Science Fiction (First Contact)/Science Fiction (Romance)/Science Fiction (Military)
Date Published: November 26, 2019
Publisher: PhoenixPhyre
They’re already here, and no one knows about it...yet.
Two bedrock assumptions seem to find their way into almost all science fiction tales of first contact between Earth and a hypothetical alien race. The first is that we will necessarily know when it happens and the second is that alien motives will likely be malevolent. In Tier Zero, Vol. I of The Knolan Cycle, first contact occurred over thirty years ago and no one on Earth...not even SETI...has a clue it has happened.
Martin Tellus is a graduate student at UCLA. His past is riddled with mystery, including a lifelong recurring dream he cannot explain. And just as a volcano’s first discharges of gas and magma often signal a coming eruption, Marty’s dreams signal a transformative change. The transformation arrives in the form of a “chance” meeting with Lysia in philosophy class. Their connection is instantaneous.
A seductive Asian woman with an untraceable accent, Lysia sticks to Marty’s thoughts. During a casual conversation after their next class, Lysia offers to teach Marty “eastern” philosophy. But to Marty’s surprise, her teachings open a mind-bridge between them, accompanied by an intense physical connection. And Marty’s progress doesn’t end with the connection he and Lysia share. As her teachings progress, he discovers new powers, at once exhilarating and disquieting. Not for the first time, he wonders, who is Lysia really?
Marty’s questions have answers, but Lysia isn’t telling. At least not yet. The truth is she’s a Seeker and Waykeeper of Knola, in a nearby arm of our common galaxy. She’s been waiting for Marty’s awakening, specifically to be on hand to mentor him in the Way. As Marty’s powers grow with Lysia’s teachings, she realizes he’s unique in ways not even the Oracle, to whom Lysia answers foresaw.
Lysia finds Marty’s growth in the Way at once inspiring and unnerving. Sharing her concerns with her superiors back on Knola, she precipitates a fateful decision that will change Marty’s life and alter the history of both Earth and the Knolan Concordant. Tier Zero begins Marty’s perilous journey to a destiny beyond his—or anyone’s—imaginings.
Tier Zero, Volume I of The Knolan Cycle was published in November 2019. Eryinath-5, Volume II in the series is due out from PhoenixPhyre Publishing in 2021.
Interview
Is There a
Message in Your Novel That You Want Readers to Grasp?
Tier Zero, Vol. I of The Knolan Cycle, is first and foremost an
evocative adventure of first contact. But attentive readers should also see a
possible alternative to our existing social order and rewards system. The Knolans
value honor, service and a sense of stewardship above tangible personal reward.
For a Knolan, the concept of reward is inseparable from the social consequences
of their actions. Their system ups the ante on organizational responsibility. Knolan lawkeepers would never have
killed George Floyd or Breonna Taylor. Nor would the Knolan ethical framework allow
citizens to be locked into no-win economic situations or to let their for-profit
commerce guilds use their ecosystem as a sewer.
Is there
anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
I sometimes struggle with the muddy middle. We’ve all heard most
writers are either planners or pantsers as writers. I’m kind of a hybrid, or “plantser.”
I start out as a planner, meaning I map the story out in detail. But almost
invariably, the pantser comes out about half-way into the first draft. I’ll get
this really killer hair-fire that I think will make the story better and wind
up writing myself into a corner. I always seem to find my way back out, but I
do have a tendency to wander off and get lost.
How many
books have you written and which is your favorite?
I currently have four in print. My first, West of Tomorrow,
is a story of corporate intrigue, betrayal, misplaced love and the phoenix in
all of us. In Best-Case Scenario, Act I of Nyra’s Journey a young woman
fresh out of college searches for her personal and professional identity,
against daunting odds. My third work is an anthology of short stories entitled Through
the Windshield, Drive-by Lives. And my
latest is Tier Zero, Vol. I of The Knolan Cycle. Regarding my favorite.
