7. Why Sci-Fi?
Whenever I have the joy of discussing my novel with an interested party, one of the first questions I receive is “what drew you to writing Sci-Fi?” Known for being esoteric, dense, and sometimes a little ludicrous, it certainly hasn’t always been the most marketable genre (unless accompanied by the now-oversaturated “Dystopian” label). Given I intend to publish and sell this novel, maybe I would have been better off having a go at the “Crime/Thriller” or “Romantasy” genres that line the shelves of many a bookstore – and can even be seen in ubiquitous places such as Kmart or Big W.
The thing is, I’m just not that interested. And no, this is not a dig at Divergent, The Bourne Series or ACOTAR! It just happens that I don’t consume much media – be it books, movies, or even games – from those genres, so I have no real context of where to even begin to think of an interesting story. Something that has been a recurring mantra for me throughout this process is to ‘play to my strengths’ – and that includes writing about things I’m interested in. Reading is very time-consuming, and the last thing I ever want to do is disrespect my reader’s time with something disingenuous.
To answer the question as simply as possible: I’m writing Sci-Fi because I love it! The truth is, had I attempted to write this novel in any other way, or on any other subject, I don’t think I’d have gone anywhere near the distance. I believe that writing, even fiction, is all about authenticity, and the idea of committing my time, energy, and reputation to something that I don’t believe in is anathema to me. There are no guarantees with any creative exploit, even if you follow every formula and mimic every step of success stories in the field – so it always made more sense to me to write something that was true to me first. And given my status somewhere on the spectrum between an “amateur” and “indie” writer, and the fact I’ve never completed a novel before, trying to write ‘commercially-first’ just doesn’t make sense to me.
Initially, I pictured this story as Sci-Fi Horror, akin to the masterworks of Alien and The Thing, but as it’s progressed, I have realised it fits much more nicely into the genre of Adventure. My characters go through some incredible, mind-bending experiences, and literally adventure to and through another world, while the story is all about how we humans deal with change, disruption, turmoil and grief. The Sci-Fi itself – which includes spacesuits, buggies, sandy planets, mysterious threats and cosmic anomalies, is just a colourful costume, delivered simply and directly to convey these deeper themes. And what’s more, Sci-fi is something I know and love, and have greatly enjoyed consuming and creating for most of my life!
Writing a novel is time consuming and mentally-energy intensive, so write about something you love. Dive into a realm you find captivating, mysterious and, most importantly, want to spend your time in. And just maybe, your readers will too.
In other exciting news, I’m less than three chapters away from a finished manuscript!
Thank you for reading.
Book update below:
Words: 77819
Chapters: 26 (just 3 to go!)
Pages: 314
Words last week: 4350 (+850 target word count)
With love,
JSH
