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12/11/00 06:56:12 PM Opening "Chat Log 12/11/00"


FRR Mallory WRTR: GOOD EVENING EVERYONE
FRR Mallory WRTR: TONIGHT WE ARE HOSTING SPECIAL GUEST
FRR Mallory WRTR: BEN BOVA
Sryope2: Hi Ben
FRR Mallory WRTR: We Will be using protocol so please
HOST WRTR Dee: welcome Ben...
FRR Mallory WRTR: use ! or ? and ga or / when you finish
FRR Mallory WRTR: please do not type in the room until you are called by me
TheWordSlayer: Donna
FRR Mallory WRTR: Welcome to eWorld Mr. Bova
Bova1: Hello everyone. ga
HOST WRTR Dee: ?
FRR Mallory WRTR: Dee ga
FalcnEdie: Hi all sorry I was watching gordy on tv
HOST WRTR Dee: what do you see is the difference in writing s/f rather than other genres?
Bova1: In SF you are dealing with a background that nobody's seen before, so you have to "create" that world for your readers.
Bova1: ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Mr. Bova - do you outline your book prior to writing it?
FRR Mallory WRTR: ga
Bova1: No, I find outlines too confining. I start with a pair of characters in conflict and let
Sryope2: ?
Bova1: them generate the story. ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Sry ga
Sryope2: In your recent book
Sryope2: about eternal life
Sryope2: which was non-fiction
Sryope2: how do you change your mind focuse to switch from genre to genre?
Sryope2: (By the way my husband and I enjoyed meeting you in Dallas)
Sryope2: ga
Bova1: My fiction is always based on fact. I try to keep abreast of scientific work all the time. g
FRR Mallory WRTR: Horror - go ahead
ADathomir: hi:)
WingedKzintiLord: ?
HorrorJack: I was wondering if you were going to branch off into horror/dark fantasy
HorrorJack: Leisure is one of the top horror publishers today.
The13thDoctor
Bova1: Not me. I do straight SF and science nonfiction, except for the Orion stories. ga
HorrorJack: ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Winged go ahead
HorrorJack: ?
HOST WRTR Dee: ?
HorrorJack
WingedKzintiLord: can you recommend some people in the scientific community who are willing to help writers with information? ga
TheWordSlayer: ?
Bova1: There are zillions of web sites, from AAAS to NASA. Surf 'em! ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Dee go ahead
FRR Mallory WRTR: Word on deck
HOST WRTR Dee: Since you don't work from an written outline, do you still have a mental outline? Do you know your ending?
Gena HS
HOST WRTR Dee: ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: ?
Bova1: No mental outline, and I don't know the ending. I let the two conflict characters slug it out. It allows the characters much more freedom of action. ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Dee further?
HOST WRTR Dee: no, just that I like his style...thanks...ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Word go ahead
TheWordSlayer: Do you have a personal web page that tells about your work ? ga
Sryope2: ?
Bova1: I'n glad you like my style. Thanks.
Bova1: Yes. It's www.benbova.net
TheWordSlayer: thanks
FRR Mallory WRTR: Mr. Bova - what is your favorite book (that you have written and why?)
FRR Mallory WRTR: /
FalcnEdie: ?
Bova1: I think my best piece of work is the novel BROTHERS, although other books have sold...much better, ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Sryope go ahead - Falcn on deck
Sryope2: What is the best technique you used as an early writer to publicize your work?
Sryope2: In other words
Sryope2: How did you get the original sales so you can have the following
Sryope2: you currently do?
Sryope2: ga
Bova1: I started writing in the SF magazines. Three or four sales...
Bova1: ...and the readers start to recognize your name, ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Sry - follow up?
Sryope2: That's all?
Sryope2: Nothing special, no book marks
Sryope2: no freebie book signings?
Sryope2: Nothing else?
Sryope2: ga
Bova1: No. It was a long time before such promotional. stuff came along. Of course, I attended SF cons, too. ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Falcon go ahead
FalcnEdie: Did you find that your earliest novels reflected more of your personal life experiences than later books? does time change the pool of resourses you pick from? ga
Bova1: No. ALL my books come out of my life. And the lives of the people... around me. You write about what you know...
...and (more importantly) WHO you know. ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: RGugat - go ahead
FalcnEdie: did you ever feel like you were overexposing yourself? ga
Bova1: As a writer? Or are you asking about my sex life?
