Friday Flash Fiction: Gondola Gidatzailea

Incidents highlighted in the news this week made me realise that the only thing most people in this country know about the Basque people is that there is a seperatist group called ETA. Of course, there is much more to Basque language and culture than that. To illustrate this, I present the Basque translation of The Gondolier.

Gondola Gidatzailea


Nire gondolaren branka beltzak kanaletako ur lasaiak gurutzatu zituen leunki.
Ontzi txukun hark beti lagundu izan dit urte askotan, bidaiariak hiriko kanaletatik zehar eraman izan ditugu belaunaldiz belaunaldi.

Eguzkiak hiri zaharraren gainean dizdiratzen zuen egun hartan, hareharrizko eraikinen artean; Ura tinta itxurako zinta bat bihurtuz. Gaueko haize freskoaren erdian egin nuen orduan hasperen sakonki.

Izango al da inon honako hau baino hiri harrigarriagorik?
Ontzia amarralekura iristerakoan, Martitzeko zeru gero eta ilunagoa begiratzen gelditu nintzen gogotsu.


Amaiera.

Translated by Itziar Aldaregia.

Parallels

A revised version of Parallels is published on Flashshots today. You'll be able to read it for the next 10 days before it disappears from the archive.

Book Review: The Tel Aviv Dossier by Lavie Tidhar & Nir Yaniv

‘The Tel Aviv Dossier’ has to be the most enjoyably bizarre novel I’ve read. The authors have woven a complex story of catastrophic destruction, psychotic characters and religio-political apocalypse (in both senses of the word) into a story that never ceases to amaze and confound from page to page.

Read the rest of my review at SF Crowsnest.

Book Review: Twisted Metal by Tony Ballantyne

Forget Asimov. In fact, forget anything you’ve ever read about robots before. In ‘Twisted Metal’ Tony Ballantyne has reinvented the robot and takes us in a new and startling direction.

Read the rest of my review at SF Crowsnest.

Friday Flash Anniversary II

It's 2 years this week since I joined the Flash Fictioneers and started regularly posting flash fiction on Fridays. I've not actually done much of that this year, with only 2 new stories, both near the begining of the year:

• Another Year
• The Man in the Iron

I've also posted several translations during the year, which you can find listed on the left-hand sidebar.

Many of my earlier stories have received a second chance during the year. Six translations have been published in various magazines, and eight have been reprinted in English. I'm expecting another five translations and two reprint later this year as well as a comic strip adaptation. Flash fiction has definately been a great way to get lots of ideas onto paper and out to the world.

Up To My Neck In It

It’s almost like somebody was reading yesterday’s post. I’ve sold Up To My Neck In It to Hypersonic Tales, a relatively new flash fiction webzine that publishes each story in both text and audio format. I’m looking forward to listening to it in next month’s issue as it’s only my second audio story.

This story is based on my real-life experiences from when I worked on a trade effluent plant, though of course that was on Earth and not aboard an orbital habitat.

Three AM

My 2600 word story Three AM has been accepted by Golden Vision, the magazine that recently published White Out. It will appear in the January 2010 issue, my first acceptance for next year.

The story is set aboard the orbital habitat Astropolis, the setting for my earlier stories The Blind Collaborators that appeared in Aphelion and Travel by Numbers that I sold to Nature. My as-yet-unsold story Up to my Neck In It is also set there, if anyone is interested...

Celtic Polyglot

Having had The Gondolier translated into all 6 Celtic languages, I thought it would be interesting , for the scholarly minded, to present them all alongside each other. All of the trasnlations were done independantly with varying amounts of poetic licence, so this polyglot is presented for illustrative purposes rather than as a definitive document.

BRETON / BREZHONEG – Translated by Loic Cheveau
CORNISH / KERNEWAK – Translated by Neil Kennedy
WELSH / CYMRAEG – Translated by Lili Fach
MANX / GAELG – Translated by Robard Y Charlsalagh
IRISH / GAEILGE – Translated by Abigail Mitchell
SCOTTISH / GAIDHLIG – Translated by Niall Gordan

Ar goñdolour
An Gondoler
Y Gondolïwr
Yn Gondoleyr
Fear an Ghondala
Fear a’ Ghondòla




