Ask the Authors (Fandemonium)

[gater62]

That is so amazing! It's nice to hear from writers about the process of creating a novel--in person! Woohoo!!! Thank you Steven!

[StevenSavile]

No problem Gator... I've got a little more time now, so I'll basically try and give a little more detail of my process on Shadows...

I've basically had an interest in the German scientist Sigmund Rascher for a while - notably the importance of his experiments in the concentration camps on prisoners to test the thresholds of their endurance under stresses. These G Force tests were fundamental in our unstanding of aviation and without them we'd never have managed bulk airline carriers like the 747s we have today... so from something so vile as torture in the name of science came airplanes...

I talked with Sally about this, and how it might be interesting to do a time travel thing dropping SG-1 in and around this time and these experiments, but it was always going to be tough because you can't mess with time lines, and there's an element of not wanting to make light of the suffering of others by saying, oh, what, no, that was actually down to a Goa'uld... if you get what I mean..? So, instead there was a need to create something different, alien, that still allowed me to delve into this side of science, and the notion that Clarke put forward that all great advances in science come from man's need to develop new ways to kill one and other...

Obviously I don't want to delve into too much detail here, after all the book is what 6 months away? but that was one aspect...

Thing is, every good story I think needs a number of other stories playing around it, two or three plots at once... so while this aspect of driving science was a backdrop it wasn't actually plot... so I spent a good three or four weeks drinking cafe latte's and musing... I came up with my 'monster' pretty quickly, but then had to spend another week or so working out the parameters of how its powers worked to keep them consistent in the writing. Around this time Sally probably received 30 or 40 emails of possibilities, with questions of how they would clash with the known Stargate universe, and came back with twice as much in return... out of all of that I wrote a 2 page pitch for the series which went to Sally for the yay or nay... it got the nod and the next step was to write a 4,000 word outline of the first book for MGM...

Now, I never used to outline, now, I outline the heck out of something which means I tend to go far deeper than anyone other than me needs... so my outline was full of tiny twists and turns that probably baffled MGM, including aspects of quantum physics I wanted to play with for instance, and we ended up whacking that back to a trim 2,000 words of just core story for MGM. They said yes. I started writing...

[gater62]

That is really amazing Steven! I may have to quote you on the importance of outlining when I get back in front of my students this fall. (Teach social studies, not English, but tons of writing involved)

Now I'm really looking forward to Shadows! It's always interesting how much in our actual history finds its way into fiction-even if on another planet.

[A Wraith Named Bob]

To the authors:

On average, how many words/pages do you write on an average day? What is your typical work schedule?

[StevenSavile]

For me, bad day, one page... (about 350 words) good day 12 pages (about 4000 words) great day 20 pages (about 7,000 words) ... with an average day of about 6 pages (2,000 words). I tend to work to weekly totals, and try to hit 10k for a week and take the weekend off like a normal day job. Toward the end of a book I can put in 20k weeks comfortably because I am at home with the voice, the momentum has built and things are MOVING. At the beginning of the book those first 5,000 words can take 2-3 weeks because I tend to have a devil of a time starting something... rewrite, edit, fiddle, just wanting to lay down a beginning. Back in the old days when I worked on a typewriter I would have just ploughed on into the story until I was happy, and not worried about perfecting that opening, but now thanks to computers I get to obsess about those first 10 pages

[JMSwallow]

Do you authors chat about ideas you are working on for the SG novels-to keep continuity? Do your novels have impact on anything someone else might be writing?

As line editor, it's Sally Malcolm's job to keep a watch on that sort of thing, but personally I always try to keep abreast of what the other authors in the line are doing.

This actually came up recently, because [REDACTED] is writing a novel that features references to the [REDACTED] and my forthcoming novel Nightfall also features the [REDACTED] in a major role; so we had a discussion and changed [REDACTED] to [REDACTED] so everything would work out fine and no-one's story would end up getting [REDACTED].

On average, how many words/pages do you write on an average day? What is your typical work schedule?

I tend to work office hours over a six-day week. How much I do per day depends on what the job is (prose is different to scriptwriting, which is different to development work or editing, etc.) but I have a minimum per day target that I work at until I pass it.

[A Wraith Named Bob]

Thanks for the replies Mr. Savile and Mr. Swallow!

