Barcelona 2008

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metoo
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Barcelona 2008

Post by metoo » Sun May 13, 2012 8:54 am

Hi there people!

After a lenghthy silence, I have submitted a new piece of fan fiction. As always, I've written in Swedish, and then translated into English.

Before continuing, I think I should warn you that this ff is based on Let The Old Dreams Die, and thus contains spoilers.

Here's the Swedish original: Barcelona 2008, and the translation: Barcelona 2008.

This ff treats a solution to the unlikelihood of an implied outcome of LTODD.

That Stefan and Karin would be able to find Oskar and Eli in Barcelona is too unlikely. However, that Oskar and Eli might find Stefan and Karin isn't, and that, I think, is what Stefan and Karin would rely on. They would spread traces all around town, traces likely to entice Oskar to find out what this all was about. The rest would be a question of luck and saying the right thing. And I think telling a love story would catch Oskar's interest, especially when he was the pivotal point of that story.
Last edited by metoo on Wed May 23, 2012 5:49 am, edited 2 times in total.
But from the beginning Eli was just Eli. Nothing. Anything. And he is still a mystery to me. John Ajvide Lindqvist

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Clubmeister
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Re: Barcelona 2008

Post by Clubmeister » Mon May 14, 2012 6:21 pm

Perhaps, It's going to be a nice story.
But alas, "Let the old dreams die" hardly will be published in Russian. So, I really don't completely understand, who are Stefan and Karin and why are they in Barselona and why are Oskar and Eli in Barselona and why Stefan and Karin search for Oskar and Eli.
He is looking at me, silently, expectantly, in the near-dark room, neither smiling nor frowning; gaunt as a Belsen child, proud as the Devil, distant and beautiful as a star. [DMt.]

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metoo
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Re: Barcelona 2008

Post by metoo » Mon May 14, 2012 7:26 pm

Clubmeister wrote:Perhaps, It's going to be a nice story.
But alas, "Let the old dreams die" hardly will be published in Russian. So, I really don't completely understand, who are Stefan and Karin and why are they in Barselona and why are Oskar and Eli in Barselona and why Stefan and Karin search for Oskar and Eli.
Well, of course I can tell you, if you don't want to wait for LTODD in English. Or Russian.
But from the beginning Eli was just Eli. Nothing. Anything. And he is still a mystery to me. John Ajvide Lindqvist

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Clubmeister
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Re: Barcelona 2008

Post by Clubmeister » Mon May 14, 2012 8:32 pm

metoo wrote: Well, of course I can tell you, if you don't want to wait for LTODD in English. Or Russian.
Yes, you can PM me. Because even if it's going to be in English, many things may prevent it. Yellowstone Volcano will explode, for example.
He is looking at me, silently, expectantly, in the near-dark room, neither smiling nor frowning; gaunt as a Belsen child, proud as the Devil, distant and beautiful as a star. [DMt.]

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metoo
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Re: Barcelona 2008

Post by metoo » Mon May 14, 2012 8:50 pm

I've edited the text somewhat, to improve it. The story is the same, though. Just as short as before...
But from the beginning Eli was just Eli. Nothing. Anything. And he is still a mystery to me. John Ajvide Lindqvist

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intrige
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Re: Barcelona 2008

Post by intrige » Mon May 14, 2012 10:11 pm

Love it so far, please contine in this very second, or I'll turn crazy :D
Bulleri bulleri buck, hur många horn står upp

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metoo
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Re: Barcelona 2008

Post by metoo » Tue May 15, 2012 3:11 am

intrige wrote:Love it so far, please contine in this very second, or I'll turn crazy :D
Sorry, this is it.
Actually, I have been writing on longer versions, but I wasn't happy with them. In the end I decided to to keep the openness of LTODD, so this is the result. For now, anyway.

For the Swedish literate, John Ajvide Lindqvist's opinion on the subject can be read in the thread Fann Karin och Stefan vad de sökte? on his site.
Last edited by metoo on Wed May 16, 2012 10:48 am, edited 1 time in total.
But from the beginning Eli was just Eli. Nothing. Anything. And he is still a mystery to me. John Ajvide Lindqvist

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Re: Barcelona 2008

Post by gkmoberg1 » Wed May 16, 2012 4:23 am

What an inspriring story! Leaving it open draws out all kinds of creativity, both in thinking about where this might lead and to how this could have come about.

