Rifters and The Fall of Order
So I've been doing a lot of writing about various literary groups operating in Sudbury lately, without really talking much about my own writing. So today, other than this quick link to the Sudbury Hypergraphic Society website, I'm going to only focus on that. There are two pieces that I'm working on quite heavily right now. One's a short story named "Rifters." and the other is a novel tentatively titled The Fall of Order.
"Rifters" is a Science Fiction short story with three principal parties. There is the dominant group, called "The Doctrine", who beleives themselves in control economically and physically over a large region of space, which they believe to be going low on resources and is determined to expand by any means necessary. There is the rebel faction, called "Xanteeous," who is dedicated to uniting the smaller corporations and staging a coup in the area, throwing out The Doctrine, and forging their own peaceful and stable empire. And then there is the un-allied, a group of smaller corporations sitting on the fence and selling their services to either order.
If it sounds a lot like Star Wars, you're not the only one of that opinion. When basically boiled down, it does sound a lot like that. The thing that I haven't said anything about it the why of it all, and the how of it all. I don't want to get into too many details, but I will say that it has something to do with what I learned while I was playing Eve Online, an online MMORPG. Eve is an organicly evolving space-age MMO where players form corporations, broker deals with other corporations, and compete for profit and pleasure. I've never read the Star Wars novels, so I can't say this with much certainty, but from the movies, there's almost no talk of how everyone is supplied. Where do they get their ships and weapons? How do they recruit? How do their spies know what's going on? And just as importantly, how are they funded?
With Rifters, I intend to take a really close look at that last aspect. Think of it as a look at the business of revolution in space. That's how I'm aiming my story. Yes, you have all these actions pouring forth on the front, but sometimes you need to move away from the front or it's all going to fall apart. I plan to take Rifters a little away from the front. The main character will not be the leader of the revolution, but a side character, someone on the supply lines perhaps. With movies like Serenity and Star Wars dealing with more of a frontal assault, it's time to take a step off to the side and see what else is going on, and how it can change the path of the war. That's what interests me. What characters are ignored, but are integral to ensuring success, and how can they be portrayed to grow the empire? Those are the questions I'm asking myself as I write this piece.
The Fall of Order is a novel that I've been working on for some time, but have been vaguely referring to as my "necromancer series." Initially it had been written as a series of short stories, vaguely related, and all leading toward a single, disastrous ending. With the bulk of those stories completed, I came to realize that it couldn't quite work in that format and have been busily trying to weave and rewrite the stories into a single, cohesive piece. I've added new subplots and characters as I try to put together something solid.
I'm doing pretty good at it so far, and have crossed 50,000 words of edited/rewritten manuscript. I have about 35,000 words of unedited short stories sitting nearby that I need to weave in still. I figure by the time all is said and done, I'll be sitting around 100,000 words. I want to have that "second draft" completed by early September, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to squeeze it in without a few good days of dedicated writing. Luckily I've booked a few days off of my day job selling electronics, so if I'm able to get out of the house I should be able to crank out what I need.
So you know that The Fall of Order has something to do with necromancers, but that's about where your knowledge ends at the moment eh? For a basic theme, let's call it an acceptance story. The main protagonist has to come to accept himself for what he really is, and in so doing will need to confront and triumph over the arch-villain who is responsible for the death of his mother, and many of the people that he's alienated himself from because of his denial of self. Alone and isolated, the protagonist must rise to the occasion.
Enough for tonight. Gotta head out.
"Rifters" is a Science Fiction short story with three principal parties. There is the dominant group, called "The Doctrine", who beleives themselves in control economically and physically over a large region of space, which they believe to be going low on resources and is determined to expand by any means necessary. There is the rebel faction, called "Xanteeous," who is dedicated to uniting the smaller corporations and staging a coup in the area, throwing out The Doctrine, and forging their own peaceful and stable empire. And then there is the un-allied, a group of smaller corporations sitting on the fence and selling their services to either order.
If it sounds a lot like Star Wars, you're not the only one of that opinion. When basically boiled down, it does sound a lot like that. The thing that I haven't said anything about it the why of it all, and the how of it all. I don't want to get into too many details, but I will say that it has something to do with what I learned while I was playing Eve Online, an online MMORPG. Eve is an organicly evolving space-age MMO where players form corporations, broker deals with other corporations, and compete for profit and pleasure. I've never read the Star Wars novels, so I can't say this with much certainty, but from the movies, there's almost no talk of how everyone is supplied. Where do they get their ships and weapons? How do they recruit? How do their spies know what's going on? And just as importantly, how are they funded?
With Rifters, I intend to take a really close look at that last aspect. Think of it as a look at the business of revolution in space. That's how I'm aiming my story. Yes, you have all these actions pouring forth on the front, but sometimes you need to move away from the front or it's all going to fall apart. I plan to take Rifters a little away from the front. The main character will not be the leader of the revolution, but a side character, someone on the supply lines perhaps. With movies like Serenity and Star Wars dealing with more of a frontal assault, it's time to take a step off to the side and see what else is going on, and how it can change the path of the war. That's what interests me. What characters are ignored, but are integral to ensuring success, and how can they be portrayed to grow the empire? Those are the questions I'm asking myself as I write this piece.
The Fall of Order is a novel that I've been working on for some time, but have been vaguely referring to as my "necromancer series." Initially it had been written as a series of short stories, vaguely related, and all leading toward a single, disastrous ending. With the bulk of those stories completed, I came to realize that it couldn't quite work in that format and have been busily trying to weave and rewrite the stories into a single, cohesive piece. I've added new subplots and characters as I try to put together something solid.
I'm doing pretty good at it so far, and have crossed 50,000 words of edited/rewritten manuscript. I have about 35,000 words of unedited short stories sitting nearby that I need to weave in still. I figure by the time all is said and done, I'll be sitting around 100,000 words. I want to have that "second draft" completed by early September, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to squeeze it in without a few good days of dedicated writing. Luckily I've booked a few days off of my day job selling electronics, so if I'm able to get out of the house I should be able to crank out what I need.
So you know that The Fall of Order has something to do with necromancers, but that's about where your knowledge ends at the moment eh? For a basic theme, let's call it an acceptance story. The main protagonist has to come to accept himself for what he really is, and in so doing will need to confront and triumph over the arch-villain who is responsible for the death of his mother, and many of the people that he's alienated himself from because of his denial of self. Alone and isolated, the protagonist must rise to the occasion.
Enough for tonight. Gotta head out.
posted by Shawn Gray at
4:32 PM
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