For his impeccable work on the cover of my latest book Outer Diverse (the first book of the Splintered Universe Trilogy), Costi Gurgu is eligible for a Prix Aurora Award and a Hugo Award. I recently interviewed Costi on my private ship:

When I first met Costi and Vali Gurgu at the World Fantasy Convention in Montreal several years ago, I had no idea that Costi would end up creating the stunning book covers for my latest trilogy Splintered Universe or that his gorgeous wife, Vali, would serve as the model for the hero of my story, the relentless and steely detective, RHEA HAWKE.  You can find his cover art and other artworks on Costi’s illustration site.

I recently had a chance to invite Costi aboard my intelligent ship, Benny, orbiting the Earth. After settling in the aft lounge with some pockta juice, we began the interview:

Nina:     Hi, Costi. Thanks so much for agreeing to do this interview.

Costi:     Hi, Nina. The pleasure is mine.

Nina:     You came up with a “Triptych” design for the Splintered Universe Trilogy. What inspired you to come up with it and what do you like about it?

Costi:     There is the danger of spoilers in this answer. The fact is that your main character, Rhea, undergoes a certain evolution from a regular human being to… let’s just say something else. And that evolution has three parts, one for each book of the trilogy and it also has a touch of divine. So, the triptych design, so often used for religious paintings, fits like a glove on the entire concept.

Nina:     Ooh! Neat! Where can I get a copy? … (grin) … Your design for Outer Diverse (and designs for the other two covers) carries a powerful image that conjures a portal or gateway into another world (which is what the trilogy is about). The reader is drawn into an infinite landscape, looking in, and Rhea is looking out. Can you tell us a little about how you conceived this compelling design. Is there a meaning behind the symbols and colours you used?

Costi:     To be honest, the initial idea was for the red ring to be a sort of mapping device and a radar combined into one, since Rhea travels great distances in her quest. Then I realized it might as well be a portal device on top of everything else and serve all her travelling needs.

There were two options —either we would look with her outside, to whatever target she had, or look towards her. I thought that it would be more powerful if we could look towards her and see her determined face, see the unflinching resolution in her eyes, while she’s pondering her next move and readying herself to use the device once again. But to look towards her and see her in a confining room of a space ship, or such, would have defeated the purpose. So I needed to have her against the infinite landscape as the backdrop. She is in a continuous journey to discover herself and this journey takes her literally through the infinite spaces of not just one universe.

Nina:     Yes, I love the metaphoric elements you’ve woven into the design. The image speaks to us on many levels. Do you use music or other devices in your work to evoke your creativity? What other tools did you use to create the stunning cover of Outer Diverse (e.g., animation software, etc.)?

Costi:     I’m always listening to music while working. The kind of music varies depending on what I’m working on. If I’m writing for instance, I need instrumental music, without words to influence my own ones. Also, it depends on the kind of feeling and mood I try to generate through my writing or my illustration. Music helps me channel those feelings into the right words or imagery.

Technically speaking, I always start with sketches on paper, which I later scan. I mainly use Adobe Photoshop, but for this illustration I had to use Adobe Illustrator as well. Obviously, the layout and the typography were done in Adobe InDesign.

Nina:     Your wife, Vali, was the model for Rhea Hawke. I understand you had a great time doing the photo-shoot (p.s., some of the additional shoots can be seen in the Youtube book trailer).  I’ve attended several launches and events  lately (e.g., Halifax, Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, and Bucharest) and both cover and model have been extolled. One reader compared Vali to actress Catherine Zeta Jones.  How does Vali feel about being somewhat of a celebrity?

Costi:     I’m so happy to hear that. You know, I had to decide how to treat her image. I could have gone towards a more glamorous, shiny look, like in a fashion image, or I could just simply keep it more realistic. Despite Vali’s protests, I chose to keep it that way, because I wanted to offer a realistic image of an ex-police officer: a woman who was used to fighting and chasing criminals, rather than taking care of her appearances. Now, to hear that her rougher and tougher image created that kind of reaction gives me a sort of peace and satisfaction.

As for the celebrity thing, so far we only heard that from you. Not that we don’t believe you! We’ll see when it really happens in her presence. It’s always a good feeling to taste a little bit of celebrity now and then. It certainly gives one purpose and perspective. Not to mention hope.

Nina:     You and Vali have had rich and varied careers in commercial art, law and writing. You’ve served, for instance, as art director for several high-end magazines including Playboy, and you taught graphic design at the college level. Can you tell me a little about your journey from Romania to England and finally to Toronto, Canada. Did the law degree help you in your entrepreneurial pursuits?

Costi:     Well, yes, ironically the law degree took us places. We both loved studying law. It had a unique way of opening our eyes to culture, civilization and the importance of continuously learning. Yet, while we loved studying law, we hated practicing it. After our first year of articling in Bucharest’ Law Bar Association, we didn’t like what we were doing, but more importantly, we didn’t like the people we were turning into.

Therefore, we decided to change tracks and try something a bit different. We left for England, hoping we’d get into some Master degree in Maritime Law. So, here we are, at “Open Day” at Westminster College in London. We’d enrolled for some English classes and saw a crowd at one of the Graphic Design Program tables. Some Photoshop wizard was doing a demonstration. For our untrained eye it was absolutely wonderful! We started asking questions and the “wizard” encouraged us to take his class. I don’t remember what it was called, “Digital Manipulation” or something. We replied that we’re there for Law studies, so he said—well, why don’t you take my class just for fun? So, we did and by the end of the semester we enrolled for the Graphic Design Certificate and forgot everything about Maritime Law or any other kind of Law. We’d just discovered the wonderful world of design, illustration, art direction and photography!

