Blank! is a science fiction

Science fiction

Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...

 short story

Short story

A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...

 by Isaac Asimov

Isaac Asimov

Isaac Asimov was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000...

. It was commissioned by Larry Shaw

Larry Shaw (editor)

Lawrence Taylor Shaw was a Hugo Award-winning science fiction fan, author, editor and literary agent who usually published as Larry T. Shaw....

, editor of Infinity Science Fiction, as being the least inspirational title on which to base a story. Harlan Ellison

Harlan Ellison

Harlan Jay Ellison is an American writer. His principal genre is speculative fiction.His published works include over 1,700 short stories, novellas, screenplays, teleplays, essays, a wide range of criticism covering literature, film, television, and print media...

 and Randall Garrett

Randall Garrett

Randall Garrett was an American science fiction and fantasy author. He was a prolific contributor to Astounding and other science fiction magazines of the 1950s and 1960s...

 were also invited to submit stories based on the same title; Garrett wrote one with "Blank?" as the title while Ellison submitted "Blank". All three were published in the magazine in June 1957. Asimov's story is later reprinted in the 1975 collection Buy Jupiter and Other Stories

Buy Jupiter and Other Stories

Buy Jupiter and Other Stories is a 1975 collection of short stories by American writer Isaac Asimov.It includes the following stories:*"Darwinian Pool Room"* "Day of the Hunters" * "Shah Guido G." * "Button, Button"...

.

Plot summary

The story is about a scientist who is experimenting with time travel. He persuades a reluctant colleague to join him on a journey in the machine he has developed. Despite the inventor's protestations that nothing can go wrong, something does go wrong, and the two travellers find themselves stuck in non-time, between two time-particles. As they fade into unconsciousness, they realise that 'where even eternity was meaningless, there would only be - blank!'