Penn a-raok ma goñdolenn a oe waet dousik tre doùr sioul ar c'hanolioù. Ar vag lintr en noe jervijet diñ a-feson a-bad ur bochad blezadoù, kaset voaiajerion tre hentoù-doùr ar gêr-sen, renet get daouarnoù rummadoù ma zadoù-kozh.
Pedn dirag du ow gondola a droghas leven der dhowr kosel an gwerdhowrow. An lester smoth re servyas dhebm lies bledhen ha degi trethyji dre dhowrhensyow an cyta 'ter dornow sur ow hendasow, henath war henath.
Torodd trwyn du fy ngondola yn esmwyth trwy ddŵr llonydd y gamlas. Roedd y llong lefn wedi fy ngwasanaethu’n dda am lawer blwyddyn, yn cludo teithwyr trwy ddyfrffyrdd y ddinas, dan ofal cenedlaethau o’m cyndadau.
Skeab gob doo my ghondoley dy rea trooid ushtaghyn kiune ny ammyryn. Va’n baatey s’keylley shoh er chooney lhiam dy mie ’syn obbyr aym rish ymmodee bleeantyn, as er n’arraghey troailtee trooid bollee ushtey yn valley ard fo laueyn stiuree sheelogheyn my henn ayraghyn.
Shlis gob ciar mo ghondala trí uisce ciúin na gcanálacha go séimh. Is maith mar a d'fhóin an bád slim dom le blianta anuas, maith mar a d'iompair sí paisinéirí ar uiscebhealaí na cathrach faoi stiúir lámha mo sheacht sinsir.
Sgolt sròn dorcha mo ghondòla slighe rèidh tro uisgeachan ciùine nan sruth-chlaisean. Bu mhath a bha an culaidh slìom seo air m’ obair a dhèanamh fad iomadh bliadhna, a’ giùlan luchd-siubhail tro sheòlaidean-uisge na cathrach fo làmh-stiùiridh mo shinnsrean.



An heol a oe é vont da guzh a-dreist ar gêr gozh, é lakat an doùr da vout ur seizenn du a-hed batisoù brav a vein-krag. Analet em moe don avel fresk an abardaez.
Th era an howl ow sedha dres an cyta goth, ow treylya an dowr maga tewal vel funen dhu 'ter treven fin derhevys a grag. Me 'anellas down ayr yeyn an gwyns gorthuher.
Roedd yr haul yn machlud dros yr hen ddinas, yn troi’r dŵr yn ruban inciog rhwng yr adeiladau tywodfaen. Cymerais anadl ddofn o awel oeraidd yr hwyrnos.
Va’n ghrian goll dy lhie harrish yn valley ard feer henn, as va’n ushtey myr rybban doo currit ny lhie eddyr troggalyn cumir ass clagh-gheinnee. Hayrn mee stiagh ennal dowin jeh fynneraght yn ’astyr beg.
Bhí an ghrian ag dul faoi in éadan na seanchathrach, an t-uisce á fhágáil ina ribín dubh leagtha idir fhoirgintí galánta gaineamhchloiche. Tharraing mé lán scamhóige de leoithne fhionnuar an tráthnóna.
Bha a’ ghrian a’ dol fodha thar na cathrach aosta, a’ fàgail uachdar an t-uisge mar ribean dubhadach na laighe eadar na togalaichean clach-ghaineamhach cuimire. Ghabh mi tarraing-analach d’ osag fhionnar an fheasgair.



Daoustoc'h ma oe ur lec'h bravoc'h eit ar gêriad varvailhus-sen get he c'hanolioù? Pa oe ar vag é tizh hec'h amarroù, em moe gwraet un arrast, da sellet get plijadur doc'h oebl Meurzh é tañvalhaat.
Era teller y'n bys o tekka 'vel an cyta varthys-ma a werdhowrow ? Ha'n skath ow tos es dh'y theller yn porth, me a sevis malja'ma miras der vaner lowen ort an ebren a vis Meurth yn tewlwolow.
Oes yna harddach le na’r ddinas ryfeddol yma yn llawn camlesi? Wrth i’r bad orffwys i’w hangor, syllais lan yn fodlon i wybren dduog Mawrth.
Row ynnyd ny s’aaley na balley ard yindyssagh shoh ny ammyryn? Choud’s haink yn baatey dy aashagh gys e voaral, scuirr mee dy yeeaghyn seose lesh aigney jeant magh gys speyryn conghorraghey yn Vart.
An raibh áit ar bith ab áille ab iontaí ná cathair seo na gcanálacha? Shleamhnaigh an bád isteach ina poll feistithe agus bhreathnaigh mé uaim go sásta, suas ar spéir chrónta Mharsa.
An robh àite na b’ àille na cathair annasach seo nan sruth-chlaisean? Mar a chaidh am bàta gu socair a-steach gu caladh, stad mi gus amharc suas le sonas air ciaradh speuran Mhàrs.


Achiv.
An Diwedh
Y Diwedd
Yn Jerrey
An Deireadh
A’ Chrìoch.

Reading Jupiter

Just finished reading Jupiter XXV and I must say it's hard to pick a favourite from the bunch. At least 3 of the 5 stories were particularly effective and had strong emotion-filled conclusions. Just pipping them for me was the final story of the issue - Vera Sepulveda's Dusting Tycho.

X Factory

My flash fiction X Factory is now on-line at Labyrinth Inhabitant, added as part of the summer edition rather than waiting for autumn.