Class reunions are what time travel paradoxes are made of. I don't recognize anyone but nothing ever changes. Weird and familiar all at once. It is a right of passage that no one wants to do it but most of us do it anyway. Do they do these in France or India? You'll hate every moment leading up to it, then you'll talk to someone you haven't seen since graduation and you think, yeah, this is pretty cool. And having a drink in your hand doesn't hurt either.
I went into Borders (no more) looking for a book on swarm intelligence. The book jockey I talked to lead me to The Singularity Is Near. The book has nearly nothing about swarm intelligence but it is a science-fiction writer’s gold mine. There is a chapter dedicated to genetics, nanotechnology, and robotics. In it he addresses the idea of self-replicating robots and the fear that is a favorite of science fiction, the nanobot hoard. We are assured that precautions would be put in place to keep the human race from being overwhelmed by clouds of nanabots (fogglet) by programming the little suckers to replicate a finite number of times. If the thought has crossed your mind that you could be disassembled by a horde they would be programmed to break down only specific molecules and not just whatever they came across. He concludes with “…this approach should be reasonably effective against inadvertent dangers, although it could be circumvented by a determined and knowledgeable adversary. Page 229” Damn you determined and knowledgeable adversaries of the world. Twisting the good ideas of mankind to your own evil ends. A determined and knowledgeable adversary. I thought it was the funniest idea. You never have to worry about the stupid and unmotivated getting in your way. I think determination is a primary requirement if you plan on being a part of the council of evil or the Legion of Doom. Anyways, this book is a science fiction writer’s gold mine, lots of great leaping off points. Pick one and see what happens, I bet it will be pretty cool. Mr. Kurzweil seems to have a belief in mankind’s inherent goodness (something I’m not so sure about.) The future is certainly bright with The Singularity on the horizon. This is an important directive for tyrants and writers. Writers should be constantly on the lookout for new material. Your brain records everything, now your ability to remember it may be shite, but it’s all in there and your subconscious will bring it to the surface and you might not even realize it.
I know this is true because whenever I watch a movie from my childhood I realize there is an element from the film that was burned into my neural circuitry and when I wasn’t looking it made its way into the pages of my writing. For a concrete example is the warehouse at the beginning of my book Trespassing IS the warehouse from Adventures in Babysitting. Now I only know this because the movie plays a couple times a year on cable. But the minute I saw it, I knew it was the absolute truth. Armed with my blue pen and journal, no one is safe from my roving eyes. Mannerisms, clothing, and Muni time activities are mine for the taking. You never know how each of these tiny, seemingly irrelevant, bits of information will work its way into your writing. Trust your brain to bring you what you need but writing it down, being intentional with your observations will help too. Another important directive for writers (and probably tyrants) is: “Your focus determines your reality.” When Qui-Gon Jinn told that to a young Anakin Skywalker it redeemed Phantom Menace for me. But we can talk about that one another time. It started out as a vicarious activity. I wrote stories about things I wanted to experience. (“Write what you know” doesn’t work on this level.) For example: finding an island of living dinosaurs or hanging out with robots from another planet. This is still a pretty big motivator. I wish I could move things with my mind, teleport, and literally kick ass. At this time I can’t do any of those things so the writing will go on.
As to the act of writing I am an addict. Ever since I was kid I have loved notebooks, cards, stationary, paper, and pens. I’ve been taking notes in multiple colors since the fifth grade. This is still true today. I enjoy the physical act of writing, of leaving trails of colored ink on fields of white. The shaping of words, connected or otherwise, often leads to just name of my favorite characters written all over the back page of my current journal. (Have way too many journals.) When it comes to the story my favorite part is the creating of people and their world. Names are of intense interest to me. I am sure this stems from the dislike of my own name. I think my name is horrifically boring. As a result, I gave my first character the name I would have wanted, Brenda. I have several name books. Whenever I hear a cool name it goes on my list. Names are important. We make assumptions about a person based on their name. A large majority of American corporations are led by Johns and Williams. Creating is really a process of discovery. I feel like my characters and worlds already exist and I am just coming across them like an explorer in an undiscovered country. I really enjoy figuring out who these people are, why they do what they do, and helping them get out of their predicaments. Like many writers I am an observer of what happens. I don’t know where the story is going. My characters name themselves, get angry about things I didn’t expect, and perform acts of compassion out of nowhere. I am a recorder of events and I love it. Currently, I am working on the third draft of my novel. As I re-read each scene I ask: where’s the tension, what is the purpose of this scene, and is it doing enough. These simple questions have lead to some major changes and a whole new level of discovery with my characters and the world. I thought I had them figured out pretty well. Turns out that imaginary people have as much capacity to surprise as real ones. Rewriting is difficult but so rewarding. It is my new favorite thing. I will write even if I never have any readers. But like real people, my characters deserve to be known and appreciated for who they are and that is what motivates me right now. I am working hard to make their stories known to the rest of you. I hope you get the chance know them. |
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