One of the points of my philosophy that I use on a near-daily basis,
is the thought that anything can be either a benefit or a hindrance.
I do mean anything. That million dollars you just inherited? If you
broadcast your good fortune far and wide, get ready to to meet every
relative you never heard of and all their cousins and step-siblings.
Those chicken wings you grabbed for lunch turned out to be slightly
underdone, and you spend a night worshiping the porcelain Buddha?
Keep that story in the back of your mind, and the next time some
annoying co-worker or fellow guest at a party won't take the hint
that you're not enjoying their conversation. I once had a flat tire
on a two lane highway in the middle of nowhere, temperature about a
hundred degrees. So I struck up a conversation with the tow truck
driver and found out some interesting information about how
small-town life in that part of the state functions. It's all in how
you use it, to quote Emma Frost.
So when my ancient clam-shell phone started locking up, forcing me to
shut it off and reboot it at least once a day, it wasn't the falling
of a trusted soldier. It was the opportunity to explore all the new
technology that's available, a chance to grow.
(Oh man, I cursed that piece of junk out. Called it everything from
an over-priced calculator to a miss-begotten piece of ape droppings.
I had already been reduced to charging it in the car because I lost
the wall charger at a con a few months ago. Why couldn't I get a new
charger? They don't make them for that phone anymore.)
My best beloved had to head in and swap her phone out around this
time, so, well, I was at the store anyway. I now own a smartphone
with more computing power than the first computer I ever used in
school, the trusty TRS-80.
How is this relevant to putting words on a page? Well, once I figure
out how to use my new toy, I'll be able to have my characters use
apps, have on-and-off text conversations, and web surf while in a
car. Just like the cool kids.
But that's not how you get the things that make your creations
breath, the bits of fictional people that make us smile at their
happiness or curse their stupidity (maybe calling them a
miss-begotten piece of ape droppings). We connect on an emotional
level, and there's the rub. That dread that I felt when the salesman
started going over all the features that the different phones have?
Current generation readers won't feel that. My daughter has had her
own phone for years now, and it's as much an extension of her as the
pen I'm holding in my hand. To her, new tech is new magic. It's one
of the sweet things that make life fun. If I write a story about
someone from my generation who finally gets a smart phone, only to
find its infected with digital gremlins who set him up with a fake,
large-breasted profile on a dating site, well I'm sure there are a
few readers who would like it. But you can tell from how closely I'm
keeping that idea a secret what I think of its potential. Here's a
hint, except for a couple of particulars, that idea dates back to
black and white television.
To spice new tech with fear, you need fear that everyone feels. You
need something that grips old and young and all points in between
alike. Dig down, past the enthusiasm and the isolation. There's
plenty of fertile ground.
So if you'll excuse me, I need to go plant something in that soil,
and keep writing.
One other thing? If I know you personally, don't feel neglected if I
don't call for a while. My phone was so old that the salesman didn't
have a cord to transfer my contacts. I have to re-enter them all by
hand.
