Goaltending – John Dyer Writes

One of my goals in writing science fiction is to promote an ambience of authenticity — which can be problematic when much of the landscape is mythological. I cover part of this ground by wrapping the fantastic in the mundane — making the story more believable in a visceral sense. Thus, in Resilient, Sattva Pala is introduced as a disembodied soul, brought across a dimensional boundary, raised in the Virtuality under a cloud of presumption that she’s an angel sent by the Gods. In counterpoint, she manifests as a complicated young woman with a confusing life and all the insecurities a person experiences from living in a real world.

In The Illusion of Gravity, a manufacturing executive invests in an emerging technology startup, but doesn’t tell his boss the project is about anti-gravity — a decision that makes sense to anyone who understands how staggeringly unimaginative senior management can be. To close the loop, I devote a lot of energy to making the science plausible — and I think seasoned SF readers will notice I’m staking out my own territory in the genre.

The follow-on series, The Anye Migration, has a space opera aspect to it, but my intent is to produce literary science fiction. Although alien technology occupies the stage in a meaningful way, with set pieces as elaborate and interesting as I can make them, these are stories about life, the choices we make, the value of community, the mystery of God, and so forth.

Yes, the technology is important. That’s part of the fun. Also, the story has to be entertaining. Got it covered. At the same time, I’m reaching for depth. In a review of Illusion of Gravity, author Ashley Manning said, “I would recommend it to people who like sci-fi that isn’t dumbed down. This is a book that rewards you for paying attention.”

Which is to say, I’m writing for grown-ups. If that sounds interesting, find me here.

On a separate tack, I’d like to hear from the artist who created the featured image used in this post. He went by the handle MegatronBlack when associated with 99 Designs and, if he hadn’t been so quick to depart after a cover contest, I would have bought the illustration. If you know who he is, please pass this along.

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