But what caught my eye the most was the trail of faded stars that led further than I could see, winding toward the edges of the galaxy and beyond. My curiosity was working overtime, and I turned to move toward the Milky Way. I picked up speed as I went along, traveling faster and faster until I was plummeting through space at full throttle. If I were more than just a spirit, I was sure I’d have a tail of fire as I moved forward with increasing velocity.
I came close enough to view the stars that made up the Milky Way, still millions of miles away, and moved parallel with it. I passed planet after planet, the space around me feeling colder as I moved further away from the sun. I saw the glow ahead of me, still thousands of miles away. It was like a sheet that wrapped around space, invisible above and behind me as I traveled onward. But as I got closer, the glow got brighter. I picked up speed and flew forward with all my strength. It could only be the edge of the galaxy. Even closer, I could see space rock moving toward the glow. But with shock, I saw each rock sucked through, an invisible wind grabbing hold and propelling it into a storm that swirled around the galaxy.
I was going too fast to stop, or so I thought. Had I controlled my fears long enough to think with clarity, I would have remembered that I had no limits, that I could think myself away from this place in just a moment. But as I streamed towards the edge, all I could think of was being swept into a vortex I wouldn’t be able to get out of. “This is my hell,” I thought. “I’m going to be stuck here forever in a blender because I chose to leave Earth behind.” – Excerpt from A Symphony of Cicadas, Chapter 12, pages 156-157
And here’s where things get weird…
Fantasy is not my usual genre of writing. In fact, this book is the first real stab at creating a story within a totally unreal type of world. All of my other fiction exists in worlds that one could logically live in. But this…this was a whole new experience for me.
When I wrote this scene, I never planned for it to happen. It just kind of did. Writers will often tell you that after a bit of story writing, the story tends to take on a life of its own. The author no longer controls it. This scene is no exception. But I’m glad it did. It ended up setting the stage for a pivotal scene later in the book.
Fun fact – did you know that space tastes like a copper penny? This is only one of the facts I uncovered when researching what it would actually be like to be in space.
When I wrote A Symphony of Cicadas, I had reservations about the space scene. Was I going too far out on a limb by sending Rachel into space? How would I describe the setting when I had never been there? Would it just be too weird? I had to let go of all these doubts and just write on. And I’m glad I did. Personally, I find this chapter of the book fascinating. For those of you who have read the book, I hope you did, too.
This is just one of several posts to come that dives into the chapters of A Symphony of Cicadas, and the inspiration behind the story. For all sneak peeks at the novel, CLICK HERE. To purchase the book, go to http://amzn.to/17ayBAP.
Stay tuned for more!
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