Nina:     That’s COOL! Did you pursue illustration and design in England?

Costi:     Well, three years later saw us going back to Romania; our families expected us to go back to the Bar Association and behave responsibly. But after showing my portfolio around I got a designer job at Playboy Magazine! The Art Director and I launched its first Romanian edition issue a few months later. Three years later I became the Creative Director of MediaPro Group, the largest publishing company in Romania and Vali took on the position of Art Director of Playboy Magazine.

Two years later we came to Canada to pursue a dream. So, yes, I could say that my law degree created the perfect opportunity for me to discover my passions for visual arts. It took me to England and eventually to Canada. Life is funny that way.

Nina:     Does Vali help you with your work and do you help her with hers?

Costi:     We help each other a lot in our work. Because we worked together in our first legal job and after that in our first design job, we have become a team. We have different approaches to the art process and we have different styles. I went deeper into illustration to complement my design skills, while she chose photography to do that.

Even now, for the most important projects we have for our different employers we involve each other not only for need of feedback, but also for need of different ideas and fresh approaches. We basically complement each other.

Not to mention that she’s always my first reader for any piece of fiction I write. She’s the toughest reader I have but in the same time I know she’s also the most sincere one.

Nina:     Name some artists and their cover designs that you like and why. How would you describe your own artwork (e.g., magazine and book covers)? Who are your influences?

Costi:     Where should I begin? I always loved the paintings of Rene Magritte and Giorgio de Chirico. I also have to mention Dali and H.R. Giger. They’re just incredibly good and inspirational.

I can’t miss Neville Brody, one of the most famous and brilliant designers of all time. Not too many book covers, but you have to look for his music album covers and typography compositions, and magazine covers. He’s done a lot of covers for the legendary The Face Magazine. You have to see the book The Graphic Language of Neville Brody. Absolutely beautiful.

Special mention goes to Edward Gorey. His art is amazing.

From the usual suspects of SF&F artists, I like Michael Whelan, especially his horror covers. See for instance Lovecraft’s Nightmare, both parts, or some of his personal studies. I like Frank Frazetta and Rodney Matthews. And there are others, many others, the list would be just too long for the purpose of this interview.

Nina:     Costi, your artwork on Outer Diverse is eligible in the Art Category for an Aurora Prix and the Hugo, the Canadian and American prizes for work in the science fiction and fantasy fields, respectively.  How does that make you feel?

Costi:     I try not to get my hopes too high. It’s a long way from eligibility to winning. But just to be in the game really feels good. From another perspective, it’s part of my dream coming true. It’s part of my journey and the reason I’m here. It’s so good to be noticed and to exist outside your family’s and friends’ awareness.

Nina:     Speaking of…when I was in Bucharest recently to launch my fiction writing textbook at the Gaudeamus Book Fair, I heard a lot about this guy Costi Gurgu, a rather well known and accomplished writer in Romania. You’ve sold five books and over forty short stories in Romania and won over twenty awards. Tell me about this guy, Costi the writer. What have you written and where can we find it?

Costi:     In truth, half of my reason for coming to Canada is related to my writing.

I made my debut in Romania, in 1993 and since then I published constantly in magazines and anthologies. I edited three anthologies. I won each and every award there was in Romania, several times. Among those, I won the prestigious Vladimir Colin Award twice (for my first story collection and for my first novel), and the Writers Union Award (a literary award) for the debut for my first book, a story collection entitled The Glass Plague.

My stories have been published in Romania, Hungary, Poland, Denmark, England, Canada and USA.

My latest sales have been to the Danish anthology Creatures of Glass and Light, the Daw Books anthology Ages of Wonder, Wildside Press anthology The Science Fiction Megapack, Millennium Books steampunk anthology The Second Revolution, and the anthology Voices—New Writers from Toronto, published by Co-op Writers and Toronto Public Library.

Nina:     What are you working on now—besides more covers for my Splintered Universe Trilogy, that is?

Costi:     A few months ago I just launched my latest book in Romania, another story collection, entitled Chronicles from the End of the Earth. I’m working on the English version of some of the stories in that collection.

Right now I’m writing a horror story for an anthology from Romania. I’m also in the middle of my new novel, for which I don’t even have a working title. All I know for now is that it has magic and it has science and some bits of dark happenings, so it will probably be a cross-genre. It is also supposed to be the first book of my first trilogy.

I’m thinking of a comedy movie script for next year. I’ve never tried a movie script, but I’d really like to write one.

Nina:     Sounds like fun, Costi! With your sense of humor, it should be a great success. Thanks so much for joining us here on Benny. I wish you the best of luck in the Auroras and the Hugos and in all your writing and illustration projects. It’s been an honor to work with you.

Costi:     Again, my pleasure, Nina.  And thanks for the Plockta nectar. It was … eh … interesting.

…See? He’s so polite!

If you love art and agree with me that Costi’s stunning artwork on Outer Diverse merits recognition, please share this post with your friends on Facebook, Twitter,  Linked-In and elsewhere.

