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Exigency discussion Week One
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Happy New Year , Debbie. Will work on these questions today and tomorrow. each one is worth a paper, by itself. By the way, has anyone seen the new cable show about the group of people on a spaceship/station that I swear the writer author read Exingency for his concept.
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Thanks Karen I look forward to your essays :)
sorry to say I don't watch TV
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Yay a convert!! Glad you didn't give up either
I am glad you didn't give up either!! The book is really marvelous!
1. First ImpressionsThe One-Way Ticket to the Stars. Okay, this was a big piece to stop and think about. Yes, I literally had to stop after the first piece of the first Chapter (before everything went up in smoke) and think about this one. Just WHO would be willing to buy into a one-way ticket to the outer reaches of the galaxies. A place so remote that it took what, nineteen years to get there? Once there, they would be totally on their own. Supply ships were limited and forget about going out for pizza on Friday night with the crew.
Okay, I am fairly introverted, I live in a family of introverts, but we still like to get out and go for a drive, we still have a need to see and communicate with our families. Just who would be willing to go out to observe and study a little known planet that most likely would never see settlement as a colony? Even though you write and file your reports, thesis, books and other research back to earth in junkets and electronic information packets, you are well aware that they will still take upwards of five years to get to their recipients. You realize you will never receive the accolades for your work. It takes a very special person.
Could I? Potentially. Would I? Possibly. Why would I? Now the real question lies…. But then by this time, I was dying to know these answers for the crew aboard the space station and picked up the book to see what I could discover. Boy was I ever in for some BIG surprises and discoveries.
Life aboard a slow moving space station... is much like living on a slow moving carousal. The first few times around are wonderful and exciting. There is some many new things to see, hear, and figure out. There are so many new people to get to know and so many different animals to ride and places to sit. But then you realize that you are basically in the same place, just going in circles, watching the same thing, over and over and over. Then the fun begins. You find creative ways to observe the world off the carousal, you make calculated guesses (thesis and postulations), and then based on these, create more tests and observations to support the conclusions you have already come to. Then you discover new ways to reach out and get closer without ever leaving your confined structure...and this goes on and on...meanwhile everyone on board develops their on little cliques, turfs, and fiefdoms and life goes on. It is just earth on a small, more intense scale. An they are all starting to drive you a bit crazy. Then you start looking for ways to find your own little oasis within the confines of the station, to withdraw into your own little world, but THEY won't let you. and life goes on and the carousal keeps going round and round. Does it ever stop, does it ever change?
Life in a constricted environment can be hard. It can also be dangerous to the psyche. Then I go back to the question of who would choose to sign up for this gig? And why?
The Hynka and the Threck. I will let one of you take first stab at this one. I have to keep remembering, I have read the whole book --- twice. So don't want to slip up here.... but will happily converse :-)
Minnie and John - To begin with, Minnie does not like any authoritative figure....like fathers, bosses, etc. Add in the fact that John is also her lover's ex-husband... I think that makes it 3 strikes. Oops. What's your take?
John seems to be straight forward, fairly easy going, but "lat's stick to the plan" and "rules have a place and a reason" type of guy. He does not seem to harbor any ill will towards Minnie and seems to bend over backwards to be accommodating to her. Also, John seems to know and understand Minnie even better than she does herself...as well he should. He's the boss, he has her dossier and psyche jacket.
Exigency - flora and fauna, cultures.As always, Michael provides attention to detail and weaves a world of mystical wonders with his Descriptions of both the flora and fauna and the intelligent (and non-intelligent) species of the planet are so keen that you have no trouble visualizing them in 3D living color, but just vague enough to allow your own interpretation of the finished product.
Think of Hynka country as North Korea on steroids (so to speak) after one of their nuclear reactors had leaked and the fallout played some really dirty tricks on the minds of the populations and the animals, too. Wait that already happened. Not a place you would want to find yourself going out for a summer stroll without a bazooka and a supersonic get-away flying motorcycle.
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The One-Way Ticket to the Stars. Okay, this was a big piece to stop and think about. Yes, I literally had to stop after the first piece of the first Chapter (before everythin..."
Karen you've covered just about all my thoughts when I learned this was a one way trip and it wasn't just connecting with friends and family for me but knowing that I'll never be able to experience the minutiae that we simply take for granted. Plus the fact that this bubble could very well and in this case did burst.
