Interview: Jared Kavanagh

[Gary Oswald]

Discuss this interview with @Jared here

And yes, we have been holding onto this until the day after the new anthology edited by Jared came out.

 

[Charles EP M.]

I hadn't thought before that being linked to a publisher alters the kind of fiction that shows up here, even if not intended to be published.

 

[Thande]

Great interview - as I've said many times, I am looking forward to the day when DoD does get published in some form, if only so I can actually link to it when citing my inspirations

The writing advice section is interesting, what Jared says about new writers feeling the need to explicitly spell out every action is very true. The only caveat is that there are some contexts in which it's helpful to add unnecessary detail - e.g. if you're doing some sort of murder mystery or thriller, the clues like 'he idly brushed a white mark from his sleeve' will stand out a mile unless you hide them in irrelevant trivialities.

 

[RyanF]

Enjoyed the various levels looked at here whether writing craft or the state of AH (as in the condition of alternate history, not the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary) or what you can learn from editing.

Be interested to hear more about Scott's Planet and count me amongst the many hoping to see Decades of Darkness published in some form one day.

 

[Jared]

Great interview - as I've said many times, I am looking forward to the day when DoD does get published in some form, if only so I can actually link to it when citing my inspirations

In one sense I'd like to see it published too, but my writing time is far from infinite and other projects keep taking priority. But as said in the interview, it may happen.

The writing advice section is interesting, what Jared says about new writers feeling the need to explicitly spell out every action is very true. The only caveat is that there are some contexts in which it's helpful to add unnecessary detail - e.g. if you're doing some sort of murder mystery or thriller, the clues like 'he idly brushed a white mark from his sleeve' will stand out a mile unless you hide them in irrelevant trivialities.

Good points. To expand on that, first as a writer you need to know the rules and why they exist before you can break them. Usually extraneous details should be left out - but sometimes you want to obfuscate things or just build a sense of the world. Avoid filter words - except that sometimes they're necessary. "Show, don't tell" - except that if all your writing is showing then you will have a very slow-paced book and sometimes be unable to get across critical information. Avoid passive voice - except when you shouldn't. And so on.

Be interested to hear more about Scott's Planet and count me amongst the many hoping to see Decades of Darkness published in some form one day.

Scott's Planet is a shared world anthology based around a short story which the lead editor (Bob Brown) originally had published elsewhere, and which is now being turned into a broader anthology. Essentially it's about a planet which was initially colonised by humans but now the official colony is being pulled out and colonists are offered to be evacuated. The anthology is the stories of those who choose to stay.

As an AH-related point of interest, Harry Turtledove complimented the original story when it came out.

The submission call is still open (submission guidelines here) though if anyone is considering submitting a story, they should very much obtain a copy of the anthology bible as set out in the guidelines.

 

[Max Sinister]

Thanks for recommending the Fireball trilogy. Might be unrealistic - but then, which AH isn't?

Thanks for mentioning certain AH communities too. Which TLs on Wikia would you recommend?

Hate to nitpick - it might make a difference though if something happens and it's important that Jane doesn't notice.

May DoD be published one day!

 

[Jared]

Thanks for mentioning certain AH communities too. Which TLs on Wikia would you recommend?

I'm only on the Wikia occasionally, and purely as a lurker, but I quite liked the premise of Vegetarian World.

Hate to nitpick - it might make a difference though if something happens and it's important that Jane doesn't notice.

This is quite true. Sometimes filter words are needed. As with many rules, there are always exceptions (including exceptions to the rule that every rule has an exception).

May DoD be published one day!

There may be a DoD short story or two in the works soon. Watch this space. (And for the rest, it may happen.)