jespah

Shuttlepod pilot, fan fiction writer, sentient marsupial canid.

Aug

2013

Review – The Puzzle, A Tale Told in Pieces

Background

The Puzzle is an older story. When I was first writing Star Trek: Enterprise fanfiction, and following the five senses, I got to sight last.

The Puzzle, a Tale Told in Pieces

So instead of writing just about sight, I decided to create a multi-chapter story and more or less go for broke.

I also disliked how little screen time Travis got, so I gave him a little love with a story all his own.

A Puzzle of a Plot

In the middle of the night, Travis is pulled out of his bed and dumped … somewhere. But he’s not alone.

Pieces of a puzzle (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There are people from a few canon species – Andorians, Vulcans, Xindi sloth, Orions and Klingons. There are two of each, one male and one female. He doesn’t know the human woman he’s in a pair with; she is a far older woman, she speaks Russian and she is a librarian at the Lunar Colony Library.

And then they start to be prodded into working out a series of problems. For better or worse, they learn that they have to work together.

Story Postings

Rating

The story is rated K.

Upshot

So the story is … okay. It’s not great. I have given it a bit of updating. (Lili makes a quick appearance), although I really should have done more. The plotting is slow in parts, and it can drag and be rather talky. There are original characters, and I’m glad that I felt confident enough in my world-creating abilities to add them. However, some are wooden and others are more three-dimensional but still pretty fuzzy. Not too bad for a mystery tale, but I now know it is better to give more information about characters, in order to give the reader something to hold onto while reading.

It could be better, and probably a lot better. But it taught me a lot about story creation and pacing, and so I am grateful for its existence.

Aug

2013

Music, Star Trek and Fan Fiction

Boldly Reading’s prompt #7, Music and Writing, asks the following musical questions –

Music, for many of us, is a part of the writing process. It might inspire us. We might need it to get started, or motivated, or to finish. We might give characters their own theme songs or might follow along with the lyrics as they pull us into a different direction. We might even write songfics.

Your blogging mission is therefore to answer questions like this –

Does music inspire you in your writing? Do any characters have a song that just clicks for you? Do any character relationships have songs (e. g. they’re playing our song)? Do lyrics inspire you? Do rhythm, beats and instruments inspire? Is one genre preferred to another? Do any of your characters sing or play instruments? Do any of your stories or characters have play lists?

Bonus questions!

Have you ever used music to set a scene or a mood? Do you feel it was successful? Have you read others’ musical connections to fan fiction? Did the music help in your enjoyment of the piece(s), or did it detract?

Second Verse, Same as the First

I’ve tackled this before, the whole idea of music and trek and writing, but it’s time to update what I wrote.

Many of my characters have theme songs, or they share them in couples. In addition, the HG Wells stories are heavily musical, partly as a mood creator but also to evoke certain years. It would be a lot to repeat all of that. Hence, rather than doing that, I’d like to talk about a few times when I think music really was a part of telling the story.

Day of the Dead

For Day of the Dead, I wanted to evoke the mood of Halloween, spookiness and horror. In particular, I wanted to move the mood from jokey, unreal, fictional horrors, such as are seen on a movie screen, to the very real and memorable and gut-wrenching horrors of a concentration camp. Further, I wanted to end, not so much on a happy note as on one of a set of lessons having been learned. And so the music, which starts off with tunes like Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett’s Monster Mash, segues into eventually the Manhattan Transfer’s Twilight Zone/Twilight Tone to Golden Earring’s Twilight Zone to, finally, Ministry’s Everyday is Halloween.

The mood should absolutely darken, leaving the reader, when it’s all over, with a sense that Tripp Tucker‘s final days are pretty dark ones. The idea was, not only to tell the story, but also to give a bit of life to the explanation in the canon episode, These Are the Voyages, that he and T’Pol had broken up years earlier and had never reconciled.

Crackerjack

While it doesn’t have music actually in the fan fiction itself, Crackerjack has always been posted with links to period music. Although Joe DiMaggio isn’t in the story, I’ve always posted Les Brown’s Joltin’ Joe DiMaggio, as it’s accurate to the time period and is of course about baseball. I tend to use Artie Shaw’s Frenesi as the love theme for Geordi LaForge and Rosemary Parker. I also like ending with Frank Sinatra’s Oh, Look at Me Now as it’s an optimistic song with an eye toward a happy future.

Multiverse II

This story has gone through a number of twists, and the soundtrack is somewhat complicated, but the song I particularly liked adding was Cream’s Swlabr, which absolutely, to my mind, captured Seymour Sonia’s drug trip.

