Writing Hard Reset (Pt. 1)

There was never any preconceived idea of making a whole series of books about this. The thought of making a sequel occurred to me towards the end of writing the first book. All I really needed to go off of was the short part in the first book where Jill mentally assimilates with technology and the song Electric Eye by Judas Priest. Really, I could have titled the entire series with Judas Priest songs. Book one: Screaming for Vengeance, Book two: Electric Eye, Book three: Hell Patrol, Book four: The Ripper. See? Remember how I said that the only way to quell inspiration is to create? Well it goes both ways. Creation also yields inspiration in an annoying perpetual cycle.
 
The character Trish who was originally only mentioned in the first book ended up getting her own chapter in the first book. I liked her and wanted her to get more "screen time" so I made her a supporting character in Hard Reset.


Hard Reset resembles a loose cyberpunk adaptation of the Wizard of OZ with no Scarecrow. I didn't start it intending it to be this way but once I noticed the similarities which were uncanny, I couldn't help but steer it that direction. Trish, (our Dorothy) is living in a life where no one understands her. She wakes up after a huge disaster and finds that she's now in a strange land. On her new journey, she meets Travis, (the Tin Man) and Solomon (the Cowardly Lion.) Once I saw the parallels, I purposefully wrote Solomon as this character. It was nice because before that I wasn't sure where I was going with his development. He is unwittingly searching for courage. Travis' "heart" that he doesn't have is Dr. Mills. Trish is trying (or being forced) to go home to her parents. Her new found dog who's name tag says 'Otto' is an anagram for Toto, who is of course the dog from the wizard of OZ. Jill, (the wicked Witch of the West,) is constantly watching them on their journey and occasionally popping in to harass/try to kill them. It's not until the protagonists meet Skip, (OZ,) the hacker behind the curtain that they are helped/sent to the witch's castle in order to kill her. And in the end, everyone gets what they need.

Other sources of inspiration include a couple of episodes of Neon Genesis Evangelion. In one episode, the primary enemy turns out to be essentially a computer virus which is slowly infecting their computer systems. They can slow it but they can't stop it. Should the virus assume total control, it's the apocalypse. I like this episode for two reasons. One is that it is a sudden death crisis scenario. There is a finite amount of time on the clock and if you can't figure out how to beat the bad guy before that, it's over. It creates an immediate and constant sense of urgency. Characters have to think fast but can't make mistakes. The second reason is that it's an unconventional kind of battle. The soldiers that are always relied upon for offense are practically useless and the technicians and desk jockeys are suddenly thrust onto the front line in a role reversal.