Echoes of the Past and Future
The stories collected here are not whole; they are windows left open. We present these unfinished tales as fragments of a larger urgency, dropping the reader directly into a conflict or a conversation without a map. This approach evokes a sense of mystery, compelling the audience to rely on their own intuition to understand the stakes of a Political Thriller or the nuance of a Satire piece based solely on the evidence at hand.
At its core, this project creates a space where human creativity meets interdisciplinary arts and applied artificial intelligence research. We are exploring the utility of digital tools as active partners in the writing process. This initiative aims to define new forms of storytelling and scriptwriting while simultaneously building practical digital literacy skills and establishing efficient workflows for creators.
This specific post traverses a wide timeline and thematic landscape. The collection spans genres from Historical Fiction and Environmental Fiction to sharp Satire and Slice of Life. We are pleased to introduce the work of authors Tony Eetak and Jamie F. Bell, who guide us through these varied settings.
We encourage you to approach these texts as a co-creator. The authors have laid the foundation, but the architecture of the resolution is yours to design. Engage with these unfinished narratives and allow your imagination to fill the silence that follows the final sentence.
Today’s Unfinished Tales and Short Stories
Navigating through historical fiction, environmental fiction, and political thriller genres, this project investigates the changing landscape of text through the lens of creative technology. We are committed to advancing digital literacy by analyzing how AI-assisted narrative interacts with diverse categories such as horror, satire, and journalistic styles. Through these compelling short stories, which also touch upon slice of life and coming-of-age themes, we aim to shape the future of publishing and provide fresh perspectives on narrative construction.
Rust-Tinted Prairie’s Reach
Author: Tony Eetak | Category: Horror | Genre: Historical Fiction
The old Ford Pinto droned, a persistent, metallic hum that had become the rhythmic pulse of their escape. Outside, the vast flatness of Manitoba was slowly contorting, growing teeth of rock and forest as they pushed deeper into Ontario. Spring’s damp breath coated the windows, blurring the sparse, skeletal birches that flickered past like ghostly sentinels, and an insidious chill, not just from the weather, had begun to seep into the car’s threadbare upholstery.
The Cold Stain of Ink
Author: Jamie F. Bell | Category: Coming-of-Age | Genre: Environmental Fiction
The old community hall felt the deep ache of winter, the kind that settled into the bones of the building itself. Outside, the world was a canvas of muted whites and greys, the snow piled high against the windows, blurring the edges of the vast, silent land. Inside, a low hum of an electric heater fought a losing battle against the cold, its warmth clinging only to the immediate vicinity of the worn wooden table where the children sat, their breath occasionally fogging the air as they leaned over the scattered papers. The afternoon light, thin and watery, struggled through the frosted panes, casting long, distorted shadows that danced with the slight tremors of the old building.
The Tarmac Shimmer
Author: Jamie F. Bell | Category: Boys Love (BL) | Genre: Slice of Life
The coffee cup rattled in its saucer as a heavy body slammed into the side of their booth. James flinched, sloshing the black, bitter liquid onto the formica tabletop. Two truckers, beefy men with anger-contorted faces, were shouting, their voices a raw counterpoint to the bland pop music leaking from the diner’s speakers. One shoved the other, a clumsy, powerful movement that sent a rack of blueberry muffins scattering across the worn linoleum floor. This was not the quiet, anonymous stop he had been hoping for.
The Plastic Petals of Paradise
Author: Jamie F. Bell | Category: Journalistic | Genre: Satire
The air, thick with the damp, earthy scent of a recently roused forest, clung to everything. Bare branches of birch, still grey and skeletal, scratched against the pale spring sky, while below, a determined green fuzz pushed through last year’s decomposing leaves. Mud, rich and dark, sucked at boot soles along the single track leading deeper into the valley. A low mist, smelling faintly of pine and cold soil, threaded through the trees, obscuring the upper reaches of what promised to be a pristine, if chilly, landscape. The only sound, initially, was the drip of water from melting ice, a ceaseless, monotonous rhythm, broken only by the distant, incongruous thrum of something large and mechanical.
The Inertia of Projections
Author: Jamie F. Bell | Category: Hardboiled Noir | Genre: Political Thriller
The meeting room was cold, not from the air conditioning but from a deliberate absence of warmth in its design. White walls, a black table so polished it reflected the ceiling lights as distorted lines of interrogation, and twelve high-backed chairs. Alistair Findlay, Minister for Energy and Decommissioning, sat at one end, his leather-bound portfolio looking offensively analogue in the sterile environment. He was here to discuss the future of the nation’s nuclear legacy, but the conversation was already being dictated by the thirteenth entity in the room: the silent, monolithic server rack in the corner, the physical housing for Aegis.
About the Project
By design, these stories have no beginning and no end. Many stories are fictional, but many others are not. They are snapshots from worlds that never fully exist, inviting you to imagine what comes before and what happens next. We had fun exploring this project, and hope you will too.
The Unfinished Tales and Short Stories collection is part of an experimental, creative arts and research program by The Arts Incubator Winnipeg and the Art Borups Corners collectives. Each chapter is an interdisciplinary arts and narrative storytelling experiment focused on two key areas: AI-Assisted Scriptwriting, where researchers explore using AI to generate story ideas, plot structures, and alternative story arcs to enhance creative development; and Talent Development and Training, where the project studies the necessary skills for creative professionals to manage AI and immersive technologies in production, helping to inform future training curricula. The project was made possible with funding and support from the Ontario Arts Council Multi and Inter-Arts Projects program and the Government of Ontario. We thank them for supporting the arts, digital transformation research and innovation in Ontario.
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