Tales of the Vuduri: Year Three

by Michael Brachman

  You will recall in an earlier article, I mentioned the fact that merely having three chairs was enough to expose The Big Lie. Rome did her best to gloss over it but every one of the Vuduri is plugged into the Overmind and that includes the Onsiras. Such a seemingly innocent object would be enough to make our heroes' lives miserable.

  More tomorrow.

  Entry 3-359: December 20, 2015

 

  A walking tour of the Flying House 4

  Even though Rome and Rei spend nearly a year trapped inside the converted Vuduri space tug, called the Flying House, between Parts 1 and 2 of Rome's Revolution, we really didn't get to see much of it.

  This oversight was rectified after Rome's sentence of banishment. The Vuduri were using the Flying House to ferry Rome, Rei and Binoda to their new home in Hawaii. The flight required several hours so Rome took the opportunity to give her mother a walking tour of their apartment in the sky:

  Binoda reset and pushed and pulled and very soon got a nice rhythm going. Rome pressed a button on the control panel and increased the tension on the machine.

  “Oh,” Binoda said. She ran through the motions for a little while longer than stepped off. “I can see where this could be useful exercise!” She was breathing heavily.

  “Yes,” Rome said. “I enjoyed it myself once I got used to it.”

  “And you spent over a year in this ship?” Binoda asked. “Just the two of you? What if you wanted to be alone? Where would you go?”

  “It was not like that,” Rome said. “It was not really taxing. Rei and I enjoyed each other’s company so much that the time passed very quickly. If I was painting and needed to be alone, Rei would go up to the cockpit or the galley. Sometimes, when he was in the studio, recording his oral history, he would want to be alone as well. I would go lie down in the bedroom or do laundry. We were fine. But mostly we did not really want to be apart from one another.”

  “I was that way with your father,” Binoda said. “I never got enough time with him.” Her voice trailed off.

  Rome put her arm around her mother. “Come, Mea,” she said.

  “What else is there?” Grus interjected, speaking for the first time since they went on the tour.

  “Just the lockers and airlock,” replied Rome.

  “Then this is enough,” said Grus. “Please go back to the living area for the remainder of the journey.”

  “All right,” Rome said and the three of them returned to the sitting room.

  So there you have it. A complete walking tour of The Flying House. It isn't all that impressive. What is impressive is that our two heroes could spend nearly a year within that enclosed space and come out the other end with their sanity intact!

 

  Entry 3-360: December 21, 2015

 

  I am not a fan

  I write hard science fiction. Not fantasy. Not paranormal romance. Just straight, plain old hard science fiction. I do throw in action and adventure and even a hint of humor but the backbone of all my stories is hard science.

  I joined the Philadelphia Science Fiction Society with the hope of interacting with fellow aficionados. I wanted to pick up pointers, take the pulse of the modern reading public, hear fascinating speakers and so on. What I discovered is that the organization's principle focus was not for fans of science fiction but rather for science fiction fans. I had discussed this before in a previous article in relation to Philcon.

  However, let's back up and get the terminology straight. I am a Philadelphia Eagles fan. I dress up in Eagles jerseys and watch every game and once in a while I go to the games. When I do, I like to tailgate along with my companions. It is the experience and sense of community that attracts me. I don't feel silly in the slightest wearing the jersey of a professional athlete.

  However, I feel no compulsion to dress up in a science fiction costume nor do I get much at all from the sense of community at the convention. So I am not a science fiction fan. I still love the genre so I am a fan of science fiction.

  The reason I bring this up is that I have come to the conclusion that attending PSFS meetings or even staying a member no longer serves any purpose for me. The club is primarily for fans and that just doesn't float my boat. I will continue to attend Philcon if invited back to participate in panels. I would not attend otherwise.

  Don't get too sad over this. Life goes on. We evolve. The club will survive without me and I will survive without the club. I've made a couple of friends that I plan on staying in contact. It'll be OK.

  Tomorrow, back to the 35th century!

  Entry 3-361: December 22, 2015

 

  Science Fantasy

  Hey, I love Star Wars as much as anybody. I have my tickets reserved for the 4PM showing on Christmas Day in 3D. I'm really looking forward to it. But many people get the mistaken idea that Star Wars is science fiction. It isn't. It is a fantasy that takes place in space and has a lot of technological geegaws so it looks like science fiction. But it isn't.

  So what's the difference? Quite simply, science fiction is built upon a framework of science. To be true science fiction you can't have something happen that we know couldn't happen, unless you provide an explanation. If your fictional world allows for actions that cannot be explained or extrapolated, it is fantasy.

  So fantasy can take place on our world or on other worlds or in space or even in a galaxy far, far away. But the elements of the story do not require a strict adherence to facts. Contrast this to Star Trek, which while not the cleanest or most rigorous, is, in fact, science fiction. Everything within the world of Star Trek is based upon what we know or extrapolations of what we know. Sure, their aliens look a lot like human actors with rubber appliances on their faces but they proclaim convergent evolution. And sure everybody speaks English but they proclaim universal translator.

