Some writers build stories. J. Kenton Pierce seems to have stories stalking him until he writes them down.

He joins Mookie in the 49th episode of The Science Fiction & Fantasy Factory for a lively, sharp-edged discussion about creating an interstellar universe where frontier settlers, political schemers, orbital AI-controlled kill-satellites, engineered soldiers, traders, autocrats, and stubborn individualists all collide. Pierce breaks down the world behind his Prometheus award nominated A Kiss for Damocles, his debut novel, and An Apple for the Legion, a new prequel that follows a genetically optimized true believer slowly realizing the machine she serves is rotten at its core.

What becomes obvious is that J. Kenton has thought through his universe: politics have logic, technology has consequences, the colonies feel lived in. Power centralizes, people resist, systems decay, and survival forces ugly compromises. 

The conversation also digs into Pierce’s libertarian-leaning instincts: skepticism of concentrated power, respect for local autonomy, distrust of coercive systems, and a bias toward people being left alone to build their own lives. But his characters are flawed, surprising, contradictory human beings because the story comes first. That alone separates him from many modern writers who treat fiction like a sermon with costumes.

Mookie and J. Kenton also get into the real craft of writing: why many authors obsess over worldbuilding and neglect character, why beloved franchises collapse under bad storytelling, why heroes need limitations, and why the best fiction often arrives when characters stop obeying the outline and start causing trouble.

Pierce’s writing process is its own adventure. He describes decades of compulsive daydreaming, scenes arriving out of nowhere, pacing around the room until ideas lock into place, and then unloading them in a rush. By avoiding the productivity myth and fake guru routine, J. Kenton has a mind naturally wired to create.

The Guest

I'm a retired Goth and somewhat disgruntled yet generally mild-mannered veteran of the Gulf War, with experience in molecular biology, social services, and way too much retail when younger. In a way, these stories were inevitable. I gamed excessively and often had more fun creating new characters and filling out those tiny little character bio screens than playing. My fleetmates in the Star Trek Online guild “TOS Veterans” started up some RP stories and encouraged me to beef up my main toon’s bio. A few hundred words of character background turned into 25K of story/fanfic.

Finally, I realized that I wasn’t satisfied simply consuming stories or weaving my characters into other people’s worlds. They're kind of pushy. I suppose that brings us to influences. too many to really list, from H. Ryder Haggard and Mark Twain to Andre Norton and Harlan Ellison, to James H. Schmitz and J. Michael Straczynski, Lois McMaster Bujold to Jim Butcher... And everyone in between. And now I'm sitting with my favorite authors at the Prometheus Awards table, who knew?

His Novels & Short Stories

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