Tag Archives: fan fiction

Panic in the Cave

Writing, , , ,

When I think of 2019, I think of it as The Before Times. Before the world was frozen in time while researchers scrambled for a vaccine to beat back the beast known as COVID. Some pretty good things happened that year, including my first visit to a Doctor Who convention. I had the pleasure of attending Chicago TARDIS and enjoyed an all-too-brief encounter with Katy Manning.

Katy, of course, was Jo Grant, assistant to the third Doctor, played with panache by Jon Pertwee. Katy left the show after her character married environmentalist Clifford Jones. She has since played Jo Grant and Jo Jones many times for Big Finish.

She was a delight on the show and an even bigger delight in person, doling out hugs to all the fans who lined up for autographs. As we chatted, I might have let slip that I’d written a couple of stories for Big Finish. After all, “Battle Scars”, my second Short Trip for Big Finish, was released just a few months earlier. She narrated Short Trips sometimes, she said, and suggested I write one for her.

A story idea came to me almost immediately. I let it percolate until late last year when I decided to go ahead and write it as fan fiction. As I do these days when I get the urge to write Doctor Who. If there was any chance that Katy would narrate the story, I would have centred it around Jo Jones and Kate Stewart. However, since the story was going to be fan fiction, I decided that it would feature Jo Grant and the Brigadier, and as the story progressed they would bond with each other and gain a measure of mutual respect. The result is a short story called “Panic in the Cave.” It’s hosted by the Doctor Who Project.

Something is stirring in the cave system beneath Yorkshire. Locals are near deafened by eruptions of bone-rattling sound, and tremors have been reported, sufficient to split the earth and swallow vehicles. Before he can be notified, the Doctor takes his TARDIS for its first test flight since the Omega affair. Jo Grant, eager to prove her worth to the Brigadier, insists upon her involvement in the investigation. But, without the Doctor’s support, will she be able to face her fears and confront the unknown?

The Doctor Who Project hosts edited fan fiction stories which are set in alternative timeline. They also host “Brief Encounters” which are short stories set in the “classic” Doctor Who timeline. The editors had some good suggestions for improving my story. Do check the site out.

And please have a look at “Panic in the Cave” and let me know what you think of it.

On the Beach

Culture, Writing, ,

Contains MASSIVE spoilers for the Silo stories and the Silo TV series.

The Silo series by Hugh Howey is a modern masterpiece of post-apocalyptic SF. The books form a trilogy with Wool, Shift and Dust. In addition, there are a trio of short stories included in the Silo Series eBook: “In the Air,” “In the Mountain,” and “In the Woods.”

It’s fair, I think, to say that Mr. Howey has a somewhat dim view of humanity. So dim, in fact, that one almost wonders why anyone in the story would bother trying to save humankind.

I did mention above that there are massive spoilers, right? So here goes.

The end of Dust gave us a bittersweet ending, in which most of the characters we’ve come to know are dead, but those who survive, including Juliette Nichols, find their way to a natural paradise.

The story “In the Woods” takes that away from us, and Juliette is seemingly killed by a pair of survivors who, filled with blind hate and anger, have mistakenly assumed that Juliette is the author of humanity’s destruction.

That’s where I said, “Nope.”

So, I’ve written a brief coda which gives me back a more hopeful view of the future in the world of Silo. I hope you enjoy it.

On the Beach

“So, how fast could they fly?” Jimmy, still known as Solo by much of the community, sat next to Charlotte scratching his head. 

“About mach 12 was the fastest that I know of,” Charlotte explained. Kneeling, she had been drawing diagrams in the sand. She found Jimmy surprisingly conversant with the basic principles of flying through his reading. The practice, or rather, the stories about the practice, seemed to perplex him. 

“What does that mean?”

“Mach 1 is the speed of sound. The speed at which sound travels through the air from point A to point B. When a plane flies faster than Mach 1, they used to say that they broke the sound barrier. You’d hear a loud ‘BOOM’ in the sky.”

“People must have loved that. Or did they get used to it?”

“There were rules about flying near cities—”

Charlotte was cut off, however, by a different kind of sound. A gunshot. She and Jimmy sprang to their feet, and, with horror, saw that Jules was going down. A woman with a gun stood in front of her. 

