H. C. Turk
Artist, Author, Novelist, Painter, Photographer
United StatesBiography
H. C. Turk is a writer, sound artist, and visual artist. His novels have been published by Villard and Tor. His short fiction has been published in theNewerYork, Gadfly, The New Bourgeois, LitUP, Nonlocal Science Fiction, Dirty Chai, Smashed Cat, Linguistic Erosion, Weirdyear, Monkey Bicycle, Streetcake, The New Post-Literate, Farther Stars, and The Chicago Review. His sound pieces, movies, and visual art have appeared in numerous magazines, web-sites, podcasts, and film festivals. He used to paint houses (not as an art form.)
Books by H. C. Turk
Melody Keen is the first child born on Mars, where her family populates a research settlement. When Melody is two, the adults begin vanishing. Though they return minutes later, they are not completely human. Melody is left alone with aliens who are using the bodies of her family members as hosts. Arriving days later, the rescue team finds Melody alive, and her family dead. The Terrans learn little of the aliens; the traumatized child remembers nothing.
In this retelling of THE WIZARD OF OZ, the original fantasy is shown to be the result of a virtual reality experiment gone wrong. Though still a poignant fable, this story has the bite of future science. A girl carries her doll in one hand and a fresh scalp in the other, on her way to a better land she’ll have to make first. Though her memory is faulty, Melody recalls leaving school after being accused of witchcraft.
After Stan Power’s ex-wife accidentally kills their daughter, heartbroken Stan vows to do anything to change this tragedy, even if it means living the events over again. And again. And again. His weapons are alchemy, magic, and a science that won’t exist until he creates it. One morning, Stan has to pick himself up after falling on his face. He doesn’t remember what caused the fall, but he’s not injured.
Next Century tells the same story set in three different eras and locales: 1799 (London), 1999 (Midwest America), and 2099 (the Moon). In each story, a young woman (Claire) seeks vengeance against her father, who has been abusing her mother for years. In each era, Claire is raped by thugs, becomes pregnant, and has to proceed in society with her child but no legitimate father.
Curt and Robin Faraldi are adoptive siblings. Robin is from another city, but Curt is from another planet. As a teen, despondent Curt vows to find his real home. His wishes come true when the Faraldi house begins exchanging with a building on Curt's original world. Trapped between planets, Curt and Robin must find a path to normalcy or the final exchange will be their life for the afterlife.