The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow is the latest installment in the wonderful Outspoken Authors series by PM Press. In addition to the title novella, the book also contains the text of Cory’s “Creativity vs. Copyright” address to the 2010 World Science Fiction Convention, and a scintillating interview conducted by Terry Bisson. I don’t use the word “scintillating” very often: this really is an excellent, informative, fun conversation between two sparkling minds, and its inclusion adds considerable value to the book. The main course, however, is of course the grim but wonderful title novella.

Matt Freidell, a video editor/producer who created a company called The Glossary to produce short trailers for books, wrote to say, "I read the novella included in your newest release The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow and between the nostalgia of the actual Disney ride and all the great futuristic elements, it really conjured up some fantastic visuals. I noticed you didn't have any kind of videos promoting it, so I decided to put together a little something in my spare time."

That 'little something' is this tremendous video. I'm immensely gratified and grateful for Matt's work, not to mention excited and delighted!

The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow

I'm often asked whether I see myself as an activist first, or a science fiction writer. I don't see much of a meaningful distinction. Science fiction writers are rotten at predicting the future (our track record is about the same as you'd get by throwing darts into a pitch-black Olympic stadium carpetted with futuristic predictions generated by Markoff chains). But we're all of us trying to influence the future, or the present, or our view of the past. Writing about humanity's relationship with technology is an activist pursuit, because it requires that you take a stand on how things really are, or ought to be. We live in a technological society, and it is impossible to write about technological change without writing about social change.

So here's my contribution to the world of Outspoken Authordom -- a novella, an essay, and an interview. They're as good an introduction to my work and sensibility as you're likely to find. I hope you'll enjoy them -- and consider joining the fight for the future.