Our founding editor, Svetlana Sterlin (SS), had a chat with Issue 4 fiction contributor, Dave Clark (DC, pictured below). If you haven’t already, check out his short story, ‘Contractual at First Sight’ before diving into some spoilers revealed below.
SS: Your story, ‘Contractual at First Sight’, is centred around a group of characters who have been swindled by a big company’s fine print. Were you inspired to write this story by a specific event, or perhaps another text?
DC: I don’t think I’ve been swindled by fine print. Yet! No, the idea for the story came after I ignored the fine print on a website for probably the thousandth time, and I started to wonder what type of things I had just clicked ‘yes’ to. I then imagined the people who write the terms and conditions – how must they feel, writing words that almost no one ever reads? I began to picture someone who felt jaded by this and how they may react. The story spilled out from there.
SS: Another writer might have chosen to write this story as a dark thriller, or a tragedy, but your story maintains a sense of humour and levity throughout. Is this something you strive to do in all of your work? Do you think it’s important to leave readers with a sense of hope?
DC: I chose a lighter touch for this story because it was more enjoyable to write Mick’s viewpoint with that tone! I played around with a few perspectives and I felt the story told itself better through humour and levity.
I think well-timed humour has a place in most writing, even when it’s not the main tone of a piece. When I am writing on heavier topics like chronic fatigue syndrome and grief, a sprinkling of humour helps me hold those crushing things in a lighter way. If humour doesn’t cheapen the experiences of the characters, then it is a wonderful tool to drip feed into most of my writing.
In terms of hope – hope is one of the most incredible human traits. We survive and often thrive when hope is a part of our story. In my work as a counsellor for the past decade, people share their painful experiences and I am still in awe at how they continue to find ways through. Hope often bubbles up where it seems like it shouldn’t, making it one of the best elements of story.
At the same time, people often feel they have lost hope and it’s important that we honour those moments too, instead of trying to rush people towards a flimsy version of hope. I think that western culture and storytelling often struggles with sitting in people’s pain and hopelessness. So depending on what is being written and who the audience is, there are times where it’s important to leave readers with a sense of hope (such as writing to audiences who are already disempowered and are looking for a way forward) and there are times where a story might benefit from sitting in the muck and pain, because a sense of hope and a sense of hopelessness are parts of being human.
SS:The story ends on a slightly ambiguous note for the two main characters after resolving their dilemma with the phone company. Where do you see their journeys moving forward? Do they stay in each other’s lives?
DC: I’ve had a few people ask what happens to Mick and Tarlee! Sorry to those readers who want them to end up together! I see them annulling the marriage contract, because Tarlee is quite happy with and faithful to her boyfriend. I see Mick understanding her reasoning, but he is also somewhat gutted because he connects so easily with her!
I picture the two of them remaining great friends though. And once a year, on their ‘anniversary,’ I see them meeting up and pulling a prank on someone, because they are such a good team and enjoy the thrill of temporarily going rogue!
SS: Do you have any other projects in the pipeline? Where can readers see more from Dave Clark—either in print or at in-person events?
DC: There’s always a writing project on the go! I am currently writing a memoir about grief, and I hope to have that ready to pitch to publishers in the next 12-18 months. I am also continuing to write poetry and short stories. I have some recent works published by Mantissa, Pure Slush Books, and Bowen Street Press.
You can also check out my shortlisted works for the NT Literary Awards last year at https://territorystories.nt.gov.au/10070/886063/0/3.
Finally, I had a blast a few weeks ago performing two poems at the incredible NT Writers Festival. You can read those poems online (‘Fatiguers Can’t Be Choosers’ through Bramble Journal and ‘I Remember Dad’ through Red Room Poetry) or see videos of them on my social pages – @DaveClarkWriter on Twitter and Instagram.
Be sure to support Dave’s work and follow him on socials to stay up to date! Follow the link to read his short story, ‘Contractual at First Sight‘.
swim meet lit mag 