Joshua Done's Blog: Joshua Done - Culture and Entertainment
October 24, 2015
Halloween Short Story
My publisher just released a short story that I wrote for Halloween.
https://zharmaeblog.wordpress.com/201...
https://zharmaeblog.wordpress.com/201...
May 5, 2015
15 Minute Blitz!!!
We are doing a push to get Empire Ascensions on the amazon best seller list since they rank books by the hour. If you liked The Exile Empire please check out Empire Ascensions. http://www.amazon.com/Empire-Ascensio...
March 24, 2015
Signed Book Raffle!
I wanted to let you all know about a social media raffle I'm hosting on my author page. I will be giving away a signed copy of my science fiction novel The Exile Empire. For every share on Facebook or retweet on twitter you will get one entry!
Here is the link to the post on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJoshua...
And this is the one on twitter: https://twitter.com/JoshuaDone/status...
Here is the link to the post on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJoshua...
And this is the one on twitter: https://twitter.com/JoshuaDone/status...
February 17, 2015
An Excerpt for Some Insight
This is a part of a lecture set in the Hyperion Universe, the same universe as The Exile Empire and the soon to be released novel Empire Ascensions. It discusses how cultures adapt to alien cohabitation.
Dr. Archibald Rolland – Excerpt from a lecture on xeno-anthropology at the Imperial Science Academy.
Disgust, while the opposite of attraction is driven by different factors than one would expect. Take for example the way in which obesity is viewed in preindustrial civilizations as opposed to postindustrial civilizations. In the survival-based society excess weight and even obesity can and most likely is seen as an indication of one of the following.
1. Superior survival skills (in very primitive societies.)
2. Superior intelligence or ability to provide.
3. Superior power or social rank.
All of these indicate the individual in question is more likely to succeed than the average slightly malnourished person. Freudian considerations of mate potential aside this raises a series of very interesting questions as the civilization in question progresses to the more prosperous and food rich industrial and postindustrial civilization levels.
As discussed in previous lessons disgust also has a strong cultural basis, in that if one person views something disgusting it is more likely that others who witness their response will see the same stimuli as disgusting. Also since attraction also has a cultural component as seen in the evolving concept of style, grooming, body hair, etc. what does that tell us about the ongoing view of excess fat as a positive trait rather than a negative?
That is right, there is a sociological bias for a positive trait to continue to be seen as positive. Why then do most societies view obesity different in postindustrial civilization? For the same reason that excess unshaved body hair can be seen as dirty in a society in one generation and not in another. As soon as one person notices negative traits from common and prolonged obesity and the sociological positive implications of that same trait are no longer seen or obvious to other members of that society. Once those traits can no longer be actively supported by the cause of their previous positive view their status will slowly erode.
Now this can seem very simple on the surface but we have to remember we are talking about changes that take place over hundreds if not thousands of years. Many of these positive and negative biases take generations to change. Even at the generational level we see forces of both preservation and destruction taking place as some children will view what their parents view in a positive light positively themselves and other children will reject that same thing simply because their parents embrace it.
These principals of anthropological development can be applied to acquiesce of alien species living in and among each other. While the aliens may initially be viewed with disgust due to their foreign nature they will eventually be viewed by whatever positive or negative effects they have on the society as a whole and their neighbors more specifically. All of which is simply a very complicated way of saying that extensive exposure to positive alien species tends to weed out xenophobia by it’s very nature.
Dr. Archibald Rolland – Excerpt from a lecture on xeno-anthropology at the Imperial Science Academy.
Disgust, while the opposite of attraction is driven by different factors than one would expect. Take for example the way in which obesity is viewed in preindustrial civilizations as opposed to postindustrial civilizations. In the survival-based society excess weight and even obesity can and most likely is seen as an indication of one of the following.
1. Superior survival skills (in very primitive societies.)
2. Superior intelligence or ability to provide.
3. Superior power or social rank.
All of these indicate the individual in question is more likely to succeed than the average slightly malnourished person. Freudian considerations of mate potential aside this raises a series of very interesting questions as the civilization in question progresses to the more prosperous and food rich industrial and postindustrial civilization levels.
