The Players

Cole, Everett B., 1918-1977Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.5

Word count: 110K words
Chapters: 11

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.The Players by Everett B. ColeAuthor: Cole, Everett B., 1918-1977,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Aug 29, 2007

Editor's review

Everett B. Cole was a twentieth-century American author of the science fiction magazine era, and "The Players" is a short work he published in a science fiction periodical, now prepared as a public-domain electronic text by Project Gutenberg. Such works are typically short and sharply premised, unfolding conflict around a single social or technological supposition and bearing the Golden Age science fiction trait of idea-driven extrapolation. Their value lies in observing how early science fiction authors built worlds and posed hypotheses about institutions and human nature within limited space, while also letting readers sense the language and rhythm of science fiction narrative from that period. As a public-domain short story, it suits science fiction enthusiasts as supplementary reading or as a sample for genre-literature study, but one should not expect the complex characterization and fine-grained description of a full-length novel.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in mid-twentieth-century American science fiction short stories
Genre-literature fans who want to understand the writing style of the science fiction magazine era
Readers who need short public-domain texts as reading or research material
Readers who read in fragments of time and prefer single, self-contained stories

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting grand world-building and deep characterization on a novelistic scale
Those unaccustomed to the diction and narrative rhythm of early science fiction
Readers who want only contemporary new work and have no interest in old public-domain texts

Reading tips

Read through once to grasp the premise and conflict, then go back and sort out the key information the author has planted.
After finishing, consult science fiction short stories from the same period and compare commonalities and differences in subject matter and technique.
Treat it as a short reading session and finish it in one or two sittings to better appreciate its structure.
If using it for discussion, write down your own extrapolations and counterarguments around the hypotheses the work raises.

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 work a novel or a short story?

Judging from its inclusion in Project Gutenberg, this is a short work Cole published in a science fiction magazine, not long, and suitable for reading in one sitting. The exact page count varies by typeset edition; readers can check the actual length in the electronic version they use and need not plan their reading as they would for a novel.

Can someone with no background in science fiction understand it?

Early science fiction short stories usually set out their premises directly and move the plot quickly, so beginning readers can generally follow the main line. If one is unfamiliar with the technological background and social context of the time, a few details may need checking, but this does not hinder understanding of the story's core conflict.

Why is this book available for free from Project Gutenberg?

Project Gutenberg collects works that have entered the public domain or electronic texts released free with authorization. Cole's work entered the platform because its copyright status meets the conditions for inclusion, and readers may read it legally and free of charge; the specific scope of use is governed by the copyright notice provided by the platform.

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About the author

Cole, Everett B., 1918-1977 Author

Everett B. Cole (1918–1977) was an American science fiction writer whose biography and educational background are poorly documented; only a limited body of work survives, mainly from the mid-twentieth-century science fiction magazine era. Seven of his works are held in this collection: The Best Made Plans, The Weakling, Final Weapon, Millennium, Indirection, Alarm Clock, and The Players, all short stories or short science fiction pieces. They generally revolve around future technology, social systems, and human weakness, often using ingenious premises and ironic narration to show the consequences of technology out of control or rigid institutions, and frequently ending with unexpected twists. Cole's style is concise and brisk, with attention to narrative pace and suspense, making him a reasonably representative writer of the popular science fiction magazines of his time.