In 2002, I joined National Novel Writing Month, an annual challenge to complete a 50,000 word novel in the 30 days of November.

I did it. Embers of Humanity is my NaNoWriMo novel.

When I read it, I was pleased. It had structure and characters. It felt complete. It was, in the words of Chris Baty, the founder of NaNoWriMo, “surprisingly passable”. Maybe even better than that.

Embers of Humanity follows Mary, a woman desperate to have a child, Richard, a man looking for a mother, Avery, a charismatic fertility guru, Curran, an industrial researcher in cloning, Walther, an industrial patriarch opposed to cloning, and Patrizia, Walther’s barista daughter, as they all confront a drastic drop in human fertility.

I have corrected the typos. It is otherwise as I wrote it in November of 2002. For $3, you can 1) see whether I can write 2) get an example of NaNoWriMo success and 3) enjoy a pretty decent story.

Over 18 only, please.

Embers of Humanity contains explicit sex, unpleasant medical procedures, an entire chapter on shoes, and the possible extinction of humanity.

By clicking the button below, I affirm that I am 18 or older.