Better yet, NOMINATE Costi for the PRIX AURORA in the “Best Artist” category (if you’re a Canadian). You have until March 31^st to nominate.

Just as good, RECOMMEND his exemplary cover art for a HUGO AWARD in the category of “Best Professional Artist”. Third Party Sites where you can recommend Costi’s cover art include:  Live Journal Community; NESFA, and SF Awards Watch.

If you’re already a member of the World Science Fiction Convention, you can NOMINATE Costi for a HUGO. You have until March 11 to nominate.

Outer Diverse is for sale at Amazon.ca, Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk and Barnes & Noble as well as other quality bookstores near you. It is also eligible for an Aurora. The Splintered Universe Trilogy follows the turbulent career of galactic guardian Rhea Hawke, whose unswerving passion for justice — though faulty vision of the world – collide as she searches for answers to a spiritual massacre. Visit the Alien Next Door for more details about the story.

Rhea Hawke discovers there is far more to the massacre of a spiritual sect, mysteriously linked to Dust, the contraband drug “of the gods” and a devastating prophesy of a catastrophic End of Age, triggered by the joining of twin souls. She unravels secrets of fractal geometry, deja vu, dreams and clairvoyance, multiple universes and space-time … and ultimately the greatest secret: herself …

“… a master of metaphor, Munteanu turns an adventure story into a wonderland of alien rabbit holes … a fascinating and enthralling read.”–Craig H. Bowlsby, author of Commander’s Log

You can pick up Outer Diverse at Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Barnes & Noble, Borders and other quality bookstores near you. For those of you in Toronto, Bakka Phoenix Books is carrying Outer Diverse as well as Nina’s “Darwin’s Paradox” duology (set in Toronto) and her guidebook “The Fiction Writer: Get Published, Write Now!”

In 2095 Darwin’s Evolution Kills…

“Angel of Chaos is … a gripping blend of big scientific ideas, cutthroat politics and complex yet sympathetic characters that will engage readers from its thrilling opening to its surprising and satisfying conclusion” —Hayden Trenholm, Aurora-winning author of The Steele Chronicles 

Angel of Chaos is the first of a duology on humanity’s co-evolution with intelligent technology and intelligent nature. The second book is Darwin’s Paradox and both are available on Amazon, Chapters, and Barnes & Noble.

Finalists in the SF category include:

• 2012 The Awakening by Bill Douglas
• A Dangerous Weapon by Charlton Clayes
• Angel of Chaos by Nina Munteanu
• Curse of the Legion by Marshall S. Thomas
• Destiny’s Blood by Marie Bilodeau
• Guardians of the Crystal Skulls by Lina Arena
• Our Jewish Robot Future by Leonard Borman
• Quick Fall of Light by Sherrida Woodley
• The Presence by Paul Black

Finalists were selected from 1400 entries in 56 categories. Finalists were determined by a jury of judges consisting of editors and reviewers of ForeWord Reviews, booksellers, librarians, and other industry professionals.

First, second, and third place winners will be awarded in each category. A $1,500 cash prize will also be awarded to Best Fiction and Best Nonfiction as determined by the editors of ForeWord Reviews. Finalists were announced in their weekly email newsletter, ForeWord This Week, in March 2010.

Winners in each category and overall fiction and nonfiction prize winners will be announced at Book Expo America and on the Foreword website.

Nina, the Fiction Writer

What’s Stopping You From Publishing Your Book?

Yes, I’m a successfully published author with acclaimed novels, short stories and essays published all over the world.  But I almost didn’t get there. What if I told you that I never read as a kid, I was the worst speller in my school and I used bad grammar? I didn’t excel in typing class and practically failed English 101. Based on my Career Aptitude Test score, the school counselor recommended that I go into some trade like car mechanic. Believe me, I started from behind.

• I’ve experienced your disappointment and your fear—and prevailed.
• I’ve battled the gridlock of time and schedule conflicts, priority problems and lack of support from family and friends—and forged a way.
• I’ve felt lonely and depressed because no one understood my dream or took it seriously—and found a community.
• I’ve been lost in a sea of unfocused ideas, undirected plot, excessive—even boring—characters—and created a masterpiece of tense page-turning excitement.
• I understand your pain, your moments of hesitation and lack of confidence, your yearning. I’ve been rejected and rejected and rejected—and then published!

Are you a storyteller? Because that’s where it all starts. With a story. The rest is window dressing. Every author is on a journey, a hero’s journey, really. Because that’s what most writers are: heroes. We journey into the dark frightening abyss and return with the prize for the world: truth. The writer’s life is not really romantic, like many believe. It is rife with doubt, rejection, betrayal and disappointment. But it is also graced with the richness of joy, satisfaction, energy and fulfillment. When a writer writes what he or she is passionate about, there is nothing better. Absolutely nothing. So, let me tell you a story now, about how I almost didn’t become a writer but did because it was what I had to do.  Like most stories, this one has a beginning, middle and an end…

The Beginning: The Sweet Promise

When I was ten years old, I knew what I wanted to be when I grew up: I was going to be a paperback writer. It was 1964 and I’d taken my favorite rock group’s song to heart, the Beatles’ “I Want to be a Paperback Writer”. It was an incredible moment of clarity for me and despite being challenged by my stern and unimaginative primary school teacher, who kept trying to corral me into being “normal”, I wasn’t going to let anyone stem my creativity and eccentric—if not wayward—approach to literature, language and writing. I was a confident, but lovable, little brat and I knew it. She and I didn’t exactly get along, as a result. But I did okay anyway, and, despite her acidic commentary (I didn’t cross my “t”s the way she wanted me to), Miss House begrudgingly awarded me my due A’s and B’s.

