Two of the guiding principles in the writing for Lunatics are both rationalisn and optimism . We feel these are trends that a lot of modern science fiction media has strayed away from, and we feel it’s time to bring this more positive vision back to the field. “Darker and grittier” may have its place, but after awhile, it starts to seem a little excessive, and really it’s not as realistic as advertised. In the real world, bad things do happen, but there is also usually a very positive human response to those things, and we’d like to focus on that.
Continuing with themes in the stories for Lunatics… Here’s number twelve: Theme #12 Irrational Reasons versus Rational Excuses for Space Pioneering I know a number of space advocates who claim they want to develop space in order to get “filthy rich”. This is (or was, at least) a very popular claim, especially among openly Libertarian or Republican space enthusiasts as part of a “business-oriented” agenda. There’s just one problem: I don’t care what business plan you come up with, I guarantee you there is an easier way to make that money here on Earth than to do it by developing space.
Continuing with themes in the stories for Lunatics… Here’s number nine: Theme #9 Libertarian Visions of Space versus the Statist Reality of the Space Program Most of the serious space fans I know are in one form or another “libertarians”. They may not be actual members of the Libertarian Party, but they certainly do put a high value on individuality and personal freedom. This is not surprising — after all, they want to go live on another planet. It makes some sense that this might arise from some chafing against Earthly authority.
Continuing with themes in the stories for Lunatics… Here’s number eight: Theme #8 Family Life versus Command Hierarchies Here’s the corporate-minded, government-agency vision for starting a space colony: use your rigorous training and selection program to find eight “perfect humans”, four male, four female. Then convince them to mate and produce offspring. Maybe this would work for hamsters. But for humans, it’s going to be the other way around. ISF crews are recruited as teams and thus based on family ties more than some committee’s ideal team selection parameters. Naturally, there will be some friction between this and the military or civilian agency teams on the Moon.
Continuing with themes in the stories for Lunatics… Here’s number seven: Theme #7 Agrarian Reality versus Technocratic Image I call this the “white plastic walls” fallacy. People have an idea of spaceflight that is derived from the images created in the 1960s Moon program and lots of science fiction shows that try to glamorize it as the ultimate “futuristic” and “urban” experience. Because back then, urban was cool, and rural was always bad.
Continuing with themes in the stories for Lunatics… Here’s number six: Theme #6 Risk Averse Society versus the Thrill of the Frontier Of course, being too safe is a little scary in itself. Part of the reason people want to go is because it’s exciting. But the mores of Earth-bound society make it a sin to take too large a risk. How will that morality conflict with the ambitions of our settlers? Will they be blocked “for their own good”?
Continuing with themes in the stories for Lunatics… Here’s number five: Theme #5 Failsafes and Adaptation Space is a dangerous place, don’t get me wrong. But then again, so is Siberia or Alaska. Or the Sahara. There are dangers all over the world that are quite sufficient to kill an exposed human without important life-support or supplies. We don’t worry about that most of the time, because we’ve adapted to these dangers. We do that through the equipment we carry (starting with clothes), through the behaviors we learn, and through the environments we create for ourselves.
Continuing with themes in the stories for Lunatics… Here’s number four: Theme #4 People Who Don’t Want to Be There Won’t Be Close on the heels of my previous complaint comes this one: In an effort to drum up sympathy from audiences, some writers have portrayed characters who are constantly whining about their “plight” on the frontier. This is totally ridiculous.
Continuing with themes in the stories for Lunatics… Here’s number three: Theme #3 Fatalism versus Can-Do on the Frontier One of the unfortunate memes in movie science fiction — especially European SF for some reason — is the recurrence of the “nobel sacrifice of life” or of the triumph of hopelessness and fatalism. Some character inevitably concludes that it’s all pointless and takes their helmet off to die in the “cold hard vacuum of space”. I guess this is supposed to be symbolic of something or other, but I find it incredibly annoying. Real space pioneers just won’t act like that. Being on a frontier really focuses you on basic survival needs.