FRR Mallory WRTR: lol
FalcnEdie: LOL no I mean
Bova1: Anyway, the answer to both is NO. ga
The13thDoctor: LOL
FalcnEdie: there are things that I feel if I write about them, people who know me
FRR Mallory WRTR: Host Wrtr RGugat - go ahead <smiles>
CynLennin: Little Old Lady..
FalcnEdie: will immedsiatly know where the writing comes from
Host Wrtr RGugat: In your opinion, what value are conventions and which is the best for advancing a career?
FalcnEdie: sorry for ruuning on I'm done ga
Host Wrtr RGugat: ga
Bova1: Edie, people don't see you the same way you see yourself...
Bova1: They're not going to probe your innermost thoughts. Don't worry about it.
Host Wrtr RGugat: try again? Or did you get it?
The13thDoctor: ?
Bova1: RGugat, conventions are great places to meet...
FRR Mallory WRTR: <smiles>
Bova1: your potential readers and editors. ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: RGugat - further?
Host Wrtr RGugat: and part two?
Bova1: Best for advancing a career? Regional cons... where you get a chance to actually talk to the people. ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Doc go ahead
Host Wrtr RGugat: Do they have the attendance by editors?
The13thDoctor: which is harder for you to write, fiction or non-fiction?
The13thDoctor: ga
Deluge3: ?
Host Wrtr RGugat: ga
Bova1: Most cons do. Check the listed guests before deciding to attend. ga
Host Wrtr RGugat: thank you, sir
Bova1: Both fiction and nonfiction have their joys and...
their problems. Neither is easy. ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Doc - follow up?
HOST WRTR Dee: ?
Host Wrtr RGugat: Bova, Amen to that
The13thDoctor: i ask cos i have only read one of your books, a non-fiction on writing. thanks. ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Deluge go ahead - Dee on deck
Deluge3: I've noticed that betrayal is a recurring theme in your stories. Is that a trick to make it more interesting or what?
Deluge3: GA
Bova1: I haven't thought about that. Thanks for pointing it out... ...to me. Betrayal is part of the human condition, alas, so it's bound to part... of the realistic fiction that I try to write. ga
FRR Mallory WRTR: Deluge - further?
Deluge3: GA
FRR Mallory WRTR: Dee go ahead
HOST WRTR Dee: Do you ever fight mid-book blues? If so, what weapons do you use? GA
Bova1: Every book comes with the mid-book blues...
TheWordSlayer: ?
HOST WRTR Dee: phew...relieved to hear that...
Bova1: I use the writer's principal weapon: perseverence.
BFrizz: ?
FRR Mallory WRTR: Dee - further?
HOST WRTR Dee: I needed to hear that...GA
FRR Mallory WRTR: Word go ahead - BFrizz on deck
TheWordSlayer: on average how long does it take you to write a book? ga
Bova1: Dee, you just have to sit there day after day and slug it out. ga
HOST WRTR Dee: thanks..
Bova1: The average book takes from 9 to 12 months...to type out. Getting the idea to the point where...I can start typing can take years, even decades.
TheWordSlayer: thanks
FRR Mallory WRTR: Word - further?
TheWordSlayer: nope : )
Sryope2: (How long is that book?)
FRR Mallory WRTR: BFrizz go ahead
BFrizz: When writing a book, do you write EVERY day or do you take breaks, you answered my ? thank
HOST WRTR Dee: lol
FRR Mallory WRTR: <--- knows THAT feeling well
TheWordSlayer: : )
Bova1: Incidentally, I write every day. ga
TheWordSlayer: ?
FRR Mallory WRTR: Mr. Bova - why is Brothers your favorite book?
Host Wrtr RGugat: My first took 35 years
The13thDoctor: !
Bova1: BROTHERS is a contemporary novel about scientists... I think I captured the characters, the setting, and... the central problem(s). Read it and decide for yourself.
FRR Mallory WRTR: Word go ahead - Doc on deck
TheWordSlayer: aproximately how many pages a day do you write ? ga
SPultz: ?
TheWordSlayer: just doing home work for self motivation : )
Bova1: I try to get at least five double-spaced pages per day.
TheWordSlayer: thanks
FRR Mallory WRTR: Word - further?
