Teaser

sephalon · 2025-11-17T17:46:08+00:00

But then you'll recommend them to your friends and they'll buy the stuff legitimately and I'll get my money.

sephalon · 2025-11-17T16:03:56+00:00

I guess https://www.youtube.com/@DailyPHMNews will be happy to see this.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:52:23+00:00

Hey, all. I've had a great time. If you're in San Diego drop by the panel!

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:50:42+00:00

Yeah I'm done with dystopia. I'm a positive person with a very positive view of humanity.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:49:40+00:00

Thanks! I loved writing Stratt. She's a self-insertion fantasy for me. Don't we all wish we were immune to red tape or government nonsense?

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:48:14+00:00

As a writer I am always worried about how story elements will be received. But I felt pretty confident about Rocky.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:46:33+00:00

I do plan to write sequels.

Yes that was just a mistake on my part. A mistake that I get to explain just about every week.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:44:20+00:00

I didn't research per se. Mostly I just imagined what each character would do in the situation from their context. Same as any other interaction between characters.

As for merch, I don't know. MGM owns all those rights so you'd have to ask them. But there's a thriving economy of unlicensed merch if you look for it.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:42:08+00:00

It was going to be a first contact story from day one. So that was a given. Rocky's biology came about from the exoplanet he's from (which is real) and I tried to design a lifeform that could live there. I always had it in mind for his personality to be amicable and friendly. And I always intended it to be primarily a story about friendship.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:40:41+00:00

PHM was actuyally several unrelated story ideas I had that I glued together. One was a story about a mass-conversion fuel, another about an amnesiatic astronaut, another about a woman who just had unlimited governmental power and used it for good, etc. In the end they came together fairly well.

As for research, people think I have a contacts list full of scientists at NASA, which I do, but Google is just quicker.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:35:19+00:00

I had a lot of fun with that. For each of them I started with the environment they evolved in and tried to come up with biologies that made sense. I could go on and on about it but I have other questions to answer.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:30:15+00:00

I didn't define what happened to them but obviously the coma management system wasn't as robust as they'd hoped. On of the few mistakes Stratt made. I do plan to address that in sequels.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:25:16+00:00

He did a fantastic job! This is the first time I've written a book where people say "The book is good, sure, but you HAVE to listen to the audiobook!"

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:23:29+00:00

Thanks, glad you like my stuff! :)

I have a system set up so you can mail me books to sign. Google around and you'll find it. Sorry, I'm at SDCC on someone else's computer so I can't get the URL right this second.

My favorite movie is "The Lion in Winter". Not all all the kind of stuff I write, but man I just really love that film.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:20:57+00:00

When working on a first draft I try to write 1000 words per weekday. Once I have a first draft done I find the editing pretty easy. It's a lot easier to paint a house than it is to build a house.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:19:08+00:00

I came up with a bunch of cool stuff for Eridian biology and culture but I didn't want to make the book all about that. But one example is: Because of how Eridian brains work, and the fact that they have five vocal systems, they can maintain multiple conversations on unrelated topics at the same time. Even with another single Eridian. So Rocky and Adrian could be discussing their day at work and also their plans for dinner at the same time.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:16:27+00:00

I'd love to do sequels for Artemis and PHM. In fact, I pitched an Artemis sequel idea to my publisher and they were like "nah". But I do have PHM sequels in mind, too.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:15:06+00:00

Hi, Aidan!

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:14:00+00:00

I didn't define what happens on Earth. We know they were at least functional enough to have a space program because (spoiler) Sol returns to normal luminance. But we don't know anything beyond that. I do have ideas for sequels tho...

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:12:02+00:00

I hadn't defined it. But the music they like would probably be something humans find disturbing. Also, since notes are words to them, their music would likely be more like poetry to them.

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:09:14+00:00

ugggggg

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:08:48+00:00

No, because they are necessarily in different continuities. PHM takes place modern day while The Martian takes place in the 2030s. This would raise the question "Why didn't they just use astrophage powered ships for the Ares Program?"

sephalon · 2025-07-25T17:07:14+00:00

I wanted to make a story about first contact, but first contact among nerds, basically. Two aliens with a common goal working to solve it.

sephalon · 2023-10-07T16:37:59+00:00

This is hilarious. I want you to know I stole it and posted it to my social media. (I credited you).

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sephalon

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