I really liked John, but then I'm kind of a by the books, there's a reason for that speed limit type of gal. So then you've probably guessed it took me a while to warm up to Minnie.
I also loved you comparison to N Korea and the Hynka.
Great thoughts
I'll post the rest of mine late this week
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Going up in space for a life time really, with only 7 people, thats like spend..."
Susan, first thanks for not giving up. I know that fantasy/sci-fi is not for everyone. I actually think it takes a special kind of brain to not only like but understand something so foreign to us.
I love your comment that the best thing is not eating, spoken like a wife and mom who has to figure out the menus everyday. :)
I'm curious also about why you think Minnie and John have a past, what thought/comment made you think that?
Great thoughts and thanks again!
Chew sticks...these were supposed to let everyone who still craved eating have something to chew on, without bothering the digestive system...I always wondered about the flavors....come on. But then half the eating experience is community with family. Now how long is a meal going to last when you sit down with a three or five stick meal? I wonder if they had a chocolate sundae stick. You know something like the jelly beans and all their flavors? I just kept getting a sense of sitting there chewing on a chopstick.
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Ah I get it Susan yes a family intimacy. I do see that and thanks I would not have thought of their relationship that way :)
I love all these ideas floating around
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But t..."
Karen great minds and all that. That's the first thing I thought of when Michael introduces chew sticks, flavored chopsticks and you know I never really connected meals with unwinding and communing! Thanks
I am really loving this read. This is not the type of book I would normally read, so I was pleasantly surprised by how quickly I got wrapped up in the lives of the characters. I thought it would be a stretch for me to imagine things not based on reality, but before I knew it, I could clearly picture everything described. I think this book was a good one for someone like me to take their first step into the sci-fi genre and I can see myself reading more sci-fi in the future.I could not imagine leaving Earth knowing I would never return to family or friends, or anything familiar ever again. The fact that you would not be able to communicate with family on earth, would be one of the hardest things of all. For those left behind on earth, I could only imagine their loved one leaving forever would almost feel like a death. I would think this situation would only be ideal for someone who had no family left.
I feel like at this point I know more about the the Hynka than the Threck. Minnie had a probe secretly watching the Threck and I'm curious how that will play out. From what I can tell so far, the Hynka seem to be the less civilized of the two. When Minnie and John first land and are surrounded by all the Hynkas, I could feel their fear. These huge beasts rocking the EV, ripping it apart. And later when Minnie is flying by on the skimmer the Hynka actually begin to tear each other apart, flinging limbs at her! I was so surprised by this: a species that seemingly got along until they became enraged.
Minnie and John's relationship before they crashed was strained to say the least. There was tension between them because John's ex-wife was Minnie's new love. Even after the crash, we see Minnie and John squabbling. Besides the tension over Aether, it seemed they were mostly just getting on each others nerves and both of them wanted to be right. Only after John gets hurt, does Minnie begin to be nicer to him. Now I can see them both making an effort to be more aware of the things they say to one another and to try to be nicer to each other.
The first section of the book has raised more questions than answers for me, most of them having to do with Ish. Did she crash the supply pod into the station on purpose? Was her plan all along to be able to live in Hynka country? And when Minnie finds her, is she still alive? (What a great place to stop week one's reading. Suspense! :) ) And what happened to the others who were forced to evacuate? I haven't read further than the first section yet, but I can't wait to see what happens next.
Karen wrote: "Life aboard a slow moving space station... is much like living on a slow moving carousal. The first few times around are wonderful and exciting. There is some many new things to see, hear, and fi..."Karen, I love your comparison of life on the space station to a slow moving carousal. Brilliant observation!
Susan wrote: "Ok here goes. First I have never read sifiy, with that said the first 10 pages I was lost and said oh no dont get it.Going up in space for a life time really, with only 7 people, thats like spend..."
Susan, I also got the impression that there was a past between John and Minnie that we don't know about yet. I've gone back to see if I could find what gave me that idea, but I haven't found it yet.
I also imagined the chewsticks as something we would give to dogs and I couldn't imagine that they would taste like anything good. :)
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Beggin (bacon) strips yeah I can see that Susan :)
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Oh I remember that Susan, it's Minnie describing herself right?
Very good point about their relationship development or lack of it.
