By Keith Fisher
Wow! What a busy week, and to top it off, I’ve been attending Life, the Universe & Everything (LTUE) at BYU. If you didn’t know, it’s a conference for writers and illustrators of science fiction and fantasy. Held every February, it’s not all SF and fantasy, though. I’ve found plenty of writing tips and other stuff I can use. The class called, Establish Characters through Costume Design was helpful. I need to give more thought to what my characters wear.
It’s refreshing to hang out with the SF types. I admire anyone who writes in that genre because they’re intelligent enough to keep all the knowledge, and collected wisdom of whole worlds in their mind, then, using that knowledge, they write the mythical stories of their creations.
I wrote SF once. Let’s just say, as far as science fiction is concerned, I’m not a bad writer of general, and women’s fiction. (Thanks to the writers of a movie called Funny Farm for that line.) I am a SF fan, and I can hold my own, in the debate of Star Trek VS Star Wars, and I loved Battlestar Galactica on TV. Yesterday, however, I felt like a neophyte.
I sat in Richard Hatch’s presentation and watched the great movie trailers he showed. Hatch is the actor who played Apollo, in the original Battlestar Galactica series. He makes trailers to pitch his ideas (a novel approach). One of which was a ten year old proposal for a bridging series. In the, trailer, the Cylons have evolved and they’re stronger, and Apollo, who leads the whole band, takes his people on a quest to find Starbuck.
In the original series, the Starbuck character, played by Dirk Benedict, was marooned on a planet. In Richard’s trailer, there were many references to Starbuck. He is alive, and they are going to find him.
When the trailer ended, I asked Richard what he intended for the Starbuck character. He informed me that he’d written a series of books about it. People turned to stare at me, as if they were saying, “Well, duh, you should know that.”
Perhaps it’s in my best interest, at this point, to admit I haven’t kept up. There are many facts stuck in my head about the Star Trek world and Star Wars. I am familiar with much of the SF written today, but I write women’s fiction. I live, somewhat unsuccessfully, in the world around me.
Sitting at the feet of Richard Hatch, I felt like slinking out. Accepting my fate as a non-geek, and living my life in obscurity. God Bless those people who manage their lives, and cram all those facts into their heads. I have my hands full, trying to navigate the minds of women.
I did, however, find an hour yesterday, to work on my story. I wrote a fantastic ending to the sequel of the book I’m editing, then, I rewrote a part that needed to be tighter. I spent a few minutes on the first book, spoke to an editor about it, and I felt peace in being a writer. I sat back in the armchair, gazed out over the common area below, and counted my blessings.
Although, there are many frustrations in choosing to be a writer, I am grateful for the chance to develop a talent. I keep a growing project file of books in many stages of development. I hold the lives of over a hundred characters in my head, and I know how they will grow by the end of their stories. I’m sorry if I haven’t crammed the whole Galatica series in there.
I wish Richard had been allowed to make the continuation series, but he’s working on a new project that promises to be amazing. Its called The Great War of Magellan and the book will be out at the first of the year.
Good luck with your writing—live long and prosper, and may the force be with you. See you next week.
Wow! What a busy week, and to top it off, I’ve been attending Life, the Universe & Everything (LTUE) at BYU. If you didn’t know, it’s a conference for writers and illustrators of science fiction and fantasy. Held every February, it’s not all SF and fantasy, though. I’ve found plenty of writing tips and other stuff I can use. The class called, Establish Characters through Costume Design was helpful. I need to give more thought to what my characters wear.
It’s refreshing to hang out with the SF types. I admire anyone who writes in that genre because they’re intelligent enough to keep all the knowledge, and collected wisdom of whole worlds in their mind, then, using that knowledge, they write the mythical stories of their creations.
I wrote SF once. Let’s just say, as far as science fiction is concerned, I’m not a bad writer of general, and women’s fiction. (Thanks to the writers of a movie called Funny Farm for that line.) I am a SF fan, and I can hold my own, in the debate of Star Trek VS Star Wars, and I loved Battlestar Galactica on TV. Yesterday, however, I felt like a neophyte.
I sat in Richard Hatch’s presentation and watched the great movie trailers he showed. Hatch is the actor who played Apollo, in the original Battlestar Galactica series. He makes trailers to pitch his ideas (a novel approach). One of which was a ten year old proposal for a bridging series. In the, trailer, the Cylons have evolved and they’re stronger, and Apollo, who leads the whole band, takes his people on a quest to find Starbuck.
In the original series, the Starbuck character, played by Dirk Benedict, was marooned on a planet. In Richard’s trailer, there were many references to Starbuck. He is alive, and they are going to find him.
When the trailer ended, I asked Richard what he intended for the Starbuck character. He informed me that he’d written a series of books about it. People turned to stare at me, as if they were saying, “Well, duh, you should know that.”
Perhaps it’s in my best interest, at this point, to admit I haven’t kept up. There are many facts stuck in my head about the Star Trek world and Star Wars. I am familiar with much of the SF written today, but I write women’s fiction. I live, somewhat unsuccessfully, in the world around me.
Sitting at the feet of Richard Hatch, I felt like slinking out. Accepting my fate as a non-geek, and living my life in obscurity. God Bless those people who manage their lives, and cram all those facts into their heads. I have my hands full, trying to navigate the minds of women.
I did, however, find an hour yesterday, to work on my story. I wrote a fantastic ending to the sequel of the book I’m editing, then, I rewrote a part that needed to be tighter. I spent a few minutes on the first book, spoke to an editor about it, and I felt peace in being a writer. I sat back in the armchair, gazed out over the common area below, and counted my blessings.
Although, there are many frustrations in choosing to be a writer, I am grateful for the chance to develop a talent. I keep a growing project file of books in many stages of development. I hold the lives of over a hundred characters in my head, and I know how they will grow by the end of their stories. I’m sorry if I haven’t crammed the whole Galatica series in there.
I wish Richard had been allowed to make the continuation series, but he’s working on a new project that promises to be amazing. Its called The Great War of Magellan and the book will be out at the first of the year.
Good luck with your writing—live long and prosper, and may the force be with you. See you next week.
3 comments:
I wanna read your ending!
I personally don't really understand the fantasy sci-fi mentality. My brain just doesn't think that way.
I missed Richard's presentation, but heard it was great.
Congrats on writing your ending!
You never need to slink out of anywhere, Keith. You're an amazing writer in your own right. Hold your head high and just know that your skills are yours alone. It doesn't matter what level of geek or not geek you are because who you are is pretty talented.
Post a Comment