29 new science fiction and horror stories to read. The Midnight Vault might become one of the best sci fi books you’ve ever read.
Venture into The Midnight Vault, an anthology featuring 29 compelling tales of science fiction and horror. Written by an extraordinary cast of breakthrough talent, this collection explores eerie and speculative realms, challenging the boundaries of the known.
From otherworldly horrors to dystopian visions, each story delves into the depths of fear and fascination, promising to captivate and thrill. Uncover dark corners of the universe and embrace the supernatural as you turn each page.
This new collection offers some of the best sci fi stories you’ll read this year.
The Switchboard by Hanna Delaney, a science fiction story.
Here’s an excerpt of the short story that was published in The Midnight Vault anthology.
James looked down at the form in front of him. Pamela had two degrees and fifteen years’ experience. He looked at the form underneath. Bill had five years experience and no degrees. James placed them down quietly and looked at Pamela.
“You are the cornerstone of the department, Pamela,” Ted said. “Team three would be lost without you.”
“I understand,” she said coldly. “Thank you for your time.” Pamela shook their hands and left the room. They heard her heavy-heeled footsteps marching away.
“She’s very experienced,” James remarked, looking at the form again.
“She is,” Ted sighed, “but come on? Bill’s just got married and has a family.”
“So does she?”
“James…” he began, “her kids are practically raised by the babysitters. It’s not right for a woman to be so career-driven when she has a family, you know? I don’t want to encourage unhappy families in my workplace. It’s not only demoralising for the blokes but it’s bad for business. I know you agree. We were only talking about it yesterday.” Ted studied James’ face for a minute, and laid a hand on his shoulder. “Do you need me to get you something?”
The Story Behind The Switchboard
October, 2024
A message pops up in my inbox:
‘Hi Hanna! Sean McDonnell and I have been kicking around an idea and thought you might be interested…’
I didn’t need to read any more than that. I did read more, but I was interested straight away. They were gathering a group of writers to publish a Twilight Zone themed story that could go live in time for The Twilight Zone’s 66th anniversary.
The stories were due in on 22nd November 2024 and wow, did I have a hard time pinning one down.
The Twilight Zone… yeah—vaguely familiar? I think?
Only joking: Who hasn’t at least seen a clip of Nightmare At 20,000 Feet?
However, saying that—The Twilight Zone is hardly ever available to watch here. I scoured the internet to find some old episodes and vaguely remembered one or two, but I needed to be sure I was on the right track with the story and its content. Sean Thomas McDonnell had kindly offered his support after so I sent him a couple of things. I needed to know if it was ‘Twilight Zone’ enough.
Toxic nostalgia in science fiction.
Overall, this story left me worrying that I was using rose-tinted glasses but we can argue that not every aspect of modern life is good or necessarily better. Seeing some eight-year-old’s come out of school with smartphones yesterday was one of those things that got me thinking about this. I’m always thinking about the better or worse aspects of modern life.
Emma, his wife, bought herself everything that she wanted. She didn’t need him. He felt like a glorified sperm donor, except it was worse than that because she wasn’t even sure if she wanted kids. “I can’t afford the pay cut,” she’d say. It stung, because the elephant in the room was how James only earned a third of what his wife did. He couldn’t step in when the finances ran low.— The Switchboard, Hanna Delaney
Women! Get back in the kitchen! Feminism is too hard.
Joking. Although, there’s a lot to unpick from this story. I was thinking about the crap I see on social media every day. There’s always a bit of misogyny, trad-wife living, a bit of far-right rage baiting, rose-tinted glasses, the gender pay gap (which is not the same as equal pay, Mr gammon927465454), issues about the UK economy, birth rates dropping in G7 countries (and it’s all supposedly the fault of educated women, btw) etc. There’s so much going on!
My Masters dissertation focused on the work of Sylvia Plath, Anne Sexton and Betty Friedan. These three women have always stayed with me. At the end of that thesis I was convinced that I too, was depressed and in need of the tranquillisers.
