Pilfr-xr-x. 18 root root 4096 March 10 20:43
Pilfr-xr-x. 18 root root 4096 March 10 20:44 …
Pilfr-xr-x. 18 root root 4096 March 10 20:48 reboot
Pilfr-xr-x. 18 root root 4096 March 10 20:53 network
Pilfr-xr-x. 18 root root 4096 March 10 21:03 attenuation
Pilfr-xr-x. 18 root root 4096 March 10 21:20 frequency cycle
Pilfr-xr-x. 18 root root 4072 March 10 21:22 packet
Pilfr-xr-x. 18 root root 4212 March 10 21:24 packet
Pilfr-xr-x. 18 root root 4589 March 10 21:26 packet
Pilfr-xr-x. 18 root root 4027 March 10 21:34 lights up
Pilfr-xr-x. 18 root root 4598 March 10 21:42 navigation
No frills. Just the dusty mouthful of a burgeoning creativity going on here. We’re using this space to talk about some of the ideas we’re working on, share work in-progress, and maybe give away some peaks into the process along the way. It’s kind of dark in here… and it probably should be. The mind works efficiently when we think there’s something lurking in the shadows. Then the neon comes on, the rain starts to pour, and the downdraft of a dropship knocks us on our ass. No one said the future would be kind.
What’s a Polyslate?
It’s just a digital device in my stories. You can use it to get intergalactic news, send a message to a spaceship, play some centuries-old music, or re-code the cybernetics in your body. Think of each blog post as a little piece of the future coming your way. Words bouncing off a satellite. Burst communication from a relay station. Let it be an anchor, cast over the side of the boat, that keeps these stories within the same universe. Let it be a point of comfort, when the lights go out. Let it be a reminder that the future will have its problems too.
A Larger Purpose?
The Polyslate Dystopia stories are meant to be foundational to a larger universe. That universe was born through writing by first novel, Grammaria. One of the problems with writing a large story within a vast and unknown universe is the world has to be relatable to be understood. The more divergent the setting is, in comparison to our current world, the more explanation there needs to be. That’s distracting. That’s narration. It’s not characters just living their lives, the layers of observation occurring, or the slowly building purpose of the little blue devices in the stories. Cyberpunk is full of hackers. Science fiction is full of weird signals. And the grimdark dystopia of the future knows only oppression, subterfuge, and threats from the shadow. Don’t spend too much time trying to figure it out. Just read the stories. They’ll tell you what you need to know.
