Liu: Let's talk about Ray Bradbury, since I saw your story "Earth (a Gift Shop)" in Shadow Story. It got condensed into "Inventory." But yes, definitely with the novel, and now with this story, I could definitely see why someone might assume that I had a depressing childhood and am now slumping my way toward middle age. I even thought of doing something like that: 101 Universes, where each page would be a new universe. I really had this idea of a fictional space as a kind of laboratory, where you could do thought experiments. I've made some stabs at trying that, but I can only draw stick figures, so everything just looks like a game of Hangman. I've played with the idea of a freelance protagonist character in that world, and with the idea of a RetCon Squad, and I still think it could work well in graphic form. It's still kind of an idea I want to expand on, setting it in the world of Minor Universe 31 (but without any more references to "Charles Yu"). But I'd love for it to be in something, somewhere, in the future. I think it didn't get included because it wasn't quite fiction, exactly.
I mentioned in my review that I was sad not to see "Notes from a Freelance Protagonist" in the collection - any particular reason that got dropped? My understanding is that in LA you have to drive a little bit (or a lot) to get anywhere, including next door. Liu: Yeah, we have some great dim sum in Portland, too - next time you're in town we'll go try some, and then for dinner we should go to some steak house, to see if the "dim sum : short stories :: steak dinner : novel" simile holds up. I will never stop writing short stories, but the novel is a digressive form, and I think that fits the way I think and write better. I'm working on a novel now, and I think that's what I would like to do more of in the future. I still feel like I'm leaning toward longer things. What were we talking about? Oh yeah, dim sum. Do you have good dim sum in Portland? There's excellent dim sum in LA, although you have to drive a little bit from where I live to go get it. Do you still feel that way, or are you leaning toward short stories now? Any word on that novel or possible graphic/comics story? And while we're at it, what's your official stance on dim sum? I must say, as much as I enjoyed HTLSIASFU (and would be eager to read another novel of yours), I really liked your short story collection for the way I can get a small taste of a whole bunch of different concepts. Two years ago you said you felt most of your ideas seemed "better suited to longer stories," but your latest is a book of stories rather than a novel.
0 kommentar(er)
