Launching Your Imagination Where It Hasn't Gone Before

Jaleta started the day with a great question and I thought I'd continue it, since today is the day for bloggers "I-K". We're both j's and the j's should stick together.


I didn't start out writing science fiction romance because I almost flunked the various sciences in high school. I was sure it disqualified me from writing anything science related. What I failed to realize is that making up my science is what got me in trouble then--but could serve me well now.


I love making up stories and stories about space flight and cool, not-yet possible stuff? Letting my imagination off the gravity hook? Launching it into space? Love it! I've always enjoyed writing my books, but since I launched my characters into space, its been SO much fun. And every life needs a bit of fun. It can add a twist to the marriage, too, when you're married to a very grounded geologist (who is never the less very supportive!)

I had this exchange with my husband, while working on my steampunk/science fiction romance novella, Tangled in Time. In the book, I'm dealing with SF and with steam, so I had a question for him about something I wanted to do. Here's a snippet of our exchange:


Me: So do you think that would be fun and kind of believable?
Husband: That's not possible.
Me: I know. I write science fiction. I just want to know if it sounds, you know, believable in an unbelievable way.
Husband: But its not real.
Me: I know. I write science fiction.
Husband: But it should still be real.
Me: You want my science fiction to be real?
Husband: Of course.

I broke off that engagement and emailed my rocket scientist. Her response? You're writing science fiction. Go for it. So I went for it and that's how my transmogrification machine was "born."

I don't think I could have written Tangled though if I hadn't laid a strong foundation by pushing myself hard when I wrote Girl Gone Nova, my second SFR even now releasing on an unsuspecting world (except for all the people I've mentioned it to for the last six months). At one point, I thought my head would explode, but it managed to maintain structural integrity and I managed to finish the book. You can find out more about it and all my books here. 


I'm happy I launched my imagination where it hadn't dared go, because not only have I had a great time with the writing, but I've also met some other great authors and read some fun, fun, fun books. A great resource for finding more science fiction romance (besides this blog!) and more speculative fiction with a romantic bent, check out The Galaxy Express. I''m so addicted to TGE that I subscribe to it on my Kindle. It's one of my first stops of the day and a severe threat to my TBR pile.


If you've never read (or written) SFR, now might be a good time to check out a genre that is as fun to read as it is to write. It comes in all sizes and heat levels and if you write it, you can choose your own adventure. :-)
Perilously yours,
Pauline
Perils of Pauline