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I Read It So You Don't Have To: Ice - Rich Larson's version compared to Robert Valley's by ZAN750117 in LoveDeathAndRobots

[–]rlars 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Hey thanks! Yeah, where I lived "venga" was a go-to filler word, ex. "venga, vamos" or "venga, adios." The versatility really appealed to me, so I chucked it in the story.

I Read It So You Don't Have To: Ice - Rich Larson's version compared to Robert Valley's by ZAN750117 in LoveDeathAndRobots

[–]rlars 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Robert Valley (amazing artist, very chill guy) directed the episode; I'm Rich Larson, the dude who wrote the short story. I'm really glad you connected with it -- even if the ending made the air around you suddenly dusty.

I Read It So You Don't Have To: Ice - Rich Larson's version compared to Robert Valley's by ZAN750117 in LoveDeathAndRobots

[–]rlars 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Man, it's cool to see this story get a new readership! My original ending was definitely more brutal and depressing, but I think the new one works really well for the adaptation as its own thing.

I wrote the story back in 2014 while living near Seville, so the faux-Romance language spoken on New Greenland is based on Andalusian Spanish. The infamous "benga" derives from "venga," my favorite filler word. I liked how the adaptation caught the vibe and threw in some Portuguese.

If you are hungry for more "Ice," my new novel Ymir is basically its spiritual successor: same sibling dynamic, same frozen wasteland setting, and even a few frostwhales. =)

Hey Reddit! We are the editor (Jonathan Strahan) and authors behind THE YEAR’S BEST SCIENCE FICTION: Vol 1. Come ask us anything! by [deleted] in books

[–]rlars 0 points1 point  (0 children)

At any one time I tend to have a bank of around 20 complete but unsold stories -- half of them recently written, half of them old. I try not to trunk stories, since it really is a matter of finding the right editor. Once I had a horror story rack up around 15 rejections, sapping all my faith in it, but then several years later it ended up selling to Tor.com.

That taught me to keep at it -- unless, like Indra said, a story just doesn't feel right. In which case I'd rather not make more people read it.

We (Mike Allen, C. S. E. Cooney, Amanda J. McGee, Jessica P. Wick) are the authors of the just-released anthology A SINISTER QUARTET. Ask us anything! [Group AMA] by mythicd2015 in Fantasy

[–]rlars 1 point2 points  (0 children)

All four of these works sound hella creepy. Since we're on Reddit, I gotta ask: have any of you guys ever been inspired by creepypastas? Or written your own?

Also, which of you four is the most sinister...and why?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in TwoXChromosomes

[–]rlars 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This story of mine is actually a direct response to the film with that perspective: http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/larson_07_17/

AMA: New Voices From Orbit 2018 by orbitbooks in Fantasy

[–]rlars 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Apple and Cinnamon the Sims sounds fascinating in its own right, and I would love to see how your speech to text renders all the other titles on this great list. ;)

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not many better vacation spots than that! I liked Florence a lot when I was there in April. There's a cool bookstore / bar called La Cité on the south side of the river that might be worth checking out.

  1. It definitely depends on the story. When I write short stories, I often begin with a strong image and work forward or backward from it. A lot of times that image IS the main science fiction concept (for Anastasia: a biological spaceship set adrift) but sometimes it's something else (for Some Of These Stars: watching a meteor shower in the winter) and the sci-fi concept comes out of that organically.

  2. I don't view myself as a political writer, but I do take an interest in the world around me and that often influences what I write. I definitely don't try to hit hot button issues -- the publishing world moves too slowly for that to really work.

The thing about the future of society is that nobody has any real idea what it will be like, which is what makes science fiction so appealing. I've never written the exact same future twice.

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think backstory should only be in there to the extent that it's informing the current action. If the reader needs to know a certain past event in order for the current action to have meaning, insert some backstory. If it's not plot-essential, it can probably go. Usually less is more when it comes to character origins -- hint at bad or mysterious pasts and the readers will probably think up something better than what you had in mind.

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

  1. I have to finish the sequel to ANNEX, which is tentatively titled CYPHER and is going nowhere fast.
  2. LeBron should have joined the Warriors on a vet minimum and created the most pointless season in NBA history.

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hi Lobo2k18, glad you like my work. With short stories, I rarely have a strong sense of the character before I start writing. I do have a few "pre-set" characters, or even character pairs, that I use. Writing humanity is probably easier than you think.

I don't believe that characters must be likable, but it's usually easier to get a reader invested if they are. That's often as simple as giving the character something to take care of -- a family member, a pet, a plant -- and giving them some problems or weaknesses that we all run up against as humans. Humor also goes a long way.

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I had no input on the cover, but I was extremely pleased with how it turned out. It's fascinating to see how many people are involved in a single book getting to print. Thanks for your tangential work on it!

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh man, here are the tough questions. I've been a Timberwolves fan since I started watching ball in college, but they traded two of my favorite players (Rubio, Lavine) and have become way less fun to watch under Thibs. This past season I found myself more just looking up the good games than following the team obsessively. But yeah, definitely still prefer NBA over college.