Another question:

I understand that alot of authors work on multiple projects at the same time and that everything varies depending on what it is your writing, but do most of your projects have deadlines? Or are you pretty free to work at your own pace?

[StevenSavile]

Deadlines deadlines, Wraith Named Bob... I only have one project on the go that doesn't have a set deadline, and that's very much a vanity project for my own amusement. Everything else is under contract and has deadlines. The thing is the publisher needs to know when the book is coming in so they can line up the copy editors and proofers, schedule the approval slot with MGM, line up the printers etc to make sure that the book can hit the shelf on the date it is due. Deadlines keep things as close to schedule as possible so you get to read the book when you expect to.

[Sabine Bauer]

Just got a question:

I know some of the authors came from writing other novels and some did not, but I'd like to know how all you Stargate authors got into writing stories for the Stargate universe in the first place. How did you all do it?

Thanks in advance!

Hi Bob... Can I call you 'Bob'?

I got into it traveling the time-honored route of fan fiction. In the course of five years or so, I posted five novels and a couple of short stories first on Heliopolis and then on a website run by a friend. After which things ceased to be traditional with a vengeance. Fandemonium contacted me, asking whether I'd be interested in writing for them--which is, of course, the kind of thing that never ever happens in the real world.

Do you authors chat about ideas you are working on for the SG novels-to keep continuity? Do your novels have impact on anything someone else might be writing?

I have close contact with several other authors who also happen to be friends, so chatting about what everyone is up to and which ideas they're developing is definitely part of the correspondence. Plus, as Steve Savile already mentioned, in terms of continuity Sally keeps a close eye on things. And I totally agree, Steve--Sally and Tom are terrific, both professionally and personally.

To the authors:

On average, how many words/pages do you write on an average day? What is your typical work schedule?

Oy... hot topic I try and write a minimum of 1,000 words a day, every day, but I can't tell you how grateful I am that Steve 'fessed up to that 350 words/day thing. It's such a relief to know that it happens to other people, too Usually what puts a spanner in the output for me is that niggling little voice in my subconscious informing me that I'm heading down a totally wrong track--think cookie crumbs in your bed, and you know the feeling. When that happens I can't push ahead (i.e. get back to a reasonable word count) until the underlying problem is identified and sorted out (generally by nixing the entire crop of rubbish forced out in 350 words/day instalments).

Typical work schedule? Get up, fix large quantities of coffee, feed outsize puppy and take her potty, sit down at computer and write for a minimum of eight hours each day.

As regards the multiple projects question--I'm still hoping that one fine day I'll be able to juggle that. Right now I've got a hell of a time switching universes, so usually it's one project at a time. What can I say? I confuse easily

[Elizabeth Christensen]

Just got a question:

I know some of the authors came from writing other novels and some did not, but I'd like to know how all you Stargate authors got into writing stories for the Stargate universe in the first place. How did you all do it?

Thanks in advance!

Well, I could try to explain the unlikely tale, or I could be lazy and point you back to the first page or two of this thread, where a post from my coauthor Sonny and then an introductory post from me lay out the basics. Since I've got a bunch of chores left to do tonight, I think I'm going to go with the lazy option -- many apologies. Cliffs Notes version: I'm an engineer by day and totally lucked into this gig because Sonny's extremely cool.

Do you authors chat about ideas you are working on for the SG novels-to keep continuity? Do your novels have impact on anything someone else might be writing?

James's "redacted" response was both brilliantly executed and a familiar concept to me, as I ended up changing a couple of elements of my pitch for Casualties of War because Sally had given me the heads-up that they came a little too close to elements of Halcyon. No sweat; that's the name of the continuity game. Also, I spotted at least two verrrry subtle references to The Chosen in Sabine's Mirror Mirror, so you can see that she's made good use of her dual roles as editor and author.

[Sabine Bauer]

Also, I spotted at least two verrrry subtle references to The Chosen in Sabine's Mirror Mirror, so you can see that she's made good use of her dual roles as editor and author.

It would take a person of exceptional strength of character (not me, in other words) to resist the temptation. I mean, come on... Rodney McKay literally, not figuratively, up to his buttocks in brown fragrant substance? I defy anyone to pass up on a reference to that. In the immortal words of the poet, "A thing of beauty is a joy forever."

