Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Tacklin' Fuel.

When I was a child, playing with Lego cars and airplanes and helicopters I made, I ran into the problem of fueling the vehicle. My imagination did not want to stop the adventure I was having to gas up, but my logical brain would not allow me to unrealistically fly or drive indefinitely, ignoring the issue of gasoline altogether. How did I solve this dilemma? I invented "ghost gas." Ghost gas was the energy source that never ran out; when it was in your gas tank, it kept it full. This allowed my heroes to drive or fly limitlessly without ever having to stop for gas, and it somehow appeased my logical brain enough to not question what exactly would ghost gas comprise of that would allow it to be an eternal fuel.

I think, on some level, that this was the beginning of me as a writer. Solving that dilemma is much like writing any piece of fiction, for does not fiction blend the real with the imaginary in such a way that the reader must suspend disbelief? Even the most fantastical novels in the most imaginary worlds have rules that must be obeyed, because if they did not, the reader would have no reason to continue being lulled into the work because he cannot get over the impossible.

I also think that, if there are any chemical engineers or chemists reading this, you should get started on figuring out a way to make ghost gas real.