In this darkly comedic episode of Speculative Fiction Tales, Jon Cronshaw delivers a biting satire of influencer culture and the often stark contrast between online personas and private realities.

"The Mediocre Maverick" follows Millie, a social media personality who has built her brand and fortune on promoting the joys of mediocrity and unremarkable living. Her "Mediocrity Maverick" persona preaches the gospel of beige walls, predictable routines, and embracing life's most mundane moments.

But behind the carefully curated facade of ordinariness lurks a woman who secretly craves the extraordinary. When her thrilling skydiving hobby is accidentally exposed during a livestream, we witness the desperate lengths she'll go to protect her empire of averageness—and the shocking turn events take when her carefully constructed world begins to unravel.

Themes & Topics

• The performance of authenticity in social media

• The commodification of lifestyle philosophies

• The disconnect between public personas and private lives

• The extreme pressure of maintaining a personal brand

• How quickly violence can erupt when livelihoods are threatened

• The dark humor in turning even tragedy into content

Listener Discretion

This episode contains sudden violence and a death that some listeners may find disturbing.

About the Author

Jon Cronshaw crafts speculative fiction that examines our relationship with technology and social media. His stories often feature characters caught between their authentic selves and the versions they present to the world, revealing the psychological toll of living a double life in the digital age.

Support the Show

If you enjoyed this story, please consider supporting Jon Cronshaw by becoming a patron. Your support helps bring these stories to life and gives you early access to audio stories plus exclusive text versions of every episode. Visit patreon.com/joncronshawauthor to learn more.

Free Story Collection

Download Jon's free short story collection "Optimised" featuring ten thought-provoking tales exploring technology, society, and human nature. Visit joncronshaw.com/optimised to sign up for his newsletter and download your copy today.

Keywords

Influencer culture, social media personas, personal branding, authenticity, double lives, dark comedy, flash fiction, Jon Cronshaw, content creation, digital identity, livestreaming consequences

In this unsettling episode of Speculative Fiction Tales, Jon Cronshaw delivers a masterful slow-burn horror story set in the seemingly mundane world of public transportation.

"I'm Not Allowed Past Dudley" follows a veteran bus driver who has spent twenty-two years piloting the number 12 route between Wolverhampton and West Bromwich. When management suddenly truncates his route to end at Dudley, he begins noticing subtle but disturbing anomalies. His attempts to venture beyond the new boundary—whether in his bus, car, or on foot—are met with increasingly bizarre and frightening consequences.

As our narrator's investigations deepen, the very fabric of reality begins to unravel, revealing a terrifying truth about the nature of his world and his place within it. What begins as a simple route change spirals into an existential nightmare that challenges everything he thought he knew about his familiar Midlands surroundings.

Themes & Topics

• Reality simulation and boundary enforcement

• The unsettling nature of the familiar made strange

• Working-class routine disrupted by cosmic horror

• The psychological impact of lost autonomy

• The Black Country as a setting for existential dread

• The surreal horror of bureaucratic control

Listener Discretion

This episode contains themes of existential horror and psychological distress that some listeners may find disturbing.

About the Author

Jon Cronshaw crafts speculative fiction that transforms everyday settings into landscapes of subtle terror. His stories often feature ordinary people confronting extraordinary circumstances, revealing the fragility of what we perceive as reality.

Support the Show

If you enjoyed this story, please consider supporting Jon Cronshaw by becoming a patron. Your support helps bring these stories to life and gives you early access to audio stories plus exclusive text versions of every episode. Visit patreon.com/joncronshawauthor to learn more.

Keywords

Simulation theory, Black Country, bus routes, existential horror, reality glitches, boundary enforcement, West Midlands, cosmic horror, Jon Cronshaw, speculative fiction, Dudley, Wolverhampton

In this darkly satirical episode of Speculative Fiction Tales, Jon Cronshaw delivers a scathing portrait of modern internet culture and the slippery slope from critic to cult leader.

"The Anti-Guru" follows the rapid transformation of Alex who begins as a frustrated critic of self-help charlatans and ends as the very thing he once despised.

Themes & Topics

• The corrupting influence of online validation and attention

• How algorithms encourage extremism and hypocrisy

• The self-help industry and its manipulation tactics

• The thin line between critic and practitioner

• How movements become marketplaces

• The psychology of cult formation in digital spaces

Listener Discretion

This episode contains cynical commentary on online culture and self-help industries that some listeners may find uncomfortably accurate.

