Round-Up: Shortcuts 2023

[argentum_ls]

Another Shortcuts is in the books! This marks my 12th year participating.

This year, I was assigned to pennywashburne, who took one of my long-standing prompts for a Psych crossover and went to town on it.

Tres Hombres Y Quatro Quesos Dos Fritos (5690 words) was the result.

Most Highlander crossovers seem to start with the crossover character(s) witnessing or discovering a Challenge. This one starts with a body disappearing from the morgue. Specifically, it's Richie who gets up and walks out, which leads to Shawn & Gus being hired to find out where the body went.

The story nails the character voices, gets everyone into and out of their mess in the most satisfyingly inconclusive way possible, and manages to sneak in a stealth crossover. Check it out. Based on the comments, knowledge of Psych isn't necessary.

---

Meanwhile, I was assigned hafital, who has so much to work with in her sign-ups that I knew exactly what I wanted to write.

I did not, however, write that.

There's been a lot going on here, which probably contributed to the theme of the story that did happen.



While the details aren't relevant here, I'm quite happy to tell 2023 to fuck off.

The highlight of the year was when Shortcuts assignments went out. On seeing the assignment, I started doing some initial research on, and brainstorming for, an Amanda story.

Meanwhile, I also started listening to a book called The Unusual Second Life of Thomas Weaver, in which the titular character dies and is rebooted in his teenage self. The book isn't very good, but what really got me was the author's note at the end, in which the author pats himself on the back for having such a unique idea (that he apparently has now written into 19 other books). It occurred to me then that his premise is both not unique, and is one I've never written.

So, then it became a matter of figuring out which character to use and when to reset events back to. The problem with so many characters who are so old is that good reset points also involves rethinking centuries or more of cascade effects. So, Richie it would be.

The canon also supplies an excellent and obvious "fix" in the form of saving Tessa.

About 2500 words into writing, I faced the horrible facts that the current pacing of the story was going to require at least 20,000 words, and that I did not have time for 20,000 words.

That called for a massive restructuring--hence the story starting where it does--and a lot of hard choices about what to include and what to leave out.

For example, I wanted a running-subplot of Richie trying to kickstart his Immortality again, and having it constantly fail because this wasn't when/how he was supposed to have his first death.

I got a completed draft finished ... only a few days after stories were due. But the scene with Richie confronting Methos didn't sit right. My beta reader had made an interesting comment ("this literally isn't the same guy Richie knows") that made me rethink the direction. With the rewrite ready, I was waiting to meet with my beta to run it by her when I discovered that my story had revealed. Ack! So, anyone who read the story within 4 hours of its reveal would've seen an entirely different version of that scene.

To wrap this up, have an outtake from one of Richie's conversations with Darius:

"I want to kill him," Richie declared. There was no anger in his tone, nor any volume. It was a simple statement of fact, and one he saw no way around.

Darius didn't respond right away. He contemplated the chessboard that sat between them, as if Richie were a seasoned competitor and the layout of the pieces presented any kind of challenge. While Richie had been dragged through a few games and was functionally conversant in the rules and basic strategies, he'd never developed a taste for the game. He'd only agreed to play this one because he wanted something to do with his hands while he talked.

Picking up, then resettling a piece without moving it, Darius asked, "What is my part here? Are you seeking my aid, or my absolution?" He gestured at Richie to take his turn.

Richie frowned in confusion. "You didn't do anything; it's still your turn."

"I rather think my move depends on your answer."

While he didn't know Darius well-enough to identify if the man was being cagey or deep, Richie did know that there was a right answer. If only he could guess which one it was. "Dude, I don't know," he finally admitted. "The man's a monster. He wants to kill us all."

"And how does that make him different from any of us?"

"What d'you mean?"

Darius met Richie's gaze across the table. "What is the purpose of the Game? What reason do Immortals use to justify our slaughter of one another?"

"Because, there can be …" Richie blew out a long sigh. "Fine, point taken. But, Horton kills mortals, too. He doesn't discriminate, and he kills people who can't fight back."

"Is that not what you would be doing?"

"It's not the same thing!" Richie shoved all his remaining pieces to the center of the board and stood up. He paced a quick circuit around the cell. "I'd be doing it to save lives." He wasn't anything like Horton, and in his gut he knew the two situations were entirely different …

They were, right?

He'd seen enough time travel movies to know that decisions like this had a way of going very, very wrong.

Comments

[brightknightie]

I loved the story you shared. I'm sure I would have loved the other story, too.

Thank you for the outtake!

[argentum_ls]

Thank you!

While you might have loved the original version of the scene, I think you'd agree that this one is better.

[sef1029]

That's a terrific Richie-Darius conversation. Maybe you can do more with this later, if you like?

[argentum_ls]

Thanks :)

I save all big deleted scenes like this, just in case.

[hafital]

Oooh, it's like getting a second gift! Thanks for sharing the outtake.

I've had hlh_shortcut years go like that. Writing! You never know where you're going to end up sometimes. I loved the story you did write! Perhaps one day the other story will find its way to the page.

[argentum_ls]

Thanks :)

As you and I discussed at the convention, there are some stories that are worth writing, but not as gifts. The expanded version of this one may cross into that realm.

[annavere]

I really enjoy reading about the process behind the scenes when it comes to writing, so this was thoroughly fascinating. And that's a great scene between Richie and Darius, a thorny ethical question. Fun stuff.

And, umm... I'm a person who did click on Know Where It's At during that first hour after it posted. I clicked on it very late at night and when I went back and the Methos scene had changed, I was momentarily questioning if I had dreamed that part. I liked the first version, but the second was an improvement, as Methos being willing to wait out his problems felt more in keeping with his character, and (hazy memory notwithstanding) seemed to fit the overall tone better.

[argentum_ls]

I also enjoy reading about the behind-the-scenes of fic writing. Often it's a pretty predictable routine of "I had writer's block, then I got over it," but sometimes there are more interesting decisions to recount.

I was momentarily questioning if I had dreamed that part...

That's why I put the note on the story. My primary concern was about hafital reading a version that I did not consider to be the right version -- though, it occurred to me afterward that if she had read the first version, she might not come back and see the revised scene or the note. Fortunately, time zones worked in my favor.

as Methos being willing to wait out his problems felt more in keeping with his character

Thank you for sharing your thoughts! A better fit of tone is a good observation. My main issue with the scene is that it felt like the direction of the scene was dominating the rest of the story with no narrative payoff. It might have worked well in the mythical, longer version of the story that would've existed in better circumstances; then again, maybe my subconscious knew what it was doing.

[pennywashburne]

I've been telling myself that if I ever got assigned to you I knew exactly what I wanted to write from your prompts list, and then...I did not write that. Brains, man. I don't know.

One day I'm taking a stab at your time travel prompt for Methos and Richie, but everytime I sit down to do it, it turns into an epic.

[argentum_ls]

Which prompt did you want to write? The time travel one for Methos and Richie, or a different one?

...but everytime I sit down to do it, it turns into an epic.

LOL. You say that like it's a bad thing.

[pennywashburne]

Time travel!!

[argentum_ls]

::chin hands::

Well ... if you want to brainstorm anything, you know where to find me.