The future is driven by fiction.

Writers write for a number of different reasons. Some people have a story that just needs to be told, while others enjoy creating worlds that can be shaped by their own ideas and desires. No matter what the explanation, the final result isn't simply ink on paper or words on a screen; The finished product is a blueprint that can be used as a starting point for more ideas and as a force behind technology and innovation that can be improved in the future.

There are numerous instances in which fiction has influenced actual events. Science fiction is especially good for coming up with ideas for new technologies. The invention of the cell phone, the moon landing, and a plethora of other occurrences and innovations all began as merely spoken words by someone who hoped that the concepts they represented might just be possible.

As a writer of science fiction and fantasy, I long for a day when a scientist will find a way to travel through a parallel dimension, back in time, and across the universe. In addition, I would like to see the material sciences develop unique fabrics and metals with spatial properties that would enable us to gain access to the unoccupied space within atoms or fabricate a true mask of invisibility. Even though some of these concepts seem odd, many of them are already being researched and improved upon.

Cryogenics has given scientists the idea to create new medical fields like bio-vitrification, which is currently used in organ transplants, and the Alcor Life Extension Foundation, which is researching ways to create operational states of suspended animation.

I am absolutely certain that we will one day be able to make use of these technologies to construct ships that can travel across the galaxy over multiple generations, enable mankind to explore and colonize the vast reaches of space and beyond, and extend man's lifespan to the point where it reaches the level of immortality.

Technology has not only been driven by fiction; It has also served as a platform for social commentary and highlighting issues with governments and societies. Philosophers and thinkers have been able to consider what the world would be like if certain events or social norms were different.

Utopian and dystopian fiction has flourished as a means of describing society's problems in a fictional setting that can be analyzed and digested independently of its own reality and political constraints, from William Shakespeare to Thomas Moore to George Orwell and Ayn Rand.

Some of humanity's greatest leaps in evolution have been brought about by the products of these pioneers and thinkers, who created paradigm shifts and cultural renaissances.

I am not one of those people who holds the belief that the human race will self-destruct quickly. I believe in the future and am hopeful. It is true that history's lessons are frequently ignored, but man has also been moving forward steadily. Even though that march has not been uniform, it has been there.

It has existed because people have continued to write ever since the Egyptians invented papyrus, Johannes Gutenberg invented the movable type printing press, and Amazon invented the Kindle; In the form of the written word, people have continued to inspire and establish the foundation and framework for subsequent generations.

Even though not every word will make the reader think, some will; There will be a few, and there will be that one-in-a-million idea that originated as a scribble on paper or keystroke on a computer and changed the world in a fictional work by an unknown author.