Fool's Errands - Michael Smit-Drury

On the busy streets beyond, humans and machines battled for pole position in the perpetual urban race, each with their own finish line. For too long she had been witness to other troubling patterns, waves of preordained outcomes which bore no signs of relenting. Here before her was yet another celebrated sorcerer seemingly at the cusp of wielding magic, only to be revealed as the parlor tricks of a card sharp.

Deadly accidents and heightened experiences become shared catalysts in other people's lives. A technology CEO moving at warp speed who governs her world one taut puppet string at a time, in contrast with a runaway who can't evade what lies ahead. Two friends, a future television personality who can hardly manage a conversation with himself, and his enigmatic foil, stumble headlong into mysteries. All of it intersects in the journalism of an ever curious altruist whose pursuit for the truth leads her to become embattled with the most fundamental question of them all.

A Blurb From the Author

As time passes, technology continues to become more reflective of ourselves. Truly, the ubiquitous mirrored glass around us shows that we, too, are participating in this inexorable and confusing march, even if we scroll past the obvious messages. We might even say tech imitates life imitating art.

As I embarked on this journey to weave an enjoyable story around the zeitgeist of our relationship with machines, it felt like my own efforts were under the microscope. I could hardly write fast enough to keep up with the daily advances in technology, as reported in waves of AI clickbait. The panic was short-lived as it gave way to an exploration of the question of self-determination that is in front of us all, that our path forward is much less about the what or the how than the why and the who.

I hope you enjoy reading Fool's Errands as much as I found reward in writing it.