BlakeCharlton.com

blakecharlton.com kicks off with a free read!

There are days I wish I could silence my inner geek. Or at least sedate him. Every time I hear a doctor talk to a patient about something that is now “fully operational” I have to fight the urge to intone—in my best Darth Vader voice—something like, “Now witness the firepower of this fully ARMED and OPERATIONAL kidney.” (Yeah, I know that’s a riff off the Emperor’s line, but really, it’s no fun to impersonate him.) Anyway, so far I’ve kept the darkside out of the clinic, but I’m a little worried he might slip out one day when I’ve been up all night on call.

So long-way-around-the-houses, but this is all by way of saying that a long last blakecharlton.com is now fully operational. To celebrate, I’m publishing my novelette “Endosymbiont” online on the the Free Reads page. The story was originally published in the Seeds of Change anthology, August 2008, edited by John Joseph Adams. Check below for the blurb, some background information, and an excerpt from SF Signal’s review.

• “Endosymbiont” Seeds of Change (anthology) August 2008.

• A science fiction novelette about a young woman struggling with brain cancer and being too clever by half. Her normal hospital routine is interrupted when she begins to suspect that she’s been put into a hospital for the dead.
• Visit the anthology’s website for bonus material including an interview about Endosymbiont and references to the inspiring scientific research.
• Also available at the website are free stories by Jay Lake, Jeremiah Tolbert, and Tobias Buckell.
• Jump over to YouTube to see the book trailer.

“Blake Charlton’s “Endosymbiont” — to put it simply — blew me away. What starts out as the touching personal story of a young girl on chemotherapy soon makes way to things of larger scope and import. It weaves in interesting applications and extrapolations of technology and shows keen insight into interpersonal relationships. While the plot may echo Vernor Vinge and The Matrix, Charlton’s voice is totally his own, drawing upon his medical background to create a story that has big ideas, interesting twists and is 100% engrossing and abundantly satisfying.”

-John DeNardo, SF Signal