notes

Even after I told myself to take a break from writing, I find myself jotting down detailed notes on that science fiction piece. Though I am equally passionate about the work on the Joan Vollmer story, this science fiction thing is really becoming an obsession. One angle is, I want it to be rich in history and detail, kind of like Herbert's Dune but written in the quick, action soaked cliff-hanger style of E.R. Burroughs A Princess of Mars. It's coming along nicely...

Sarkova.

Sarkota.

Sarkobba.

Sarkojaa.

Attempting to find the right sounding (and in print, look interesting) name for a primitive tribe of seven-foot tall aliens native to the planet Karkoon who resemble diamond back gorillas with four arms...basing their culture on the Yanomami People who reside in South America...

I was at the cafe yesterday and my friend Omar was thumbing through my notebooks. Reading the twenty or so pages of hand scribbled ideas, he stopped and pointed out the title "The Adventures of Colt Corrigan: Book One: Across the Galactic Lens". He asked, "This is a lot of intense stuff, do you have any ideas for sequels?"

"No." I laughed. "It began as a joke. Years ago, a friend and I were stumbling down the street drunk, talking about books and a writer's life work, and I said of all the books I pen, my most famous would probably be some cheesy take on old pulp serials. It's title will be Colt Corrigan and his Adventures Across the Galactic Lens! A mashup of Buck Rogers and 70's chop sockey kung fu movies."

I seriously believe I was foretelling my future in hindsight...

Unlike my previous work which was based on true events and I required only to transcribe from memory, writing science fiction is daunting. The work going into creating everything from names to back history to random objects and how they function...I am actually enjoying it. I realize to some, if not all of you, that this sounds naive and perhaps tripe, but this is my first attempt at pure fiction and I am seeing it as an adventure. The true battle is to not make it overtly cliche. And that is where the frustration sets in...