'Hello,' Said the Stick
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"Hello,' Said the Stick" is a
science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...
by American writer Michael Swanwick, published in 2002. It was nominated for the 2003
Hugo Award for Best Short Story The Hugo Award for Best Short Story is one of the Hugo Awards given each year for science fiction or fantasy stories published or translated into English during the previous calendar year. The short story award is available for works of fiction of ...
as well as the 2003 Locus Award.


Plot summary

Set in a distant future where the Earth's ex-colonies have turned the planet into a steampunkish, pseudo-medieval wasteland in order to stop their technological advancement, particularly in weapons, the story follows a foot soldier who is going to join the Iron Duke's army to help him in his siege at Port Morningstar, a town held by the despotic Council of Seven. Along the way he finds a talking stick which convinces him to take it with him.


Author's comments

In a 2017 interview, Swanwick said: "I came up with the idea for Hello,' Said the Stick" while listening to a friend's reading on a Friday night, started writing it the next morning after breakfast, and got it into the mail at 2:30 that afternoon. No diagrams, no outlines, no sweat. And it placed on the Hugo ballot too! If every story came that easily, I'd be a very happy man."Interview with Swanwick,2017
accessed 10/13/19


References


External links

* 2002 short stories Short stories by Michael Swanwick Works originally published in Analog Science Fiction and Fact 2000s science fiction works {{2000s-sf-story-stub