Nina pretending to read

I wrote some fan fiction but quickly found my own creations far more interesting and less limiting. As a teenager, I wrote, directed and recorded “radio plays” with my sister. When we weren’t bursting into riotous laughter, it was actually pretty good. She and I shared a bedroom in the back of the house and at bedtime we opened our doors of imagination to a cast of thousands. We fed each other wild stories of space travel, adventure and intrigue, murmuring and giggling well into the dark night long after our parents were snoring in their beds. Those days scintillated with liberating originality, excitement and joy. I also enjoyed animation and drew several cartoon strips, peopled with crazy characters as I dreamt of writing graphic novels like Green Lantern, Magnus, Robot Fighter and Spiderman. My hero was science fiction author and futurist, Ray Bradbury; I vowed to write profoundly stirring tales like he did. Stories that mattered. Stories that lingered with you long after you finished them. Stories that made you think and dream and changed you imperceptibly.

I had found what excites me—my passion for telling stories—and I’d inadvertently stumbled upon an important piece of the secret formula for success: 1) having discovered my passion, I decided on a goal; 2) I found and wished to emulate a “hero” who’d achieved that goal and therefore had a “case study”; 3) I applied myself to the pursuit of my goal. Oops… the third one, well…

…It went downhill from there…

Life got in the way.

I grew up.

The Middle: The Struggles & Confusion of “Reality”

Well, that, and the environment intervened. In several ways. It started with my parents. Recognizing my talent and interest in the fine arts (I was pretty good in visual arts), they pushed me to get a fine arts degree in university and go into teaching or advertizing. They made it obvious that fiction writing was not a viable career or a forté of mine (I was lousy at spelling and, despite my ability to tell stories and my love for graphic novels, I didn’t read books!). I can still remember my father’s lecture about how perfect the teaching or nursing profession was for me. I wasn’t enamored by either. The second blow to my author-ego came in the form of a school “interest-ability” test, meant to prepare us for our career decisions. I remember the test consisting of an IQ portion (spatial, English and math), and a psychology portion (including problem-solving and scenarios meant to tease out our affinity for a particular career). Secretly harboring my paperback novelist dream, I filled out my forms with great excitement. I still remember the deflating results, which suggested that I was best suited to be a sergeant in the army! LOL! Remember what I said about my spelling and grammar. “Writing” as a career barely made it on the graph, and scored well below “computer programmer” and “mechanic”; none of which interested me.   

Forest road near home

Dante’s Forest

I began to see a career in advertizing as a viable option; my love and abilities in cartooning seemed to naturally tie in with this pursuit. I also had an affinity for graphic design. So, I deferred to the “wisdom” of others and let myself be diverted and distracted by clever reasoning and an appeal to logic. I did what I thought I should do, not what truly excited me.

I still quietly held my dream of being a paperback novelist close to my heart, even if it was closeted in my subconscious. But self-expression had dwindled to a trickle; the creative flow of stories dried up and in its empty wake I discovered a cause worth investing a fervent energy: the well-being of our planet. With the cause came my relentless pursuit of a science degree. I left home and surprised and disappointed my parents by electing on registration day at the university to go into science rather than pursue a fine arts degree in advertizing. Although I wasn’t “expressing”, I was nevertheless inspired. I obtained several degrees in science, including one in Limnology (the study of freshwater), which were all to prove worthwhile in my ultimate “calling” and self-expression: that of making science accessible to the lay-public and eventually writing hard-science fiction stories and novels of substance about the environment. The latter didn’t happen for several years after I acquired my Masters of Science degree and did a long stint of teaching at university (yes, I DID teach after all!) while successfully publishing articles for magazines.

The End: Fulfillment

Nina outside Bakka Books in Toronto where her novel is for sale

My non-fiction pieces became my entrance into the world of fiction (much harder to break into) and I used this venue to polish my writing skills in fiction (don’t let anyone tell you that non-fiction can’t be exciting, bending to many of the same rules as in fiction writing). Once I began publishing fiction stories, I never looked back. And as far as I’m concerned, the sky’s the limit now.

Not too long ago, I quit my day job and moved across the country to an artistic community on the east coast. I am currently travelling the world and pursuing my dream as a full-time author and writing coach. It’s not an easy life. And it can be lonely at times. But it is so incredibly fulfilling and blessed with meaning.

Come, walk with me and pursue your dream. It’s for the taking.

Hi there!

Nina Munteanu - The Writing Life

You’ve landed on the website of Nina Munteanu, internationally published Canadian SF author and ecologist.  Nina is living her dream of the writing life!  She is currently putting the finishing touches on her next science fiction novel.  And if you’re lucky, you might catch her at one of her writing workshops where she coaches great fiction writing!

The Mentor: Nina is frequently sought after for one-on-one mentoring as well as personal coaching and group workshops on all aspects of writing and publishing.  Because she has published frequently in both fiction and non-fiction, she knows exactly how to help her clients succeed in getting their works published.

