Introducing the Character Paul1

In book #2, "The Saeshell Book of Time Part 2: The Rebirth of Innocents," the character Paul1 is introduced. Off and on, he becomes a major character in the narrative and is distinguished by being the only Paul that is autistic. He also a brilliant 9 year old though sometimes a bit selfish. He is talented with computers and uses them to explore the world around him. Tonya, the Sophistan computer helps him to mentally experience the world without coming too close to it. However, he becomes the adoptive son of Stefan and through that association is forced into adventures in the real world. He depends on his father and his adopted brother, Paul25, to help interpret and understand events in the real world. Paul25 loves his brother and watches over him and keeps him out of trouble.

Paul25 begs Paul1 to come out and play

In this scene, Paul1 is introduced to us. Early in his life, Paul1 finds that he cannot tolerate the world. So he builds a crystalline Sarcophagus, places himself on total life support, and merges his mind with the computer. He has been that way for 1500 years. Paul25 has a way to communicate with him and is begging him to come out of the Sarcophagus and play with him. 

To read more about the serial, click here.

Gifted Renaissance

I'm sure people will be wondering about what a Renaissance scene is doing in a Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror book. Although I wanted to write a story with high tech/advanced science, I didn't want it to be a steely-cold sci-fi adventure or a fantasy having nothing to do with people's real lives. Though the characters in this story live a fantastic life that we can only dream of, I wanted them to remain living, feeling people we could care about. Paul25 is the ultimate feeling character because not only is he a policeman kind of character, but he is also the most humanitarian of the whole lot. He has very deep feelings and deep empathy that gets him in trouble many times. He also has one problem. He spent most of his over 1000 year life on planet earth. He watched brutal human history and if it wasn't bad enough to watch his playmates grow up and die of old age, he had to also  watch a number of his playmates grow up and slaughter each other or be slaughtered by random, unpredictable strangers. And he watched a number of them simply die from the diseases and hazards of Earth, all the while immune from it all. 

 He is a boy from a highly advanced, harmonious culture with powers of mobility and protection that make us turn green with envy. Yet here he is, away from the love of the people of the planet Sophista, pushing through the muck of human history.

Atreyeu teaches Paul25 to paint

 The Renaissance is a very important symbol for humanity, especially in times such as now where people are increasingly valued for their ability to simply be a "work unit". It was a time where people studied other kinds of people, other cultures, and sought understanding. It was a time when humanity learned to create and its ability to create took a huge surge in capability. In the case of Paul25, it is a pivotal moment when suddenly, he is not a slave because of his talents---a slave to people/beings who simply wish to use him because of his talents---but a moment when his own feelings and thoughts were given freedom---given freedom by his newfound talent to create what he truly wants to create, expressing a deep part of himself.

The journey a gifted child takes to gifted adulthood is very analogous to Paul25's journey, deliberately so in fact. Many experience brutalities along the way that stick with them throughout their lives as a nightmare that won't go away. When their talents are discovered, many times those talents are given more importance than their own rights as a human being. Those talents are exploited in a away designed to  prevent their ability to create---to keep them as compliant work units---a specialized tool to be exploited. Yet, in spite of all of this, most manage to keep their empathy and child-like enthusiasm simply because it is an innate part of them. Yet, like Paul25, they suffer greatly as they grow until finally, they find their ability to create, and it sets them free.
 
 

Illustration for Chapter 8-1 Book #2

Here is Paul25 and Tova2 in trouble again. Looks like they are dissolving in hyperspace and getting sucked into a tunnel at the same time. That's got to hurt. This lovely illustration is by Matt Curtis. Click on it to enlarge it.

Rare Excerpt from Book #4, Chapter 20: The Stroke of Love

I am always reluctant to post excerpts from several books ahead of the current book. But I finally decided to post a little snippet for a couple of reasons. One is that I wanted to let people know that yes, the four books of the serial are already written. I know sometimes when a reader reads the start of series, much less a serial, that they wonder, "If I invest the time to read this first book, will I be left hanging? Can the author actually write the rest?" So I wanted reassure the reader that all four books of the serial have already been written and the manuscripts are final. As the artwork and layout gets completed for each book, it will be published. It's roughly a  six month schedule per book. And although the serial story ends in book 4, the "series" does not. If the books are read, there will be a book 5. Secondly, I wanted to show that the personal drama of the characters does rise as the serial progresses. It's probably been about three decades since someone has attempted a serial story consisting of novel sized installments. People who are reading the first novel don't seem to understand the difference between a serial and a series in that a serial story may reach a climactic ending at the installment end  but the story is far from being wrapped up. Book two will continue where book one left off. The advantage is that book number two has almost no preliminaries and burns up the road from the beginning. Likewise for books three and four. 

So here is an excerpt from book four, "The Saeshell Book of Time Part 4: The Ceremony of Life."

Anashivalia begins sniffling.

“I suppose that indicates they are married, essentially,” comments McPherson.

A floating cushion appears behind Anashivalia; she collapses onto it and begins weeping.

“I suppose it is difficult for you to see true, devoted love after having led your husband to his death. And then to have your son leave you for another woman’s care—wife, mother, tutor—all wrapped into a tidy package called Tova2.”

Anashivalia weeps loudly.

“It’s good you are getting these disgusting tears out of the way where no one can see. What would the subjects think if they saw such a prideful ruler letting their emotions get the better of them?” He grabs her dripping chin and raises her eyes to his icebox stare. “A good ruler has empathy for their subjects and saves the chill for their enemies. And yet, their heart remains warm. They delegate that chill to people like me so that their empathy remains unsullied by the realities of ruling.” He begins to nod. “Those two will become rulers one day. Their subjects will love them and the love they share will radiate onto and illuminate their subjects. And those few who have hearts of stone and remain cold even in their glow—well, they can look forward to a visit from me.” He drops her chin like a rotting banana peel. “You have one child left—you should make good ‘use’ of her while you can. Or perhaps ‘use’—while I am sure you are comfortable with that word—is an inappropriate word in this case.”

Anashivalia’s crying has softened, though her shoulders are still quietly shaking.

The Terrifying Book #2 Chapter #3 Illustration

This is one of the more terrifying scenes in book #2. Tova whose life is ending---her life is a hopeless disaster with only long suffering pain between now and death---suddenly finds a path to a life more wonderful than any human can imagine. All she has to do is die now instead of die later. Most people would naturally chose to die later. So the aliens, her friends, the wondrous people with all the answers, kill her now. Instead of dying slowly from radiation poisoning (so bad, she is bleeding from everywhere), she experiences the horror of her friends killing her. Click on the image to enlarge it.

The Sophistans demolecularize Tova

 

Book #2 Chapter #2 Illustration

Here is the first interior illustration that we have finished for The Saeshell Book of Time Part 2: The Rebirth of Innocents. It is an illustration for Chapter 2. As you can tell, book#2 is somewhat more intense. Click on the illustration to see more detail.

Paul17 blasts Luke2 and Luke3 for gross misbehavior