J.D. Moyer

science fiction author, beatmaker, against fascism

Tag: science fiction

The Icelandic Cure – My First Book In Print

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On April 23, 2018

In Writing


In June of 2016 we took a short family trip to Europe, visiting my dad in France and doing some genealogy research in a small town in Italy with my mom. An unexpected highlight of the trip was a two-day stopover in Reykjavik. The cheap flights on WOW airlines lured us in, but arriving in Iceland’s capital on the day of their historic Euro cup tie with Portugal got us into the national spirit.

Something about the city must have stuck with me. On our return I wrote a investigative sci-fi thriller set in Reykjavik. I submitted the story to the Omnidawn Fabulist Fiction contest, and to my surprise it won.

This is a strong, thoughtful story that inspires hope for the future, curiosity about medical progress, and sheer terror at what might be done in its name.—Publishers Weekly

If you enjoy philosophical, plausible science fiction, I think you’ll enjoy this story. Please do me a solid and pick up a copy (or more, for friends and family). “The Icelandic Cure” is now available for purchase directly from Omnidawn, or via Amazon. And if you’ve already read the book, please take a few seconds to rate it on goodreads or amazon.

Moyer’s research into neurology and gene therapy gives Jane a credible persona. Her intellectual progress as she unearths fragments of the mystery is lovingly tied to the ever-greater—and ever more crucial—questions of self-determination. . . . Jane writes, “Who wouldn’t fix a genetic flaw or two if they could?” Beyond the human desire for personal improvement, the consequences of this technology involve systemic corruption and the preservation of our right to choose.—The Arkansas International

Speaking of plausibility, recent events made me wonder if my writing might be a little too plausible. My recently-published story “Plastic Eater” (2nd place winner of the sfreader.com contest) appears to be unfolding in real life.

One note–if you do purchase the chapbook, please retain your proof of purchase (email receipt or other) for reasons I’ll explain in a forthcoming post.

Thank you!

New Published Story “The Fo’dekai Artifact”

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On March 10, 2017

In Writing

My science fiction short story “The Fo’dekai Artifact” appears this month in the web magazine Cosmic Roots And Eldritch Shores. This is my second fiction sale at a professional rate, doubling my number of published stories and bringing me two-thirds of the way towards joining the SFWA as an active member (which bestows the privilege of voting on works for the Nebula award, among other things).

The story has shades of Cthulhu/Lovecraft, featuring a race of mind-controlling squid-like aliens, but is primarily a science fiction tale that explores one way an expansionistic civilization might spread throughout the galaxy (without giving too much away: tiny ships, storing information in an infectious DNA-like molecule). Thematically, it’s a story about which class and cultural groups might be more open to the possibility of alien immigration/invasion, and why.

Cosmic Roots And Eldritch Shores charges a modest $1/mo. annual subscription fee (sign up for 2017 here). Well worth it, if you’re a fan of short science fiction and fantasy.

Reference photo: “Underwater Dance” the Russian photographer Willyam Bradbury Stock Providers: “Octopus” http://www.deviantart.com/art/Octopus-473740570 by Kayla Ascencio http://www.kaylafantasyart.com/fantasygallery.html “octopus”  http://mysilentsky-stock.deviantart.com/art/octopus-31560066 and “Tentacles 2”  http://mysilentsky-stock.deviantart.com/art/tentacles2-31560216?q=&qo= by Guyang   http://mysilentsky-stock.deviantart.com/ “Octo ll” http://idnurse41.deviantart.com/art/Octo-II-136435437 and “Octopus Stock”   http://www.deviantart.com/art/Octopus-stock-136411455 by Pamela   http://idnurse41.deviantart.com/

Career Advice I Wish I’d Received at Age 20

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On September 12, 2016

In Advice for Young People, Creative Work/Career, Metablog, Metaprogramming, Writing

It’s possible to have a career without really thinking about it. Nothing wrong with that. I’ve had at least three-and-a-half accidental careers so far.

  • I started doing computer support and database design right out of college, just a few hours a week, at my dad’s friend’s company, learning as I went. Ten years later I was the Senior Database Administrator for the San Francisco Symphony, and I still do freelance db work to this day as my main source of income. But none of my friends ever remember this, because it’s so boring that I never talk about it.
  • My record label business partner wanted to start a weekly happy hour at an art gallery. I thought it was a terrible idea. The ayahuasca-snorting gentleman he initially partnered with to throw the event got a little squirrelly and they parted ways. I reluctantly stepped in, and under our management we had a decade-plus run as one of the biggest dance music events in San Francisco, lines around the block, written up in international guide books, DJs from around the world eager to play to our crowd.
  • I had no interest in DJing. But we needed to promote our album. So I learned to DJ at my own party, trainwrecking mix after mix. Spesh put me through DJ bootcamp and I got a little better. Soon we were headlining the biggest dance clubs in San Francisco, voted among SF’s Top DJs in the Nitevibe poll, on the cover of The SF Weekly, and touring in Europe. But eventually I quit because I don’t like travelling, or listening to hundreds of promo tracks to find the few good ones.
  • I started a blog in 2009. I can’t remember why. Probably to practice writing, to express myself, to share my ideas. Eventually some of my health posts (about sleep and artificial light, about the paleo diet) got popular. The blog hit a million views. CNN interviewed me. A TV show The Doctors flew me to Hollywood to be a guest. I experimented with advertising. Then I wrote a post about how I regrew some of my hair by intensively massaging my head, and things went crazy. Views through the roof, readers begging me to make instructional videos, asking for personalized advice. Should I take up hair regrowth coaching? I thought about it. Maybe I could help Tim Ferriss regrow his hair, or Prince William. But I’m not patient enough to be a coach, and I didn’t want to be the hair guy. Or another paleo guy. So I made it clear to my readers that though while I would still write the occasional health post, the content of this blog was much broader (systems for living well, self-experimentation, the creative life).

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