{"id":4200,"date":"2017-08-29T09:44:54","date_gmt":"2017-08-29T09:44:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/?p=4200"},"modified":"2026-10-06T12:06:13","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T12:06:13","slug":"the-cosmic-scandal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/","title":{"rendered":"The Cosmic Scandal"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Solitanu's<\/p>\n

The Cosmic Scandal: Safrons, Neblings, Farawis and Antics<\/h2>\n

Scandals come and go in Anticlockwise. The latest one though, the Cosmic Scandal, was particularly dramatic. It was as usual centred on the rich and powerful. The key protagonist was the Minister for Currency and Coinage, the exotically named Cosmicongo Spoletti. \"TheWith a moniker like that he was asking for special media treatment. He was a gift that literally kept on giving. The scandal was consequently soon baptised the `Cosmic Scandal\u2019 in the popular press. The tabloids were relentless in their pursuit of the Machiavellian financial activities of the Currency and Coinage Minister responsible for the economic stability of the Anticlockwise Empire.<\/p>\n

I always feel safer when the authorities are embroiled in a scandal. They\u2019re so involved in their own affairs that they tend to leave nonentities like us to our own devices. It\u2019s hardly surprising when you think about it. They have to invest a lot of time and energy into avoiding being stabbed in the back by the plotters and schemers who surround them. So, when the scandals take centre stage we can all relax and go about our business in relative peace and calm.<\/p>\n

Strangely, there wasn\u2019t any sex involved in the `Cosmic Scandal\u2019 – no lurid photographs of naked flesh on tabloid front pages, no embarrassing disclosures about Cosmicongo\u2019s eccentricities or deviant tastes and proclivities. No. this was all about money – money from many different places.<\/p>\n

For several months we\u2019d all known that something strange had been happening in financial circles. Vast quantities of foreign notes had begun circulating on the black market. The authorities had made great efforts to shore up the value of the `antic\u2019, the Anticlock currency, over the past two years but everyone knew that they were treading water and that a serious economic crisis was in the offing. Even Olaf Kaminski, an unconditional supporter of the Anticlock regime, was dealing in foreign notes.<\/p>\n

The antic had in fact been devalued three times and had lost 50% of its value over the past year. Safrons from Safronika, neblings from Outer Neblus and farawis from the Faraway Galaxy were all seen as safer financial havens than the antic – especially farawis. For some inexplicable reason the value of the farawi had quadrupled in just two weeks. Everyone was on the lookout for farawis to make a quick buck.<\/p>\n

Cosmic had been placed under arrest accused of money laundering, insider trading and illegal foreign exchange transactions. What was driving the tabloid press into a state of hysterical frenzy however was that he was suspected of collaborating with the Safronika Confederation, the sworn enemies of the Anticlocks. They alleged that he\u2019d been trying to bring down the government. The rumour was that he\u2019d sold state secrets to the Safronikans in exchange for a vast fortune that had been deposited in an \u2018intergalactic\u2019 Bank account beyond the reach of the Anticlock Empire. Cosmicongo was portrayed as a treacherous villain who should be spared no punishment.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s what the government-controlled newspapers were at pains to proclaim in lurid headlines. Who\u2019s to know though what was really going on? The whole affair could have been dreamed up to eliminate Cosmicingo Spoletti himself who, some say, was getting far too big for his boots. It was well known that the Anticlock supreme commander was highly suspicious of Cosmic\u2019s ambitions and saw him as a direct threat to his own political future.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s what Max Destino-Coin told me in confidence. As you know, I always listen when Max tells me something. Max is very big on conspiracy theories you see. Not that he\u2019s got a political axe to grind. In many ways, Max is almost beyond politics and he\u2019s certainly not burdened by any moral scruples. At heart he\u2019s just a businessman looking for the next deal. Scandals are for him a gift-wrapped trading opportunity. While the attention of most people was focused on sensational stories of Cosmic\u2019s demise, Max was operating in the background making money – lots of money<\/p>\n

He confessed to me one evening at Infinity that he\u2019d made a killing on farawis out of Cosmic\u2019s misfortunes. The conspiratorial tone he adopted when he told me about it convinced me that what he\u2019d been doing was far from legal. I even suspected that it might have been Max himself who\u2019d orchestrated the whole affair as part of an enormous financial scam. But that would be just too far-fetched wouldn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n

Max bought me a glass of champagne to celebrate his windfall.<\/p>\n

Zeb Solitanu<\/a><\/p>\n

\"The\u00a9 Zeb Solitanu<\/a><\/p>\n

Zeb Solitanu sketch by Jill<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Anticlockwise Journal<\/a> – a compilation of Solitanu’s Blog posts – is on sale at Amazon<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Learn more about Blog Fiction<\/a> – follow Zeb Solitanu at Anticlockwise<\/a> and SpirianA <\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Explore the full range of Fictitious Books at fibs<\/a>, ZSol<\/a> and Essays<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Anticlockwise<\/p>\n

