12+   Episode 100 (1 October 2024): If you thought about it, the process for selecting the first matter transference test pilot was archaic, although Mae considered it a lucky omen when she drew the Blue 15 raffle ticket. Blue, not pink, was her favourite colour as a girl, and at 15, Mae had decided she wanted to become an astronaut.

However, thinking about things was not supposed to happen during matter transference. Scientists couldn't predict what it would feel like, but the disassembly, transfer and reassembly of a test pilot's atoms occurred at the speed of light, so in theory, there was no time for thoughts.

Listen now on Acast

I wrote Twin Souls in the Universe, originally titled The Hum of the Universe, for the Australian Writers' Centre's August 2024 Furious Fiction writing challenge. Their brief for the 500-word story was:

• It had to take place UP IN THE AIR.
• The first sentence had to include a colour and a number — I used a "Blue 15" raffle ticket because blue, not pink, was Mae's favourite colour as a girl, and at 15, she had decided to become an astronaut.
• And it had to contain the words DOUBT, PACK and SILENCE (longer variations with the core spelling were permitted) — did you hear them?

Expanding on the "UP IN THE AIR" setting, the Writers' Centre explained characters could not stand on solid ground or in or on water at any point in the story, including in a building or tower attached to the ground, up a tree, or on a boat, etc. They could also be in space but couldn't set foot on the moon or another planet.

Please note: The story insight below contains last sentence spoilers!

Beam me up, Scotty

Being a Star Trek fan, this last line about space had me thinking of transporter malfunctions, with Scotty unable to "beam up" and reassemble Captain Kirk. Thus, my story about the first test pilot trial of the matter transference program was born.

Three items of interest for short story readers and podcast listeners:

1. The main character in my story, Mae, is UP IN THE AIR at all times, although she reflects on things that happened on the ground. Perhaps this broke the criteria because my story wasn't showcased or longlisted for the August challenge. More likely, other stories were better than mine.
2. I wanted my central characters to pay homage to the pioneers of space travel, hence, Yuri, for the Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin (of course!). I planned to name my female character Sally after the first American female astronaut, Sally Ride. But as I explained in the "What's in a Name?" blog post, I'd already used Sally twice, for August 2021 and 2023's Furious Fictions, Episodes 8 and 92 of Tall And True Short Reads, Splendid Views and The Lost and Found Story. So, I renamed her Mae after Mae Jemison, the first African-American woman to travel into space.
3. The story was originally titled The Hum of the Universe because it had a different ending. After Yuri said, "I came looking for you", Mae replied, "I hoped you would", and suddenly she heard the hum of the universe. The line was a callback to the silence and loneliness her atoms had experienced. But the day after submitting the story, I realised I'd used the wrong callback. So, when I shared it on Tall And True, along with other edits to tighten the narrative, I changed the last line to … and their atoms swirled like twin souls in the universe. And I changed the title!

When drafting the script for the podcast episode, I tweaked the story further, including the last line, which now reads ... and their atoms swirled like twin souls dancing to the hum of the universe.

Episode 100 Milestone!

I hope you enjoy listening to Mae and Yuri's dance in the universe on the Acast player (above) as much as I enjoyed writing, editing and narrating it. The episode is also available on the podcast website and all popular podcasting apps, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. You can read Twin Souls in the Universe and my blog posts, selected short stories, and other writings on Tall And True. 

You can also buy my short story and microfiction collections from the Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, and Kobo online bookstores.

Twin Souls in the Universe is Episode 100 of Tall And True Short Reads, a major milestone marking the end of Season Four of the podcast, which I launched in September 2020. I'm taking a short break before Season Five. In the meantime, search your feed or the podcast website, TallAndTrueShortReads.com, to listen to all 100 episodes and the season trailers. And follow or subscribe to the podcast and rate and review it via your favourite podcasting app — doing so helps share my storytelling.

Finally, thanks for listening to the 100th episode of Tall And True Short Reads. Please tell your family and friends about the podcast and the Tall And True writers' website.

© 2024 Robert Fairhead

N.B. Here's a post from September 2023 introducing Tall And True Short Reads - Season Four.