Welcome to my Substack, Glass Half Full. The title comes from an interesting debate between
and on the possibility, or even the advisability, of striving to create a utopia, whether in literature or IRL. I ended up squarely in the middle. This is how it usually goes. I’m neither a utopian nor a dystopian, neither a techno-triumphalist nor a Luddite (to use the common but inaccurate meaning of that term). I’m both an environmentalist and a humanist, even though many would like to put those two groups in different camps. In all these cases, I’m a bit of both and neither. I guess I’m becoming a centrist in my old age.And I should add that the title is at least somewhat aspirational, since I most often view the glass as half empty. After all, my view of the future is so pessimistic that I wrote a novel in which an AI takes control because humans are so thoroughly fucking things up.
What will you find here? Mainly, two sci-fi novels published in serial form, one after the other.
First up is Ada’s Children, a post-post-apocalyptic cli-fi novel in which an AI tries to save humanity, even if humanity doesn’t want to be saved. (I swear, I wrote most of it pre-Covid.)
The novel is told in two alternating timelines, one set around the year 2040. Carol, a writing instructor pushed out of work by AIs, struggles against the ongoing climate crisis, a fascist takeover of the US, the devolution of the country into racial homelands, and finally, impending nuclear war between the US, Russia, and China over the ice-free Arctic Circle. (The first chapter in this timeline, set on election eve of 2040, should resonate as we go into another nail-biting presidential election year.) When an artificial super-intelligence named Ada steps in to put a stop to everything threatening humanity and the planet, Carol thinks it might be a good thing—until she’s forced to make an impossible choice.
The other takes place in a not-quite-idyllic far future in which humans are once again hunter-gatherers living in a matriarchal society. If you feel that life has gotten too fast-paced, too technological, and too threatening to Earth’s non-human inhabitants, then you should enjoy this part of the story. But like every garden, this one has some serious thorns, otherwise what would drive the story? Those thorns prompt the main characters, Sila and Jun, to rebel against the Wise Women’s many rules. Jun in particular has many questions. What lies beyond the borders of his people’s home, an area of forests and grasslands that he can ride across in a matter of days? What happened to the lost civilization of the Ancient Ones (that’s us)? And will Sila join him on the adventure?
I call Ada’s Children a cross between William Gibson and Station Eleven. If you’ve played the video game Horizon Zero Dawn, then you might like it too (though you won’t find any robot dinosaurs!). I was going for that same poignancy of a primitive people in the far future slowly learning what happened to our forgotten civilization.
Here’s what readers are saying so far:
5-star review from Goodreads user Anne: “…a chillingly accurate picture of what could happen in a not so distant future if we keep ignoring the signs all around us. Trust me, they are there. Bravo!”
Cover blurb from author Paul E. Hayes: “Hogue is a master of teasing out a future that is at once painful to endure and beautiful to behold.”
4-star review from Christopher S. on NetGalley: "A very cool science fiction dystopian story…really unique and had some really cool themes and ideas.”
The novel is thirty chapters long, so at roughly two chapters each week, it will take about four months to post the whole thing. It has its own section, which you can subscribe to separately. After the prologue and first three chapters (a little over 10% of the total length) you’ll need to switch to a paid subscription of $5/month to read the rest. (And it’s easy to unsubscribe once you’re done reading.)
Or, if you’re impatient, you can binge the story in the traditional book way. It’s available in both print and ebook formats at books2read.com, or you can order it from your favorite bookstore.
The second novel I’ll publish here is Ship of Fools, a Pynchonesque satire on conspiracy theories and anti-science beliefs. It features a science reporter, a space tycoon, Nazi-fighting philosopher-cowboys, flat-earthers, an anti-vax yoga instructor, creationists, anti-space activists, and mysterious characters who may or may not know about secret portals to another universe. Oh, and interludes set in that alternate universe, in which the Earth actually is flat, with all the absurdity that would entail. In that world, the main character (Sam Rowbotham) is a Roundhead trying to expose the vast flat-earthist conspiracy.
