by Joe Vasicek
The story began to take shape when I rewrote the ending of Desert Stars in the spring of 2011. After finishing that novel, I started to wonder what would happen to Rina and Tiera in the next few years. I’ve always enjoyed indirect sequels that take a minor character from the first book and make them into a major viewpoint character in the second. That’s something I’d planned to do with the Gaia Nova series since the beginning, so it was quite natural to take those characters and think forward a few years. I figured that Tiera would strike out her own path and leave issues of war and politics behind, but Rina would definitely have a much rougher time adjusting. As I thought about her character, I started to wonder what she’d be like as an assassin. That really sparked something, and I decided to run with it.
It took just a few days to write the prologue, largely as it now stands. I guess it worked out well, though, because I submitted it to a first chapter contest at Leading Edge magazine and placed high enough to be published in issue 63. However, I didn’t do much with the story after finishing the prologue, since I was getting Sholpan ready for publication. After that, Star Wanderers dropped in my lap, and I wrote the first novelette in that series over the course of the next few months. But always in the back of my mind, Stars of Blood and Glory was still percolating.
I wanted to bring back Danica and the mercenaries from Bringing Stella Home, especially Roman. Older characters have always been difficult for me to write, so I saw his viewpoint as a challenge that could teach me something new. From the beginning, I knew that Danica wouldn’t get a viewpoint. Her character arc got its conclusion in Bringing Stella Home, so she wouldn’t be nearly as interesting. However, I wanted to kill her off—not because I hated her, but because I loved her character so much. My general philosophy about character deaths is that everybody dies, so the best way to honor a character is to make their death mean something. Danica certainly is the type of person who would make a heroic sacrifice—indeed, her whole life is almost something of a heroic sacrifice. So with that in mind, I figured out what sort of impact her death ought to have on Roman, and used that to shape his character arc.
The overarching conflict between the Hameji and the Federation came together while making a map for the Gaia Nova series as a whole. I patterned it after some maps on Wikipedia of the interstellar medium around the local cloud, and realized that these sorts of high-density regions would make for a great storytelling device, since it acts as a barrier to FTL. I’d casually mentioned a star called New Rigel in a previous story, and when I put that one on the map, it ended up near a relatively dense area of space. With that in mind, I drew up a stellar rift with two white dwarfs at either end: Eyn-Gatta at the head, closer to Gaia Nova, and Eyn-Jalla (Ain Jalut) closer to New Rigel.
The idea for Shinihon and the far-future Japanese culture grew out of a desire to populate my universe with more than just white people. I guess the desert tribesmen of Gaia Nova technically qualify for that, as well as the Hameji, but I think there is a tendency in science fiction for non-minority writers to treat their own race as the default. I know I have a tendency to do that. Of course, the flip-side is that it’s really, really hard to write about a culture other than your own without making some embarrassing gaffes. It’s a little different in science fiction, since we build entire universes from scratch, but it’s something we still have to be conscious of. With Desert Stars, it wasn’t quite as hard since I’d spent some time living in the Middle East, but that was the only foreign part of the world where I felt I knew something, and I didn’t want to do space Arabs again. Since I wanted New Rigel V to be a water world, I figured that the descendants of a seafaring culture from Earth would be more likely to settle there, so I decided to go with a Japanese-Polynesian mash-up. I have a lot of friends who’ve lived in that part of the world, so I figured it would be easier to rack their brains than it would be to research a culture I know absolutely nothing about.
Hikaru’s character grew out of a postsecret that really struck me. In case you don’t know what postsecret is, it’s a blog where people mail artistic postcards with their secrets, and the blogger posts them anonymously without any kind of commentary or anything. I’ve been following it for years, and whenever I find a secret that really sticks out, I’ll save it to a folder that I browse through from time to time when I’m looking for story ideas. This particular secret read: “I want to stand in front of a guy NAKED And have him analyze everything about me.” The thing that struck me about it was how naïve the girl must be (and the sender was a girl, judging from the picture). Anyone who knows anything about guys knows that when the clothes come off, the thinking stops. And yet, there’s something admirably fearless about such a person. The scene between Hikaru and Roman grew out of my reaction specifically to that postsecret, but in a way, that was a catalyst for Hikaru’s character.
Abaqa’s character grew out of what I figured Sholpan would be doing. After writing the prologue to Stars of Blood and Glory, I wrote a direct sequel to Bringing Stella Home with the working title Heart of the Nebula. It takes place five years after the events of that story, and Sholpan makes an appearance with her baby son. For the sake of bringing some closure to her story, and to show that something good came out of the personal hell that she went through, I figured it would be good to bring him in. Plus, his whole struggle to win acceptance was a good counterpoint to some of the other characters I was working with.
