Hello, dreamers. So, this post may come as a surprise to you. And it comes as a surprise to me, as well.

As I’ve gotten back to work on Aquarius 1 recently, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking. And it’s led me in surprising directions. That said, here’s the latest on my current work-in-progress:

Aquarius 1

So, originally, this post was intended to provide more insight into the MC of Aquarius 1, Karen Hernandez. But as I sat down to write it, I found myself asking a surprising question:

Who is Karen Hernandez, anyway?

The question was motivated in part by me recently reviewing my original concept notes for Pioneers, while helping a friend who’s getting into writing. For the uninitiated, Randall Holmes is the protagonist of Pioneers. When I began reading my concept notes, I found this description of Holmes, written years ago as I was plotting out the novel:

Randall Holmes: a rugged, resourceful, unflappable sort of pioneer, even by this point Holmes is a living legend, and a hero to many.  His reputation is built on his years as an interstellar explorer for the Earth Space Agency (ESA), during which he became the first human to set foot on a class 5 planet outside of our solar system.

His experiences exploring and surviving on alien planets changed him on a fundamental level; while he originally left Earth intent on conquering new worlds for his species, seeing alien worlds, pristine and unspoiled, turned him into something of a naturalist, intent on creating a new civilization that would coexist with alien ecosystems, rather than transforming them into something more closely resembling Earth.

Holmes was born in Stewart, BC, a small, isolated town on the Alaskan border.  His father, John Holmes, was a biologist, and Randall grew up amongst the ancient trees of the Tongass.  Though he spent many years exploring the dense rainforest, in his adolescence he found himself possessed of an insatiable wanderlust.  Thus, he decided to join ESA for the chance to explore the galaxy.

After receiving degrees in aerospace and exobiology from UBC in Vancouver, Holmes was accepted into the ESA astronaut training program.  His training took him across the world; spacecraft operations training at Johnson SFC, space flight training at Baikonur, exoplanet survival in Australia, and finally spacecraft theory at the Canaveral Spaceport.

After passing his training third in his class, Holmes was selected for the Pathfinder Programme: Earth’s first manned extrasolar missions.  His most notable mission was his second: during Pathfinder 7, Holmes became the first human to set foot on a class 5 planet beyond our solar system, leading the landing party on Vega 6.  Damage to the Pathfinder 7 spacecraft resulted in the landing party being stranded on the planet’s surface for nearly a year without support.  Holmes’s survival and exobiological expertise were key to the party’s survival.  Due to his leadership, what could have been a failed mission was instead considered a rousing success.  Holmes was decorated by ESA, and his status as a hero on Earth began.

During the expedition, Holmes is initially an intriguing second-line character; his character is established, partly through accounts of him from other colonists, but though his importance is established he remains in the background.  All of this changes when the intrasystem reconnaissance vehicle (IRV) malfunctions, forcing the advance scouting party (led by Holmes) to fend for themselves for several months while the Susan Constant surveys the system.  During this segment of the story, Holmes is firmly established as the protagonist, allowing the reader to experience a sense of wonder and boundless promise by seeing the planet through his eyes.

I of course made changes to Holmes’s character, some major, some minor, over the course of writing Pioneers. But clearly I had a firm understanding of who Rand was before I first put pen to paper, so to speak.

Then, I turned to my concept notes for Aquarius 1, and my description of Karen:

Dr. Karen Hernandez – Marine Biologist

That’s it. That’s all I had. My MC reduced to four words. Five if you count the “Doctor” prefix.

To be fair, I had years to figure out who Randall Holmes was. He’s been a part of the grand plan for this continuum of novels from the start. But a writer needs to know their characters, the MC above all. And while I had Karen’s personality fairly well-established, I realized I didn’t know much about her beyond that. Why does she speak or act the way she does? What’s her background?

I fleshed out some of it on the fly. A lot of it, really. And I’d say now I have a pretty good idea of who Karen Hernandez is. But I still feel like I don’t know her very well. Not as well as I need to. And as for the other major characters, I know even less.

There are plenty of other, considerable gaps in my understanding of this story, from the biosphere of the planet to the natures of the characters. Indeed, the ship itself (the DSRV Challenger) is the only aspect of the story I know a lot about so far. And as it currently stands, I’ve paid the ship and its unique design lip-service.

When I first began writing Pioneers, I knew the story, its characters, its settings, the biosphere of their planet, inside and out. I knew how their agriculture worked. I knew what starter crops they’d grow to survive. Just recently, I was able to quickly jot out a rough map of the initial settlement site on Megrez 9 from memory, years after I completed the first draft. The further I get into Aquarius 1, the more I realize I’m making a lot of this up as I go along. And the story is suffering for it. The whole thing lacks the richness, the firm background, of Pioneers.

I’ve been excited about this new story idea since the moment it formed in my mind. This is mostly because, really, this is the story I’ve been yearning to write: space exploration. Strange worlds and alien life. Brave astronauts seeking to further our understanding of the cosmos. Star Trek re-imagined for our modern era. From the start, I’ve had a firm understanding of the enlightened humanity of my fictional 22nd century. Now, I finally have a chance to show who they are, and what they do. And I need to get it right.

So, reluctantly, I’m pausing my writing and returning to the drawing board. I plan to devote an indeterminate period to research and notes. It may take weeks, or even months. But once I’m finished, I plan to create a new master file, and start Aquarius 1 from the beginning. Then, I’ll be able to truly do justice to what may be the best thing I’ve ever written.

Now, I know what you’re thinking, and fear not: my weekly WIP Wednesday posts will continue. But the nature of these posts will change. For the first time, my readers will be privy to the early stages of my writing process. I’ll be taking you along with me as I learn more about the characters and settings of Aquarius 1, all leading up to the moment where I begin the story as I should have from the start. For now, I plan to return to my customary annual schedule, and spend the next several months focusing on short fiction, querying Pioneers, and laying the groundwork for what should be one hell of a story. Until next week, as always, dare to dream. – MK