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April, thanks for your great comments. I wondered how folks who weren't fans of the genre would react and so far you and Susan like it. YAY! :)
You're sure right about the first section leaving more questions than answers.
The first section did the same to me. Trust me. The answers will come. and they will blow your mind away. That is why Michael is so fun to read. Section one just lays the foundation for everything to take off. so buckle up for the ride of your life.You guys are sounding like I did when I was at this point. I jade more questions than answers, enough that I started a list. Yes, Michael answered every one.As to chew sticks. I kinda resolved myself to dried out licorice sticks. those can be really chewy.
Utilizing animals we know, how would you describe a hynka? a threk?
Hi everyone! Thanks again for having me, and for choosing Exigency for your January read. I think it would be prudent for the world to henceforth refer to this month as Exiguary. Or Januarigency. Maybe not. I've read the discussion thus far and I'm loving the great observations and interpretations. I'm often hesitant to share my initial intent with a particular story point/creature/object/twist/etc, because I made a choice while writing a book to describe a thing/person/event to a particular degree of detail to let the reader paint the rest of the picture themselves, but Exigency is chock-full of "stuff" that falls into this area. Just know that if I try to further describe anything here, it's simply my interpretation—as valid as yours. I'm not "correcting" anyone's vision.
It's been said that writing a book is the world's only real example of telepathy: the writer is sending his/her thoughts and visions to the reader via little assemblages of symbols. But I also see it as a shared creative endeavor. I create a foundation, molds of characters and things, and then you take those concepts and finish them in your own way. So I cherish the opportunity to hear about your final product.
Thanks again.
-Michael
The one-way ticket from home:NASA conducted a poll a couple years ago, asking people if they would be willing to go to Mars if they knew they'd never return home. Somewhere around 10,000 people answered with an emphatic "yes", and that's only of the limited numbers who were contacted.
In Exigency, I wanted to explore this idea further, because plenty of people say they'll do something if they're not actually facing the reality of doing it. The training center briefly described in the book, and the processes to ensure volunteers will be able to maintain for THE REST OF THEIR LIVES came from all the international space agencies' real research into this subject, which they have all been exploring for some time.
Food:Part of the space agencies' aforementioned research has been how to feed a crew (or even just a single astronaut) for extended periods, so far from Earth. When we get into these lengthy time periods of years or decades, fueling and hydrating the human body is far more expensive than fueling (or even BUILDING) a space ship. NASA and their partners know this well, so any talk of a colony on Mars includes this problem at the very top of the list, even though we hear more about getting there, landing, etc. That's just the more exciting stuff to talk about.
The one solution I couldn't find in my research was to simply NOT FEED the astronauts. But really, it's the most logical solution for an orbiting station. And so began my research into the medical field...
Geez Michael. You have given us stud to chew on for a month of Sunday's. That's scarry that the world's space agencies would actually be putting out that question to the science community. At one time in my life I might have been tempted, but now I have become rather attached to mother earth and have realized that I haven't even touched the wonders she has to offer.
But you make going so exciting and interesting....hmmmmm
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Thanks for being here we're all glad you're here.
That was some very interesting information about space travel you made us "chew" on :)
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You are doing GREAT!!
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I really don't think I can compare them to anything on earth, I do like the gorillagator term that someone in part one gave to the Hynka
And as far as the Threk nothing I can think of unless it's an underwater deep living thing I've only seen on the discovery channel
But thanks for putting that indelible picture in my mind :) LOL
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1-First Impression was for my heart rate to slow down because from the moment I opened the first page until the last I never knew what was around the next corner.
2. I can't imagine knowing you'd never see earth again. I'd probably die of heart failure from what iffing it to death
3- I knew from the title and the premise what was coming but when the computer voice started the automated countdown I was still unprepared.
4-I think Michael's imagination really deserves some high praise for the world building here. You know when someone writes a fantasy that happens on earth either pre or post apocalypse there are still recognizable things but when you have to invent the whole deal from the big boom until flora and fauna flourish that's quite a feat and I was in awe of his compulations
5 - You know I always thought of Minnie and John's relationship to be more of a rebelling child to an overbearing parent, always testing boundaries while still having the other's back. But the strange thing is I never could put a name to it until Susan's comment about them having a past brother/sister type relationship.
