D.A. STEEN
Things I Wrote
A Discovery of Writers
The short story anthology for which I was asked to contribute a story has been published! It was an honor to be included in this group of incredibly talented writers from across Europe, Australia, Africa, Canada, and the U.S.—all writing on the theme of discovery. It’s a well put together collection of stories and the writing is stellar. Discover it by clicking here.
PRAENUNTIA
My story is about a secret government lab that designs an A.I. satellite to monitor climate change, democracies, developing political systems, and migration: all to predict where current planetary activity is headed. To do this, the developer, Dr. Michaels, gives the satellite sentience and names her Praenuntia. Upon discovering the satellite has gained sentience, the U.S. Department of Defense storms the lab to take control of the project. The ever-watchful Praenuntia sees this and determines the outcome of this scenario, the future, is too awful to be allowed to happen. So she opens a quantum doorway in the lab which allows Dr. Michaels to escape—b
To find out where he goes, and why, the story is available in the anthology, A Discovery of Writers. Available at Amazon by clicking anywhere here.
The Whisper Of the Orb
For as long as she can remember, Mary has dreamed of getting far away from the doldrums of her little life on the prairie, perhaps moving to a foreign land and teaching English. But such things are nearly impossible for a young woman in 1871, Kansas. She’s 18 and lives with her family on a big farm with chickens, pigs, cattle, and horses—and plenty of chores. Worse, when the beloved schoolteacher passes away, Mary is shocked to learn that the townsfolk have chosen her to be Mrs. Irving’s successor. At the same time, her longtime boyfriend—sweet but set on farming and settling down to raise a family—has proposed to her. All her dreams appear to be crashing down. But Mary a has peculiar talent, a curious ability. One that occurs when she loses herself in a daydream. One that even she doesn’t realize she possesses. Mary can stop time.
This short story , admittedly, leaves a lot unsaid. It was written for a story contest for which a word count limited further exploration. Still, I find the concept intriguing and one day intend to return and perhaps write a novel or movie script about what happens next with Mary. You can find this story at Short Fiction Break magazine by clicking anywhere here.