Published!

I am now a published writer. My world should be complete... I guess.

Unfortunately the short story Antipodean SF published, Pod 5534, wasn't something I'm particularly fond of, nor do I think it is particularly clever. I regard it as forgettable; a passing milestone preceding the eventual world-wide publishing of my beloved SAM novel, and a notation of accomplishment to populate a fairly bare resume.

The story Pod 5534 is a mere intestine cut from a disemboweled 50,000 word dialogue-only compilation I wrote for Nanowrimo. This brain dump was very intense. I wrote around 40 short stories, one after another, using whatever came up from that strange, dark place inside me. I varnished a few of these stories and sent them off... mostly into editor's bins I suspect. The Pod story just happened to hit the right note with this editor.

So why write 50,000 words of pure dialogue?

Other than to annoy my sister by refusing to follow Nano's rules to the letter, I know how important descriptions are from a character's POV and I needed the practise. My character's minds are built from very obscure and indefinable 'stuff'. Articulating their beliefs and ego's so a reader can judge them is incredibly hard. Nano was a chance to allow a character's speech to flow without me butting in to twist their words into what I wanted them to say.

It was an interesting experience and a valuable technique. I will have to use it again sometime.