TheWordSlayer: nope
FRR Mallory WRTR: Doc go ahead - Shirley on deck
The13thDoctor: its best if we writers write every day to keep in practice. ga
SPultz: do you ever hand write first, then type? I find if I hand write notes I do better
Bova1: No. I started on newspapers. I've used manual... typewriters, electric typewriters, desktop computers...
and laptops.
FRR Mallory WRTR: RGugat go ahead - JES on deck
Bova1: If hand writing works for you, by all means do it your way!
Host Wrtr RGugat: Can you put that daily output in terms of a number of words? -- The standard 1000?
SPultz: thanks.ga
HOST WRTR Dee: ?
Bova1: For me, five pages is around 1200 words.
FRR Mallory WRTR: RGugat - further?
JES No Time: Do you try to keep your books to any certain number of pages or words? ga
Bova1: No, I don't consciously set a size for a novel.
JES No Time: Let the book write itself?
The13thDoctor: !
Bova1: Yes, let the book write itself. Although sometimes...
the story needs several volumes before it's complete.... As in my VOYAGERS trilogy.
JES No Time: Thanks
FRR Mallory WRTR: Dee go ahead - Doc on deck
Bova1: I'm now working on an interlinked set of novels that includes...MARS, RETURN TO MARS, MOONRISE, MOONWAR... VENUS and (next month) JUPITER.
HOST WRTR Dee: Any tips to give on the re-writing task? How much rewriting do you do? GA
HOST WRTR Dee: impressive...
JES No Time: Very
Bova1: With computers, I'm rewriting constantly. I start each day by... reviewing (and often rewriting) the previous day's work.
FRR Mallory WRTR: Dee - further?
HOST WRTR Dee: how do you avoid being obsessive about it?
TheWordSlayer: ?
Bova1: I AM obsessive about it! Ask my wife!
FRR Mallory WRTR: Doc go ahead - RGugat on deck
The13thDoctor: you just write the book and stop when the story is done.
HOST WRTR Dee: ah...another obsessed person..
Bova1: As I said, the characters generate the story. When they've resolved their conflict...the story is finished.
FRR Mallory WRTR: Doc - further?
SPultz: ?
The13thDoctor: thank you. GA
FRR Mallory WRTR: RGugat go ahead - Word on deck
Host Wrtr RGugat: Do you find that your characters develop minds of their own?
Host Wrtr RGugat: ga
WingedKzintiLord: ?
Bova1: They do if the story's going well. If they don't, it gets pretty dull. I don't want to...sit there all day talking to myself!
FRR Mallory WRTR: RGugat - further?
Host Wrtr RGugat: Bova, very good
Host Wrtr RGugat: ga
Bova1: Thank you.
FRR Mallory WRTR: Word go ahead - Shirley on deck
TheWordSlayer: Do you just write it all out then later split it up into chapters ? GA
Bova1: No, I try to write scenes that become the chapters.
FRR Mallory WRTR: Shirley go ahead - Winged on deck
SPultz: don't you ever do any character analysis before you start to write about them?
TheWordSlayer: thanks Bova
HOST WRTR Paul: Hi, all! [Had to unload a big rig full of toys]
Bova1: I do YEARS of character analyses. Only when I know the characters can I start writing...their story.
FRR Mallory WRTR: Shirley - further?
SPultz: no
FRR Mallory WRTR: Winged go ahead
WingedKzintiLord: have you ever created a monster that wants to just keep on growing? something that looked like a short story and became more?
WingedKzintiLord: ga
Bova1: Can't say that I have. I know Hemingway claimed all his novels began as short stories.
WingedKzintiLord: or the chapter that turns into a short story?
Bova1: I've taken sections of a novel and sold them as... short fiction to magazines.
FRR Mallory WRTR: Mr. Bova - do you believe your current series will end with Jupiter?
WingedKzintiLord: thanks :)
Bova1: No, JUPITER won't finish the mega-tale. I'll do at least four more. The next novel deals with the asteroids. It will... be titled THE PRECIPICE.
FRR Mallory WRTR: Do you have any trouble getting published with your long reputation?
Bova1: No trouble getting published. But lots of arguing over how much I should be paid.
HOST WRTR Paul: ?
FRR Mallory WRTR: Paul go ahead
HOST WRTR Paul: Soon it will 2001. Best guess: when will we REALLY get to that level?
