Scrimshaw

Leinster, Murray, 1896-1975Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.5

Word count: 34K words
Chapters: 4

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Scrimshaw by Murray LeinsterAuthor: Leinster, Murray, 1896-1975,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Dec 10, 2007

Editor's review

Scrimshaw is a short science fiction work by Murray Leinster, released free through Project Gutenberg. Leinster excelled at setting technical or cognitive turns within concise narratives, and this story carries his familiar sci-fi ingenuity: it begins with an everyday object or craft and gradually pushes toward a situation beyond expectation. Its value lies in its brevity and quick entry, making it well suited to experiencing the rhythm and suspense arrangement of mid-twentieth-century short science fiction. Readers can watch how the author builds tension within limited scenes and how the ending recycles earlier details. As a public-domain eBook, it suits a single sitting on a commute, between classes, or before bed, and also suits science fiction writing enthusiasts dismantling its structure. Note that it is not a long-form world-building work, and the eBook layout may vary by device; readers should treat it as a short piece that can be finished quickly and revisited for narrative technique, not as a science fiction novel pursuing complex settings.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who want to finish a classic science fiction short story quickly
Enthusiasts studying mid-twentieth-century science fiction narrative techniques
Beginners in science fiction writing who need a short model text
General readers who enjoy technical ingenuity and suspenseful endings

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting long-form world-building and complex character arcs
Hard science fiction fans who need detailed scientific explanations
Readers who prefer contemporary science fiction styles and diverse themes

Reading tips

Read it through in one sitting without interruption to feel the rhythm and suspense of the short story.
On a second reading, mark where the turns occur and observe which details were planted earlier.
After finishing, summarize the core ingenuity in a few sentences to check whether you grasped the narrative focus.
If using it for writing study, imitate its echo between opening and ending in a short exercise.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this story a novel or a short story?

Judging from the Gutenberg entry and the work's format, it is a short science fiction story, suitable for reading in one or two sittings. The exact page count varies with eBook layout, but the overall reading time is not long.

Can I understand it without a science fiction reading background?

Generally yes. Leinster's short stories usually begin with everyday situations and do not rely on extensive background knowledge; readers need only follow the narrative and pay attention to key objects and hints in dialogue.

Is it suitable as a writing model?

It is suitable for observing how a short story sets suspense, arranges turns, and recycles details. But it is not a writing tutorial; readers should dismantle its structure themselves rather than expect the book to explain methods.

What should I watch for when reading the eBook?

Project Gutenberg eBooks are prepared by volunteers, and layout may differ across formats. Choose a format with a stable reading experience and check whether paragraph breaks and punctuation are complete, so as not to misjudge the turning points.

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About the author

Leinster, Murray, 1896-1975 Author

Murray Leinster (1896–1975) was an American science fiction writer whose real name was William Fitzgerald Jenkins. He was a prolific author of short stories and novels, and this site holds thirty-nine of his works, including The Mad Planet, The Pirates of Ersatz, The Machine That Saved The World, The Forgotten Planet, The Wailing Asteroid, The Invaders, The Runaway Skyscraper, and Scrimshaw. His science fiction often deals with interstellar adventure, strange planets, and technological speculation, with tightly plotted, boldly imaginative narratives that also reflect on human society and the conditions of survival; some works are also categorized as inspirational growth. Public information is limited, making biographical details difficult to describe, but the surviving works show his important place in twentieth-century American popular science fiction and his influence on later writers in the genre.