\"Solitanu's<\/p>\n

\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Cosmic Scandal: Safrons, Neblings, Farawis and Antics Scandals come and go in Anticlockwise. The latest one though, the Cosmic Scandal, was particularly dramatic. It was as usual centred on the rich and powerful. The key protagonist was the Minister for Currency and Coinage, the exotically named Cosmicongo Spoletti. With a moniker like that he […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"two_page_speed":[],"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[24,47],"tags":[],"class_list":["bg-stuff"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Cosmic Scandal<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Cosmic Scandal: Safrons, Neblings, Farawis and Antics. Cosmicongo Spoletti is arrested for currency fraud.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Cosmic Scandal\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Cosmic Scandal: Safrons, Neblings, Farawis and Antics. Cosmicongo Spoletti is arrested for currency fraud.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Fictitious Books\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"www.facebook.com\/fictitiousbooksfibs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-08-29T09:44:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-10-06T12:06:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"820\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"312\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Zeb Solitanu\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@fictitiousbooks\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@fictitiousbooks\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Zeb Solitanu\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Zeb Solitanu\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/82f52d5d98554902e03046723864bd6c\"},\"headline\":\"The Cosmic Scandal\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-08-29T09:44:54+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-06T12:06:13+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":826,\"commentCount\":15,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b605e2bb8308666c10a0663dace7853f\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/08\\\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Anticlockwise\",\"SpirianA\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Cosmic Scandal\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/08\\\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-08-29T09:44:54+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-06T12:06:13+00:00\",\"description\":\"The Cosmic Scandal: Safrons, Neblings, Farawis and Antics. Cosmicongo Spoletti is arrested for currency fraud.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/08\\\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/08\\\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg\",\"width\":820,\"height\":312,\"caption\":\"Solitanu's Blog - SpirianA\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/2017\\\/08\\\/29\\\/the-cosmic-scandal\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Cosmic Scandal\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Fictitious Books\",\"description\":\"creative online fiction\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b605e2bb8308666c10a0663dace7853f\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":[\"Person\",\"Organization\"],\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b605e2bb8308666c10a0663dace7853f\",\"name\":\"Michael Scriven\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/M-Passport-Photo.jpg\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/M-Passport-Photo.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/M-Passport-Photo.jpg\",\"width\":1169,\"height\":1493,\"caption\":\"Michael Scriven\"},\"logo\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/M-Passport-Photo.jpg\"},\"description\":\"Michael Scriven is a writer and founder of Fictitious Books fibs creative online fiction.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\",\"www.facebook.com\\\/fictitiousbooksfibs\",\"www.instagram.com\\\/michael.scriven.3726\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/fictitiousbooks\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/82f52d5d98554902e03046723864bd6c\",\"name\":\"Zeb Solitanu\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/34372a548e43d248877c87182b7434688430c64919d4d142446c84adc4f35853?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/34372a548e43d248877c87182b7434688430c64919d4d142446c84adc4f35853?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/34372a548e43d248877c87182b7434688430c64919d4d142446c84adc4f35853?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Zeb Solitanu\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fictitiousbooks.com\\\/index.php\\\/author\\\/solitanu\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Cosmic Scandal","description":"The Cosmic Scandal: Safrons, Neblings, Farawis and Antics. Cosmicongo Spoletti is arrested for currency fraud.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Cosmic Scandal","og_description":"The Cosmic Scandal: Safrons, Neblings, Farawis and Antics. Cosmicongo Spoletti is arrested for currency fraud.","og_url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/","og_site_name":"Fictitious Books","article_publisher":"www.facebook.com\/fictitiousbooksfibs","article_published_time":"2017-08-29T09:44:54+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-10-06T12:06:13+00:00","og_image":[{"width":820,"height":312,"url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Zeb Solitanu","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@fictitiousbooks","twitter_site":"@fictitiousbooks","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Zeb Solitanu","Estimated reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/"},"author":{"name":"Zeb Solitanu","@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/#\/schema\/person\/82f52d5d98554902e03046723864bd6c"},"headline":"The Cosmic Scandal","datePublished":"2017-08-29T09:44:54+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-06T12:06:13+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/"},"wordCount":826,"commentCount":15,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b605e2bb8308666c10a0663dace7853f"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg","articleSection":["Anticlockwise","SpirianA"],"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/","url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/","name":"The Cosmic Scandal","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg","datePublished":"2017-08-29T09:44:54+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-06T12:06:13+00:00","description":"The Cosmic Scandal: Safrons, Neblings, Farawis and Antics. Cosmicongo Spoletti is arrested for currency fraud.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg","width":820,"height":312,"caption":"Solitanu's Blog - SpirianA"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/29\/the-cosmic-scandal\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Cosmic Scandal"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/","name":"Fictitious Books","description":"creative online fiction","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b605e2bb8308666c10a0663dace7853f"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":["Person","Organization"],"@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b605e2bb8308666c10a0663dace7853f","name":"Michael Scriven","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/M-Passport-Photo.jpg","url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/M-Passport-Photo.