The God Next Door

"The God Next Door" by William R. Doede is a science fiction story from the early 1960s that throws a spotlight on what it means to be human, a civilization, and even a god on a strange alien planet. Stinson, the main character, travels to a distant solar system to see if life can thrive on a newly discovered world. Instead, he finds beings and forces he can barely understand, like strange web-footed creatures and a powerful "Sand God." The story follows Stinson as he unexpectedly becomes a god himself, deals with a woman who claims to be his wife, and struggles with the moral problems of having advanced technology in a primitive world. As Stinson tries to protect the web-footed people from the anger of the Gel God and promote peace, he questions what existence and life truly mean and what responsibilities come with power, while pondering his choice to stay or return to Earth and the consequences either choice brings to the planet's inhabitants and himself.