Friday, June 5, 2009

Hell Yes!

So I got home from the job today and started working on a new fantasy story. I know I should be working on that Vermin story, but when the muse points in one direction, it ain't wise to head in another.

Anyway, like I mentioned last night, this story is set in a fantasy setting I created moons and moons ago for both an AD & D campaign, as well as a place to set some stories. Over the years I created detailed maps, wrote up pages of information on the backgrounds of people, nations, places, histories, organizations, etc. In other words, A SHITLOAD of work. All of that went bye-bye in January when the hard drive crashed.

Or so I thought.

I was poking around in some old files today (actual physical files, not word docs on the computer) and came across a rather thick folder stuffed with paper. It turns out these were all my old, original hand written notes before moving everything to the computer. In some cases, they were even printed from those early wordperfect files. So everything I thought was lost, was here all along. I am quite pleased, to say the least. Especially since I had been looking at a particular map and was trying to remember the placement and names of major nations and cities. Once I found that old folder, I located an early map that had all that on there, so yeah...me jazzed.

On the flip side, I also located one of the very first stories I ever wrote. This tale was an Alien clone I penned (literally) in the 8th grade. Looking back over it, I cannot believe some of the things I had my characters doing:

1. With a killer alien loose on their spaceship and bodies piling up, the crew opts to stop everything and eat a a big meal - on more than one occasion! Seriously, they just drop their weapons and head for the mess hall to chow down.

2. These people fire guns like it was a rap concert. Apparently no one worries about causing a hull breach.

3. They also seem to be going nuts with flame throwers. Why they even have them on their spaceship is a good question. Another good question is why they use them in areas of the ship with poor ventilation.

4. Continuing in the idiots in space trend, they used an explosive device to open the airlock and gain entrance to a space station. It seems said explosives are stored all over the ship, easily accessed by anyone.

5. The Captain conveniently designates his successor for command of the ship just seconds before the alien pops out and kills him.

I would really like to think I've come a long way from those days. I mean now, I'd at least have an access code required in order to get at the grenades.

7 comments:

Aaron Polson said...

Nice to know your skillz have grown, huh?

Jamie Eyberg said...

If you could rework that old story into a new one, a farce of itself where you strategically kill off all of the characters and leave the alien to a battered beat up ship. It could be fun. I would read it.

Fox Lee said...

Woot on the wonderful find!

I say take that old alien story and turn it into humorous horror ; )

Cate Gardner said...

I was thinking the same as Jamie and Natalie.

K.C. Shaw said...

Lol, your old story sounds about as well-thought-out as mine from that age. I too vote for making it into a parody.

And that's great that you found your old notes!

Anonymous said...

You found an old treasure trove! Congratulations! Sometimes the universe just kicks something grand your way.

I haven't ever really written sci-fi. I'd probably still have them creating hull breaches left and right.

Unknown said...

yup, as soon as you designate your sucessor, you're pretty much boned. it's almost as bad as starting a convo with the line "In case I don't make it out of here."

i feel your story could be a scifi channel movie. which i love by the way. just in case the sci fi channel gods misunderstand me and stop making movies. christ. what a sad world that would be.