Nova Scotia Vol 2 anthology, edited by Neil Williamson and Andrew J. Wilson, is now available to order! It celebrates the depth and breadth of Scotland's dazzling science fiction and fantasy landscape from its haunted islands to its transformed cities and everything in between. Jenni Coutts created the gorgeous cover art.
You can order the book on its own, or buy the bundle anthology deal - both from the Luna store.
Today we'd like to introduce you to Doug Johnstone and the story "Under The Hagstone".
About the author:
Doug Johnstone is the author of seventeen novels, many of which have been bestsellers. The Space Between Us was chosen for BBC Two’s Between the Covers, while Black Hearts was shortlisted for the Theakston Crime Novel of the Year, The Big Chill longlisted for the same prize. Three of his books have been shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year. Doug has taught creative writing or been writer in residence at universities, schools, writing retreats, festivals, prisons and a funeral directors. He’s also a songwriter and musician with six albums and three EPs released, and drummer for the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers.
Doug on the story:
I’ve always been fascinated by first contact, especially first contact with aliens that is somehow inexplicable or unknowable – like we just can’t understand each other to know what the hell is going on. I live very close to Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh, round the back away from the tourists, and I’m endlessly intrigued by having a massive hill in the middle of my home city, one that I climb regularly. One day, I just imagined a giant object floating above it, something that defied the laws of physics and looked down over the city, so the hagstone was born. It owes a debt to the alien monolith trope, of course, and in my story it has been sitting there spinning for years when my story starts, all attempts at communication with it having failed. But strange things happen in the shadow of the hagstone and rumours abound about this hinterland that the authorities have blocked off.
But Aki and Joe, my human and robot brother and sister, spend their time scavenging in this shadow zone, looking for shock pebbles, strange artefacts that are amazing sources of energy for their shantytown that has grown to the east of the city. This time, though, they find something very different, something that has strange powers and could lead to the first attempts at communication between humans and the aliens or whatever intelligence it is that has created the hagstone.
My science fiction novels so far have been based in reality, set in a contemporary Scotland that readers will recognise. For this story I wanted to set things in an alternate or future Edinburgh where robots and AI are now part of life, where this thing has appeared over the city, and where self-sufficient communities have become established in the wake of that arrival. I’m very interested in solarpunk and thrutopia fiction, which look at how humanity might find a way through our current shitshow to something more sustainable and equitable. This was an opportunity to dip my toe into creating this kind of world, although it’s only the backdrop of the central first contact story between Aki and Joe and the thing they find. The non-human character of Joe was especially important, as I’ve been thinking about non-human consciousnesses a lot, whether they’re animal, AI or alien, and the demarcations or similarities between them.
The story kinds of ends on an unknown or maybe even a cliff hanger. This is kind of deliberate, and has got me wondering about what happens after the final full stop. I’m tempted to write more about Aki and Joe, so look out for that in the future! Meantime, hope you enjoy "Under the Hagstone".
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