Forget Sparta. I! AM! PUBLISHED!!!!!

I waited three hundred posts just so I can use that headline. Really....

Okay. No, not really. It just turned out that way.

But it's true. I'm published.  Not only is It Was Only On Stun! is available on Amazon.com. But so is A Pius Man.And you can also buy a kindle copy, right here. And a schedule for a virtual book tour, and maybe even a real life book tour, will be forthcoming .....

But I'm going to take a moment here.

I'm not sure you know what this means to me.

It's been fourteen years.

Two million words. Dozens of rewrites. Entire novels spiked. Two agents. A dead economy, "the end of publishing," and every negative thing about the business of publishing you've ever read in The New York Times.

There have been bridges burned with people whom I have deeply loved. There are people that I owe this to who are no longer talking to me. People who cared just enough to encourage me, but not enough to stay. There have been people I, admittedly, drove away while I was being driven insane by the thorns of this world.

It's been a long road, with a lot of work. I want to thank all of you who stayed around to read what I've had to say.

And, of course, there are specific people who have stuck with me that I need to thank, like: Jason Bieber, Karina Fabian, Kelly Garcia, Ester Lamm, Matthew "Funtime" Pryce, Allan and Annie Yoskowitz, Ann Margaret Lewis, various and sundry people from the Catholic Writer's Organization (Ellen Gable Hrkach, Jacqueline Vickers, Ann Seeton, and, of course, Walter Staples, who can now compare writer's notes with The Great Author). And, of course, there is my family, including my sister Margaret, who helped me with her editing services of Just Write! Ink (on Facebook).

I owe all of you. And I only hope I remembered you all in the acknowledgments. It's all been kind of a blur, so if I missed you, my aim will improve next time around.

Hopefully, you'll like A Pius Man to a ridiculous degree. You'll want to gift copies to all your friends, and insist that they do the same. Unlikely, but I've been living on hope and Red Bull for so long, I'm shooting for Mars (because the moon is just not ambitious enough). It's also a fairly kick-ass action, mystery, and comedy.

And, if by some chance you don't like it, well, I've got a dozen more books, each with a different flavor and style. The next book will be A Pius Legacy.  One way or another, it will be published.  Will it be by Amazon.com? Maybe.

Winston Churchill (everything interesting said in World War II is attributed to him), after the battle of El Alamein, said, "This is not the end. This is not the beginning of the end.  This is, pray God, the end of the beginning."

This is my beginning.

Thank God.

And thank you, too.



But, enough sentiment: here's a fun video with epic music, and weapons.









By the way, while this is an aside -- I also have a new website. Enjoy, all.

Forget Sparta. I! AM! PUBLISHED!!!!!

I waited three hundred posts just so I can use that headline. Really....



...



Okay. No, not really. It just turned out that way.



But it's true. I'm published.  It Was Only On Stun! is available on Amazon.com.  Buy it here, now.  And you can also buy a kindle copy, right here. And a schedule for a virtual book tour, and maybe even a real life book tour, will be forthcoming .....



But I'm going to take a moment here.

I'm not sure you know what this means to me.

It's been fourteen years.



Two million words. Dozens of rewrites. Entire novels spiked. Two agents. A dead economy, "the end of publishing," and every negative thing about the business of publishing you've ever read in The New York Times.



There have been bridges burned with people whom I have deeply loved. There are people that I owe this to who are no longer talking to me. People who cared just enough to encourage me, but not enough to stay. There have been people I, admittedly, drove away while I was being driven insane by the thorns of this world.



It's been a long road, with a lot of work. I want to thank all of you who stayed around to read what I've had to say.



And, of course, there are specific people who have stuck with me that I need to thank, like: Jason Bieber, Karina Fabian, Kelly Garcia, Ester Lamm, Matthew "Funtime" Pryce, Allan and Annie Yoskowitz, Ann Margaret Lewis, various and sundry people from the Catholic Writer's Organization (Ellen Gable Hrkach, Jacqueline Vickers, Ann Seeton, and, of course, Walter Staples (who can now compare writer's notes with The Great Author). And, of course, there is my family, including my sister Margaret, who helped me with her editing services of Just Write! Ink (on Facebook).



I owe all of you. And I only hope I remembered you all in the acknowledgments. It's all been kind of a blur, so if I missed you, my aim will improve next time around.



