Stellar

Thank you Ron and sacredlove

Yes, I came to this conclusion some time ago. I kinda sat down and though: 'I can't really write the upcoming events in Book Two the same as Hidden Sunlight because the scope and scale of events has been buffed up beyond what a near-exclusively first POV could reasonably show.' Ultimately, I knew it would take too much exposition or injected information and would just add undue complexity by trying to do everything through Shay's experience. To be honest, it's a point of enjoyment though and it forces an author to mentally adjust to his characters and their nuances, to keep them 'functional', as it were, for the narrative. I enjoy that challenge and take satisfaction when anyone says to me: 'this person you wrote seems very real to me! I can imagine them, no problem!' That's a win for me, right there. The interesting thing about music and writing, is that I can't usually listen to anything, or it has to be extremely quiet if I do. Especially when I'm on a roll and things are falling into place, it's generally dead quiet. Sound and sensation, touch, can distract my mind and put an indelicate roadblock on whatever I'm trying to accomplish. If there is a television going at the other end of the house, I'll be closing doors to make sure I can't hear it at all. Ditto with Skype calls or music or anything. It's a result of my Aspergers and the need to have the correct sensory environment in order to properly lose myself in what I'm doing.

Alternate perspectives will be third person and take a similar form to the first book, where it was done sparingly on a scene by scene basis (and once for a full chapter [that was 12] out of necessity.) In the second though, it will provide a greater proportion of the narrative than the protagonist's first POV, but this is a consequence of the disparate plot elements and is essentially unavoidable. If I want to deliver the creative depth and richness that such a thing requires, this is a must! Uh .. a volcano?! On a gas giant .. ? Well, I'll ... um ... have to see! No promises there.

So, I figure it's well past time to give readers some kind of update on what is happening next, for the sequel to Hidden Sunlight. This is just to give some idea of what's to come in the most general terms. You can expect to see: multiple perspectives. Shay Andersen remains the primary protagonist and the only first person perspective. However, in order to tell a story where there are multiple characters who are geographically and spatially scattered, other dedicated POVs will be required. This will include the two you already know and love from Hidden Sunlight - Konstantin and Mira - as well as other new identities who have yet to be introduced by implication, many places, including but not limited to: Earth, Lucere and other exotic planetary locations such as desert, jungle and gas giant worlds the state of the homeworld itself! Things have really changed. aqumi! You didn't think throwing around skyscrapers was the height of this (no pun intended) did you? a certain kitten who shall still remain nameless the varied creatures that are the minions of the Sharpe virus, relentless as ever! Though I'm painting in the broadest brush-strokes, that is about as much as I'm willing to say. I'm still not at the point where I'm going to give out any ETA for the arrival of the second book, nor the title, but you can rest assured it is progressing.

Thanks Ashi, Daithi and Conner!

Thanks Mann

Thanks Louis, KC, Dave and Bleu Cassie .. ever the slavemaster

Thank you Cia, NS, AD, Myiege, sly, Foster, Andy and Joann It's great to be here!

Thank you. At times writing this has been a labour of love, so these responses are in many ways my pay-off. Not that I don't take satisfaction from doing something well, just that it can be extraordinarily taxing. Artistic creation is rewarding but hard work! The other human colonies are not entirely segregated along cultural lines, as 22nd century Earth was an intermixed racially-diverse place, much more so than today. Yet, there is an abiding sense of community and safety in seeking out ethnic familiarity, so that is reflected in the naming and demographic makeup of the worlds that humankind has colonised. The environmental factor also; Lucere is a temperate Earth-like world, with a variety of biomes present (part of what made it such a popular location as it was highly suitable for human habitation) but the other planets were varying types. The curious thing about Mira speaking is that the reader never sees the effect of it on anyone that isn't Shay. Rather, I should say that his voice is heard by three other people, but never in a situation where it can be observed. Two die shortly thereafter (León and Morgan, respectively) so their responses cannot be gauged, and for the third, Konstantin's reaction is not shown merely because Mira's words are the very last line in the book. Thus, one does have to wonder whether Shay's reaction is limited to his emotional attraction to Mira or whether Mira can actually cause empathic responses merely by speaking. Food for thought. It's also interesting to note that 'evil', as we would regard it, seldom views itself as incorrect or wrong. Morality is a human concept and can be quite relative; thus it is that the virus and the progeny it bore have no inkling of moral doubt at what occurs. To them, their 'way' is the only palatable one. Converting humanity and burning the civilisation to the ground is, in fact, not seen as a disservice, but as as their own version of enhancing the greater good. Shay and Mira are unique, because they are more than just cannon fodder; they are an overt threat to that 'way.' They represent the undoing of a magnificent undertaking and this is what fuels both the arbiters' zealotry in finding them, and the disgust at what they are. Just as the arbiter at the square tells Shay he is 'a blind child treading the footsteps of titanic demons' because he is, to their estimation, indelicately and hatefully smashing through a work of art like a brutish savage. The story told from the antagonist's perspective would make humanity look a very backwards race indeed! Konstantin is much-liked! Though I do have to say the choice of home was not his own; he was stuck with it whether he liked it or not. It is quite clear he loves his family house though, and did not wish to leave it easily. The reference to true power is as much about Mira or even Hartley as it is about Shay. Though Hartley did not possess power of the same sort as the two boys, he still did terrible things with the inherited authority he had, and it clearly defined his nature in those same terms. A dictator and a murderer, not a saviour nor a benevolent ruler as he proclaimed. Mira also; one to one, he was arguably the most dangerous individual on the planet and there were a great many things he could have done on Lucere with his fantastic ability. He could have mercilessly tortured Hartley for what he did to Shay and by rights, Hartley would have deserved that. Yet, his actions spoke otherwise; it was clean and relatively fast, the justice unwavering. Ultimately though, it is still Shay to whom this is most applicable. To be fair, he had neither the time nor the opportunity to heal an entire city full of sharpelings, nor really the understanding to attempt anything on a mass scale as he did near the end of chapter 20. His response was to the situation at hand. So what did he do? He saved his friends who were stranded on Lancaster. He began to disrupt the mass of incoming sharpelings, albeit taking some joy from that - though who could blame him on THAT count? The aqumi explosion was not something Shay could control either, but he had enough foresight to direct it well away from everything else, consequently saving everyone from what could have been a rather terminal situation. What would his behaviour have told you about him had that explosion not happened? I won't tell you, but you may get to see in the next book. Scratch that, you will get to see it. Once again, thank you for the time taken for a detailed response! I'm happy that you've enjoyed Hidden Sunlight so much and do hope you will stick around for what's to come.