Downsides

I know I have sometimes allowed lyrics to dictate my writing a little too much. I will be the first to admit that. And I’ve also added music sometimes where, maybe, it didn’t need to be. On the Radio had a ton of music listed, and it followed Donna Summer’s lyrics a bit, but I also wanted to use it as a direct sequel to More, More, More! which is a disco party. Further, I wanted to evoke a dance, not so much tripping the light fantastic but, rather, the dance of two people and their attraction. One step forward, two steps back, as it were. But I know it didn’t quite work out as well as I wanted it to.

Upshot

For every song, and every lyric, the results are, I think, mixed. Do they add to the mood? Sometimes. But they can sometimes threaten to overwhelm it, and I know I can sometimes use them as too much of a crutch. I like using music in my writing, but the effects aren’t always as I intend them to be.

Then again, Otra D’Angelo got this song. And, at least to me, it feels just right.

Aug

2013

Recurrent Themes – Intentional Time Travelers

Intentional time travelers inform a lot of my fan fiction.

Background

Of course, time travel is canon in Star Trek. And by the time of Daniels, it’s not only semi-routine, it’s even got a department devoted to it. This is first called the Department of Temporal Investigations, but it settles into, eventually, the Temporal Integrity Commission, which is what I call it for my 31^st and 32^nd century characters.

With the Times of the HG Wells series of eight stories, plus a few extras thrown in, I’ve got thousands of words written about time travel, both voluntary and involuntary.

But this post will just be about people who travel in time because they want to, and they mean to, rather than are pulled there unwittingly, or against their will.

Appearances

While there are other time travelers in this series of stories, these are the main ones seen.

HD (Henry Desmond) Avery

A music and arts specialist is particularly helpful during various side missions that have to do with music, but he’s being separated from the other time travelers in order to keep him from talking about what he’s seen during A Long, Long Time Ago.

Daniel Beauchaine

The turncoat traveler is a survivalist and is most helpful during the events depicted in Where the Wind Comes Sweepin’ Down the Plain.

Sheilagh Bernstein

The computers specialist works best during Shake Your Body. Her romance is shown in Happy Stuff 3111.

Branch Borodin

This colony being from the Triangulum Galaxy is mainly seen during He Stays a Stranger.

Carmen Calavicci

The admiral is in charge of the human unit and works hard to protect her own. During First Born, she goes to bat for Daniels so that his temporally paradoxical son, Jun Daniels Sato, can live.

Marisol Castillo

This psychopath traveler shows her true colors during You Mixed-Up Siciliano.

Levi Cavendish

Levi, a junior engineer, is the inventor of the older time travel technology. Also, he has multiple issues with ADHD and higher functioning autism.

Milena Chelenska

This refugee from 1969 is first seen in Spring Thaw.

Otra D’Angelo

Most noteworthy, this half-Witannen agent can see temporal alternatives. Her childhood is briefly shown in Desperation.

Richard Daniels

The only canon character in the group, this melancholy agent beds women in time. He does this in order to assuage his grief, tamp down his guilt and mask his loneliness. In November 13th, he meets Lucretia Crossman. Then in Marvels, he meets Irene of Castile. In Souvenirs, he remembers them, and others, and Milena Chelenska.

Also, in Temper, and in Fortune, it’s established that he is at least a descendant of Lili and Malcolm, but he’s apparently also at least a descendant of Chip and Deb, as his mother’s maiden name is Masterson.

Thomas Grant

This weapons and combat specialist romances Eleanor Daniels.

Deirdre Katzman

This junior engineer names all of the time ships after old time travel fiction.

Kevin O’Connor

During Ohio, this Chief Engineer leads a training mission to the start of World War III. He courts his wife during The Honky Tonk Angel, and cares for her when she is deathly ill, in Candy.

Anthony Parker

This henchman for the enemy is killed at the end of Ohio.

Polly Porter

During The Point is Probably Moot, this psychology specialist is hit on by Saddam Hussein.

Crystal Sherwood

The Quartermaster rarely travels – although I always seem to bring Crystal along for round robin stories.

Alice Trent

This manners and protocols specialist is only hired during an alternate timeline in The Point is Probably Moot.

Helen Walker

This enemy agent’s death is faked during A Long, Long Time Ago.

Boris Yarin

The department’s doctor rarely travels, mainly because he’s a hybrid of human, Klingon and Xindi sloth. Boris is also having an affair with Marisol.

Yilta

This engineer for the Calafan unit is romanced by Kevin O’Connor after his wife’s death.

Upshot

Time travel, to my mind, can sometimes require rather specialized knowledge, beyond even engineering and the use of weapons. A balanced, diverse and admittedly quirky team has done the job here, and they have done it with flair. Intentional time travelers will be back.

Aug

2013

Portrait of a Character – Laura Hayes

Laura Hayes serves many purposes.

Origins

At the end of Reversal, Doug tells Lili that Jay had a sister. In order to keep that sister, Laura, from just stumbling across a news story about him, Doug rather sensitively decides to change his surname to Beckett. This is also a symbol of Doug’s commitment to our universe, and to Lili, and to leaving his old life behind as he never intends to return to the Mirror. And so Laura was born.

