World-Building

As an author of Science Fiction and Fantasy, it might surprise you to hear that my least favorite part is world-building.

I know when I first started creating the world of Combat Jax, my imagination went to things like character development and story arc. The worlds, weapons, technology, and creatures, while important, serve as texture to tell interesting stories about interesting characters.  

Looking back at the books and movies I love the most, it is the characters I connect with more than the special effects or realistic settings/actions. Sure, watching a car travel into space can suspend my suspension of disbelief, but, if I care enough about the people in the car, then I can look past most logical faux pas.

Now, I realize not everyone will agree with me. Especially in the genre of science fiction. The science and technology attract plenty of readers. Nothing wrong with that.

As a right-brainer (a scientific fallacy I will overlook), I prefer enough detail to ground my readers and let their imagination fill in the colors. I once heard the term “lampshading, " which fits here. Just as a lampshade diffuses light from a single source throughout an area, I prefer a single bit of science that diffuses its way throughout my stories. In Tropic Thunder, I love the quote where they ask Nick Nolte's character about the pistol he carries. His reply is, “I don’t know what you call it. I just know the sound it makes when it takes a man’s life.”

I know, blasphemy for some of my military sci-fi fans out there.

So now it's your turn. I’d love to hear what’s your favorite part of world-building. Do you prefer deep dives into technology, flora, fauna, tactics, etc.? Or, like me, do you need just enough to ground you in a story so you can focus on a character and their journey?

Please let me know in the comments.

Wonderful Summer!

Last time I wrote about what a great month June was professionally. Well, the rest of the summer (mostly) did not disappoint on a personal level. Getting the somewhat-negative out of the way, I had shoulder surgery (my 3rd) to repair a torn rotator cuff and clean up my right shoulder that’s been trashed by a lifetime of soldiering, combat sports, and general recklessness/stupidity. I haven’t been able to write for long stretches of time until last week.

So, that’s my excuse for the delay in posting this.

On to the awesome stuff.

My wife spoke at World Water Week in Stockholm, Sweden in late August. I accompanied her and, because of my surgery, didn’t even have to carry the bags!

Sweden was wonderful. Aside from escaping this Georgia heat, we also escaped the heavy, poor-quality air. That was the first thing we both noticed upon landing – the air was so clean. The city and country are beautiful. Built on an archipelago, Stockholm was wonderful to explore. Bridges, mass transit, and ferries made traveling from island to island easy.

Among the highlights were: a trip to one of the outer islands via ferry, exploring the Vasa Museum (the Vasa, built between 1626-1628, is a huge warship designed to be the biggest ever seen! However, it was so big/tall, that it sunk on its maiden voyage roughly 1km into its voyage. <insert facepalm emoji>), exploring a bookstore in Gamla Stan (Old Town) dedicated to just sci-fi, fantasy, and horror, and a trip to Sigtuna (Sweden’s oldest town) for fika.

Speaking of Fika…boy do I have a bone to pick with the founding fathers! We definitely should have incorporated Fika into American culture. Pronounced “fee-ka”, it translates to “coffee and cake.” Unlike a typical “coffee break,” Fika is “a concept, a state of mind, an attitude and an important part of Swedish culture. Many Swedes consider that it is almost essential to make time for fika every day. It means making time for friends and colleagues to share a cup of coffee (or tea) and a little something to eat.”

Then, this past week, we experienced three awesome events. The first was seeing Hans Zimmer and his orchestra in concert. A huge aspect of my writing process is listening to music to set the mood. Often, that music is Hans Zimmer's soundtracks (Chris Nolan’s Batman trilogy, Last Samurai, Dune, Gladiator, etc.). The performance was a religious experience! The musicianship was off-the-charts and the singers (including Lisa Gerrard – the voice of Gladiator, and Lebo - the singer you hear at the start of The Lion King) were a joy to hear!

Saturday afternoon we watched Lia cheer for the 2nd grade Hoya football team and that afternoon, Anabel read three of her poems at an open mic event. We are so proud of them.

Pictures and videos for all of this are attached on Facebook.

Enjoy!

It was June, and the world smelled of roses.

“It was June, and the world smelled of roses. The sunshine was like powdered gold over the grassy hillside.” — Maud Hart Lovelace

Yes, I know it's July, but I wanted to write this post about last month. And what an exceptional month June turned out to be.

You might ask, “Why was it a good month?”

Go ahead, ask…I’ll wait.

“Why was it a good month?”

Thank you for asking.

June was a great month because I published my first two professional writing pieces!

First came “Burping the Worm,” a story I started about 2 years ago. Looking for feedback on my writing, I answered a call for submissions from Henchmen Press. Imagine my excitement when they accepted my story for inclusion in their anthology Tales of the E4 Mafia.

The anthology has stories by 11 very talented authors, all involving the military’s shadow society 😊 known throughout as the E4 Mafia. I’ll let the book’s back cover copy tell you more: “They are masters of avoiding work, getting up to shenanigans, and, when a mission needs to be completed or job done, it’s an E-4 that others turn to. They are the near-mythical E-4 Mafia, and their ability to avoid work, solve problems, and create trouble is the stuff of legend.”

Next came word that another short story of mine, “Vive le Mouselution,” a quasi-steampunk/light sci-fi story, was being published in the anthology Minstrels in the Galaxy: Stories in the Key of Tull. 

Here, “a dozen science fiction authors have spun their own Tull-inspired yarns. So belly up to the bar somewhere out among the stars. Grab yourself a drink and settle in for some colorful tales from our minstrels in the galaxy. Stories of things that could have been, things that might have been...and of things that should have been, but never were.”

In about two weeks, I went from unpublished to published! Sure, I have a self-published children’s book and a short story in an online magazine, but these two publishers thought enough of my writing to stake money on it. As I said, it was a great month!

The stories have decidedly different tones to them. “Worm” is military sci-fi, full of the in-your-face excitement and raunch one expects from that genre. “Mouselution” is a quieter, more pensive piece, but still loaded with action.

I hope you’ll check out both books. They’re available on Amazon in eBook and paperback formats.

Thanks for reading!

Andy