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Twitterfic on Nanoism

Fri, 05/22/2009 - 21:26 — Rhetor
    The twitterzine Nanoism is going to publish (and pay me for) a 140-character (23 word) fic on May 29th. You can see it on their web site or on Twitter.

    The pay is only $1.50, but that amounts to 6½¢ / word, which is more than the SFWA "pro" rate.

    On a similar note, the only money I ever made in the professional theatre was 25¢ a guy tipped me when I was ushering at the New Jersey Shakespeare Festival. I think I still have the actual quarter...

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    Fri, 05/29/2009 - 19:58 — Rhetor
    Rhetor's picture

    It's live

    You can read it now, on their Web site or on Twitter.

    Fri, 05/29/2009 - 20:12 — Sovran
    Sovran's picture

    Ahh...

    A nice, non-specific (a good thing!) little fic.

    I find it interesting that the stories on Nanoism seem to employ the same basic tactic of conveying as much emotion as possible in their few words. Focusing on impact, if you will. Of the fics I read, only one conveyed positive emotion . . . the rest were either sad, disturbing, frightening, or something else along those lines. Why the imbalance, I wonder? I have to admit that I found the negatively-themed ficlets more memorable than the positively-themed one. Is it harder to write a short, happy story that is interesting and effective? Or is it similarly difficult, and the audience's preferences are what set the tone of the stories published?

    Sat, 05/30/2009 - 01:29 — Rhetor
    Rhetor's picture

    Squealing Tires

    Sovran wrote:

    Of the fics I read, only one conveyed positive emotion . . . the rest were either sad, disturbing, frightening, or something else along those lines. Why the imbalance, I wonder? I have to admit that I found the negatively-themed ficlets more memorable than the positively-themed one. Is it harder to write a short, happy story that is interesting and effective? Or is it similarly difficult, and the audience's preferences are what set the tone of the stories published?

    Thanks, Dave! Interesting question. Myself, I think there are a lot of "cheap shots" among the twitterfics, really hard twists at the end, although that's less true on Nanoism than on, say, Thaumatrope.

    The difficulty is in the need to complete the arc of the story -- to have a change or movement of some kind take place before the end. With only 20 or 25 words to work with, it's hard to make that change anything more subtle than squealing tires. I think happy endings are a little harder to manage that quickly without seeming syrupy.

    But okay, let's try it:

    "Years negotiations, suddenly a breakthrough! Weird!" he complains. There's a soft hand on his shoulder. "You have no idea," she says.

    Is that better?

    Sat, 05/30/2009 - 03:12 — Sovran
    Sovran's picture

    Hmm....

    Closer, certainly, but so very vague. Moreso than your Nanoism submission. Let's see . . . I don't know if Twitter counts spaces as characters, but I suspect so. I'll work within that.

    She was very small, even for six, and smaller still without hair. But she was breathing well for the first time in her life.

    Maybe that counts as a cheap shot. I'm not entirely sure. And it definitely isn't purely happy; it's joyous in nature, but it comes from a sad place. What do you think?

    Sat, 05/30/2009 - 03:53 — Rhetor
    Rhetor's picture

    Sovran wrote: She was very

    Sovran wrote:

    She was very small, even for six, and smaller still without hair. But she was breathing well for the first time in her life.

    Maybe that counts as a cheap shot. I'm not entirely sure. And it definitely isn't purely happy; it's joyous in nature, but it comes from a sad place. What do you think?

    I agree. I think you couldn't maintain a uniform emotional beat and still have movement. I wouldn't call it a cheap shot -- You build a picture of the character, then make us worry about her, then provide relief. But the relief isn't pure; it's tempered with concern about what may happen next. I like it.

    The vagueness in my last one is really a matter of not taking the time to choose my words properly. I'm pretty sure I could make it clearer with more time.