I can close my eyes and still see it. It flew at maybe a hundred feet above the ground, quiet as a whisper, and maybe ten feet long. It was brown in color, and looked like a jet aircraft, except it was wingless. I had heard of people seeing UFOs and describing them as ‘cigar-shaped’, and I guess this fits the bill. Towards the front was something that looked like a cockpit, but it was opaque. In recent years, pictures of the Predator Drone have shown up in the news, and the front of the craft in particular looked like one. However Predators have only been in use since 1995, and my sighting was in the early 80s.
Anyway, I digress.
I had been writing computer books almost exclusively, and really wanted to try my hand at fiction. Sitting there amongst all the UFO paraphernalia, a plot began to hatch. What if UFOs were real? But what if all the sightings of UFOs were real, and the powers that be were covering up. But what if they weren’t piloted by aliens, and were in fact, piloted by humans?
At that time Harry Potter was huge, so the thought of it being children piloting these UFOs came to my mind. What if the whole mystery of Area 51 was that of a secret underground city, where aliens were uplifting humanity for a destiny among the stars. And what if they were lying to us, and had more nefarious ends in mind. They would recruit from our best and brightest, and they would be children.
By the time the three hour drive back to Las Vegas was complete, I had the general broad strokes of the plot in my mind. I had to write this down.
*
Nizhoni:
After two years of trying I was getting nowhere. The story was flat, the characters uninspiring. Then something strange happened. I watched, of all things, the Disney movie “Snow Dogs” with my children, and the character of Barb, a native American stole the show.
That’s what was missing from the book. The central theme I had wanted to have throughout was done through third party observation. It didn’t have the emotional hook. Area 51 is right in the heart of the South west, and the Navajo are the biggest tribe/reservation in that area. I buried myself in research, and pretty soon the character of Nizhoni was born. It was amazing how her presence changed all of the other characters, giving them a real depth. Now I knew I was onto something. The only problem was that she was taking over the book. There were so many great Navajo stories that I could use, but they were overwhelming. As it is, this book has been criticized somewhat for having too much “White guilt”, but you should see what I left on the cutting room floor!
Everything changed with her introduction. First, I was bothered by the threesome of Fintan, Zack and Ayako. It was too much like Harry, Ron and Hermione, Luke, Han and Leia, and Anakin, Obi-Wan and Padme. The two-guys and one-girl threesome was a bit tired. I also liked the symmetry of having two guys and two girls, each with their own strengths. There would be some cliches, but some instances where they break the cliche mould. Having her in the book made everyone better. So, of course, the best thing to do for the story was kill her right and the end!
Ayako:
Ayako is a very interesting character, who really comes into bloom in the second book, which I’m not going to spoil here. I knew exactly what her story arc was from the beginning, and I knew the dramatic ending that it would have. Originally she was called Eriko, but it was around the time I started spending a lot of time in Japan that I was finishing this book. Two friends I made there were called Eriko, so in order to avoid embarrassment, I called her Ayako. As for her surname, Katsuragi was chosen because of the character Misato Katsuragi in the anime masterpiece ‘Neon Genesis Evangelion’, which is my favorite show in that genre. When reading into the background of that show, I discovered that many of the characters were named for ships in the Japanese navy, and with Ayako’s background being military, the name was perfect.
Indeed, Neon Genesis Evangelion is a huge influence on this book, both thematically, and directly, lending the name ‘geofront’ to the underground city. In Evangelion, the city of Tokyo-3 is seen as the hope for the future of mankind, and most of it is buried underground in a huge dome. Many people spot the Harry Potter and Ender’s Game influences, but very few see Evangelion. If you haven’t watched it, go check it out, but be prepared for a bit of a mind warp in the later episodes. Long story.
One interesting piece of feedback I’ve received over the years is that the book is very Anti-American, and that by extension, so am I. This is chiefly because of some of Ayako’s comments about Japan being nuclear bombed in World War 2. This, to me, is a very interesting feedback, and I take it as a compliment that her testimony was believable! I wanted her to give a very separate viewpoint -- that of a culture that was attacked in the most horrifying way, and to use this as a foreshadowing of what might happen to all of us if things with the aliens went wrong. It wasn’t a matter of whether the attack is justified in my mind as an author or not -- it was her viewpoint, and something I think we can all learn from. If we can justify such an attack, isn’t it believable that aliens might attack us in the same way, or worse, and feel perfectly justified in so doing.
