Philosophers and
writers of speculative fiction are employed in the same
business: they ask “what if?” They lay down assumptions and
then examine the implications that follow from those
assumptions. When this work demands a lot of scholarship,
we call it academic philosophy. When it demands a lot of
creativity, I call it philosofiction.
NEWS: Look for my newest short story, "The Most Important
Thing in the World," in an upcoming issue of
Asimov's!
(They haven't told me which issue yet, so keep your eye on
those tables of contents!)