The Ecologist: Nina currently does research and gives talks in science and limnology (No! That isn’t the study of limbs! She studies freshwater) and is driven by a passion to help keep our planet’s environment healthy.  In April 2010 she participated in talks with the Dalai Lama as part of the Mind and Life XX Conference on Altruism and Compassion in Economics in Zurich, Switzerland, where she participated in discussions on the use of ecological relationships in economic policy. Nina is a passionate traveler, and has tasted her way around the world from Bangkok to Paris.

The Author: Nina has published award-nominated short stories all over the planet (with translations into Greek, Romanian, Polish, and Hebrew). Two of her several novels, “Angel of Chaos” and “Darwin’s Paradox” (science fiction ecological thrillers by Dragon Moon Press), explores humanity’s co-evolution with machine intelligence and Nature’s intelligence. She also writes critical essays and reviews, several of which have appeared in Strange Horizons, IROSF, and The New York Review of Science Fiction. Her personal heroes include Dr. Lynn Margulis and author Ray Bradbury. Nina’s guidebook on writing, The Fiction Writer: Get Published, Write Now! is currently used in schools and universities across North America.

The Blogger: Nina is also  The Alien Next Door, author of the award-wining blog which hosts lively discussions on pop culture, travel, science, writing and philosophy. Nina co-authors an environmental blog on climate change, Climate of Our Future. She frequently guest-blogs on Toulouse LeTrek, her feline friend’s travel blog.

The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond
them into the impossible—Arthur C. Clarke

When I was in my early twenties (some time ago) I read Childhood’s End by Arthur C. Clarke. He’d written it a year before I was born. I remember being moved by the story’s grandness and scope about the transformation of humanity. On the slightly garish cover of the Ballantine science fiction classic book jacket Gilbert Highet’s endorsement said, “…a real staggerer by a man who is both a poetic dreamer and a competent scientist.” This remains an apt assessment of this self-professed “mildly cheerful” British science fiction author, inventor, and futurist, perhaps best known for the novel 2001: a Space Odyssey (also about the transformation of humankind).

On March 19 of this year, Arthur C. Clarke died at age ninety in Colombo, Sri Lanka, where he’d made his home since 1956. He left behind a legacy of incredibly imaginative works, valuable scientific inventions and concepts and profoundly thoughtful discussions of the future.

During the time Clarke served in the Royal Air Force as a radar instructor and technician (from 1941 to 1946) he proposed satellite communication systems, which won him the Franklin Institute Stuart Ballantine Gold Medal (in 1963) and a nomination in 1994 for a Nobel Prize. What you might not have known about him is that he was an avid scuba diver and helped fight for the preservation of lowland gorillas, which won him the UNESCO-Kalinga Prize in 1962. Clarke was also fascinated with the paranormal and admitted that it was part of the inspiration for his novel Childhood’s End. He was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America in 1986. And in 2000, he was knighted. Yes, he is Sir Arthur Charles Clarke. He served as the first Chancellor of the International Space University from 1989 to 2004, has an asteroid named in his honour and a species of ceratopsian dinosaur (Serendipaceratops arthurcclarkei), discovered in Inverloch in Australia.

Born in Minehead, Somerset, England, Clarke enjoyed stargazing and reading old American science fiction pulp magazines when he was a boy. His first professional sales (e.g., Loophole and Rescue Party)appeared in Astounding Science Fiction in 1946 at age 29. In 1948, Clarke wrote The Sentinel for a BBC competition; although it was rejected it represented a turning point in Clarke’s writing, which introduced a more mystical and cosmic element to his work (the Sentinel was the basis for his best known work, 2001: A Space Odyssey). Many of his subsequent works (including Childhood’s End) features the theme of a technologically advanced but prejudiced humankind being confronted by a superior alien intelligence—the encounter of which produces a conceptual breakthrough that accelerates humanity into the next stage of its evolution.

Among Clarke’s visionary science (fiction) and inventions, some of his most notable include the following:

• Geostationary satellites as telecommunications relays (described in a paper in Wireless World, October 1945 entitled, Extra-Terrestrial Relays—Can Rocket Stations Give Worldwide Radio Coverage?) The geostationary orbit 36,000 km above the equator is officially recognized by the International Astronomical Union as a “Clarke Orbit”;
• Space elevators (first described in The Fountains of Paradise, 1979); and,
• A “global library” (in Profiles of the Future, 1962).

We get a good sense of Clarke’s beliefs and philosophy in his works. In his introduction of Mysterious World: Strange Skies, Clarke said, “I sometimes think that the universe is a machine designed for the perpetual astonishment of astronomers.” At the end of the episode, of the Star of Bethlehem (of which his favorite theory was that it was a pulsar) he added, “How romantic, if even now we can hear the dying voice of a star which heralded the Christian Era.”

In the 1973 revision of his 1962 book, Profiles of the Future, Clarke added two laws to create his famous three laws of prediction, aptly termed Clarke’s Three Laws:

1. When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.
2. The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible.
3. Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

Fiction is more than non-fiction in some ways…you can stretch people’s minds, alerting them to the possibilities of the future, which is very important in an age where things are changing rapidly—Arthur C. Clarke

Clarke’s most notable works include 2001: A Space Odyssey, Rendezvous with Rama, Childhood’s End, The Fountains of Paradise.

