Behind The Story: "Data Collector"
What if the war your nation is fighting is just an illusion to thwart a civil war?
Welcome to another edition Behind The Story—the part of that I hope is as insightful for you as it is helpful for me. I use it to reflect on where my brain was at throughout the writing process. And if you enjoy the stories posted here (especially enough to be a paid subscriber), perhaps you’ll find that kinda thing interesting.
Data Collector… let’s talk about it!
Excerpt:
Henry seemed happy as he fell. And the ray-dee-oh static soothed just enough of Torin’s panic for him to call the cops and, for reasons peculiar even to himself, hide the metal ray-dee-oh alongside his manual behind the bar. He could’ve sworn he heard a crisp, distant noise emerging from the ray-dee-oh’s crackle before he powered it down, but it was too late to power it up and double-check because there was a knock on the door and a blood-stained wall to explain.
I’m both proud and frustrated by this one. As confident as I am of its completeness, I can’t help but think that I could have done more. Perhaps it’s because I know in my heart of hearts that the power of my self-imposed deadline is what truly pushed it through the finish-line.
I suppose my concern about this story, and many of the stories I’ve written so far, is that I’m writing first chapters and not short stories.
There are fascinating excerpts from sci-fi writing legend Octavia E. Butler’s notebooks that I think of often (and thought of more so while writing Data Collector).
It’s her emphasis on feeling that rings true. With this story being loosely inspired by AI misinformation surrounding the Israel-Hamas war — feeling, mood, and tone were my prime objectives more than a specific plot or series of events. But such vagaries open the door to insecurities that taunt and dance around the question “Did you actually write a story? Or is this just…. vibes?”
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