As discussed in previous lessons disgust also has a strong cultural basis, in that if one person views something disgusting it is more likely that others who witness their response will see the same stimuli as disgusting. Also since attraction also has a cultural component as seen in the evolving concept of style, grooming, body hair, etc. what does that tell us about the ongoing view of excess fat as a positive trait rather than a negative?
That is right, there is a sociological bias for a positive trait to continue to be seen as positive. Why then do most societies view obesity different in postindustrial civilization? For the same reason that excess unshaved body hair can be seen as dirty in a society in one generation and not in another. As soon as one person notices negative traits from common and prolonged obesity and the sociological positive implications of that same trait are no longer seen or obvious to other members of that society. Once those traits can no longer be actively supported by the cause of their previous positive view their status will slowly erode.
Now this can seem very simple on the surface but we have to remember we are talking about changes that take place over hundreds if not thousands of years. Many of these positive and negative biases take generations to change. Even at the generational level we see forces of both preservation and destruction taking place as some children will view what their parents view in a positive light positively themselves and other children will reject that same thing simply because their parents embrace it.
These principals of anthropological development can be applied to acquiesce of alien species living in and among each other. While the aliens may initially be viewed with disgust due to their foreign nature they will eventually be viewed by whatever positive or negative effects they have on the society as a whole and their neighbors more specifically. All of which is simply a very complicated way of saying that extensive exposure to positive alien species tends to weed out xenophobia by it’s very nature.
January 31, 2015
Guest Blog - Science Fiction Food
This was a guest blog that I wrote for But What Are They Eating from here: http://bookfare.blogspot.com/2015/01/...
A few days ago I received a pleasant surprise in the form of a Goodreads message from Shelley. She wanted to know if I would be willing to talk about the food in my story and the significance and story behind it. Immediately I thought of one meal that stands out in The Exile Empire. It took an invasion, thousands of lives, and the formation of an entirely new economy for the new recipe to exist.
One of the primary components in The Exile Empire is obviously the fact that humans have been dispersed from their old area of space. The problem with such diaspora in the vastness of interstellar space filled with hostile enemies is the relative lack of resources, and chief among them food! This had become more than an inconvenience by the time the major events of the story began to unfold and the human exiles were getting quite desperate.
But that was when they found a new system with edible plants and animals a-plenty. There was only one catch. The planet was in a system crawling with hostile enemies that had just conquered the natives on a nearby planet and the humans would have to fight their way to the new food source.
After the initial scouts are attacked the remaining human fleet springs into action, moving to protect both their people and the precious food on the planet below. After the carnage that ensues there is still a major problem in that most of the edibles are either in raw, indigestible form, or spread around the planet in roaming herds that weren’t big enough to feed everyone.
That is when Karen, an economic and business savant from the old civilization, was brought in. Over the course of several chapters she takes the rag-tag remnants of a mixed civilian and military fleet and is able to create a fully functioning economy and foodstuffs supply chain in only a few days. Now, of course such a supply line would be highly limited in what it could produce. The two main foods that resulted from this endeavor are a grain called a sand nut and meat from a creature called an Abe.
The sand nuts had to be refined because in their raw form they contain a powerful laxative (something a few of the initial colonists lacking caution found out in humorous fashion). The Abes were similar to earth cattle and because of this similarity people started calling them Alien Bison when they first encountered them. This lead to the abbreviation ‘A’ ‘B’ which Wen said aloud sounds like “ABE” and after a few rounds of repetition the name stuck. The end result of all these shenanigans was a pita-bread-like wrap around an Abe meat filling.
These resulting Sh’in Wraps (named for the planet) quickly became a staple in the new civilization and they appear in subsequent stories throughout the series. It is amazing how much history and work can go into the simplest of foods, and science fiction, since it involves people and supply chains, should be no exception. I think that the Sh’in Wraps are an excellent example of simple food created by a complex setting.
A few days ago I received a pleasant surprise in the form of a Goodreads message from Shelley. She wanted to know if I would be willing to talk about the food in my story and the significance and story behind it. Immediately I thought of one meal that stands out in The Exile Empire. It took an invasion, thousands of lives, and the formation of an entirely new economy for the new recipe to exist.
