Little house on the haven

Ville Platte author Christopher J. Fontenot has released the first book of a new series. While he is known for his historical fiction series on the Acadian Prairie, he now delves into the realm of science fiction with “Haven-The Purpose,” the first book of a planned 11-story series.
‘Haven’ starts on the morning of April 15, 1912 with the attempt to rescue hundreds of people who had been locked below deck on the Titanic as the ship sank. The rescue attempt is sabotaged and comes within seconds of killing some of the rescue teams as well as many of the people they tried to save. Those rescued find themselves in caves, miles underground. The majority of the story revolves around a dozen characters, survivors and their rescuers, as they try to adjust to the new reality of living miles below the surface of Mars. We learn that people have been living in similar caves in Mars since 1842, using technology hundreds of years ahead of what was available on Earth at the time. Mystery, romance, and a clash of cultures amidst the closed environs of an isolated cave system make “Haven” a page-turner.
Fontenot said he has always enjoyed reading sci-fi. “One common suggestion for new writers is to write stories that you would like to read,” he said. “‘Haven’ started as a curious thought experiment that quickly became a puzzle to be solved. Could people doomed to senseless deaths somehow be saved? Then the question became: Who would want to do that? The why became important, too: Why take such great risks to rescue people who were fated to die?” He said answering those questions led to a science fiction story which allowed for “cool toys” to play with like portals with a hint of time travel. He added that cool toys, in a true science fiction genre, have to be possible cool toys and discoveries in quantum entanglement provide the scientific basis. “I develop the story line into the second and later volumes to discuss the invention of the portals and construct a rationale for their use. Solving such issues is the kind of challenge that is half the fun of writing!”
Fontenot had to stretch his creative muscles to switch from writing historical fiction with the Acadian Prairie series to writing sci-fi. He said, “Changing the genre forces me to stretch my thinking. I am frequently wondering what other topics I could begin to develop into new stories, a new series perhaps, that I can build around compelling characters. As of yet, I haven’t exhausted the topics around the Haven series, but I am keeping my mind open.”
Asked if he prefers one genre over the other, Fontenot said, “‘Haven’ gave me a break from focusing too narrowly on the Acadian prairie in the 1800’s. Going back and forth was like changing from one exercise machine to another. You can delve deeply into our past culture and bring out lots of history that would be lost if ignored, and I enjoyed finding things that had perhaps been all but forgotten about our ancestors in the prairie. Indeed, when we look around and see trees and fence lines blocking our view of the horizon, we can’t imagine a time when the area south of Ville Platte was an open vista where trees were found only along bayous that held water all year long and the open grassland could be measured in miles, not hundreds of yards.”
On the other hand, he said writing dystopian fiction, a sub-genre of sci-fi, is “stimulating; an intellectually challenging activity. Although I enjoy both historical fiction and science fiction, I think I have more fun writing science fiction where I am not required to remain as true as possible to the actual facts as they happened.”
When asked what made him want to write about the Titanic, Fontenot said, “Twelve hundred people died in the Titanic disaster, nearly half of them deliberately locked below decks and left to drown while less than half of the lifeboats were full when they were launched. I thought of how much of a waste in talent occurred in such pointless accidents. I wondered how someone could go about rescuing such people.” He said that led to the question of why such a thing would be done, and by whom.
“The initial thought that space aliens were somehow involved did not appeal to me and I dropped it. The title, ‘The Purpose,’ grew from thinking of a rationale that would require rescues of people fated to die in such disasters. It took the second volume, ‘Planning Heaven,’ to establish the need for such rescue attempts; a challenge that forced the storyline into the dystopian arena and required a time-travel twist.” He said the Titanic provided a conveniently large enough catastrophe and group of survivors, and created a significant shock to the community of Haven, to allow a variety of converging storylines to entertain the reader. “The near disaster in the rescue creates a nice mystery sub-plot, several interpersonal conflicts develop that keep things interesting, while romances develop to offer a softer tone as the story unfolds.”
Fontenot was asked if he has gotten more writing done since COVID started. He said when working on a series, he writes all of the stories before sending the first one off to be published. “I haven’t written anything new in over a year. I have been involved with the Writer’s Guild of Acadiana, acting as Vice President of the Guild; working with the Goal Diggers, our monthly writing lesson meetings; and the Writer’s Guild Critique group have all kept me busy.”
Fontenot was invited as a Beta-reader for SF writer Lynda Engler and, in exchange, she graciously agreed to read his manuscript. “When she indicated that she thought ‘The Purpose’ had a unique plot concept and had promise, I made the suggested edits and sent the book to Kindle Direct Publishing. Since that point I have been busy reviewing the next three volumes in the Haven series: ‘Planning Heaven,’ ‘Building Heaven,’ and ‘Saving Paradise,’ while at the same time I have been reviewing ‘The Acadian Prairie – Octave,’ and starting final edits on ‘The Acadian Prairie – Joel,’ the final book in the Prairie series.”
Even though he has not done much writing lately, story ideas have continued to “ping” in his head. “What originally was intended to be a three-book series has now become eleven stories set in the Haven timeline universe,” he said.
“Haven – The Purpose” is available from Amazon for $15.95 for the print version. The Kindle version is $4.99. Fontenot also has a few print copies that he can autograph if anyone wants a personalized copy. He also has copies of “The Acadian Prairie –Theodule,” “The Acadian Prairie – Maius,” and “The Acadian Prairie – Amelie” for sale if anyone wants a signed copy. He is hoping that “The Acadian Prairie – Octave” will be available before the end of the year and the final Acadian Prairie novel, “The Acadian Prairie – Joel,” should be ready next year, if not earlier. The next three Haven novels could be ready to publish within the next 12 months, as well.
Fontenot hopes the parish library will have a permanent section to showcase all the local writers. “Their hard work should be celebrated and encouraged,” he said. As a bit of advice to local authors, he said there are writer’s organizations in the area that would welcome new members. “I know of several, both in Alexandria and in Lafayette. Such organizations exist to prove that creating art and literature (and music!) does not have to be a solitary process. Whether by joining an existing group or starting a support group like a writer’s guild here in Evangeline Parish, our local authors should have options for guidance whenever they need it.”
Fontenot has been writing since the age of 12. He holds several degrees: a Bachelor’s in Science, a Bachelor’s of Arts in Education, a Master’s in Education, and a PhD in Educational Leadership. He spent his career as teacher to students in junior high, high school, and at the university level. Now he has renewed his love of writing in his retirement.