An anthology science-fiction series featuring a legion of authors, take a trip!

What is "Starports"?
Starports is an anthology short story podcast by hosts Jack J. Ward and Shannon Hilchie in "The Library of Jack and Shannon" Podcast featuring a series of authors all writing a short story in a rich universe of adventure. Those authors interested in placing submissions should contact Jack at jackjamiewardATgmailDOTcom
Starports begins in 2009!
Guidelines are listed below.

The Story in Brief
Matthew Rose, a university student, has discovered a cheap, easy, and safe way to teleport any where in the universe. Matt also developed the software needed to have exact coordinates, and published his work on the Internet.
The effect upon humanity was profound. Within nine months, over 1/3 of the human population in the world were traveling to distant worlds in other solar systems, galaxies, even clear across the universe. This opened up new industries as some people sought to relocate to "better" alternative Earth-like planets, and the wealthy discovered new forms of exotic entertainments and sights in distant places they could barely fathom.
There were confidence men, huskters, and thieves that lined up to cash in on the technology as well. After all, who could police the entire universe? If a family came to a planet for a vacation, but were press-ganged into forced labour, who had the jurisdiction to stop them?
Back on Earth, governments grew worried and concerned. Population patterns blinked in and out like christmas tree lights. Production in various parts of the globe could find critical shortages, or suddenly steep prices.
Unprecedented opportunity hung before humanity, and the only question was how would this new technology serve the future? Would it bring out a deeper understanding of community, or would avarice and greed find a way to control the most democraticizing technology humanity had ever seen?
The story... the answer.. is up to you!

Story Possibilities
Starports offers fodder for a nearly endless series of stories. One need only to ponder the following questions:
What would an Earth look like with over a third of its population (mostly in North America and other "Westernized" nations) gone to other planets?
What kind of business opportunities both legal and otherwise would be available for a population mobile enough to colonize or vacation anywhere in the universe?
What kind of unsavory characters would take advantage of people?
How would the Internet change as a tool, when it holds the public domain software that sends people to the stars?

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
1. Authors are to present their own original works.
2. All Submissions must be no more than 6,000 words.
3. All Submissions must be in 12 point Times New Roman Font and RTF format.
4. All Submission must be within Background Guidelines (see below) and using the genre (science fiction) and form (short fiction) in a clean dramatic fashion.
5. Accepted submissions are to be read by the Author or a designated reader and recorded with a clear microphone. (Contact Jack if this could be a problem. He has many actors to read stories.)
6. Accepted submissions are to be transferred to Jack in standard MP3 stereo format 44100 Hz frequency at 128 KPS bit rate.
7. All accepted submissions are to be transferred to Jack in a timely manner upon acceptance of the story.

Background
There are some clear rules when writing an Anthology series in the "Starports" universe. Please read the following glossary to make yourself familiar with Starport definitions and guidelines.

2012 C.E.
This is the year that Matthew Rose published the Starports technology. More than one educator and critic has pointed out the irony that this has occurred during the end of the Mayan calendar.

Aliens
No "Intelligent" Aliens in Season 1. No exceptions. Earth-like or (Earthly) planets will certainly have life. But make it lower order. Animals are allowed. Even complex animals. But intelligent aliens that can communicate, build societies, and complex organizations are a strict no starter for now.

Alien Civilizations
See above. The only possible exception is finding evidence of a long dead civilization. But this needs to be handled with care. Mystery and enigmas as to the civilization will be greeted a whole lot more warmly than beginning a saga of an alien race. These, again are stories about how the human population is affected by the Starport technology.

Alien Diseases
Scientifically speaking, for the most part alien diseases would not find human being palatable. Virus' on Earth have taken thousands of years to mature to want to eat our biology. There may be some exception but, any virus or disease transferred back to Earth would be very difficult to accept.

Blind 'Porting
This is the task of having human beings (Star Jockeys or Vapor Dancers) dress in special environmental vacuum suits, along with camera and sensing equipment. They are sent to investigate a previously undetermined sector of space. They are given special one-way Starport equipment (Homers) that when activated will return them to their Initial Waypoint (I.W.)
Once returned home, their data is assessed and further Blind 'ports may take place to "Zero In" on an excellent candidate (Earthly Planet)

Cecile
This is the Internet personality who has the best claim to understand the original story of how Matthew Rose came up with the Starports technology and why he published it upon the Internet. Cecile's identity has never been established.

Celestipedia
This is a massive on-line website that is free for anyone to edit and create content. Based on the old "wikipedia" site, Celestipedia is designed to be the encyclopedia of places across the cosmos.

CPS
Cosmic Positioning Software is based upon Matthew Rose's supposition that the oldest star discovered in the galaxy, HE0107-5240, dates back to the beginning of the Universe, about 14 billion years ago. Creating a model that begins with the theoretic positioning of the universe at the big bang, using the known spatial variances to date, and projecting along the same curve, part of Matt Rose's brilliance is in creating an accurate coordinating system that not only operates effectively for this galaxy, but all galaxies.
Some Corporations and Citizen Organizations have created their own bank of "Safe Destinations" for travelers. These include planets and large moons that can support terran life. Some of the more popular groups are The Planetary Cooperative, Far Seekers Society, and Grendal Vacations Corporation among others.

