Diverse Energies

“No one can doubt that the wave of the future is not the conquest of the world by a single dogmatic creed but the liberation of the diverse energies of free nations and free men. No one can doubt that cooperation in the pursuit of knowledge must lead to freedom of the mind and freedom of the soul.”

—President John F. Kennedy, from a speech at University of California, March 23, 1962

In a world gone wrong, heroes and villains are not always easy to distinguish. Here is a collection of stunning original and rediscovered stories of hope and tragedy that pit students, street kids, “good girls,” kidnappers, and child laborers against their environments, their governments, and sometimes themselves as they seek answers in their dystopian worlds. Take a journey through time from a nuclear nightmare of the past to society’s far future in the stars with these eleven stories by masters of speculative fiction.

The editors of this volume are setting aside a portion of the proceeds to benefit the Octavia E. Butler Memorial Scholarship Fund, which enables writers of color to attend a Clarion writing workshop, where legendary Octavia Butler got her start.