Hopefully, you'll like It Was Only On Stun! to a ridiculous degree. You'll want to gift copies to all your friends, and insist that they do the same. Unlikely, but I've been living on hope and Red Bull for so long, I'm shooting for Mars (because the moon is just not ambitious enough). It's also a fairly kick-ass action, mystery, and comedy.

And, if by some chance you don't like it, well, I've got a dozen more books, each with a different flavor and style. The next book will be A Pius Man.  One way or another, it will be published.  Will it be by Amazon.com? Maybe. If that's the case, I'm going to have to find a way to pay Matt for his cover art.

Winston Churchill (everything interesting said in World War II is attributed to him), after the battle of El Alamein, said, "This is not the end. This is not the beginning of the end.  This is, pray God, the end of the beginning."

This is my beginning.

Thank God.

And thank you, too.



But, enough sentiment: here's a fun video with epic music, and weapons.









By the way, while this is an aside -- I also have a new website. Enjoy, all.

Interview with author Karina Fabian on "Live and Let Fly."

We've had a few interviews with Karina Fabian before.  She's appeared as a guest blogger once or twice. She's tolerated interviews from here for at least two of her books -- ISIG II, and Mind Over Mind.




And, now, we're on her novel Live and Let Fly.




What I'm going to do is simple.  This interview will not appear on the blog, but on my Examiner.com page.  Since the word count on the articles is supposed to cap at only about 500 words, it's been broken up into a four part article.



I asked how she came up with a dragon and a magic-wielding nun as a heroic duo.



I asked her about writing the novel, in part 2



World building was much of part three



And part four was on being Catholic and writing this book.



However, I'm not going to let you, loyal reader, and newcomer, leave here empty handed. No.  For coming here today, I'm giving you excerpts from the novel.



First, some background.

For a dragon detective with a magic-slinging nun as a partner, saving the worlds gets routine. So, when the US government hires Vern and Sister Grace to recover stolen secrets for creating a new Interdimensional Gap--secrets the US would like to keep to itself, thank you—Vern sees a chance to play Dragon-Oh-Seven.



No human spy, however, ever went up against a Norse goddess determined to exploit those secrets to rescue her husband. Sigyn will move heaven and earth to get Loki—and use the best and worst of our world against anyone who tries to stop her.



It's super-spy spoofing at its best with exotic locations (Idaho--exotic?), maniacal middle-managers, secret agent men, teen rock stars in trouble, man-eating animatronics, evil overlords and more!

And now, some snippets, and extra data.

Short:

Festival was Friday. We had two days to stop a Nordic demigod evil overlord—overlady, overbeing, whatever—from blowing up a nuclear power plant, possibly destroying half an island full of revelers in the process, and creating an Interdimensional Gap through which she can bring the rest of her giant relatives to set up housekeeping where the Faerie Catholic Church didn't have the power to control them. In other words, two days until Hel broke loose.

I've had worse deadlines. I could afford a long bath in our whirlpool tub and a good meal first.

Long:

Charlie
started to close the door behind us, his other hand gripping the
handle of his dagger so tightly I could hear the leather wrap on the
handle strain, as we listened to the footsteps coming our way, slow,
bored. My predator's instincts rose; then I had a great idea. I shook
my head at Charlie and winked, and he shuffled out of my way, leaving
the door ajar. I settled myself with my back to the door, just inside
the shadows and let the script play itself out:

CLUELESS
MINION enters Stage Left. He pauses, hearing a noise, but does not
report it. Instead, he fondles the stars on his nametag and moves
toward the empty hallway, his mind on adding another. (Probably
saying, "I was proactive today!")

CLUELESS
pauses at door, hesitating. He stands and, back to the door, reaches
for his walkie-talkie.

Suddenly,
a well-muscled and gorgeously scaled tail whips out from the crack in
the door and wraps itself around his neck. He only has time to grab
ineffectively at the tail before he's drawn into the darkness. The
door shuts behind him.

Pan
shot of the empty hallway.

FADE
TO BLACK

I
slammed my victim on the floor and pinned him with my forelegs, then
I leaned my face in nice and slow, making sure he got a good look at
my fangs before he saw my eyes. "Where's the girl?" I
growled low and menacingly.

"Wh-What
g-g-girl?"

Charlie
crouched down by Stutterboy and glanced at his nametag. "Look,
Philip, we're in a bit of a hurry. We know Rhoda Dakota's being held
captive somewhere nearby. Now you can be a good survivor and tell us
where…or you can be dinner."

