“The Dragon Project” by Naomi Kritzer

I’ll be turning 75 soon, and looking back, science fiction has given me much enjoyment, insight, and even inspiration. However, over the last couple of years, science fiction’s magic has ceased working. The state of the world has made me cynical. But then, it might be what I call The Williamson Effect. I had a friend, John Williamson, who slowly lost interest in everything he once loved before he died. I saw the same thing happen to Samuel Clemens in the many biographies I read of Mark Twain. I’m struggling to cure this symptom of my aging, or at least put it into remission for a few more years. To look for my lost hope in science fiction, I’ve decided to join two discussions on the Facebook group, Best Science Fiction and Fantasy Short Fiction. The first covers Volume 8 of The Best Science Fiction of the Year, edited by Neil Clarke. That anthology collects the best science fiction short stories published in 2022. The group discussions are on Mondays and Fridays. The second group…