Category Archives: short stories

Hemlock

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Hemlock

 

The girl approached Malcolm and taking his hand in hers intoned in a soft musical voice “Darkling I listen; and for many a time I have been half in love

with easeful death, called him soft names in many a mused rhyme, to take into the air my quiet breath; now more than ever seems it rich to die, to cease

upon the midnight with no pain, while thou art pouring forth thy soul abroad in such an ecstasy! Still wouldst thou sing, and I have ears in vain – to

thy high requiem become a sod”.

The audience, hard bitten venture capitalists all, gaped with wonder at this beautiful girl with her long blonde hair falling in cascades down her back,

at her deep blue eyes and her slender figure.

“OK Professor, the jokes over. Who is this young lady? What is her name?” asked the chairman of the board, Sir Steven Carter.

Professor Steel smiled indulgently and speaking in a manner which he usually reserved for his more obtuse students said “As I explained at the start of

this demonstration the lady you see before you is Becky the first ever truly intelligent robot. Becky is designed for the discerning gentleman, for the

man who wants to be around a beautiful and intelligent lady but who, for whatever reason is not in (or does not wish to be in) a relationship with a flesh

and blood female. Imagine the potential of this invention gentlemen. No more need for the man of means to wine and dine a girl, buy her expensive presents

and (god forbid actually marry her)! If you gentlemen can come up with the finance then your company will be world famous. Imagine being known as the firm

who launched the first ever artificial woman of culture!”

A hand was raised “Yes, the gentleman at the back of the room with the red tie and white shirt”. “Can she er … I mean can Becky do other things”. The Professor

smiled (he smiled a lot but the smile never reached his eyes), “Indeed she can. Becky has a very convincing set of female organs all of which are in perfect

working order. Even gentlemen of culture have their needs and Becky is designed to cater to your, sorry I mean their every whim”.

“I want one” said the chairman. “I’ve often wished to switch off my wife and now this robot has come along it is, at long last possible for me to do just

that”! Miss Mortimer the only female board member looked daggers at the chairman who vissibly shrank in his seat and coloured deeply, “I was only joking,

no offence meant” he mumbled turning as red as the curtains which flanked the stage on which the Professor stood.

Another hand was raised. It was that of Malcolm Fisher the journalist who had been the recipient of Becky’s attentions. “Yes Sir, the gentleman with the

press pass sitting in the front row”. “Isn’t there something sacrilegious about Becky?” “Sacrilegious, what do you mean?” Malcolm thought of Jane, of how

they’d walk for hours in the countryside. One day, as dusk was falling the song of a nightingale had reach their ears. Jane’s eyes had become moist and

turning to Malcolm she said “It’s to beautiful, I want to cry and she quoted those self-same words that that “thing” had just intoned. He’d taken Jane

in his arms and softly kissed away the tears from her gentle brown eyes. With a jolt Malcolm pulled himself back to the present, the Professor was staring

expectantly at him. “I don’t know how to put it accept to say that this invention seems to have crossed some line. Once we have crossed the Rubicon who

knows what will happen”. The Professor suppressed a sigh, “My dear sir man is but a machine. He takes in food to fuel his body and his very mind is but

a highly intricate mechanism for processing thoughts and emotions. Becky is a machine, why should not two machines come together. This invention will enhance

the sum of human happiness by enabling those who can not find (or do not want for whatever reason to find) a human companion and from the perspective of

you gentlemen it will to borrow a phrase mean “loads of money”!

“Well Professor we are certainly very interested in your invention. I’ll discuss it with the board but I’m sure that you will be hearing from us in the

very near future. Many thanks for your informative presentation” said the Chairman.

As he left the building those words of Keat’s popped into Malcolm’s head “As though of hemlock I had drunk”. “I need a drink” he thought turning his steps

in the direction of the nearest pub but perhaps not hemlock.

 

(The above story can be found in my collection of short stories, The First Time. For this and other stories in this collection please visit http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-First-Time-ebook/dp/B00AIK0DD6 or http://www.amazon.com/The-First-Time-ebook/dp/B00AIK0DD6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1363296273&sr=8-2&keywords=the+first+time+kevin+morris).

 

to kindle or not to kindle, that is the question

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There is a lot to be said in favour of Amazon from the perspective of authors. KDP Select enables authors to promote their book for free for upto 5 days in any 90 day period (during the recent promotion of my book, Samantha a total of 96 copies where downloaded during the promotion, 3-7 March), a statistic with which I am rather pleased. However there are other aspects of Amazon’s services for authors (in the UK) with which I’d take issue.

