Ellison's Nubbin

Something interesting is going on in the September issue of F&SF. Harlan Ellison donated something to the magazine that he calls a nubbin- the kernel of a story idea that usually results in a full-blown, publishable tale. Ellison says he's only ever had two nubbins that wouldn't sprout. He has offered one of them to Gordon Van Gelder, to pass on to selected writers and see if they have better luck.

Luck is, in fact, the essence of the nubbin. Ellison envisions Lady Luck "wending her way through a gambling venue." Enter Unluckiest Guy in the Universe. Not only is Unlucky the only person in the crowd able to see Lady Luck, but he falls madly, hopelessly in love with her.

Sounds like fun- and all three commissioned stories are in the issue- though the editor never explains this, nor are the relevent stories highlighted in any way. You'll know a story is one of the three if the blurb at the top of each story gives some mention of why the particular author was chosen. All three intros will also claim certain members of a test audience thought THIS one was the best.

They were all fun to read, but Michael Libling's "If You've Ever Been A Lady" best captured the vision implied by Ellison's nubbin, and did the best job of exploiting the nature of luck.

If you pick up this issue and, like me, want to read the three Luck Be a Lady stories in a row, without turning all the pages of the magazine, here they are:

• "Señora Suerte" by Tananarive Due (Lady Luck blesses Bingo in an old folks' home)

• "Poor Guy" by Michael Kandel (a karma trip)

• "If You've Ever Been A Lady" by Michael Libling (Lady Luck meets her match in Las Vegas)

Interesting to note- all these stories were from Unlucky's point of view. I am itching to write a take where Lady Luck is the sympathetic character.