They ran. 

As they ran, they saw Elise notch arrows, bringing down the woman and then the man beside her who’d tried to pick up the gun. 

Charlotte and Solo stopped short, breathing heavily, shocked by the blood spurting from Juliette’s chest. Then Charlotte’s military training kicked in. She knelt down and pressed her right hand against the wound. 

“Find her father,” Charlotte said to Elise. Elise nodded and took off at speed. 

“Jules,” said Charlotte. “Juliette!” Using her left hand, Charlotte lifted each of Juliette’s eyelids. 

Jimmy was kneeling on the other side of Juliette, holding her hand. “She’s non-responsive and losing too much blood,” said Charlotte. “She shouldn’t be moved, but we need to get her to medical.” 

After scanning his surroundings, Jimmy said, “There’s a wheelbarrow. We can put her in there and get her to the doctor.” 

“Do it,” said Charlotte. 

Jimmy dashed to the wheelbarrow and back again. They loaded Juliette in. Jimmy took the handles and started off at a jog to the medical tent while Charlotte kept pace, trying to maintain pressure on the wound. 

#

Peter Nichols, Juliette’s father, had set up a clinic of sorts in a tent in the center of the settlement. He and Rickson formed a two-person medical team. Rickson had been learning by apprenticeship, and was now capable of applying first aid, setting broken bones and other simple tasks. They’d been back to the concrete tower for more of the supplies that Peter thought essential, including bandages, antibiotics and antivirals, surgical equipment, and more.

In the nearby woods, Peter Nichols and Rickson were treating a child who’d fallen from a tree. Peter stood back while Rickson examined the girl, touching her head, asking her to follow his fingers with his eyes, checking for anything broken. The girl winced when he touched her ribs. 

“You’ll be fine,” Rickson said. “You gave yourself a small bump on the head, and your ribs are bruised but not broken. Just rest for a couple of days and be a bit more careful climbing up trees.”

“Thanks!” said the girl as she got to her feet. Before Rickson could say another word, the girl dashed towards the river. 

Peter Nichols chuckled as Rickson packed the medical bag. “Some things never change. And thank goodness for that.”

A loud retort rang out, and they looked around for the source of the sound. 

“Hunting?” said Rickson. 

“I’m not sure,” said Dr. Nichols. “I hope so.”

They headed back to the settlement, walking quickly, their faces lined with worry. 

Elsie almost bowled them over. 

“Easy,” said Dr. Nichols. “What is it?”

Too winded to speak right away, Elsie pointed and then said, “Jules.”

“Oh no…” And with that Dr. Nichols ran faster than he would have believed possible. 

#

They met in the medical tent. Charlotte and Jimmy transferred Juliette to the table. 

“Oh, Jules,” said Dr. Nichols. To Rickson he said, “Let’s turn her over.” A quick glance confirmed the presence of an exit wound. 

“The shot was through and through. It doesn’t look like any vital organs were damaged, but it must have nicked an artery. We need to open her up and apply suture.”

Charlotte and Jimmy stepped outside of the tent, where a throng of people were gathered. “Juliette’s been shot,” reported Charlotte. “Her father is operating. All we can do is wait. And hope. Best to get on with what you were doing. We’ll let everyone know when there’s news.”

An hour later, Dr. Nichols emerged from the tent, wiping the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief. 

“How is she?” said Jimmy. 

Dr. Nichols shook his head. 

“Oh no…” said Charlotte.

“What?” said Dr. Nichols. “No, it’s not that. The bleeding has stopped. She’s weak, still unconscious, but breathing regularly. It’s just that I’ve never seen the like. I scarcely had to do anything. Her body… it was like it was busy repairing itself.”

After breathing a sigh of relief, Charlotte said, “It’s the bots. Like I told you. The nanobots. They must have been pumped into Silo 17 at some point. That’s what they do: repair damage, keep you healthy.” 

“Well, for whatever reason, I think that Jules will make a full recovery.” After a pause, Dr. Nichols said, “Someone should stay with her. I’m needed elsewhere for a time.”

“We’ll stay,” said Jimmy. “We’ll take shifts if we have to.”

It was dawn the next day when Juliette’s eyes fluttered open. Jimmy, who’d been nearly dozing as his shift came to an end, reached for her hand. 

