Posting an old abandoned due South WIP

[luzula]

I was inspired by china_shop's recent posting of an old abandoned WIP, so here goes:

This is an old WIP from my days in due South fandom. Be warned: the story is incomplete and I am extremely unlikely to finish it, but it is linearly written and I hope what there is of it can be enjoyed on its own terms. People who enjoy science fiction worldbuilding are likely to enjoy this, I think? It's not a space opera, but especially in the first half it is more of an exploration of the slow terraforming and the society on the planet that is Fraser's home--I think those bits, along with the sailing and the landscape description, are the strongest parts of the story. It could be read canon-blind, I think.

This is a science fiction AU of the due South pilot episode, and the canonical character death is Bob Fraser. seascribe and exeterlinden have beta read this at various points, and sineala recently offered some comments on the section on Pigivuq language. I am grateful to them, but obviously all errors and infelicities are mine! Also, I wrote this ten years ago and there are things I might have done differently had I written it today--I'm just not capable of rewriting it now.

The Xenobiology Service (11788 words) by Luzula
Fandom: due South
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Benton Fraser/Ray Kowalski
Characters: Benton Fraser, Martha Fraser, Ray Kowalski, Ray Vecchio, George Fraser, Robert "Bob" Fraser (due South), Buck Frobisher
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, Episode: s01e01 Pilot, Worldbuilding, Terraforming, Nature, Sailing, Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued
Summary: Benton Fraser and his grandmother are working out in the field, doing their slow terraforming work on their home planet of Pigivuq, when a message arrives announcing the death of Fraser's father in the line of duty as an officer of the Xenobiology Service examining newly discovered planets.

Comments

[ysilme]

Go you for posting this! ♥ I think it's perfectly ok to have older and/or unfinished works out there, if just as acknowledgement and encouragement for fellow writers. I have no idea about the fandom, otherwise I'd loved to read it.

[luzula]

I have myself been grateful to other writers for posting their unfinished WIP:s that I have loved reading! Just as long as it's clear that it's unfinished, I think it's a good thing to do, also so that the author can let go of it.

[ride_4ever]

*scampers off to leave comments on the AO3 fic-posting*

[luzula]

♥

[regshoe]

Terraforming, nature and sailing sound like a fun combination—I will try out reading it canon-blind :D

[luzula]

Awww, I hope you enjoy it! I think you'll like the biology aspects, too. : )

[china_shop]

Yay, that sounds so cool! :D

[luzula]

Thanks! I know I'm never going to finish it, but still there are bits I like a lot.

[feroxargentea]

I can never quite face WIPs, even when they're actually in progress, but thank you for posting it for those who can!

[luzula]

No worries at all! I know you've posted due South stories in the last years that I haven't read, but they're on my ereader awaiting a time when I return to reading in the fandom. : )

[ride_4ever]

Pleased to see your remark about "awaiting a time when I return to reading in the fandom"...that some form of more due South interaction may yet be in your future. <3

[luzula]

Well, I do hope so? There were so many stories I loved in the fandom. I can't really explain why I got some sort of block against reading in the fandom, but I suspect it has to do with the circumstances of how I fell out of it--I fell unrequitedly in love with a friend, which somehow edged out my fannish feelings. I'm over that now, but my due South feelings are sort of on the other side of that life event, in some way?

[ride_4ever]

Oh, I do remember back when you were posting about that unrequited love situation. I just didn't know -- back then when you said you were going through a time of not feeling fannish -- that it was related somehow to that situation. Well, dS fandom still loves YOU and maybe some day YOU will love dS fandom again.

(Also, I don't want to be one of those obnoxious pushy-type fen who demand fic, so note that this is a suggestion and not a demand...that I suggest you consider a "never say never" mindset about fic of yours that you currently consider "discontinued and abandoned" NEVER to be anything more.)

[luzula]

Well, dS fandom still loves YOU and maybe some day YOU will love dS fandom again.
Awww, thanks! Where is the fandom these days, by the way? On Dreamwidth or elsewhere?

[ride_4ever]

I'm an admin or co-admin on about half-a-dozen dS comms in DW, and there's a bunch more on DW to which I'm a member but not an admin. There's also a significant amount of dS activity on Discord, Tumblr, and Facebook, but I myself don't have accounts on those platforms. I wish I felt like I could handle all that diversification -- I do feel like I'm "missing out" by not being a part of those other dS comms -- but for me I would feel "spread too thin" that way.

There is A LOT of dS fandom activity going on now with the due South 30th Anniversary "30 Below Fest" on DW. And here's a list of the themes and prompts for the "30 Below Fest".

[luzula]

I wish I felt like I could handle all that diversification -- I do feel like I'm "missing out" by not being a part of those other dS comms -- but for me I would feel "spread too thin" that way.
I know how you feel! I know there's Flight of the Heron stuff going on on Tumblr, at least, but I just can't do another platform as well.

[ride_4ever]

Especially with dS on Tumblr, FotH on Tumblr, and anything else on Tumblr, it's so image-heavy rather than text, and not easy to carry on convos like here on DW or on LJ back in its day...just doesn't suit my fannish conversation style.

[luzula]

Yes, same here...