Shazaam!

This is the first posting for my flash forward fiction pieces. Flash fiction is fiction that can be read in one setting, usually about 1000 words or shorter. Flash forward is titled to remind the reader that speculative fiction helps us to look into the future. However, fiction symbolizes more than socio-technological change but presents to the reader new ways of being and doing in whatever circumstances we find ourselves.

From the perspective of critical theory, all narrative carries an implied message of change; therein lies the essence of story conflict. Does the main character change or remain resolute in the face of change? Moreover, as we interact with the characters in fiction in our mind's ear, we cannot help but hear our own worldview compared with that of the hero, as well as those of others with whom we interact with and with the universe as we experience it.

With this in mind, the distinction between fiction and non-fiction becomes artificial. Every story that is told is fiction; whether or not the tale told is true is another matter. For that we rely on people in notably flawed domains: science, religion, consulting, law, education and so on. No person or field has a monopoly on method, and in the search for literature that catalyzes change and fires the passions for creating a better world, nothing works better than a good story.

Enjoy and remember to speak constructively in your critique of my work as well as your own. No one is a superhero. Unless, of course, you are a superhero. Then please leave your contact information. I have a super-secret special assignment for you.