Snaps's Musings

[DMt.]

Gangsters in pinstripe suits

Glad you're out of their grip, anyway, snaps.

[fish]

... locked up on an Open prison farm, with a load of dippy girls, a roof that doesn't leak, heaters that actually work, three square meals a day and a TV screen twenty times the size of my laptop ...

Sounds like the ideal holiday if you ask me.

[Ian]

Would I get locked up with a load of dippy girls too? Why did no one mention this before?

[snaps]

O.K. This hasn't seen the light of day anywhere else. I would appreciate any feedback. Truly I mean. say its sheeeit if you think so. Ima trying to do a short fiction, prolly maybe script or flashfiction.

Ima trying to keep within Manga conventions, but finding it problematic (i.e. want a full cast of characters first).

Like "Water Lilies" I want this to be viewed from the POV of the main teenage characters. The likely readership is 80% - 90% female, 10% - 20% guys, of whom at least half will be bi-sexual.

I want it to start in the Lunch Hall with Elin and her buddies on the Monday of THAT week, then much to their amazement, the appearance of Yohio and Agnes sitting together, and everything that entails.

This is the basic treatment:

Yohio’s Papa has been experimenting with electronic gadgetry at his recording studio in Sundsvall. He has been working on an ‘orchestral metal’ space-time rock musical. Yohio has been helping out. During a thunderstorm in 2012, the whole studio is super-energised and transformed into a space-time machine. They make a soft landing, but things do not go according to plan.

They find themselves in a small town in western Sweden, called Amal. The studio, disguised as a garden shed, has landed in the back garden of Olof Ahlberg, an architect and kindly, cultured man. He agrees to let Yohio and his Papa stay on until they can find a way to return. The only other problem is that they have landed in the year 1998!

Yohio’s Papa thinks it may take some time to find a solution and get back to the future. He insists that Yohio enrol at the local school and keep up with his studies. Yohio agrees to go along with this, just so that he can make some new friends and hang out.

Will they get back to 2012, or will Yohio find some romantic reason to want to stay on in 1998?

Mmm corny? It interfuses with the basic FA/SML storyline, but I want to leave the trajectory of the story intact. Yohio pursues Agnes. Elin pursues Yohio. but ultimately Elin and Agnes end up together. That kind of thing?

[Ian]

Sounds very odd indeed, snaps. I'm sure it will be lovely.

I've never really written fan-fic, save for a couple of pisstake mashups in my "Doctor Trek" spoof series. I'm sure it probably sounds odd, but I always feel vaguely intimidated trying to write other people's characters. I'm much more comfortale writing my own. There's also the other question, isn't there? I mean, there's some truly amazingly talented Potter fan-fic writers out there (some of whom I reckon are actually better than Rowling) but, while I'm very glad they write such wonderful stuff, you can't help wondering if they're not undervaluing themselves writing stuff they could obviously never get published. I know they do it for love, and that's cool, and I'm very glad they do cause I frickin' love it, but I wonder if they couldn't actually get great careers if they did something of their own.

Sorry, I'm babbling.

[DMt.]

You were going to do more purely original stuff this year, snappo, I saw it in your NY resolutions...

[fish]

You were going to do more purely original stuff this year...

But still, an Agnes, Yohio, Elin love triangle. Who could possibly resist it?

If I had qualified for the 1500metre freestyle at the London Olympics, I'm sure I would still get in lots of practice at other distances. Snaps, you can write lots of brand new and original stuff this year, but you can still mess around and practice with some Manga, or whatever style of musings you like, especially if the afforementioned trio are included. I know I'd love it.

[snaps]

Sounds very odd indeed, snaps. I'm sure it will be lovely. Sorry, I'm babbling.

And we would know the difference how?

Mmmm. I think, on mature reflection, Dave is right.

I've had fun inventing it inside my head, and many laughs. But to get the full impact of the stupid ''in-jokes'' would require both a deep knowledge of FA/SML AND Yohio's lifestyle. And that is probably about 3 people on the whole planet.

Example:

YOHIO: (attempting to communicate on mobile phone)
ELIN: Can I get you a drink Yohio?
YOHIO: Errrr ..... do you have err ..... Aloe Vera?
ELIN: Would you mind not talking to your ex while I fix you a drink!

Mmmm, dumb dumb dumb.

Mmmm. You see, Yohio is seriously into cactus juice, and is a teetotaller. If you have to explain why it is funny, it isn't funny any more.

Durrrr.

So, probs best I keep it inside my head. I'll leave you with a taster.

LUNCH HALL

MALIN: Have you heard the latest goss?
ELIN: Unless it's gossip about me, I'm not interested.
MALIN: YOHIO!
CAMILLA: Use a handkerchief when you sneeze.
MALIN: I mean the new kid in school. Yohio.
ELIN: Bless you!
MALIN: No, I mean the new boy in school. Yohio.
CAMILLA: Yohio? Sounds like a foreigner to me.
ELIN: You're a foreigner.
CAMILLA: No I am not.
MALIN: Yes you are. You're name is Finnish.
CAMILLA: Well at least I'm not a Chinaman.
MALIN: He isn't Chinese. He's staying at Agnes house. She's showing him round school today.
ELIN: Who's Agnes?
CAMILLA: Ahlberg.
ELIN: You say he's a foreigner?
MALIN: He's from another Galaxy, a place called Sundsvall.
ELIN: I'm interested.
CAMILLA: You got the rag on or something?
ELIN: Shut up. Where's Fucking Sundsvall?
MALIN: Not Amal. That's all that matters.
CAMILLA: Well he isnt Bosnian. Thats fersure.
ELIN: Sometimes you are soooo boring.
MALIN: He's staying with the Ahlbergs. He's too good for her.
CAMILLA: Agnes is having a birthday party on Friday.
ELIN: And?
MALIN: He's sure to be there. No-one else will.
ELIN: I will be there.
CAMILLA: You're crazy !!!
MALIN: You must be joking, it's Christian's party night.
ELIN: Bet me fifty Kronor I won't neck with this guy.
CAMILLA: Make it twenty. I'm low on funds.

AGNES and YOHIO enter the LUNCH HALL together. Silence descends. Jaws drop.

ELIN. *eyes out on stalks* Make it five Kronor.

MALIN: Huh? On him?
CAMILLA: You reckon?
ELIN: Make it either way.

CAMILLA: But she's a lesbisk!
ELIN: Hmmm. And your problem is?

[fish]

Well I loved it, but I'm not sure if that says something about me or you.
Can't pretend to be one of the three but I could see that lunch hall scene perfectly.

[DMt.]

Me 'n my big mouth.

That was fun!

Wish I could write comedy...a rare skill.

[Ian]

Eh only one person normally gets my jokes, so you're beating me, snapsie.