Let’s Play “What If?”

All of the anniversaries on this date got me to thinking. As a writer of Science Fiction Romance, when I start thinking, I start playing “What if?” Want to play with me? Then bear with my wandering mind. I’ve been playing with a scenario for a future work.

First Anniversary on this Date:
On late night April 19th and early morning April 20th, 1775, the American Revolution began with the Battles of Lexington and Concord. These were plain farmers and businessmen telling the Brits to quit bullying them. As a revolution, the American Revolution is an anomaly in all of history. It’s the only revolution in the history of the world which did not lead to the wholesale slaughter of the defeated parties. They simply told the Brits to go home. Would that all family squabbles were handled so well.

Several years later, 1789-1799, the French Revolution began in economic turmoil and lead to a blood bath in which several hundred thousand people perished in the arms of Madame la Guillotine. Granted, circumstances were different; but, the French Revolution followed the classic course for most political revolutions: protest; rebellion and change; execution of opposition; dictatorship. The same pattern followed in Mexico in 1910, Russia in 1917 and in China in 1949, all times of economic upheaval. Seven million died in Mexico, and only God knows how many millions died in Russia and China. Domestic violence sucks!

Second Anniversary on this Date:
On this day in 1889, Adolf Hitler was born. In 1933, again a time of economic uncertainty, he became Chancellor of Germany. In less than a year, with barely a whimper of protest, he replaced a democratically elected government with a totalitarian regime in a country that had a long history of education and culture. Fast forward fifteen years and he was responsible for the direct murder of over 17 million people... just as statistic unless you were one of them.

This is the scenario with which I am playing:
I have a planet in the distant future which is rather similar technologically to our own. It has had every advantage which freedom can offer. Why would its people suddenly turn their backs on the freedoms which they have enjoyed for centuries? What type of people would the villains be? What steps would they go through to accomplish their coup with the minimum of initial bloodshed? What would they do to keep power? What type of person would the hero be? What would the heroine be like? What are the good guys doing? What would the villians throw at them? Could they rescue their world? What would it cost them to do so? What other questions do you think that should be asked for a rip roaring good story?

Happy “What if-ing,”

Frances
Writing Science Fiction Romance
Real Love in a Real Future