One of the questions I hate being asked most is: where do you get your ideas? Usually, this question is asked by well-meaning relatives and neighbours and other casual acquaintances after they hear you write science fiction.
In one case, the answer is clear: I bought a pair of scissors. Notice the brown-coppery hue of the blades? This is not due to the fact that I was wearing a magenta shirt (which I was), but because the blades are that colour. They’re made from titanium.
Wow. Cool scissors.
That’s what I thought when I bought them, too, in January this year, when shopping at one of those mega-office-supply stores with the kids for the start of the school year.
When I came home, I decided I wanted to know more about this mysterious thing called titanium, and from one thing came another. It inspired me to write a short story.
That short story has just won the second quarter of the Writers of the Future Contest.
From the stationery store to LA. Pretty special pair of scissors indeed.
TITANIUM scissors? O_O
Best scissors ever 😉
Niiiiice scissors! And great story about your story 🙂
That’s great news about your story!
All the best,
Rob
Congratulations!
thanks!
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Hey, Patty, this is Aaron, #3 in your WOTF group, offering belated congratulations! Looking forward to seeing you next year.
Hey, Aaron, you’re welcome! I’m really looking forward to this workshop. Never been to the US.
Hi Patty, just discovered your blog, so a belated congrats from #2. Nice to see some Aussies represented in the WotF winners this year. See you next year!
Thanks, Ben. I’m looking forward to meeting everyone, too!
I just read this, and the note on the google blog! =) That would be cute if you could actually get it safely here with out being attacked by the airport police… or safer yet… bring a photo of it to the awards! =)
Thanks for shareing, see you soon my dear! =)
Sure, I can do the photo, but thb, I’m actually quite scared of the US border security. A friend of mine went to LA recently and she got frisked and interrogated quite heavily for no other reason (she thought) than that she is a camera person with a TV crew.