If you’ve been here longer than a week and you haven’t read a short story written by Sam, you’ve probably not captured the real soul of what Xenith is. One of the most talented fiction writers here, Sam continues to astound and inspire the rest of us to really work at our craft.

What is your name?

Sam Virzi.

What is your quest?

Bob’s got a good answer for this one: to stay awake long enough until everything is blue.

Huh. I’m reminded of a friend of my girlfriend’s, who got that Don Quixote stencil thing tattoed onto his back. But it wasn’t something small, it took up a lot of skin. She said half his back. I’m not ragging on anybody who has that tattoo (maybe if it’s that big), but that’s more of a thought. I want to write some good stories. I wouldn’t get a tattoo to remind me of it.

What is your favorite color?

Of paint? Buttercream. Or hamilton blue. In high school I wrote a compare/contrast essay on red versus blue. That burned me out of any sort of preference towards intersective adjectives. It was damned hard to write. I’m proud of that essay.

How did you discover Xenith?

Stumbled in a couple years ago, only a few months after I started paying attention to the stuff I wrote.

Why didn’t you flee in terror after the first five minutes?

People here are nice. I was nice back. We have us a fine symbiotic niceness, people and I.

Oh, several of reasons, I’ll elaborate in list form:

1.) it would be impolite to create an account and then peace out after a couple of days.
1.1) I’d already posted some of my writing. what, was I going to just dump my kids and leave? that’s abandonment. criminal neglect.
1.1a) and people commented on that stuff. said nice things. I ought to at least comment back. comment on their stuff, maybe.
1.2) what if people here expect me to comment back? what if that’s the obligation? now, then I’d be breaking the rules. going back on the unspoken agreement. I’m supposed to comment on their stuff, they’re supposed to comment on my stuff, everybody gets comments, everybody gives comments. do I want to be the jerk who ruins that cycle? do I want all that guilt poisoning my good karma?
1.2a) I suppose I could’ve commented back, saying “I’m afraid, goodbye,” but then that would make them feel bad. and who wants to feel back about something explicitly out of their control, like those unspoken (or unwritten) agreements, such as the near perfect one we’ve got here at xenith.net? that way, yes, it’s better than just quitting without saying anything at all, but how do I know I haven’t made somebody- one of the folks that first commented on my stuff- feel like they’ve scared me off?
1.2b) not to belabor the point, but I got some very nice comments in those first couple of days. now imagine you gave one of those comments. the comment-ee leaves soon after hearing all those nice, useful things you said. what kind of backwash psychosis would that put you through? “I was trying to be nice!” how horrible. how could I put somebody that nice through the pain of saying that sentence?
2.) this was the best audience around.
2.1) before xenith.net, the best chances I got at an audience were English teachers and friends. I’ve had good English teachers and great friends, but I never felt comfortable giving them homework to read. I still think twice about it.
2.2) when I joined, I was lucky to even hear back from editors. to this day, I’m happy when I hear anything at all. on the rare occasion where they say something other than an automated “sorry, no” in their rejection thing, it puts me over the moon.

Who is your favorite author?

Author? That’s an impossible question. I’ve read too little to say I like one thing over another- how could I presume? (When I’ve finally read enough, I’ll probably forget who wrote it all.)

How about Dostoyevsky. He writes a good book.

What’s the best thing you’ve written?

I haven’t been doing this nearly long enough to recommend anything of mine past what I can say about how I felt while I was writing it. I had the most fun writing “Pinhead Story.” And that thing about the electric razor.

Who is you favorite Xenith contributor?

Now, that would be telling.

Where do you see yourself in five years?

I have no idea. I like that.

Suppose the world is mostly destroyed by nuclear war, and you become genetically mutated. What post-apocalyptic superpowers would you have?

Tunnel vision.

Thanks Sam!