ideas | J.R. Johnson

Posts Tagged ‘ideas’

AI, Robot

Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, AI, free fiction, future, ideas, Lightspeed, prognostication, reading, robots, sci-fi, Thoughts on August 22, 2026| Leave a Comment »

I’m reading a collection of sci-fi stories about robots and AI with some really interesting and thoughtful takes on the topic, and just finished a particularly good one by Will McIntosh, “Nic and Viv’s Compulsory Courtship.”

The Year’s Top Robot and AI Stories: Second Annual Collection by Allan Kaster

I can’t share that particular story (but the library is your friend! the book is also available on Kindle Unlimited if you partake), but here’s another piece by McIntosh that you might like.

Defenders – Lightspeed Magazine

There was nothing to see yet; they were still above the smoky cloud-cover. It was hard to believe Australia was down there. Over the past twenty-eight years it had taken on almost mythical dimensions in Lila’s mind, and knowing she would see it any moment, see what it had become, set her heart pounding.

Enjoy!

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Let’s Be Wise As Well As Strong

Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, freedom, ideas, rights, Thoughts, wisdom on January 31, 2026| Leave a Comment »

“If this nation is to be wise as well as strong, if we are to achieve our destiny, then we need more new ideas for more wise men reading more good books in more public libraries. These libraries should be open to all—except the censor.” ― John F. Kennedy in the Saturday Review, October 29 1960

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No Kitties Were Harmed

Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, ephemera, ideas, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on May 3, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Every so often I run across story snippets, ideas or lines or just a mood that at one point I committed to paper or pixel.

They are a form of meditation, in a sense, and while some turn into stories or poems or posts, most are just my way of thinking. It’s constructive, but sometimes I find these fragments again and wonder, “What on earth was I thinking?”

And sometimes the idea sets off a new spark and triggers fresh ideas, along a different path. Here’s one such snippet.

When Fluffernutter, our cat of sixteen years, died, we buried her in a shaded spot under the willow in the backyard, down by the creek.

That was our first mistake.

Not checking the grave was the second.

And not warning the neighbors was our third.

*Note: No kitties were harmed in the making of this post.

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Writers For the Win

Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, ideas, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on March 1, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Have convictions. Be friendly. Stick to your beliefs as they stick to theirs. Work as hard as they do.

— Eleanor Roosevelt

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*Photo by Boston Public Library on Unsplash*

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Wishing You Happy Endings

Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, ideas, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on January 31, 2025| Leave a Comment »

“To survive, you must tell stories.”

— Umberto Eco

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*Photo by Kelly Ziesenis Carter on Unsplash*

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Some (Mon)days

Posted in Science!, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, #HollowEarthIsntAsCoolAsThis, geology, ideas, inspiration, science on December 16, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Some (Mon)days you might just want to get away. Or maybe you’re just a huge fan of that classique of modern cinema, The Core.

What If You Just Keep Digging? – YouTube

Have you ever thought, “what if I just dug a really really deep hole?”

Well, the USSR actually did. The hole they dug is deeper than the deepest part of the ocean. It’s deeper than Mt. Everest is tall! They began digging it in the 1970s as part of a space race, but down. The United States only got to 600 ft before pulling funding. But the USSR kept going for 20 years. They made it about a third of the way through the Earth’s crust and then STOPPED.

But what if… you just… kept… digging?

If you dug a hole to the center of the Earth, what would you find? What would happen to you? And what does our newest tech tell us is REALLY down below your feet?

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Go Ahead and Dream

Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, creativity, genre fiction, ideas, Writers, writing, writing advice on July 25, 2024| Leave a Comment »

How does science fiction author Charlie Jane Anders record history that hasn’t happened, build cities that may never exist, and ground her stories in unreal realities? And what advice does she give for those of us working to build our own fictional futures?

…I kind of start by daydreaming the wildest stuff that I can possibly come up with, and then I go back into research mode, and I try to make it as plausible as I can by looking at a mixture of urban futurism, design porn and technological speculation. And then I go back, and I try to imagine what it would actually be like to be inside that city. So my process kind of begins and ends with imagination, and it’s like my imagination is two pieces of bread in a research sandwich.

Whatever works for you, works. So go ahead and dream.

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*Photo by Bruce Christianson on Unsplash*

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Here’s a Thought

Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, #Fridea, ideas, movies, Thoughts on June 7, 2024| Leave a Comment »

I sometimes come up with low-level problem solutions that are absolutely, 100% super duper excellently awesome… or at least maybe not terrible ideas?

Here’s one for movie theaters without assigned seating:

Add glow-in-the-dark dots to the headrests of movie theatre seats. Because finding empty spots in the dark sucks.

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*See what I mean? Photo by Krists Luhaers on Unsplash*

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Worlds of Their Own

Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, @postsecret, creativity, Fiction, ideas, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on September 21, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Other people are some of the best, most interesting sources for story ideas, if you can find your way behind their facades.

Most of us would prefer to avoid awkward conversations with strangers, however.

PostSecret is one way to get a glimpse of the former without the latter.

You are invited to anonymously contribute a secret to a group art project. Your secret can be a regret, fear, betrayal, desire, confession or childhood humiliation. Reveal anything – as long
as it is true and you have never shared it with anyone before.

Some secrets are funny, some poignant, and all are reminders that every person you meet is a complex, ever-changing world of their own.

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