My Sci-Fi Universe: Some details for you all

I'm making a galaxy and a series of novels, novellas, and lore that fit within it. If you like your worlds rich and chaotic, maybe this will scratch your itch.

Some of you may or may not know of a famous game called ‘EVE Online’, but this game was a decade of my life, and is one of the most famous sandboxes in the world. If you do know of it then some of this may sound familiar to you, and if you don’t then let’s just use Star Wars as a grounding for your expectations.

Humanity extended into the stars long ago and found a stable wormhole that allowed them to move to a distant galaxy. As humans colonised this new galaxy with settlements and outposts, the presence of humans grew, becoming their own group away from the decay and bureaucracy of earth. Nobody knows how or why but the wormhole disappeared, scattering the settlements to the winds and leaving them to fend for themselves. They entered a new dark age, cut off from each other and their progenitor they lost all ties. Each civilisation grew from their settlements and became distinct, and then re-emerged into the galaxy and vied for control.

The book series is intended to cover many different things, from the religious hegemony and zealotry of sects and religions, to government, miliary, and corporate interests. I won’t reveal any of the races, but there are four main ones that are descended from a common humanity, and then there are others that you would consider the native species of the galaxy. The series explores the tension between these civilisations as they navigate power struggles and the diplomacy between them, as well as a shared threat and opportunity that it brings.

I’ve mapped out the books to be somewhat a 10 book series, but aren’t intended to necessarily ‘wrap up.’ The way I’ve structured them there are subplots as well as an overarching plot that threads between them all, but I don’t want it to have this tidy ‘ending’ you would expect. Humans are messy, fractious, and imperfect, so there will be mini endings and plot wrap-ups that make people happy enough that things are moving in the right/wrong direction, but not that everyone is suddenly attaining Buddhahood and have given away all their imperfections.

When will the first book be ready?

I’ve been aiming to get at least the first book ready for some time in 2026. I’m also working on my fantasy project alongside it, but I can easily see that within the next year they will be ready for publishing. I will begin writing the next book in the series immediately, and it will give you a different perspective and switch between the races. Each book has numerous points of view and switches between characters around the galaxy, however the main characters will shift, and the main race telling the story will shift as well.

Once I’m happy with the way the first chapter looks I will put it out for free on here. Each proceeding chapter will be released on here but only to paying subscribers. I want to make sure there is a print version of each book, and I will be funding that work by the paid subscribers that want to support the work and read the chapters as they arrive. I will also permit annual subscribers access to be able to be beta readers, which will give you direct access to where I write and a way for you to add notes, suggestions, and feedback. Not every subscriber will get access to this though as I can’t let in monthly people as I may end up drowned in notes and comments that slow me down (sorry guys).

How does this differ from other things like EVE Online or Star Wars?

Good question but nobody ever said that you weren’t allowed to take an idea and make it your own. EVE was such a magnificent part of my gaming life, and spanned alliances, planets, and whole regions of their fictional galaxy, that I can’t help but copy some of their ideas with my own twist. There will likely be a lot of comparisons but I want to tell the stories, lives, and personal struggles alongside the galactic conflict and struggle for dominance. In EVE there is a lot of talk about the four races trying to reign supreme, but I see my galaxy as a lot more nuanced.

There is diplomacy, there are families that have people from the different races, there is conflict, disagreement, but there is also compromise and togetherness. It may be a bleak galaxy but there are bright moments and beauty within it. I think that is what sets it apart. Star Wars also has the kind of grit and conflict you’d expect from galactic war and politics but due to the nature of the beast there is a lot more focus on the tension and the conflict. You get beautiful moments and scenery from the shows, such as the awesome vistas of Coruscant, or the cloud city of Bespin, but what is missing are the real lives and how they all weave together within the galaxy.

That’s where this differs. That’s where I’m trying to take my work whilst also setting it in the grand space opera I know I want to write. That’s what I’m after.

Will you give us more information and looks at what you’re intending?

Absolutely. One of the things I like the most as a writer is building up a compendium or codex of lore. It’s something I’ve learned from gaming, and also from Dungeons and Dragons, and it’s something I put into my writing. A lot of us get really into the lore and the information about worlds we like. It’s the same in Game of Thrones, World of Warcraft, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, and many others. As I’m writing and putting out the books, I will also put together pieces that speak about the planets, science, politics, racial adaptations over the millennia, and how it all slots together.

I will also create websites that are specific to each series. For this particular series there will be drawings, technical documents, memos, religious texts, and a great manner of things I will make over time to add to it. I love writing in this way because it helps me writing stories and it helps people to feel more connected with the universes they like the most. This will take time but this is a long-term goal for people who want to use all this information in things such as game campaigns, lore discussions, and many other things.

How will these books be published?

I will publish directly as eBooks in all of the usual places you would expect, but I’m intending on making paperbacks and eventually hardback copies available. The physical versions will have a bigger expense due to cover art, styling, and editing, and I am considering setting these up on Kickstarter. I will then have the money to make these available and won’t have to skimp on making a good product you would be happy to own. It’s quite established to do it this way and means I don’t lose money by having large print volumes made if the book doesn’t sell.

Sensible.

Right, I think I’ve said enough. If any of this interests you then I beg of you, just like this article so I know you’re out there. I want to write this for myself because my head is full of this galaxy and writing it will be like opening a tap, it would just be good to know if people are interested in reading it.

I hope you like it. Feel free to ask me questions as we go along, and look out for information and teasers of chapters, people from the galaxy, and lore snippets I will write.