On amazon.com there is an option to give Kindle content as a gift. I would dearly like to provide family, friends and readers of my blog with gift copies of my books, however the service does not work in the UK (the country in which I live) so I’m not able to avail myself of this excellent facility.

To my mind authors should be eligible for the same high standard of service irrespective of the country in which they reside. At present those resident in the UK are not obtaining the same services as those living in the USA. I for one hope that Amazon rectifies this situation as a matter of urgency.

Update

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For some time now I’ve been meaning to update the About and My Books pages of this blog. Well I’ve finally got around to doing so! The updated pages can be found here http://newauthoronline.com/my-books/ and http://newauthoronline.com/about/

Limbo

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It is often said that if people are happy with a product or service they will rarely express their approbation. In contrast where individuals are dissatisfied they will complain vociferously. Looking at the sales of my book, Samantha during it’s free promotion in the Kindle store I see that 96 copies have been downloaded, however as of approximately 20 minutes ago none of those downloaders have left a review or rating. What am I, the author to make of this?

The promotion ran from 3-7 March so it is still early days (Amazon sends e-mails to customers asking if they would like to review books which they have purchased and it is possible that these will prompt purchasers to leave a review or rating), however I know from my own purchasing habits that although I frequently mean to review a book I’ve read I often don’t get round to doing so. When Samantha first appeared on my blog I received a number of likes and encouraging comments which where (and are) much appreciated, however the lack of feedback from purchasers leaves me in limbo not knowing what people think of Samantha. I enjoy writing and will continue to write with or without feedback. However it would still be nice to hear from purchasers of Samantha either via reviews on Amazon or by comments on this blog.

 

Kevin

Free Book Promotion Closes on 7 March

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The free promotion of my book, Samantha ends on 7 March at approximately 12:59 am. To obtain Samantha free please visit http://www.amazon.com/Samantha-ebook/dp/B00BL3CNHI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1362601681&sr=8-1&keywords=k+morris+samantha.

Forever in search of the new

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Yesterday (5 March) I popped into my local independent book shop in search of a present for Easter not entailing Cadburys cream eggs! Having purchased a book on the Dinosaurs in Crystal Palace park I fell into conversation with the book shop’s owner. I asked whether the growth in ebooks was impacting on his business. Somewhat to my surprise he replied that he haden’t noticed a fall off in business, he had, however seen a rise in the sale of graphical (picture books). I speculated that the growth in sales of this particular type of literature perhaps stemmed from the low attention span which can flow from excessive use of the internet and he agreed.

The above conversation reminded me of an earlier post on this blog (http://newauthoronline.com/2013/02/02/going-to-hell-in-a-hand-cart/) in which I pointed to the growth in website hopping, the practice entailing the surfer inanely clicking on links with no particular purpose in mind. I argued that this constant search for new and exciting content fosters a spirit of instant gratification and a shallow view of the world. In contrast reading entails concentration and yes, on occasions cudgelling one’s brains in order to comprehend what the author is driving at. In contrast to the inanity which can flow from web surfing reading fosters a deep appreciation for the world in which we live.

To return to my visit to the book shop, perhaps this obsession with the internet is leading to a breakdown in concentration whereby people find it difficult to read anything other than short novels or works containing lots of illustrations. I certainly hope that this is not the case.

Returning to the subject of ebooks, my latest book, Samantha is currently free in the Kindle store (the offer ends on 7 March). For Samantha please visit http://www.amazon.com/Samantha-ebook/dp/B00BL3CNHI

The Lives of Sex Workers

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My book, Samantha has now entered it’s third day of it’s free promotion in the Amazon Kindle store. Sales have been steady (47 copies downloaded when I last checked approximately 10 minutes ago). If you have or are intending to download Samantha I would appreciate it if you would please consider leaving a review in the Kindle store or, alternatively by commenting on this post.

Samantha tells the story of a young girl forced into prostitution in the city of Liverpool. Can Sam escape the world of mental and physical abuse  which constitutes her daily existence or will she end up floating in the freezing waters of Liverpool’s Albert Docks? For Samantha please visit the following link http://www.amazon.com/Samantha-ebook/dp/B00BL3CNHI. You may also be interested in The First Time, in which we meet Becky, a young graduate who enters the world of escorting as a professional escort in order to pay off her debts. For The First Time please visit http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-First-Time-ebook/dp/B00AIK0DD6.

