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In transferring some old files to my new computer, I came across The Forwarder, a novel-in-progress that I haven't worked on for about 4-5 years. I remember distinctly giving up on it. Many chapters had been through several drafts. It was not communicating clearly to my critiquing group (a common problem with my complex SF universe). It was getting increasingly confused, and I was sick of it.
I was pleased, therefore, to find that it's not as unsalvageable as I imagined. It's probably about 3/4 complete in draft form, and several medial chapters read pretty smoothly. It's also probably the closest I will ever get to writing like Le Guin in terms of doing serious anthropological study of cultures that differ substantially from our own. So I may well go back and finish it, not right away, but it would be a good companion publication for "Web Show" in five years or so when/if I get that written up and produced. (There's significant character crossover between the two.)
In a nutshell, The Forwarder is the story of the conquest of a planet. Zeinnéfa has for some centuries been held by the Ránlans, a peaceful people much given to science, art, and reasoned discourse. It has, however, lately been ceded to the Aejdarians, a slightly Klingonesque warrior people, much given to hierarchy, religion, honor, and rhetorical flourish. The local Ránlans generally object to their parent government's decision to cede their planet, and a group of them decide to fight.
They are led by Leng, a Ránlan whose personality perhaps better fits Aejdar: he is abrupt, assertive, opinionated, courageous, etc. Counterpoint to Leng is Naqlem, the wife of the Aejdarian leader, who might have been better born a Ránlan: she is quiet, self-reflective, thoughtful, open-minded--and a huge devotee of the Ránlan songwright, Dáromur, who happens to be Leng's life-sharer/wife. So while Leng mounts a resistance, Naqlem attempts to work with Dáromur to find a common ground.
It's a good basic structure, if I do say so myself, and while it needs a lot of work, it is probably worth working on.
I was pleased, therefore, to find that it's not as unsalvageable as I imagined. It's probably about 3/4 complete in draft form, and several medial chapters read pretty smoothly. It's also probably the closest I will ever get to writing like Le Guin in terms of doing serious anthropological study of cultures that differ substantially from our own. So I may well go back and finish it, not right away, but it would be a good companion publication for "Web Show" in five years or so when/if I get that written up and produced. (There's significant character crossover between the two.)
In a nutshell, The Forwarder is the story of the conquest of a planet. Zeinnéfa has for some centuries been held by the Ránlans, a peaceful people much given to science, art, and reasoned discourse. It has, however, lately been ceded to the Aejdarians, a slightly Klingonesque warrior people, much given to hierarchy, religion, honor, and rhetorical flourish. The local Ránlans generally object to their parent government's decision to cede their planet, and a group of them decide to fight.
They are led by Leng, a Ránlan whose personality perhaps better fits Aejdar: he is abrupt, assertive, opinionated, courageous, etc. Counterpoint to Leng is Naqlem, the wife of the Aejdarian leader, who might have been better born a Ránlan: she is quiet, self-reflective, thoughtful, open-minded--and a huge devotee of the Ránlan songwright, Dáromur, who happens to be Leng's life-sharer/wife. So while Leng mounts a resistance, Naqlem attempts to work with Dáromur to find a common ground.
It's a good basic structure, if I do say so myself, and while it needs a lot of work, it is probably worth working on.