So thanks :)
This is why the saying no two people read the same book is so telling right here we prove it each time we discuss a novel together.
I think my description in my review was of a "kangagorillagator". With their great abilities to jump great heights and distances, I almost visualized a body of an enlongated kangaroo with the great alligator face and powerful upper body of the gorilla. They couldn't have had the short ad tubby gator back legs, they would have had to be far more powerful.The Threk, imagine a squid or octopus able to pull up and drawl all its tentacles underneath themselves. Then utilize two of the tentacles as hands and manages to fashion a wardrobe to wear so that it appears that they have two arms and two feet. The head is overlarge and they have huge eyes....yeah sponge Bob does come to mind, but not so skinny and not near as cartoony. But just how threatening can a race of wobbling squid be? It sounds like the main group are in far better shape....or are they?
Susan wrote: "Thanks Micheal for joining us, as you read I was about to give up after 10 pages but I am glad I did not. I am enjoying going back and forth with everyone. I am not as good at it as the others but ..."Susan, thanks for sticking with it! It may not seem like it, but I do try to strike a balance between satisfying the hardcore Sci-Fi reader, and the not-so-hardcore. Inevitably, of course, I've received reviews from the former, stating "not enough explanation of the technology/how everything works," but I'm not trying to write a technical manual. ;)
It's definitely relieving and gratifying to see comments from the reverse perspective, like "I'm not into sci-fi, but..." or how Exigency is someone's first science fiction book. :)
Debbie wrote: "Michael first of all welcome. Second WOW! so many things I never thought of that was more reality in your fantasy like how to feed lifers and that NASA even went as far as to put out the question...."
Thanks for having me, Deb! Personally, I always enjoy behind-the-scenes scoops on movies and such, so I thought it'd be interesting to share some of the background stuff. Just tell me to shut up if I start sounding like Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory. ;)
4-I think Michael's imagination really deserves some high praise for the world building here. You know when someone writes a fantasy that happens on earth either pre or post apocalypse there are still recognizable things but when you have to invent the whole deal from the big boom until flora and fauna flourish that's quite a feat and I was in awe of his compulationsThanks for the kind words, Debbie. This was the most time I'd spent in "pre-production" on a book, so it's great to see that appreciated. Researching Exigency also gave me an opportunity to speak to people with whom I'd never otherwise converse. I learned so much more than what applied to this book that I probably have another three, unrelated stories I could build around my notes! Yay science!
Karen wrote: "The Threk, imagine a squid or octopus able to pull up and drawl all its tentacles underneath themselves. Then utilize two of the tentacles as hands and manages to fashion a wardrobe to wear so that it appears that they have two arms and two feet. The head is overlarge and they have huge eyes..."Sounds like a Threck to me, Karen! And, if anyone's interested in concept art, this is one interpretation: A clothed Threck.
Susan wrote: "A Hynka for me is like a bear that stands upright Threck is squirdward from spongebob squarepants."I imagined the Threck as a cross between squidward and one of the aliens from Lilo and Stich, so I think we must be on the right track. :) As for the Hynka, I imagined the face of an alligator and the body of a gorilla but with no fur.
Michael, thanks for joining us! I've enjoyed reading all of your comments. I loved your comparison of writing a book to telepathy. I've never thought of it that way, but it is so true. Very excited to begin discussing part two with everyone.
January is always a mixed bag of emotions for me. While I love it when my house is decorated for Christmas it's always a breath of fresh air when everything goes back to it's place. Plus there's the dreary days often with no sun for days.
So it's a great time to start a group book discussion
Here's a link to my late December interview with Michael in case you missed it-http://www.thereadingfrenzy.blogspot....
Please as always only use this as a jumping off and feel free to add your own thoughts, ideas and questions too.
Michael will be around for the discussion so don't hesitate to ask him what ever is on your mind.
Here we go!!
Exigency Part One
In Part one we meet the team and interact a bit with them and get a feel of the relationships and some particulars about station life and realities.
1. First impressions?
We learn that for the occupants it’s a one way trip to the research station.
2. Discuss the psychological effects.
3. Exingency!
Discuss the planet’s different species and cultures. (fauna & Flora)
4. The Hynka, the Threck (how all sub-species in the Threck culture evolved from one life form) the fauna and flora
5. Minnie & John- relationship before and after crash.