Portrayal

Laura is played by veteran soap actress Robin Strasser.

Robin Strasser as Laura Hayes (image is for educational purposes only)

This actress always seems very smart to me (although the character she plays is rather ruthless, and Laura is not). I can see her playing an attorney who is a part of various diplomatic missions.

Personality

Very smart and organized, Laura is, as she says to Lili in Together, “not the marrying kind”. Her work takes her to various diplomatic situations. In Achieving Peace, she works for the Andorian ambassador, T’Therin, and they are both present when the treaty with the Romulans is signed, thereby ending the Federation-Romulan War, in 2160. Ambassador Soval is also there, as is the Xindi ambassador, a sloth woman named Chara Sika.

By the time of Fortune, she is a judge, and she officiates at Malcolm and Lili’s wedding.

During the E² kick backs in time, Jay and Lili consider naming their first child after her, if they have a daughter. But they have a son instead, Jeremiah Logan, and so they don’t name any of their children Laura Jayne. At the end of Everybody Knows This is Nowhere, I reveal that she is working for the law firm of Koenig & Brooks, a firm that shows up, much later in the timeline, as being the firm employing Darragh Stratton Yarin’s divorce attorney in Shake Your Body.

Relationships

Laura has no known relationships.

Mirror Universe

Doug never had a sister, and so Laura has no counterpart in the Mirror Universe.

Quote

“I am, I know it’s impossible. But I could swear that you were my brother’s doppelganger. Although perhaps you’re aged forward in time a year or so. Jay died in 2153. Six years ago. At least our parents didn’t survive to see that.”

Upshot

Smart and capable, I haven’t found a lot for Laura to do yet. I mention her in passing whenever someone needs a lawyer. Doug briefly mentions her when Malcolm is in legal trouble during Shell Shock. But there aren’t a lot of occasions to really showcase Laura. I suppose if I write more legally-centric stories, she might have an occasion to shine.

Aug

2013

Review – Throwing Rocks at Looking Glass Houses

Throwing Rocks at Looking Glass Houses is yet another multi-dimensional title. The rocks would be a shattering of conventions. The looking glass of course is a reference to the Mirror Universe. And the glass houses naturally are exactly where you don’t want to throw any rocks. Furthermore, I decided on rocks rather than stones as they imply irregularity and roughness. This contrasts with Paving Stones as there the action follows set patterns and traditions.

This story upends those traditions and it shows just how Hoshi changes everything.

Background

I wanted a transitional story, a power grab, showing Empress Hoshi getting where she wanted to be.

This would take place between the end of the canon episodes, In a Mirror, Darkly and In a Mirror, Darkly II and before Paving Stones Made From Good Intentions.

Therefore, it had to be before Doug became a Lieutenant Commander, running Tactical (after defeating Chip Masterson and Aidan MacKenzie in a competition). Ian (Malcolm‘s counterpart) and T’Pol had to still be alive. Phlox would still be the doctor; this would be before Cyril Morgan.

But things would be changing.

Plot

Hall of Mirrors

Having declared herself Empress, Hoshi has to consolidate her power. She has to eliminate threats and pick up allies. This means ruthless Machiavellian efficiency.

Furthermore, she has to get rid of the Emperor, who I write as a descendant of canon mass murderer Philip Green. Green brings along only three bodyguards, foolishly underestimating her bloodlust – my original characters, José Torres, Brian Delacroix, and Andrew Miller.

The story is punctuated with quotations from Sun-Tzu‘s The Art of War and Machiavelli’s The Prince.

Story Postings

Throwing Rocks at Looking Glass Houses – original posting
Also, Throwing Rocks at Looking Glass Houses on Fanfiction.net
Throwing Rocks at Looking Glass Houses on Fictionpad
In addition, Throwing Rocks at Looking Glass Houses on Wattpad (slightly bowdlerized to meet their community standards)
Throwing Rocks at Looking Glass Houses on G & T Show forums
Throwing Rocks at Looking Glass Houses in In Between Days context
Finally, Throwing Rocks at Looking Glass Houses in Hall of Mirrors context

Rating

The story is rated T.

Upshot

I like how it turned out. In particular, I enjoyed putting together Hoshi’s plan and showing her nastiness. Her impatience with science and with delays, her casual approach to murder and her lust are all on display. I really like the final product.

Aug

2013

Complex Evil Characters

Complex evil characters make stories pop.
On Boldly Reading, it was recently asked, how do you write complex evil characters?

More specifically – how do you write evil characters who are not mere caricatures? Do you find ways to garner sympathy, even for the wicked (or the devil, perhaps?)? Do you surprise your readers by turning a character from good to evil, or evil to good? How grey is the shading?

