notes on a mirror
Electric Spec sent me the edits to my short story, The Comfort of Mirrors, and I was relieved to find that they were fairly minor. I was a little worried because the editors over there make a big deal about trimming the fat, the idea being that people don't want to read as much on a computer screen. I secretly wonder how true that is; I know that I read massive amounts of stuff online every day. In fact, I recently read a complete novel, Blindsight. It may be a generational thing.
At any rate, I was concerned because Mirrors is actually a fairly efficient piece of storytelling, by my standards. I eschewed stylistic flourishes for the most part; the story is told in the voice of a mathematician and is laid out in a terse, matter-of-factual manner. It's not so long, either, so I was worried about what and how much they would cut. It turns out my concerns were unwarranted. I don't miss what they took out and in several places they enhanced the clarity of what was being said, which is I think exactly what a good editor should do.
Now it's just a matter of waiting for January 31st, the very witching hour.
I'm a little nervous about how people who know me will react to this story, my official first. I joke about it being about suicidal clones, but it really is about clones who are killing themselves. It's not a happy story, you know? There are some dark patches before the end.
I know some people look at a story as a window into the writer's soul, and certainly any story reflects on its author, but often not in ways that you would expect. I'm not someone given to suicidal impulses, I promise. Or someone who revels in suffering and misery. To me the attraction of the story is the way in which it concisely and clinically explores one facet of the human condition.
At any rate, I'm very proud of the story and I stand by it. I hope people will take it in the spirit that it was written. One of my passions is for a deeper understanding of who we are and that's something I've always been able to explore through writing.
At any rate, I was concerned because Mirrors is actually a fairly efficient piece of storytelling, by my standards. I eschewed stylistic flourishes for the most part; the story is told in the voice of a mathematician and is laid out in a terse, matter-of-factual manner. It's not so long, either, so I was worried about what and how much they would cut. It turns out my concerns were unwarranted. I don't miss what they took out and in several places they enhanced the clarity of what was being said, which is I think exactly what a good editor should do.
Now it's just a matter of waiting for January 31st, the very witching hour.
I'm a little nervous about how people who know me will react to this story, my official first. I joke about it being about suicidal clones, but it really is about clones who are killing themselves. It's not a happy story, you know? There are some dark patches before the end.
I know some people look at a story as a window into the writer's soul, and certainly any story reflects on its author, but often not in ways that you would expect. I'm not someone given to suicidal impulses, I promise. Or someone who revels in suffering and misery. To me the attraction of the story is the way in which it concisely and clinically explores one facet of the human condition.
At any rate, I'm very proud of the story and I stand by it. I hope people will take it in the spirit that it was written. One of my passions is for a deeper understanding of who we are and that's something I've always been able to explore through writing.
posted by braun at 1:54 PM
3 Comments:
A generational thing?? How old do you think we are??
Heh, just kidding. Actually, I read reams online, too, but I've talked to lots of people who just won't give stories online the same time or chance they will if they're on paper.
Of course, most of these people don't have boring day jobs either. The boring day job really helps our hits! :)
I don't read much on line because I find it bothersome to read on a screen. Maybe it's just a bias from having read page sized texts all those years. But I also find it easier to read in the recliner with the tv on and not perched on an office chair and using the mouse to scroll down.
When you can plug a book or internet into the flatscreen and have the ease of reading you get from a book, then it would work for me.
PS Where you been, Braun? Are you hiding from the blog world? I hope you had a good holiday.
sex scenes: Yeah, I can definitely attest that a string of boring day jobs with internet are what have turned me into a voracious online reader.
writtenwyrd: Thanks for missing me! I'm still doing family stuff on the West Coast so that's why I've been slacking. I'll be back next week, in usual form no doubt.
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