Samantha By K Morris Now Free In The Kindle Store

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On 24 February I published Samantha which tells the story of a young girl forced into sex slavery in the city of Liverpool. For a limited period (3-7 March) Samantha is available free in the Kindle store. For further information please visit http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samantha-ebook/dp/B00BL3CNHI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1362325153&sr=8-1 or http://www.amazon.com/Samantha-ebook/dp/B00BL3CNHI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1362325885&sr=8-2&keywords=samantha+k+morris

2050

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It was a lovely sunny day. A gentle breeze russled the leaves of the trees in London’s Saint James Park. Ian Miller gazed out of the window of his office. He smiled at the sight of the little children with their black or mixed race nannies. The children played happily under the watchful gaze of the servants. “Gods in his heaven and alls right with the world” popped unbidden into Ian’s head. The United Kingdom in the year 2050 was a stable and prosperous country and Ian was proud that in some small way he was responsible for maintaining that peace and tranquillity.

Ian shuddered as he remembered the chaos which had engulfed the country in the 2030s and early 2040s. Following the UK’s decision to leave the European Union in 2015 the economy had nose dived. The EU had erected trade barriers putting UK PLC at a competitive disadvantage as the country’s manufacturers had to pay heavy tariffs in order to do business with the EU. The decision to exit the EU also meant that the free flow of labour and capital was stifled leading to economic stagnation and growing social unrest. Racial tensions had grown with large numbers of white Britons blaming black and other ethnic minorities for the countries difficulties. Black and Asian businesses had been attacked and to counter the onslaught gangs of black and Asian youths where formed to protect their communities.

Cometh the hour, cometh the man. In 2035 the British Patriot Party (BPP) was formed by a group of disaffected people on the far right of the Conservative Party. For a brief period the party was led by the charming but ineffective Lord Microft. The party’s programme emphasised a return to governance by the landed and business elites, the reintroduction of national service, harsher punishments for criminals including the death penalty for murder and a halt to all future immigration. In January 3036 Microft was replaced by John Marks a small businessman from Leeds. The party’s programme was extended to appeal to a broader cross section of disaffected white Britons. Demands for the reintroduction of the death penalty and national service where joined by a proposal to “encourage the voluntary repatriation of non whites with generous resettlement grants to their countries of origin”. The Programme went on “We recognise that not all black and other minorities will wish to leave the UK. Anyone wishing to stay is welcome to remain, however in return for the hospitality afforded to them by the United Kingdom they will be expected to serve the indigenous (white community). Non-whites who remain will be treated humanely, however they will not be permitted to own property (other than personal possessions, E.G. clothes), all rights to own property will be restricted to the indigenous (white) peoples of these islands”.

The party saw a steady growth in support among all sections of the white community. The working classes where attracted by the prospect of the removal of black and other ethnic minority competition to their labour while the middle class liked the party’s emphasis on social order. Unlike other parties of the far right Marks was careful to avoid any hint of association with Nazism. Any member who expressed public admiration for Nazi Germany was immediately expelled and the wearing of Nazi style uniforms resulted in a life long ban on party membership. This rejection of Nazi and Fascist ideas convinced people who would never have considered voting for an avowedly Nazi party to join or at least to cast their vote for the party at local and general elections.

The general election of May 2040 saw the election of a weak coalition of conservative and liberal parties. The inability of the coalition to govern lead to the calling of a fresh election in May 2041. While the BPP didn’t win a majority it held the balance of power and following the failure of negociations between the Conservative and several smaller parties on the forming of a coalition Marks was summoned to Buckingham Palace by the Queen and asked to form a government.

To be continued

Announcement About Samantha By K Morris

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In order to comply with the rules of KDP Select I must remove my book, Samantha from this blog. The KDP Select rules state that while a title is enrolled in the scheme it must be exclusive to KDP Select and in order to continue to benefit from the free promotion days offered I need to remove Samantha.

This is not an easy decision. Looking back at Samantha as it appears on this blog I see many likes and comments. These signs of appreciation encouraged me to keep writing and mean a lot to me. However the rules are the rules so later today my book, Samantha will disappear from newauthoronline.com, It will however continue to be available for purchase in the Kindle store here http://www.amazon.com/Samantha-ebook/dp/B00BL3CNHI/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1362209698&sr=1-1&keywords=samantha+k+morris. In addition Samantha will be available free from 3-7 March on Amazon.

Thank you all for your likes and comments.

 

Kevin