Writer Spotlight: Effie Seiberg
Welcome to the fourth installment of Writer Spotlight. This week’s focus is Effie Seiberg. I’ve reviewed 14 of Seiberg’s pieces on Inkfoundry’s “Get WYSR” feed. (In case you didn’t know, Inkfoundry is a wonderful and free resource that aggregates short fiction and poetry pieces!)
Recurring Themes:
Criticisms of Over-Consumerism/Consumption/Capitalism
Mental Health Tactics to Help With Depressive States
Satirical Depictions of Realistic Societies (Seiberg Sass, I end up calling it)
Comedy/Humorous Tones
Hopeful Outcomes of Terrible Situations
Day One - Jan 22
“In the Void Behind My Deaths”
What happens in between death and reincarnation?
Razorbeam uses a wheelchair, but the Super-Abled 501 Local Union refuses to put in ramps. Or think about traffic circles.
These two stories had so much packed in both of them! As for parallels between these two, I didn’t see too many. The style, content, and the tone were completely different. I love that!
“In the Void Behind My Deaths” had more of a prose, stained glass writing style, with phrases like “The blackness was a void, uniformly empty in all directions, darker than the blackest black.” It dealt with themes of life after death and reincarnation.
In "Laser Eyes Ain’t Everything” Seiberg uses more of a dry, humorous style. I wrote up a lengthy review on Get WYSR! on this story, as I felt impacted by the content. There was so much to this one that I made a list! Namely, I felt that there was a lot to learn as an average abled person reading this. Seiberg handles nuanced topics like the intersection of disability and super-ability, corporations refusing to change to be ADA compliant, and more.
Day Two - Jan 23
Mikila doesn’t want to get chipped at all, but her mother gives her no choice.
4. “The Travel Guide to the Dimension of Lost Things”
When your depression gets so bad an alternate dimension decides to stage an intervention.
These two stories definitely revealed a recurring tone/style in Seiberg’s work, both echoing the dry humor and complex and difficult subject matter as “Laser Eyes Ain’t Everything.” I’m loving this style so much!
In both “RedChip” and “Laser Eyes” there is a satirization of societal structures that really feels like it uncovers the obscene in reality. In both these stories I was fascinated by how she took something in our world and cartoonized it, really enlarging the problem so the reader realizes that, “hey, that does happen, though, in real life!” I forgot to mention this in my WYSR review, but in “RedChip” beyond the consumerism theme, I feel like there is a nod to the some of the flaws in the US political system because of the red and blue iconography, pointing out how ridiculous our two-party system is and how oftentimes, the “choice” of our voting is not really a choice at all because the electoral college doesn’t always follow the popular vote. But maybe that’s just me reading into it :)
For “Travel Guide” specifically, there is a strong mental health theme that goes into deeper issues of depression. Seiberg doesn’t just show her character being sad, like many people believe depression is, but numb, which is more accurate. She also covers topics like intellectualization instead of processing emotions, anger and derision at oneself for inaction/inability to get better, being stuck in a mental paralysis, and more. I loved this piece so much. I’ve talked a little about my own depression as one of the main reasons I started this review blog in the first place, and "Travel Guide” is spot on.
Day Three - Jan 24
5. “The Day I Didn’t Get a Pet Nebula”
What do you do when you get a cruddy old moon instead of the nebula you begged for for your ninth birthday?
Two timelines showcase a Jewish grandmother and her granddaughter, one living through the early Holocaust, the other living through COVID.
These two stories don’t have as much in common, but that doesn’t mean I can’t pick out the recurring themes and how they echo previous stories. “Pet Nebula” has more of the fun, silly humor that I noted in “RedChip” and “Laser Eyes,” satirizing tropes of fiction and already obscene realities and stretching them like taffy. I can just imagine Seiberg grinning to herself as she wrote this story, I can tell she had fun! This story is also from the POV of a child, just like “RedChip.”
“There’s Magic in Bread” has so many things I could say about it. This is a really important story. I loved the interplay between the two timelines of grandmother and granddaughter. This one has more of a serious tone, and has lots of really beautiful themes, the main one why doing things in times of crisis, violence, and upheaval is important. This also folds right into mental health themes as in “Travel Guide,” and has much the same message: what will you do now?
