Steampunk? Sci-fi? Help me decide
I keep going back on forth about whether my next novel should be what I’m dubbing Mexican steampunk or near future sci-fi with vampires. So, I’m putting it to the test. What sounds more interesting?
Twelve Iron Horses
Sofia works in her father’s shop in downtown Mexico City, commanding life-size dolls to do her bidding and selling animals that can be animated with magic.
Marco is her supplier, carving the magnificent birds and reptiles which inhabit her shop.
A rich, young heiress orders a special creation for her wedding; the most elaborate project either Marco or Sofia have ever known.
Sofia learns that Roberto is the groom paying for the extravagant gift. Roberto once pledged to marry Sofia, but his father intervened.
Sofia decides to deliver Roberto’s 12 iron horses and never speak to him again.
Things don’t turn out the way Sofia intends when her interest in the young man reawakens.
Blood Week
El Tepos is dead, shot three times in the back. The police claim it is suicide. Since no cop in Mexico City cares about the death of an alcoholic vampire, it’s going to take his cousin to solve the murder.
Veronica can barely pay the bills with her bloodletting job, much less become an amateur investigator, but with the help of her buddy Bernardino she learns about her cousin’s mysterious blond girlfriend, who has fled to the north of the country.
Up north, the vampire drug lords will cut your head and deliver it in a cooler to your family. Up north, Veronica is going to need all her wits to stay alive.
Near future Mexico is about to get a little bloodier this week.
July 22nd, 2010 at 3:34 pm
[…] Silvia Moreno-Garcia » Steampunk? Sci-fi? Help me decide silviamoreno-garcia.com/blog/?p=136 – view page – cached I keep going back on forth about whether my next novel should be what I’m dubbing Mexican steampunk or near future sci-fi with vampires. So, I’m putting it to the test. What sounds more interesting? Tweets about this link […]
July 23rd, 2010 at 12:38 pm
I’d go with Twelve Iron Horses. It sounds more interesting and I’ve never heard of an example of Latin American steampunk or inspired steampunk.
July 23rd, 2010 at 4:20 pm
My story Distant Deeps or Skies (Expanded Horizons, February 2010) is Mexican steampunk, but I haven’t tried my hand at a whole novel. It’s territory I like, because I am familiar with the time period (late 19th century Mexico).
Then again, I also like the sci-fi noir stories I published, which is exactly what Blood Week is.
Conflicted.
July 23rd, 2010 at 6:57 pm
Silvia–
I know I’m biased, but Blood Week sounds much more *immediate* and interesting than Twelve Iron Horses. That doesn’t mean that one is superior (or inferior) to the other, but if I had been an acquisition editor listening to both story pitches, Blood Week wins by a mile.
Thing is, Twelve Iron Horses may very well be the better novel (which is why interested publishers want the first, or first three chapters), but as novel elevator pitches go (from my SF perspective), Blood Week literally had me aching for more (and yeah: I’m the *optimistic* SF guy…;-).
Admittedly, I’m a bit tired of steampunk (and clockpunk, rehashed cyberpunk, singularitypunk, greenpunk and whatever ‘punk’ is the flavour of the day: SF & fantasy people, get rid of the ‘punk’ label, like punk itself, it’s over 40 years old).
Now — playing devil’s advocate squared — I think the near-future ‘vampire’ novel might be even better if it didn’t involve vampires, but real drug lords. And ways to combat those, and improve Mexico’s fate.
Now *that* would be a killer novel that could be on the level of Paolo Bacigalupi’s “The Windup Girl”, and I would devour it.
Obviously, I’m biased…;-)
July 23rd, 2010 at 9:45 pm
This probably doesn’t help much - but I’d enjoy reading either of those books! It just depends if I’m in the mood for gritty Mexican vampire noir or what sounds like elegant steampunk.
Yeah, I can totally see why you’re conflicted.
August 2nd, 2010 at 12:45 am
Definitely TWELVE IRON HORSES. We have more than enough vampires in fiction now. Plus, I can imagine HORSES becoming a series, easily.