Creating characters via AI art

 

I'll admit I haven't done much in the way of writing for some time. I'm afraid that muse I don't believe in has pouted and gone somewhere else. Maybe she'll be back some time and I might yet finish the story I half finished. Or have another go at the one which pokes me in the ribs from time to time.

As a matter of fact, while playing with the art AI, Midjourney, I've several times been tempted to use some of the scenes in my books as prompts to get the AI creating. I talked a bit about that last week. This week, I had a go at creating a picture of one of the scenes in my short story, Ink. To do that, I stated reading the novella and didn't stop until I'd finished it. I think it's one of the best things I've written.

So, here's an early scene…

"He walked beside Razza along the gently sloping path leading through a meadow of grasses and wild flowers down to the lake. Four fishing boats drifted at anchor, their shapes mirrored in the dark water. Beyond the lake the mountains rose into an azure sky. For once, the snow-covered peaks were not burdened with the usual expanse of cloud. Golden-leafed forest edged the far side of the lake. Higher up, evergreens covered the lower slopes, and above them, the sun glinted off dark cliffs too steep to hold the snow."

Here's what the AI came up with (with a little bit of help from Photoshop to add the boats).

 

Then I thought I'd see what the AI could come up with to give me an image of Admiral Ashkar Ravindra. As with most things, many iterations are often needed to get a result. The eyes were a Photoshop addition. Even without the strange eyes, I was very happy with this one. It was better than anything I've found on any of the stock image sites.

 

Ink is a story about how Ravindra got his famous tattoo. Maybe some time I'll see if I can create a picture of that tattoo, but at least I could find a reasonably acceptable alternative on a stock image site.

 

Some rites of passage should be remembered…

Life’s good for 18-year-old Ashkar Ravindra. School’s over, and he’s been accepted into the Fleet Academy. There’s time for one last trip up into the mountains in the brand new flitter his father gave him as a graduation present, before his real life, the one he’s been groomed for from the day he was born, begins in earnest.

Up in the mountains not everyone is pleased to see the privileged admiral’s son. Jealousy and ulterior motives turn the pleasant hunting trip into an ordeal. Lives are a stake. If Ashkar makes the wrong decision, he will be the first to die.

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Cheers,

Greta

 

 

 

Some rites of passage should be remembered

Right now I'm in the middle of NaNoWriMo, writing Morgan's Misfits 3. I don't have much to say about that since I'm making it up as I go along, so here's something I did earlier.

Ink is one of my favorite pieces of writing. It's a short story about a major character in my Morgan Selwood series. Admiral Ashkar Ravindra is commander of the Manesai fleet which 'rescues' Supertech Morgan Selwood and her shipmate, accountant Tony Jones, from a slow death on their freighter Curlew. With a failed shift drive the ship can't go to hyperspace and is stuck with traveling through real spacetime, which means Morgan and Tony will run out of air, food and water long before they're likely to get anywhere. That story is told in Morgan's Choice.

Ravindra comes from a very regimented society, where everyone belongs to one of four classes, which are unable to breed together. The original intention of the people who genetically engineered the Manesai may well have been "a place for everyone and everyone in their place". But  it doesn't always work out that way.

Ravindra is a member of the military class, the Mirka. Naturally, each class had developed its own sub-classes (because people are like that) and Ravindra's family is part of the Darya group – from which most Manesai admirals are recruited. His father was an admiral, his grand-father was an admiral, young Ravindra is going to be an admiral, he will marry the daughter of an admiral. His path is mapped out for him.

And yet, Admiral Ravindra has a tattoo. Not some small, discrete bit of ink that people wouldn't notice. He has a bloody great vulsaur tattooed all over his right shoulder, down his back and over his bicep. That photo at top left doesn't really do it justice, but you get the idea. So why does that matter? Ah, you see, Mirka – and most especially Darya Mirka – don't have tattoos. Troopers have tatts, admirals don't. So what in the wild world would have resulted in eighteen-year-old Ravindra, with school finished and the acceptance to the Fleet Academy in his pocket, having a tattoo?

You'll have to read the story to find out. Here's the blurb.


Life's good for 18-year-old Ashkar Ravindra. School's over, and he's been accepted into the Fleet Academy. There's time for one last trip up into the mountains in the brand new flitter his father gave him as a graduation present, before his real life, the one he's been groomed for from the day he was born, begins in earnest.