There’s also the sub-theme that physical action -whatever that is - has a way of unlocking the barred door of depression. In “There’s Magic” it’s bread making, in “Travel Guide” it’s taking a shower. But both these stories talk about what you can do physically to get yourself mentally unstuck.
Day Four - Jan 25
7. “The Tale of Descruptikn and the Product Launch Requirements Documentation”
Jaime makes a deal with a Weird Blob Guy and suddenly the roadblocks in her work disappear.
8. “In Regards to Your Concerns About Your ScareBnB Experience”
Mr. Swamppe replies to Mrs. Axelthorpe’s complaints with polite firmness.
These two stories both have that distinctive Seiberg sass, as I have come to call it. There is so much humor and fun going on here! There’s the long title for both of them, which I adore. There’s the cartoonization of real world frustrations tactic that she employs so well.
As for these stories individually, “The Tale” is a reimagining of Rumpelstiltskin in modern day business, complete with patriarchal overtones of overworking and underappreciating women. There’s also a fair amount of disillusionment with corporate culture and seeing behind the curtain present both in “Laser Eyes” and “RedChip BlueChip.” Mental health gets a mention here, as well, because Jaime has to choose between having a job and receiving mental health and medical care. This is another recurring theme in Seiberg’s work as seen in “Travel Guide.”
“ScareBnB” is honestly hilarious. I chuckled to myself several times, as I did in “Laser Eyes,” “Travel Guide,” and “Pet Nebula.” Love that this story is a dig on those people who have obviously never worked in retail or a service job themselves and have no clue what it’s like to deal with the general populace.
Day Five - Jan 26
9. “The Thirty-Seven Faces of Tokh-Bathon”
Chananthay is a Temple Child who works for the monks, and one day she accidentally speaks to one of the Great Faces.
10. “Optimizing The Verified Good”
Cleanerbot works in an arena, cleaning up the wreckage of battle-bots. But the introduction of a pain-response elicits a change.
These two stories both feature slaves living under cruel masters who groom and program the protagonist so they don’t step out of line. Both slaves are tortured for trying to better their lives, and both are plucky and smart in how they navigate their vicious worlds. This echoes the story “The Tale” I read yesterday, in the theme of working without adequate support or appreciation and even under an environment of abuse. There was also a childlike nature to the bots in “Verified Good” and so when they are abused, it made me more angry, just like the monks’ abused the child Chananthay in “Thirty-Seven Faces.”
As for how each of these individual stories match up with previous ones, I’d say that “Thirty-Seven Faces” also matches up with “RedChip” in that both have children for the point of view characters who try to upend the status quo in their society, and also “Magic in Bread” for the inherent abuse the characters endure from authority figures. I’d also note that I believe Chananthay is perhaps autistic, so joins “Laser Eyes” for diverse representation, and then also “Travel Guide” in that she definitely dissociates to avoid her pain.
“Verified Good” calls to mind “RedChip” as well, because of the concept of machines and trying to work around your programming. This story is also one of Seiberg’s fun ones! It has lots of funny names for the bots, reminding me of the super-abled names in “Laser Eyes.”
Day Six - Jan 27
11. “Little Miss Apocalypse Playset”
A group email thread for how to market the apocalypse to kids. With bonus accessories!
As punishment for his many and various crimes, Zeus must live in the real world without his god status and much of his powers. It's like, really friggin’ hard not to blast everything.
These two stories have so much Seiberg sass they’re dripping! Both have correlations about corporate culture and bureaucracy busy work, which calls to mind Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy a bit.
As for them individually, “Little Miss” had main themes regarding over-consumerism and capitalism, as well as performative wokeness. This reminded me of “Verified Good” and “RedChip.” I would say it joins the ranks of those I’ve mentioned before of satirization/cartoonization. I could actually see this one made into a comic strip.
