Listen to the Signal: Short Stories, Volume 1

By: Rob Dircks

Narrated by: Rob Dircks

Back when I started this project, I was thinking what the heck, writing a few short stories will keep me fresh, let me try things I might not try otherwise, act as a sketch book of my story ideas: the funny, the weird, the scary, the sappy, and sometimes all of that mashed up together.

Well, two years later, I had no idea how proud I would be of this body of work, and how genuinely psyched I am to be sharing these stories with you in this format. Going through these again for production, I felt like a proud papa, gathering up all my little babies, or like I was collecting a bag of gems.

Wow, I just wrote “bag of gems” in all seriousness, like it’s a totally everyday phrase, like I might find myself out on horseback in some medieval European country and have the need to reach into my little leather sack for a gem to purchase an entire village.

©2019 Rob Dircks (P)2019 Rob Dircks

If your a where the hell is Tesla fan, you’ll enjoy 😊

Definitely worth a nice story day, the where the hell is tesla feel is definitely here. At first hard to put past not a Tesla story but great creativity and great voice I’ll be looking for down the road

never want them to end.

man I just love Rob's writing and narration. so many great stories and ideas oh, I can't wait for the next full book.

Great series of listens for short trips.

Knowing how much I've enjoyed delving into Rob Dircks mind scratching and humorous novels, I was psyched to discover this collection of short stories - all less than a half hour. They're perfect for when I'm waiting at the doctor's office or on a shorter car ride. I was a big fan of the TV series, The Twilight Zone and these have that same feel, leaving me with something to chew on for a while. One of my favorite stories was Dako - a bit of a mind twister with a lot of heart. Totally worth the purchase!

Awesome, so much fun! I loved every story!!

Loved it, highly recommended to anyone who loves a good story. Audio was excellent and fun to listen to, completely kept my attention the entire book!

I need more Rob Dircks short stories!

This was a great collection of 16 short stories that are reminiscent of The Twilight Zone or Black Mirror. There is little commentary for each one which really helps set up each segment. I like Rob’s advice on reading these in between other books or in between whatever tasks you were doing.

I guess I’ll write little comments on each story to help me remember them all and help me try and figure out which one I like best.
1. Dakō – was interesting and had a fun twist at the end. Was nice and sensual (Japanese)
2. Today I Invented Time Travel – this one was fun. I watched his video of this
3. End Game – This story was a lot of fun. I got so looped into the story, mentally, that I kind of forgot what I was doing. I was sad that it ended the way it ended… I wanted more!
4. November 8, 2016 – This one was great. I felt like it could have been a partially true story and I wished it was a partially true story. But it was also sad and felt very realistic. I didn’t want this one to end either!
5. Quick Fix – I did not like this one as much as the previous ones. It was a little weird and just wasn’t as ‘catchy’ and fun as the other short stories.
6. Horatio Breathes His Last –Books-about-books is always kind of a fun topic, in my opinion. I imagine many authors like this as well (I am not an author, btw). This short story is also something I imagine from many authors – having their characters come to life and then having a really hard time ending their story. #booksaboutbooks
7. Purgatory – this was a nice and conclusive story. It was short and fun and had a bit of a feel-good touch at the end! (which should probably be in a spoiler tag… oh well).
8. Out of the Blue – this was good. The watcher becomes the watchee… Or is it the other way around…
9. Tick Tick Tick – Gross. Disturbing. Creepy. Awesome. Those are my thoughts on that short story.
10. Rose – this was like a Benjamin Button love story, but much better than the movie (and, of course, hours shorter). I liked it. (I suppose that could be a bit of a spoiler…. Oh well).
11. Red Parka – this one was cool. It was a nice story and just kind of fun to where I can see this one expanding to a larger story.
12. Bloop – fun sound effects, and fun playing off sci-fi conspiracies. This is another one that could go much further. Though, I didn’t like the ending. I needed more!
13. Their DNA Was No Longer the Same – this was a fun take on the Kelly astronaut twins. It went a little fast, but it could definitely have been turned into a novella with some dark deep mystery thrown in there.
14. The Last One – I did not like this one as much as the others. I like the ‘epilogue’ section at the back as it gave a good/short backstory on to why the story was written.
15. Mister Personality – when we reach singularity (a new word I learned today), I want Rob Dircks to be appointed as Mr. Personality. This was a fun story and I can see it being realistic (maybe in 50 years).
16. Christmas in Silver Peak – I felt like this one had huge potential, but it didn’t play out for me. Either I may have been a little confused or just didn’t fully enjoy it.

It’s hard to pick favorites. I guess I liked:
End Game
November 8, 2016
Tick Tick Tick
Red Parka
Mister Personality

Audiobook narrator Rob Dircks rating: 4.5 stars
The sound effects are nice, and I like the intro/outro music. Rob is great at reading his own stuff. The only thing that would make me move my rating from a 4.5 to a 5 would be just a little more variation between the voices (when voicing multiple characters).

I received this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks Rob! And keep up the great work! I look forward to more and more stories.