I took several months off to work on other projects before writing Chapter One. During that time, however, I gathered together my ideas and lined things up so I’d be ready to hit the ground running. I went on tvtropes and browsed it like a buffet, noting down story tropes that I wanted to play with. This gave me a lot of interesting ideas that I otherwise wouldn’t have had. For example, when I discovered the Fighting for a Homeland trope, I instantly knew that that was the Tajji mercenaries. Recognizing that helped me to figure out the epilogue, where they finally return to their shattered homeworld. Colonel Webb grew out of the Magnificent Bastard trope. While I don’t think he really fits that trope the way it’s described, reading about it influenced my thinking about his character, which moved the story in a direction that it otherwise wouldn’t have. Also, I really enjoy the Rebellious Princess trope, so I tossed that in with Hikaru and it ended up driving the plot of the entire novel.
All of my prewriting came together in the winter of 2012. I drove down to Texas to celebrate Christmas with my family, then moved in with my parents for a couple months while preparing to go overseas to teach English. I started the first chapter of Stars of Blood and Glory toward the end of December, and finished the epilogue in the beginning of February. All together, it took a little longer than six weeks to write the whole thing. For a guy who’s been known to take months at a time writing a novel, only to toss out most of it out, that came as a huge shock. I don’t know if it’s a sign of improvement or just all that prewriting I did beforehand, but everything came together and the story just wrote itself.
One of the big struggles of being a writer is knowing when to revise something and when to let it stand. We’re often the worst judges of our own work, and general opinions on the subject range from Brandon Sanderson, who says that it’s absolutely crucial, to Heinlein and Dean Wesley Smith, who say to never do it unless forced to by an editor. Like many writers, I’ve always resisted Heinlein’s third rule (“You must refrain from revising, except to editorial order”), but for this project, I eventually decided that that was the better path. This was confirmed to me when I made some substantial revisions to the first chapter, sent them in to my writing group, and the critiques slammed almost all the changes I’d made while praising the stuff I’d left in. However, when I did a quick read through over the summer of 2012, I noticed that several of the scenes were out of order, and the chapter divisions were not in the right places. To fix that, I did about a three-week revision where I changed up the scene order but left most of them intact. I also added a few scenes that were missing, such
as Roman’s reminiscent musings with Zura Tajjashvili and a few smaller transition scenes toward the end. I did send the story out to some first readers, but more for green lighting than a line-by-line critique. After getting that green light, I decided to move ahead.
That’s more or less how the book came about. I’m still kind of shocked that it wasn’t a huge struggle to write like the other ones, but at the same time, I can’t really complain. In fact, I’m really happy with how it turned out. Over the course of the last couple of Gaia Nova books, I’ve really come to feel for some of these characters, especially Roman. The “cyborgs never die” line came out of nowhere, but ended the book on just the right note, at least for me as the writer. I don’t know if I’ll be doing any more sequels with the mercenaries, but I’d love to do some prequels and/or origin stories, especially for Danica and Roman.
So anyhow, thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this story as much as I did. If you want to spread the word about it by telling a friend or posting a review somewhere, that would be awesome. I appreciate everything you guys do—it really does make a difference, which I’m starting to see now that my books are getting a little traction. But of course, the greatest honor is just to be read.
If you want to drop me a line, my email is [email protected], or you can tweet me at @onelowerlight. One of these days, I’m going to figure out how Goodreads works, and then you can reach me on there. But when I’m not busy writing, the best place to find me online is my blog, One Thousand and One Parsecs (onelowerlight.com/writing). There you can sign up for my email list, which I use to send updates on new releases and special offers.
That’s just about it. Once again, thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, I hope you’ll check out some of my other books, if you haven’t already. And even if you have, be sure to keep an eye out, because there will certainly be more in the months and years to come. Until next time, take care, and I hope to see you again soon!
Acknowledgments
The number of people to thank for this book isn’t as large as it is for some of my other novels, but their help was still critical nonetheless. First, I’d like to thank the members of Kindal’s writing group who helped out with the first chapter: Kindal Debenham, Andy Lemmon, Megan Hutchins, and Ailsa Lillywhite. I’d also like to thank my first reader, Cavan Helps, for giving it a solid read through, and Aneeka Richins for helping with some of the Japanese cultural stuff, especially the honorifics (which I probably still screwed up through no fault of hers). Cavan Helps, Andy Lemmon, Diane Cardon, Elisabeth Page, Benjamin Blackhurst, and Marie Stirk all helped out with the teaser, which was probably the hardest part of the book to write. Thanks also to the staff of Leading Edge for publishing the prologue in issue 63 as part of their first chapter contest. I’ve been on the staff in the past, but I really had nothing to do with that decision, especially since I was out of the country at the time. Finally, I’d like to thank Josh Leavitt for his help with the line/copy editing, and Lorenz Hideyoshi Ruwwe for slotting me into his illustration schedule, even though he’s been deservedly busy. Thanks so much for all the help! This book would not have been the same without you.
Thousands of years after mankind’s exodus from Earth, a young starship pilot and his accidental bride wander the stars in search of a homeworld in Star Wanderers: The Jeremiah Chronicles (Omnibus I-IV).
PART I: OUTWORLDER
When Jeremiah arrived at Megiddo Station, all he wanted was to make some trades and resupply his starship. He never thought he'd come away with a wife.