"I-I
don't—"

"Phil
A. Minion." I mused and drooled a bit for effect. I live for
these moments, I really do. I licked his cheek and asked Charlie,
"Can I have fries with that?"

"Why
not? This is Idaho."

Interview with "Mind Over Mind" Author Karina Fabian

Yesterday, we had guest blogger Karina Fabian, author of Mind over Mind (editor of Infinite Space, Infinite God II, etc, etc) give us her views on writing science fiction.



Today, we get another shot at Madam Fabian, were we get to ask about her latest novel Mind Over Mind.  Because, apparently, she seemed to enjoy the last interview we had with her.

I'll see if I can do better this time .... muwhahahahaha....

Sorry, I had the switch jammed on "evil" for a moment....

Before we begin, the back cover of the book reads as follows:

Deryl
Stephen’s uncontrollable telepathic abilities have landed him in a
mental health institution, where no one believes in his powers.

But
when Joshua Lawson, a student of neuro linguistic programming, takes
part in a summer internship, he takes the unique step of accepting
Deryl’s reality and teaches him to work with it. As Deryl learns
control, he finds his next challenge is to face the aliens who have
been contacting him psychically for years—aliens who would use him
to further their cause in an interplanetary war.

On the one side of said war, there is Tasmae, the Miscria, of the planet Kanaan, who seeks out and contacts Deryl (not a misspelling, but the way) for information on everything from growing crops to making explosives (which goes over well in an insane asylum). On the other side is a being known simply as "The Master," who trains Deryl for combat, whether he wants it or not.

On with the interview .... (below the break)

1.This
novel has quite a history, doesn't it?

I started this in college as a short story for a science fiction class. I wrote it more out of spite than anything; my midterm paper got a B because the professor didn't like my analysis of some story I've long since forgotten. He loved the story and thought I should make it into a novel.

I spent the next year working on that novel, and even sent it out to several publishers, who all sent me very nice form rejections. So I gave it up, finished college, became an officer in the military, got married and had kids, then started a writing career.

In 2001, I was homeschooling two kids and had a toddler and a baby at home, so I decided to brush off the old novel and try again. I thought it'd be easy until I saw how, well, shallow it was. The character was a cool college Mary Sue with psychic powers, and Joshua was a hick sidekick. TRIPE! Ten years of living had given me some perspective, and I realized I needed to rethink the whole thing. I did love the premise, though, and Kanaan and Tasmae (known as the Miscria.) So I rethought poor Deryl until he ended up with a tortured history and was living in an asylum. Joshua became a protégée intern (and went from country hick to Black kid from the suburbs--don’t ask how; I don't question these things.) The book then had enough meat to become a trilogy. It took another ten years to find it a home, but I'm pleased as punch to have DragonMoon publishing it.

2.
What are the major differences between your original draft and the
current one .... the quality of writing aside, that is?

Characters are more complex, as is the plot. There are some important issues the characters are dealing with, from mental illness to abortions to attempted suicide. Frankly, it's just overall more fun to read, too.

3.
What would you say your inspirations were for Mind over Mind? If any.

To get read--by a lot of people. Thousands. Tens of thousands. (Help me out here, folks and buy it?)


To have the trilogy out in the next few years. DragonMoon has the second book, and I need to write the third next year.

4.
How much work did you put into the story itself before you started
writing? Was this outlined before the computer was even warm, or did
you just start writing?

I tend to be a seat-of-the-pants writer. I know the beginning, the end, and some of the stops on the way, but the characters lead me through the story. This one, of course, had the general idea written out with the college draft; but I am discovering so much great stuff as I write. I often imagine scenes for days or even weeks before starting, but because I'm writing another project at the time rather than because I'm waiting for it to gel in my mind. I sometimes write scenes or snippets in a file for safekeeping.

5.
Neuro-Linguistic Programming is a psychological concept you use in
the book as a way for Joshua to help Ydrel [Deryl] with his “issues.” How
much research into it did you have to do for the book?

Most of it came from a very interesting book called, Frogs into Princes, which I'd had to read in college and fortunately kept all those years. I also had an NLP therapist read the book to make sure I had accurately portrayed the use of NLP (at least within allowance for the fantasy setting.)

6. Back when you were interviewed for ISIG2, you mentioned how you were
more into fantasy than science fiction. Yet, you made this one a work
of science fiction, even using fantasy novels as a template in some
rather scientific uses. What made you decide to do this as SF, and
not fantasy?

That's funny; I've always thought of this one as fantasy, since Deryl has psychic powers. Sometimes the lines between fantasy and science fiction blur; this must be one of those times.

7
How much work went into designing the various alien cultures?

As much as has been needed for the story. I know that sounds like a snarky answer, but it's the truth. I spend a wonderful lunch hour with my astronomy professor in college playing with the orbits of the planets, but otherwise, the characters teach me their worlds as I write them. Barin came as a particular surprise as I neared the end of Mind Over Psyche. I had not imagined an underground world whose civilization collapses on a regular basis by an unknown natural disaster (which is really the Miscria of Kanaan using her telekinetic powers to push the planets apart from each other.)

8
So far, you edit Catholic SF anthologies, write novels on Zombie
exterminators and Rescue nuns, what are you going to write next?

Don't forget my dragon private detective! Live and Let Fly, the second DragonEye, PI novel, comes out April 2012 from MuseItUp books. I also have some children's books to revise and a spinoff form DragonEye about the Los Lagos police chief who will fall in love with a Faerie griffin who has been turned human to catch a murderer.

9
What, if anything, surprised you while writing Mind
over Mind?

How vicious I can be to my characters? I've seriously messed with Deryl's mind, literally and figuratively. But he's so much more interesting this way!

10.
Do you have any advice to blog readers who are thinking about writing
their own novel?

If you don't sit down and write it, it won't get written. Start there.

11.
Last chance: What do you think is the one thing we should all
remember about Mind
over Mind?

That there will be a second book! In Mind Over Psyche, Deryl escapes the asylum, inadvertently taking Joshua with him. Deryl will meet Tasmae; Joshua will learn his has an ability of his own; Tasmae gets to go fabulously insane; and Deryl will at last confront The Master.

Bio
of Karina Fabian: 

Unlike her characters, Karina Fabian lives a comfortably ordinary life. Wife to Air Force Colonel Robert Fabian and mother of four, her adventures usually involve packing and moving, attending conventions, or giving writing and marketing advice in one of her many workshops. She's always had an overactive imagination, however, and started writing in order to quell the voices in her head--characters who insisted on living lives in her mind and telling her their stories. Winner of the 2010 INDIE award, winner and finalist for the EPPIE and finalist for the Global e-book awards, she's glad people enjoy reading the tales her characters tell.

Guest Blog: Karina Fabian on Writing Science Fiction.

Once upon a time, very long ago (okay, back in April), we had a guest blogger -- Karina Fabian, author of .... a whole lot of novels, and editor of Infinite Space, Infinite God II.



Guess what: she's back, with a new book, Mind Over Mind, a science fiction / fantasy piece (and there are reasons it's a bit of both), so I decided to keep her blog topic simple.

I asked her to blog "On the joys and wonders of writing SF."

She gave me a top ten list.



Here we go.....

Top Ten Reasons to Love Reading or
Writing Science Fiction

From the Home Office in FabianSpace

1. Explore Strange New Worlds.
Whether it's traveling to another planet, exploring the future, or
even seeing how the past would change if you altered some aspect
like, say sticking a small West Virginia town in the middle of the
Black Forest in 1632, you will find something completely new.

2. To seek out new life. This doesn't
have to mean alien life, either. A science fiction setting can give
new life to an old plot, or a new way at looking at our own society.
Recently, I revisited an old favorite, ALIEN NATION. A sci-fi cop
show from the 90s, it was really more about racial issues in a big
city.

3. To boldly go! It's sometimes
easier as a writer to explore a controversial issue in a way that
will make people think when you put it in a setting that's removed
from the present day society. Science fiction also gives you a means
to take chances. Nichelle Nicols (Uhura from Star Trek) was one of
the first black women on television to have a substantial role, and
was as a result a role model for thousands of women and Blacks.

4. Because it's part of our culture.
How many of you recognized the lines from the first three reasons?
We know without an explanation what someone means by warp speed. Ray
guns, transporters, aliens, time travel--none of these are unknown
concepts, even when they aren't everyday objects.

5. To explore the impossible. Or at
least the impossible right now. Did you know a lot of technology we
take for granted and are developing right now was first suggested in
science fiction? We have 3-D faxes--replicators! Arthur C. Clark
first talked about satellite communications years before we launched
our satellites. NASA is working on VASIMR drives for spaceships, and
Japan recently launched its first solar sail craft--ideas made known
in science fiction stories while still far-off theories in scientific
journals.

6. To explore ideas. How would humans
act if a plague knocked out 90 percent of the population? What if we
always fought wars through computers? What if humans could live
forever? What if you could go back in time--but only for eleven
minutes a shot? Some ideas can only be examined in a science fiction
setting.

7. You can learn a lot while enjoying
the adventure. Science fiction writers often have to do a lot of
research into everything from physics to genetics to animal sciences
in order to craft convincing stories. Writing is a great way to
learn things--but many times, much of that information comes out in
the text, too, and not in a boring "just the facts" manner
of a textbook.

8. We are a technological,
forward-thinking society. Why shouldn't our literature reflect that?

9. Resistance is futile. You will be
assimilated. Science fiction and fantasy are a big genre. Eighty
percent of the top grossing movies in the US are science fiction or
fantasy (source: http://www.irosf.com/q/zine/article/10131),
and the number of books--and readers-continues to grow.

10. It's sheer escapist fun. 'Nuff
said! 

****************************

About the Author: Karina Fabian

After being a straight-A student, Karina now cultivates Fs: Family, Faith, Fiction and Fun. From an order of nuns working in space to a down-and-out faerie dragon working off a geas from St. George, her stories surprise with their twists of clichés and incorporation of modern day foibles in an otherworld setting. Her quirky twists and crazy characters have won awards, including the INDIE book award for best fantasy (Magic, Mensa and Mayhem), and a Mensa Owl for best fiction (World Gathering). In May 2010, her writing took a right turn with a devotional, Why God Matters, which she co-wrote with her father. Mrs. Fabian is former President of the Catholic Writer’s Guild and also teaches writing and book marketing seminars online.

Science and Religion … Stupid Catholics.

Every time I hear that all of religion is against science, I just sigh.

They want to cite Galileo. You can read about him in my evolution article. Short version: Considering that he found himself on trial by insulting the Pope, he was lucky, and merely put under house arrest. The charges basically amounted to being a jerk without a license … I should note that Richard Dawkins has such a license. He's British.

Well, I'm Catholic. I think I'm part of the only religion that has it's own observatory. Two of them. One of them is parked outside the Pope's summer home of Castel Gandalfo. We also have a very odd blessing … in 1924, the Church has a blessing for a seismograph.

My church is weird.

The major cry about religion being against science amounts to a cry of “Oh, what about embryonic stem cells. Waaaahhhh!!!!!” The short version on embryonic stem cells is that they have been portrayed as a potential miracle cure for practically everything from cancer to paraplegia, and the evil religious people are against it, because all religious people are against science, and progress, etc.

The stated position of most religions I've kept up on has been “Can we have a scientific advancement that doesn't involve kidding infants in utero? Thanks.”

However.... Considering that, in 2007, Kyoto University researcher Shinya Yamanaka has already been able to transform skin cells into any other type of cell, I don't think stems cells are really relevant, do you? (Nature, June 6, 2007).

But, what do I know? I'm only the stupid Catholic. Richard Dawkins says that all religious people are stupid, and Dawkins is an educated man.

Let's go through a brief history of scientific research. However, I have a little list … actually, it's a long, long list, and a good chunk of them are here.


I think I'll cover the big names to start with.
[Below the break]

The Guest Blog Index -- "Catholic fiction"

This is going to look like a strange post.  But I like things to be organized.  I try not to buy history books unless I go to the index and see if they have certain topics.



For example, there is a recent biography of a Protestant minister involved in the Valkyrie plot to assassinate Hitler .... you may have seen the movie ... I went and looked in the index for Pope Pius XII.  And I found him!  I flipped to the page....



And the minister "met with an aide to Pope Pius XII for a meeting."  That's it?  That's all you had to say?  You don't know anything else?  Thanks, I'm not buying you, you stupid book....



Yes, I think of books in terms of anthropomorphized entities.  If you didn't know I was weird before, You do now.



But, our guest blogs have been some of our most popular thus far.  The only series to outdo them have been the Snarky Theology series, and the blogs beating up on the Phelps Family.



So, my mild OCD has kicked in, and I'm going to do a little sorting.

Our first official guest blog was from Ann Margaret Lewis, of Murder in the Vatican, the Church Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes.  THe premise isn't hard to deduce -- these are "missing" cases of Sherlock Holmes, cases that Arthur Conan Doyle aluded to, but never fleshed out.



Madam Lewis discussed what ie was like using historical figures as characters in a novel.  If you weren't here for it, I'd recommend it.



She was also gracious enough to let me interview her on the novel.  I got to ask her about how she wrote through the book in two different voices, that of Pope Leo XIII and Dr. John Watson.  We also touched on a few other topics along the way ... it was a fun interview.



And, last, and possibly least, I reviewed her book, breaking it down by story.  And by writing elements.  And a few other things here and there.



The three articles were a lot of fun to go through.  It was an absolute joy, and a pleasure to have Madam Lewis on the site.



Why did I host a Sherlock Holmes pastische on my blog?



A Pius Man is about a mystery surrounding the Vatican.  This had two murder mysteries IN the Vatican....  That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

Next came the virtual book tour for Infinite Space Infinite God II, an anthology of Catholic science fiction.



Yes, Catholics have science fiction.



First, we had the editor, Karina Fabian, discussing religion in science fiction. 



Then I pumped her for information on the book.  We wandered into Doctor Who territory, Star Trek, science fiction in general, and how religious folk always seem to be the bad guys, hmm....



And I wrap up the week of ISIG2 with my own review of the book.  Considering that I hate anthologies to start with, this came out relatively unscathed. 



And how can I justify science fiction on the blog?  One of the other popular posts on the blog is about my time at DragonCon in 2010.  In this case, demand creates supply.



There is one last thing that I should point out:  I was lucky enough to host both of these fine authors through my tenuous connection to the Catholic Writers Guild.  I'm not actually a member, since I'm too cheap to pay dues ... and I haven't actually published anything.  So, I have no bias towards them one way or another.  I think my review of ISIG2 showed that best -- it had some good stories, some stories I skipped, and some absolutely great tales.



In any event, I would like to extend my thanks to both of these fine authors once more, for allowing me to host them here at A Pius Man.



Have a good day.

Interview with ISIG2 editor / author Karina Fabian

Yesterday, we had guest blogger Karina Fabian, editor of Infinite Space, Infinite God II (ISIG2) give us her views on faith, science, and writing science fiction.



If you didn't read yesterday's post, feel free to go back and read it, we'll wait for you....



All caught up now?  Good.



Now, as a bonus blog, we get another shot at Madam Fabian.  Now, it's time to sit her down and ask her some questions about the book itself. 



You all remember that ISIG2 is an anthology of Catholic science-fiction short stories.  What exactly does that entail?  Are we going to have more acts of blantantly violanting the laws of physics?  Will we have alien converts?  A patron saint of starships?  Worse yet, a Saint Captain Kirk?



Read on to find out.



1. So, you're now on ISIG 2 -- Since this blog didn't even exist for the first ISIG, how about you tell the readers why you got started on these collections?



Karina: We sort of happened into it. Rob and I had decided to write stories together on our date nights, and when we had a few, I sought a publisher. That led a publisher to ask us to edit and anthology of Christian sci-fi, then one to suggest Catholic SF. Leaps of Faith was our first anthology and covers a broad range of Christian faiths. Infinite Space, Infinite God I and II are exclusively Catholic in their stories, although many of the authors are not Catholic--just great writers.



2. Why do science fiction in particular?  Nowadays, it seems that anytime a religious person makes an appearance in any genre, the audience can usually guess "Yup, s/he's the villain."



Karina: Exactly! We wanted science fiction that recognized faith, established religious faith, as a natural part of the human condition, and a positive force for our future. We also wanted a book that didn't demonize science in comparison to faith. The two work together just fine for the most part in real life--why let the fringe elements dictate what we have in fiction?



3. In the description of the book, it is described as "Infinite Space, Infinite God II offers solid sci-fi and life-affirming faith."  How much of this is "hard" science fiction (SF that relies on actual scientific principles), and how much is it the treknomancy of Star Trek, or the magic wand that is Dr. Who's sonic screwdriver?



Karina: It's a combination. We have some hard SF, some space opera, some "furry" sci-fi (anthropomorphic animals), some classic SF, and some cyberpunk. So readers are going to get a wonderful variety. Of course, because Star Trek and Dr. Who are copyrighted, you won't see the Enterprise or sonic screwdrivers, much as we love them!



4. What science fiction do you both generally read?  And how did it impact the choices for the collection of ISIG 2?



Karina: Rob (co-editor Robert Fabian) is the real reader in the family, and we reads everything from military SF to SF-fantasy. I tend more toward fantasy, personally, although I used to love Asimov. However, we tried to think of the readers when we chose stories. We had three hard-and-fast rules: There must be convincing science (convincing to the world, not necessarily scientifically possible now); there must be an accurate depiction of the Catholic faith as it stands now (i.e., the Magesterium); the interaction of faith and science must be positive, as must the individual depictions of both faith and science. Really, those three rules enabled us to weed a lot out. Next, we looked for great writing. We wanted to get whisked away. Finally, we tried to get a variety of sub-genres: time travel, near-future, space opera, etc. I wrote "Otherworld" specifically because no one gave us a virtual reality story that really worked.



5. You're both Catholic.  How much of an impact does it have on the series?  Can we expect to see Rabbis in space? And if so, can alien food be kosher?



Karina: We did Infinite Space, Infinite God as Catholic SF because a Catholic publisher asked us to. When they decided science fiction was too risky for them, we were blessed to find Twilight Times to publish the book. ISIG I has won both popular and critical awards, so Twilight Times asked us to do another.



There has been some Jewish science fiction, but I don't know the faith enough to judge it well; ditto, Muslim, Buddhist, etc. And, frankly, we have enough on our plate and not a lot of interest in compiling those anthologies--though we'd love to know they are out there!



6. This blog is about A Pius Man -- essentially a thriller that seeks to take every Catholic cliche, turn it on its head, inside out, throw them in a blender and hit "frappe."  Was there any particular cliche, or set of cliches, that ISIG 2 took joy in subverting?



Karina: Read Alex Lobdell's "Battle of the Narthex." Alex is a genius with humor. The Saturday Mass-and-Spaghetti dinner becomes the battlefield for alien assassins and their targets.



7. So, what does one do with alien life forms?  I know of three major science fiction novels /series (and one tv series) that directly address faith and alien life: CS Lewis's science fiction trilogy, Andrew Greeley's The Final Planet, and the television show Babylon 5.  How about ISIG 2?  Will there be ET on a crucifix?



Karina: We pretty much took the view that God will manifest Himself to each species in a way that they can relate to. "Dyads" is the best example of this. The foxlike aliens who mate for life understand the trilogy as Husband, Wife, and Holy Dance, and the spiritual danger comes when humans try to convert to their faith or they to human faith. It's a fabulously complex story with a very rich universe. Ken Pick and Alan Loewen have a talent for worldbuilding!



8. In addition to being editors, you're both writers.  Robert writes articles on the military and commercial use of space.  Karina writes about zombie exterminators.  How did that affect your editing of the book?



Karina: Rob was the tech guy, and in a few cases, we requested rewrites not only because of the technology but also because the characters didn't use the technology logically. I am more character driven, and edited for story flow and emotional content.



9. What did you enjoy most about ISIG 2?



Karina: Like with Leaps of Faith and Infinite Space, Infinite God I, we loved discovering new writers, reading fabulous stories from established writers--and putting the whole thing together over a candlelight dinner at Olive Garden.



10.  Hmm, the Olive Garden, my condolences ... So, in the future, does the Pope's spaceship look like the Popemobile?  Is there a Saint James T. Kirk?



Karina: In one story, the Pope has had to move the Vatican to Mars. It's very traumatic.



St. Kirk? *headdesk* No. No, no, no. However, there are some new saints who are born and bred in space; including St. Gillian of L5, the founder of the Order of Our Lady of the Rescue. Rob and I wrote stories about these sisters, who do search and rescue operations in space. Those stories are what led us creating these anthologies in the first place.

We here at the A Pius Man blog would like to thank Karina for her time.   Everyone please recall that Infinite Space, Infinite God II can purchased through the publisher at Twilight Press. It is also carried on B&N and Amazon.  Again, the Kindle version of ISIG is on sale for 99 cents through April 13. It and ISIG II are for sale for 2.99 through April 23rd.

For those who have any interest in Karina Fabian's work, she can be found at her site at 

www.fabianspace.com

Guest Blog: Karina Fabian of Infinite Space, Infinite God II

For those of you who may have missed last week, we had a guest blog from the gracious and talented Margaret Ann Lewis, author of Murder in the Vatican, the Church Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes. It was followed shortly thereafter with an interview and a review.



 If you were looking for another Snarky Theology blog, sorry, you're out of luck. Because this week we have a guest blog from author Karina Fabian, editor of Infinite Space, Infinite God II, an anthology of Catholic science fiction. You can find it at B&N, Amazon, etc.



Some may ask why I would host a science fiction author / editor on my blog. Murder in the Vatican was at least a Catholic mystery, and, in a way, A Pius Man is a mystery, but science fiction? Since one of my top five post at the moment is a report from DragonCon, 2010, I'm assuming there's an interest.



Oh, yes, and while I think of it, I have been asked to inform you that the first book, Infinite Space, Infinite God is on sale for .99 cents through April 13. It and the sequel are for sale for 2.99 through April 23rd.



From here on out, Infinite Space, Infinite God II will be shortened to ISIG2.



This concludes all the formalities.  Now, the blog:

Faith in Science Fiction

By Karina Fabian

John asked me to write about religion in science fiction. It’s becoming a big topic lately, from SFGospel’s “Ten Best SF Stories About Religion” to Charlie Jane Ander’s “The Seven Deadly Sins of Religion in Science Fiction”. Why is religion and SF becoming a big deal?



Truth is, religion and science have always been a big deal . In ancient times, religion and science were often one and the same. The ancient Pythagoreans tries to determine the work of the gods in mathematics, for example. The medieval Catholic Church sponsored many great scientists—and still does today. Gradually, the two separated in their functions, so that religion addressed the why of creation and science the how (an oversimplification, I know.) Today, the Catholic Church still sponsors scientific symposiums, with scientists of all faiths and even atheists. Many scientists are very faithful followers of a religion.



Yet with the Age of Enlightenment, religion began to be seen as something separate from “reality,” including science. That attitude held on well into the 20th century, and in the new genre of literature born of that era—science fiction. Too often, humankind was portrayed as having “outgrown” such archaic ideas, or the religious figure was brought in as a foil to the hero, which pitted the religion and science against each other. Over time, the ideas of separation of Church and State morphed into the idea that Church should be separated from everything—even our entertainment. For a long time, the author who stepped into religious grounds, even for the purpose of worldbuilding, was risking their book; and the publisher who took them on risked losing money. Only a few were able to do it successfully, and they were the exception rather than the rule. Most, even then, took a light hand.



Then came the movement of Christian Fiction, but often, they took the same approach but in an opposite direction—pitting the evil scientist against the moral and courageous religious hero. That did find some readers, but in my opinion, only hurt themselves and the idea of that religion and science can support each other.



My husband, Rob, and I are both devout Catholics. We are also major sci-fi geeks. We don’t see a dichotomy between faith and science. Science teaches us how God made the world to run; use of science gives us technology that makes our lives easier. Religion teaches us why we are here and how to treat each other; use of religion guides us in the use of science and technology to make our lives better. This is how we live and frankly, this is what we’d like to see when religion and science combine in fiction. That’s why we created the anthologies Leaps of Faith, and Infinite Space, Infinite God I and II.



What’s exciting is that we are part of a growing literary movement that sees religion as a legitimate part of world building, and not just a tool for evangelizing—either for religion or for the end to religion. There are publishers like Splashdown Books and Marcher Lord Press that are dedicated to religious speculative fiction and there are secular publishers, like Twilight Times that published Infinite Space, Infinite God I and II, that are not intimidated by the mix as long as the writing is strong. And, whether done well or badly, we are starting to see the re-emergence of religion in our entertainment. It’s no longer a separate aspect of human lives that needs to be shut away.



Rob and I consider that a blessing.

About the Author / Editor: Karina Fabian

After being a straight-A student, Karina now cultivates Fs: Family, Faith, Fiction and Fun. From an order of nuns working in space to a down-and-out faerie dragon working off a geas from St. George, her stories surprise with their twists of clichés and incorporation of modern day foibles in an otherworld setting. Her quirky twists and crazy characters have won awards, including the INDIE book award for best fantasy (Magic, Mensa and Mayhem), and a Mensa Owl for best fiction (World Gathering). In May 2010, her writing took a right turn with a devotional, Why God Matters, which she co-wrote with her father. Mrs. Fabian is former President of the Catholic Writer’s Guild and also teaches writing and book marketing seminars online.