I need to start thinking more about how I want to write. I’ve spent so much time focused on what I want to write that I don’t know if I spend enough time figuring out how I want to write. In my early 20s, I became obsessed with World War Z and Rant, and that has sent me down this road on Oral Histories.

I’ve enjoyed oral histories.  I love the angle that they provide.  I love feeling like everything I am writing is unique.  I loved writing a political sci-fi dystopia in that vein.  And I love writing this hard sci-fi through the same oral history vein.  I’ve always made the argument that oral histories do a wonderful job of arranging the characters like an orchestra so the historical tale becomes the main story rather than the characters themselves.  

But I do believe this will be my last oral history.  I will finish it.  I’ve been thinking about this generation ship adventure for too long not to finish it.  I’ve enjoyed writing it.  But when it is done and polished, it is time for me to pivot back towards novels.  Dialogue.  Proper character building.  It’s time I start practicing the things that oral history doesn’t employ.

This year has been a year of reading for me. Almost halfway through the year, I am 21 books in, far surpassing previous years. And I have been letting myself explore more and more sci-fi in the vein of understanding exactly what it is that I wanted to write. The thing is, it came in the most unexpected of places. I’m almost caught up in the Old Man’s War Saga. I enjoy it, but that’s not what I want to write.

I remember saying my favorite sci-fi was sci-fi that is literary in nature with sci-fi features. I don’t want to hear about the first person on Mars so much as the 17th mission to Mars and the heartache that the main character has to go through as their daughter dies in a car accident back home. I don’t even want my characters to be the most important characters in the world. I want them to help us experience what is happening.

The Radiant Dark by Alexandra Oliva is one of the best books I’ve ever read. It is absolutely magical in its light touch of science fiction “first contact.” I can almost imagine the author laying out a thin line of events—barely enough to fill a page—first signal received—response—language—probe. On that foundation, she built a beautiful story of individuals within a family that struggled to hold itself together.

To be fair, I identify too heavily with these books due to my lived experiences.  My first born being premature.  Moving across the country a couple times and ending up in the Seattle region.  So much more.  The characters pulled me in and made me want to know more.  When there were developments in the “first contact” storyline, it felt like a treasure to gobble up in the same way the characters were excited.

This book has helped me reimagine how I would like to try science fiction. I want to try my hand at what I can only call Literary Sci-fi. You can do this on top of anything: living on the moon, a generation ship, or colonies on new worlds. You can even place it in near-future sci-fi like dystopian AI. You can tell the story of I, Robot without being the central character, and I would argue that that would be a much better way to tell that story.

So here I am.  Three projects.  Past.  Present.  Future.

On the Record: An Oral History
100% – Now available

When I was 22, I wrote my fourth novel, The Stagner Chronicles. It was the strongest work I’d produced at that point in my life. On the Record is the result of a comprehensive overhaul and reimagining of that book — a chance to revisit the core ideas with better tools and a wider perspective. I’m proud of how it came together and of the new life it found in the process. It’s now available for purchase.

Continuity: An Oral History of a Generation Ship
50% Done with Rough Draft – Rough Draft will be completed by end of 2026

I’ve slowed down. That being said, the halfway point has been very exciting to write. I am reaching the end of part three, which will be great to write. But it’s hard to hold back as I think about part four. Part Four will start to pivot toward preparation for colonization. The culture shift within the ship is going to be substantial, and I am excited to explore that.

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Trying to narrow it down

I know my next books will mirror this literary science fiction. But that only narrows it down so much. I will explore how previous ideas I’ve fleshed out will fit in this model in the coming months. I expect this to be my major project for 2027.