| | Hello sci-fi fans!
For December, Strange New Words is leaving memory implants behind and heading straight into intergalactic capitalism. We’re closing out the year with Charlie Jane Anders’ sharply funny first-contact tale, “The Fermi Paradox Is Our Business Model.” Think: aliens, extinction, and a very unsettling answer to the question “Why don’t we see anyone else out there?”
You’ll also find discussion questions, other reading recs, and articles we’ve recently covered for all your science fiction needs.
As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts on the story over on our socials @spacedotcom.
— Kenna & Ian | | | | This Month's Short Story, | |  | In Anders’ story, the galaxy isn’t empty — it’s just efficient. An alien species called the Falshi seeds life on countless worlds, then waits millions of years for civilizations to arise, burn through their resources, and wipe themselves out in a phase politely labeled “Closure.” That’s when the Falshi swoop in and collect the neatly processed metals and fuels, skipping all the messy mining themselves. Two Falshi, Jon and Toku, wake from long stasis expecting Earth to be just another closed-out account. Instead, they find that humanity has survived its own nuclear catastrophe inside a massive megastructure — and the humans are very interested in talking to the people who built their universe as a business venture. As negotiations unfold, the story turns into a tense, witty argument about exploitation, optimism, and what happens when a supposedly doomed species refuses to play its assigned role. Disclaimer: All stories linked through this club are hosted on their original publishers’ websites. We do not reproduce or host the stories ourselves. Links are provided solely for readers’ convenience and discussion purposes. Copyright and all rights remain with the original authors and publishers. | | | Because half the fun of reading isn't just turning the pages, it's what happens when we start talking about them. So below are a few questions to think about while you're reading the story. We'll also be walking through a few of these in our wrap up newsletter on this story. - If you discovered that humanity only exists because a more powerful species expected us to self-destruct for their profit, would that make you more hopeful about our future—or less?
- How does turning the Fermi paradox into a profit scheme change the way you think about that classic question, “Where is everybody?”
- Which Earth species do you think would make the best (or funniest) addition to the chaos in this story (and you can’t pick pigeons)?
- If you were hired by the alien bureaucracy depicted in the story, how would you navigate this situation and how quickly would you get fired?
We’ll be revisiting some of these questions in our end-of-month wrap-up — and we’re excited to see your answers in the comments and on socials! | | | | Vote For Next Month's Story | | | Help us pick a story for January 2026! | You options are below | | | If You Like That Story, Try This Book! | | | | In the vein of Alice Hoffman and Charlie Jane Anders's own All the Birds in the Sky comes a novel full of love, disaster, and magic. | | | | Tribute Games' take on Marvel comics focuses on the universe's more overlooked cosmic elements and packs a delightfully off-beat roster of heroes. | | | In 1995, "Toy Story" introduced one of sci-fi's greatest heroes. Thirty years on, Buzz Lightyear is still the pride of Star Command | | | | Stay up-to-date on all things space science, news, and entertainment by subscribing to our newsletters. | | | | | | | | | Future US LLC © | | Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY, 10036 | | | |
