This brought up such angst…I’m a gardener and a woods wanderer. To have Earth die…what pain! I’d be one of the stubborn ones, still trying to grow things, sitting at my campfire in what I hoped wouldn’t be permanent darkness. This really touched a deep fear and sadness in me! Excellent!
Loved this. Haunting, beautiful. Agree with Will that the process and draft notes are so interesting and useful.
Also - ha! - Thank you for this: “And, finally, I saved you a narrative breakdown of how many days elapse before the earth is too cold for various things – plants, animals, CO2 disruption, etc. Though, Andy Weir would have been proud.”
I definitely have a tendency to go overboard with background information about the characters. I want people to know them, so I have to fight the urge to tell everything I know about them.
Thanks Will! Glad you chose to listen to the track! I really love that score and it was the one that came to mind because of the shot in the movie where Brand (Anne Hathaway’s character) walking in sunset on Edmund’s planet. Clip here: https://youtu.be/Br_0i68xMC0?si=4uxCy77CKrNgFiQy
About early drafts — first, thanks for the kind words. I’m a bit split about sharing that kind of detail – sort of like seeing the sausage being made. If you found it helpful then that makes it worth it.
It was just helpful to see what one of the early drafts was and how it got polished and what your consideration was when doing the polishing. that kind of then and now juxtaposition is always fun.
One other thought: Readers rarely dig down into an archive. There are only so many hours in a day to read! Please, always feel free to bring pieces back out to repost and resend - the ones you like best. Your readers appreciate it.
Well, it is always easy to just hit the "restack" icon your own piece. Many do it. But there is no email sent out. But if you go to the post I want to repeat, click on the " ... " and select "make a copy", it goes directly back to your drafts folder. Then amend the title and reschedule as usual. I usually delete the original post, but you could leave it there as well
Thanks! Putting on my Andy Weir hat for a moment — I think the first story conceit is that someone has figured out exactly when the sun would die. After that, we know the suns light takes, roughly, 8 minutes to reach the earth. It varies, of course, due to the eliptical orbit and wobble of the earth. At aphelion (furthest) the time is ~8.45, perihelion (closest) it’s ~8.17. I chose the latter and fudged it a little. ;-)
Thank you, Mr Curtis, for not explaining everything in this beautifully styled, provocative story. You trust your readers to understand without giving all the backstory. We don't need it. We can imagine it ourselves. I often feel insulted by new writers who don't understand this.
These bits are especially fine:
"...false daylight and the timed hiss of manufactured rain" ... "faces bright with pretend hope" .... "we sear the sun’s shape into our minds, feel the whisper of flames, the heat of its core" ... "When I imagine the endless night, it's your hand I seek."
Only one line confused me: "..we bake ourselves at the edge of the domed roof in the late afternoon until it’s safe to slip back inside." Why was it unsafe to slip back inside? I missed something.
Thank you! I’m glad those stuck out. Good note about the “baked” line. I meant it to imply that they sit atop the new city and warm themselves in the afternoon sun. I suppose it could have been any other descriptor: bronzed, tanned, toasted, sizzled. Okay, maybe not sizzled.
This brought up such angst…I’m a gardener and a woods wanderer. To have Earth die…what pain! I’d be one of the stubborn ones, still trying to grow things, sitting at my campfire in what I hoped wouldn’t be permanent darkness. This really touched a deep fear and sadness in me! Excellent!
Thank you! That’s the kind of strong reaction I was warned about…and hoped for. Thanks for reading!
Loved this. Haunting, beautiful. Agree with Will that the process and draft notes are so interesting and useful.
Also - ha! - Thank you for this: “And, finally, I saved you a narrative breakdown of how many days elapse before the earth is too cold for various things – plants, animals, CO2 disruption, etc. Though, Andy Weir would have been proud.”
Thank you! Glad the process notes were helpful. I’ll try to do more in the future.
Glad you liked the Andy Weir line…it’s exactly how my brain works. Do you go overboard on details in early drafts, too?
I definitely have a tendency to go overboard with background information about the characters. I want people to know them, so I have to fight the urge to tell everything I know about them.
Glad to know I’m not alone. How big do you think the overwriter’s support group might be?
I don’t think it’s small!!
Loved the story (re-read it with the music which was quite the ride!) I really appreciate you sharing parts of previous drafts, it is super helpful!
Thanks Will! Glad you chose to listen to the track! I really love that score and it was the one that came to mind because of the shot in the movie where Brand (Anne Hathaway’s character) walking in sunset on Edmund’s planet. Clip here: https://youtu.be/Br_0i68xMC0?si=4uxCy77CKrNgFiQy
About early drafts — first, thanks for the kind words. I’m a bit split about sharing that kind of detail – sort of like seeing the sausage being made. If you found it helpful then that makes it worth it.
Yeah, I get the "sausage being made" vibe. I imagine it depends on the story; some may lend themselves to behind the screen glimpses than others.
Agreed. I’ll do more in the future. Was there a particular part you found most helpful? I’m always curious to know what lands/doesnt.
It was just helpful to see what one of the early drafts was and how it got polished and what your consideration was when doing the polishing. that kind of then and now juxtaposition is always fun.
Totally! Can you imagine reading a first draft of Hemingway? All those long, rambling sentences before he had a few and cut every third word.
Btw, I’d like to point out 2 things — 1) I’m no Hemingway and 2) I made up his editing process
One other thought: Readers rarely dig down into an archive. There are only so many hours in a day to read! Please, always feel free to bring pieces back out to repost and resend - the ones you like best. Your readers appreciate it.
Good note. I wish Substack had a way (without taking something down and republishing) to refresh the feed. If you can think of a way, I’m all ears.
Well, it is always easy to just hit the "restack" icon your own piece. Many do it. But there is no email sent out. But if you go to the post I want to repeat, click on the " ... " and select "make a copy", it goes directly back to your drafts folder. Then amend the title and reschedule as usual. I usually delete the original post, but you could leave it there as well
Very good writing! I guess the only question I have is how did you know you had those 8 minutes?
Thanks! Putting on my Andy Weir hat for a moment — I think the first story conceit is that someone has figured out exactly when the sun would die. After that, we know the suns light takes, roughly, 8 minutes to reach the earth. It varies, of course, due to the eliptical orbit and wobble of the earth. At aphelion (furthest) the time is ~8.45, perihelion (closest) it’s ~8.17. I chose the latter and fudged it a little. ;-)
Thank you, Mr Curtis, for not explaining everything in this beautifully styled, provocative story. You trust your readers to understand without giving all the backstory. We don't need it. We can imagine it ourselves. I often feel insulted by new writers who don't understand this.
These bits are especially fine:
"...false daylight and the timed hiss of manufactured rain" ... "faces bright with pretend hope" .... "we sear the sun’s shape into our minds, feel the whisper of flames, the heat of its core" ... "When I imagine the endless night, it's your hand I seek."
Only one line confused me: "..we bake ourselves at the edge of the domed roof in the late afternoon until it’s safe to slip back inside." Why was it unsafe to slip back inside? I missed something.
Thank you! I’m glad those stuck out. Good note about the “baked” line. I meant it to imply that they sit atop the new city and warm themselves in the afternoon sun. I suppose it could have been any other descriptor: bronzed, tanned, toasted, sizzled. Okay, maybe not sizzled.
No, "baked" was perfect! I understood that. I didn't understand why it was "unsafe" to go back inside?
Ah! I made the assumption that the cover of darkness is easier to get around inside. But now, here I am, explaining everything 😉
Well, no. Not everything. I was totally comfortable with 99.9%! Ha ha ha.