Quantum Storytelling

As I’ve been slow churning through ten seasons of Stargate SG-1, I’ve noticed something they do really well and for lack of a better term I’m calling it the Pyramid of Villains. Many of the main villains come from an alien race, a faction called the Goa’uld. Within the Goa’uld are a large number of ’system lords’ that all fight and compete with each other for power. This creates a shifting, dynamic pyramid of villains.

Outside of that race, there are other alien races and enemies who further expand the pyramid of villains. The result? The heroes never have any shortage of enemies, or conflict. What’s interesting is that all the villains within the pyramid scheme have an explanation for how they got there, their alliances (or lack of) with other members of the pyramid, conflicts between factions, etc. When it’s done well, a pyramid of villains should have a history, a background, and examples within the story of the relationships between different members of the pyramid.

Got a pyramid of villains?

In the last few weeks I’ve seen my pace of ideas slow down, and I’ve found myself going back to the meme trough. I’ve started borrowing DVD sets of TV shows I haven’t seen yet, such as Stargate SG-1 and Battlestar Galactica. For being a sci-fi fan, I’m relatively unwashed as far as TV series go. Thankfully the office I work in is ripe with fellow sci-fi fans who have full shelves of TV on DVD.

I’ve found myself reading more as well. I’m not sure is just the ebb and flow of things, but it’s been less about output lately and more about input. I need to restock my brain with some memes. At the same time I can’t help but wonder if this ‘research’ is prolonging the inevitable completion of my work.

Do you go through similar cycles? Is research an addiction for you? Procrastination? Or is it merely a refilling of the well?

Interesting…

“…there is a large body of thought that says that a story has to have more than an SF setting to be SF. In other words, if the characters and plot can be successfully transplanted to a non-SF setting, it isn’t really SF. If all you’re doing is setting a western in a post-apocalyptic setting, you’re probably better of simply writing a western.”

I strongly disagree. Setting has a huge influence on the theme of a story. The theme of the story has a huge influence on the types of symbolism and icons used throughout, all the way down to the problems the characters face.

I just don’t believe settings and themes can be written off so easily. Do you?

I also don’t think writers should be concerned with hardcore-isms such as “true vs. psuedo sci-fi.” Such trivial arguments only muddy the writer’s purpose; To write a meaningful story.

I would say go ahead and write your space western or western set in a post-apoc universe. Do whatever the hell you want. All I ask is that you make it compelling so that readers will enjoy it.