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What Do The Curves of Ampersand Mean?

The Human race has become the most feared species in the known universe. With technological advances garnered from centuries of warfare, they have acquired the might to impose their will on lesser developed species. With their paranoid xenophobia derived from having been victimized by sneak attacks in those early wars, they trust nothing and no one who is not Human. With their credo of 'You're either with us, or against us,' they have no qualms in stamping out species who dare to challenge them or are seen as standing in their way. And with their thousand year life spans, they are the masters of the known universe.

But the universe is very, very big, and beyond the area known to the Humans is an ancient race known as the Donni. In technological terms, the Donni were once equal to if not more powerful than the Humans have become. Yet the Donni abandoned that technological greatness millennia ago to turn their thoughts inward and learn the secrets of the universe through their fantastic device called the "O E," which allows all the Donni to access vast amounts of information gleaned from the universe itself. Through this device, they have learned that the Humans are en route to their sector of the universe to investigate strange emanations from there. Knowing that the Humans are coming and knowing what they know of the Humans, the Donni race to revive their technology with the hopes that they can match the Humans and prevent their extinction at the hands of the Humans.

What Do The Curves of Ampersand Mean? is in the late first draft stage and should be complete by March 2007. I have set a deadline for final edit by mid June 2007. (previously, this was set to be completed in 2006, but circumstances beyond my control, not to mention NANOWRIMO, have delayed it yet again.) It has excited me as no recent work has excited me. First, it is a return to writing novel-length science fiction after what has essentially been over a decade. The last science fiction novel was Independence Day Testimony, from 1992. Second, its scope is grander than anything I have done to date. It has given me the chance to create a relatively distant future Humanity (approx. 3000 years) which has had to struggle through war after war and near extinction only to become a universal menace, as well as to create other races of super-scientific potential. Third, it's just a fun experience to sit down and do what has been so long in coming. Finally!

Love, Walter

Note: The book cover is just a mock up for the web page.