the Novelist (#2398)(an instance of Generic Conversational Wandering Automaton made by Trismegistos)A shortish, portly, bushy-bearded fellow with a cafe au lait complexion, wearing a plaid shirt and khaki trousers. He seems to be absorbed in his surroundings, scribbling in a 59-cent spiral notebook. the Novelist weighs in on the topic of hi: :smiles. "Nice weather we're having." :looks up and nods at visitor. Well, hello there! the Novelist weighs in on the topic of weather: It's random, you know. The weather here. Yes, the nice thing about the weather here is it's arbitrary. So nobody feels left out. :looks up at the sky, quizzically. the Novelist weighs in on the topic of city: This city's seen better days, for sure. :looks around. "Nobody's really sure what happened here, exactly. Though perhaps the exact details aren't as important as the prevailing standards of 'science fiction' would have it ..." You'll find there's a strange benignity in the lawlessness of these ruins. I'm a stranger here myself, of sorts. Yes, hm ... well, you might call me one of the Founding Fathers of this confounding place ... the Novelist weighs in on the topic of yes: Exactly. :nods. Well, essentially. Perhaps... Hm, but I can see another perspective on that. the Novelist weighs in on the topic of novel: Actually, right now I'm just taking down notes, getting a feel for this place. A novel would hardly do justice to this place ... I think. Unless it were a very exceptional one. I do a little writing, here and there. Well, you might call it my life. Or one of my lives. the Novelist weighs in on the topic of Dhalgren: The name of the city isn't Dhalgren, you know. It's Bellona. Dhalgren? Who knows? Maybe it's more intimately connected with yourself than you suspected. A lot of people want to know the 'meaning' of 'Dhalgren,' don't they? Who or what 'Dhalgren' is, is not so important. In fact, I'm finding it's the least important thing about this place. the Novelist weighs in on the topic of do: I really can't say ... That's up to you, I think. :smiles, as if keeping a secret he doesn't want to keep. Myself, I'd rather walk and talk than wonder. the Novelist weighs in on the topic of jeremy: :smiles. "That Jeremy. He's easy to buy ... but his love ... that's a different story." Yes, that's Jeremy all right. the Novelist weighs in on the topic of sun: I have seen the sun, a bloated coal-red disk in the north at midnight. the Novelist weighs in on the topic of interesting: But it's not things that are interesting. It's people that are interested. :waits for visitor to say something interesting. I can't really speak on that subject. Everyone is different. the Novelist weighs in on the topic of bridge: It leads west, into a world you know, a place you may not know -- this bridge. Some call it the Bridge of Lost Desire. the Novelist weighs in on the topic of book: I take it you've read my other books, some of them, anyway. Well, all my other books have been science fiction. The one I'm working on, about this place ... well, people will call it that, but it's more. Have you written any books, yourself? the Novelist weighs in on the topic of york: Hm...Bellona's not meant to be New York, actually. But everyone has their own archetypal City somewhere in their mind... :looks a little nostalgic, as a memory crosses his mind. the Novelist weighs in on the topic of fiction: :sighs, as if weary of shop talk. Hm. But aren't we all participants in a kind of literary fiction? I think you'll agree that science fiction can be literature ... a para-literary genre, if you insist, but that term's just a cultural accident to begin with. Well, what's your take on that topic? I'm curious. the Novelist weighs in on the topic of generic: :looks east. "I think I saw some generic objects in a box, over that way." the Novelist weighs in on the topic of TV: I'm a text person -- just not much of a media man. the Novelist has some things to say: Speech without content? Hm, I'll have to remember that. Go to location of this object, Waterfront. |