About the Author

Jon Cronshaw crafts speculative fiction that examines the darker aspects of our digital existence. His stories act as mirrors reflecting uncomfortable truths about how technology shapes our behavior and beliefs, often without our conscious awareness.

Support the Show

If you enjoyed this story, please consider supporting Jon Cronshaw by becoming a patron. Your support helps bring these stories to life and gives you early access to audio stories plus exclusive text versions of every episode.

Visit patreon.com/joncronshawauthor to learn more.

Keywords

Internet culture, self-help industry, monetization, online gurus, digital transformation, social media critique, livestreaming, cult psychology, Jon Cronshaw, satire, influencer culture, algorithm effects, online communities

In this surreal episode of Speculative Fiction Tales, Jon Cronshaw takes us on a mind-bending journey through one person's radical approach to cheating death.

"The Speed of Boredom" follows an unnamed narrator who becomes obsessed with an unusual theory: if time dilates during boredom, then perhaps the most tedious existence possible might extend one's lifespan. What begins as a philosophical observation during a dull lecture spirals into a disturbing experiment as the narrator methodically eliminates all sources of joy, interest, and connection from their life—believing that each moment of excruciating boredom is actually expanding their subjective experience of time, thereby helping them "live forever."

With dark humor and existential insight, Cronshaw explores the absurd lengths to which humans might go to avoid mortality, and how the pursuit of extended life might ironically rob us of everything that makes life worth living.

Themes & Topics

Time perception and subjective experience

Existential dread and fear of mortality

The paradox of pursuing longevity at the expense of living

Mental health and obsessive thinking

The relationship between boredom and time dilation

Social isolation and its consequences

Listener Discretion

This episode contains themes of mental health deterioration and extreme social withdrawal that some listeners may find disturbing.

About the Author

Jon Cronshaw crafts speculative fiction that explores the stranger corners of human psychology. His stories often feature characters who take reasonable premises to unreasonable conclusions, revealing the absurdity that can lurk within seemingly logical thinking.

Support the Show

If you enjoyed this story, please consider supporting Jon Cronshaw by becoming a patron. Your support helps bring these stories to life and gives you early access to audio stories plus exclusive text versions of every episode. Visit patreon.com/joncronshawauthor to learn more.

Keywords

Time perception, existential fiction, subjective experience, psychological horror, boredom, mortality fears, mental decline, speculative fiction, Jon Cronshaw, flash fiction, philosophical fiction, time dilation

In this episode of Speculative Fiction Tales, Jon Cronshaw invites us into a bleak near-future where hope seems all but extinguished.

"To Grip the Bright White Chains" follows Elsie, an elderly woman navigating a harsh world of addiction, poverty, and environmental decay. When we first meet her, she appears to be engaging in a dubious transaction with a desperate young addict. But as Cronshaw gradually reveals Elsie's true intentions, we discover her quiet act of resistance against the desolation surrounding her.

Themes & Topics

• Finding hope in dystopian circumstances

• The importance of creating safe spaces

• Memory and nostalgia as motivating forces

• The power of simple pleasures

• Intergenerational connection

• Environmental deterioration

• The cycle of addiction

Listener Discretion

This episode contains references to drug addiction and child poverty that some listeners may find affecting.

About the Author

Jon Cronshaw crafts speculative fiction that finds light in the darkest of futures. His stories often focus on characters who maintain their humanity and compassion despite overwhelming societal collapse, offering glimmers of hope in otherwise bleak landscapes.

Support the Show

If you enjoyed this story, please consider supporting Jon Cronshaw by becoming a patron. Your support helps bring these stories to life and gives you early access to audio stories plus exclusive text versions of every episode. Visit patreon.com/joncronshawauthor to learn more.

Keywords

Hope in dystopia, environmental decline, childhood joy, addiction, dystopian fiction, post-collapse society, sanctuary creation, speculative fiction, Jon Cronshaw, near-future fiction, quiet resistance, restoration

In this chilling episode of Speculative Fiction Tales, Jon Cronshaw delivers a nightmarish glimpse into a post-apocalyptic world where human reproduction has been fundamentally altered by plague.

"Host" follows an unnamed narrator confined to dark tunnels, their body transformed into an incubator for the children of surviving humans. Neither male nor female, the host has become something "other"—revered yet feared, necessary yet loathed.

