I asked fellow The Rabbit Hole Weird Stories Destination:Journey anthology contributors to share some things about themselves prior to publication and those generous enough to do so will be appearing here for the next week or so.
Each entry gives a taste of their contribution, a little about them, how to contact them, how their story came about, and definitely a link to The Rabbit Hole Weird Stories Destination:Journey (which you should purchase because it would make each and every one of us happy.
you do want to make us happy, don’t you?
i mean, considering what we wrote, you want us to know you’re a good person, right?).
Let’s start with an introduction to the anthology as a whole:
“Life is a journey, not a destination.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Emerson’s point has been echoed by many, but in the Land of the Weird the question arises, “A journey to what destination?” At the same time, you might ask, “Is the journey therefore the destination?” The journey may well be an individual’s destination, because it will define them physically, emotionally, and spiritually. And in the Land of the Weird, that journey can take twists and turns that amuse, sadden, or horrify.
This trip into the Land of the Weird offers you 39 unique trails to follow, assisted by 35 different guides, each leading you down their own singular paths, manifesting their own view of journey as destination, some laughing, some weeping, and some, eyes wide with fear, shaking as they point out the spectral footpath for you to follow on your way down The Rabbit Hole.A Writers Co-op Production
Stories by: Chere Taylor, Brian R. Quinn, Arthur M. Doweyko, Donna J. W. Munro, Tom Howard, Kayla Whittle, Leslie Muzingo, Pete Barnstrom, Emmie Christie, Thomas Nicholson, GD Deckard, Richard DeRobertis, M.C. Schmidt, James Dorr, Rosalind Goldsmith, Margaret Karmazin, J.W.Wood, James Rumpel, Bill McCormick, v.f. thompson, Fran Tabor, David K. Slay, Joseph Carrabis, Jane Frankel, Alice Baburek, Susan R. Morritt, Bobby Rollins, Lee Clark Zumpe, Denice Penrose, Stephen McQuiggan, H. Donovan Lyón, Anna Ross, Michael Pudney, Beth Gaydon, and Tom Wolosz.
Brian’s contribution is The Fully Realized Likeness of Alfred K. Friedman. Here’s the opening:
Alfred never did appreciate our friends, yet, here they were, studying his pictures, our pictures, and kneeling down, trying to keep their backs straight, looking uncomfortable in front of his casket, wondering how much time, really, did they need to stay like this?
How the story came about:
This story was born during our daily news editorial meeting; somebody pitched a story about a company which claimed it could, using AI, “store your personality” for future use, presumably when your cryogenically frozen body was thawed out and in need of a cognitive boost.
I couldn’t help but imagine what that would mean to a family whose lost loved one came suddenly come back to life. I also couldn’t help but imagine the salesman, all innocent bluster and checkered sports jacket, showing up during the lost love one’s wake to deliver The Fully Realized Likeness of Alfred K. Friedman.
About Brian Quinn:
Brian R. Quinn is an Emmy Award winning TV news journalist living in Manhattan who has spent the last thirty years covering news in New York City and overseas. Much of his written work is rooted in those experiences. You can find Brian on Twitter, his website, and via email.
See all The Rabbit Hole Weird Stories Destination:Journey stories here.
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