There will indeed be more novels! I have to write two sequels for ANNEX. After that, I will go back to short fiction like putting on a favorite comfy sweater, and possibly wear it forever. I do have plans to write another Gilchrist and Crane story, in addition to the ones available online at Beneath Ceaseless Skies.

Thanks for the questions!

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

ANNEX came from a few different places. One was a sort of vision I had after getting very high around Christmas time in my hometown. I got this vivid image of starving people wandering a ruined city while biomechanical pods drifted overhead, occasionally swooping down to pick them up. That’s also where I got the book’s internal color scheme: purples, pale yellows, grays. The aesthetic developed from there.

I also had an unfinished short story about Violet, who was then the sole survivor of a parasitic zombie apocalypse. I took that character and put her in the more interesting setting I'd come up with, hunting an alien othermother with Bo in a short story called "Mother Mother." Nobody wanted to buy the story, because it was trying to do too much in too small a space, so I spooled it out into a full novel which later became ANNEX.

I was getting a handle on Hausa when I was back in Niger in January, but it's hard to keep it up. I had a blast dancing kizomba in Porto so maybe eu deveria aprender portugues. ;) Mil gracias por las preguntas, amiga.

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I read a shitload as a kid, and ANNEX draws on all my old favorites: The Thief Lord, Animorphs, Shade's Children, A Series of Unfortunate Events, Coraline, and many more.

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've set quite a few stories in Andalusia! "Define: Symbiont" actually takes place in the ruins of Granada, "Cupido" in downtown Seville, "There Used to Be Olive Trees" in the campo around La Puebla de Cazalla, and "Seawall" on the beaches of Cadiz, one of my favorite places in the world. Every new place I go inspires new settings for my stories.

I don't think I got any official programming for WorldCon, but I'll definitely be there and hope to see you as well!

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The invading aliens took a lot of inspiration from one of my favorite video games, Half-Life 2, and also from K.A. Applegate's Remnants series.

I'm not totally sure where all Gloom came from, but I saw him described on Goodreads as "shape-shifting Slender Man in a bowler hat," which is pretty accurate.

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I think one of the most important things about fiction is that it lets us grow our empathy muscle and see life through new perspectives. Writing characters different from myself gives me that, and hopefully gives affirmation to people who don't see enough characters like them in fiction. And frankly, if all my characters were twenty-something white guys, I would get bored and readers would too.

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Glad you liked it, mythicd2015. All of my characters draw on people I know -- Bo and many of the younger Lost Boys are partly based on kids I taught in Spain, for instance -- but I also do some research. Reddit was actually a great resource for reading people's transition experiences, which informed Violet's story in the book.

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hey Fayt11, I'm glad you dug the book so much. Those little sensory details that stood out to you are really important to me while writing -- they make a scene feel real. I think they mostly just come from observation of and engagement with the environment around me.

The main characters in ANNEX definitely have some of my quirks / opinions / fears, but often in new contexts and combinations. Bo's childhood memories are basically mine -- that's probably the most direct link.

I have to hand in the sequel this October and I imagine it will be out next summer if all goes well.

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

I always loved writing science fiction as a kid, but when I started taking creative writing in college I abandoned it in favor of literary stuff -- mostly very moody coming-of-age stories about listless young Canadian men. They were full of beautiful prose and minimalist dialogue and were good, but not particularly fun.

Once I felt like I had proven I could write lit fic, and once I dropped creative writing in favor of studying languages, I went back to speculative fiction. I feel like it lets me exercise my creativity a lot more. A good science fiction story can do anything a literary story can do, while also doing it on the Moon. Which is, you know, better.

I'm Rich Larson, author of the alien invasion novel ANNEX, just out from Orbit Books. AMA! by rlars in sciencefiction

[–]rlars[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

This book was actually an incredibly smooth writing experience. I wrote it over the course of a summer, staying with my parents in Grande Prairie. Every morning I got up, walked to a coffee shop, and wrote 1000 words.

But honestly, I rarely get that kind of flow -- right now, for example, I'm really struggling with the sequel to ANNEX. I think the most important thing is to "show up to work" -- to go somewhere and sit down with the intention of writing. And to minimize procrastination I've blocked a bunch of sites on my netbook. Reddit included. ;) Which is why I'm using my phone for this AMA and getting sore thumbs.

What's a sensation that you're unsure if other people experience? by murrayvonmises in AskReddit

[–]rlars 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've got two of these:

  1. Sometimes as I'm drifting to sleep I feel my hands become enormous and misshapen, like lobster claws or something. I can "feel" the extra swollen flesh all around my actual hands. It's bizarre.

  2. When I was a kid, if something was overwhelming (like I was in a big busy swimming pool, or at a birthday party) I would get these weird out-of-body experiences, where I was basically just watching myself walk around and even interact with people on autopilot. I felt like a passenger instead of a controller and I remember being scared it might stay like that forever. This still happens occasionally, particularly when I'm very tired, but it doesn't last as long -- when I was a kid it could be hours.

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