Hélène Louise
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
I'm afraid to ask a question which must have been asked before, but here we go: For the Vorkosigan saga, did you decide for specific reasons to imagine a science-fi world without any aliens, or does the world came naturally to your mind already formed like that, with genetically altered humans but no aliens at all? Or is it the reflect of a personal conviction about science-fi credibility?
Lois McMaster Bujold
Aliens vs. no-aliens is an old bifurcation in space opera. The formative works I was reading back in the 60s offered both models. A lot of the aliens tended to be just people in costume, and not just on Star Trek. Two models of the latter choice for world building were of course Asimov, who had humans-only, and the less-well-known but amazing writer Cordwainer Smith, who had extensive bioengineering of both human and animals, and who was much the bigger influence on me.
By the time I began writing, science was beginning to catch up with the bioengineered future Smith had envisioned, and the "aliens are us" notion seemed even more plausible. By the time I'd finished the first couple of volumes of my not-planned-in-advance series, I'd pretty much committed to the bioengineered-humans model, and that if there were any advanced aliens in our galaxy (which is a big place not only in space but in time -- two such species could miss each other not only by light years but by millions of years) they wouldn't show up in in my characters' lifetimes.
Ta, L.
By the time I began writing, science was beginning to catch up with the bioengineered future Smith had envisioned, and the "aliens are us" notion seemed even more plausible. By the time I'd finished the first couple of volumes of my not-planned-in-advance series, I'd pretty much committed to the bioengineered-humans model, and that if there were any advanced aliens in our galaxy (which is a big place not only in space but in time -- two such species could miss each other not only by light years but by millions of years) they wouldn't show up in in my characters' lifetimes.
Ta, L.
More Answered Questions
Carro
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
In Curse of Chalion you have scenes of crossing a mountain pass and Penric likewise crosses a pass. You make it all very vivid and immediate. I've never been up in such a place and was wondering what experience and research you'd based this on? (This question was prompted by watching a documentary on a team of scientists looking for Hanibal's route across the alps - and seeing mountain passes.)
Board Narwhal
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Hi Lois, I just wanted to comment that I recently happened upon your novels in the Sharing Knife series. I happened across a book store in the Keys and found an obscure (to me at the time) author and the set. I am so very glad that I picked up the works, as I only just finished the first novel in the series. I look forward to getting to know all the worlds you have built. ‘?’ (Required question mark ;)
Kate Davenport
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Just finished rereading “Captain Vorpatril’s Alliance” and was wondering about your thoughts on Byerly’s future? It seems like he has the chance to reinvent himself, and from the little that came out about his past and Rish’s assessments if him, it seems like he could benefit from as much therapy as Mark ended up getting.
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