Looking To The Future, Instead Of To The Past

January Prompt for 2023

“In a very real sense, we are all aliens on a strange planet. We spend most of our lives reaching out and trying to communicate. If during our whole lifetime, we could reach out and really communicate with just two people, we are indeed very fortunate.”

— Gene Roddenberry, shown in print at the end of ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ season 3

I began this new month, this new year, rather at sea. Both personally and with regards to how I was going to write a prompt piece for this month. I really wasn’t sure in what direction to go.

One thing which began to nudge me in the right direction, was working on a finalised list of reads for the Counter Arts Book Club ’23. I have one of the books on my list, Everybody: A Book About Freedom, as an audiobook and have been really enjoying listening to it (as I’ve enjoyed all of Olivia Laing’s books so far). As I reached the last chapter, entitled 22nd Century, I learned about a song of the same name:

This is the version of the song which Olivia Laing writes about seeing performed first hand, though she also mentions that the song is originally by a Bahamian named Exuma and was covered by Nina Simone.

“There is no oxygen in the air Men and women that lost their hair Ashen faces, legs that stand Ghosts and goblins walk in this land Then today becomes yesterday And tomorrow becomes eternity When the soul, when the soul goes way beyond When life is taken and there are no babies born When there is no one, and there is everyone

Tomorrow will be the 22nd Century Tomorrow will be the 22nd Century Tomorrow will be the 22nd Century Tomorrow will be the 22nd Century It will be, it will be, it will be… Ah, ah, ah, ah Ah, ah, ah, ah

The 21st Century was here and gone And 20th Century was the dawn The begging of the end was the 21st When the 20th Century was at an end 1990 was the year when the plague struck the earth 1988 was the year when men’s struck up for freedom And blood letting was the thing that was [?] People said, people said there was no cause, there was no reason and there was no cause 1972 was right all the way Drums and bugles blasting all though the days Left wing, ring wing, middle of the road, sidewinder, backswinger, backlash, whiplash Race stockings [?], liberation of women, liberation of men, everybody carrying a heavy load”

— ‘22nd Century’, Exuma (1970) Exuma — 22nd Century Lyrics | Genius Lyrics

Another text on my Book Club list is This Is How You Lose The Time War by Amad El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone, which Marc Barham has written about already (it’s that good, honestly, read for yourself and find out!):

By this point in my thought process was firmly running in the direction of science fiction — but also the future and science fact.

Not only that, but browsing casually through some lists of days celebrated in January, I discovered that yesterday the 2nd January was ‘National Sci-fi Day’ in the UK (chosen to also mark the birthday of author Isaac Asimov)!

When I read or watch anything that’s set in the future, I always wonder how close we are to developing the technology which features in fiction. I’m sure we can all think of items like hand-held communicators in programmes from the 1960s/70s/80s…even 90s, which seem suspiciously like early mobile (cell) phones.

Or, robotic arms performing medical procedures remotely controlled by surgeons, which provide magnified views, steadier hands, and easier precision access to tricky internal areas.

For example: See the video provided at Hugo™ RAS System | Medtronic (UK) — to which I have no affiliation, merely access to the same search engines as everyone else.

So, without further preamble (or, ok, ramble):

The Prompt

The month is named after the Roman god Janus, who had two faces. One which looked back to the past and one which gazed forward to the future.

What I would like to see during the month of January, are some pieces of writing which look forward to the future.

The scope of this prompt extends as widely as you would like really.

You can write about: books, TV, films, art; medical advancements, medical challenges; other technology, AI, space exploration; remote work, employment issues as a whole; society, politics, religion; fashion, architecture; world peace (or war), climate change; family or goals — or anything else about the future, yours or ours collectively.

You can write about this year, next year, next decade, next century, your country, some other country, this world, another planet — or anywhere, anytime beyond or in between.

Write about your hopes, your fears, or stick with simple fact.

Write nonfiction for Counter Arts, fiction and poetry goes to our ‘sister’ publication Rainbow Salad, our monthly prompts link up:

If you aren’t a writer for one or either, but would like to be, please do let us know in a comment and we can add you right away.

Tagging to get us started:

Will Hull — Marc Barham — Reece Beckett — Napoleon — Bob Merckel — Carlos Garbiras — Kamna Kirti — Chuck Haacker — Raine Lore — Dr Victoria Powell — Laura Halls — Harry Stefanakis — Darht Bjehl — Shreyasi — Anh Pham — Mariam Dalhoumi, PhD — Gareth Willey — Mellisa Felix ("Call me 'Ish-Mell'") — Aimée Gramblin — Jackie Olsen — Amanda Laughtland — Jess the Avocado — yesnodunno — Allie Funk — Christopher Massimine — Roo Benjamin— David Todd McCarty — Curtis Berry — Greyson Ferguson — Hermione Wilds Writes — Natalie — Janice Harayda — Jeff Hayward — Margie Willis — Miyah Byrd — Moony Thinker — Niall Stewart — Sally Prag — Susan Wheelock — Patrick Crawford — Rayne Sanning — Agnes — Michele Cambardella — Rod T. Faulkner — Sieran Lane — A Palace Of Ideas

Thank you for reading, I’m looking forward to seeing your submissions!

If you enjoy my writing, you might consider leaving a ‘Tip’, or signing up for Medium membership through my referral link here. Many thanks and much love — Sadie