Well, my short story "The Open Water" has been out there for a week or so now. And I've had some nice comments - thanks for those.
What I wanted was simple: a kayak western - that is, a western type story in a place where people have kayaks instead of horses. An I wanted it to be a homage to Louis L'Amour - that is, written in is distinctive style.
I enjoyed writing it, nearly as much as I enjoyed the raw research, kayaking the mangrove swamps of eastern Australia over the last few years. Probably the area most like the one I describe in Australia is behind Bribie Island. The ebb and flow can really be something in those areas.
If you've read it - thanks. If you haven't... won't take you long ;-)
Today, I've started reposting the Larissa Epic from scratch.
The story is now 69 chapters in 12 sections, and it is complete.
It has taken me 6 years from start to finish, and I read the early parts and wonder what I was thinking. But it's too much work to pick things apart.
I took down the older versions since I had rewritten bits of it to align with later story lines. It's now one single story.
I hope at least a few people enjoy.
So I ran into the Bechdel test today (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bechdel_test). here's how my stories rate:
Australian Story - fail. I was surprised at this, because it's got 2 strong female leads who have all sorts of interactions - but because the story is over the shoulder of Chris, they never speak to each other alone without Chris
Lost - just passes. ouch. Sarah and Chelle, I guess. And maybe Jill - depends how long the interaction has to be
Dragon's backbone - fail. big fail. I knew that. It's a story about blokes (that's why I got much more mail from females about that story as compared to any other ;->)
Bolt of Love - big pass on that one
The horse - passes
Grandma's will - well, that's a matter of definition. When do you stop talking about sex, and start talking about family?
But really, the Bechdel test is stupid - why does a female have to talk to a female? The more important question is, does your female have a compelling role beyond being someone's (bed) partner (or worse).