Showing results by author "Patrick Kelly" in All Categories

When the bombs fell, there were precious few survivors. Young Lucy and Juan were spared, but they fell into the clutches of the Bad Daddy. After their escape, they scavenge through the ruins in New England, barely able to make sense of the civilization that destroyed itself, until they meet Hannah, who has a vision and, perhaps, the technology to make it come true.

The last man on Earth is depressed and the robots charged with his care are at a loss as to how to shake him out of it. They concoct an elaborate scheme to have Christmas in May. After all, at the end of history, who cares if the dates are a little off? This story was a Hugo Award finalist in 2004.

An overweight draftsman with a love for science fiction answers an ad in the back of his favorite magazine. It promises an incredible weight-loss miracle, but the return address is from Brimstone, Texas. In this wacky tale of diet and revenge, getting what you wish for might cost your immortal soul.

Jack is having an affair with Suzanne. He invites her to lunch to tell her that he's leaving his wife so that they can be together. But just before Suzanne arrives, a stranger approaches Jack and asks for help - a stranger whom no one can see but Jack.

A career woman, wracked by guilt over the death of her young daughter, begins to find toys scattered around her house. Is she being haunted or going mad? Her psychiatrist insists that it's all in her mind but the truth is far stranger - and emotionally wrenching.

Seeing a hopeful, human world through children's literature. Hosted by authors Kelly J. Baptist, Jack Cheng, Patrick Flores-Scott, and Heather Shumaker – your book smitten crew. We cover the whole range of kidlit, from picture books to middle grade and young adult fiction, as well as writing, reading, and publishing. This season: We’re writing picture books!

A man in a bar has a headache, but it's not from drink. Rather, it is because in the distant future, a collective consciousness is experimenting with his cryogenically-preserved corpse. What's the cure for being dead?

An alien has crash landed in a sleepy country town, and its ship stands guard over the fallen spaceman. When some unlikely townsfolk happen upon the site of the tragedy, what began as a game turns into a deadly first contact - with consequences for all humankind.

A young man signs up for a writing class because he thinks it will be a good place to meet women. The woman he does hook up with tells him a fantastic story and gives him more than he bargained for. A horror story for English majors.

A psychological study masquerading as an experiment in time travel lures an undergraduate English major to volunteer. To the astonishment of the psychologists in charge of the study, he takes their instructions to heart - with horrific results.

Murph lives on an ocean liner which has been set down in the corn fields of Kansas. He works as a security op and plays dangerous games in a virtual reality called Way Out. But Murph is lonely and wants to meet his online lover, Cat, in person. But who is Cat, exactly, and what secret is she keeping from Murph?

Mike has it all: a loving wife, a bright son, a steady job, and a house on a lake. Then why does he feel as though he had locked himself in and thrown away the key? And what is the meaning of the disturbing dream that haunts him night after night, the one in which he is revealed to be a coward? In a horrifying moment that shatters his tranquil life, his courage will be put to the ultimate test.

The aliens have made contact with us, and they're very alien indeed. What's worse, they bring news that will shake the world's religions to their core. Who will stand up to them? Saint Theresa believes God has called her to do so in this novelette, a Nebula Award finalist.

In this wild and funny tale, a sentient television show is struggling to survive the death of her main character. Her ratings are plummeting, her live audience is comatose, her new star has stage fright, and her guest star is gleefully upstaging her entire cast. What's a show to do? Maybe cut a deal with the devil?

Welcome to a survivalist's nightmare. On the day a nuclear war is threatening to break out, his wife's car dies 20 miles away from the bunker he has so painstakingly prepared. He has to go get her, but what price is he willing to pay to keep his family safe in the face of the impending holocaust?

Crispin has been following Lisa around since she was a child, only no one can see him but her. She hopes she's isn't crazy but she can't be sure. And of course, the dead people who talk to her are no help at all.

In a future where virtual reality shows are the dominant entertainment form, a damaged young woman has the uncanny ability to impersonate the dead celebrities of the late 20th Century, bringing them to life once again for the nostalgia market. A bittersweet tale of fame lost and found, with an ending you'll never guess.

Children fighting on the front lines? Maybe in some other country. But things have gone from bad to worse in the U.S. as the South American war drags on. Now the government has hatched a scheme to attract teens and even preteens into the army: they are offering kids a chance to be the star of The Johnny America Show, a reality show set on the battlefront. In a country wracked by shortages and draft sweeps and despair, maybe picking up a gun isn't such a bad idea after all.

In which your StoryPod author and narrator, James Patrick Kelly, has an unexpected encounter with an old friend and sees his mundane life pushed off the edge of reality. REMINDER: this is a work of fiction.

Phillip Wing is the architect of one of the Seven New Wonders of the World: the Glass Cloud. But construction has fallen behind schedule, costs have skyrocketed, and the project is suddenly in danger of being canceled. The mysterious alien Messengers step in to save the Glass Cloud but at a terrible cost to Wing and his wife, Daisy.