"Searchlight" is a very short
science fiction
Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
story by American writer
Robert A. Heinlein
Robert Anson Heinlein ( ; July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was among the first to emphasize scientific acc ...
, about a little blind girl whose spaceship crashes on the
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It Orbit of the Moon, orbits around Earth at Lunar distance, an average distance of (; about 30 times Earth diameter, Earth's diameter). The Moon rotation, rotates, with a rotation period (lunar ...
. The search for her takes advantage of her prodigious musical ability to locate her.
It was originally written in 1962 as part of an advertisement for
Hoffman Electronics
H. Leslie Hoffman (1906 – June 24, 1971) was an American businessman. He was the founder and CEO of Hoffman Radio from 1941 to 1971, which changed its name to Hoffman Radio and Television in 1948. In the 1950s, he formed Hoffman Electronics ...
. Heinlein says that because it was so short it was much harder to write than writing novels. Perhaps because of this, it was the last short story Heinlein wrote; the remaining quarter-century of his career was devoted to writing novels and non-fiction essays.
"Searchlight" is anthologized in ''
The Worlds of Robert A. Heinlein'', a collection of short stories published in 1966 and his ''
Expanded Universe
The term expanded universe, sometimes called an extended universe, is generally used to denote the "extension" of a media franchise (like a television program or a series of feature films) with other media, generally comics and original novels. ...
'' in 1980.
Short stories by Robert A. Heinlein
1962 short stories
Science fiction short stories
Short stories set on the Moon
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