Jokes aside, their experience as women and then as mothers who had careers of their own made me see the world in a very different way.
Betty was writing about girls who would work hard in school, go to university and drop out as soon as a suitable husband came available, because why the hell would a woman want to pursue education for her own benefit? She should be at home, helping her husband thrive.
Sylvia Plath, after giving birth to two children, resented Ted’s unbroken writing ritual. Nothing, not even fatherhood, got in the way of Ted’s work. Sylvia however—experienced a complete overhaul.
Anne—I’m convinced—started out off her rocker, but her poetry was so spot on with the lived experience of the woman and her unfulfilled dreams. Then, when I read Celeste Ng’s Everything I Never Told You I was gripped by the tragic character of Marilyn Lee— a classic example of a bright girl who never got the chance to realise her potential.
This ghost won’t rest.
“You are the cornerstone of the department, Pamela,” Ted said. “Team three would be lost without you.”
“I understand,” she said coldly. “Thank you for your time.” Pamela shook their hands and left the room. They heard her heavy-heeled footsteps marching away.
“She’s very experienced,” James remarked, looking at the form again.
“She is,” Ted sighed, “but come on? Bill’s just got married and has a family.”
“So does she?”—The Switchboard, Hanna Delaney.
Ouch.
Sure, these writers were thinking about these issues almost half century before I was born, but, isn’t it scary how prevalent some of these arguments still are today? What does a woman do? Does she pursue her career for herself, or does she give everything up for others? There is absolutely a middle ground, where it all works, but that is still struggling for its right to exist, even in a world where we can send billionaires (who think having loads of kids is great despite never actually being home) to Mars.
The story just naturally fell into this realm, and these issues are still alive and kicking. Just ask anyone what the solution is to childcare being so expensive and you’ll get camp A who think a woman’s job is to ‘raise her own children—who’s going to pay for it??’ and camp B who think ‘childcare should be free as working, tax paying parents are valuable to the economy.’
I read that The Twilight Zone has explored issues like this, and often the tales are social commentaries, so I wrote The Switchboard.
Why The Switchboard?
I wanted a bit of nostalgia, and I think it was appropriate here. Is life a switchboard, where we are connected across lines and calls all over our world? Can we pick up the wrong call, or hang up before we’ve finished talking?
I also caught myself really missing the classic telephone, and it occurred to me that I haven’t heard a dial tone in years. Bittersweet.
The Twilight Zone Structure
The brief for these Twilight Zone stories was quite straightforward, but I wasn’t familiar with writing a four act structure and being so involved as a narrator. I don’t like getting involved! I normally write in third person, but seriously—I’m just telling the story. I’m helping the characters get from A to B. Getting involved directly was weird.
Even so, this was a really enjoyable challenge. A challenge and a deadline! What’s not to love?
Perspective
I wanted to tell this story from James’ perspective because I do feel that sometimes, there is a question hanging over modern family dynamics. In heterosexual relationships, is it a big deal if the woman is the main breadwinner? Some say yes, others say no. Some will ask, ‘where do men fit?’ and that’s a perfectly valid question. My answer would be another question: should our self-esteem be so heavily tied up in what our partner earns, or should we celebrate that we can work as a team and keep everything afloat? My husband would be delighted if my earnings meant he could spend less time at work and more time at the gym or painting Warhammer models, for example…
All in all, this was an interesting one to write. Were times always better, as some would have us believe? James could have realised his true potential and discovered what a fun time being a stay-at-home Dad could be, but it’s an opportunity that so many men have never had, and in some cases, never will.
Inspiration for this story
Love and marriage, to be honest. Modern life is so demanding, and expensive! More and more people are pushed out of being able to own anything (even a cat), or have a family if they want one. It’s a wacky world we’re living in, and what better than a sci-fi story to help navigate that?
Life on Mars and Ashes To Ashes were also huge influences. There’s a lot of shoulda-woulda-coulda and reflection, but sometimes it’s too late to act, and you end up haunting yourself.
