EBFIDDLER

Wednesday, 08 June 2011 17:30

Alright, here is story number three in my series, Sparks Fly.

I would like to thank my sister for beta reading.

I would also like to acknowledge the influence of Guildsister, and her terrific story “Blue Sun Job”—if you haven’t read it yet, what are you waiting for?—on the introductory segments of this story. I wrote Sparks Fly originally in script form, before I knew that “Blue Sun Room” meant “Firefly stories”—can you believe it? By the time I went back to re-write in regular prose, I had already read Blue Sun Job, and that’s when I added Zoe’s scenes. Blue Sun Job focuses on Mal and Zoe’s interaction, and the Zoe scenes were informed in a general way by what I had read in Guildsister’s work.

I also want to acknowledge—and here I’m in trouble, because I can’t find the reference—some one’s influence on the “morning after” scenes. These scenes gave me trouble, and I re-wrote them long after the rest Sparks Fly was written. By that time I’d read dozens of M/I fics in the Blue Sun Room, and the language of my “morning after” scenes echoes some stories that I read. One of them is Mal4Prez’s “Easy Tickets”—and that’s another one you should read if you haven’t read it yet. Just start at The Fish Job and read right on through to Back Stories. And then encourage Mal4Prez, in the kindest way possible, to write more. But there is another story, written by someone else, that is even closer to the language I used, and I’m sorry to say that despite re-reading and searching, I have not found the one I referenced most closely. If any of you readers know what I’m talking about, let me know so that I can properly acknowledge.

Lastly, (phew!) I want to apologize for any bad Chinese translations in my writings. I’m not a Chinese speaker, and I’ve been relying mostly on the online MDBG Chinese Translator. I’m trying to be careful, but I realize that an online translator is not an especially accurate way to work, especially for idiomatic phrases. I do check—“what the hell” translated as “What is the nature of the infernal regions?”—so I changed the wording! But any Chinese speaker has probably already noticed some real doozies—so, sorry!

Anyway, I hope you enjoy Sparks Fly. And I welcome your feedback.

NUTLUCK

Wednesday, 08 June 2011 18:53

Interesting start to your next story.

BYTEMITE

Wednesday, 08 June 2011 20:38

I guess we know what Saffron did.

You quoted Something To Think On Chapter 19 if that helps you find the reference. "Less than appropriate ways."

And no worries about the chinese, very few of us speak either I imagine.

AMDOBELL

Wednesday, 08 June 2011 22:58

I especially liked how you described Zoe and her grieving for Wash, and how in synch she and the Captain are. Nice to see Inara and Mal having some quality time together without ruining things before they can get started and as for the conversation about sat navs and their importance just before Serenity's goes on the blink was great. All the characters have their moment in the sun and are well drawn, can't wait to see what happens next! Ali D :~)
"You can't take the sky from me!"

EBFIDDLER

Wednesday, 08 June 2011 23:46

Thanks for the comments, all.

Bytemite, Thank you! I went and re-read Something to Think On--yes, there's the reference. So let me add another recommendation--for all to read Clio's thoughtful "Something to Think On"--especially if you love the M/I relationship.

Ali D--glad you like the Zoe portions; she's one of my favorite characters and the Mal/Zoe interaction is very important to me.

PLATONIST

Thursday, 09 June 2011 01:07

I like what you're playing with here and I've always thought the Zoe/Mal/Inara dynamic could have been as interesting as the Wash/Zoe/Mal constellation if the series hadn’t been canceled.

Looking for more.

Want to second a rec for clio's work, an emotionally powerful fic that's also thought provoking.

EBFIDDLER

Thursday, 16 June 2011 23:35

So, I'd like to tell a little story here. In college I took a class in celestial navigation, and a typical homework assignment involved taking your measuring device (mine was a cross staff) and starting, say, on the steps of the library, taking various measurements by compass, star, and planet, and winding up somewhere and measuring something there (for example the height of a church steeple) to prove the exercise had been successfully completed. So one night I was in the courtyard of my dormitory taking sightings on the moon, and someone came up to me and asked, "Uh, so are you, like, praying to the moon?" River's response is what I wished I'd done! :-)

Platonist--more Zoe/Mal/Inara dynamic in upcoming stories. Plays a central role, farther down the line.