Up in the mountains not everyone is pleased to see the privileged admiral's son. Jealousy and ulterior motives turn the pleasant hunting trip into an ordeal. Lives are a stake. If Ashkar makes the wrong decision, he will be the first to die.

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However, I'm not giving much away to tell you it concerns a vulsaur, which looks a bit like our mythical dragon. In one scene in the story, I wanted to have the vulsaur take off from quite a low start. Large flying creatures (on our planet, anyway) either leap off high places and glide or they need a long takeoff. But I didn't want to do that. So rather than emulate an albatross or a swan, the vulsaur acts like an osprey.

I took this series of pictures down the beach a couple of years ago. The osprey has gone for a bathe in the shallows. Now he's finished and he wants to take off. Basically, with his wings raised vertically, he jumps, then brings those wings down hard. And he's off.

 And now it's back to Misfits 3.

Diversity pops up its head - again

I've just finished reading yet another article about diversity in fantasy and science fiction. Why we need to build more diverse worlds in fiction. A lot of what this article has to say seems to be about 'people of colour'. Let me quote.

'Fictional worlds that prioritize the representation and reflection of the lives of people of color is vital; for just like anyone else, says sci-fi/fantasy author Kirk Johnson, people of color “hunger to see [themselves] as heroic figures, desperate parents, star-crossed lovers, or battle-weary outcasts.”'

Yes. True. Here at Spacefreighters we've talked about diversity many times, including how difficult it is for authors who are people of colour to gain recognition. I don't dispute that, not for a moment. But just right now, I want to concentrate on ME. Because I learned that lesson long ago.

My Morgan Selwood stories are NOT about white, anglo-saxon communities. The Manesai - the 'aliens' Morgan encounters - are not Caucasian. Not one of them. Every single one is dark skinned. Their society is based on the Indian caste system. The overall concept is "a place for everyone, and everyone in their place". That, of course, is idealistic in the extreme, and every caste is itself layer upon layer of privilege. Modern day India is full of examples of extreme wealth and extreme poverty, and also instances where people have overcome the restrictions of that society. But one of those restrictions is not skin colour.

Morgan herself isn't dark skinned. But she sure as hell isn't white. I've mentioned before that I think "white" people will become increasingly rare unless they are isolated from those with darker skins, and we'll all end up looking like Brazilians. When we head for the stars, the same sorts of things will happen. In a mixed society you might end up with a rainbow of skin colours. But if a colony is created using one particular sub-type, you'll end up with something like my Manesai. They might all be the same colour, but that doesn't mean they don't find other ways to break themselves up into tribes.

So if you're looking for a strong, Alpha hero with dark skin and a battle cruiser, don't go past Admiral Ashkar Ravindra, the son of an admiral, grandson of an admiral and (no doubt) father of an admiral. If you'd like a short introduction you might like Ink. It's a tale of Ravindra just before he joins the Fleet Academy. Ravindra has a tattoo, you see. But admirals don't have tattoos. That's the cover at top left. And here's the blurb.

INK

Life's good for 18-year-old Ashkar Ravindra. School's over, and he's been accepted into the Fleet Academy. There's time for one last trip up into the mountains in the brand new flitter his father gave him as a graduation present, before his real life, the one he's been groomed for from the day he was born, begins in earnest.

Up in the mountains not everyone is pleased to see the privileged admiral's son. Jealousy and ulterior motives turn the pleasant hunting trip into an ordeal. Lives are a stake. If Ashkar makes the wrong decision, he will be the first to die.

-------------------------

Ravindra grows up to earn his admiral's insignia. You'll find out all about him as the man in charge in Morgan's Choice. This link will take you to the series information.

But I'm not the only one who has written racially diverse SFR stories. Science fiction is such a wonderful genre for "diverse" stories. I particularly enjoyed Elizabeth Moon's books Rules of Engagement and Once a Hero, from the Serrano series. She paints a picture of worlds colonised by splinter groups. In our SFR niche, SJ Pajonas  writes SFR with a decidedly Japanese flavour. PJ Dean writes racially diverse books. Please feel free to suggest others in the comments. I know SFR is much more diverse than it is given credit for.