Tom R. Pike

Writer of Folk Tales for the Anthropocene

A climate and energy research analyst by profession, Pike uses fiction to shine light on the ethical dilemmas and psychological impacts that come with day to day life in an era of climate crisis.

Mixing science fiction and morality plays, Pike’s fiction draws a clear line between right and wrong, and shows how a better future can be built without resorting to implausible utopianism. He incorporates passages written in a variety of languages, showing a future in which linguistic diversity thrives.

Also - and this may not be apropos - but for two years, Pike was paid to impersonate a cartoon horse online.

Click here to get an alert when Tom has a new story out!

Published Works:

Prose

Poetry

  • “Question for Salamanders”, The Oakland Review, 2011

Film & Digital TV

  • The Long Dig, Electric Purple Studios, 2019
  • Personal Space, Amazon Video Direct, 2018
  • Time Travelers Are Jerks, Goat Milk Fudge Film Festival, 2013
  • Echo Chamber, TV Tropes, 2011-2012

Non-fiction articles

Podcast episodes

Video games

  • Mechta, IntenseLife, 2013
  • BeSeen, Information Networking Institute, 2011

Alternate reality game

Plays

  • Hold the Elevator, 2009
  • One Last Mission, 2008

DIY

Awards & Honors

SemifinalistNew KingdomFinal Draft Big Break Screenwriting Contest2022
Best Sci-FiPersonal SpaceVancouver WebFest2018
Official SelectionPersonal SpaceStareable Festival2018
Official SelectionPersonal SpacePhilip K. Dick Sci-Fi Film Festival2018
Official SelectionPersonal SpaceBoston Sci-Fi Film Festival2018
Official SelectionPersonal SpaceHollyweb Film Festival2018
Official SelectionPersonal SpaceBerlin Sci-Fi Film Festival2018
Project We LovePersonal SpaceKickstarter2016
Top 10Emperor NortonFinal Draft Big Break Screenwriting Contest2015
SemifinalistMy Name is TinoScriptapalooza TV2015
Fantasy Script AwardEmperor NortonHere Be Dragons2015
Top FinalistMy Name is TinoCreative World Awards2015
SemifinalistInside the WallsCreative World Awards2015
Webby in Social EntertainmentBoJack Horseman social media campaignWebby Awards2015
Best in TelevisionBoJack Horseman social media copywritingShorty Awards2015
QuarterfinalistFlying HomeScriptapalooza2014
Top FinalistAmityCreative World Awards2014
Top FinalistArcher (spec)Creative World Awards2014
Preliminary FinalistThe Placebo EffectCreative World Awards2013
Webby in Social HumorBoJack Horseman social media copywritingThe Webby Awards2015
Webby in Social EntertainmentArrested Development social media copywritingThe Webby Awards2014
Finalist in Social HumorArrested Development social media copywritingThe Webby Awards2014

Reviews

  • “Hi, I’m Tom’s dad. I think his writing is really superb.”

    - Tom's Dad

  • “Aliens make contact over Twitter. Fun and silly, I really liked it. Got pretty dumb towards the end but just don't think about it.”

    - Goodreads

  • “There’s also a charming story, “Direct Message” by Tom Pike, that reminds us that not all SF has to be deadly serious. In this story, narrator Tom follows a really quirky Twitter account that starts to seem like it’s aliens learning to interact with humans on social media. The account eventually runs a poll about which area of Earth to wipe off the map and Appalachia, where Tom lives, is the “winner.” Of course these are real aliens with real destructive power, and Tom is left negotiating with them via DMs. He arrives at a clever solution and in the meantime delivers a robust defense of one of the more down-and-out, put-upon, and joked-about regions of the United States.”

    - Locus Mag reviews Direct Message

  • “I can’t even begin to make sense of TVTropes.org’s recently concluded alternate reality game, The Wall Will Fall, but its almost perverse complexity riddled with meta-references and in-jokes seems perfectly tailored to the community’s near-herculean organizational prowess.”

    - Michael Andersen, ARGNet, 2012

  • “With its unusual presentation (everything we see is from the point of view of a single camera, meaning we never see any part of the ship except for the cabin where the crewpersons conduct their confessionals), Personal Space relies on the writing and the performances. Fortunately, the show boasts a solid cast who deliver the material in a believable way and connect the characters to the viewer.”

    - TAM Magazine on Personal Space

  • “Hi, I’m Tom’s dad. I think his writing is really superb.”

    - Tom's Dad

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