Monday, March 28, 2016

SCRYING THE PLANE


But Here TODAY!
*****
another winner of the
IWSG Anthology Contest
has agreed to an interview
regarding her winning story

Scrying The Plane
***


Welcome, Tamara, can you explain the title, Scrying the Plane?

Scrying describes the practice of looking into a crystal ball to tell the future. In this story, characters can hook their brains into a device that allows them to experience the internet on what’s called the Virtual Reality Plane. On the VRP, the unconscious users aren’t bound by the natural laws of physics. So there's an urban myth that certain users can bend space, conjure items, and maybe—just maybe—see the future.

Sounds like The Matrix. 

Yep, that movie did inspire me. In fact, before Lily Reynolds enters the VRP, another character quotes the line, “There is no spoon.” 

Give us an example of what your characters do on the VRP.

At a party, Lily sees a pair of inebriated fellows taking turns hopping into a Minecraft trolley to ride tracks that go higher than the real world’s tallest coaster.

Dare I ask why?

It’s a contest. The first one to hurl loses.

Lovely. Yet it sounds like a typical case of bad judgment by teens. Was that deliberate?

Yes. That’s why I chose to write this parallel universe—it was a blast borrowing aspects of our society like teen rebellion and putting a “VRP” spin on them.
Like many kids, Lily feels she’s living a life of constant scrutiny and confinement. In her world, ultimate freedom can only be achieved on the VRP, but it’s restricted to those over 21. So she sneaks out to this party where teens are illegally hooking in. At first it’s an amazing experience, but it turns dark quickly.

How does this tale compare to your other short stories?

I like to take an “everyman” character, give them a life that seems ordinary and relatable, and then sprinkle in something magical, ghostly, or just plain bizarre that the reader never saw coming—tales that would appeal to fans of The Twilight Zone or Stephen King. 




Coming May 3, 2016

Preorder HERE

Scrying the Plane
Tamara Narayan

Tagline: 
A teen experiences thrills and chills in a virtual reality internet.

Blurb:
Are you 21 or older? Care to experience the internet through a virtual reality interface? See Twitter birds flock, hop in a Minecraft trolley, or don the “skin” of your favorite celebrity. Come, sit. Drink your Sleep-Ease and lie back. Don’t worry about the scalpel.  Just a few small cuts to access your temple chip and in go the leads. Hardly any bleeding at all! So hook in, hook up, and go wild. What could go wrong?    
Bio:

From doling out popcorn to moviegoers to flinging smelt to penguins, Tamara Narayan's taken the “road less traveled”. Her career path veered off into a land of integrals and other strange things while she taught college level math, but these days she’s cruising the fiction highway. If you enjoyed Scrying the Plane, check out her other stories on www.amazon.com or visit her at www.tamaranarayan.com.





Congratulations Tamara!

How do you formulate your stories?

Is it with an everyman and a twist?


15 comments:

Christine Rains said...

Congrats to Tamara! I'm a huge fan of Stephen King and the Twilight Zone. I love playing with twists and what ifs.

Pat Hatt said...

haha that is one game I'm glad never came due near me. Congrats indeed.

Yolanda Renée said...

Hi Christine, twists are so cool. I also love Stephen King and the Twilight Zone! Both were huge influences.

Yolanda Renée said...

Thanks, Pat. You'll enjoy Scrying the Plane, way cool!

cleemckenzie said...

Well, I'm a Matrix fan, so this sounds like a perfect book to get into.

So glad you're on my blog this week, Yolanda. You make my place interesting. :-)

Yolanda Renée said...

You make me smile, Lee.
Thank you. Tamara's story is very unique. I loved it, but the ending especially!

Sandra Cox said...

What an intriguing story line.

Robyn Campbell said...

Congrats, Tamara. Loved reading the interview and I LOVE The Matrix. I think every writer enjoys playing around with the twists and turns and what ifs. We are so lucky to be able to do this. *waving to Yolanda* I am heading over to visit you at some of these other houses. xoxo

Bish Denham said...

A most interesting premise! Congratulations, Tamara.

Bish Denham said...

A most interesting premise! Congratulations, Tamara.

Tamara Narayan said...

Thank you, Yolanda, for sharing my story today! And thanks to all the commenters.

(Yolanda, I will be featuring EVERTON during the kick-off to the A to Z challenge. I'm working with a science theme and my A for atmosphere fits in well with your world.)

Yolanda Renée said...

How cool! Thank you! Love it! And your are most welcome. I'm posting about Ever-Ton on the 30th, Wednesday, how I arrived at the story. And that's it - all ten stories featured. I've also put a link on everyone's Parallels page to direct the readers there.
Happy A to Z!

Yolanda Renée said...

It is Sandra, truly an amazing story!

Yolanda Renée said...

Hi Robyn, I seem to be following your trail, as I try to keep up with all of it.
Tamara's story is awesome, I can't wait until you read them all though!

Yolanda Renée said...

Hi, Bish, it is - truly!