Shannon McDermott is an author of science fiction and has been occupied for years with constructing scenarios of the colonization of Mars. Always a fan of the genre, she reviews Christian speculative fiction with Lorehaven. Her interests include history, classic literature, and lattes. She lives in the great Midwest, where she does her best to avoid icy weather, sweltering heat, and tornadoes, according to the season.
In this interview, Shannon talks with us about The Time Door, which kicks-ff her new The Eternities Duology Series.
FF: What inspired the story in your book?
At its most basic, the story is about a Martian colony abandoned by Earth because the government ran out of money—a classic sci-fi trope with a modern twist. The likely conditions of the first human settlement on Mars provided another inspiration. It would be dangerous, yes, but even more, it would be isolating, monotonous, and very cramped. Imagine four people locked into rigid routines, living in a single, (mostly) unescapable building, with the rest of humanity millions of miles away. A poisonous psychological brew.
And imagine, back on Earth, an economic crisis that dwarfed the Great Depression. They would hardly be able to keep society together. And that idea—that both Mars and Earth were, in their own way, struggling to survive—became one of the most important themes of the story.
FF: What can you tell us about the main characters in your book?
The main characters are the four explorers stranded on Mars. Each was chosen to play a role: a doctor, a scientist, an engineer, a soldier. Their personalities—ranging from quiet to brash, from active to reflective—are not as complementary. But despite their differences and their clashes, they all made the decision to spend four years on Mars. Makes you wonder what they did, or didn’t, leave behind on Earth.
FF: Why do you think storytelling is such a powerful way to share truth?
Storytelling takes us from the abstract to the concrete. It’s the difference between explaining the physics of how tires lose traction on ice and telling the story of someone whose car crashed during an ice storm. Stories bring us to the human side of things. They go from what to who, from how to why. That engages both our hearts and our minds. We know well enough that ice is slippery. But the image of the car spinning out of control brings home the consequences, and thought of the person in the car—and the person waiting at home—makes us feel why it matters.
Stories also, by the by, get around our biases and our defensiveness. When Nathan rebuked David, he began with a story. He stirred up David’s sense of justice against the rich man who robbed a poor man, and then, “You are the man!”
FF: What can readers expect from the rest of this series?
Eternities is a series of stand-alone novels, each self-contained and all interconnected. You can expect to meet new characters and be reunited with old friends, to encounter technological revolutions, and to explore themes of friendship, isolation, purpose, and change.
FF: How do you get into the right frame of mind to write for your genre/audience?
I write in my favorite genre, so it is easy to have a sense of what is interesting and what works. It is important to know the genre in which you write, but it is even more important to enjoy it. This is, incidentally, one of the reasons why writers should make it a habit to read and to watch other people’s creations.
FF: What are the biggest challenges for you as an author writing in your specific genre?
The hardest part of writing science-fiction is the science. That was not my best subject in school, and I have to be careful in using real terms and concepts. And in inventing fictional ones, for that matter.
FF: What authors or books have inspired you as an author?
There has been a whole crop over the years. Like so many Christian authors, I would list Tolkien and Lewis pretty high. Another influence—and one that is not, I think, very common—is the old “scientifiction” magazines. I had a phase when I listened to anthology after anthology of short sci-fi stories from the 1930s to the 1960s. Not all of these stories were good. But even the bad ones usually had the spark of an idea. It was not any one story that inspired me. It was all of them—the whole breadth of ideas and inventiveness, and the way in which the stories explored questions about humanity, society, and the future.
FF: How has your faith or world view impacted the way you tell stories?
My faith governs my understanding of the universe, of who we are and who God is. Those beliefs are inseparable from storytelling. The stories we tell will always be shaped by what we see around us and how we understand it. I usually don’t include much in the way of overt religion in my novels. But you will find my beliefs about right and wrong, my conviction that human beings are both morally fallen and invaluable, and my certainty that although the world is often a bleak place, it is never a hopeless one, because we are not alone here. All of that—especially the hope, which comes from God—is the impact of my faith.
The Time Door
The Eternities Duology Series #1
Shannon McDermott
Enclave Publishing
Genres: SciFi
Release Date: October 29, 2024
ASIN: B0CYSCBBCX
ISBN-13: 979-8886051544
Book Summary:
A reckless last mission on Mars, a crusade for justice on Earth.
Reuben Jackson is the only one who still cares about Mars. In the shambles of the Great Collapse, Earth has abandoned the Mars explorers to their fate. But Reuben will make a stand for the Mars team—even against the powerfully united politicians and scientists. In too deep, he discovers hidden conspiracies and unexpected allies.
As the conflict mounts on Earth, time runs down on Mars. Left to face Mars alone, Commander Donegan Moynihan and his team have no hope of surviving after their supplies are gone. Willing to accept a quicker death than starvation, the explorers strike out on a dangerous mission. They venture deep inside the ancient volcano of Arsia Mons, into perils and secrets long buried. What they discover would move mountains on Earth—but will it be enough to save themselves?
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