How to Invent Everything: A Survival Guide for the Stranded Time Traveler
| First published | September 2018 |
|---|---|
| Type | Nonfiction |
Based on the conceit of a manual for users of a time machine, to cover eventualities where the time machine has broken down.
The core content is real-world non-fiction (mostly on STEM topics, but with some sections covering areas such as philosophy and music), regarding inventions and discoveries and how they came about.
This information is presented using the conceit that the book is the manual for a time machine, aimed at users who are stranded in the past if the machine breaks down, and how they might be able to (re)build a society capable of fixing the time machine.
The introduction further elaborates the conceit, implying that this "manual" was written by a version of the author from an alternative, more advanced timeline than our own.
| Year | Award | Category | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Goodreads Choice Awards | Science & Technology | Nominee/Finalist |
| 2019 | Hugo Award | Best Related Work | Nominee/Finalist |
| Date | Publication | Publisher | Type | Page | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2018 |
|
How to Invent Everything: A Survival Guide for the Stranded Time Traveler | Riverhead Books | Nonfiction | |
| September 2018 |
|
How to Invent Everything: A Survival Guide for the Stranded Time Traveler | Virgin Books | Nonfiction | |
| November 2020 |
|
Wie man unsere Zivilisation wieder aufbaut, wenn man sich mit seiner Zeitmaschine verfahren hat | EMF | Nonfiction |