Crafting the second story in The Casebook Of Elisha Grey VII has taken longer than the previous several stories in preceding volumes, for the simple reason: I needed to do research.
One might ask: why research when it's a scifi series set in Atlantis, a place that didn't exist?
My counter: What if Atlantis DID exist? It's just that we lost it's history because it was a civilization that destroyed itself? If it was a historical place, then, research is essential. Especially when creating the continent of Hanunnah (which Native Americans refer to as Turtle Island; if you're reading this and sitting anywhere on the North American continent, that's where you are).
After research, then there's the creation of a new place. New people, new attitudes, new ethics and mores (new when compared with what I've already created for the civilized continent of Atlantis). There's the clash of cultures settling into a relationship that, for some Hanunnah dwellers, isn't so welcome.
And then, in the second story, there's the notion that the land itself will object to being exploited, and as a result, people die. Is this a curse? Or a betrayal of the natural energy of the place?
It's another cautionary tale: how do we use, or misuse, natural resources, and does that make a difference? I'm hoping in this day and age, people understand that the nature around them, including the mountains themselves, are alive.
One might ask: why research when it's a scifi series set in Atlantis, a place that didn't exist?
My counter: What if Atlantis DID exist? It's just that we lost it's history because it was a civilization that destroyed itself? If it was a historical place, then, research is essential. Especially when creating the continent of Hanunnah (which Native Americans refer to as Turtle Island; if you're reading this and sitting anywhere on the North American continent, that's where you are).
After research, then there's the creation of a new place. New people, new attitudes, new ethics and mores (new when compared with what I've already created for the civilized continent of Atlantis). There's the clash of cultures settling into a relationship that, for some Hanunnah dwellers, isn't so welcome.
And then, in the second story, there's the notion that the land itself will object to being exploited, and as a result, people die. Is this a curse? Or a betrayal of the natural energy of the place?
It's another cautionary tale: how do we use, or misuse, natural resources, and does that make a difference? I'm hoping in this day and age, people understand that the nature around them, including the mountains themselves, are alive.