As promised, a pair of sketches (one complete with authentic coffee stain!) that I drew before writing Halcyon Years. I'd worked out the basic parameters of the story at this point, putting in the locales I knew I'd need, but there are a few bits and pieces which didn't end up playing much of a role in the book. All of the following is revealed in the first few chapters of the book, by the way, so no fear of giving away anything crucial - although if you'd like to go in totally cold, obviously, read no more.
The first one (click to embiggen) is a basic cross-section of Halcyon. I didn't really have a set idea of how big it needed to be, but 50 km long seemed about right for the type of story I was intending. I was thinking, very roughly, of something about the size of greater Los Angeles. I wanted there to be room enough for distinct settlements with countryside between them, not just one big city, and I also wanted roads and railway lines, and especially the former, so I could have cars. I decided that the ship would be completely closed, with no windows to the outside universe, and that there'd need to be a long, thick tube running down the middle to give the illusion of sky.
The little sketch to the bottom right of the picture is me working out for myself what rough percentage of the interior would be visible from any given position on the inner surface. As you can see, it's never possible to see the opposite side of the tube.
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The second sketch (also click to embiggen) is the complete interior rolled out as a map:
As mentioned, there's stuff in there that doesn't come into the final story, and which may or may not be in contradiction with it, such as the island in the middle of Midlake. That was going to be a kind of private retreat for the DelRossos, but in the end I decided not to bother with it, just letting them have their estate and the luxury yacht. I wasn't going to draw another map just because the story took me in a slightly different direction.
Should these or tidied-up versions have been included in the book? I'm not sure. Perhaps because I wasn't a big reader of fantasy, I've never expected to see a map at the beginning of a book, and those few times when I encountered one in an SF context, I never found it all that helpful. But that's just me.
For me this is amazing. I love maps in books. I find a map in the front\back cover of a book, and I am instantly hooked. My wife thinks I am a more then a little silly. Thank you very much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteAh cool! Can't wait to come back to this once I've started reading my copy.
ReplyDeleteThis is great, thank you AR. I think you're right about maps and genre. In fantasy it's pretty much a requirement, and as a kid I loved looking at maps of Middle Earth, the Wheel of Time, Shannara and so on. The places that hadn't yet been visited in the narrative sparked my imagination, wondering what kind of mysteries they held. Having "leftovers" that aren't used in the narrative is, I think, a good thing for making the world feel more real.
ReplyDeleteHi Al, loved the book. Rev Space, Eversion, Halycon Years are all in my top 10 list. Well done! Thank you for the rides.
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For Halycon, wouldn't there need to have been ram shields on either end of the ship? During the deceleration phase when thrust is pointed in the direction of travel, wouldn't the engine be vulnerable to micrometeorites? Or did the designers of the ship believe that debris would be vaporized by the heat of the engine jets?
I am hearing Nelson in my head: "You're dumb." (for asking what may be a dumb question)
It's not dumb at all, but I don't really get into the specifics of the propulsion system, it's just mentioned that there are engines and fuel tanks and that's your lot. It could be argued that the acceleration and deceleration phases take up a negligibly small part of the total journey, with the main function of the shielding being for the centuries-long bit in-between.
DeleteI love maps in books, fantasy or not, so I'll save these until I get around to reading the book. Thanks a lot for sharing, Al!
ReplyDeleteHi Al, random out-of-context question. I'm trying to pin down the timeframe for Inhibitor Phase. Most of the other books RS books give helpful dates. There is the timeline on your site and the fan wiki but neither cover Inhibitor Phase. Can you help a guy out? I'm busy working on a timeline video for my channel.
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Jon
Hello Jon. I don't know which edition of the book you have, but you should see a breakdown of the timeline in the "End Notes" after the last chapter, as well as a commentary on the chronology and how it does or doesn't play nicely with the events of Galactic North.
DeleteThe key dates listed for the events of Inhibitor Phase, either main action or implied, are 2750-2882.
Ahhh so great, thanks for posting. Really enjoyed Halcyon Years; read it over the Christmas/new years break.
ReplyDeleteThe maps/sketches of the ship are really useful. I know they're a mainstay of fantasy rather than sf... but for orienting yourself around a new fictional world they always feel like a great introduction to the mindset of the author, along with the world they've created.
The pictures could always be ensnazzified and included in the eventual Sub Press version of the book ;-) (I'm hoping for Chasm City to be done next as I'm trying to get all my early collection paperbacks in hardback form without going to the secondary market)
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure including the map in the book would be helpful, but it would absolutely be very cool. I remember being captivated by the maps included in A Fire Upon the Deep. Rather than helping me understand the story, the story let me understand what the maps meant. Now if you'll excuse me I need to go purchase a copy of your book.
ReplyDeleteAl, the audiobook of Halcyon Years is great. I found the characters to be well written to begin with, but Tim Treloar makes them pop even more. Tim's Yuri is even funnier than My Yuri would have been. And I thought Lemmy and Nelson were also particularly well-acted.
ReplyDeleteThe Eversion reader (Harry Myers) was also superb. I'm not sure if you have any say in who gets the job for narration, but I hope you continue working with one of these gents in the future.
Care to share any interesting tidbits about the production of the audiobooks? How much of your own vision of characters (overall vibe, accents) do you communicate to the reader? Is it a back and forth process? I listened to Eversion after reading it, and Dr Coade was a completely different character.
Loved Halcyon Years. Ordered a copy from Blackwells and had it shipped to the States so I didn't have to wait. Really hope you end up doing some promotion in the Pacific NW because I would love to get a couple books signed.
ReplyDeleteOn the subject of maps and auxiliary material, I am always a fan. My mass market edition of Dune had almost 60 pages of Appendices and maps. Fun to have a little touchstone in universe.
Curious if you ever saw a SYFY mini-series from 2014 called Ascension. I saw a lot of parallel between it and Halcyon, although they have very different reveals both felt similar in community.
Wow, interesting. For me, I think I would have liked to have the map/diagram included. While reading the book I found myself occasionally trying to visualize what was being described, but not quite getting the picture in my head. In the end, it didn't detract from the story (for me), but I think I would have benefitted from a map/diagram illustration.
ReplyDeleteJust a short way into Halcyon Years, but considering that Raymond Chandler was a must-read/re-read for me before Alistair Reynolds joined that small club, I'm finding it a real joy to read.
ReplyDeleteJust read and really enjoyed Halcyon Years. This is one of my favorite casts of characters you've come up with, and I love Halcyon as a setting. The release of your latest novel is always one of my highlights of any given year. As always, looking forward to the next one!
ReplyDeleteGreat to see these sketches, Al. And I really enjoyed reading Halcyon Years over the Christmas New Year break. After finishing the last Prefect Dreyfus book, I was sad that you had moved away from the SF/Detective genre blending—so it was a very nice surprise to see this played out in a very different form in Halcyon Years. I think it is a combination that you handle really well.
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