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/M-Passport-Photo.jpg","width":1169,"height":1493,"caption":"Michael Scriven"},"logo":{"@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/M-Passport-Photo.jpg"},"description":"Michael Scriven is a writer and founder of Fictitious Books fibs creative online fiction.","sameAs":["https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com","www.facebook.com\/fictitiousbooksfibs","www.instagram.com\/michael.scriven.3726","https:\/\/x.com\/fictitiousbooks"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/#\/schema\/person\/82f52d5d98554902e03046723864bd6c","name":"Zeb Solitanu","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/34372a548e43d248877c87182b7434688430c64919d4d142446c84adc4f35853?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/34372a548e43d248877c87182b7434688430c64919d4d142446c84adc4f35853?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/34372a548e43d248877c87182b7434688430c64919d4d142446c84adc4f35853?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Zeb Solitanu"},"url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/author\/solitanu\/"}]}},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":false,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8lEYh-15K","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":12786,"url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2019\/12\/23\/snowflakes-in-fire\/","url_meta":{"origin":4200,"position":0},"title":"Snowflakes in Fire","author":"Zeb Solitanu","date":"23 December 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Snowflakes in Fire: the Unbelievably Bitter Tears of Reality `Snowflakes in fire! Once upon a time in a world of moral self-righteousness, nobody was seriously threatened by pain or death.\u2019 These were the opening words of a podcast I\u2019d stumbled across whilst trawling through the dark net one day last\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Anticlockwise"","block_context":{"text":"Anticlockwise","link":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/category\/anticlockwise\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Solitanu's Blog - Fictitious Books","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2007,"url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/06\/24\/passports-and-visas\/","url_meta":{"origin":4200,"position":1},"title":"Passports and Visas","author":"Zeb Solitanu","date":"24 June 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Passports and Visas: No Travel Beyond Anticlockwise Identity documents such as passports and visas are critically important at times of social unrest and disorder. I saw Tia again yesterday evening. The internet storm had finally calmed down after two weeks. The government, fearing, widespread riots, had released additional food supplies\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Anticlockwise"","block_context":{"text":"Anticlockwise","link":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/category\/anticlockwise\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Solitanu's Blog - Fictitious Books","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1917,"url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/04\/24\/lightning-link\/","url_meta":{"origin":4200,"position":2},"title":"Lightning Link","author":"Zeb Solitanu","date":"24 April 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Lightning Link: Communicating with Outer Neblusians I've been using the Lightning Link that Max set up a year ago. It's a highly sophisticated form of interstellar communications technology that's\u00a0years ahead of anything here in Anticlockwise. Max knew that it would be important to have an effective communication channel with anyone\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Anticlockwise"","block_context":{"text":"Anticlockwise","link":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/category\/anticlockwise\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Solitanu's Blog - Fictitious Books","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1900,"url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/04\/10\/max-destino-coin\/","url_meta":{"origin":4200,"position":3},"title":"Max Destino-Coin","author":"Zeb Solitanu","date":"10 April 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Max Destino-Coin: Cuban Cigars and an Invitation to Subversion I met Max Destino-Coin about a year ago. He was living at Infinity Gateway at the time. Not any more though. He's moved to a private mansion in the Fluorescent Light area of Globopolis. He still calls round occasionally to chat\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Anticlockwise"","block_context":{"text":"Anticlockwise","link":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/category\/anticlockwise\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Solitanu's Blog - Fictitious Books","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3287,"url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/03\/27\/the-great-wall\/","url_meta":{"origin":4200,"position":4},"title":"The Great Wall","author":"Zeb Solitanu","date":"27 March 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"The Great Wall: Countering SafrAntic Terrorism or Closing Minds? I knew that things had taken a turn for the worse when the Anticlock authorities began talking about the Great Wall. They made the announcement on a specially arranged TV broadcast to the nation. We always listen carefully when they make\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Anticlockwise"","block_context":{"text":"Anticlockwise","link":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/category\/anticlockwise\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Solitanu's Blog - Fictitious Books","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2292,"url":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/2017\/08\/15\/feast-to-famine\/","url_meta":{"origin":4200,"position":5},"title":"Feast to Famine","author":"Zeb Solitanu","date":"15 August 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Feast to Famine: The Lean, Hungry and Dangerous Look We've passed from feast to famine in Anticlockwise. Tia told me the other day that I was looking seriously scrawny. One of her friends had asked her if I was ill. Apparently she\u2019d never seen me so pale and haggard. I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Anticlockwise"","block_context":{"text":"Anticlockwise","link":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/category\/anticlockwise\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Solitanu's Blog - Fictitious Books","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fictitiousbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Solitanus-Blog.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4200","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4200"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4200\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13120,"href":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4200\/revisions\/13120"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4200"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4200"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fictitiousbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4200"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}