I just finished the first draft of my second short story.
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I just finished the first draft of my second short story. It's called "Running AMOC" and is again what I'd call hopeful climate fiction.
It has ended up being almost 18,000 words which I guess is too long for a short story and too short for a novella. -
For context, AMOC is the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, also know as thermohaline circulation. The Gulf Stream which keeps Northern Europe warm is part of it, as is a current from the Arctic which keeps the East of Northern America cool in summer.
With the pack ice melting due to global warming, the salinity of the Atlantic drops, and at some point AMOC will therefore collapse. This will lead to Siberian winters in Europe, and also increased aridity which will drastically reduce crop yields. Conversely, in the americas, things will get hotter and wetter.
But this is a part of a global system of circulation so the effects will be global.
The most recent estimate for the collapse is 2037-2064, so urgent action is needed (as is of course true for all climate-change-related issues).
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In the only very slightly alternate reality of my story, people do take action. That's how you can tell it's fiction
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There is remarkably little needed to go from this world to a much better world.