  So that's really the difference and I admit it is nit-picky. But if you are going to make science fiction, you have to lift a finger or two to bridge the gap between what we know and what you show. If you don't do that, you are relegated to the realm of fantasy and that's that.

  Still... I can't wait!

  Entry 3-362: December 23, 2015

 

  I need to quit my job

  When I started writing back in 1973, I never figured on it being a full-time job. I wrote short stories and even an entire 70-page novella (actually novelette) as my longest form. Fast forward to today and my novel Rome's Revolution comes in around 168,000 words and that's just the abridged version of the full Rome's Revolution Saga.

  When I first started, I figured I'd write a book about my vision of the 35th century. It is really kind of a futuristic steampunk which is taking the technology of today and replacing each and every item with a realistic alternative. The Vuduri do not need cellphones because they have their PPT resonance and The Overmind. They don't burn fossil fuel but they supply energy via Casimir Pumps. They go into space but instead of chemical rockets, they use electro-gravity and PPT (later Null Fold) star drives. Everything is the same but different.

  When I was done, I thought I was done. I was ready to move on to something else. But then I started wondering what happens next? First The Ark Lords then Rome's Evolution then Tales of the Vuduri, Years One, Two and now Three. Then The Milk Run. Where does it end?

  Answer: it doesn't. I keep pushing farther and farther and more books appear on my schedule. I have the prequel, working title MASAL - The Robot War, I have my collection of short stories, working title The Vuduri Companion, I have Rory's story tentatively called The Vuduri Knight and now I have to write a book about Rory's older brother named Zac. I don't even know what it is about yet.

  I have to record The Rome's Revolution Saga as three shorter audiobooks so that I can compile them into the audiobook version of Rome's Revolution. Then I will have record The Ark Lords and Rome's Evolution. Somewhere down the road, I have to write three books about The Immortals, you know them as Rome and Rei, with the final book tentati
vely entitled The Final Journey.

  By then I will have to do Tales of the Vuduri:Year Four and Year Five. Oy. I'm exhausted. I think I have to quit my job if I'm ever going to get caught up. I shudder to think what's beyond that but something tells me it is never going to end.

  Entry 3-363: December 24, 2015

 

  Topia

  A lot of YA novels today (Hunger Games, Divergent, Maze Runner) deal with a future dystopia. Very few books deal with a perfect future, a utopia, because when you think about it, a utopia is quite boring. The only thing interesting happening in utopia is an outsider coming in and stirring things up. Or someone finding out that things aren't really as perfect as they seem.

  To me, neither of these are realistic. People are always going to strive to better themselves at the expense of others. And there will always be a group of people trying to improve the human condition. So, to me, Rome's Revolution is neither about a utopia or dystopia. It is just one possible future. There are some things about the Vuduri society that are superior to ours and there are lots of things that we have (e.g. music, literature, art) that they don't have.

  So when Rome and Rei join forces, they are not trying to create a perfect world. If everything was perfect, why would you have any goals? If you don't have any goals, why bother going on living? No, the combination of our society and those living in the 35th century will produce something more vital than either. What that is, I don't know. I have to wait for them to tell me.

  If you read yesterday's post, you will see that I will need plenty of time to find out but I will get the information to you as quickly as possible. In the mean time, live your life as fully and as satisfying as you can, given that we live simply in a topia.

  Entry 3-364: December 25, 2015

  Asteroid Day, Revisited

  As I mentioned last year, what we call Christmas here on Earth has been re-invented in the 35th century as the holiday called Asteroid Day on Deucado. The spirit of the holiday is one filled with joy and wishing peace on Deucado and good will toward all men and other sentient life forms.

  The origin of the holiday was not revealed until the publication earlier this year of The Milk Run. Within that book was my first ever "flash-sideways" which showed what was happening on Deucado while Aason was racing across the galaxy trying to rescue his sister, Lupe. I gave you an advanced view in a previous article so I am not going to reprint the entire thing here. But I do want to remind you of the relevant section:

  Ursay took a deep breath. “As I am sure you are aware, today is the day that the asteroid was supposed to hit Deucado and extinguish all life thus effecting the genocide of the mandasurte.”

  Rei looked at Rome who shook her head. “Actually, no,” he said. “We solved that problem so long ago, I think we kind of forgot about the actual date.”

  “Well, the Vuduri of Earth have not. We have carried a profound guilt over the entire exercise for a long time. As a people, we were too smug and secure in our mastery of the course of civilization. We were so blind to MASAL’s plan. Because of your intervention, we realized it was our sworn duty to protect all the humans of Earth including the mandasurte. The Overmind regards that role as a serious one. It has taken a step back from being the ruler of Earth to being a steward for the protection of all mankind.”

