I'm glad you found it so emotionally engaging! Haha. I wonder how those reading it weekly will approach it, whether that same transference of fear will be as intense as if you read it through?
I love how you've written this story, interspersing the fear Flinn has when being chased with her contentment in Youlbridge and the desperate search for her home.
Also, thanks for telling us who her baby daddy is; I assumed it was Rharsle this whole time. :)
Thanks! It is quite a breathless story, moving very fast in both the past and the present. I was quite pleased with how it turned out, as I was worried that switching between the two might not be sustainable, but I think it is. Thanks again for reading and commenting!
This is wonderfully imaginative writing, Alexander. I have come to this chapter first but the clever world building draws you in, the details (different thicknesses of roof tiles!) (and the rules of the Maze) show such a depth of thought and exploration. Fine writing, disproving my notion that ‘I don’t read fantasy world books’!
Oh this is a lovely comment, thank you so much! I rarely get any comments on fiction here, so this one makes me very happy. I really appreciate it.
It's funny, that issue with people not reading fantasy. It's something I note a lot, yet the rules are often bent (something I mentioned the other day on Notes, with Mikey Rothwell--how Salman Rushdie's work is so often fantasy, yet never seems to be found in the fantasy section, but in literature instead!).
For me, I try and make the people in the stories feel real and believable, which then makes the world itself slip into place that much easier. I've read certain fantasy books where the worldbuilding is too prominent, all made up names for page after page, and it can jar, pull the reader from the actual story. Better to slip things in and make the world populated by those we already know, in a way.
A pleasure. I think it is the same with dystopian writing. There’s a need to create a world that doesn’t exist, but it could. That feels like the secret. And not heavy handed or obvious. Show, not tell.
I was talking about similar this weekend, especially about climate fiction and solarpunk. I think science fiction and fantasy have a lot to offer when it comes to real-world issues, their lessons are more subtle, less in-your-face and can, therefore, often be more effective. I love to sneak things into my fiction in such a manner!
I've been pondering it a fair amount recently ... I bought myself two entries to the Aesthetica Creative Writing Awards and their 'brief' (or encouragement) is to push the boundaries - "Winning pieces have reflected upon both social and political structures, human relationships and experiences. They have pushed the boundaries of imagination – providing new possibilities and ideas".
I like that it is as much about the idea as it is about the words. I have a couple of ideas but I do need to throw words at the page!
It's such a fine line too, between preaching and gently examining a topic. I sometimes find certain pieces dry, lacking in soul, when they don't get the balance right. The key, as you say, however, is to get the words on the page to start!! (When I first started writing fiction, when I was very young and even into my 20s, I felt editing was merely checking spelling and grammar. The older I get, the higher the percentage of work and time is spent on wielding that scalpel, changing and testing, tasting and adding seasoning. I love it so much more now than I did.)
I never got the whole ‘editing is divine’ thing … King of Pantsing, that was me. Nowadays I relish the tweaks and adjustments, turning a phrase into the right turn of phrase.
Just so you know, I am still mad at you for this story and will never forgive you.
I'm glad you found it so emotionally engaging! Haha. I wonder how those reading it weekly will approach it, whether that same transference of fear will be as intense as if you read it through?
I love how you've written this story, interspersing the fear Flinn has when being chased with her contentment in Youlbridge and the desperate search for her home.
Also, thanks for telling us who her baby daddy is; I assumed it was Rharsle this whole time. :)
Thanks! It is quite a breathless story, moving very fast in both the past and the present. I was quite pleased with how it turned out, as I was worried that switching between the two might not be sustainable, but I think it is. Thanks again for reading and commenting!
This is wonderfully imaginative writing, Alexander. I have come to this chapter first but the clever world building draws you in, the details (different thicknesses of roof tiles!) (and the rules of the Maze) show such a depth of thought and exploration. Fine writing, disproving my notion that ‘I don’t read fantasy world books’!
Oh this is a lovely comment, thank you so much! I rarely get any comments on fiction here, so this one makes me very happy. I really appreciate it.
It's funny, that issue with people not reading fantasy. It's something I note a lot, yet the rules are often bent (something I mentioned the other day on Notes, with Mikey Rothwell--how Salman Rushdie's work is so often fantasy, yet never seems to be found in the fantasy section, but in literature instead!).
For me, I try and make the people in the stories feel real and believable, which then makes the world itself slip into place that much easier. I've read certain fantasy books where the worldbuilding is too prominent, all made up names for page after page, and it can jar, pull the reader from the actual story. Better to slip things in and make the world populated by those we already know, in a way.
Thanks again!
A pleasure. I think it is the same with dystopian writing. There’s a need to create a world that doesn’t exist, but it could. That feels like the secret. And not heavy handed or obvious. Show, not tell.
I was talking about similar this weekend, especially about climate fiction and solarpunk. I think science fiction and fantasy have a lot to offer when it comes to real-world issues, their lessons are more subtle, less in-your-face and can, therefore, often be more effective. I love to sneak things into my fiction in such a manner!
I've been pondering it a fair amount recently ... I bought myself two entries to the Aesthetica Creative Writing Awards and their 'brief' (or encouragement) is to push the boundaries - "Winning pieces have reflected upon both social and political structures, human relationships and experiences. They have pushed the boundaries of imagination – providing new possibilities and ideas".
I like that it is as much about the idea as it is about the words. I have a couple of ideas but I do need to throw words at the page!
It's such a fine line too, between preaching and gently examining a topic. I sometimes find certain pieces dry, lacking in soul, when they don't get the balance right. The key, as you say, however, is to get the words on the page to start!! (When I first started writing fiction, when I was very young and even into my 20s, I felt editing was merely checking spelling and grammar. The older I get, the higher the percentage of work and time is spent on wielding that scalpel, changing and testing, tasting and adding seasoning. I love it so much more now than I did.)
And, yes, exactly that. I think there’s something about finding characters who come across as real in the stories where there’s a message to convey.
I never got the whole ‘editing is divine’ thing … King of Pantsing, that was me. Nowadays I relish the tweaks and adjustments, turning a phrase into the right turn of phrase.