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday!

Thank you so very much! You know, it's a thrill for me when someone like you registers and makes their first post or two because of Hidden Sunlight. I want to inspire people to fall inside the fiction so completely that they must tell me about it. That's a good feeling. I have been placed in some exulted literary company by a couple of readers, and will admit I still have some trouble believing that I can be seen this way. Black Sheep Syndrome, you might say. Yet I suppose it is just that I know what science fiction should be like, in my mind, and I strive to emulate that sort of ideal and make it exist within what I create. Therein lies the trick of it. You would be surprised to learn how utterly mundane my employment is. Yet I do spend as much time as I can get away with at work actually writing notes for this kind of stuff. It has crept into my 'offline' life to a rather terrifying degree, as I knew it probably would. Mira and Shay as characters have both evolved, from their conception and what I intended them (Mira more than Shay on that count) to their progression and emotional maturity as boys, lovers and protagonists. Shay has quite a complex morality surrounding him and his sheltered simpler understanding of things in the beginning must comes to terms with reality turning into a downright horrible place. Whereas Mira ... well, you said it right. He is AMAZING. He is also, I want to add, NOT meant to be any kind of Mary-Sue, the perfect in all ways hero. He has flaws of his own and does not simply survive everything. In fact, if it wasn't for Shay, he *would* be dead. Given that you have finished the book now -- yes! The villains do get their due. There was the consideration that Hartley perhaps could have suffered more, but it is not in Mira's character to torture anyone, not of his own volition. Even someone as reprehensible as the big antagonist. I think being pierced by a weapon that is on fire would count as painful enough. Similar to say, being blown up? The love-scene thing I spent more time than was probably sane playing with, at each applicable point in the plot. Didn't want too much graphic, but really wanted to portray how they felt, the power of the emotional attraction and that both of them really dig each other. Like, the you-are-the-most-extraordinarily-beautiful-person-I've-ever-met-and-I-just-want-to-stay-in-bed-naked-with-you-all-day type of 'dig each other. As soon as the adventures are over, I get the feeling they will want to be somewhere rather secluded for quite some time. No more interruptions! So! To address your questions, in the order they were asked: Were there any other humans besides Konstantin, Lily and Hartley’s gang living on the planet that had escaped the transformation into sharplings? Yes, of course. They are just scattered and holed up, spending most of their lives trying to find food, water and hiding from sharpelings. Life on 24th century Lucere is a cruel existence. Was there any wildlife? The kitten indicates that some domestic animals were left. Yes. Though domesticated farm animals aren't that common any more (the Andropov household is the exception to this rule as it possesses the ability to protect those animals with the security fence) because they are easy prey for sharpelings, creatures such as cats and dogs are still around, wherever they can survive. Aurum in particular didn't have much in the way of native fauna that was big enough to be noticed, and not many introduced 'imported' Earth species either. Maybe you could name the cat Schrödinger? Heinlein named his kitten Pixel. “The Cat Who Walks Through Walls”. Aha! The kitten's name. We will get to that! I wouldn't want to spoil Book Two. The sharplings were in fact slaves and the virus was intentionally planted to provide those slaves for the arbiters? After all the humans are gone what use are the slaves/sharplings? While the creation of sharpelings was clearly engineered by someone, the question still remains as to whether the arbiters themselves were responsible for that act ... or not! So one must wonder then what purpose the sharpelings have for their creators! Me saying what that is would probably spoil things a little too much How many arbiters are there on Aurum? More than one, less than a million! Mira was cured, Konstantin was cured, so it seems to me everybody could potentially be cured except for poor Lily (still struggling with that). Actually the last paragraph says exactly that. Right? Mira was not 'cured' in the same sense as Konstantin was; he gained permanent immunity via aqumi when it was linked into his DNA. Konstantin was cured in that the virus was removed from his system, but it was done as he was leaving Lucere and not in a position where he could be reinfected. Like all humans (excepting Shay and Mira) he is still susceptible to the virus and could potentially be reinfected if he returns to a place/situation where it could get into his body. As it lies, the virus has no 'cure', not thus far; not one that qualifies as a full lasting solution to the pandemic -- aqumi is not yet something that can be used this way. Also, the last two, the ones at the end of the epilogue: if Shay's nova of aqumi energy had been able to 'cure' two random humans, it would also have done so to everyone with the nova's radius! This is not the case, as that would translate to THOUSANDS of sharpelings becoming people. In any event, that nova of quantum energy is not nearly concentrated enough to wipe a person clean as Konstantin was (it bears repeating that what he experienced would kill many people outright anyhow) ... BUT ... it **is** enough to awaken or perhaps ... jumpstart ... a dormant DNA activator sequence Once Shay and Mira are off Aurum do they still have some of their aqumi powers? I would guess not. Their aqumi ability is functional anywhere as it is woven into their bodies. When I describe Shay in the text as being a 'beacon' or similar language with reference to how he appears in aqumi, it is because his body generates it. So does Mira's, though I will refrain from describing any operational differences between the two boys. It is not necessary for either of them to be within the planetary field that covers Lucere's surface to use it. The best example of this is near the end of chapter 20, when Shay uses it at the orbital gate. They are in space, some distance from even the atmosphere of the planet, when he does this. And .. yes, I do want to be published! It will happen at some point, I'm sure. Should I apologise for spoiling you or be flattered? I best not antagonise the other authors I know, I'm just a killjoy Please don't hate me!