With a powerful entrance like that, it is hard to imagine that this 1997 movie directed by Robert Zemeckis (Forrest Gump) and based on the novel by Carl Sagan, received very mixed reviews by critics. Cindy Fuchs of the Philadelphia City Paper called it “far more mundane than its aspirations to cosmic insights might have produced.” Kevin N. Laforest with the Montreal Film Journal said, “Contact is not a bad film, but I can’t say it’s all that good either.” Even TVGuide.com rated it a two out of four: “It’s really about [Jodie] Foster, and with her lips pressed tightly together and her hair carelessly shoved behind her ears, she’s utterly convincing as a researcher who’s subverted everything to a life of the mind. Unfortunately that adds up to a rather remote protagonist and Ellie is surrounded by a supporting cast of one-dimensional types…far too cold-blooded for summer audiences.” This is ironic, considering that the advertizing pitch calls Contact “a journey to the heart of the universe.” Finally, Christopher Null (Filmcritic.com) recommended it for its looks but not highly. Said Null: “Carl Sagan’s ode to the superior intelligence of aliens (and how us darned humans mess everything up) is consistently beautiful and interesting, but it never makes a point (except for that bit about the darned humans). Well, Mr. Null, I think you’ve missed the point, as have some of the critics I have just quoted. Contact—and its somewhat tortured protagonist—demonstrates much in the way of “heart” and in doing so, makes a compelling story. Hearts beat deeply inside us, and this movie is no different; its “heart” runs deep, deep beneath the surface rhetoric that seems to have distracted several critics who likely prefer to take a shallow sip of their coffee steaming hot than wait and savor the rich flavor of a dark blend in a deep swallow. Perhaps I’m too harsh, you say. Well, hear me out. Here’s my argument:

First of all, for those of you who have not yet seen this 1997 motion picture by Time Warner, Contact examines the moral, social and religious implications of our first contact with extraterrestrial intelligence through the personal journey of astronomer, Eleanor (Ellie) Arroway (played impeccably and sensitively by Jodie Foster). Never knowing her mother (who died at child birth) and having lost her father when she was ten, Ellie grows into a strong-willed scientist who dedicates her life to finding alien life in the universe by foregoing a career at Harvard to join a SETI Observatory in the Puerto Rico jungle. In an earlier scene with her father, she asks the question we have all pondered at least once: “Do you think there are people on other planets?” to which her father blithely answers, “if it’s just us, seems like an awful lot of wasted space,” a simple argument that appeals to the young logically-minded Ellie and one that will dominate the perseverance of her adult life in her resolute search for life in the universe.

And persevere Ellie must, because nothing comes easy for her. Shortly after she settles at the SETI Observatory her teacher (and nemesis) David Drumlin (Tom Skerritt) pays her a visit with implied threats of shutting the place down. Ellie also meets Palmer Joss (Mathew McConaughey), a man of faith, who is writing a book about the effects of science and technology on the third world. Although she is attracted to him, alarm bells go off in Ellie, who feels threatened by his faith (something she does not outwardly understand yet clings to in another form). Wanting to see him again, she introduces him to the man he wants to interview: Drumlin. And one of the most poignant conversations follows:

When Ellie challenges Drumlin’s apparent wish to do away with all pure research, he responds with, “What’s wrong with science being practical, even profitable? Nothing—”
Palmer cuts in, “—As long as your motive is the search for truth, which is exactly what the pursuit of science is.” Drumlin counters peevishly, “Well, that’s an interesting position coming from a man who crusades against the evils of technology.” To which Palmer responds, “I’m not against technology; I’m against the men who deify it at the expense of human truth.”

Palmer and Ellie collide from two different worlds and despite their differences, they are profoundly attracted to one another. But as quickly as she falls for Palmer, she recoils from him.

Nothing comes easy for Ellie: “small moves, Ellie,” her father is accustomed to telling her, “small moves…” Shortly after she and her colleagues have been shut down by Drumlin and have set up anew (thanks to eccentric billionaire entrepreneur, S.R. Hadden, played by John Hurt), Drumlin and others shut them down yet again. But, as though a greater force intervenes, this is when Ellie makes her momentous discovery and intercepts an alien message from Vega, a young star still surrounded by a proto-planetary cloud of debris about 27 light years away from us. The scene is scientifically plausible and elegantly powerful— it gave my husband goose-bumps (even the second time watching!)—as we witness the drama of this phenomenal discovery unfold in a frisson of action. Zemeckis wisely shows us exactly how such an event would really play out. And Sagan didn’t pick Vega out of whimsy: a sphere sixty light years thick of radio communication radiates from Earth from our radio and TV broadcasts. These signals may be captured by alien technology and sent back as a “message”. In theory, such a signal could be received on Earth anytime after 1990, the round trip time for a light or radio signal to travel to Vega and back from the first global signal, which in itself is momentous and telling. In another spine-tingling scene, the scientists who have descended upon Ellie decipher the arcane harmonics of the “message” as the broadcast of the opening ceremony of the Berlin Olympics in 1936 (the first truly global TV broadcast made) over which Hitler presided. In fact, in another stroke of irony, the now infamous swastika is the first icon they decipher. Later still, they discover embedded instructions to build a machine that appears made to take a human on an extra-galactic trip.