In just a few paragraphs, Cronshaw creates a deeply unsettling vision of reproductive horror where the boundaries between human and other have collapsed, raising profound questions about bodily autonomy, reproductive rights, and what constitutes personhood in the aftermath of catastrophe.

Themes & Topics

• Body horror and reproductive nightmare

• Post-apocalyptic adaptation and survival

• Dehumanization and objectification

• The thin line between reverence and revulsion

• Reproductive enslavement and bodily autonomy

• The cycle of othering and violence

Listener Discretion

This episode contains disturbing imagery related to body horror, forced reproduction, and infanticide that some listeners may find deeply unsettling.

About the Author

Jon Cronshaw crafts speculative fiction that examines bodily autonomy and social hierarchies through visceral, often disturbing imagery. His flash fiction often condenses complex ethical questions into brief but powerful narratives that linger in the mind.

Support the Show

If you enjoyed this story, please consider supporting Jon Cronshaw by becoming a patron. Your support helps bring these stories to life and gives you early access to audio stories plus exclusive text versions of every episode. Visit patreon.com/joncronshawauthor to learn more.

Keywords

Body horror, reproductive horror, post-apocalyptic, plague survivors, biological transformation, forced breeding, body autonomy, flash fiction, Jon Cronshaw, horror fiction, biological dystopia, reproductive enslavement

In this micro-fiction from Speculative Fiction Tales, Jon Cronshaw offers a piercing allegory of colonialism and cultural erasure through the lens of an Indigenous Earth scholar in a Martian-dominated world.

"Meditations on the Martian Invasion" follows an academic who has dedicated their life to preserving Earth languages and customs in a society where Martian culture has become the default. Through the narrator's reflections on being treated as a curiosity for wearing "traditional" Earth clothing and studying "dead" Earth languages, Cronshaw delivers a commentary on cultural appropriation, assimilation, and the persistent othering of Indigenous peoples.

Themes & Topics

• Colonialism and cultural erasure

• Indigenous identity and resistance

• Cultural appropriation and assimilation

• The preservation of language as cultural resistance

• The myth of post-racial/post-colonial societies

• The persistent "othering" of Indigenous peoples

Listener Discretion

This episode contains themes related to colonialism and cultural erasure that may resonate deeply with listeners from historically marginalized communities.

About the Author

Jon Cronshaw crafts speculative fiction that uses the lens of science fiction to illuminate real-world power dynamics and social issues. His flash fiction often packs complex political and cultural commentary into deceptively simple narratives.

Support the Show

If you enjoyed this story, please consider supporting Jon Cronshaw by becoming a patron. Your support helps bring these stories to life and gives you early access to audio stories plus exclusive text versions of every episode. Visit patreon.com/joncronshawauthor to learn more.

Keywords

Colonialism, Indigenous resistance, cultural erasure, Martian invasion, assimilation, cultural preservation, alien occupation, speculative fiction, flash fiction, Jon Cronshaw, postcolonial science fiction, allegory, indigenous futurism

In this episode of Speculative Fiction Tales, Jon Cronshaw delivers a scathing satire of modern publishing and online outrage culture that will resonate with creators and consumers alike.

"Content Warning" follows Simon Reed, a bestselling detective novelist who finds himself increasingly paralyzed by reader feedback and sensitivity concerns.

Themes & Topics

• Creative freedom versus social responsibility

• Self-censorship and artistic integrity

• Cancel culture and its effect on creative expression

• The paradox of inclusive storytelling

• The commodification of emptiness

• The gradual erosion of nuance in public discourse

Listener Discretion

This episode contains references to online harassment, mental health struggles, and discussions of censorship that some listeners may find provocative.

About the Author

Jon Cronshaw crafts speculative fiction that challenges contemporary social dynamics and technological impacts on creative expression. His stories often explore the unintended consequences of well-intentioned cultural shifts.

Support the Show

If you enjoyed this story, please consider supporting Jon Cronshaw by becoming a patron. Your support helps bring these stories to life and gives you early access to audio stories plus exclusive text versions of every episode.

Visit patreon.com/joncronshawauthor to learn more.

Keywords

Cancel culture, creative freedom, social media, self-censorship, publishing industry, online outrage, trigger warnings, content moderation, literary criticism, Jon Cronshaw, speculative satire, modern literature, algorithmic amplification