When I set out to write the first book
in my sweet sci-fi series, Mirror Image, originally I didn’t
have to do a lot of world building. The story is set modern day, here
on Earth, in Charleston, South Carolina. There weren’t space ports
or aliens interacting. Just Madison Mackenzie Rhodes, finding out
she’s a clone. The first half of the book is all character
building. I knew this story would be very character driven and if my
reader didn’t connect with Maddie, then there was no point to it.
One of my best friends is also a writer
who spends hours world building. She actually spends more time on
world building than she has writing some of her stories. To her,
that’s the fun. I never quite understood until I reached the second
half of writing Mirror Image.
As a sci-fi fan, the possibility of
other planets, cultures, and species has always fascinated me. So
when it came time for Maddie to leave Earth, my mind reeled in
wonder. I wanted something different than what we have seen on sci-fi
programs. I wanted to make the reader feel like they were no longer
on Earth.
Inspiration for the Aurora planet,
which is a neutral world in the galaxy, came from watching the sunset
at the beach. The colors were so vivid. I could still close my eyes
and see the sky. That’s what I wanted for Maddie for the first time
she left Earth. She needed to ease into it. So the planet was locked
in a permanent aurora borealis affect. But if there wasn’t full
sun, what would the rest of the planet look like? Small vegetation
with rough, brown grass. No birds in the sky. No natural water
spring. It all made sense to me.
I’m currently writing the third book
in the Mirror series. I always try to top myself whenever it
comes to creating a different planet or species. I’ve encountered
tall, ogre-like beings, trolls, aliens whose arms move like rubber
bands, beings with wings, and so much more. It’s a lot of fun to
let the imagination run rapid.
Some writers don’t like world
building or think it’s hard. Some, like myself, love it. My advice
is to not skip out when planning your story or you might miss
something important.
Here is an excerpt from Mirror
Reformed:
Jackson
and Mack climbed into a flyer toward the alpha site to meet with the
contingent of representatives in the ISC organization. Races from
across the galaxy joined to meet with them. There were dozens that
couldn’t meet due to the distance in the short amount of time
Jackson gave them, so they were being representative by a hologram.
“This
looks like the Jedi counsel,” Mack murmured. Jackson nodded.
Over
sixty representatives sat on red cushioned rounded chairs in a
circle. Mack and Jackson stood at the center with a universal
translator droid. They took a moment for everyone to get settled
before speaking.
“My
friends, thank you for meeting with us on such short notice,”
Jackson began.
“What is this about?” A tiny voice squeaked
the question.
Mack looked over at the hologram image of Rachel
from the Agonahan home world. “Earth is being threatened.”
A
garbled voice from a yellow skinned Senub race grabbed their
attention. It took a moment before the universal language droid
translated. “By whom?”
“A race known as the Synth,”
Jackson explained.
The
gathered crowd began to speak all at once at the mere mention of the
name. It took several minutes to calm everyone down.
“Surely
you must be mistaken,” a representative from Bespe spoke up.
“If
only we were,” Mack said.
“The Synth died out thousands of
years ago,” the Bespian argued.
“Always been a mystery, the
Synth are,” said a Solarian said. “Much we don’t know.”
“If
they have resurfaced, this could only spell doom for the galaxy,”
Rachel squeaked.
“Bed time stories,” a Zomhun roughly said.
“The Synth isn’t real.”
“No, they are very real,”
Jackson replied. “If you don’t believe me, check your own sensors
in quadrant seven. You’ll see their ship.”
Several
of the contingents muttered, pulling out their comms to speak with
their ship. Mack and Jackson waited with baited breath as the
responses began to filter in. Each ship reported just as Jackson had
said.
“Seems
the human speaks the truth,” the Bespian reluctantly
admitted.
“Hu-man need help from Argafforn?” the cousin of the
Fabrega asked.
“We’re asking for anyone’s help who can give
it,” Jackson said.
A Syareblayn named Murokk snorted. “Help?
To evacuate your planet?”
“To fight them,” Mack
replied.
“You can’t fight them. You can’t reason with
them.”
“So what do you suggest then, Murokk?” Mack asked.
“For us to give up?”
“Surrender will save millions of your
kind.”
“No.” Jackson shook his head.
A
long and loud shriek from a Boshol made everyone cover their ears.
After a moment, the droid translated.
“Your
people will perish. Do not ask for mine to do the same.”
“Arrogant,”
a Eaygrn huffed. “You Terrans are too arrogant for your kind.”
“We
should help,” a Qeete named Murrsee stated.
“I agree,” a
Setol said. “The Synth will not stop with the Terrans.”
“Do
you at least have a plan other than asking us to risk our lives?”
Murokk asked.
“We have a few,” Mack stated.
“We
understand this is our fight,” Jackson said. “We do have
strategies in place for this upcoming battle. We’re not asking for
you to do anything we wouldn’t do for you in this situation.”
The
room fell silent. The droid translated for several of the alien
races. A murmur began in the crowd, growing among the gathered
representatives.
“The
Intergalactic Security Commission was created for this purpose,”
Murrsee spoke up. “What kind of allies are we if we expect you to
come to us, but we turn you away in your time of need?”
Mack let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you.”
Mack let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you.”
Bio:
Growing
up in Texas and later South Carolina as the youngest in a house full
of science-fiction fans, K.G. Stutts had her natural curiosity and
imagination nurtured since birth by family movie nights where they
would watch Star Wars, Indiana Jones and even timeless Disney
favorites.
A
prolific writer of sci-fi, romance and mystery, K.G. draws much of
her inspiration from those amazing works that gave her an
appreciation for telling rich, compelling, character-driven stories
for all audiences.
She
is a sci-fi series writer with Distinguished Press and also has
several romance novels available. She is also a contributor to
http://iwassociation.com
and http://thewritingnetwork.com.
She lives in North Carolina with her husband, Brad and works for a customer service call center full time. She's a lover of Star Wars, Star Trek (original, TNG, and Voyager), Stargate SG-1 and Atlantis, Muppets, Garfield, Disney, Indiana Jones and is a big football, wrestling, and hockey fan.
She lives in North Carolina with her husband, Brad and works for a customer service call center full time. She's a lover of Star Wars, Star Trek (original, TNG, and Voyager), Stargate SG-1 and Atlantis, Muppets, Garfield, Disney, Indiana Jones and is a big football, wrestling, and hockey fan.
Social
Media:
Twitter: @KGStutts
Facebook.com/KGStutts
KGStutts.com
Kgstutts.blogspot.com
Thank you for having me!
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