Why I write Sci-Fi.

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Why I write Sci-Fi.

A lot of people think of Sci-Fi as space opera, adventures of supermen with aliens thrown in for good measure. That is not my scene.

As a young man, I was an avid reader of the genre and consumed novels by the ton. It is a habit that has lasted up until the present time, though I tend to dilute my Sci-Fi with a wide range of other fiction. My favourite Sci-Fi writers are people like Iain M Banks, Margaret Atwood, Philip Dick, Robert Sheckley, Kurt Vonnegutt Jnr and Arthur C Clarke; writers who wrote about social issues or human situations. 1984 and Brave New World are classic examples of brilliant Sci-Fi novels for me.

As a scientist (I am a biologist) I like my science to be based in reality. Looking into the future is always difficult. I think it was Arthur C Clarke who once said that superior technology is indistinguishable from magic. At present, there are barriers that make visiting other regions of the galaxy impossible. Light speed is too slow. The distances are too great. But perhaps with the advent of quantum physics, and theories such as the folding of linear space, future humans may be able to circumvent these problems.

Sci-Fi gives me a blank canvas of possibility. I am able to write about human beings, and the world we create for ourselves, in different settings and context. I can extrapolate and predict. I can investigate human nature and explore how we interact in different circumstances. I can travel back and forth in time, and space is no obstacle. So my novels usually have social, environmental and political elements and themes. I can also expound on science and philosophy in interesting ways and tackle some of the ultimate questions of life – purpose, reality and our place in the ecology of life. It is a world of possibility. There are very few limitations.

But at the heart of my writing is the human condition with all its emotions, thoughts and diverse behaviours.

Sci-Fi is a vehicle that presents me with a multihued palette to paint stories about people. Some of my people just happen to be aliens.

I write about the ideas that excite me.

New Eden – some of the ideas in this Sci-fi novel.

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New Eden – some of the ideas

New Eden

At the time I wrote this novel, back in the 1980’s, Ebola was first hitting the news. Thankfully the outbreaks of Ebola have all been contained and we have never had to deal with a global pandemic. Ebola would have been a worse challenge than Covid 19.

Back then I was seeing two things occurring in the world. The overpopulation problem was creating a huge environmental impact, a lot of pollution, overcrowded cities and deforestation. At the same time automation and technology was replacing the need for a large workforce.

As far as politicians were concerned we were creating a surplus population who were unemployable. The solution was to remove that surplus.

A tyrannical government decided on a plan of action. They would develop a virus, based on Ebola, that was 100% fatal, develop a vaccine and, as part of their annual vaccination programme, vaccinate all the people they wanted to survive. It was eugenics in full operation. Not only would they rid themselves of surplus population, but they could remove all opposition and anyone they did not deem fit.

As with most plans, things do not work out as intended.

With the passing of time, the burgeoning population and the advent of A/I, the tenets of the novel were even more pertinent. I originally had released the book as Ebola in the Garden of Eden. I re-edited it and reissued it as New Eden.

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The other central theme in the Sci-Fi novel Green

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The other central theme in the novel Green

Green

The future world I was describing in the novel Green was in the midst of an environmental crisis. Nature had been virtually destroyed and pollution was rife. Big Business ran the show for profit.

The result was a movement of environmentalists totally opposed to the way the world had been run for profit at the expense of all other life. They were the Green Movement.

The Green movement were not unified. They were split into three factions.

The first faction, the mainstream movement, still believed that they reason with the ruling group, gain public support, and force positive change.

The second faction believed that reasoning with the politicians was not possible. All that the ruling class cared about was power and that Big Business pulled the strings, and all they cared about was profit. This faction believed that the only way to promote positive change was to force the politicians and industry to change. They ran a campaign of terror and sabotage.

The third faction was the most cynical of all. They believed that it was impossible for people to change, that there was a genetic flaw in human nature and we, as a species, were irredeemable. The only answer was to remove humans from the equation altogether and allow nature to evolve back into a better state.

The third faction were actively colluding to release a virus to wipe out mankind.

This provided the dramatic backdrop as the two main stories interweaved.

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Green – a Sci-Fi novel – The central theme

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Green – The central theme

Green

Green is a novel that deals with a number of philosophical questions: what is the nature of reality? Could what we experience through our own consciousness be described as reality? What consciousness would an individual have is they lacked any sensory input from the world outside? Is the ‘internal’ world in our heads as infinite as the world outside?

My central character is a girl who was born with no sensory contact with the outside. She was a brain inside a head with no nervous connections to any senses. She had no knowledge of either her own body or the world outside. I wanted to explore the universe she inhabited within her own mind.

Then someone finds a way to contact her!

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Conexion (a Sci-Fi novel) – the thinking behind it.

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Conexion – the thinking behind it.

Conexion

Like most of my novels, there is usually the clashing of a number of ideas that come together into a story. In the case of connexion there were two major ideas:

Conexion is a drug. It unlocks memory stored in the DNA. Effectively it enables people to travel back through time, to experience the world through the eyes, thoughts and feelings of our ancestors.