I go back and forth. I think West of Tomorrow is a really thought-provoking
book and I’m proud of how it turned out. But I’m not sure that Tier Zero
isn’t a little better. For most, I’m guessing it comes down to genre preferences.
If You had the
chance to cast your main character from Hollywood today, who would you pick and why?
Honestly, I’d never given it much thought. Purely from a looks
perspective, I think Chris Hemsworth would make a pretty believable Marty
Tellus. He looks a lot like I picture Marty, Chris surfs as Marty does in Tier
Zero. so yeah. Chris Hemsworth is probably close to perfect.
When did you
begin writing?
I started writing in high school. Poetry and short stories,
mostly. I continued my creative writing in college but went through a 22-year
hiatus while I was in the Marine Corps. I started writing again when I went to
work in corporate America as a corporate trainer. That job proved to be the
catalyst and inspiration for my first full-length novel, West of Tomorrow.
I’m now working on my sixth novel with two more in the plotting/planning stage.
How long
did it take to complete your first book?
A lot longer than it should. You remember when you asked if
there was anything I found particularly challenging and I said the muddy middle?
I first experienced that with West of Tomorrow. I had a plan, then I got
creative, with the now-familiar dilemma of getting bogged down in the middle.
And I was still working then, so all told, I think it was close to 9 years before
West of Tomorrow saw the light of day.
Did you
have an author who inspired you to become a writer?
I can’t remember a time when I didn’t want to be an author. My
grandfather who worked for the Associated Press, had his own by-line and was
always going to write “the great American novel.” He never did and I’m sorry he
didn’t, because his command of language and nuance would have guaranteed it
would have been brilliant. So though he was never a published author in the
traditional sense, I owe my appreciation for an elegant turn of phrase to him. I
treasured the letters he wrote to me, growing up.
Additionally, there are lots of traditionally published authors
whose work I admire. F. Scott Fitzgerald, Hemingway, of course. I love the deft
prose of Jane Austin and the wry, gentle wit that shines through in many of her
stories. Then there’s Hermann Wouk and Frank Yerby, who wrote some genuinely
epic historical novels and of course Robert Heinlein, Issac Asimov, Frank
Herbert, John Scalzi and Pierce Brown for science fiction. Oh, and Robison
Welles’ speculative dystopian novels are really well done with sophisticated
characterization.
What is your
favorite part of the writing process?
I suspect almost no one is going to buy this, but for me it’s critiquing
and editing. I sponsor a critique group that has been very successful in
advancing everyone’s writing skills. They let me get away with nothing, but
they’re so helpful in how they critique that I actually look forward to their
feedback. And self-editing has gotten so much better now with the MS read-aloud
routine. Even allowing for the mechanized monotone and occasional pronunciation
glitches, it’s great for catching typos, wonky wording and verbosity.
Describe your
latest book in 4 words.
Exciting, evocative and thought-provoking.
Can you
share a little bit about your current work or what is in the future for your
writing?
I’ve just finished the refinements to Eryinath-5, Vol II of The
Knolan Cycle, the second book in the series beginning with Tier Zero.
It’s already been through peer review and beta, and I’ve passed it on to my
editor.
I’m also thirteen chapters into the first draft of The Year
of Maybe, Act II of Nyra’s Journey, the sequel to Best-Case Scenario.
And I’m in the process of planning Volume III of the Knolan Cycle, title to be
determined.
About the Author
Dirk’s path to authorship wasn’t quite an accident, but almost. It’s not that he didn’t write. He did. But through two previous careers, first as a Marine officer and subsequently as a corporate trainer, Dirk started way more stories than he finished.” But in the backwash of the 2008 financial meltdown, his employer filed for Chapter 11. Cordially invited to leave and not return, Dirk found himself out of work and excuses.
Since then, Dirk has published West of Tomorrow, Best-Case Scenario and a collection of short fiction entitled, Through the Windshield. Works in progress include A Year of Maybes, sequel to Best Case Scenario and Tier Zero, Volume I of the Knolan Cycle now available from Amazon in paperback and Kindle.
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