Sometimes, it is hoped, they will discover things once thought familiar to be refreshingly new.

Moving Stills

‘How did I go from a bold, sassy teenager to a woman afraid to get out of bed?’ laments Paula, 30 and desolate. These 38 strikingly diverse stories reveal the origins of her pain, then lead us through her sometimes difficult, often exhilarating journey toward health. Although inspired by events in her own life, Ms. Slatkin has created in Paula a vibrant fictional narrator. The writing is fast-paced, forthright, and laced with sometimes startling situations. Humour abounds. Paula is an honest spirit, and some stories deal openly with raw emotional experiences. The narrative texture, though rich in dialogue, is poetic in its use of imagery. Despite some difficult subject matter, there is an uplifting zest and vigour throughout the collection.

Mirrors

Mirrors is a collection of three stories that look beyond the surface of what reality appears to be. 

Mirrors

Katrina has worked the same job in the same small town her entire life. She has always considered herself and her existence nothing but commonplace and boring until a birthday present—one she promised herself never to use—changed everything. 

Each of us has a different version of ourselves. Some are better when left undiscovered. 

Deciduous

Daisy wakes up in a hospital bed with vague memories and broken images of her past. Her caretaker explains that she was the sole survivor of a tragic accident that left her parents dead.

They are all in a room, says a pressing voice that will soon lead her to discover the transience of seasons as they bring about death and form new life.

What’s On the Menu?

Chris Newberry has won the most coveted prize that one could win: a trip to What’s On the Menu?

In a society that relies solely on supplements for sustenance, What’s On the Menu? is the only chance to experience the long-lost sensation of eating.  

But in order to get there, you have to win the lottery. And if you do win, the trip is one you might never forget. 

Mind Twisters

Maxwell Conroe’s Mind Twisters are short stories aimed at teasing the reader’s imagination and stimulating their thoughts in a new direction. These narrations affirm his craftsmanship as a concurrent master writer of short stories and thought-provoking essays. Maxwell’s stories tell us that we should not limit our thought processes to rational thinking only, but must leave room for unbridled imagination.

Embrace the genius of Jodorowsky’s Panic Theater and Maxwell’s guerilla-writing technique. Meet Cadmus, the purported Phoenician inventor of our alphabet. Learn how Dahl’s writing debut was lavishly sponsored by the British Foreign Office, and how he came up with another story. Fact and fiction blend seamlessly in Maxwell’s mind-twisting stories.

Marco\'s Journey and Other Stories

Hints of S.P. Peredo’s Mexican American upbringing appear in Marco's Journey and Other Stories as he draws from personal experiences to present rich characters in diverse geographical settings: the scientist traveling through the majestic mountains of southeastern Mexico befriends an unlikely group of strangers, thus starting his own personal journey of self-discovery;; a young traveler who in 1970 ventures behind the iron curtain finding love—and danger; the girl with recurring dreams about a spider’s web struggles for her sanity; the boy with a poet’s heart growing up in America during the Vietnam War fears he is running out of time; a lover left behind during the war writes her heartfelt letter of farewell’ the caricaturesque Mexican musician who, through his performance, gives his listeners a reprieve from their sadness. 

These well-crafted stories, imbued with vivid imagery, lead readers through their own journey to discover the meaning of success, love, and living life to its fullest potential.