The Tryouts
Encyclopedia
"The Tryouts" is a science fiction
short story by Barry B. Longyear
. It was first published in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine in 1978.
with no mass communications technology, news and information is disseminated by itinerant members of the Newstellers Guild
. One night, a group of travellers sit around a campfire and a Master Newsteller, accompanied by his apprentice, tells a story.
The tale he spins tells of Lord Ashley Allenby, an ambassador
from a neighbouring quadrant of inhabited planets, whose mission is to warn the planetary government of an impending invasion. Allenby's ship is damaged and he has to put down his lifeboat
in a desert
, not knowing his location. He learns from a traveller that all information, even directions to the nearest town, has a value and must be bargained for.
In the town of Tarsak, he also learns that the planet has no capital and no central government. He falls in with a Master Newsteller and apprentices himself to him, hoping to thus spread the news of his mission.
But the keen listeners around the campfire are one step ahead of the Newsteller, and realise the punchline to be that Allenby is the Master's apprentice.
As Master and apprentice depart, Allenby tentatively suggests improvements to the story to make it more believable. The Master stalks off in a huff, declaring "Everybody wants to be a critic! Everybody!"
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
short story by Barry B. Longyear
Barry B. Longyear
Barry B. Longyear born 1942 is a US writer and novelist who resides in Maine.-Career:He is best known for the Hugo and Nebula Award winning novella Enemy Mine, which was subsequently made into an identically titled movie and a novelization in collaboration with David Gerrold. The story tells of an...
. It was first published in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine in 1978.
Plot
On a primitive planetPlanet
A planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...
with no mass communications technology, news and information is disseminated by itinerant members of the Newstellers Guild
Guild
A guild is an association of craftsmen in a particular trade. The earliest types of guild were formed as confraternities of workers. They were organized in a manner something between a trade union, a cartel, and a secret society...
. One night, a group of travellers sit around a campfire and a Master Newsteller, accompanied by his apprentice, tells a story.
The tale he spins tells of Lord Ashley Allenby, an ambassador
Ambassador
An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....
from a neighbouring quadrant of inhabited planets, whose mission is to warn the planetary government of an impending invasion. Allenby's ship is damaged and he has to put down his lifeboat
Lifeboat (rescue)
A rescue lifeboat is a boat rescue craft which is used to attend a vessel in distress, or its survivors, to rescue crewmen and passengers. It can be hand pulled, sail powered or powered by an engine...
in a desert
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
, not knowing his location. He learns from a traveller that all information, even directions to the nearest town, has a value and must be bargained for.
In the town of Tarsak, he also learns that the planet has no capital and no central government. He falls in with a Master Newsteller and apprentices himself to him, hoping to thus spread the news of his mission.
But the keen listeners around the campfire are one step ahead of the Newsteller, and realise the punchline to be that Allenby is the Master's apprentice.
As Master and apprentice depart, Allenby tentatively suggests improvements to the story to make it more believable. The Master stalks off in a huff, declaring "Everybody wants to be a critic! Everybody!"