You don't have to spend money to help me.

Okay, so here's my deal:

I'm asking you to help me get some money. It won't cost you any money, though.

I entered a story in a writing contest: http://freeditorial.com/en/books/retro-vr

The sponsor of the story is offering cash prizes. First, second and third place in the contest will be mostly determined by how many times each entry is downloaded. Writing quality will come in if it's close.

You can help me win the contest by downloading the story. You do not have to register for anything to download it. The message you see about registering is for those who want to enter one of the writing contests.

If you follow the link, you'll see a synopsis of the story. Look to the right of the screen. You should see a DOWNLOADS OPTIONS menu. I prefer PDF, but READ ONLINE works just as well. You can download it to a Kindle or ereader.

I got the idea for the story when I read a New York Times article last year about a guy making sex robots. This paragraph caught my attention:

"One of the challenges that Mr. McMullen will have to contend with is the so-called uncanny valley. It is a concept first written about in 1970 by a Japanese researcher, that says people’s responses to robots will shift sharply from empathy to revulsion the more closely the robots resemble humans. In other words, something robotic that looks alive, but is not completely convincing, will creep people out." ("Sex Dolls That Talk Back," Emma Cott, The New York Times, June 11, 2015)

I felt compelled to write the story, and used Matthew 19:8 as its nucleus:

"He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives, but from the beginning it was not so."

Please share the story, or share this link, so that others can have a chance to download it.

Tomorrow is the deadline

Tomorrow, July 31, 2016 is the deadline for entering a story in Freeditorial's Long Short Story Contest. The winner will be announced on Thanksgiving Day. The number of times each story is downloaded determines the winner. They say they'll consider writing quality if it's close.

First prize is $15,000

Second prize is $5,000

Third prize is $2,000

If you don't have your own story to enter in the contest, please download mine.

My entry in the contest, Retro VR, is now in Fifth place. It recently surpassed 400 downloads. I plan to keep Tweeting and sharing it on Facebook and Google+ until November. I keep thinking of NASCAR races I have watched with my son, and the strategies the drivers use. I'm content with 5th place for now. I was in Fourth place for a little while. I have hope that I can move up to First place in the next few months.

When I'm not Tweeting or doing yard work or ruining my son's summer vacation, I've been working on a sequel to Retro VR. I would eventually like to turn the story into a full length novel or a hybrid virtual reality / live theatre play. That is, you would go to see a play, and the ushers would give you a cardboard VR headset on your way in.

You do not have to register to read the story.

If you follow the link, you'll see a synopsis of the story. Look to the right of the screen. You should see a DOWNLOADS OPTIONS menu. I prefer PDF, but READ ONLINE works just as well. You can download it to a Kindle or ereader.

If you like the story, feel free to share it.