Earth
After the first nine months that the Starport technology hit the Internet, nearly 1/3 of the population of Earth have teleported elsewhere. Some have migrated. Some are on vacation. All represent people on the Earth who have money and access to computers and the Internet.
Starporting is, on a global scale, a past-time of the wealthy.
This means that some cities are very quickly depopulated, trade routes would be interrupted. Governments may take advantage of the situation.
Meanwhile global warming continues, global poverty may increase in some areas. Kids in wealthier nations play "Homesteading", and there are movements by some governments to ban Starporting all together because of the impact on the economies both local and international.
Very quickly after it became clear that Starporting could also mean getting into private property on Earth, and low-grade electronic generators (Jammers) were made to disrupt exit curtains and protect banks and high-security facilities.
There are stories that the government of China is attempting to set a wide array jamming signal that would prevent any kind of Starporting by its citizens or foreigners into China.
Earth represents a tinder-box of old power structures versus new opportunities.

Earthlies/ Earthly Planet
Earthly planets are planets that are Earth-like in their makeup. All Earthly planets have the right oxygen/nitrogen mixture, appropriate gravity (within .5 to 1.5 of Earth norm), and average temperature to allow human egress from a curtain into the world. Earthlies have developed civilian colour codes, and while most planets have a variety of terrains and climates, a general impression is coded.:
Earthly Black- Moon-like surface. All water is underground, and rain is rare if not nonexistent
Earthly Yellow- Desert-like surface. Seasonal rains if any.
Earthly Red- Volcanic activity on the surface. Pollution and acidic rains can be a problem.
Earthly Green-Mostly lush vegetation. Jungles or Forests are predominant.
Earthly Blue- Mostly free standing water. May have continents or islands. (ex. Our Earth "Terra" would be coded, Earthly Blue as it is 3/5ths water.)
Earthly Brown- Mostly mountains, foothills and low standing vegetation. Rocky terrain.
Earthly White- Mostly ice covered world.

Far Seekers Society
This citizens' grassroots organization believes that no one owns space. Using cyber-hacking, private donations, and selling exotic plants and samples to fund their movement, The FASSY put together their own exploratory missions, to register and create new spaces for humanity to live. Far Seeker destinations always can be found free on websites all over the Internet. The only problem is that there are no regulations or error-checking for these posted coordinates, and everything from typos that send people into suns, to hidden locations that shanghai travelers into becoming slave labour can occur.
As much as possible, comments are presented on websites about favourite destinations, and there are entire websites (pedias) cropping up that catalogue and identify everything from geological formations and meteorological events, to plant and animal discoveries. Because of the democratic nature of the Far Seekers, many individuals have started projects like "Celestipedia".

Grendal Vacations Corporation
The largest of the exploratory Corporations. Grendal sends out teams of explores to do what is called "Blind Porting" to discover new and exotic locales. Patrons pay for exclusive travel packages, and are sent to breathtaking one of a kind vacations without ever knowing the exact location of their trip. Grendal and others in the new travel industry rely on discretion and secrecy to maintain their clientele.

Homesteading
A game invented by teens. Homesteading has youths (often street youths) finding domiciles that are unoccupied because the owners are off starporting. Homesteaders use the owner's sleeping arrangements, food, clothing, and other amenities. Often homesteading occurs as a dare between two groups of teens. With each group raising the "bet" as to how long they can stay in the owner's home without being caught.

Jammers
Low grade electronic generators can be set up to great an invisible field for expense that prevent Starporting within a particular area. This would protect banks, homeowners, and highly sensitive government and military buildings.
If a Starporter attempts to make an exit curtain to where a jammer is placed, they will simply exit from the same curtain they entered as the conduit is pinched off at one end.

Matthew Daniel Rose
Matt Rose was a student at the University of Toronto who developed the Starport technology. Stories differ as to whether Matt Rose is an alias for the real person who developed the technology or not. Records at University of Toronto do not show a Matthew Daniel Rose attending campus, and yet conspiracy theorists have already concluded that Matt Rose's records were wiped to protect the family, or in the wake of an official investigation, or simply to save face. Whether his name is real or not, Rose has become a legend since his disappearance when he published his complete theoretical works and the "Starports" software he developed on the Internet.

Monies
Currently there are no "galactic credits" or any kind of universal exchange whatsoever. Monies are of a very practical nature. Communities that have begun on worlds independent of Earth have either created through a makeshift barter system, or developed their own local currency. Travelers who travel back and forth from the realm for profits, trade in whatever their buyers on Earth need, and exchange in a nation's currency for purchasing more goods to travel back amongst the stars again.
Suggestions that gold has returned to being a standard good for trade, has not been verified as some planets are gold rich and others gold poor.
Travel Corporations operate almost strictly in national currencies as they are bringing goods and people in to vacation spots, and making money strictly on importing people into their exotic locations.

