Day 1 Homework

Why I write: I write because I have found that stories touch people's lives much more effectively than catechisms. Catechisms are necessary, of course, for soundness of doctrine. But the first thing that needs to change to transform a person is the will, and wills are never changed by force. I don't believe there's a contradiction between entertainment and truth-telling. While people don't like being preached at, I think they do open a book hoping for a journey that rings true and has meaning.

Primary category: I think my science fiction novel would fall under entertainment. I'm still not completely clear about the difference between that and escape, but I think people would read it more to see what happens at the end than for escape into a known ending. Here is my back cover blurb. Maybe you can all help me decide which it is. Russ Atkins, an ex-con space pilot with a gift for sensing mind intrusion, hungers for a fresh start on life. Restoring a telepathic child to her clan in defiance of the law is not what he has in mind. The Union of Planets, governed from twenty-third century Earth, nurtures a deep-seated loathing toward its former thought-shifting overlords, the Ilanians. Aside from an enslaved group of Ilanians, many of whom are used as special agents to hunt their own kind, all telepaths and humans who help them face execution. With a death penalty hanging over his head, Russ plunges into a criminal underworld to evade capture. But when his young friend’s clan is threatened, will Russ overcome his own prejudices to defend them against a powerful Union agent from his past?

Why would people read my book: People would want to read my book because they want a fun scifi adventure story. They will keep reading because my main character (as well as the antagonist and the secondary protagonist) are compelling characters with deep desires and problems that will resonate with them.

I will give up looking at news on my phone for an hour before getting out of bed in the morning.