NaNoWriMo 2017 – Semblance

NaNoWriMo 2017 – Semblance

I’m thick in the weeds of NaNoWrimo. I had been kicking around a bleak story set in a dystopian anti-science future, but for some inexplicable reason, my heart is not in it this year. Instead, I think I will attempt something with a lighter and weirder heart.

In a near-future, a graffitist named Nicole “Nix” Weaver is accepted into a secretive art school (hidden within another college) to learn an entirely new art-form (called something dumb, like Semblance) that involves mentally manipulating mysterious airborne semi-sentient nanobots (called motes). In this future, motes have permeated the earth’s atmosphere after an unfortunate attempt to counter global warming (Oops, there’s that dystopia sneaking in again). Now the motes are an invisible part of everyday life. Some people, like Nix, can tap into their collective power. Semblancers condense and craft the motes into non-solid and temporary depictions of objects (sort of like a floating particle-based hologram). Need to escape from the campus police? Project a dumpster around yourself and hide out. Part science fiction, part urban fantasy, part freshman journey, maybe kinda YA? Will there be shenanigans? Yes. An order of friars? Yes. Two rival orders of friars? Oh yes. A headless cat-pillow companion robot. You bet. I haven’t really outlined this one, so I have no idea where it’s going. Exciting. But terrifying. Mostly terrifying.

https://nanowrimo.org/participants/dananddna/novels/semblance-2017/