At the same time that Ellie intercepts this message, Palmer Joss experiences a meteoric rise to stardom with his bestselling book, Losing Faith: the Search for Meaning in the Age of Reason (which could well have been the alternate title for the film; it certainly describes the subtext of the story and the major thematic element: Faith & Meaning). In an interview with a prominent news show host, Palmer asks the question that most of us have avoided: “The question that I’m asking is this: are we happier? Is the world fundamentally a better place because of science and technology?…We shop at home, we search the web—at the same time we feel emptier, lonelier, and more cut off from each other than any other time in human history…We have meaningless jobs, we take frantic vacations [and] trips to the mall to buy more things to fill these holes in our lives.” Ironically, Palmer touches a similar nerve in Ellie when he brings up her dead parents: “It must have been hard… being alone…” insinuating that her fanatical search for intelligent alien life may simply be filling a hole in her heart. She flees Palmer shortly after, fearing his revealing intimacy. When they next meet, years later, they fall naturally into their familiar banter and she turns the table to challenge his faith in the same way: “What if science simply revealed that [God] never existed in the first place?” She then evokes Occam’s Razor, which says that “…all things being equal, the simplest explanation tends to be the right one…what’s more likely? An all powerful mysterious God [who] created the universe then decided not to give us proof of his existence or that he simply doesn’t exist at all and we created him so we wouldn’t have to feel so small and alone?” Both of them are saved from an answer by the intrusive rings of their cell phones.

Ironically again, it is Ellie’s lack of belief in God that causes her to be overlooked for the momentous journey in the alien craft, in favor of the crafty Drumlin with the oily smile. Unfortunately, a religious zealot sabotages the mission and Drumlin, along with the whole alien craft and construct, are blown up in a spectacular explosion at NASA’s Cape Canaveral. Ellie gets her chance after all when they build a second one. Her journey in the alien space craft, which we are later told takes up eighteen hours of her time but passes instantaneously on Earth (to the point where they all think nothing actually happened), is truly epic and elegantly portrayed. Her encounter with the aliens is also in keeping with the plot and imagery of the story. One of the most poignant scenes in the movie is the one where Ellie is introduced to the incredible and indescribable beauty of the vast Universe. It is at this point that she experiences her epiphany: science is not the sole purveyor of truth in the Universe. As she gazes at the splendor revealed before her, she acknowledges that the language of science is unable to express the sheer magnitude of the breathtaking scene. Grasping at something to say, she blusters with a scientific term then finally gasps, “No words…to describe it…they should have sent a poet…”
Upon her return, Ellie is challenged by skeptics who think she suffered a giant delusion (remember that on Earth, no time had passed during her supposed eighteen-hour voyage). Ellie offers up a strained scientific explanation (e.g., wormhole travel through space-time also called Einstein-Rosen bridges) which is challenged by National Security Advisor, Michael Kitz (James Woods) as only theory, and must finally resort to her faith; one she selflessly offers to the world: “I… had an experience. I can’t prove it, I can’t even explain it, but everything that I know as a human being, everything that I am tells me that it was real. I was given something wonderful, something that changed me forever. A vision of the universe, that tells us undeniably, how tiny, and insignificant and how… rare, and precious we all are. A vision that tells us that we belong to something that is greater than ourselves, that we are not, that none of us are alone.”

Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat of Spirituality Practice said it best: “Robert Zemeckis has fashioned a truly awesome movie that celebrates the spiritual practices of listening, wonder, love, and zeal. It affirms that there are times and places where reason must yield to mystery.”

The SETI Institute, who currently conduct the search for alien life, have a website dedicated to the move: http://www.seti-Inst.edu/phoenix/contact.html.

Tikulin, who was born and lives in Zagreb, Croatia, recently confided in me that he had never been to North America. I find this ironic, considering that his art is showcased internationally, having appeared in every country imaginable. Tomislav Tikulin’s art work has graced the covers of many SF and Fantasy books including Chris Robertson’s Voyage of Night Shining White, Arthur C. Clarke’s Rendezvous With Rama, and recently Ray Bradbury’s Dandelion Wine (50th anniversary edition).

Tikulin creates convincing images grounded in reality then throws them into fantastical alien landscapes. Many of his pieces evoke a sense of yearning within a grand tapestry of his imagination. Through the use of lighting, tone, filigree and color, Tikulin infuses his imagery with mood and “motion”. His art flows with a tender ache for “more”… a call to adventure…a hero’s mythic journey…a sweeping vision of the future…a whole world to discover…

When Tikulin agreed to illustrate my book, Darwin’s Paradox, I was ecstatic and honored. After some conversation back and forth, he produced the striking image you all know. It has, I can assure you, been one of the main reasons people have picked up my book off the bookshelves.

Eager to meet the man responsible for the success of my book, I notified Tikulin that I would be in Zagreb, refueling, and invited him aboard my sentient ship, Vinny, for a drink. To my delight, he readily and intrepidly agreed.

