The Fantasy Authors Exercises Iv A Brief History Of The Alpha Centauri System

THE FANTASY AUTHOR’S EXERCISES IV: A Brief History of the Alpha Centauri System This collection of posts was impressed by an edit. Cut out of the ultimate version of The Guide to Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction was a brief appendix that started with this paragraph: We’ve realized lots over the previous few hundred pages or so, and I know you’ve been paying shut consideration all along. But simply if you thought you have been accomplished, now comes the onerous halfâ€"really doing something with the knowledge you’ve gathered here. In order to get the creative juices flowing, listed here are some workouts designed to help you put some new ideas and skills into apply. Don’t wait till after you’ve completed your novel to start on theseâ€"go ahead and write a log line, a canopy letter, and so on for a book you assume you may need to write, or something you’re making up off the highest of your head, then do it once more when you have one thing specific to speak about. You may be involved to see how different they're. There had been solely so many pages within the guide, but on the infinite elbow room of the internet there are homework assignments: Write a Brief History of the Alpha Centauri System Alpha Centauri is the closest star to our sun, and has been a setting for thus many science fiction stories for so long I doubt there’s any way to accurately count them. Even though it’s “close” by astronomical requirements, every thing is definitely really distant when measured in astronomical standards, so as of the writing of this no one has actually been there. There’s really a pretty good chance that there isn't any life to be discovered there. I’m not even certain of they’ve discovered any huge exoplanets there. I suppose I might Google that and discover out, however I’m not going to. That’s not the point. Okay, I Googled it in spite of everything. Good information! The level of this exercise is to do some worldbuilding, starting with a science fiction setting. In later workout routines we’ll do some fantasy wo rldbuilding, but for now, let’s keep it inside the broad spectrum of science fiction. And anybody who’s read The Guide to Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction, and a few of my different musings on the topic, know that I recognizeâ€"and rejoiceâ€"that that’s a really, very broad spectrum. Again, I like to consider science fiction as a ratio, science:fiction, or “science-to-fiction.” So-referred to as “Hard SF” will tip that ratio in favor of science, where extra loosely imagined subgenres like “slipstream” will tip the scales dramatically in the direction of fiction. This is the historical past of your Alpha Centauri, so by all means, steadiness that ratio in whatever way you need. I need you to really sit down and write this, but don’t go loopy. You have other writing to do. Fill up one pageâ€"and by now you know what I imply after I say one web page. Don’t really feel as though you must cover every last tiny detail of thousands of years of history. Think very f astidiously concerning the high factors. If you had to distill our own historical past down to one page, what would you embrace? Would you consider invention and technology, beginning maybe with hearth and the wheel and ending with the iPad? Would you consider religion and philosophy from early animism to . . . what? The rise of radicalized Islam within the Middle East and reactionary Christianity in America? Would you be more thinking about growing social systems, from slavery via the women’s movement and on into the post-privacy internet age? Is Earth’s history about agrarianism vs. industrialism? Statism vs. individuality? I guess you’ll end up with some mix. It’ll be exhausting not to mention most of those things a minimum of in passing, however as you’re serious about our personal history and your invented historical past, begin consideringâ€"although you might never write the story itselfâ€"about a quick story or novel set in your Alpha Centauri system. What would yo u, as an author, need to know in regards to the history of the Alpha Centauri system in order for you to inform your story? What can be most significant to your character and the scenario he finds himself in? Then let your creativeness fly. Who lives there, an indigenous species of clever life or colonists from Earthâ€"or both? What makes this an fascinating place, what are the potential conflicts or risks that exist there that could add fascinating components to your story? And understand that all we’re engaged on right here is the history of the system. For now, go ahead and go away some components unexplained. If you have been doing this “for real” (and again, you’re definitely free to keep going and actually write the story) you’ll must know more than a historical past lesson, however that’s all I’m asking for here. I don’t must understand how their spaceships work, what they eat, once they pray, and the way they make little Alpha Centaurians. Future exercises ma y ask for you to create a fantasy religion, invent a military structure, or describe an ecosystem, however go away these things out of this one. Look for inspiration everywhere you'll be able to consider. Look at encyclopedias or almanacs, for instance. How do they deal with, say, the historical past of the state of Illinois in lower than a thousand phrases? They do it, largely by counting on some common expertise (it’s secure to assume that someone studying an encyclopedia entry on Illinois will already know what the United States of America is, might know who Abraham Lincoln is, has heard of coal mines, is aware of what an airport is, and so on) then simply enhancing like crazy, until simply essentially the most important high factors are left. And don't forget what might be crucial part of all this: HAVE FUN! And when you have a web page that you think is fairly cool, that sparks your imagination, paste it into the body of an email and ship it to me at: Please be suggested that something you send there may be posted here, at my sole discretion, and no money will change palms. I’ve set up that e mail tackle particularly for this series of workout routines, and can solely examine it a couple instances every week till December 21, 2010. That’s eight weeks to get again to me. At that point, I’ll cease checking that e mail account (until we begin a brand new exercise) and start reading and excited about what to include in a observe-up post. I might get a bunch of emails, and received’t be capable of publish them all, of course, and I can’t send you e mail critiques again, but I’m sure they’ll be nice learning alternatives even when they aren’t shared. If they're, I promise to not rip you to shredsâ€"good editors don’t do this. We’ll study from one another, and we’ll do it in an environment of respect and shared expertise. Okay, then, get busy! â€"Philip Athans About Philip Athans Fill in your details beneath or click an icon to log in: You are commenting utilizing your WordPress.com account. (Log Out/ Change) You are commenting using your Google account. (Log Out/ Change) You are commenting utilizing your Twitter account. (Log Out/ Change) You are commenting using your Facebook account. 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