Weekly Unfinished Tales and Short Stories from our Dataset
Welcome to our daily collection of narrative fragments from the ‘Unfinished Tales’ project, an ongoing creative arts and research program exploring the frontiers of storytelling. These short stories are born from a spirit of interdisciplinary play and a genuine curiosity about the capabilities of new narrative tools. Undertaken primarily for the joy of creation and to see what we could learn, this collection represents a cross-section of our dataset, showcasing diverse experiments in character, genre, and emotional resonance as we map the evolving landscape of collaborative storytelling.
Beyond their narrative value, these tales serve as critical case studies for the project’s core research objectives. For our work in AI-Assisted Scriptwriting, they provide a rich dataset for analyzing plot structures, generating alternative story arcs, and exploring nuanced character development. Concurrently, they are instrumental in our Talent Development research, helping us identify and understand the essential skills, digital literacies, and interdisciplinary approaches creative professionals will need to effectively manage and collaborate with AI and other immersive technologies in future narrative production environments.
Today’s Unfinished Tales and Short Stories
The Ochre Blur
Author: Jamie F. Bell | Category: Ornate / Baroque | Genre: Domestic Thriller
A persistent, bone-deep chill has settled over Winnipeg, painting the city in shades of grey and ochre. Inside, the quiet hum of an old refrigerator is a monotonous counterpoint to the incessant drizzle tapping against windowpanes, blurring the lines between the stark reality of autumn and the persistent, vivid pull of another world.
The Uncurled Edges of Sleep
Author: Jamie F. Bell | Category: Hardboiled | Genre: Dystopian
A sweltering summer afternoon in Winnipeg pressed down, the air thick with the scent of hot asphalt and distant prairie dust. Owen, hunched over a crude contraption of wires and repurposed electronics, wiped a sheen of sweat from his brow, the relentless sun glaring off the grimy windowpane of his small, airless room. Outside, the city hummed with a low, oppressive drone, a constant reminder of the Consortium’s watchful, quiet presence, while inside, the silence stretched, broken only by the frantic buzz of a trapped fly and the occasional crackle from his makeshift device.
The Fraying Edges of Dawn
Author: Jamie F. Bell | Category: First-Person Narrative | Genre: Sci-Fi
The morning light, thin and hesitant, fought its way through the gap in the curtains, painting a pale, indifferent stripe across the wall. Don lay still, the heavy thrum of the Somnus rig beneath his pillow vibrating faintly against his skull, a lingering echo of a reality that felt more real than this one. The scent of lavender, Margaret’s favourite, was fading from his nostrils, replaced by the faint, stale odour of his own room. He felt her hand, cool and familiar, just moments ago tucked into his, a phantom weight now. The mattress, unforgiving and singular, pressed against his back, a stark reminder of the solitary space he now occupied.
The Unfastened Hours
Author: Jamie F. Bell | Category: Boys Love (BL) | Genre: Coming-of-Age
The Winnipeg summer dawn bled a pale, insipid blue through the gap in the curtains, a colour Fred despised. It was the precise shade of disappointment, a thin, weak wash over the lingering vibrancy of the night just vanished. His bed sheets, damp with sweat from the oppressive heat, felt like a shroud, clinging to him, anchoring him to a world he desperately wished to escape, a world that offered none of the profound, gentle solace of his dream.
The Unseen Architects
Author: Jamie F. Bell | Category: Crime Procedural | Genre: Mystery
A crisp autumn breeze, heavy with the scent of damp leaves and distant woodsmoke, snaked through the park, tugging at the scarves of the three teenagers huddled on a worn bench. Overhead, branches of elm and oak, stripped bare or ablaze in fiery reds, scratched at a sky that bled from pale denim to a bruised violet along the horizon. The air hummed with the faint, far-off rumble of Winnipeg traffic, a mundane counterpoint to the intense, hushed conversation unfolding in the fading light.
Design Notes and Applied Research
This collection’s fusion of genres, from Dystopian to Domestic Thriller, with distinct narrative styles like Hardboiled and Ornate prose, directly reflects our program’s focus on skills development. The variety demonstrates the artists’ capacity to navigate complex plotting, establish unique narrative voices, and build intricate worlds. The synthesis of such disparate categories highlights how digital platforms are transforming storytelling by enabling rapid experimentation and the blending of traditional forms.
This exercise served as a valuable and engaging experiment in creative agility and stylistic range. By challenging contributors to work within and across established conventions—from Crime Procedural to Boys Love (BL)—the project yielded a dynamic portfolio of original works. The resulting collection stands as a compelling record of the intersection between artistic discipline and technological possibility.
About the Project
The Unfinished Tales and Short Stories collection was an interdisciplinary arts and narrative storytelling experiment in 2025. It was part of a creative arts and participatory research project by The Arts Incubator Winnipeg and the Art Borups Corners collectives. It focuses on two key areas: AI-Assisted Storytelling and Scriptwriting, exploring AI tools for generating ideas, plot structures, and story arcs; and Talent Development and Training, studying digital skills, literacy and training needs for creative professionals by experimenting with AI and immersive technologies to inform future projects. Funding and support were generously provided by the Ontario Arts Council Multi and Inter-Arts Projects program and the Government of Ontario. We thank them for supporting the arts, digital transformation, and applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) research.
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