Friday, October 12, 2012

New At I Work On A Starship

A kind of character sketch from the Far Edge:
     You've seen the type.  A little out of sync, too quiet or too loud; unless he's sitting with a bunch of gray heads, he doesn't get the jokes. He doesn't go outdoors when the sun's up and it's no bet that he's wearing a counter-pressure suit right now and the helmet's within arm's reach.  He can't sleep without the comforting hum and clank of machinery and if the air stops blowing, he wakes in the silence, heart pounding. 
     He's The Veteran.
 
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7 comments:

  1. The JackOctober 13, 2012 at 1:39 AM

    Wow.

    That had such a tactile texture to it. You could feel the pressure of the ships, the lights of the corridors on Smitty's world.

    The character and the setting nicely complement each other. Stephan feels very real.

    The story has a good emotional impact and has a verisimilitude and honesty that supports the story of this man's life.

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  2. RobOctober 13, 2012 at 6:54 AM

    FB writing, I new people like that from my old line of work and you captured them so well.

    73 & TNX R

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  3. Bubblehead Les.October 13, 2012 at 11:37 AM

    As a "Vet", all I can say is you "Got It."

    And somewhere, Rudyard Kipling has a Big Grin on his face.

    Thank You.

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  4. KenOctober 13, 2012 at 11:49 AM

    Terrific.

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  5. Roberta XOctober 13, 2012 at 1:03 PM

    I am humbled and much relieved, especially by Les and Rob.

    The tone and theme came to me in a flash, thinking about the ways in which veterans of the NATO-USSF/Federation of Concerned Spacemen War would be similar to and different from veterans of other wars when I realized it was really the same experience, only more so; and then I got the news Steve C. had passed away, decades too soon, and it sort of wrote itself.

    --But I agonized over the portrayal of Stephan Grey. How would men who'd seen the elephant and ridden the blame thing home take it?

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  6. Stephanie BelserOctober 13, 2012 at 7:26 PM

    Excellent writing. You brought the character to life, or as much as an obit article can. Well worth the wait, IMO.

    (Not that I'm anyone to throw stones in that regard, given the lack of posts on my fiction blog.)

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  7. rickn8orOctober 14, 2012 at 5:14 PM

    Just. Wow.

    Srsly.

    Wow.

    ReplyDelete

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