“Hey,” he said. “You’re back. Just a second.” With that, he dashed to the tent opening and called for Charlotte. 

“Here I am,” said Jimmy. “And here comes Charlotte.”

“How are you feeling?” said Charlotte, taking a seat on the other side. 

“Like I was shot,” mumbled Juliette. 

#

“Blood pressure’s still a bit low,” said Peter Nichols. “But your pulse is strong and regular and your wound has healed nicely. I’d say you were ready to get out of here.”

“Thanks, Dad,” said Juliette. “I think this is the longest I’ve been off my feet in years. It doesn’t feel right.”

“Well, just don’t overdo it. You know, with being the mayor.” 

Juliette nodded. “Not to worry. And Dad?”

“Yes?”

“Thanks. For everything.” With that, Juliette gave her father a kiss on the cheek and exited the tent… only to find the people from the settlement gathered all around. At the sight of her they started to cheer.

With a smile, Juliette held up her hands for silence. 

“Thank you so much,” she said. “I love you all. But I think it’s time that someone else became mayor in my stead. I can think of a couple of candidates…” and she cast a glance at Jimmy.

“Oh no,” said Jimmy. “Not me. I’m happy to help the mayor, but I’ve no desire to be the mayor.”

“In that case,” said Juliette. And she turned towards Charlotte. 

Bowing her head and sighing, Charlotte said, “If I must.”

“You have so much to teach everyone,” said Juliette. “And you’re a trained leader. You’ll be perfect. Let’s confirm it at a Town Hall tomorrow. Until then, Charlotte is interim mayor.”

There was another round of cheering. When it quietened, Juliette continued. “We have an enemy still. It’s hate. Hate that blinds you so you can’t see what’s right in front of you. There will always be people finding their way to us from the silos. Some of them will be angry. We have to help them to put aside their anger and hate, and give them a view of a future filled instead with love.” 

After a long round of applause, Juliette concluded. “And now, if no one minds, I’m a bit tired, so I’m going to get some rest while our new mayor gets ready to guide us into the future.”

In Defence of Fan Fiction

Culture, Writing,

I’ve increasingly noticed that, when someone doesn’t like what’s been done with their favourite fandom, they might liken the offending episode to fan fiction. And not in a good way. In a dismissive way, in fact, as if fan fiction is something to be avoided at all costs if you are at all discerning of quality.

This is a very facile put-down, and reflects more on the commentator than on the body of fan fiction works. What does the put-down actually mean? What is it about fan fiction that they are referring to? If it’s a perceived bent towards fan service, well, it’s fan fiction, isn’t it? The ending of Game of Thrones angered a lot of people and was considered by some to be a bad idea. (Not unlike the creation of the Universe in Douglas Adam’s The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy). This is because it was not what many fans were expecting or hoping for. Is there anything wrong with that? Are media creators required to take a poll and shape their stories accordingly? I really hope not. The thing is, you can’t have it both ways. You can’t complain when a story goes in an unexpected direction, and then dismiss another story as fan servicing. Fan fiction is all about making stories that fans would love to see. Things like romantic liaisons between characters, and weird and wonderful crossovers. Where else would you see Star Trek crossovers with Harry Potter, or Castle crossovers with Firefly?

Those who treat fan fiction dismissively might be referring to the perceived quality of stories and/or writing. They might say that 90% of fan fiction is junk. In this they would be right. But I refer you to Sturgeon’s Law. Science Fiction writer Theodore Sturgeon famously said that 90% of everything is junk: TV shows, movies, books, you name it. I’ve read some remarkable fan fiction, stories that I wish could have been made into “canon”. And I’ve known some fan fiction writers (*cough*) who evolved into pretty good writers over time. For instance, a Doctor Who fan fiction writer I’ve corresponded with many times, Ichabod Ebenezer, has gone on to win a short story contest and has had a story commercially published in an anthology. His first novel is available on Amazon. Writing fan fiction gives you an opportunity to improve your craft while becoming part of a friendly community.

In fact, there’s a lot to love about fan fiction, so before you use the term in a disparaging way, dive into it a bit. There are thousands of stories available on fanfiction.net and AO3. You’ll find that at least 10% of what’s out there are real gems.