Welcome to the SFR Brigade MidSummer Bloghop! I’m one of many stops, and below my post is a list of grand prizes. Be sure to hit us all to keep the fun going!

 

The Revivalist Movement on Nevarro

Having a low- or no- tech faction within “modern” society is nothing new. Think of the Amish and others who equate their spiritual well-being with working without current—dare I say, necessary—conveniences and devices. No phones, no electricity, no mororized vehicles. Their ideals bring them closer to God.

My Revivalists, introduced in Caugh in Amber, follow similar principles. They use advanced technology when absolutely necessary, like the ships that carried them to Nevarro or transcontinental trains. Generally speaking, however, if they can do it for themselves, they do it themselves.

Revivalists have been on Nevarro practically since the first humans landed. They’re involved in many aspects of daily life on the colony, particularly with agriculture and mining. Hard-working, not-afraid-to-get-dirty jobs are their specialty. It isn’t always easy to be low-tech in a high tech world. No using air cars to get to the next ag station. No coming home from a long day in the mines and tapping a few keys on the CompuChef for a hot meal. But the movement is alive and well.

Though the government isn’t a theocracy, they do work with Revivalists for things like work programs overseen by the Corrections Department. In Caught in Amber, part of the conditions of Sasha James’s parole is working at a Revivalist-owned market. The basic tenet of “Laboring hands bring peace to the soul” is supposed to help reform her. It also gives her callouses and a backache, but those serve as reminders of why she’s in the spot she’s in. Nathan Sterling was raised in a Revivialist family and his work ethic stems from his upbringing.

Sasha and Sterling experience both aspects of living in Nevarro’s main cultures, though through different means. Sasha is more or less forced to live a simplier, less glamorous life after her incarceration, while Sterling voluntarily left to persue a career with the Colonial Mining Authority. They have learned to navigate the different aspects of those lives, for better or worse.

That dichotomy comes into play in Deep Deception. Much of the mining of keracite ore, the mainstay of the Nevarro economy, is done by large corporations utilizing more mechanized methods. They have people in the mines as well due to the volitility of the ore, but not in the percentages as, say, the correctional mines where mining is a form of punishment.

There is a subculture of miners called pirqs (from pirquinero, a real type of miner here and now) that utilize “old-fashioned” techniques. They stemmed from the original Revivalists landing on the colony who wanted to work for themselves, rather than huge corporations, and maintain a certain way of life.

Natalia Hallowell lived as a pirq until she was sixteen. She wasn’t a Revivalist, though she may as well have been. Pirq mining sites utilize the same relative low-tech methods as a way to honor their humble beginnings and maintain a connection with their livlihood. The similarities between pirqs and Revivalists is simply that by being “hands on” you will care more about how your methodology affects the environment and those living in it. A “spiritual mining,” if you will.

I don’t dwell on religion or spirituality in my books, but I’m not trying to make any sort of statement. In fact, I’m not one to follow a particular religion. Spiritual, yes. Religious, no.

So why did I include one? Why do my characters talk about it as often as they do? Because it’s a part of their history and make up in one way or another. Whether they practice or not (pretty much not ; ) they are or were influenced by the presence of the Revivalists on Nevarro.

What’s your take on religion in fiction, particularly science fiction?

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SFR MIDSUMMER BLOGHOP GRAND PRIZE INFO

Winners will be chosen for the grand prize during the 26th and announced on the Brigade blog. All prizes are international. So, check out some fun posts, hit the Rafflecopter app, make a comment and maybe win something.

1st Prize – $150 Amazon or B&N gift card (winner’s choice) and an ebook bundle (currently Ghost in the Machine, Bayne, Recast Book 1:Wither, Recast Book 2:Clash, Alien Adoration, Switched, Reckless Rescue, Wreck of the Nebula Dream, Keir, Terms & Conditions Apply, The Key, Marya, The Iron Admiral, Sasha’s Calling, Trouble at the Hotel Baba Ghanoush, Winter in Paradise, Once Upon a Time in Space, the Telomere trilogy, Winter Fusion, Blue Nebula, Demential, Wytchfire, Maven, Fires of Justice, Interface, Girl under Glass, and Breakout. Bonus books – Ghost Planet, The Iron Admiral: Conspiracy and Deception, and Games of Command, The Plan, Stark Pleasure and Starburst.)

2nd Prize – $50 Amazon or B&N gift card (winner’s choice)

3rd Prizes – four $25 Amazon or B&N gift cards (given to separate winners and their choice)

Commenters here on my blog will get a choice of one of my ebooks, Rulebreaker, Caught in Amber or Deep Deception.

Have fun!!!

ETA: I’m headed away from the interwebs and may not be able to pick a winner for THIS post until after the 25th. It may be the 27th or 28th. Sorry about the delay, but I promise I will contact a winner ASAP. Thanks for understanding : )