Astronauts and Deep Divers

Two approaches to writing fiction

I was having a conversation via e-mail with an old friend the other day. We both have written some rather dark, disturbing pieces in our time. Although he always went a lot further than I ever did. The topic of what we wrote in the past and what we write now, and why we write, came up. And I immediately thought “This is a thought worth exploring.”

So how do astronauts and deep divers factor in to a conversation with an old writing chum?

I thought about the approach and reason for writing fiction, specifically. And I also remembered some conversations I have had on other writing spaces that push, perhaps, too positive of a vibe for me to feel quite at ease. Most of these writers loved fantasy, especially power and 'isekai’ (portal) fantasies. The more outlandish, the better. Physics defying battles, involved magic systems, and strange worlds to adapt to and eventually master. I was overshadowed by them, sitting in my corner with my paranormal psychological thriller and character driven high fantasy restrained with magic realism. And worst of all, when I tried to talk about my own stories from analytical points of view, I was fobbed off with a few empty platitudes and largely ignored.

This is nothing against power fantasies or popular fiction. This isn’t “a world doesn’t see how dark and clever I am” moment. It is me thinking that I simply wandered into a crowd I didn’t relate to.

This was a room of astronauts, and I was a deep sea diver. We both breathed words like oxygen, but in very different environments, and extremely different destinations.

Two Types of Writers

Now let me begin by saying there are many types of writers, and not all types are exclusive. I’m not going to talk about those who plan versus those who write by the seat of their pants. I’m not going to discuss people who obsessively front load their world building versus those who grow the world organically as the plot demands. I am going to talk about what people are exploring as they write, or even as they read.

The Astronaut

There are countless worlds out there, and the Astronaut wants to visit them all. They are frequently fantasy and science-fiction writers, but some of them are just as happy to write about a distant place here on Earth. The level of detail and world building can run the whole gamut. Main characters may be local to this far off land, or new arrivals. The important factor is that an Astronaut writer (or reader) reaches for settings which are exotic and exciting to them.

The setting is only the first step. The container with which to put the bizarre or outlandish characters and events in the story. The protagonist will often come up against seemingly alien beings or cultures, or they, themselves, be non-human. There is a focus on the ‘other’, and it can either be a story about learning that there everyone is the same deep down, or about the sharp contrasts of what is or is not ‘human’. Maybe such themes aren’t present at all, and the focus is just variety. Anything to get away from a mundane and homogenous ensemble. Anything that is outwardly unfamiliar.

The struggles that the protagonist are up again are just familiar enough for an emotional connection, but usually in situations improbable or simply impossible to happen in real life. Heroes with the weight of the world on their shoulders, destined by a higher being to save or destroy every living being. People with actual soul mates that are bonded with them psychically. The conundrum and paradoxes of time travel. Unprecedented moral dilemmas of creating entirely new species. Love potions that actually work and how they turn to tragedy. Dealing with the choice to bring a loved one back to life, at the cost of another. None of these scenarios are something you or I will ever deal with. I hope.

Escapism is the primary motivation for astronauts. They will turn away from any plot that touches on issues ‘close to home’, and may become uncomfortable when the themes of a story delves deeply into things such as politics, religion, addiction, war, or domestic abuse. Even if the protagonist is put through unspeakable horrors, even if the above are mentioned, the main character must never go through something that the reader or writer has struggled with personally. Or if they do, it is often exaggerated then concluded with a neat and tidy resolution.

Their destination is space, far away from home. They aren’t interested in fixing the problems here on Earth before spreading influence out beyond the stars, or perhaps feel the only solutions for any difficulties at home may be found in the great expanse. They look outward. More action. More drama. More toxic. Just so long as it isn’t happening to them, it is enjoyable.

These writers are creative, usually excellent world builders, and often enthusiastic. Even when they are shy, if you can get them talking about their writing, or fictions they are inspired about, they bubble with ideas and probably, if speaking via text, more than a few emoji and gifs.

For an Astronaut, writing is a sacred space to be protected, where they can step away from daily stress and past grievances and slip into someone else’s problems, or even function in a cozy, low-stakes atmosphere. The grander the tale, the better. A world with clear expectations and where the protagonist has a sense of purpose and many great accomplishments is balm to their souls. They look outside of themselves for inspiration, and for meaning to help them cope when they return to their regular lives.

The Deep Sea Diver

Originally, I thought of a spelunker as the counter archetype to the astronaut, but decided a deep sea dive more apt. Both are often tethered, and both rely on oxygen. Both are suspended in a world, and sometimes, stare into a deep abyss.

That aside, here is how I envision the Deep Sea Diver, or just Diver from hereon out, writer.

Here on Earth, there are many nooks and crannies left unexplored, and the deep sea diver wants to gain a better knowledge of the world they live in through careful, repeated expeditions into the same expanse, each time going a little deeper. While they also will write fantasy and science fiction, it falls heavily on the speculative nature of these genres. But they will also write contemporary dramas, thrillers, and horrors. They use their everyday life and familiar surroundings as a template, and then make superficial changes to have it suit the desired setting. Even the alien on a distant planet will live on a property with that one big tree. It may produce seeds that contain symbionts which latch onto birds and alter their behaviour to control strategic seed dispersion, but its strong boughs will have been climbed in the alien character’s childhood many times, despite the many times said alien’s parents told them of the danger.

