Story Unblockers

SF short stories must have a science aspect where science takes on the role of character. It is up to the writer to figure how the characters interact. Here are some thoughts about future science that may generate the germ of an idea for a short story. These are not plots or story ideas. They are only areas to think about.

Use these to get ideas about short stories. Very few of these ideas are original. I have been reading SF for 40 years. At times I was reading a book a day and a magazine a week. That's a lot of stories under my belt. Most of them are forgotten, but the plots keep coming back even though I can't remember the specific story they came from.

There are no new plots. Only interesting twists on an old idea. Don't hesitate to use these ideas in a fresh and interesting way. If you read a lot you will be less likely to accidentally steal an idea.

If you can't really come up with an idea, take a classic by Saki, Guy de Maupassant or O Henry story and adapt it to space or the future. The best plots for novels are the silly plots from old operas. There are thousands of operas with stupid plots which can easily be pulled together into interesting plots for novels.

SPACE: 

Good Classic SF is about space travel.

PHYSICS:

Weird physics makes for good stories

MEDICINE:

Medical advances in longevity and human enhancement make for good ideas.

FUTURE TIME LINES

What will happen in the next 20, 100, 1000 years.

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The following are topics that I'd like to write someday.

CYBERNETICS

The future of computers and robots.

MAN-MACHINE-INTERFACES

Neuromancer ad infinitum

NANOTECHNOLOGY

Smaller is better?

WHAT IS LIFE?

Can we create life or transfer consciousness? Is a program life?

WEAPONS

Man will always be deadly

FIRST CONTACT

How will man react to proof he is not alone?

LATER CONTACTS

If you make your aliens alien enough there will always be a story in trying to find common ground.

NEW CULTURE

As man moves towards the distance future how will technology affect our cultures.

SURVIVORS

What will happen to the few that are left after ????

THREATS FROM OUTSIDE

From Roswell to the almost possible. Is it a good idea we send voyager out with a map of how to find us?

NATURAL THREATS

Asteroids are just one of the things that we have to worry about.

JOE BLOW IN SPACE

What happens to the average guy in extraordinary circumstances?

ALIENS IN BROOKLYN

What do aliens think of MTV? And how do they cope with the mafia?

ALIENS AMONG US

Alright, maybe they do look like us. Why are they here?