There was an article I was reading, long ago, that remarked that human evolution had been so rapid it was almost as if we had been deposited here.

That was enough for me to weave two stories together (along with a number of other subplots) to create a novel.

I provided political intrigue, some drama and some human touches and it all came together.

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Some reflections on the Gordian Fetish

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Some reflections on the Gordian Fetish

The Gordian Fetish,

I wrote the Gordian Fetish as a humorous Sci-fi novel. The theme of the novel was an alien institution that specialised in exotic specimens from other planets. The institute had been set up to preserve endangered intelligent life. It was run by a boss who was never there and a manager who was completely incompetent. One of their exhibits were a pair of humans purloined from Earth.

The Manager likes furry creatures and illegally purchases humans off a dodgy character. Humans are furry and, incredibly, they have sex. Although they aren’t technically endangered he can’t resist. The idea of this strange sex, coupled with their furriness, is too irresistible.

The novel is set in the future which enabled me to present my view of how our civilisation might pan out.

The Institution is due for a major inspection which it is going to fail. Here I applied my knowledge of how a school reacts to an imminent inspection; the panic and mad dash to get everything done. It was ripe for humour.

I drew on my extensive knowledge of educational institutions, governors, incompetent managers, absent bosses, unions and all those impossible meetings where nothing can be agreed.

Although it was a send-up there were enough serious issues to take it on many levels.

I had great fun writing this novel.

Available in both paperback and kindle on Amazon.

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Some reflections on the Gordian Fetish – A Sci-fi novel

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Some reflections on the Gordian Fetish

The Gordian Fetish,

I wrote the Gordian Fetish as a humorous Sci-fi novel. The theme of the novel was an alien institution that specialised in exotic specimens from other planets. The institute had been set up to preserve endangered intelligent life. It was run by a boss who was never there and a manager who was completely incompetent. One of their exhibits were a pair of humans purloined from Earth.

The Manager likes furry creatures and illegally purchases humans off a dodgy character. Humans are furry and, incredibly, they have sex. Although they aren’t technically endangered he can’t resist. The idea of this strange sex, coupled with their furriness, is too irresistible.

The novel is set in the future which enabled me to present my view of how our civilisation might pan out.

The Institution is due a major inspection which it is going to fail. Here I applied my knowledge of how a school reacts to an imminent inspection; the panic and mad dash to get everything done. It was ripe for humour.

I drew on my extensive knowledge of educational institutions, governors, incompetent managers, absent bosses, unions and all those impossible meetings where nothing can be agreed.

Although it was a send-up there were enough serious issues to take it on many levels.

I had great fun writing this novel.

Available in both paperback and kindle on Amazon.

In the UK:

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How Reawakening came about.

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How Reawakening came about.

Reawakening

I had a meeting with my editor friend to have a final discussion over God’s Bolt prior to its publication. He had really enjoyed the book and thought it was one of my best. He had particularly liked the character Helen Southcote and remarked how sorry he was to have come to the end as he would really have liked to know what happened to her.

That interested me. I had completed the book. Helen Southcote was the lone survivor of the human race. The book had an ending. I could not really see how it could progress. Besides, I do not tend to write sequels. But it none-the-less set my mind rolling.

We continued talking and he went on to remark that it would be interesting to build a better picture of what this looked like from the Alien point of view. The alien civilisation lived in the constellation of Tau Sagittarii, 122 light-years away. It did produce challenges. Any radio signals would take 122 years to reach their destination. A time lag of that nature created an almost insurmountable problem for any dialogue ….. almost.

The conversation set electrons whirring in my head. Before I knew it I had mapped out a story, sorted a beginning, middle and end, solved the communication gap and produced another novel.

It is a wonderful process of our imaginations that we enjoy both problem solving and telling stories. I think it is ingrained in our psychology.

Available in both paperback and kindle from Amazon.

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Neanderthal – the development of a character

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Neanderthal – the development of a character

One of my main characters, Roger Comstock, who came to play a large part in the novel, started life as a minor character. I had originally imagined him in a walk on part, never to be heard of again.

I wanted an expert on Neanderthals and created a university lecturer. I put in some humour and controversy. He was a man who was inspirational for his students, could connect and formed good relationships. I wanted him to be charismatic, knowledgeable, warm, compassionate and human.

At first I was merely using him as a vehicle to explain some theories about Neanderthals and to start the ball rolling on their mysterious disappearance.

As soon as I had written that first scene I knew I had created a character who could have a bigger role in the story so I began developing Roger’s part. Before I knew it he had moved into a central position and became instrumental in how the book developed. The character had taken over the story.

Writing a novel is a fluid experience. A character, or idea, or plot line, can deflect you from your original concept. It grows and takes on a life of its own. You have to write fast to keep up with it.

Roger Comstock did that for Neanderthal. He changed the story.

Available in both paperback and kindle from Amazon.

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Ron Forsythe – Science Fiction Books – The new Website

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I have released the best of my Science Fiction books under the Ron Forsythe pen name.

My new website and blog centers on those books.

I would be grateful if you could take a look and feedback on your comments and suggestions.

Thank you!

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