The original idea I had, all those years ago, centered on a pioneering world with Good Guys and some Thugs – simple – It was one book, one story, Ms Sweet Young Thing trying to escape the evil intentions of Mr Villain, lots of good fun and sexual tension – Then I grew up out of adolescence and wondered if I could… you know… put a plot in it.

I gave Mr Villain a brain. That might have been a mistake, but it also gave him wider appeal because there’s only so much you can do with sexual lust. I also took his sexual lust OFF Ms Sweet Young Thing and planted it… well, just about everywhere else.

Meanwhile back at the ranch Mr Villain had to have a reason for keeping and controlling Miss Sweet Young Thing. She needed a reason to want to get away, right? And no Good Guy/Bad Guy clash happens over a pay dispute – it had to be something against the will, so slavery it became.

I also needed to give Mr Villain brute force power and a reason for wanting a talented seer in his life.

That’s right, Ms Sweet Young Thing is an untrained, undisciplined psychic – And don’t start with the “But she didn’t see it coming” bit, just about everyone she meets says that. And don’t tell me it doesn’t belong in science fiction, either! What about Star Wars? What about “Use the Force, Luke”? Then there’s Star Trek and Mr Spock and his mind-meld. If Star Wars and Star Trek count as science fiction, mine most certainly does. Yes – complete with spaceships and Relay stations (teleport), and fancy weaponry and aliens and newly colonized worlds. It’s sci-fi, got it?

My take on the psychic side of things is that spirituality, psychic experiences and the practice of magic in many forms has been part of human history right from the start. It is still with us today and will be with us tomorrow. It flows in and out of popular appeal, so there’s no reason to assume it will stop dead in its tracks anytime soon.

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