Saturday, April 21, 2012

Why Science Fiction authors also write Historical novels

As an author, I write romance in futuristic and medieval settings, and sometimes, I mix both into the same series, like in the Chronicles of Kassouk, where I pit a medieval society against an advanced technological race. And contrary to modern logic, medieval humans are smart, very resourceful and full of surprises... enough to outdo their betters. Everyone enjoys seeing the oppressed win in the end.

A number of new authors are now also writing medieval as well as science fiction novels, but this is not a new phenomenon. Marion Zimmer Bradley in the eighties and nineties wrote in both science fiction and medieval genres with her Mists of Avalon (Arthurian legends) series and her Darkover (speculative fiction) series, and she met with great success in both genres. Most of her readers did cross over the genres to read all her books.

Writing the past or the future is not so far apart. Research is still research. For the future, instead of researching historical facts, you research modern science in order to project where the next logical evolutionary step will lead, and what kind of future society it will likely engender. Creating an unfamiliar world and making it real to the reader, whether in the past or in the future, requires the same skills, the same kind of imagination that projects into a world with different sets of rules, a different political climate, different dress codes, eating habits, different laws and ethics, different religious beliefs, different taboos, etc.

The only thing that doesn't change through the ages is people. Although we would like to believe that we evolved over the last millennia, we really haven't. Despite our fancy laws, we still have serial killers and terrorists. Given the opportunity, any human being will behave in the same noble or despicable manner now as he or she would have centuries ago. And in the future, it will probably still be the case. Of course, in the future there also might be robots, cyborgs, and clones which might operate under a different set of rules. But is that so different from the rules controlling the slaves of ancient times?

The struggle for justice, however, like the need for love and freedom, are timeless and constant themes that keep repeating in the past, the present, and will most likely endure in the future. Because these needs are inherent to human nature.

In conclusion, whether a writer tackles the past or the future, what carries a story, beyond the action, adventure and plot, is human emotion. We all can relate to that. So I hope you try my medieval romantic series. It's not set in the future, but if you imagine it's on another planet instead of our own in the faraway past, it could very well be.

Happy reading.

Vijaya Schartz
Blasters, Swords, Romance with a Kick

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

The Chronicles of Kassouk series is complete! by Vijaya Schartz

NOAH'S ARK the prequel to the Chronicles of Kassouk, is now available almost everywhere in eBook. You can find it in kindle HERE, at ARe HERE, also in Nook very soon HERE

Although this was the last book published in the series, it has become the first one, as it's the story of what happened a few centuries before the first book (White Tiger) and explains how human settlers happened to be marooned on this far-flung planet, out of Earth's reach.

When Trixie's starfreighter, Noah's Ark, drops out of jump space in an uncharted part of the universe, she believes the M-class planet on her viewer represents hope and salvation for her motley crew and the ragtag settlers aboard her ship.

Kostas, ex Space Marine, the expert survivalist recruited for this expedition, doesn't believe in coincidences, and knows that when something looks too good to be true, it usually is.

Everyone on this voyage to seed a new planet with life, is running from something, and harbors dangerous secrets... including Trixie, who vowed to never let a man control her life again. As for Kostas, he would get lynched on the spot if anyone suspected who he really is.

But on this seemingly abandoned planet, others are watching, herding them for evil purposes... And when the truth emerges and secrets unravel, Trixie and Kostas will have to fight for survival, for freedom, and for the right to love...

As for Book One, WHITE TIGER, it is now available in paperback as well as in eBook, and other books in this series will follow in print as well. You may order it from your favorite bookstore, or online at Amazon HERE and soon also on B&N. Of course, it's available everywhere eBooks are sold.

On the frozen plains of Kassouk, where a few aliens rule a medieval Human world, Tora, Human warrior trained by tigers, seeks her father’s murderer. But what she finds at the point of her sword confuses her. How dare Dragomir, the handsome Mutant, question her bloodline and her loyalties? And could a new enemy control the savage hordes of the fringe?
Dragomir offers to help, but Humans and Mutants are forbidden to fraternize under penalty of death... Should Tora trust her mind, her instincts, or her heart?

In the vortex of war, treason and intrigue, among blizzards, avalanches and ambushes, will Tora solve the mystery of her father’s death and unveil the secret of her birth? Can she and Dragomir escape persecutions long enough to save their planet from the invaders and fulfill their destiny?



Find more about these books and many others on my website at: http://www.vijayaschartz.com/
And enter my contest to win my next release (not a sci-fi, but a medieval novel with romantic elements, as well asswords and magic) by clicking on CONTEST at the top right of my main page.

Also visit my new medieval blog at: http://medievalnovels.blogspot.com/

Happy reading.
Wishing you the very best

Vijaya Schartz
Blasters, Swords, Romance with a Kick
http://www.vijayaschartz.com/