Arendi

I think of all characters in my book, Arendi Soldanas was the hardest one to define. For a long time, I frankly had no idea who she was, or what made her tick.

It's funny that originally I had planned on making Arendi a male character. This was 7 years ago, when I only had a kernel of an idea for my novel. I thought it would be cool if a human android had managed to escape the enemy shield. I think naturally I thought of Data from Star Trek as the template for this new character.

I quickly brought this idea to my dad, who is also a huge sci-fi fan. He thought it was interesting, but wondered if perhaps the android should be female.

"Then she and the main character can fall in love," he pointed out.

That seemed like a rather brilliant idea to me. However, after that, I didn't really know what to do with it.

How human is she?  What is her personality? Has she talked to humans before? Who is her creator? What is her purpose? 

This was a really tough dilemma. To iron out all these details, and somehow, have it all make sense. But then to make a romance out of it? Daunting.

Thankfully, it came together over time. And for fun, I took inspiration from an unlikely movie.

I saw the film Roman Holiday as a kid, and I remember the ending, being surprised by it. I don't want to spoil the story, but for those who know the movie's conclusion, I suppose it unsettled me a bit. (Although it is realistic.)

It wasn't ever intentional. But later on after my book was done, I did think, Arendi's journey with Julian is somewhat loosely reminiscent of this film.

The female heroine is trapped in a life she doesn't want. She ends up escaping. A man finds her sleeping. Initially, there is distrust, but they end up going on an adventure together.

Maybe, subconsciously, I wanted to continue that film's story, somehow. I guess it's inevitable to think about what could be, just as the characters in this film do in the end.

So to remember it, my novel does offer a futuristic take on a scene in that movie. I think it fit well with what I was thematically trying to do with Arendi's character.

As for Roman Holiday, the film still holds up quite well, and it's worth checking out. Another classic.