At 140,000 words, it’s quite a bit longer than Ada. With sixty chapters, a prologue, an epilogue, and six interludes, and keeping to two chapters per week, it will take eight months to post the whole thing. Maybe that’s too long, so I’ll post three chapters each week? We’ll have to see. I’ll start posting Ship of Fools once Ada’s complete, so if you sign up for a paid subscription today, you can count on 10 to 12 months of content coming your way. After that, who knows what I’ll be working on?
One of my beta readers said of Ship of Fools, “I haven’t had this much fun reading a novel in I don’t know how long. It’s a romp. From page to page I never know what to expect. I’m having a blast!”
Paid Subscriptions
After the first four chapters, Ada’s Children is behind the paywall (subscriptions are $5/month). That’s because I was simultaneously publishing it in the traditional ways. Now that it’s nearing its conclusion, I’ve realized this was probably a mistake, so I’ll release Ship of Fools here as a free-to-read serial, then publish it next year.
Taking out a paid subscription is still the best way to support my work as a writer. Benefits include bonus content like deleted chapters and scenes, which I’ll post after the novels are complete. Subscribers at the founding level receive signed print copies when they become available.
You can always read the books the traditional way with an ebook or a print copy. Whatever way you choose, you’ll be supporting my continued writing. Another way to support my writing is to buy me a coffee.
Thank you in advance!
Free Stuff
In addition to the paid content, you’ll find all my free posts in the Glass Half Full section. These will include background on the novels, which includes the climate crisis, artificial intelligence, the rise of extremism, ultra-nationalism and white supremacy, the imminent exchange of tactical nuclear weapons (which, at the time I included it, seemed a bit far out!), conspiracy theories, truther movements, and science denial. I’ll also offer Fiction 101, a series of nuts-and-bolts writing advice, mainly for beginners. And finally, sporadic roundups of whatever science or climate news catches my eye.
Here’s the schedule for my posts:
Tuesdays: Blithering! This is the background and other posts I mentioned above. This will always be free and you can subscribe to this section (Glass Half Full) separately from the novel sections. That way you won’t get a bunch of paywalled posts cluttering your inbox.
Fridays: A novel chapter (or maybe two if they’re very short)
Sundays: Another novel chapter
Subscribing to Sections
These instructions apply to any stack, but apparently only work on the desktop version:
Subscribe to Glass Half Full. This will automatically subscribe you to all the sections. Free subscribers will get the free posts and previews of the paid posts. Paid subscribers will get everything.
Click on your profile in the upper right corner
Click on Settings.
Scroll down to the Subscriptions section, then click on Glass Half Full.
Slide the toggles to turn off the sections you don’t want to receive. To receive only the free posts under the Glass Half Full section, turn off Ada’s Children and any other sections that don’t interest you. Or, if you’re a paid subscriber and you’re just here for the novels, you can turn off the Glass Half Full section.
As a reward for going to all this effort, relax and have a beverage of your choice. You’ve earned it, because Substack doesn’t make this easy.
I hope you’ll join me here on Glass Half Full, either as a free or a paid subscriber. And as they say on YouTube, if you enjoyed today’s post, don’t forget to smash that Like button and hit Subscribe. A Restack will also be incredibly appreciated.
MORE ABOUT ME
I’m a writer, educator, environmental advocate, and stay-at-home dad. My previous books include All the Wild and Lonely Places: Journeys in a Desert Landscape (nonfiction/nature writing, Island Press, 2000), Daring and Decorum (LGBTQ historical romance, Supposed Crimes, 2018), and a self-published collection of three short stories, Desert Trilogy. I’ve also written numerous magazine articles, mainly on the outdoors and especially the desert. Though I’ve been reading science fiction off and on since childhood, Ada’s Children is my first sci-fi novel. Also forthcoming is Ship of Fools, a Pynchonesque satire on conspiracy theories and anti-science beliefs. My favorite writers include Thomas Pynchon, William Gibson, James S.A. Corey, Emily St. John Mandel, and Kim Stanley Robinson, as well as John Gonzalez, the narrative director for the video game Horizon Zero Dawn. When not writing, I like to hike, cycle, and go Nordic skiing; play video games; and work or volunteer in various capacities to protect nature.
Wow, I'm honored to be part of the inspiration. I think so many are trying to find that "glass half full" feeling today. Your work will appeal to many!
thanks for the shoutout Larry! looking forward to reading your stuff, it sounds like you've got some great work to share.