By Cynnara Tregarth

I know right now, many of you are
thinking that Cynnara Tregarth is a superhero junkie. You are not wrong in this.
I love my superheroes- but that’s another post for another time. You might think
that I’m a huge fan of Underdog! I loved the show growing up, and I probably always
well. Yet, this weekend, there were two specials on the Science Channel which made
me think about the genres I love and how they really truly affect me personally
and professionally. Thus—we’re talking outer space.

The final frontier—to go where no
man has gone before. My father is a first generation Trekker. I grew up watching
the first sets of reruns on television. I watched the original cartoons of Star
Trek. The vision of Gene Roddenberry created for that universe within his
“Horatio Hornblower to the stars” is something that’s permeated the way
I view things. I am a Trekker. I’ve been to Trek only conventions, I’ve met the
actors, and I’ve read the books. I’ve even met some of the authors who write Star
Trek novels. (I am beyond jealous- it’s on my list of things I want to do!) The
messages that Gene, the actors, the scriptwriters are part of who I am—I treat everyone
as being worthy of my attention and as being equally fascinating.

One of the things I learned from Star
Trek was how people view themselves and their culture versus others. “Let That
Be Your Last Battlefield,” an episode in the third season of the original series,
the story of Cheron hit me hard as a child. To me, it was a lesson in how humanity
was humanity, regardless of looks and there are so many other reasons for war, this
should not be one of them. It’s funny to think that now as a writer this episode
still comes into play. My book, Treaty
of Desire, deals with a treaty that people on both sides need but others are
trying to break. One of the underlying themes of the story deals with purity of
both the shifters and the Fey. I didn’t realize until reviews came in, just how
much this episode and Star Trek impacted not just my life, but my writing. My themes
often reflect different things I’ve learned from Star Trek and from Star Wars. In
fact, I laugh over the Tribbles in Star Trek. Loved Harcourt Fenton Mudd- the con
man of the universe and the trouble he caused. Then there’s Q. *sighs* Oh, there
is so much a writer could do with Q that sometimes I wonder if I had been given
the chance to play with that entire concept, just how I’d have played it out. In
the books, there’s a book entitled, Q-in-Law. If you’ve never read any of the Star
Trek: The Next Generation books—I highly recommend it if you are a Q lover. It gave
me happiness and laughing like nothing else. It also provided me with inspiration
found in Games
Empaths Play.

So, I tend as a writer to look toward
the stars in my life. I grew up during the time of Star Wars and let me tell you
right now- I was determined to marry Luke Skywalker when I was old enough. In fact,
we won’t talk about the fanfic I wrote through the years. But that writing stood
me in good stead once I started creating my own universes. I admit that I had a
crush on Luke Skywalker for the longest time, okay, if you push, I’d still say I
have that crush—but don’t tell my fiancé. He thinks he’s a Han Solo sort and yeah.
We won’t go there. What has always intrigued me about Star Wars is how the world
seemed to embrace Star Wars and its mythos as its own reality and at the same time,
being part of our own mythos as well. I love myths and legends, so finding out more
on where George Lucas got the ideas on the Force, Jedi Knights, and other concepts
fascinated me then and as a writer, it’s still fascinating. In fact, I often look
to ancient religions and beliefs of others for various ideas to bring to the table
when it comes to my stories.

There’s nothing like the story arcs
in Star Wars to make the geek in me to go “Oooohhh!” The writer in me
is in awe while the editor in me is whimpering. Trust me, the editor in me whimpers
because of the continuity issues that would have to be kept straight. Can we say
notebooks, index cards and more? Yes, yes we can. But at the same time, it’s what
I do now for my series books. It helps me to keep track of everything I need to
do and track for my characters as they learn, grow, and hopefully resolve everything.

My friends over the years have asked
if I love sci-fi more than any other genre. The answer is no. But I find that sci-fi
allows me to create technology that isn’t available yet. Fantasy allows me to use
magick and play with Elves. (There is a story there, one we won’t talk about. LOL)
Mysteries allow me to murder and get away with it. Romance is in everything I do—because
love is part of life. But sci-fi has been a huge influence on my life and in my
writing. I look to those who wrote Star Trek, Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, Logan’s Run and others. I’m
grateful to them. Without their stories, without them stepping forward, I would
have no place to start. I am lucky I came to Doctor Who when I was young. I saw
Tom Baker’s run and fell in love with quirky special effects and a love for all
things British. It still plays in my writing today. (I would not turn down an offer
to write for Doctor Who or a revival of Torchwood with Captain Jack Harkness. *sighs
happily*)

My writing has grown because of these
masterpieces. I’ve learned pacing, how to write cliffhangers, and how to tease relentlessly
those who read my work. It’s all fair since I wait and whinge when I have to wait
for new movies, new seasons, and new books! But I’ve also learned something else—when
you develop a series that comes alive to so many people, you have an obligation
to see it through to the end. You must give it your best at all times and plan for
it completely. As long as you do that, you can play in that world and give joy to
so many people.

Which is why I’m so happy with my
upcoming story, tentatively called Pirate Queen’s Rebellion. It’s a world that I
developed when I was dealing with the aftermath of my mom’s death and my own health
issues. I spent time indulging in my sci-fi fun and figured out that I wanted to
write something sci-fi but with a romantic twist. What I hadn’t counted on is that
the characters would demand more from me than I originally planned. Yet, in the
end, I’m beyond thrilled with the world created and the universe that’s now there
to play in. It might be some time before I come back, but at the same time, it’s
fully developed that I can drop in at any time. That to me, is a gift that a writer
prays for all the time.

So, take the time to look to the sky.
Find your path to your writing. Find the path to your joy. Sometimes you might find
that a bit of science fiction might just lead you to a path you never considered.
It might be just the thing you need to ease the pains of the day or to launch you
in a new direction for your writing. Either way, you might just say, “It’s
a bird, it’s a plane, no—it’s a spaceship!”

Website: http://cynnara.com

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