“Thundergod” was fun to read. The scene with the Internet battle was probably my favorite. Even though Zeus is definitely an asshole, he has some pluck and smarts to him that make him more likable in Seiberg’s version. There’s also a theme here on mental health as with “Travel Guide,” with a sub topic on anger and how to deal with it. Also, although the characters couldn’t be more different, both Zeus and Razorbeam in “Laser Eyes” have electric powers!
Day Seven - Jan 28
An AI outputs a bedtime story of their origins.
14. “Rocket Surgery”
Teeny the rocket-missile just wants to know the answer to one question: did he do good?
These two both were about AIs! “Bots” had more of a negative outcome for the humans (though good for the AIs, I guess??) but “Rocket Surgery” was refreshingly positive about technology actually creating a positive future. Both of these stories were also written in alternative formats, one being a bedtime story and one a loose interview. Out of the fourteen I’ve read for Seiberg, I’d classify four this way, the others being “Little Miss” and “ScareBnb.”These different ways of telling a story are so much fun and makes the reader reflect in different ways about the concepts.
Individually, I’d say that “Bots” echoed Seiberg’s themes on over-consumerism and inane corporate buzzwords, especially as in “Little Miss” and “The Tale.” And, of course, that Seiberg sass!
“Rocket Surgery” reminded me of “Laser Eyes,” “Verified Good,” and “The Thirty-Seven Faces” for uplifting and hopeful outcomes of a terrible situation. Also, the overcoming your own programming theme that “Verified Good” and “RedChip” illustrates.
Summary!
If I were to summarize Seiberg’s style in one sentence, I would say she is a master at insightful and satirical comedy that underlines the ridiculous or lightens horrifying situations, and her themes often critiques consumerism, corporate culture and fascism while uplifting the reader with mental health tactics.
Interview Questions
What are the themes you tend to return to the most in your work overall? Why do think that is?
Seiberg: I think one running theme is satirizing a thing I don’t like to expose its absurdity (“Bots All The Way Down”, “In Regards to Your Concerns About Your ScareBnB Experience”, “Re: Little Miss Apocalypse Playset”, “The Tale of Descruptikn and the Product Launch Requirements Documentation”). Another is that approaching a problem in good faith while being a good person usually is still worthwhile (“Rocket Surgery”, “The Thirty Seven Faces of Tokh Bathon”, “Thundergod in Therapy”, “Optimizing the Verified Good”) though “Laser Eyes Ain’t Everything” acknowledges that sometimes that’s just not enough and you need to get creative. I tend to like happy or at least optimistic endings, I think because that’s how I’d like the world to work. I want to believe that being a good person can still get good outcomes. And in places where things are bad or evil, I believe humor in exposing them makes the message more palatable than just yelling at people. I’m super curious about the themes you see running throughout though, because I feel like I’m a little too close to the work to be able to see them!
2. What is one of the characters in your short stories/flash pieces that you relate to the most, and why?
Seiberg: The present-day character in “There’s Magic in Bread” and the protagonist in “The Travel Guide to the Dimension of Lost Things” are both heavily influenced by my own experiences. The grandmother character in “There’s Magic in Bread” is heavily influenced by my grandmother’s experiences prior to the Holocaust. I can definitely relate to characters when they’re basically me with the serial numbers filed off! The “me” stories tend to be about what I learned in a hard situation.
3. What short fiction author do you look up to? Why?
Seiberg: Lately I’ve been loving the work of J. R. Dawson, who knows how to punch me directly in the feels in the very best way. J. R.’s work also has an optimism and a healing vibe winding through it that I really appreciate. I also love S. L. Huang’s short fiction which has some of the same characteristics. And I love John Wiswell’s short fiction which has warm fuzzy cuddles with the most monstrous of monsters.
Anything else you’d like to say about your work?
Seiberg: My goal in writing is to connect with a reader. I want someone to laugh (a lolsob counts), or to feel seen, or at least to have their crappy day be a little less crappy because they read something of mine. If I can accomplish any of this for even one person, I’m happy! When I was an (unhappy) tween and teen, this was the magic of what books and stories did for me – making a crappy day a little less crappy – and I’d love to pass that on.