I haven't gone into detail because a good proportion of the titles I own are multiplayer as well as single. Judging from the list, you got the most popular ones. Civ V and the various Call of Duty titles are probably the next in line after what's there, but to be honest I think the list is fairly good as it is.

I've added my Steam details also, though I have an ever-expanding library of games, a few too many to list under 'Other'.

happy birthday, Cia!

Hey Jimmy, I'm so glad I was able to give you a tale worthy of remembering. Everyone seems to be suggesting publication so I am going to give some serious thought to that (in between prep for Book 2, which is progressing slowly!) Anyhow, I am thrilled to hear your response and equally happy to have been regarded so well. Thank you for reading and I do hope you stick around for the future.

Thank you so much for your comments I am truly honoured (and flattered) to be considered worthy of the company in which you place me. I always knew, even as I began writing it, that this was going to take more than a single book to tell. The epilogue was intended to serve as a summary of what had gone and also as a hint to the future. The core relationship of Hidden Sunlight has been immensely satisfying to write. Particularly Mira, whom I have fallen a bit in love with myself during the course of things. All my characters are quite real to me, but those from this particular prose seem to be more so than most. It has been a fantastic experience for me, and my first real opportunity to put my skills forth for public examination and consumption, as it were. So again, I thank you for taking the time to let me know what you think, it is very much appreciated.

If you think this is an enthralling tale, I would direct you towards the other piece I currently have completed on GA, which is what I would consider much more of a tale than this.

Thank you, my friend. I am glad to have you as a reader and do appreciate your kind words and support. Rest assured, there will be more! It *is* planned.

Ah, all things have their time and the trial of surviving Lucere is no exception to that. Yes, perhaps the most important thing is true: humanity still wields control - but at what cost and how? Questions for the future.

Though you have since finished it, it is still worth commenting that one does not mess with quantum physics and expect to come out unscathed.

There was some concern that a few might think the ending was not what it should be, but there is always that desire to be all things to all people, and that sentiment must never bow to the artist's integrity. Nonetheless, I am glad that it resonated with you! As I have stated in several places, yes there will be more. The tale certainly is not done here, not by half. Thank you for reading.

Thank you so much Yes to there being a Book Two. Publication is just a possibility I'll have to look into, nothing more at this stage.

haha! Don't start down that road, I don't want another project that ends up eating all my time. Back when I wrote it, I did think that I could continue it but I never did.

He let out a cry of consternation as he fell down the steps. Noboru was right behind him and as he hit the ground, he heard the door scrape uneasily along its path as the man pushed it fully open, stumbling in behind Aiku. He turned nimbly, feet sliding for a moment on the slippery mixture of spilled rice and straw, but he scrambled to his feet and slid up against the wall. "Noboru-san, I do not-" "Silence!" snapped Noboru. He stood there a little unsteadily, the sake bottle in one hand, but h