Bova1: If you mean the level of the movie 2001...
HOST WRTR Paul: Yes
Bova1: it will probably take 40 or 50 years. But we'll... get back to the Moon sooner than that. It just won't be so fancy. At first.
FRR Mallory WRTR: Paul - further?
Bova1: Take a look at my novels MOONRISE and MOONWAR.
HOST WRTR Paul: About the use of nanotech
HOST WRTR Paul: You use it in MOONWAR but in a limited way. Is it a pipe dream?
HOST WRTR Paul: ga
JsmnStrm: Hi everyone, I'm so sorry I'm late........
Bova1: Nanotechnology will be developed, I'm sure. And it will be opposed, just as I showed in...MOONWAR and subsequent novels.
FRR Mallory WRTR: Paul - further?
HOST WRTR Paul: I emailed you before about space colonies. Your COLONY is luxurious. Others are depicted as cramped, even dystopian. Will it really be that easy to get an ecosystem, etc., going?
Bova1: The "colony" in COLONY was built to be... luxurious. It was a symbol of the distance...between the rich and the poor.
FRR Mallory WRTR: Sryope go ahead - only a few minutes left
Sryope2: You use science to fuel your novels, are you looking forward to inspiring science as much of sci fi has done. In fact part of 2001 and star trek have inspired new technologies on the ISS
Bova1: It's much easier for the writers than for the engineers, Paul.
HOST WRTR Paul: True, Ben!
Sryope2: ga
Bova1: I hope that SF inspires youngsters to become...
scientists or engineers. Not writers!
FRR Mallory WRTR: We will now go to a few short minutes of open chat
Sryope2: Which of your ideas would you like to see become reality?
HOST WRTR Dee: that's a great question, Sryope...
Bova1: The human expansion through the solar system...
with all that it entails. Thanks, gang. It's been fun.
HOST WRTR Dee: and an even better answer
Kathi Smith 116: Haven't we damaged enough planets? Must we spread our poison?
FRR Mallory WRTR: We thank you Mr. Bova for being our welcome guest tonight
HOST WRTR Dee: sure, why not...we're humans...lol
Kathi Smith 116: lol
SPultz: we haven't done such a great job on earth
JES No Time: Do you read SF by any other authors?
TheWordSlayer: Kathi in leaving here we give the earth time to heal
HOST WRTR Dee: Yes...Mr. Bova...thank you...particularly your mid-book blues answer..and all the rest
Bova1: Thanks and goodnight.
TheWordSlayer: thank you very much Mr Bova : )
JES No Time: Thanks
SPultz: Thanks Mr. Bova for your time
Kathi Smith 116: Nah, we'll leave too many of us behind, those space ships are a tight squeeze...
FRR Mallory WRTR: thank you everyone for being a great crowd tonight
WingedKzintiLord: Thanks for taking time to chat with us Mr.Bova. :)
Kathi Smith 116: Thank you, Mr. Bova. Great chat
The13thDoctor: thanks mr bova
HOST WRTR Paul: Well at least I got to ask Mr Bova my questions. :-)
FRR Mallory WRTR: made my life easy <smiles>
FRR Mallory WRTR: I tried to give you a little extra time Paul since you were so late arriving <smiles>
FalcnEdie: He lives right up the street from me and I've never met him
HOST WRTR Paul: Anyone likes what they see, email me! For info about our group here. :-)
HOST WRTR Dee: Steel...you did an excellent job...
FRR Mallory WRTR: thank you Dee <smiles>
HOST WRTR Dee: applause...applause to Steel
HOST WRTR Paul: Great job, Steel!
FRR Mallory WRTR: ::::bows bows::: <giggles>
FalcnEdie: duh you mean Steel is .......????
SPultz: great job Steel< grins>
Sryope2: Great job Steel
FRR Mallory WRTR: we had a very full room Dee
Kathi Smith 116: Night all
FRR Mallory WRTR: you must have been swamped
HOST WRTR Dee: night Kathi
FRR Mallory WRTR: 24 members several times
Deluge3: Crime is lower when people know their neighbors & look out for each other.
FalcnEdie: g'nite all great night with Bova
SPultz: Nite all,great chat
HOST WRTR Dee: it was busy...but fun..25 was top number

12/11/00 08:01:41 PM Closing "Chat Log 12/11/00"

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