Hopefully you’ll read books 2 and 3, and learn more about Ayako. I think, in the final analysis, she’s my favorite character!
Zack:
What can I say about Zack? He is the heart and soul of this story. In the beginning, he’s on the periphery, a goofball and comic relief. But I wanted him to be the one who grows up most of all. By the end of the story he will emerge as a giant amongst men. While others are caught up in the events around them somewhat, he’s the one who is learning, growing, and slowly taking the lead. He’ll go down as one of the greatest heroes in history.
The original cover of the book didn’t show the race of the characters. It was easy to guess the ethnicity of Fintan, Ayako and Nizhoni, but not Zack. I usually avoid describing race, and prefer instead to let readers form the image in their own mind. There were a few clues dropped here and there that Zack was an African-American, but I was surprised by the feedback I received from readers when I gave hints on the new cover. At first there was surprise. Then there was acceptance. Nobody had guessed. Bad job by me :)
I also wanted to demonstrate his growth in the new book covers. In the first book, he’s somewhat off to the side, in a way that is often criticized in movies, where the people of color are at best minor character. By Book 2, he’s closer to the center, and by Book 3, he’s front and center. This isn’t a choice based on racial marketing, but simply a demonstration of the evolution of his character.
As for his name, I wanted to have something that sounds American, but is very contrasting. As he’s one of the fathers of the future of humanity, he needed to have the name ‘Adam’. I chose to make it his surname, and then chose a name from the other end of the alphabet to be his first name, and ‘Zachary’ was perfect. Hence it was Zack Adams.
Fintan:
Maybe it’s because he’s the primary character, and maybe it’s because he’s Irish, that Fintan was the hardest character of all to write. In fact I didn’t like the book until Nizhoni came along, because Fintan was very uninteresting until that point.
I’ve been asked if he’s autobiographical, but the opposite is probably more true. I think the original Fintan was too much like me, but once I changed him to be a different person, he became much more interesting to write.
The one thing we have in common was in leaving our home town of Drogheda, in Ireland. I wanted him to leave hating the place, hating the people and hating his life. Through what he discovers away from the place, he grows and learns, and for those of you who’ve read the whole trilogy, you’ll know how he changes and comes full circle. That’s part of growing up, and these books are about growing up on so many levels.
He was called Fintan from the start, as I wanted a uniquely Irish-sounding name, without going for a cliche like ‘Patrick’. Ironically, in mythology Fintan (the Wise) was a seer who accompanied Noah’s granddaughter to Ireland before the flood. A chill went down my spine when I saw that the Navajo also hav
e a flood legend. The fit was perfect.
Movies.
I’ll be honest that when I started out on this journey, I was writing something that I wanted to be commercial and marketable. It might not be the next Harry Potter, but the theme of UFOs being flown by children, and the multiple viewpoints from multiple ethnicities, the strong Japanese themes, given the popularity of Anime and Manga, as well as what I hope you’ll think is a strong story, has the ingredients of being a hit.
Several times over the years there have been nibbles on the hook of a potential movie. I even wrote several screenplays, which ended up going nowhere! These delayed the sequels, particularly the third book, to the extent that it drove my readers crazy between 2010 and 2012. Sorry folks!
Anyway, all is quiet on that front now, but if any studios are interested, give me a call... :)
I hope you enjoy these books as much as I’ve enjoyed writing them. At this time, the trilogy is complete, but there are some spin-off directions that could be taken. I’m always interested in feedback from readers, so let me know what you’d like to read!
Laurence Moroney (
[email protected])
August 2013
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About the author:
Laurence Moroney is the author of more computer books than he can count. The Legend of the Locust trilogy is his first foray into fiction, and he hopes is the beginning of many new adventures as a fiction writer. He can be found at his blog: laurencemoroney.azurewebsites.net, and on twitter @lmoroney or facebook as Laurence Moroney. He’d love to hear from you!
The other books: “The Million Year Journey.” and “The Legend of the Locust.” are available at Amazon. Barnes and Noble and good booksellers everywhere!
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