I've seen the snowflake method floating around, but I've never tried it. It looks too complicated and time-consuming.

Oh please. You're overflowing with freshness. You're so fresh that you cause food to rot out of jealousy.

Why an Asimov's-type format? Won't it be too long for that? If you want it to look Asimov's-y just put in a ton of bolded, underlined headers at the top of new sections.
Why an outsider? I would want to see some of the hivemind hijinks from the inside.

I'm leaning toward fantasy, as always. None of my ideas are gelling. I want to do something with a weirder, more surreal setting, but the only stories I can think of that have surreal fantasy settings--Labyrinth, MirrorMask, Abarat, Coraline, whatever--feature main characters getting transported from our world, which isn't really what I want to do. I don't know what I want to do. I also want to do something with the silk road and the black plague, and neither of those ideas lend themselves to surrealism, either.
Help.

My plot could use some work. It does that. Hence.

What am I, the fresh prince of Bel Air?

I feel like it could be a short story or similar. And I'm not sure how it would look or feel.

Nine Princes in Amber might be more what you're looking for. The main character is a native of the weird.

Do the silk road and black plague overlap? If you want to combine the black plague with surrealism, though, it's already been done. Do you remember that awful movie we watched with the guy with a funny lip and Sean Bean?

Are you saying you're not the fresh prince of Bel Air? It seems I have been laboring under a misconception for some time.

So this story idea might not be for NaNo? Or would you go more for a series of short stories? I know you don't usually do original fiction, but I like the idea and think you should run with it.

Oh, Amber, yes, that's a good idea. Too bad it's been like 80000 years since I last read it. I wonder if I could find a copy at Half Price Books?

The silk road was contemporaneous with the black plague, although finding sources that talk about the two together has been impossible. Everything I find is about Europe, or was written by a European.
I, uh, try not to think about the Sean Bean plague movie. That is not the surrealism we're looking for.

Maybe. Do I look like Will Smith to you?

No, it was never for NaNo. That's a fanfic, for sure. It was conceptualized for Asimov's because it seems like the right place for it, were it ever to get finished.

Or an ebook? Or... a library?

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say there were people other than Europeans writing in that period. Maybe you're not looking in the right place. Do you know any history-types you could ask? A librarian might be able to help you, too. They don't care if the reason is frivolous.
Speak for yourself.

Not gonna lie, I sometimes have to do a double-take when I look at you just to make sure you're not Will Smith.

Then what IS your NaNo fanfic going to be? Tell me. Tell me everything.

Write your story and submit it to Asimov's and then get published. Then I'll feel jealous and write something that I'll try to get published, because I was supposed to be the fiction writer of the two of us. Then you'll prove your superiority by getting published again. We'll get caught in a productive feedback loop.

What is... a library?

I'm sure there were non-Europeans writing in the 1300s, but dangit if none of their stuff is accessible on the English-language internet. Unless you can think of some google searches I haven't tried yet? I would feel too awkward asking a stranger for research help on this, and I don't think I have any history friends...?

Edit: I was just reminded why I don't normally search AO3 by tags. I don't need to see a David Bowie/Shrek fic. No one needs to see that.

Okay, I admit it. I am Will Smith. Would you like to meet my insane children? And also my normal son from a previous marriage?

Fanfic. I already told you. Why do I tell you anything if you forget it immediately?

I like that plan. Positive feedback loop is best type of feedback loop. When do I need to publish by? And, by extension, write the thing.

A librarian isn't a stranger. A librarian is a service industry person who is paid to help you, but also a person like you who likes learning obscure things for no reason. They really won't mind.

If nothing else, have you tried using the UMN or OSU library search pages yet? Or Google Scholar? What search terms have you tried? Have you TRIED going to a real library? With books in?

That's the real reason I search AO3 by tags. You found me out.

Oh, yes, I remember you telling me your NaNo now. My memory is very short. In my defense, you didn't seem that excited about it and immediately started telling me about your original short story idea.

Publish by my birthday and I'll have something publishable by your birthday. That is the only possible deal.

I don't know if librarians not on the internet are actually like that though? They always seem busy sitting behind desks and stamping things.

I've mostly tried the standard google. I'm not sure how to do scholarly searches for history topics. I suppose that's something a librarian might know. Or a history major.

I think that my fruit fly problem has resolved. I haven't seen one in several days now. Fingers crossed.

Went to Half Price Books and found the first two books of Amber. So cheap. Already read the first one. It's slower going than I thought it would be because I have to stop every few paragraphs and admire the writing. It's just so good.

Today I was emailing someone at a museum that John put me in touch with, and I tripped up because suddenly I couldn't decide if it was arrogant of me to say that I had knowledge. Not knowledge of anything in particular, just... I didn't know whether I was allowed to admit anything other than total ignorance. Then I remembered I have a degree?????

Having a sudden thought is not the same as being unexcited about another thing. If I don't report the thought, it disappears.

That is a difficult deal. I'm supposed to write a paper this semester, too. Will consider it.

If you librarian on the internet, you librarian in real life. Those busy people stamping things are the same nice people, just introverted and without the internet to hide behind. They definitely know how to do scholarly searches and it is their job to help you.

The Como house fruit flies had disappeared due to cold, but I saw one today after a few summery days. Supposed to get colder again, so they might die back off. Also, I cleaned the sink. Yuck.

You really like Amber that much? I couldn't get into it. Maybe I tried it when I was too young. I liked Lord of Light around that time, though.

If you have trouble presenting yourself as knowledgeable, try phrasing it as you've taken such-and-such class, or did a project on something. That way, they can assume you know things, but you aren't claiming to be an expert. Alternatively, just own up to knowing things, because you do indeed have a degree. Sometimes I forget I have a degree in microbiology.

Well, I hope you're excited for your NaNo. It does help.

More writing begets more writing, right? That's how it should work. You can write one thing to avoid writing your other thing. You'll get in a groove.

Are your housemates doing enough cleaning? Are their food hygiene habits good? If you live among slobs purging the infestation may be difficult.

I didn't care for Amber much at all when I was a teenager. Didn't even finish the first book. Now I'm having trouble putting it down to do necessary things like sleep, and am kind of panicked at the thought of not having books 3-5. I know that I did read all of Lord of Light in my late teens, so maybe that one is just more accessible for the young?

That stuff-I've-done route is pretty much how I finished that email. Very awkward to have to introduce myself to someone, though. Does the imposter syndrome go away, ever?

Today I learned that the fossils I was going to be working with were all coated in gold at some point. Kind of makes them hard to use. John has no idea whether we can get the gold off without damaging the specimens.

Sometimes more writing makes me tired.

They seem fine. They like fruit and they leave a lot of food in the sink catch, though. Ideal for flies.

Maybe. I read one or two other books by him recently and also liked them. Isle of the Dead was very bleak. Don't worry, at least you can finish them when you come home for Christmas.

No. It does not. The gold might go away, though. Sounds like a physics problem. Apply electricity to remove gold. Apply gold to a pine cone instead.