On Sunday, December 27th, 2020, editors, authors and publishers assembled on Zoom for a Virtual Book Launch party for the newly released NO POLICE = KNOW FUTURE, an anthology devoted to exploring the future of policing and justice, and most definitely a response to the BLM’s Defund the Police slogan.
There’s been a lot of debate about the appropriateness and effectiveness of that concept, not to mention confusion. Even former President Obama weighed in, saying that he believed it distracted from debate on the subject.
On the other hand, we think it has actually engendered the kind of discussion that needs to be had on the subject, and in this anthology, edited by veteran editor James Beamon, that discussion can be found in the stories by eleven authors schooled in creativity and speculation, world-building and extrapolation.
The eleven stories collected here are:
Ryan Priest – Pro Bono Detectives
Lettie Prell – Justice Systems in Quantum Parallel Probabilities
Jared Oliver Adams – All the Mister Rogerses From Bethel A.M.E.
P.T. MacKim – Well Regulated
Minister Faust – Freeze Police
Stewart C. Baker – Maricourt’s Waters Quiet and Deep
Ira Naymen – When the Call Comes In
Holly Schofield – One Bad Apple
Brontë Christopher Wieland – Apogee, Effigy, Storm
Jewelle Gomez – A More Perfect Union
Anatoly Belilovsky – Tax Day
and most of the contributing authors attended the launch, along with editor James Beamon, design director Kermit Woodall and publisher Steve Davidson.
The Amazing Stories TV Channel (Youtube) now has two videos of the event: Part One is a pre-party discussion, largely between James, Kermit and Steve regarding the anthology, social justice issues, the arts of speculation and extrapolation, recognition and promotion of authors.
Part Two is the real meat and potatoes, where editor James Beamon introduces each of the attending authors and then discusses their individual stories – what inspired them, the theme(s), how they arrived at their alternative concepts for policing and justice systems.
For anyone interested in good science fiction rooted in the practice of the thought-experiment, this video presentation offers a deep look into enthusiastic authors revealing how they ply their craft.
PART TWO
