Spacefreighters Lounge

MISSION: SUCCESS
Laurie's Journal

I have good news and bad news to share about my writer's journey from this past week. The good news is I finished my short story The Shell and the Star. The bad news is that when I re-opened the manuscript, the resolution I thought I'd already written--with its cool twist and brilliant wrap--uh...wasn't there!

Gasp! Wait. What?

Cue compulsory hard drive scour for a more recent version. Zip. Zilch. Nada.

I know I wrote the grand finale. I remember writing it. I know it's somewhere...but I can't seem to find the coordinates of the point it occupies on this plane of existence. Doubt ensues. Did I write it and not save the file? Did I pen it in a notebook that has since been misplaced? Did I only dream I finished the story?

My FNF (For Now Fix) was to rewrite a new ending. Unfortunately, I know it's not THE ending that originally came out of my head. It's a bit flat and uninspired and so not ready for prime time. Some writers probably would have set it aside to work on it another time, but I felt a need to wrap the story. I guess it's like training a dog or a horse and always wanting to end the lesson on a positive note instead concluding with a negative experience. My muse had to have that cookie. My head required a sense of accomplishment so I didn't succumb to frustration.

Now I can press reset and mull over other options for a more fitting finale. Maybe even try re-conjuring the original wrap from my subconscious since the details are eluding me. In the meantime, it is a setback. The Shell and the Star will remain in sort of a Limbo of the Lost until I can create a satisfying fix.

Thought for the day: It's too bad our brains don't come with an automatic backup system.

So I'm curious. Has this ever happened to you? I'm sure this is more of a pantser's malady than a plotter's. A plotter would have every detail down on paper, most likely color-coded and cross-referenced. Pantsers...not so much. This scenario is when the head-to-page style of creative writing can really backfire on ya. *wipes soot from face*

ABOUT THE SHELL AND THE STAR

Here's a little about the story in question.

A female resident of a high-tech spacestation and an ocean-dwelling male discover they have more in common than being the children of high-ranking officials. An arranged courtship by their parents leads to unexpected consequences that could save--or destroy--both races.

The title The Shell and The Star represent the standards of the two species. The Star is the emblem of the Talstar Space Station in geosynchronous orbit over planet Veros. The Shell is the icon of the aquatic Perling species who live more primitive lives beneath the surface of the shallow seas.

Excerpt:

“You have a suitor.”

Jinn peered up into her father’s eyes as he floated into place before her. Is he joking? Since she’d come of age, five long years had passed without a bid for her hand. She’d given up hope of ever having a mate.

“Who…who makes this request?”

“The Fourth Dominant of the Perling.”

Jinn gasped, reeling like the oxygen had just been sucked out the airlock. A Perling Dominant? An alien? “Father, no! I can’t—“

“You will answer his bid,” her father insisted, grabbing a handhold to anchor himself in Talstar’s zero gravity.

“But why? Why would a Perling Dominant want my hand?”

“Not the Dom himself, girl. He asks on behalf of his second son.”

Jinn dropped her gaze to her small fists clenched around the frame of her sleeprack, her shoulder drifting to bump the bulkhead. “Why would even a second son want me?”

Jinn sets out on a reluctant mission of discovery, where she learns not only about the Perling race and her intended mate, but secrets from the past that she never could have imagined and promises for a future that she never dared to dream.

The Shell and the Star is currently about 12,500 words and takes place in a distance future of the Draxian Universe on (or above and in the waters of) planet Veros. When it's completed, my plans are to scout a home for it in an upcoming SFR anthology or offer it as a free standalone story.

SCIENTIFIC BREAKTHROUGH INSPIRING FOR SFR

A new medical breakthrough might just be the stuff of SFR writers' dreams.

A team of scientists at Boston's Childrens Hospital have developed an exciting new treatment, an oxygen particle that can be put into the bloodstream to oxygenate the blood. Result? You don't have to breathe to live! At least for about 30 minutes.

How does it work?

By creating particles containing oxygen gas pockets inside lipids fats, the resulting globules can hold four times the oxygen of a red blood cell and are flexible enough not to get log-jammed in blood vessels, causing dangerous gas embolisms. The particles are simply injected directly into the bloodstream. The new therapy can be used to treat a number of maladies that deprive the body of oxygen--such as pneumonia, collapsed lung, or hemorrhaging of the respiratory system--long enough to treat the patient before the brain is damaged or destroyed due to lack of oxygen. This helps ensure survival for the precious minutes while surgeons are working to treat the damage.

Future potential?

This is where things really get exciting. As the therapy is developed to allow for longer periods of oxygenation, if you can imagine it, it can probably be applied. Think about Navy Seals who would no longer need underwater breathing gear for missions. How about undersea researchers, ocean rescue efforts, submarine accidents and other situations where the particles could be injected into the blood to allow first responders to deploy without gear--or someone trapped underwater to survive long enough to be recovered. (Remember the intentional drowning and resuscitation scene from The Abyss? Problem solved.)

Now apply a little imagination and think about the implications for outer space exploration and future colonies.

You can read more about the breakthrough here: TechWench

Or watch a short YouTube video:




A MESSAGE TO OUR FOLLOWERS

Sometime in the next week or two, this humble blog is going to achieve a major milestone--125,000 hits over it's lifetime. We appreciate all our followers, old and new, who have helped to steadily raise our stats with each new year, and even each successive month. With so much content available on the internet, and a plethora of blogs on every conceivable topic, we're glad you're willing to spend a little of your time with us here at Spacefreighters Lounge.

Bartender, fetch another round of Billins--on the house!

PING PONG

I really enjoyed the discussion inspired by Sharon's blog about authors behaving badly. Food for thought to all aspiring writers, for sure.

Donna, I'm looking forward to this week's more in depth review of the new Star Trek Into Darkness movie. Your blog last week didn't give away any of the Trekker goodies that came out in the story, but definitely clued me in on what to watch for. I saw the 3D version.

Pippa, good luck with organizing/arranging the next SFR blog hop in June. It's a big job, but a worthy undertaking in how it benefits and raises awareness of the SFR subgenre as a whole.