One of the primary components in The Exile Empire is obviously the fact that humans have been dispersed from their old area of space. The problem with such diaspora in the vastness of interstellar space filled with hostile enemies is the relative lack of resources, and chief among them food! This had become more than an inconvenience by the time the major events of the story began to unfold and the human exiles were getting quite desperate.
But that was when they found a new system with edible plants and animals a-plenty. There was only one catch. The planet was in a system crawling with hostile enemies that had just conquered the natives on a nearby planet and the humans would have to fight their way to the new food source.
After the initial scouts are attacked the remaining human fleet springs into action, moving to protect both their people and the precious food on the planet below. After the carnage that ensues there is still a major problem in that most of the edibles are either in raw, indigestible form, or spread around the planet in roaming herds that weren’t big enough to feed everyone.
That is when Karen, an economic and business savant from the old civilization, was brought in. Over the course of several chapters she takes the rag-tag remnants of a mixed civilian and military fleet and is able to create a fully functioning economy and foodstuffs supply chain in only a few days. Now, of course such a supply line would be highly limited in what it could produce. The two main foods that resulted from this endeavor are a grain called a sand nut and meat from a creature called an Abe.
The sand nuts had to be refined because in their raw form they contain a powerful laxative (something a few of the initial colonists lacking caution found out in humorous fashion). The Abes were similar to earth cattle and because of this similarity people started calling them Alien Bison when they first encountered them. This lead to the abbreviation ‘A’ ‘B’ which Wen said aloud sounds like “ABE” and after a few rounds of repetition the name stuck. The end result of all these shenanigans was a pita-bread-like wrap around an Abe meat filling.
These resulting Sh’in Wraps (named for the planet) quickly became a staple in the new civilization and they appear in subsequent stories throughout the series. It is amazing how much history and work can go into the simplest of foods, and science fiction, since it involves people and supply chains, should be no exception. I think that the Sh’in Wraps are an excellent example of simple food created by a complex setting.
November 14, 2014
All Bad Guys Have the Same Guns
Recently I have visited a few gun shows and what I have noticed is that there are as many types of weapons as there are weapon owners. That, when combined with the fact that as many as two out of three three people in the world own a firearm (and this is probably a low estimate) creates a real world situation in which there are thousands upon thousands of types of firearms and exponential variants on each type.
How does this pertain to science fiction you say? What we find is that in science fiction the ratio of armed characters is much higher, say somewhere in the neighborhood of ninety-five to one hundred percent. What we also find is that the ratio of diversity in firearms is twisted in the opposite direction. In a split that almost seems a sci-fi version of white hat – black hat, science fiction tends to put the same weapon in every soldier’s hands on whatever side they may be on.
While there may be slight variations for hero characters in these stories or heroes may have their own weapon, there is a very simple explanation that belies even greater than writer apathy or laziness. This is that people will be playacted if the hero has a cool weapon and ‘forget’ to look at the rest of the cast. I say ‘forget’ with emphasis because this is simply a fallacy. Readers will not forget; they will, however, be happy to place the lapse in the subconscious “yeah-right” section of their brain and continue on with the movie.
This does not mean that the readers have forgiven the movie or your fictional warring factions for their unrealistic lack of diversity, only that the penalty is a stigmatism to the art and deadened enthusiasm. It is not hard to slap a few more foam canisters together to make a different ray gun, or hire a few no name writers to work on the background of military diversity of the factions.
The lack of diversity in firearms is an easily fixed problem. It is not hard to write in a few extra lines discussing a strange or unique weapon. Equally easy is the addition of background realism to the militaries of the silver screen. What is really lacking is someone, somewhere, who actually cares, to say ‘wow, time out, what do you think you are doing? Your army looks like a bunch of computer generated copy characters. Of course, in many cases this is exactly the case. All we need to do is look at the background and sci-fi can trump popular war and Hollywood movies by seeming more real, and drawing the reader into an already engaging universe.
How does this pertain to science fiction you say? What we find is that in science fiction the ratio of armed characters is much higher, say somewhere in the neighborhood of ninety-five to one hundred percent. What we also find is that the ratio of diversity in firearms is twisted in the opposite direction. In a split that almost seems a sci-fi version of white hat – black hat, science fiction tends to put the same weapon in every soldier’s hands on whatever side they may be on.
