{"id":8876,"date":"2013-09-24T01:44:11","date_gmt":"2013-09-24T07:44:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/?p=8876"},"modified":"2013-09-24T01:44:11","modified_gmt":"2013-09-24T07:44:11","slug":"sw-vii-reproach-coming-out-soon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/sw-vii-reproach-coming-out-soon\/","title":{"rendered":"SW-VII: REPROACH coming out soon!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"SW-VII<\/a>So I’ve been working hard at Star Wanderers: Reproach (Part VII)<\/strong> these past few days, and I’m happy to say that it will be coming out sooner than I’d expected!\u00a0 I finished a quick proofreading and touch up pass today, which mostly involved cutting some unnecessary paragraphs and rewording a few sentences here and there.\u00a0 I also wrote the author’s note and acknowledgments, so all it needs is another proofreading pass and it should be good to go!<\/p>\n

This story wasn’t quite as difficult as Sacrifice,<\/strong> but it certainly was a challenge, and I’m surprisingly pleased with the result.\u00a0 Revisiting the Star Wanderers<\/strong> story from Mariya and Noemi’s points of view was a great experience, and I did my best to really get into their heads and show what they were thinking.\u00a0 The themes are a bit unusual for a science fiction story, but if you’ve followed the Star Wanderers<\/strong> this far, it should be another fun and interesting ride!<\/p>\n

I suppose this is where I should include an excerpt or something.\u00a0 I’m not a fan of huge, unwieldy excerpts, so here’s a quickie:<\/p>\n

\n

The others laughed with her. As they returned to their work, however, a strange silence fell over them, as if some unspoken tension hung thick in the air. Mariya glanced nervously at her mother, making Noemi wonder if it was something between the two of them. But instead of speaking with Mariya, Salome turned to her.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbout Jerem-ahra,\u201d she said. \u201cHe\u2019s a good man, isn\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, yes,\u201d said Noemi, slowing down a little as she folded the last of the clothes. \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGod knows there aren\u2019t many good men where we\u2019re going\u2014the Far Outworlds, I mean.\u201d Salome pulled the bed-sheet taught and tucked it expertly beneath the thin foam mattress. \u201cNot many Deltans out there either. At Zarmina, we\u2019ll be the only ones.\u201d<\/p>\n

Noemi frowned. She glanced at Mariya, who was watching her intently out of the corner of her eye. Something was going on here\u2014she didn\u2019t know what it was exactly, but it felt as if they were backing her into a corner.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally?\u201d she asked, her arms growing tense. \u201cJust the three of us?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd father too, of course,\u201d Mariya interjected. \u201cHe wasn\u2019t born Deltan, but he\u2019s as good as one of us now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd Jerem-ahra,\u201d said Salome.<\/p>\n

What are they trying to get at?<\/em> Noemi wondered. Both of them were staring at her now, making her hands feel clammy. It was as if they expected an answer from her, but she didn\u2019t even know what they were asking.<\/p>\n

\u201cJ-Jeremahra hasn\u2019t been baptized yet,\u201d she said, her voice quavering. \u201cI don\u2019t know how to bring it up. We understand each other when it comes to little things, but\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI can talk with him!\u201d Mariya said, smiling cheerily. \u201cI can help translate almost anything for you. And even though he hasn\u2019t been baptized yet, I\u2019m sure he\u2019ll come around eventually. When he married you, he practically married into it\u2014just like daddy. For your sake, he\u2019ll convert before too long.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s odd,<\/em> Noemi thought to herself. Back on Oriana Station, she did everything she could to avoid bringing up religion.<\/em> It wasn\u2019t like she\u2019d stopped believing, though\u2014just that she was nervous talking with people who didn\u2019t share their faith. Considering all the anti-Deltan bigotry back on Oriana Station, Noemi didn\u2019t blame her. But why was she so eager to see Jeremahra converted now?<\/p>\n

\u201cLet me put it this way,\u201d said Salome. \u201cWhere we\u2019re going, we need to stick together. And what\u2019s a better way to do that than to become one family?\u201d<\/p>\n

Stars of Holy Earth,<\/em> Noemi realized, they want Mariya to become his second wife.<\/em> Her eyes widened, and an awful sinking feeling began to pull at her gut even as her legs turned to water.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

I’m not sure whether to hire a proofreader or just proofread it myself.\u00a0 I doubt I’ll find someone who can turn it around before the end of the week, but who knows?\u00a0 The manuscript is pretty clean, though, so it shouldn’t take too much work to catch the last few typos–just a good eye.<\/p>\n

In any case, I’ll leave you with the track I’m listening to right now.\u00a0 It’s a great track by Paul van Dyk, Arty, and Sue McLaren, remixed by Pedro Del Mar.\u00a0 Stuff like this really helps me to get in the zone.<\/p>\n