Announcement: My novels Sister of Light and Sister of Darkness are about to be published. I write this blog about 2 months prior to its publication. I just heard that the proofs will be here soon--likely before the end of the week. My publisher also wants to put the entire set of novels based on Aegypt on contract--that's 5 more novels for 8 total. They also want to put my other novels on contract. The release schedule should be one novel every 2 months. I'll keep you updated.
Introduction: I wrote the novel Aksinya: Enchantment and the Daemon. This was my 21st novel and through this blog, I gave you the entire novel in installments that included commentary on the writing. In the commentary, in addition to other general information on writing, I explained, how the novel was constructed, the metaphors and symbols in it, the writing techniques and tricks I used, and the way I built the scenes. You can look back through this blog and read the entire novel beginning with http://www.pilotlion.blogspot.com/2010/10/new-novel-part-3-girl-and-demon.html.
I'm using this novel as an example of how I produce, market, and eventually (we hope) get a novel published. I'll keep you informed along the way.
The four plus one basic rules I employ when writing:
1. Don't confuse your readers.
2. Entertain your readers.
3. Ground your readers in the writing.
4. Don't show (or tell) everything.
5. Immerse yourself in the world of your writing.
I am writing about the extrapolation of science and technology to be able to write science fiction. I made the point that it is almost meaningless to try to fully extrapolate a universe (world) that is 10,000 years in the future (and maybe 1,000 years in the future) without applying some cultural and technological shaping.
By shaping the cultures of your science fiction universe, you can shape the science and technology that is extrapolated. Here is how I culturally shaped the universe of The Chronicles of the Dragon and the Fox to make the 10,000 year extrapolation work.
Here is a great extrapolation of science into technology. Let's look at computers and musical instruments. Almost immediately with the analogue computer, the synthesizer was born. The progression to synthesizer is obvious and easy. It starts with rudimentary string instruments which led eventually to plucked and pounded string instruments. That led to the clavichord, harpsichord, and finally the piano-forte. Keyboard instruments led to the organ and the organ to the electronic organ. The mixture with the computer, gave us the synthesizer, but that isn't the end.
The keyboard based synthesizer led to other synthesizers like for guitars, violins, flutes, woodwinds. The wise extrapolator should imagine every type of instrument with its synthesizer, but there is more. There are experiments in human based instruments and synthesizers. The science is obvious, the results and ends not as obvious. We are talking about wearable musical instruments. Instruments that respond to the human body through movements, breath, fingering, etc. and not just fingering and/or blowing. What can you extrapolate from wearable instruments. We are well beyond a "one-man-band." What does it mean to integrate musical instruments with dance or with any other human endeavour.
Jack Vance wrote about a society where people sang their language. He was ahead of the curve in blending culture in a futuristic way. The cusp of musical science is moving in a radical direction--will some science fiction author extrapolate these ideas into the future? I remember an author who poorly extrapolated dance into space--the author missed the point entirely. Science fiction isn't about taking what we know and putting it into the future--it is about taking what we can imagine and placing it in a future framework. It isn't enough to put what we know today into an obvious future, but to take a less than obvious result that is a real potential future.
Also remember, I'm trying to show you and give you examples of how to write a science fiction theme statement and turn it into a plot.
For more information, you can visit my author site http://www.ldalford.com/, and my individual novel websites:
http://www.aegyptnovel.com/
http://www.centurionnovel.com
http://www.thesecondmission.com/
http://www.theendofhonor.com/
http://www.thefoxshonor.com
http://www.aseasonofhonor.com
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