Each day we will be featuring one or more authors from Tesseracts 17: Speculating Canada from Coast to Coast to Coast. In advance to this post, authors from the anthology were asked:
1. Name of their Tesseracts 17 contribution.
2. What it is about (without spoilers).
3. What inspired the story.
Our first mini interview is with Mark Leslie.
What is your full name? Mark Leslie Lefebvre
Where are you currently located?
Hamilton, Ontario
What is the title of your story/poem in Tesseracts 17? “Hereinafter Referred to as the Ghost”
Can you give us a brief synopsis, without spoilers?
What
if ghosts had to audition to be part of hauntings the same way that
actors audition to play a role? And if all the legendary ghosts that
we’ve heard about are played by “actor ghosts” since they don’t age,
does something else happen that makes it harder for them to attain
prestigious “leading” character roles after they’re been “acting” for a
long time?
What inspired this work?
I was reading through
what was supposed to be a simple contract between a writer and
publisher, and was amused by the “legal speak” and the twists and
nuances of the contract. As I thought about how I as a writer had seen
contracts evolve over time, from simple “payment in copy” deals to more
complex terms and conditions outlining royalty structures, I wondered at
various other types of contracts -- my mind took a macabre turn, as if
often does, and I imagined ghosts playing roles like actors, and
wondered how they might land “contracts” for gigs. The story evolved
from there as I wondered how an “aging” ghost actor might try to come to
terms with no longer being in high demand, the way actors sometimes
aged out of certain types of roles they could play.
What do you love best about Tesseracts Seventeen: Speculating Canada from Coast to Coast to Coast?
The
editors. Both Steve and Colleen are talented writers and, as editors,
they really did an amazing job of compiling and refining a superior
collection of diverse material from across Canada. I know that, for me,
they took what was a pretty good story and, with a dualing flash of red
pens in hand, they asked tough questions, pointed out things that could
be improved and helped me mould my story into something truly great.
Thanks for joining us.