While there may be slight variations for hero characters in these stories or heroes may have their own weapon, there is a very simple explanation that belies even greater than writer apathy or laziness. This is that people will be playacted if the hero has a cool weapon and ‘forget’ to look at the rest of the cast. I say ‘forget’ with emphasis because this is simply a fallacy. Readers will not forget; they will, however, be happy to place the lapse in the subconscious “yeah-right” section of their brain and continue on with the movie.
This does not mean that the readers have forgiven the movie or your fictional warring factions for their unrealistic lack of diversity, only that the penalty is a stigmatism to the art and deadened enthusiasm. It is not hard to slap a few more foam canisters together to make a different ray gun, or hire a few no name writers to work on the background of military diversity of the factions.
The lack of diversity in firearms is an easily fixed problem. It is not hard to write in a few extra lines discussing a strange or unique weapon. Equally easy is the addition of background realism to the militaries of the silver screen. What is really lacking is someone, somewhere, who actually cares, to say ‘wow, time out, what do you think you are doing? Your army looks like a bunch of computer generated copy characters. Of course, in many cases this is exactly the case. All we need to do is look at the background and sci-fi can trump popular war and Hollywood movies by seeming more real, and drawing the reader into an already engaging universe.
November 11, 2014
Cannon Fodder
As seen in stories like Starship Troopers (the novel), grunt soldiers of the futuristic battlefield can be indicative of the society behind a given war effort. The novel paints a strong, militaristic culture that values the lives of its own people, willing to wreak cataclysmic harm on its enemies in an effort to protect it's citizens. This society's soldiers reflected this mentality with advanced composite armor, mechanically assisted strength, a veritable arsenal of personnel mounted WMDs, and extensive life preservation measures. With all of these enhancements in place to protect their soldiers the kill ratio in this story serves to show just how vicious the enemies they fought were in comparison.
In stark contrast to this, Starship Troopers, the movie, depicted their soldiers as unprotected from harm contrasting starkly with the original intent of the novel. The treatment of these soldiers, in regards to supply and weaponry, when compared to the novel, are atrocious. The mentality demonstrated in the novel was that of ‘spend bullets and bombs, not lives.’ The mentality in the movie was that of ‘spend lives not money.’ This is sad and something that fans generally do not identify with unless they are from the WWII era Soviet Union.
Another story in which we can observe this behavior, is the ever so popular Star Wars. Despite its popularity Star Wars is one of the major sources for ‘yah-right-ism’ leveled against science fiction. While it is understandable that the heartless and inhumane Empire of the Star Wars Universe would send droves of its soldiers into battle with inadequate armor, weapons that never shoot strait, and demonstrably shoddy training. Clearly both stories see the future soldier as nothing more than cannon fodder.
One might suggest that Star Wars only had the shoddy bad guys in an effort to make the good guys look better. The classic quality vs. quantity argument, but to this I would ask; how would the Empire expect to win any battles. However, this clashes with the franchise’s later installments depicting a strong powerful version of the Stormtrooper, the Clone Trooper. Additionally, the rebel forces in Star Wars, and even still the good guys in Star Ship Troopers, all have a horrible death ratio throughout their battles.
In Star Wars, there is only one group who exhibits even the most basic understanding of combat. One must wonder how much brainpower it takes to think ‘Oh my, that bloke is shooting at me. Might I take cover behind yon crate?’ Accuracy, even in its most basic form, seems to be something only a hero can possess.
The end result of all these things and much more is that people are given the impression that, despite the advanced technology and wealth of these gigantic civilizations, they see no need, use, or capability to front a well trained and lethal army. When shown in contrast to the shinning and super powerful starships of these stories, people are left to sigh and presume that ‘its just sci-fi.’ But it is not just sci-fi, its lazy writing.
Starship Troopers, the novel, had it right. Armies with advanced and powerful warships would not skimp on their troops. Imagine if the USA, with the most advanced and powerful military today, began sending its troops into combat with equipment obviously defective and inferior technology and weapons. The simple truth is that most Americans would be aghast and appalled. People can accept cannon fodder, they cannot accept that the army feared by a Jedi, because “only Imperial Storm Troopers are so precise,” can’t even hit the broad side of a barn.
