From my earliest days, I have always been fascinated with exploration. While that does include physical exploration, it is not the whole of it. I am as much intrigued by the concept of it, the history of it, the future of it.
Lets put this in perspective. There has been talk about the prospects of a manned trip to or colony on Mars. For the later, it is pretty much a one way trip. Chances are you will be there for a minimum of many years. If asked I wouldn’t hesitate to say yes – though my fiancée may have words to me about that.
The prospect of being the first to step anywhere that no one has been before, to boldly go, to explore new worlds and lands, that appeals to me. Whether it be the sailing the seas during the Age of Exploration, or colonising an alien planet, I would have loved to have been there and done it. Sadly it seems I live in a period of time where there isn’t much left to explore – yet. We’ve explored most of Earth and haven’t quite managed to make it to the next step.
It does also influence my gaming choices – I prefer games where exploration and building are at the heart of it, going out into new lands, finding new things nad places. Games like Civisilation, Master of Orion, The Elder Scrolls, Mass Effect (mostly the first one though), Age of Empires, Total War and ones of a similar ilk.
And it does heavily influence my writing as well. That is largely why I write – so that I can explore strange new worlds, to go places that haven’t been visited before, except in my mind, and to share them with other people. That is what exploration is all about, going new places and sharing what you have discovered. And fantasy and sci-fi are two of the best genres to do that in.
And maybe, someday when I’m old and they have found a way to visit alien planets, I may even get to step foot on somewhere new and see sights no one has seen before me.
Mist and Shadows 