| Introduction |
Hello,
and welcome once again to our corner of the universe called Beyond
the Words. Here, we travel the universe of science fiction
and fantasy, never content to remain in our own world and time.
This month, we're going to take a walk on the dark and wild side,
visiting several different worlds and times, as we wander through
a new anthology by Carl Rafala. Fasten your seatbelts
and suspend your hold on reality. Now, you're ready to enter
the dark realm of Wildflower.
 |
Reviewed
by Jo Rogers, MyShelf.Com |
These stories are truly wildflowers, stories with haunting endings.
The namesake story, WILDFLOWER, is about a kind of farming that we
have yet to see. No crops are planted on these faraway worlds,
just livestock. And the livestock aren't animals, they are colonists.
It has a most unusual ending, one that left me wanting to know what
happened afterward.
The book, however doesn't begin with that story, but with a story
called SOUL SOLUTION. It is a story set on the Saturnian moon,
Titan. It gives a new meaning to the phrase "stepping in something."
There is also a lesson in how far a scientist will go to gain knowledge.
There is also a story about a boy in a box, an assassin hampered with
a conscience, and a hunter who learns a hard lesson about "sport hunting."
There is also a story about drug addiction, and much, much more.
Each of these gems explores the dark side of human nature and has
a jarring ending that really makes you think. Each of them could
also be turned into an equally dark novel, but even as short works,
they will stay with you long after you finish the book.
WILDFLOWER is also available from Barnes
& Noble, Book
Surge.Com, GreatUNpublished website,
and his website
at The Author's den. Readers from the United Kingdom, European
Union, Australia and New Zealand can order the books directly from
him at his site and receive free shipping
 |
The
Nuts and Bolts: A Creator Who Challenges |
Now, let's get
down to the nuts and bolts as we ask Mr. Rafala to show us how these
stories came to be.
JO Rogers: Mr. Rafala, welcome to Beyond the Words. First
of all, where did you get the idea for SOUL SOLUTION?
Carl Rafala: I was wondering how two people might try and survive
should they find themselves in what would otherwise be a "no win"
situation. However, as I am sure you noticed, I didn't really answer
the question at the end of the story, because I wasn't so convinced
myself. So I left a shadow of doubt for the reader to mull over.
JR: The story
ERASE AND REWIND is quite startling. Can you tell us where you
got the idea without giving away any of the ending?
CR: It is startling, isn't it? Well, I can't really say where
this idea
came from. This was one of those extremely rare moments when
I just started writing without really thinking about it--and wham!
There it was.
JR: In NEXUS,
Chasers eradicate life forms that interfere with the process of terraforming.
Do you think terraforming is a practical way of colonizing another
world?
CR: Terraforming is still a very young concept within the realm
of science. It can be done using various techniques, but the process
can be so cumbersome and takes so much time. Not to mention
the huge margin for error that exists for such a feat. I don't
think it is practical right now. Maybe later, when science catches
up to our ideas.
JR: Do you
feel native life forms are expendable to make a world habitable for
human beings?
CR: Not at all. If there is life on another world, even
if it is just
simple animal life, then we should stay away. However, knowing
human history as we all do, I have no doubt that someone will try
anyway. Sad but true.
JR: Is this
a statement as well about "sport" hunting?
CR: Absolutely. If we can't even manage our own world
properly, what makes us think we can manage another? Many people
think that because we are the top life form that we have a right to
take what we want. Many also think that there won't be any dangerous
consequences. Wiping out species for sport or any other purpose
endangers the ecosystem--a system that also keeps US alive, as well
as the animals. I am amazed that people--and intelligent people--fail
to see that.
JR: That is
sad, but true. Where did the idea for NEXUS come from?
CR: I was reading about the extinction of species, and how
it affects us. I began wondering if we would approach the prospect
of a new world with the same attitude that we have to our own.
Would we make the same errors? I think so.
JR: MEMORY
WITHOUT PAIN raises the specter of forced treatment for personality
traits perceived as undesirable to an employer. Do you think
it is a future possibility? Do you think there is any of that
going on now?
CR: Is it a future possibility? Of course. We know
that similar
treatments have been performed for years on spies, special CIA agents,
snipers, special forces persons, even cults. And not just in
this country, but in many countries. Although the treatments
used today are not medical or chemical, as in the story (at least
not that we know of), I think the term still used today is 'brainwashing'.
JR: RED DREAMS
is a complicated story. Where did the idea for it originate?
Do you know someone like Ione?
CR: Well, RED DREAMS grew over the course of three years, and has
seen various incarnations. I began thinking about virtual reality
and sentient, or intelligent self-aware, computers (such as the one
Ione uses in the story). Then I began thinking what if programs can
become sentient? Like snuff films, what if someone accidentally
recorded a person's last images, and what if those images became self-aware?
Do I know anyone like Ione? Well, not really. But her emotional state
is loosely based on a past girlfriend who had depression problems.
JR: REPEAT
PERFORMANCE and A STORY OF KINDNESS are both really bizarre stories.
Where did the ideas for those originate?
CR: For REPEAT PERFORMANCE, the story wasn't working, so I
just got fed up and started acting silly. I began 'talking'
to the character in the story, and vice versa. When I stopped,
I realized the story was working. So I kept it that way.
Sort of light-hearted.
A STORY OF KINDNESS was born out of strange stories you always hear
from the dispossessed (or at least I did, living in South Africa.
I heard some real whoppers from wandering folks). Usually they
want something, money, food, but they get to it in a round-about way.
So I figured that this type of living would continue, particularly
in a post-apocalyptic society.
JR: Do you
think we will see a society like that in A STORY OF KINDNESS?
CR: I hope not. Unless somes drops the "big one".
JR: COMPANION
is really a story that left me feeling that there was much more to
the story. Is there any plan to make it, or any of the other
stories for that matter, into a novel?
CR: I like the fact that most of the time my work leaves one
feeling that there should be more. Life is never clear-cut,
so why I don't make my stories clear-cut.
I have toyed with the idea of MEMORY WITHOUT PAIN and RED DREAMS becoming
novels. I am currently in the process of trying to sell RED
DREAMS as a movie treatment. I have yet to hear from the film
producer who has read my treatment.
JR: I wish
you the best of luck in that endeavor. INVISIBLE WAR also seems to
be only a small part of a much larger story. Why did you confine
it to a short story?
CR: Well, the main idea of the story was a man's punishment
for his crimes. So I needed to limit it to that for effectiveness.
Sometimes a short story can deliver a punch that is harder than a
novel.
JR: What went
into the creation of all these interesting characters?
CR: A lot of my own fears and doubts about people, humanity.
JR: How many
worlds are represented here? Are any of them besides Titan located
in a specific place?
CR: There are several different worlds here. With the
exception of Titan, these worlds can be anywhere. I think that
ambiguity adds a dimension of reality to each story. The characters
are the focus, and the backdrop merely a setting that could easily
be earth, or anywhere else.
JR: Now, there
is one question that always comes to mind when I read dark fiction.
Why do you write this kind of story?
CR: Partly as a place to send my own fears, a catharsis, if
you will.
Partly because the ideas/fears/hopes in dark stories tend to be closer
to life than 'feel-good' escapism. I want readers to be moved,
challenged. It is only when this happens that we grow as individuals.
This has been a lot of fun for me, and I hope for you too. Thank
you for taking the time to talk to us.
| Email: carlrafala@hotmail.com |
| Website: www.authorsden.com/carlrafala |
That ends our journey for this time. Join me next month for a journey to... well, I don't know where we'll go yet. But until then, happy reading.