As I’ve been struggling with this Old Mars story I had a realization — I write short stories much more easily when they are set in a universe I have already created and where I have spent a lot of time.
The other stories I’ve written for Gardner and George were set in the Imperials universe, and the Edge universe, and they just flowed onto the page (or the screen).
This one is set in a sort of Bradbury/Heinleinesque Mars. A place I don’t know well, and I’m just now exploring. It seems that I need to understand the universe and it’s rules before I can spin a tale set in said universe.
That seems to be what’s been slowing me down on this story. I’m discovering the world and how it works, and that hasn’t left a lot of brain power for crafting an effective story with a beginning, a middle and an end.
I’ve got the characters. Characters are easy for me, but how they react can change based on the environment, and that’s where I’m still exploring.
I’ve just about got it whipped, but damn this one has been hard.
