There’s no doubt that Jack McDevitt is about as readable as any
author. Factors are the innate beauty of his broad stellar canvas, any aspect of
which can be drilled down into cosmic phenomena and dynamics that good narrative
can exploit; the progressive problem solving employed by Chase and Alex, like
detective work but including scientific and historical research; an imminent
sense that things are going to go awry (planted by accounts of previous
stuff-ups) and malevolent powers at work; and a buoyant characterisation,
enabled by first person narrative and solipsistic romps through a life of the
hedonism such as fine dining, attractive people and relationships, and
encounters with credible villains.
McDevitt’s writing is based more around careful plotting and
doesn’t need a lot of the earth-bound accuracy that a novel based around a
familiar civilisation demands. Scientific research still needs to be perfect in
this genre. The vulnerability of his characters provides an opening for
acceptable scientific gaps, just as the first person narrative allows for a
simple “I don’t know” at possible plot
bottlenecks.
A novel like Seeker uses traditional props like spaceships,
futuristic communication and entertainment media, exodus to the stars and the
inevitable greed and redemption (or not). There is scope for better
extrapolation, for example cognitively interactive virtual films, utilising
participant neural feed-back and wiki type information resources, are emerging
as a certain way of the future. These would also be a media for advertising,
whether for commercial or activism outcomes, and would be deliciously subject to
malevolent contrivance. McDevitt on steroids would be
incredible.
author. Factors are the innate beauty of his broad stellar canvas, any aspect of
which can be drilled down into cosmic phenomena and dynamics that good narrative
can exploit; the progressive problem solving employed by Chase and Alex, like
detective work but including scientific and historical research; an imminent
sense that things are going to go awry (planted by accounts of previous
stuff-ups) and malevolent powers at work; and a buoyant characterisation,
enabled by first person narrative and solipsistic romps through a life of the
hedonism such as fine dining, attractive people and relationships, and
encounters with credible villains.
McDevitt’s writing is based more around careful plotting and
doesn’t need a lot of the earth-bound accuracy that a novel based around a
familiar civilisation demands. Scientific research still needs to be perfect in
this genre. The vulnerability of his characters provides an opening for
acceptable scientific gaps, just as the first person narrative allows for a
simple “I don’t know” at possible plot
bottlenecks.
A novel like Seeker uses traditional props like spaceships,
futuristic communication and entertainment media, exodus to the stars and the
inevitable greed and redemption (or not). There is scope for better
extrapolation, for example cognitively interactive virtual films, utilising
participant neural feed-back and wiki type information resources, are emerging
as a certain way of the future. These would also be a media for advertising,
whether for commercial or activism outcomes, and would be deliciously subject to
malevolent contrivance. McDevitt on steroids would be
incredible.
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