Like all his predecessors, Tikulin rode the crystal beam with the ease and the sublime frisson of a Ray Bradbury character. He didn’t get sick either, I observed, as my stomach growled its typical objection. Like a giddy twelve-year old kid on his first rocket ship ride—wait, this probably was his first rocket ship ride—Tikulin asked a million questions and I had to bat his hand away from the colorful crystal controls several times. Humans! So curious!…

~~~~

Once we get on board Vinny, and thinking to put Tikulin at ease so I can better interroga—er interview him, I instruct Harry, my bot, to fetch us each a pint of Canadian beer, this time a Kokanee lager. As we settle into two comfortable chairs in the aft lounge with our beers, I make my move.

SF Girl: I lean forward and make direct eye contact with this good-looking Croatian from Zagreb and decide to start with something mild and innocuous. “So, when did you know that you wanted to be an illustrator and how did you get your start?”

Tikulin: He meets my gaze with intense laughing eyes of candor. There is something very genuine about him that sets me at ease and I realize that it’s me who is nervous; not him. Tikulin drains half of the beer in one long draught, leaving some foam on his upper lip, then begins in a strong Croatian accent, “Well, it happened a couple of years ago. I was involved in the production of a point and click adventure game. My job was to make backgrounds, matte paintings, etc.” In fact, he was Chief 2-D artist on the project. “I realized that I had learned a lot of things during that production and that I must do something with that knowledge.” Tikulin tilts his head to one side and ponders the past. “I also worked as a comic colorist for many years and had a promising career but I made a decision to do something else and that was a turning point for me…[After meeting] some publishers, that was the start of a new career,” he ends with a boyish laugh.

SF Girl: I decide that he’s getting a little too comfortable as he draws another long appreciative gulp of Canadian beer (maybe he doesn’t get out much, I conclude). Still… Thinking to stir him from his beer-induced contentedness, I pry, “What does your family think of your art?”

Tikulin: He throws his head back and guffaws. “Like any other normal family, they would be more than happy if I did something else… occupations like a lawyer, doctor, or just working in some nice and clean factory…”

SF Girl: Before I realize it, I’ve grown maudlin, reminiscing about my own parents’ wish that I’d chosen a normal career like planet-building engineer in the Zeta system (very lucrative work, I might add!) or an accountant with the Galactic Bank instead of the space-adventure scoundrel I’ve become… When I find him staring at me with those dark George Clooney eyes, I quickly regain my composure and ask, “What kind of things did you draw as a kid?”

Tikulin: He eases back into the soft chair, a loose smile sliding across his face that makes the thirty-two year old artist look like a boy. “As a kid I was drawing more or less the usual stuff…cowboys, Indians, spacemen, etc. I love movies, especially scifi movies…I spent many hours watching TV, maybe too much!” He flashes a grin then adds, “That was the trigger for me.”

SF Girl: “What is it about science fiction and fantasy that draws your interest, particularly to illustrate in these genres?”

Tikulin: “I love movies. I’m a movie geek. I watched a thousand times Alien, Blade Runner, original Star Wars Saga, Star Trek and other nice movies and series. I was hooked as a kid with fantastic landscapes, green slime aliens, space heroes and all sorts of villains.” So, he’d met some of my relatives, I conclude…Tikulin continues, “I like the old masters. I’m not a big fan of modern cyberpunk stories. My heart is full of sorrow because Hollywood doesn’t make Sci-Fi films like they used to.”

SF Girl: Totally disarmed by this gentle (and very good looking!) Croatian, I ask, “What’s next for Tomislav Tikulin?”

Tikulin: He flashes another of those wonderful boyish smiles. “To have fun, to make lots of covers, to make covers for Frank Herbert’s Dune, and one day to create production illustrations for a big Sci-Fi movie.”

I don’t doubt that he will. To see more of Tomislav Tikulin’s artwork or to contact him, here’s his website: http://www.tomtikulin-art.com/.

http://www.darwinsparadox.com/

• Barnes & Noble
• Chapters-Indigo
• White Dwarf Books (Vancouver)
• The Sentry Box (Calgary)
• various online bookstores (as an ebook)

You can also buy or order the book at Target (www.target.com), one of the major department stores in the U.S. as well as India and Malaysia, Wallmart, or purchase it online at Buy.com, another major retail store.

And those are only the ones I know about (the writer tends to know paltry little when it comes to publishery stuff). If you’ve enjoyed my blog articles and short stories and enjoy thoughtful and provative science fiction (with a kicking plot) and are inclined to purchase Darwin’s Paradox, then here are a few things that I unabashedly, shamelessly exhort you, dear reader, to do:

• If purchasing through Amazon, purchase my book on the day of release (November 15, 2007) to drive sales that day into such significant figures to make my book noticeable on the Amazon radar (which will place the book so that more people will see it)
• go to your local bookstore and ask them to order Darwin’s Paradox

And if you’re interested in an audiobook (with voice artist Heather Dugan) we’ll be arranging that too, hopefully.

So, today’s Friday Feature, is run by the incredibly talented and energetic Karen Mason and dedicated to my book, “Darwin’s Paradox”. And through no major stretch of the imagination, it’s also called “Darwin’s Paradox“.

What wonderful items can you find there? Well, here are a few juicy bits:

• Chapters One through Thirteen of the book (available in eight different languages: French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Japanese, Korean and Chinese)
• podcasts of chapters One to Thirteen (so far) done by voice artist Heather Dugan
• schedule of my appearances (including conventions and booktours)
• select interviews
• writing tips
• media kit (including press release, media material, etc.)

I am so indebted to Karen for tirelessly running this site and for her astute advice on blogging, internet navigation, media design, logic, human behaviour (remember, I’m an alien) and good wine.