I like your straigthforward logic on how Karin and Stefan would go about their search, that of having their quarry seek them out. I can only imagine - having never been to Barcelona and having never tried to do such things in a foreign land - what might have been their difficulty in having the decals created. Perhaps they used the staff at their hotel to find a printer who could make such a thing. Then they would have to think of a short message. This is the bait. It would have to be effective in enticing the children to telephone but not threatening so as to frighten them off. I wonder if such a thing might be as simple as "Oskar E. may we talk?" I'm sure Karin and Stefan would put considerable thought into this. They might even come up with more than one decal, thus more than one message. The message, I suspect, would be best if done in Swedish. That would set it apart quickly and help it gain notice to the 12 yr olds.

Perhaps something like this?

Oskar E., kan vi prata?
Karin and Stefan
+34 657 94 08 12 rum 24


Then comes the act of placing the decals. While I am sure the locals and authorities might not appreciate the decals, this remains a good plan. The trouble is they are inviting the officials to call them, asking why they are placing such things on the city walls, signs and posts. Yet, let's hope this does not cause such undesireable attention.

And finally they get the call they have been waiting for. I would suspect it is Oskar who telephones, not Eli, as he would be more at ease. Yet this is over twenty years since they fled Blackeberg, so who knows how savvy Eli has become. For all we know, Eli and Oskar might first check them out and telephone only after having done some spying. Perhaps they are calling from the rooftop across the street, watching with fancy bincoluars while holding the latest 2008 Blackberry or Nokia cellphone? Oh the possibilities. And this is all before we consider What's Next!

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metoo
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Re: Barcelona 2008

Post by metoo » Wed May 16, 2012 5:40 am

After having come up with the idea of the decals, I took a virtual walk around Barcelona in Google Street View. I wanted to check that these advertising decals actually occur in Barcelona, and I found that they do. It's probably illegal to put them up, there as well as here, so Stefan and Karin had to be cautious, but it's done so quickly that the actual danger of being caught in the act would be very small.

To have the decals printed would be the easy part, any print shop would be able to do that. You just need an ordinary laser printer, really.

About the cell phone, I imagined it to be of the pre-paid variety, which cannot be traced to an owner. The kind criminals use, you know. Thus, the authorities wouldn't be able to trace S&K by the phone number, but neither would Oskar and Eli.

I like the idea of O&E spying on S&K before revealing themselves, and earlier versions of this story had an address or a public place instead of the phone number, to allow for some exciting spying. However, to expect Oskar to come to a place he hadn't decided for himself isn't very likely, for him that would look very much like a trap. But since Oskar would be able to call from a public phone, it would be quite safe for him to call a number just to check it up. So I decided on the phone number, and I think S&K would have reasoned similarly. A phone number would be easier on them, too, since they wouldn't have to spend all their nights waiting at a particular place.

About the message: it would be directed to Oskar, of course, since S&K would know little about Eli short of that he (or she, as they believe) exists and (still) is in Oskar's company. The actual contents - well, I've had ideas, but decided to not make it explicit. It's better leaving such details to the reader to fill in.
Last edited by metoo on Wed May 23, 2012 4:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
But from the beginning Eli was just Eli. Nothing. Anything. And he is still a mystery to me. John Ajvide Lindqvist

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Re: Barcelona 2008

Post by gkmoberg1 » Wed May 16, 2012 10:09 pm

Clearly you have thought this through! I had similarly gone to google maps and checked out Barcelona before making my prior post. But having not thought through all you have in your story, I used the direct phone number of a little downtown hotel and thus gave a room number in addition. Your thinking is stronger. By having them use a cellphone as you describe avoids the authorities using the decal and simply driving over to interview Karin and Stefan. Yikes.

And I like that you have left it as you have... "leaving such details to the reader to fill in."

Yet, if you feel inspired to write more please do! (It would make 'trige not go crazy!)

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