My name is Jacob Larch, and I’ve been writing screenplays since 2007 but only writing novels since 2011. I’ve had my screenplays critically appraised with great feedback, and I’m one of those writers who usually gets through to the quarter final of screenplay competitions, but never further. In 2009 I won my category in an international screenplay competition, but not first prize for production.
This is a sample chapter from my forthcoming book, Legacy Overture.
In 2009, I started writing a series of television format science fiction scripts entitled "Legacy" with a view to write them purely for myself as a fun project. Idea followed idea, and story followed story until disaster struck- my Dad had the first of three strokes that began his decline. It took three years, and cancer, before he finally passed away and in all that time, whenever I couldn’t deal, I turned to the Legacy story. The characters, plots, and personalities became an emotional release to a traumatic time, and by the time he died I’d written 55 scripts of 60 pages (1 hour) each.
Shortly after, I began to turn the first twenty episodes of what I termed "season one" into novels. Unable to get a publishing contract, I self published for minimum price on Amazon and have recently published number 4 of the series.
The idea for Legacy came from reality talent shows on television and in this instance, Legacy is quite different from most books.
Where stories give the reader a protagonist or group of heroes and says "these are the good guys, follow them"- Legacy does no such thing, and gives you three rival crews to follow. Which one you support is up to you.
Where stories sometimes give you an innocent hero who receives a call to adventure and is thrust into the world with allies, mentors, enemies and a quest to fulfil, Legacy gives the reader a cast who already, by and large, know each other with histories, rivalries, and jealousies, and quickly puts you in the middle of that knowledge.
The first book in the series, Legacy Engendered, is set in a time when Humanity has spread to the stars, colonised hundreds of worlds, and begins with the following tagline.
"Thirty years ago, the Chaos plague nearly wiped us out. Now it’s back, and our only hope rests in finding a cure lost in the past. Three crews, three Captains, one prize: place your bets, pick your side, the race is on."
The self published series follows the adventures of three rival crews, and whilst there is a "main" crew so to speak, the reader is free to make up their own mind about any of the ships and people involved- each one is quite different to the rest in personality and operation.
So where does Legacy Overture come in?
The events that begin in Legacy Engendered start thirty years after the Chaos plague is released in "the first outbreak". Legacy Overture is a collection of short stories / novellas that take the main cast of the Legacy series and tell incidental stories connected with their past, personality and defining events during the last thirty years. From first release of the Chaos Plague- a rage virus inducing the overwhelming desire to feed on anything or anyone, to a child losing her big brother in the search for a cure, to a survivor with a natural immunity, to more recent events of crews that will split and reform before the start of the first novel. This is science fiction zombie-horror with the emphasis on character, motivation and thought. This is space opera at its purest: unconcerned with how ships fly and technology works, the Legacy stories focus on the characters and the story they tell.
How can readers help me shape my draft? Feedback. Advice. Suggestions. I’ve had great feedback so far, but more is always welcome.
I look forward to hearing from you!
Jacob Larch
If you have any additional questions about this or any other part of the draft setup process, email us at hello@inkshares.com.