Article 1: A Long Overdue Elucidation

Today we will be embarking on a journey you and I. Each step will take us readers deeper into the core of my writings. A series of articles, each centered around different aspects of the universe I will be writing in. But beyond introduction, they will collectively serve as an interim manifesto. To do so will mean not only explaining the cosmology of my fiction but also taking you through deep waters of perception and theology. Into the logic that underpins my creative works. To this end, I have created a set of rules I will follow, rules that give me a great sense of accomplishment to have accumulated. Each article will center on at least one of them, though some will take multiple articles to cover.

But for now, to set the stage; What is the Firmament?

Allow me to give a working definition before proceeding onward into my articles. The Firmament is the name I’ve given the universe in which the bulk of my stories will take place. But it’s more than just a name. Embodied in it is the very style I pursue, and a promise. The style I call “Speculative Theological Science Fiction and Fantasy”. Though I call it my own style, some of the most deeply influential books I have ever encountered in my life fall within its category. My goal in giving it a name has less to do with setting myself apart, and more to do with drawing attention to the works of greater men than I, and my attempts to follow the path they laid out. It would thus be inappropriate not to acknowledge the influence J.R.R. Tolkien’s work has had on me. More crucial still, I am sure that before all is said and done you will tire of my copious references to the works of C.S. Lewis, the Firmament’s grandfather every bit as much as George MacDonald was for Narnia.

But what do I mean by that style? What do I mean by the Firmament? What holds it all together, and why do I find it so inviting that I am dedicating my life to filling and defining it? And just what is that promise I intend by it all? These are all important questions, but rather than attempt a comprehensive explanation here, I invite you to keep reading. Through the upcoming series of articles, I will cover the foundational rules, thoughts, and relevant doctrines. We will begin with a brief primer to provide a framework, then dive deep into the rules that govern such an enterprise. 

Article 1: A Long Overdue Elucidation

Allow me to begin with the most simplistic element, the Firmament. Most are familiar with Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe, a universe where multiple stories co-exist and from time to time interact in a greater narrative. This is not a new concept in novels either, Author Brandon Sanderson has a narrative universe as well called the Cosmere, in which many of his books co-mingle. Comic books are a great lover of such settings, allowing different heroes to team up as necessary. Simply put, The Firmament is my personal narrative universe in which a majority of my novels will take place. But it is not simply an umbrella term to arc over my different works, it also represents a series of inalienable rules they must follow, which will be the subject of my future articles.

So let us turn to “Speculative Theological Science Fiction and Fantasy”. The first time I uttered that phrase I was in a dentist’s chair attempting to explain to an indulgent dental hygienist what type of writing I do in my free time. Fortunately, I wasn’t speaking around the picks, scraps, and sucking hoses at the time or I might still be there. But what could I say? Summarizing a universe that already spanned three developing series and a host of single books was more then a dental conversation could contain.

So what do the words mean? Science fiction and fantasy need no introduction I’m sure. In science fiction, I will be dealing with invented technologies, scientific principles, and perhaps some cosmic exploration. In the fantasy, I will delve into magic, races both silly and grave, and of course the entertainingly improbable. I will delve more into how these two genres coexist in further articles, but for now, it is enough to be understood that they do. 

It is at the “Speculative Theological” where I am more likely to have lost you. The quickest short cut to explanation is to point at the library of fiction by C.S. Lewis and just shout, “That!”. If you have any familiarity with his Space Trilogy, then you are well ahead of the class whether you know it or not. People often think of his Sci-fi series and the Chronicles of Narnia as allegories. To an extent, they are right, but not so wholly as they might expect. What captured my imagination as a child and carried forward to my writing is that both series are still possible within a biblical view of the universe. They do not break any natural laws, principles (aside from some scientific guesswork from the time of writing), or sound doctrine. They beg the question, what if there is more to God’s created universe than we see from earth? And while I could write for pages on every example, the first moment I realized it was at the end of the third Narnia book. In the scene, Edmund and Lucy have been told they will not be returning to Narnia ever again. They have responded that it was never about Narnia for them, it was always about Aslan himself. How could they bare going home if it means never seeing him again? Aslan responds:

“But there I have another name. You must learn to know my by that name. This is the very reason you were brought to Narnia, that by knowing me here for a little, you may know me better there.”

-Aslan to Edmund, “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader’, 1952

The magnitude of these words did not hit me until I was a teenager. Aslan is not merely an allegorical Christ figure, intended to expose young readers to the gospel through fantasy. He is in fact written as Jesus himself, coming to Narnia in a way right for the Narnians, just as he came to us in a way right for us. If there are other worlds (and the Magician’s Nephew proves there to be many) then how does Aslan come to them? How do his interactions with them differ when his nature is unchanging?

The heart of “Speculative Theology” is born from this line of reasoning; If Scripture is true, and if there is more to this universe than we can yet observe, then what might it contain, and how do the operations of an immutable God differ for each aspect of creation? My exploration of this question in my various works will take a lifetime. Yet to be done right I cannot merely guess. I must look to scripture, study it as rightly as I might, and infer or extrapolate in the gray areas of our limited revelation of a universe beyond our understanding. I will dive much deeper in future articles, but consider this: The Garden of Eden was a place were a talking snake was inconspicuous, a situation well beyond our experience. Might it have been a realm of its own? Surely Heaven and Hell are, so why not Eden? Why not Narnia? And with a universe filled with planets who knows what is out there? With scripture and science taken together, there are countless possible settings for stories. The difference between conventional fiction and my own is that when I seek to create them, I ask first how it fits with the bible, and how can I do it without circumventing good doctrine. And the promise that I hint at is simply that I will try with all my might to do so. If I have done my job correctly, nothing I write will be specifically disprovable by either.

And lastly, my hope is to create a universe that is fun, and filled with danger and wonder. Filled with interesting stories and places that stretch conventional thought. I am doing all the work on the back end of things so that you, my reader, can relax and enjoy its fruit. And so that when people wish for a deeper answer to the possibilities I explore, I am readily available with them.

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