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A Rain of Pebbles [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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 We all have reflexes--if someone pokes a finger at your eyes, you'll blink and move your head back; it's nearly impossible not to react. We also have other reflexes, those ingrained in us through society and culture. When we have to interact with cultures and societies that are not ours, those reflexes can be just as difficult to control, sometimes with disastrous results. (Published: 1977) Locus Recommended Reading List, AnLab Award Winner
Words: 9844 - Reading Time: 28-39 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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Among The Pack Alone [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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No matter what you do to enhance a creature's intelligence, there are still ancient, hardwired responses that will drastically affect their behavior. A dog, no matter how changed, is still a dog. (Published: 2004)
Words: 4916 - Reading Time: 14-19 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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Answer In Cold Stone [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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On a world obsessed with death, where society and its customs are locked in a stasis that has lasted centuries, a sculptor struggles to break free of the bonds both of his art and his world, while the greater society outside watches. You see, I'd attended a funeral, and were part of the long line of cars snaking through the streets toward the cemetery, where we filed out behind the casket in a cold, driving rain to stand around a muddy hole in the ground while the priest intoned a seemingly endl... more info>> (Published: 1976)
Words: 8283 - Reading Time: 23-33 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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Encounter [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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Sitting in the front of VFW halls and parks around the country are the discarded, silenced weapons from old wars. But what if the weapon isn't a machine, but a human, transformed and altered, a living person who you can't disable or turn off. When the war is over, what happens to him? (Published: 1977)
Words: 7287 - Reading Time: 20-29 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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17 Reader Ratings:
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5
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Evening Shadow [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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Possessing longevity and eternal youth would be wonderful, but only if the rest of the people you love have the same ability. But what if that weren't the case? What if you had to watch everyone around you grow old and die, while you stayed forever the same? This one came in a flash while visiting a much-older friend who had been sent to a nursing home in his final illness. After visiting him, and seeing him lying there unresponsive and obviously in pain, I went home and wrote this... (Published: 1988)
Words: 3765 - Reading Time: 10-15 min.
Category: Dark Fantasy
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Flamestone [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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This one was written by invitation. I'd had a bit of correspondence with Janet Morris for a time, and she asked me if I wanted to submit a story for a theme anthology she'd be editing, to be called "Afterwar"--all the stories were to be post-holocaust tales. I accepted and started thinking about what I wanted to write. I figured most of the stories she'd see would be the typical "trying to survive amidst the ruins" variety, and wanted to do something a little different. Around the same time, Den... more info>> (Published: 1985)
Words: 7531 - Reading Time: 21-30 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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Green Stones [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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Alex Potter asked if I'd be interested in writing a story for his theme anthology, especially since I'd once written a series of three novels exploring the concept of "ethical assassins." I accepted, but I wanted to 'twist' the theme a little. I wondered what might happen if a young assassin went looking for an infamous, retired peer with a trademark signature for the victims, wanting to know what he knew ... and what reception the younger assassin might find. (Published: 2001)
Words: 4085 - Reading Time: 11-16 min.
Category: Fantasy
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Shaping Memory [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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We're often shaped by the events of our past lives. Like a bonsai tree, the memories inescapably twist and alter our growth, wrapping us in a bondage from which it's terrifically difficult to escape. Every once in a while, though, we're given the opportunity to atone for things we've done in the past--and what we do then will affect the way we move forward. Even whole societies have that same opportunity. Besides, I always wondered what happened to the protagonist of Answer In Cold Stone... (Published: 1985)
Words: 8776 - Reading Time: 25-35 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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9
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Sixteen Candles [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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Even if you love someone, being trapped in the same tormented body would inevitably send you looking for release.... Yet that was what the Wild Card virus had done to Patty, Evan, and John--three people in love with each other. Three people trapped within each other. Three people looking to become separate once more--or to end the suffering forever. I created several characters for the Wild Cards shared world universe. Oddity was always a favorite, and this was the one time that I had a chance t... more info>> (Published: 1991)
Words: 14727 - Reading Time: 42-58 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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10
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Staying Still [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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The prevailing wisdom is that if you want to see and experience new things, you must wander and travel. But sometimes, it's only by staying in one place that you can experience all the wonders that life has to offer ... Mike Resnick asked if I'd be interested in writing a story for an anthology, written by male authors, where the story works only if the viewpoint character is a woman. As Mike put it: "If you can change the name from Doris to Donald and the story still works, then that's not what... more info>> (Published: 2003)
Words: 5134 - Reading Time: 14-20 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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Strings [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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There is power in politics. But some politicians have more power than others, a hidden power that allows them to pull the strings.... This was the first Senator Gregg Hartmann story, the only character in the Wild Cards series whose character arc began in the first book and ended in the last--at least until the revival of the series with a 16th volume from iBooks in 2002 (Deuces Down). Gregg would appear in nearly all the books ... and (quite justifiably) become one of the most reviled character... more info>> (Published: 1987) Hugo Award Nominee
Words: 15161 - Reading Time: 43-60 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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Tapestry [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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Imagine someone sent to another place and time to do a task, a task that he finds loathsome but which he feels he has no choice but to perform. Imagine that person remaining there for so long that his old world seems less real to him than this new one. Imagine that the time comes to perform the task.... In her introduction to this story, Victoria said that what attracted her to the tale was the sense of atmosphere that surrounded it. Is this fantasy, alternate history, or science fiction? It all... more info>> (Published: 1982)
Words: 11987 - Reading Time: 34-47 min.
Category: Fantasy
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13
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When We Come Down [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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Those who are 'different' often have to learn to deal with the scorn and ridicule of the rest, even when that 'difference' might allow us to do something that a 'normal' person can't. And as we go forward, technology will allow us to create more differences than we can currently imagine. How do we cope with that ... and how does it cope with us? Of the "Alliance Universe" stories I published, I think this remains my favorite... (Published: 1978)
Words: 13015 - Reading Time: 37-52 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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You, by Anonymous [MultiFormat]
by Stephen Leigh
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Mike Resnick was putting together an anthology of stories told from the first person viewpoint of an alien, and asked me if I wanted to contribute. With theme anthologies, I like to push the envelope of the assignment. The genesis for this story came from an article I was reading in Science News, and it seemed best written in second person, so that's what I gave Mike, telling him that "hey, second person is just first person once removed." Mike insisted that I had to put at least one "I" in the ... more info>> (Published: 2005) Year's Best Science Fiction Selection
Words: 1311 - Reading Time: 3-5 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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21 Reader Ratings:
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![Short [13015 words]](/images/short.gif "Short [13015 words]")