Planetary Cooperative
The Planetary Cooperative was created by many educators and scholars. They include those who believe that new planets that are "virtually Earth-like" should be terraformed into Earthly conditions. Encapsulating some of the more grand ideals of humanity colonizing the stars, the Planetary Cooperative is mostly funded through membership donations and private sponsors as well as university and corporate research grants.

Star Jockeys/Vapor Dancers
These thrill-seekers dress in environmental vacuum suits and equip themselves with acute sensing equipment. Taking best guesses from previous information they will starport themselves into another area of the cosmos that has never been mapped before. Star Jockeys are adrenaline junkies. They are juiced by the opportunity to be the first human in an area of space. But by blind 'porting, they could accidentally put themselves too close to a star, or cosmic radiation, or within a planet or the gravity well of a gas giant. The risk can be worth a great reward as Star Jockeys who discover a "rich" site, or a potentially lucrative vacation spot could net them 1% of any income generated. That's enough to set a Star Jockey for life!

Starports Software
This is the "freeware" programme that Matthew Daniel Rose published on the Internet along with his complete theoretical works of how teleporting to the stars operates. The original software is very simple with CPS waypoints for current and end point calculations. The software allows only the right number of characters in each field, and never allows operates if there is a character that does not fit within the basic parameters.
Other companies have since developed their own brands of Starports software building on the initial engine. Features such as a log of places journeyed, timer features, address books of destinations, and email among others have all been added by many different competing companies for the Transporting market.

Technology
The process of Starporting while not completely understood includes gravitational fields that can be set up using a laptop and a very easy interface that weakens the gravitic bonds of normal space. Once the "curtain" of normal space is opened. The "Corridor" or hyperspace can easily be manipulated as the gravitational fields need only a few coordinates to open up the curtain on the other side of space.
The coordinates are all powered by software that was published on the Internet by the brilliant student Matthew Rose. The whole process can be activated by anyone who goes on to the Internet, surfs to the many sites to either discover the way to rig their own hyperfield projector or by buying any of the cheap commercial options in any of the stores. Once in place, the software by Matt Rose called "Star Teleporting" or Starport for short will operate simply by initializing an I.W. or "Initial Waypoint". The I.W. sets the home coordinates via GPS (Global Positioning Software) first and then CPS (Cosmic Positioning Software). Any time the computer (usually a laptop) is moved after the Starports software has been activated CPS runs an inobtrusive background agent that keeps the computer in sync with the CPS. If there is any danger, the Starport software is designed to send the traveller back to its I.W.

Teleportation
Since the technology is really instantaneous hopping through the cosmos through hyperspace "curtains", there is no danger of dematerialization (as per Star Trek transporters). The voyagers go through the curtains whole and are ejected safely and instantaneously through the curtain on the other side in the same fashion.
Curtains remain open longest from the point of entry. They can remain open for up to 15 seconds before the energy generated would burn out a computer that's trying to create the field, and remain open for an average of 4.2 seconds for those who have opened a curtain and wish to walk through with their mobile computer (usually a laptop of some kind).
Curtains open five feet from source of the field generation (computer), and are roughly a halo shape of five feet in height by four feet in width.
Point of exit curtains open only to expel travelers and seal nearly immediately behind them. While theoretically it may be possible for someone to enter and exit curtain and return in time through the entrance curtain before either curtain closes. It has never been accomplished in practice.
Stories of those entering exit curtains have all ended with the travelers being lost somewhere in hyperspace.
The field generation opens a simple conduit between the two points. There is no evidence that travelers can sidestep or shift to other points of entrance or exit.
Opening a curtain has been known to create side affects to other electromagnetic devices within a twenty-foot radius of the source.


Summary
A good anthology based on a common world (universe) needs to maintain the concept for everyone who is writing in it. This means you can't blow up a city on Earth because other's may reference that city in their story fully intact. You can't have most of the population of Earth mostly dying from disease, because that too would necessarily have to be mentioned in other short stories, and if it isn't then it doesn't become a shared universe, but rather everyone's take on a single idea with no continuity.
I'm not trying to hamstring people, but rather make sure we all play nicely in the same backyard. Should we decide to do a Season #2, we can take suggestions and ideas about things like, wars, disease, famine and aliens (the four horsemen of the Apocalypse). Until then, Season 1 should be all about the human drama and comedy of the concept of star travel.

Rewards
Those who successfully create, and record a story for Starports, also get the opportunity to send a promo of their own works, a bio, and if there's time a little chance to talk to me, about their process in creating the story. Listeners will get to vote on their favourite stories at the end of Season 1 and those favourite shorts will be bound in a book and sold. The profits given to charity. Kudos for helping others. Great chance to write in an anthology, and gain credit for it in your author's credits!

Good Luck! And email me if there is anything you think needs to be added or is unclear or missing!
jackjamiewardATgmailDOTcom

Latest Version from suggestions by Nick Pilon