Before he knows it, he's back on his ship, alone with his accidental bride. Since neither of them speak the same language, he has no way to tell her that there's been a terrible mistake. And because of the deadly famine ravaging her home, there's no going back. She's entirely at his mercy, and that terrifies him more than anything.
Jeremiah isn't ready to take responsibility for anyone. He's a star wanderer, roaming the Outworld frontier in search of his fortune. Someday he'll settle down, but for now, he just wants to drop the girl off at the next port and move on.
As he soon finds out, though, she has other plans.
PART II: FIDELITY
Oriana Station: a bustling frontier settlement between the Outworlds and the Coreward Stars. A popular port-of-call for free traders and independent starfarers alike—and the latest target in the aggressively expansionist plans of the Gaian Empire.
Life was simple for Jeremiah and Noemi before they arrived. Though neither of them speak the same language, they've reached an understanding that goes beyond words. But when the colonial authorities make them into second-class citizens of a fractured empire, even that might not be enough.
Their newfound friends in the immigrant community can only do so much. With Noemi and her people depending on him, Jeremiah must find a way back to the Outworlds—before they lose everything that they came for.
PART III: SACRIFICE
When Jeremiah found himself alone on his starship with an accidental bride, he had no idea how much his life would soon change. Now, with Noemi's quiet confidence supporting him as she carries their first child, it's hard to imagine life without her.
But life in the Outworlds isn't so simple. Good men are hard to come by, and Noemi's friends expect her to share. As part of a colony mission bound for an unsettled star, Jeremiah can't say no without causing a rift in the community. But if he says yes, his new-found happiness may soon come to an end. One way or another, he will have to make a sacrifice—one that could tear their starbound family apart.
PART IV: HOMEWORLD
For years, Jeremiah has wandered the stars in search of a home. With his wife Noemi about to have a baby, he thinks he's finally found a place to settle down. The Zarmina system lies on the edge of the Outworld frontier, but together with their friends, they hope to establish a thriving new colony. The only problem is that the system is already inhabited—by pirates.
The colonists no sooner arrive than they fall prisoner to Captain Helena and her band of rogues from the New Pleiades. She gives them an ultimatum: live like slaves on the planet's surface, or breathe vacuum. With all their dreams about to be shattered, they have to find a way to fight back. But to do so may endanger everything—including the lives of the ones they love most.
CLICK HERE TO BUY STAR WANDERERS: THE JEREMIAH CHRONICLES (OMNIBUS I-IV)
Thousands of years after mankind’s exodus from Earth, a band of starfarers fight for the freedom of the Outworlds in Sons of the Starfarers (Omnibus I-III).
BROTHERS IN EXILE
Deep in the Far Outworlds, a derelict space station holds the bones of a long-dead people—and a beautiful young woman locked in cryofreeze. When the star-wandering brothers Isaac and Aaron Deltana find the sleeping girl, they soon realize that they are her only hope for rescue. If they don't take her, then slavers certainly will.
With no way to revive her, they set a course for the New Pleiades in hopes of finding someone who can help. But a storm is brewing over that region of space. After a series of brutal civil wars, the Gaian Empire has turned its sights outward. A frontier war is on the verge of breaking out, and the brothers are about to be caught in the middle of it.
They both harbor a secret, though. Somewhere else in the Outworlds is another derelict station—one that they used to call home. That secret will either bind them together or draw them apart.
COMRADES IN HOPE
War has come to the Outworlds. An Imperial expeditionary force has taken the frontier systems and threatens to strike at the heart of the New Pleiades. The only thing standing in their way is a ragtag flotilla of starfarers and merchanters, their motives as varied as the stars from which they hail.
Aaron Deltana can barely speak the same language as his Outworld comrades, but he isn't about to let that stop him. Though he has no military training or combat experience, he's determined to prove his valor. Besides, the Imperials have taken something very dear to him—something that he has sworn to take back.<
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He isn't the only one with a score to settle. Mara Soladze, the only other Deltan in the Flotilla, has vowed revenge on the Imperials for killing her father. Where Aaron hopes to prove himself, though, Mara fully expects to die—and her fate is tied to his.
Aaron isn't prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice, but when the war turns against them, it looks as if he may not have a choice.
STRANGERS IN FLIGHT
For countless ages, Reva Starchild has slept in perfect cryostasis. Frozen in secret to escape a catastrophic death, she awakens only to find herself the sole survivor of a people whom history never remembered. Light-years from her homeworld, among a culture she finds both perverse and obscene, she must somehow build a new life for herself where misplacing her trust could be fatal.
With nowhere safe to run, she finds refuge on a small starship with a mysterious young man who seems to be fleeing something as well. Where others have sought to enslave her, though, he treats her with unexpected kindness. As they slowly open up to each other, she learns that he too carries a burden—one she can barely comprehend.
Isaac Deltana indeed carries a burden. The failure of his mission at Colkhia has brought untold calamity to the Outworld forces and almost certainly led to the death of his brother. Now, he flees from the Gaian Imperials to prevent them from obtaining the secret technology he carries—one that will change the face of interstellar war forever.
