I write near-future science fiction novels and short stories, situated at the intersection of messy humans and imperfect technology. They are thought provoking stories that mix science fiction with social comment, mainly in a recognisable near-future.
You can read more about my work in The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction.
I have two published novels, Fluence and Quantum Confessions, and three collections of sci-fi shorts, Eating Robots, Biohacked & Begging and Extracting Humanity. I also have various stories in anthologies and magazines, all of which are listed in the fiction section of this website.
I am one of the writers for SciFutures, was author in residence at Virtual Futures and one of the masterminds behind their new Near-Future Fiction series. I am also a member of the Clockhouse London Writers.
I also work with scientists and technologists to explore possible futures through short stories, have co-edited four anthologies along these lines and guest-edited the ‘futures’ issue of the BSFA critical journal, Vector.
To quote myself from Vector:
“Yes, speculative fiction does influence scientists and technologists in what and how they research, discover and invent. Yes, its predictions do affect the future if you take ‘predictions’ and ‘affect’ in their broadest sense. To an extent, it has a responsibility to be accurate and not sensational, but shouldn’t lose the ‘attractiveness’ of the story because then it’ll be ignored. It doesn’t have to be tech-utopian. For example, I want to warn and inspire, but not demoralise. At the very least, it should generate some action even if that’s only in subtle shifts of understanding and behaviour. And, although the primary purpose of speculative fiction is entertainment, don’t forget that pondering possible futures can also be entertaining.
“Finally, to consider our futures through speculative fiction effectively we should avoid using individual stories as a prediction, but rather get a sense from a wide range of stories about the possibilities of where we might be heading, and what we might do about it.
“I want to end with supercharged activism, the fourth approach to applied science fiction described by Jo and Polina in Torque Control. Having often been on the ‘fringe of the fringes’ with one foot on the ‘outside’ and one on the ‘inside’ of the mainstream, this is an incredibly attractive notion. After all, the future is ours and it’s up for grabs. So, let’s give it a nudge in the right direction.”
I’m interested in creating and contributing to debate about potential futures.
Please feel free to contact me.
Below the line…
On the fringe of the fringes… hippie-punk, religious-squatter, bureaucrat-anarchist; I thrive on contradictions. The tension they create fuels my slightly skewed fictional worlds and the complex characters that inhabit them. It’s hard to describe the sheer delight I get from taking reality, nudging it out of kilter and seeing what happens.
I was a teenager in a small market town in the UK when punk hit the scene and its ethos and energy rushed through me and my generation. It felt as if we could stick two fingers up to the establishment and do whatever we wanted, however we wanted to do it. I’m sure that’s a familiar feeling for every generation of teenagers, but there’s no denying that punk provoked a reaction. It was also the era of free festivals and the peace convoy; to a teenager at a time when nuclear war threatened to end the world at any moment the free festivals like Stonehenge seemed truly post-apocalyptic. I loved them. The mix of hippies, hells angels and punks all co-existing (fairly) peacefully without the police was an incredibly formative experience. I’ve been to festivals every year since and still find them a great way to re-calibrate normal.
Being a squatter and being in a cult were both out there experiences but not as dissimilar as they might seem at first glance; they both had a strong ideological desire for non-conformity and strong, albeit different, moral codes. That’s the sort of realisation that makes me want to wobble the world to see what falls out.
I’ve had some fun on the journey from punk inspired teenager to anarchy inspired bureaucrat and more often than not I’ve had a foot in more than one camp at a time: as an unwelcome hippie at punk gigs; a religious cult member in the hedonistic squatter scene; or a would-be anarchist working as a bureaucrat. Even where I live in Fitzrovia we see ourselves as a village in the heart of London, as an enclave of difference standing out against the corporate onslaught of blandness (but close enough in case we need it).
That’s only a small insight into the inspirations and experiences that helped form me, Stephen Oram the author. And, if I’m asked why I write I have more than one answer; it’s a mixture of wanting to create something entertaining, thinking I’ve got something to say and needing something to keep me out of mischief. One thing is for sure though, I’d love to set off some small firecrackers of thought to light the world slightly differently inside your head!
Thanks for taking the time to stop by my website. I hope you find something you like – maybe some flash fiction, a short story or a full-blown book.
If you like listening to authors read their work, here are some of my public readings for you to enjoy…
If you want to get in touch, the easiest way is to email me.
Some alternative options are:
Twitter: @OramStephen | FaceBook: Stephen Oram Author