World building is usually focused and every detail is an echo of the author’s perspective of reality. In the customs and cultures they reflect either their own experiences, or those shared by people close to them, or parasocial relations they admire. The entire story, or just some sub plots are often allegorical in some fashion. This is not always intentional, but when it is, they sometimes can be ham-fisted and deliberate with the parallels.

Protagonists of the Diver are rarely self inserts, but often will embody a particular part of the author, usually something about themselves that has caused them repeated pain in the past: an addiction, a mood disorder, a physical deformity, or their problematic convictions. Most characters in the story are idiosyncratic and often conglomerates of people in the author’s life, if they aren’t just divided aspects of the author themselves. The stakes of their plots usually start off seeming innocuous, but snowball over time, and there is almost always something very personal at risk. The stories can be quite dark, but they may also be uplifting and nostalgic. Whatever they write, it is often grounded in reality, and fiction is a mere veneer to make the story more entertaining or accessible.

Deep divers may not always share what they write. But when they do, it’s often heavily edited first. A lot of the time, they are writing to better understand themselves. The characters under their control are avatars they inhabit, sent on perilous missions, with no guarantee of success. They fight valiant battles against a monster which reflect, blow for blow, the fight for life against an affliction such as cancer or domestic abuse that the author has experienced. In some cases, the diver writer will look beyond themselves to their close circle of acquaintances, using their intimate knowledge of loved ones, or even despised enemies, to try and better understand them.

The Deep diver uses writing as a safe space to explore difficult things in their life, or persistent questions that pique their curiosity. For those seeking to cope, they take control of an uncontrollable situation in their life, and keep passing closer and closer to the danger zone, knowing they can redirect or fade to black at the precise moment they need to. For the divers with lighter loads, keeping to the beautiful and luminous reefs, they find an inconsistency or quirk in life that they fully explore and express until they are satisfied. Both are exerting control, one is control over their own discomfort and fear, the other over a tendency to wander or concern at being laughed at or cut off. Writing, for them, is not only the oxygen tank, but the tether. Two tugs and someone will haul them out of the danger zone. With a few words, they divert or mitigate a crisis. For them, these stories are catharsis.

The Rift

These types are not one or the other, but rather, most writers are a blend of these two approaches. I myself am more of a diver than an astronaut, but I have definitely written a fair share of escapist fantasy. But when you two writers at either extreme interacting, it will often lead to some tension.

An astronaut will often find the diver’s writings to be dull or too political or problematic. Often when discussing each other’s plots or stories, an astronaut may say, or think “I have to deal with that enough in real life, I don’t want it it my fiction.” They may also see the diver as lacking creativity, because even their fantasy worlds feel too familiar and not expanded on nearly enough. Astronauts sometimes take pride in their ability to think outside the box and completely fabricate something from seemingly nothing, and hold themselves above divers who seem to rely on templates and reality far too much.

Alternatively, a diver may see the writings of an astronaut as self indulgent, unsophisticated, and lacking substance. They would consider astronauts as out of touch, and as coddling their characters. A diver may bemoan the lack of tension due to the low stakes of the formulaic dependencies of most escapist fiction. Most of all, they find the lack of realistic portrayals of anything that matters to the diver personally an affront.

Both may view the other, and the things they write, as uncomfortable or offensive, and challenge each other’s validity as writers. But there is no need for this. As I mentioned before, both are writing (and reading) as a coping mechanism, but currently have different needs. One needs distance to heal, the other needs confrontation to resolve. With this understanding, it may be easier to put differences aside and read each other’s works or discuss writing in general with less friction.

Now as I mention these are two types of writers, and not every writer falls into either category. Some people write to market with very little personal investment beyond their time and energy. Some hobby writers pump out stories for fun. Some do it for problem solving of a less personal nature, such as using a story to share their idea for a new form of government or to make a recent scientific theory more interesting and palatable to the lay person.

Still, I felt these two types worth exploring, and sharing my own thoughts on the matter. In my own personal experience, I have often encountered extremes in both, and felt as though neither were seeing the common ground they shared. And some may even oscillate between both attitudes without realizing it, thinking their change between them as growth or ‘maturity’ rather than a lateral shift, and considering anyone ‘stuck’ in the other mind set as falling behind. I include myself among these who have made that inaccurate distinction, and am doing my best to reframe my thinking.

I am currently under the waves, but have been among the stars, and may yet return there one day. I will keep reminding myself that we are all writers despite our many differences, each bringing as much value as baggage to the craft.

---

You may have noticed a lack of regularity in my posting schedule. This, unfortunately, may persist all through the summer, but come fall, things should be back into a routine. By then I will hopefully have a proper desk and more ergonomic set up, which will improve productivity. In the meantime I will be writing one article a week, but not aimed for a particular day as I am currently in a transition that demands flexibility.

I look forward to sharing more of my insights with you, until such a time as I decide to dribble in some of my actual fiction again.