Writing the alien: the challenge for good science fiction

Good science fiction plays in the realms of the incomprehensible...

In my recent post The case for (well written) derivative fantasy (see https://steemit.com/writing/@drwom/the-case-for-well-written-derivative-fantasy) I set out my conviction that the best fantasy can be built on the foundations of the inherited myths that have become embedded in popular western culture.

Turning my thoughts to science fiction, I find that for me the opposite is almost true. That is not to say that science fiction based on familiar themes is necessarily bad. Indeed, it can be beyond brilliant: Star Wars anyone?

But for science fiction to work, it has to be convincingly, palpably, different and perhaps even disturbing.

While no longer disturbing, Star Wars retains its convincing otherness. And that is because as it tells a familiar tale it manages to convey the alien-ness of the universe in which the story plays out. I am old enough to be of the generation that saw Star Wars (IV as it is known now) in the cinema - as a kid.

Jawas. Droids. The force. Wookies.

Tatooine, with its two suns and endless heat. Tuscan raiders. Land speeders.

The Death Star.

All of these creations were so well realised in script and film that they gave depth and believability to a story set long long ago, in a galaxy far, far away...

And while today they have become almost normalised, it's hard to describe how mind-blowing, how truly alien, the whole experience was for those of us who saw it in the cinema.

The brain-snap caused by the convergence of the familiar with the strange and unknown can be a very powerful tool in the hands of great story tellers. Good science fiction shines a light on the world around us by comparing it to the unimaginable, the truly alien, and leaves us enriched for the experience.

But for all its genius, Star Wars never really transcended, or even challenged, many of the cultural norms we take for granted. And that is fine, for it was never intended to be that story.

And yet that is the challenge I set myself in my writing. As with my fantasy I want my science fiction writing to be accessible, while capturing a sense of the truly alien - even if only the merest hint or flicker. Enough, anyway, to allow the reader to wonder at what lies beyond the confines of the words on the page before them.

Photos courtesy of NASA and pixabay.com - mashed by @drwom
The original artwork by @drwom

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