Bonus questions!

Which evil characters have you enjoyed writing the most?
(also) Which evil character, created by another author, have you enjoyed reading the most?
Which canon evil character do you enjoy watching or reading the most?

Process

Like the creation of any other Star Trek fanfiction original characters, the bad guys spring up as needed. Some get more backstory than others as I make them. While others receive detail as needed, possibly stretched out over time. I get to know characters, as they begin to move me. And then I feel more comfortable giving them some specifics. They need motivations, and they usually need brakes of some sort. A lot of people may be good for the sake of being good. However, I believe that most people aren’t, truly, evil simply for the sake of being evil (perhaps I’m a little optimistic that way).

Hence I’ll answer this is by listing some of my favorite own evil creatures – I mean, creations, and will comment.

In Between Days/Interphases

Leah Benson (Mirror)

Barking up the Muse Tree | Jespah | Janet Gershen-Siegel | Mayim Bialik as MU Leah Benson | Complex Evil Characters

Mayim Bialik as MU Leah Benson (image is for educational purposes only)

The prime universe’s official Starfleet rabbi is an alcoholic in the mirror, and kills her lover, Leonora Digiorno, in an alcoholic fit, one of the more meaningless deaths in any of my stories (Fortune).

Christine Chalmers (mirror)

One of Doug‘s old girlfriends, Christine taunts him until he kills Ehigha Ejoigu, thereby committing his fifth murder (Fortune).

Tristan Curtis

This character is one of Patti Socorro‘s rapists (The Three of Us). He is sentenced to banishment on Amity, and then escapes custody.

Douglas Jay Hayes (Beckett)

Steven Culp as Doug Hayes Beckett/Jay Hayes (image is for educational purposes

It takes a supreme effort of will for this killer to come clean and turn his life around. But until Doug does, he has personally killed fourteen men, is responsible for the death of one woman and has pulled the trigger for countless phaser bank deaths, including being a part of committing genocide on the Xindi people.

Once he comes to the prime universe, he has to rein in his temper, but he never kills again.

Jeremiah Hayes (mirror)

Committed to getting Doug into a good school and nipping any possibility in the bud of his only child becoming a mama’s boy, Jeremiah may or may not be abusing his wife, Lena, as Doug is thrown to the wolves at a young age (Paving Stones Made From Good Intentions).

Gary Hodgkins

Another one of Patti Socorro’s rapists, at least Gary confesses his misdeeds, before his death, thereby cracking that case wide open.

Edward Hudson

Never seen, but definitely felt, Edward raped and abused Pamela Hudson from age five until she escaped the family home (Intolerance).

Linda Morgan Hudson

As her husband abused and raped their younger daughter, Pamela, Linda did nothing to stop things and, eventually, lets her daughters know that she, too, was abused by Edward Hudson (Saturn Rise).

Randall McCoy

While liberating the Dachau concentration camp in 1945, Sergeant McCoy participants in firing squads which execute Nazi guards without the benefit of trial, thereby committing a war crime (Day of the Dead). Later, he bears witness against Holocaust deniers.

Cyril Morgan (mirror)

A kindly grandfather in the prime universe, the mirror Cyril commits medical malpractice regularly and participates in the torture deaths of Phlox and Ian (Throwing Rocks at Looking Glass Houses). Later, he attempts to persuade Travis to allow him to let Hoshi die on an operating table, thereby ending her reign of terror (Coveted Commodity) but also killing the unborn Izo.

Jefferson Davis Paxton

Paxton furthers his own political agenda and vengeance by raping Ruby Brannagh and leaving her for dead (Shell Shock).

Arashi Sato

Empress Hoshi’s third-born is a whiz at numbers and collects the taxes in the Terran Empire. Arashi is probably the most feared, and is most likely to become a 1984-style tyrant (fortunately, he never comes to power) (Temper).

Izo Sato

Hiru from Exile as Izo Sato (image is for educational purposes only)

Empress Hoshi’s youngest, Izo enforces the collections of both taxes and gambling debts from Game Night, and tries unsuccessfully to force Leah Benson to service him (Bread). In an alternate timeline, he bullies Pamela Hudson, but she turns the tables on him (Temper).

Sandra Sloane

Sandra Sloane (image of Leighton Meester is for educational purposes only)

This character is something of a village gossip, spouting off homophobic slurs and generally making everyone uncomfortable (Reflections Down a Corridor, Entanglements). Her tongue is so sharp, and her remarks are so cutting, that Ethan Shapiro becomes distraught, and attempts suicide, in part due to her nastiness.

José Torres (mirror)

José, a sweet and gentle giant in the prime universe, is rewarded for a massacre of innocents by being given three women as playthings – Pamela Hudson, Blair Claymore and Karin Bernstein, who he regularly abuses (Temper).