Technology is the muscle of science fiction. From Asimov’s robots to Star Trek’s transporters, it gives your work the strength to stand out from the crowd. Good stories are character driven, but the technology surrounding them defines those characters and their lives.
So how do you invent new technology that will grab imaginations and drive stories?
Finding Inspiration
I received a water bill today (bear with me, because this is relevant). On that bill was a note saying the reading had been taken remotely, using a radio transmitter from my meter. This was a novelty to me and it immediately got me thinking about where the technology might go. Could these systems become more automated, billing me for every gallon of water or kilowatt hour of electricity I consume? What if those systems could be hacked? Could someone eventually take control of my house?
These chance moments of inspiration can be a great source of future tech but leaving things to chance is a fool’s game. Instead, ensure that you’re exposed to technological and scientific ideas. Read blogs, websites, and journals. If you’re writing cyberpunk, focus on computer technology. If you’re writing space exploration, focus on engineering and astrophysics. Whatever your genre, saturate yourself with sources of inspiration.
Making it Convincing – Research
Now comes the hard part.
Those sources you’re looking to for inspiration are the same ones every sci-fi writer is looking at. Therefore, other people will have similar ideas.
Fortunately there are two ways you can make yours stand out — by making them convincing, and by making them distinctive.
The only way to make your ideas convincing is through research. Get on Google, hit the library, do whatever it takes to find out more about the subject you’ve picked. If I want to write about my remote control house then I could talk with the water company about how their meters work. I could read up on radio waves and other remote transmitters. I could look at similar devices, like drink machines that tell suppliers when they’re out of Sprite.
That research will show me what changes are plausible and how these systems work. They’ll also show me the limits of the current technology, highlighting the new things someone needs to invent to make my hackable house happen. By the time I’ve immersed myself in the subject, I’ll be able to throw in the casual details that make a story convincing to any reader.
That’s fun and all, because I like to learn new things, but now comes the part I really love.
Making it Distinctive – Repercussions
You’ve spent hours researching your topic. You’ve earned the right to let your imagination run wild and fortunately that’s the final step.
Think about what you’ve learned in your research and push it further. What would happen if these devices were pushed to their logical extremes? What’s more interesting about them and how could that be exaggerated? How could they be used in new and unexpected ways? How could current limits be overcome? And how would people react to these changes?
Take my hackable house. Imagine that meter gets more sophisticated, so the water company can cut me off instantly if I don’t pay. Then robbers hack the house, back up the pipes and flood the place. When I call for a plumber the robbers intercept the call and turn up to ‘fix the leak’. Then, while my back is turned, they steal the Scrooge McDuck-style pile of money that I sleep on because in this future I’m also the next Michael Crichton and have made millions.
Hey, it’s my future, I can do that if I want.
So here’s a challenge for you. Go, read your favorite news site and pick out an article on technology. Spend an hour researching that topic and take twenty minutes brainstorming where it could go in the future.
And there you go, you’ve invented some new sci-fi tech. The bed of money can wait though — now it’s time to write!