The unstoppable army of Starship Troopers, the novel, however, is also slightly unreasonable. What we would expect to find, is an army somewhere in between the two. Depending on the civilization and the resources available to the combatants, we would see a variable cornucopia of powerful armor, weapons, and defenses. Unfortunately, this is one of those points where realism gets fuzzy. One is left to find balance from whether or not the balance in your given science fiction 'seems' right. Once finished, however, one must again step back and examine the believability of the army. It is quite possible that most stories begin reasonable, but loose real world functionality when they reach this final stage and adjust too far away from what is reasonable in the attempt to give the viewer/reader an impression one way or another about the people in the story. In this, most writers succeed. Unfortunately, they succeed in giving the wrong impression.
In stark contrast to this, Starship Troopers, the movie, depicted their soldiers as unprotected from harm contrasting starkly with the original intent of the novel. The treatment of these soldiers, in regards to supply and weaponry, when compared to the novel, are atrocious. The mentality demonstrated in the novel was that of ‘spend bullets and bombs, not lives.’ The mentality in the movie was that of ‘spend lives not money.’ This is sad and something that fans generally do not identify with unless they are from the WWII era Soviet Union.
Another story in which we can observe this behavior, is the ever so popular Star Wars. Despite its popularity Star Wars is one of the major sources for ‘yah-right-ism’ leveled against science fiction. While it is understandable that the heartless and inhumane Empire of the Star Wars Universe would send droves of its soldiers into battle with inadequate armor, weapons that never shoot strait, and demonstrably shoddy training. Clearly both stories see the future soldier as nothing more than cannon fodder.
One might suggest that Star Wars only had the shoddy bad guys in an effort to make the good guys look better. The classic quality vs. quantity argument, but to this I would ask; how would the Empire expect to win any battles. However, this clashes with the franchise’s later installments depicting a strong powerful version of the Stormtrooper, the Clone Trooper. Additionally, the rebel forces in Star Wars, and even still the good guys in Star Ship Troopers, all have a horrible death ratio throughout their battles.
In Star Wars, there is only one group who exhibits even the most basic understanding of combat. One must wonder how much brainpower it takes to think ‘Oh my, that bloke is shooting at me. Might I take cover behind yon crate?’ Accuracy, even in its most basic form, seems to be something only a hero can possess.
The end result of all these things and much more is that people are given the impression that, despite the advanced technology and wealth of these gigantic civilizations, they see no need, use, or capability to front a well trained and lethal army. When shown in contrast to the shinning and super powerful starships of these stories, people are left to sigh and presume that ‘its just sci-fi.’ But it is not just sci-fi, its lazy writing.
Starship Troopers, the novel, had it right. Armies with advanced and powerful warships would not skimp on their troops. Imagine if the USA, with the most advanced and powerful military today, began sending its troops into combat with equipment obviously defective and inferior technology and weapons. The simple truth is that most Americans would be aghast and appalled. People can accept cannon fodder, they cannot accept that the army feared by a Jedi, because “only Imperial Storm Troopers are so precise,” can’t even hit the broad side of a barn.
The unstoppable army of Starship Troopers, the novel, however, is also slightly unreasonable. What we would expect to find, is an army somewhere in between the two. Depending on the civilization and the resources available to the combatants, we would see a variable cornucopia of powerful armor, weapons, and defenses. Unfortunately, this is one of those points where realism gets fuzzy. One is left to find balance from whether or not the balance in your given science fiction 'seems' right. Once finished, however, one must again step back and examine the believability of the army. It is quite possible that most stories begin reasonable, but loose real world functionality when they reach this final stage and adjust too far away from what is reasonable in the attempt to give the viewer/reader an impression one way or another about the people in the story. In this, most writers succeed. Unfortunately, they succeed in giving the wrong impression.
Joshua Done - Culture and Entertainment
Joshua Done is a science fiction author who lives in the Pacific Northwest. He is classically trained in political economy with experience in all manner of studies from music to ancient history and la
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