Steampunk: A Modern Throwback to Classic Science Fiction

As I again delve into the various genres of fiction with which my current writing intersects, I discover surprising gaps in my knowledge—and more books for my reading list.

This is hardly a bad thing. Writers are fed by writing, and not always their own. Indeed, one would hope that much of it is not their own—we learn our craft first and best by reading the works of others. That is where we discover what we like, what we don’t, and in our various reactions develop the biases that inform our own voices and styles.

Alternate History Fiction, Fiction History Fact

It is an odd feeling when you discover how little you know about a subject.

I first learned of the alternate history genre at around the age of 10. Or at least, I think it was the age of ten. I might’ve been two or three years older or younger. All I know is that I was in a cool and musty used book store, and I found this hefty paperback with a picture of Stalin, Hitler and Truman standing in front of a ray gun straight out of the Golden Age of science fiction. The blurb on the back said this was “alternate history.” From what I remember of my emotions at the time, I found the whole idea silly. Still, the notion of playing with past events stayed with me, despite my skepticism about the genre.

At the time, I believed alternate history—fiction taking place in a history divergent from our own—to be a new sub-genre of science fiction. That is not accurate. Alternate histories have been around for a long time. According to Wikipedia, one of the earliest works in that category is Tirant Io Blanc, a 1490 epic by Joanot Martorell that tells a version of recent history in which the titular hero repels the Turkish invasion of Constantinople. According to the same article, alternate history novels and stories appeared in the mass market in the 19^th and early 20^th centuries, with the 30’s being a pivotal decade for the genre. During World War II, alternate history tales also served as a means of propaganda for Allied countries. (Wikipedia, 2013)

For that matter, while alternate history can overlap with science fiction, it doesn’t have to. The earliest examples, mentioned above, were written before science fiction became a discrete entity. Quentin Tarantino’s Inglorious Basterds is an alternate history, and has no science fiction elements to speak of. (It does, however, feature idiosyncratic, Tarantine dialogue.)

Oddly enough, when I conceived of the idea for my forthcoming Rosaria of Venice, which is an alternate history, I hadn’t read or seen much in the way of alternate history. I still haven’t. The only work I have seen and can honestly categorize as such is the animé Full Metal Panic. It is a lack of experience that I ought to fix. The idea for Roaria, however, didn’t come from that animé, despite some odd parallels. It came from a little device called the antikythera mechanism.

The antikythera mechanism, as the Wikipedia article explains, is a mechanical computer designed to calculate the positions of heavenly bodies at particular places and times. Such a device would be invaluable for navigators in the 1^st Century BC—when it was likely developed. Comparable machines would not appear for another fifteen hundred years. (Wikipedia, 2013)

Learning of this device led me to wonder, much as Carl Sagan did, what might have happened if the civilization which produced this machine—that of the Greeks and Romans—had survived past the 3^rd Century AD. From this thought, the first prototype of Rosaria of Venice arose: a version of the 5^th century (or thereabouts) AD where, after the fall of the Roman Empire, Greece nonetheless survived as a burgeoning technological remnant. They had steam power, more advanced computers, and all sorts of useful mechanical devices. My protagonist, at that time, was a former slave boy applying for an education in Athens who became caught up in some intrigue involving the government. There was also a time-travelling girl from our version of events who popped in and out, and was somehow connected to the whole intrigue bit.

While the premise held some interest for me, the characters felt too bland, and so the idea went underground. It stayed there for several years. Then, while listening to the latest album from my favorite band, an idea struck me. How about taking the “musketeer” archetype and gender-swapping it? That idea quickly merged with the antikythera-inspired scenario. I switched the setting to Renaissance Italy (but with steam power!), dropped the time-traveling girl, and switched my protagonist to a swordswoman and scientist of that era. Rosaria was born. The character stuck with me, and so I stuck with the story.

It is an odd feeling when you discover how little you know, but it soon becomes fuel for the imagination.

Runicfire Recap: April 25 – May 6

I've been crunching for finals the past few weeks, and have slipped on my Google+ and Facebook announcements. My apologies. I have, however, been continuing to pump out content here on Runicfire, and I'd like to catch up any readers who follow me on Facebook or Google+ on what they might have missed. Recap begins beneath the jump:

Rosaria of Venice -- Choosing a Cover, and the May 24th Kickstarter

I'll be Kickstarting Rosaria of Venice, the alternate history steampunk Renaissance novel I wrote and am now revising, this month on May 25. The proceeds are to pay for cover illustrations (front and inside) as well as editing and proofreading.

While I won't be commissioning the final works until the Kickstarter campaign finishes, I have already been working with illustrators on concepts for the front and inside covers. The illustrator I hired to do the front, Amelia Davis, has finished color mock-ups of three possible covers:

I'm really liking how they turned out. In fact, I can't decide which one I want to use as the final. So I'm going to let the backers decide. When I run the Rosaria of Venice Kickstarter campaign from May 24th to June 14th, everyone who backs the project will get to vote which thumbnail becomes the final cover. 

So please save the date, and consider pledging if the book strikes your fancy. (If you want a taste of what the book itself is like, you can read the opening chapter here.) I will be posting more information here over the next few weeks, so please check back or subscribe to the Runicfire RSS feed for updates!