  After the events of The Milk Run, Rome, Rei and their two children did eventually visit Earth. After they got back to Deucado, they realized that the salvation of their new home world was not a trivial thing and deserved to be recognized.

  Other than Poor Tamas, Rome did not really have much familiarity with the concept of holidays. But Rei certainly did. So they proclaimed Asteroid Day as the first official holiday on Deucado and they celebrated forever after as the anniversary of the day their world survived.

  Entry 3-365: December 26, 2015

 

  3D Printing

  As I mentioned in a previous article, my brother Bruce bought himself a 3D printer. 3D printers are basically very exotic glue guns and the filaments of glue are so thin, you can make very detailed items. His particular printer is a Lulzbot Mini by Aleph Objects. He made me a model of MINIMCOM's livetar that stands about 9 inches tall:

  My stepson Matt informed me that he was in an arcade last weekend and somebody scanned his head and placed the spatial parameters "in the cloud" so anybody with a 3D printer could print his head. My brother said he could make a Matt action figure. Weird.

  Anyway, what has this got to do with the 35th century world of Rome's Revolution? My claim is that the Vuduri contraption called the molecular sequencer is really nothing more than the ultimate 3D printer. It works by moving individual molecules into position in all three dimensions using templates. It can use any molecule so it can build any non-living thing.

  How it moves the molecules from point A to point B, I have no clue. In fact, in an early version of the novels, the Vuduri had conquered Low Energy Nuclear Reactions (LENR) by a process similar to what is called plant or biological transmutation which has never been substantiated. But in that earlier version, they simply created the atoms or molecules they needed on the spot.

  Well, let's ignore that and assume that the Vuduri get the molecules in the proper spot and somehow get them to bond to their neighbors properly. I kind of envisioned this process as layer by layer which each layer being one molecule tall. And that's exactly how 3D printers work, not a molecule at a time but one filament's thickness at a time.

  There are metal-based 3D printers and even biological 3D printers for making skin tissue, heart tissue and blood vessels. The future is very bright but I still think my idea of a molecular sequencer represents the ultimate end to that line of development.

  Entry 3-366: December 27, 2015

 

  Covers

 

  You may think that creating a cover to a book is an easy thing. Well, it ain't. And I'm not just talking about the raw talent it takes to create a beautiful cover. My brother Bruce is immeasurably talented and can render beautiful covers for e-books, paperbacks, Audiobooks, whatever I need. He has a vast arsenal of tools and uses all of them. Here is a montage of the main covers he has created so far:

  But Bruce always needs me to tell him what I want the cover to be. And therein lies the rub. How do you create a cover that is simultaneously eye-catching, thought-provoking but doesn't spoil the content of the novel?

  In the case of Rome's Revolution, my first cover completely obscured the identity of the Stareater and just looked like a muddy mess. So in the modern version, I had Bruce clean it up. The very fact that it looks like a cosmic Pac-man is not a problem because our hero Rei even mentions that by name in the novel. And since it is a three-part novel, showing the Stareater doesn't even hint at MASAL's role and so on. So no true spoilers here.

  In the case of The Ark Lords, I had no problem showing the mini-nuke destroying Rome's library. It is really the catalyst that drives the plot so showing it to the reader is intriguing but doesn't ruin the plot.

  For Rome's Evolution, the choice of showing you the Hand of Deucado did not ruin the story in any way. In fact, having the drawing right there on the cover actually makes it easier to envision what it looks like, its scale and so forth. It was hard to describe in the book so Bruce did a tremendous job making it real. If you look real closely at the top, you can see Deucado's first casino near the edge.

  For The Milk Run, we started with a giant cosmic tentacle stealing away Lupe but it just looked dumb. We re-analyzed the book and decided that the Saberoo attacking Aason did not spoil the book in any way and made for a scary yet intriguing cover.

  So there you have it. The next time you see a cover of a book, you can not only admire it for its artistic quality but also know it took a great deal of time to think of the perfect image behind it in the first place.

  Entry 3-367: Epilogue

 

  Tales of the Vuduri: Year Four

  Just like the previous two years,
if you made it this far, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart. As I mentioned in the introduction, I am well into my fourth year’s worth of blog entries on Goodreads. I am still following the discipline of writing seven or more articles on weekends. If I stay on course, I should finish up the review of Book 3 of the original long-form version of Rome’s Revolution by spring. Currently, I’m to Chapter 15 and when I finish, I’ll dive right into The Ark Lords. I’m still happy with my formula so I’ll be following this format for the upcoming year.

  Also, as I mentioned in the introduction, I have finished the first draft of The Vuduri Companion so I’ll be publishing that next. Then I’ll start writing MASAL – The Robot War as well as splitting Rome’s Revolution into the three-part Rome’s Revolution Saga so that I can record each as a separate audiobook. By the time that’s done, maybe enough will have come to me so that I can dig into Vuduri Knight but that’s not up to me.

  In any event thanks again and, as always, stay tuned!