[A Wraith Named Bob]

Thank you for the answers Mr. Savile, Ms. Bauer, and Beth . I think it's really great that you take the time to respond to and talk with your fans. (I'm sure it makes sales go up too!)

Now, a possibly tough question:

What would you say is your favorite type of scene to write? If you need to choose more than one, be my guest...

Thanks!

P.S. - Anyone now a good, active, "legit" fanfiction site?

[StevenSavile]

Bob - depends on the weather

I like to do the occassional really dark, brooding, gothicky sort of scene every now and again - heck that's exactly how I kick off Shadows... but equally I love to do a rip-snorting action scene or one of those smouldering introspective scenes where the characters feel the weight of the world on their shoulders and need to find a way out of the mess I have put them in.

For me, it's always primarily about the characters, so you want them to experience the gamut of emotions and fears and hopes and really get inside their head. Sometimes that means the first draft of a project can read a little slow... so I go back and work the second draft magic

As to boosting sales, probably not in the long run, because for every stargate fan who loves my answer another will sigh and go oh no not again... swings and roundabouts. What messageboards give you is communication and foster a sense of interest from those who use them in what's going on. I won't argue that me being here six months before the book hits will probably mean you all get to know and hate me really quickly heh.

[Jersey13]

Hey authors, just a question and a couple of comments here. I'm afraid I'm fairly exclusive to Atlantis these days, so these comments/questions are directed mostly toward Sabine Bauer and Elizabeth Christensen. Mr. Swallow, I'd give you feedback about your book Halcyon, but none of the bookstores I have ever gone to for SGA books seemed to ever carry it! I'll see if I can find it somewhere.

Anyway, please forgive if it's been asked before, but I don't really feel like going through 60 more pages. Ms. Bauer, you wrote 'Mirror, Mirror', right? I see it's due out in August according to Amazon, and I will probably buy it eventually anyway, but I don't see any kind of summary in there for it, and it doesn't appear to be listed yet on stargatenovels.com. Would you be able to point me somewhere I could read about it before I buy, or will I simply have to wait for it to be released?

Ms. Christensen, I words cannot express how much I enjoyed "Exogenesis". I think it is by far the best SGA of the 4 novels I have read so far, 'Reliquary', 'The Chosen', 'Exogenesis', and 'Entanglement'. You and Sonny made the characters and the angst real.

I picked up a few books while I was at Shore Leave, and I started reading 'Blood Ties'... Unfortunately, having read a couple of chapters, I'm afraid that I am a little tempted to put it away. I will put the rest into a spoiler tag, since it's still a relatively new book, and no one can accuse me of spoiling them... Just would like some clarification on something, if you can spare a moment.

Spoiler:

Did I completely miss something in the prologue about what exactly it is that Beckett discovered in his research? I get a bit annoyed when characters are talking about things and I have absolutely no idea what just happened. I read through chapter 1 and the first page or two of chapter 2, and there was no explanation to be found before I stopped reading for the night, and I'm afraid it's hurting the immersion factor for me a little.

[Elizabeth Christensen]

What would you say is your favorite type of scene to write? If you need to choose more than one, be my guest...

Thanks!

I'm ALL about the character development scenes, either a single character's introspection or a thoughtful or charged dialogue between two or more characters. A couple of examples: my favorite scenes to write in Exo were the scenes about halfway through, where

Spoiler:

Caldwell and Weir refuse to let Sheppard go back to the planet to rescue McKay, and then Sheppard weighs his options, recalling the similar situation he'd faced in Afghanistan. Then, at the end, the scene where he tries to explain to Weir the conflict he feels between following orders and following his conscience.

Those were some of the very first scenes I wrote for that book -- completely out of order, for a change -- because they were so clear in my head.

And in CoW (yes, I'm still using that shorthand, because it still amuses me), I really enjoyed setting up the idea that

Spoiler:

Sheppard can only handle so much loss, because he takes each situation so personally, and in particular the gateroom scene where he grasps at nonexistent straws to find Ronon and Teyla and McKay and Beckett talk him down.

Of course, I also just adore it when I find an especially snarky one-liner. I'm not sure I'd be able to write in a universe without sarcastic humor.