One of my favourite elements of writing a new series is the initial world-building… or, as is often the case in sci-fi, galaxy (or even universe!) building. It’s always an interesting experience to sit down and to try and think how a society operating with just one or two key technological differences might be radically different from ours.
In The Hunt for the Wind’s Howling Rage, this was all about the economy. In a galaxy where all basic needs are met but there is still a capitalistic system underpinning it, what could conceivably be “currency”? My answer there was spice, since I wanted to go with a Caribbean-flair to the adventure that Cici and Mina were on, and from that I decided that all planets were seeded with identical foodstock, but only a few spices could grow in isolated locations, creating an entire spice-trading economy… and the story flowed outwards from there. In contrast, for Starconvoy EH-76, I needed to figure out a way to get submarines in space (hey, if the Trek in the Stars can do it, so can I!), and that led to the entire conflict between the two mighty star empires that forms the foundation of Griff’s voyage. And so on.
For the novel that I’m writing on right now (the working title is The Trojan Stars, but I don’t think I’ll be sticking with it… maybe, but we’ll see), the big thing is figuring out how the FTL interstellar drive works in such a way to produce important strategic points without requiring a lot of fiddly details. Becky Chambers does a fantastic job with this problem in The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet, providing a reason for the heroes’ voyage but also a technological foundation that makes the story just sing. It’s a remarkably feat, and while I don’t think I can do it quite that well, I do love the time I spend wrangling my brain to make all the blocks line up in a satisfying way.
So, that’s my work for today! Finish up the universe building (again… I did it a few weeks back before I went into exams, but managed to lose the file to a power outage… sloppy on my part. Always back up your work constantly, people!), and then diving back into writing Chapter 1!
Hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy!