Sequels are perilous endeavors loaded with expectations. When I committed to the "Caitlin Star" sequel, my mantra was simple. It had to be better. It had to exciting as all hell. It to work as a stand-alone adventure.
The smashing stand-alone sequel novel
to Caitlin Star is more character focused, more epic, and contains much stronger
science fiction element than its predecessor. It takes place on a different continent
with a much more exotic setting (the Congo Basin in Central Africa). It is a fast paced, propulsive story moving
Caitlin forward on her journey toward her ultimate destiny.
There were many, eclectic influences
on the creation of Caitlin Star and the Bull Mongoni saga. Here are the top
five that had the most direct effect on the rousing new science fiction action
adventure epic, “Caitlin Star and the Guardian of Forever”.
Birds of Prey
The female
heroes/vigilantes/anti-heroes and villains of the DC Comics universe have all
had an influence on Caitlin Star. The Bull Mongoni attitude of crusading for
social justice can be seen in all of the characters and nobody is fiercer about
protecting the earth from greedy humans than Poison Ivy. Physically, both in terms
of athletic ability and appearance, there is a lot of Black Canary in Caitlin.
Lori, Gunner and Caitlin’s hacker genius operations chief was partially
inspired by Barbara Gordon when she was the Oracle character.
Anthropology 101
Lots and lots of non-fiction science
and reference books, especially "Before the Dawn: Recovering the Lost History of
Our Ancestors" by Nicholas Wade and "The Last Human: A Guide to Twenty-Two
Species of Extinct Humans".
To paraphrase what Gunner Star said
in my first book over a decade ago, “Did you ever study anthropology? Me? I am
fascinated by the stuff. Just can’t get enough. Find out about the past. Find
out where you came. And you find yourself.”
When studying all of the various
species of great apes that sprung off from the hominid branch, I came upon a
mythic species called the Bull Mongoni who thrived throughout Africa and
Eurasia until the Homo sapiens left Africa and began to spread across the
planet like a destructive virus. The Bull Mongoni mysteriously vanished sometime
between 10,000 B.C and the rise of Sumeria. But the hirsute hominids left
behind a written and illustrated record of their existence and their philosophy
in “The Sacred Scrolls of Tarmok.” These scrolls are the foundation of the Bull
Mongoni philosophy espoused by Gunner Star and passed on to his protégé Caitlin.
Movie soundtracks
Music is the most mysterious, motivating,
transporting, inspiring, profound, emotional artistic creation there is. I
always listen to music when I create and write. I hear the music, and I see the
characters and the story unfold before me. There were many tracks spinning on
my CD player and in my iPod during the creation of “Caitlin Star and the
Guardian of Forever”, especially “The Lost World” by John Williams, “Avatar”
and “The Missing” by James Horner, and “John Carter” by “Michael Giacchino.
Land of the Lost
One of the inspirations behind the
creators of “Lost” and a whole generation of science fiction writers,
(including yours truly), it is astounding how well written this cult 1970’s
live action Saturday morning children’s television series was. The first two
seasons (1974-1976) featured a who’s who in the elite science fiction writers
of the era including Larry Niven, Theodore Sturgeon, Ben Bova, Norman Spinrad, Dorothy
"D.C." Fontana, Walter Koenig, and “Land of Lost” co-creator and
story editor David Gerrold.
Supergirl
I make no secret about my guilty
pleasure love of “Supergirl”. The DC Comics New 52 re-launch of the title
features Kara/Supergirl as an emotional, powerful, angst-ridden teenager
looking for her place in the world. There is a lot of Supergirl in Caitlin
Star. In some ways she is Kara Zor-El in black spandex with a cutlass sword.
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