A Deep Dive into Oceanus

OK, the title of this post is mainly a pun I just couldn’t resist (the novel is largely set in a prototype habitat at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, after all). Oceanus is my newest novel, scheduled to be published May 4, 2024. You can read a sample chapter here and it’s available to pre-order—use this Universal Book Link to find it at your favourite online bookstore. But if you want to know more about Oceanus than just the tongue-in-cheek back cover teaser, here we go.

I’m a writer who starts with a theme or concept, usually both, and builds my characters and plot to serve those. At the time I conceived Oceanus I’d written a few science fiction thrillers and was in the mood to try something more like an adventure (though the line between the two is blurry). I love scuba diving, and there are a few great SF stories that take place in the ocean depths, but not nearly enough. It was time for me to take the plunge. And as possibilities swirled in my mind, a couple of strong themes called out to be explored.

One theme was the way humans tend to dismiss intelligences other than our own. There are a lot of other smart creatures in this world, from whales and dolphins, apes to crows, and the list goes on, and we just don’t know how smart they really are because our intelligence tests don’t fit their mental processes. But I’m convinced we shouldn’t underestimate other forms of life just because they don’t think like us.

You can see this play out in Oceanus: a passenger jet is struck by a powerful blast of unknown energy over the Pacific. The energy has either come from the ocean or was aimed at the ocean, but the ‘where’ doesn’t seem as important as the ‘from whom?’ Could it have been produced by some previously unknown Earth life? Nobody thinks that’s likely, so the other strongest possibility is intelligent aliens from another world.

The first person brought into the picture is the main character, Alex Rhys, a gifted freelance troubleshooter (think MacGyver but not so gadgety), because a creative approach will be needed to save the jetliner passengers and time is running out. But as Alex stays on to investigate the phenomenon, he’s solidly on the side of believing advanced extraterrestrials have come to Earth. And Alex thinks that’s a good thing—he figures humans have screwed up our planet so badly that we need outside help to save ourselves. So, you could maybe articulate another main theme of the novel as: “Should we look to someone else to solve our problems?”

Will a visit from aliens make everything right? That’s one of several deep questions explored by the characters as they physically descend into the utter blackness and hellish pressure at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean searching for answers. Oceanus is definitely a thinking person’s action tale.

I’ve always loved SF stories that feature a team of exceptional specialists brought together to solve a crisis. In Oceanus the cast of characters includes a reluctant telepath named Elle (Alex and Elle are the ones on the Oceanus cover), an experienced Navy diver named Gary, a brilliant engineer named Lee-Anna, plus a couple of men with exotic adaptations to address physical challenges: Mattheus, a sociotheologist (I might have made that up), and Bheru, a xenobiologist.

Quite a team. In a very dramatic setting. Facing a world-threatening emergency.

SO many things I love in a science fiction story.

I hope you’ll love it too!

Get a taste of the opening of the novel here, or use this link to pre-order your copy of Oceanus.

NAÏDA DIGS INTO SOME BIG QUESTIONS

I’m pretty excited about my newest novel release Naïda. It’s now available for pre-order in e-book format from many retailers, with a launch/sale date of June 1, 2021. Print editions should be available to order soon through bookstores, though a technical problem at Amazon has been holding up the print process there for 2 weeks now (seriously—I am not impressed!)

I’ll be doing a virtual launch on June 1st (thanks to Covid) so keep checking this space for the details on that.

You can read a sample chapter here on my website, and I think you’ll really like it.

Naïda is the story of Michael Hart, a scuba diver who discovers an ancient alien artifact at the bottom of a lake, and Sakiko Matthews, an ocean researcher fighting against the acidification of Earth’s seas. But it’s also the story of the alien organism Michael encounters, which makes the novel part adventure, part First Contact story, and even part coming-of-age story. As with all of my writing, I wanted to tell a great story, but also explore some big issues.

For example, if you discovered an undeniably alien artifact and then found that it was still active, what would you do? Who would you tell about it—who would you trust to tell about it? Police? An environmental agency? Who would you go to? I’m not a conspiracy theory fan but, honestly, aren’t we all pretty sure that if we told a military organization about such a find they would wrap it in absolute secrecy (possibly ensuring our own silence in some fashion I’d rather not think about) and try to weaponize it? So, say you tried to share the news on the internet instead to make sure it couldn’t be kept hidden. Or went to some big media outlet. Who would believe you? The number of wackos online is endless—you’d be lumped in with them (except, probably by the military or other covert agencies who would be the first to track you down and proceed as above. That’s not paranoia, that’s just reality.)

Big Question #2: Although Naïda isn’t quite a superhero origin story, there are similarities. Now, superheroes keep their true identities secret so they and their loved ones won’t be attacked by supervillains. But consider a more “real life” scenario of someone suddenly acquiring extraordinary abilities beyond the human norm. Supervillains wouldn’t be my worry—it would be the certainty that, once my condition was revealed, I’d be facing a life as a human lab rat. Whatever powerful organization could get to me first would devote their efforts to learning how I got those abilities, how they work (and how to defend against them) and, most of all, how to make more of me to satisfy any number of possible uses (with spying and fighting likely being at the top of the list).

Tell me I’m wrong.

And I haven’t even touched on how either of the above scenarios would affect a person’s relationships for the rest of their life.

But Naïda the novel does. And lots more. So give the sample chapter a read, and order your own copy. Oh, yeah, and then try to decide whether you envy Michael Hart. Or pity him.

A BRAND NEW NOVEL ON THE LAUNCHPAD!

Creating a novel has its highs and lows. Realizing you’ve got an exciting story concept is one of the highs. Remembering how much work is ahead of you is one of the lows!

Once you reach the point of publishing the novel, it’s a mix of the two: you’re excited about the prospect of people meeting your new baby, and you’re also afraid that it won’t find the audience it deserves.

For now, let’s focus on one of the happy parts: announcing the pending arrival and showing off those first adorable photos to the world at large.

OK, enough of the baby metaphors.

I’m thrilled to announce that my newest novel Naïda is written, revised, polished, edited, and ready to launch. And here’s your very first look at the eye-catching cover. I had no idea how my cover artist was going to come up with a visual analog of the story’s concept, but I think he’s knocked one out of the park. I hope you love it too.

Naïda begins as the story of Michael Hart, who discovers a strange structure at the bottom of an isolated northern lake and knows it’s definitely not of this Earth. But he can’t stay away. And that choice will change his life completely, and forever.

As the book blurb says,

It will make him a hero. Or the greatest traitor the world has ever known.

Because he is no longer alone, not even in his own body.

There is another.

Naïda.

The novel is an earnest attempt to explore the trauma of a First Contact, the question of what it means to be human, and to predict one possible future for humanity beyond our home planet. But at the same time, it offers the pure fun of a superhero origin story. I think you’ll fall in love with its cast of characters and get a big kick out of going along for the ride.

Publication date is set for June 1, 2021, barring unexpected delays, and I’ll update this post once the book is available for pre-order. Expect a great price promotion and giveaways too!

So keep watching this space and get ready to meet…Naïda.