A short story
quote:
Originally posted by Smartass 2002:
That was great! Where did you get the idea for the story from??
I’m flattered that you think enough of my little story to actually wonder about its origins. There were actually a number of events that inspired it. It was written on February 17, and on that day I had to meet with the school psychologist because I got in a little trouble over something I did. There is something really menacing about someone who really hates you acting like he’s your friend. Plus there’s that irritating plural thing (“How are we doing today?”). Anyway, that caused me to fantasize about doing to him what Gêkí did to the doctor. Then in speech fourth block (my last class of the day) I was looking for a good script for dramatic interpretation and got really frustrated and came to the conclusion that the only way to find one I liked would be to write my own (even though realistically I couldn’t use it). When I was walking home I started thinking (not seriously at first) about what I would write if I could write a D.I.
The scene in the [i]Lexx[/i] episode [i]Tunnels[/i] in which Kai is questioned was a factor. I had that in mind when I was putting together the story in my head. I combined that with the evil psychiatrist idea. I thought it would be neat to have some futuristic character, bizarre in the context of twenty first century America, questioned by a twentieth century American. I don’t like time travel so I decided to make it an illusory reality (generated by, of course, the doctor). I was also influenced by a short story I had read shortly before which consisted mainly of one scene and dialog and in the end was open to multiple interpretations.
After failing to think up a new type of character for the out of place man I decided to make him a Yün Siph. The Yün Siph are in a couple chapters of a novel I’m writing. There are only two left, and one is killed in the course of the story. I came up with kind of mini-biographies for the major characters, and from the one for Gêkí (sort of the idealized sci-fi version of myself) I got some of the stuff like him almost having his heart cut out with a scalpel by a female agent of the Technocrats. So by the time I got home I had the entire story laid out in my mind and all I had to do was sit down at my computer and bang it out. The only real change from my original concept of it was the new (less definite) ending.
The origin of the name Lester Shield is interesting: it was what I was called at a speech & debate tournament by someone who misheard my name over the background noise.
I hope that is a satisfactory account of my story’s origins and is not too boring. I don’t want to sound egotistical, I know I’m not a hot shot sci-fi writer and my story isn’t all that great.
[ 04-03-2002: Message edited by: DalekTek790 ]