The print., January 14, 1986, Page 5, Image 5

Sci-Fi obsession more than idle fantasy
By Amy Doane
Of The Print
For 19-year-old Jim Hardy
reading science fiction just
wasn’t good enough; writing
science fiction made sense, but
writing a satire on science fic­
tion fit the bill even better.
The seed was planted and in
the course of 3 years, “Cosmic
Companions” would soon
evolve from an idea in Hardy’s
head to a real, honest-to-
goodness,
soon-to-be-
published book.
“Science fiction has always
interested me,” said Hardy.
“That’s all I ever read.”
Hardy, a student at the Col­
lege, might have a healthy ap­
petite for reading sci-fi, but
writing a book about it takes
time, energy, patience, and
most of all talent.
For
Hardy,
writing
“Cosmic Companions”
wasn’t too difficult because he
feels he has an acquired talent
for writing.
Student author and former ASG Senator Jim Hardy
“I think the most difficult
part in writing the book was
coming back to it. Writing the
book wasn’t hard, but staying
with the same idea was,” com­
mented Hardy. “You just
have to go with it.”
“Cosmic Companions”
cannot be catagorized as just
science fiction. “It’s almost a
comedy,” said Hardy. “The
book is a satire that’s making
fun of an over-used plot.”
When Hardy began writing
“Cosmic Companions,”
publishing the story became
the next step. Hardy wrote to
Ballantine Books in New
York, informing them about
his ideas for a book and asking
if he could send a rough draft
of what he had written so far.
In turn, Ballantine Books
replied with a yes, and Hardy
was on his way.
Hardy has been dealing with
Ballantine books for about a
year now, and a publishing
date somewhere between late
January and mid-February lies
ahead.
Between writing the book
and trying to get the book
published, one would think
Hardy had enough to worry
about. It wasn’t until last sum­
mer when Dan Schaefer, also a
student at CCC and president
of the Creative Art Society,
approached Hardy in concern
with the cover.
“Schaefer asked me if he
could design the cover, and at
that point the publishing com­
pany hadn’t said anything
about the cover so I said
O.K,” Hardy said.
“Cosmic Companions” will
be released nationally and
Hardy said he was excited.
When asked if he had any
other interests outside of
writing sci-fi, Hardy expressed
an interest in mystery. Watch
out Hitchcock, Jim Hardy’s
coming!
‘Kind Lady’ to open March 6
By Erik Conrad
Staff Writer
Winter has arrived, and
with the new term comes a new
play. “Kind Lady” will be
performed in March, the se­
cond play in this year’s drama
season.
“I have the highest expecta­
tions for this show,” com­
mented Director Jack Shields.
“The cast quality is very
high.”
The play is one of mystery
and suspense. “Kind Lady”
follows events that occur
within a few months in the life
of Mary Herries, a maidenly
London art collector. As the
play progresses, her pity of a
supposedly poor man causes
various mishaps and eventual-
ly leads to her imprisonment in
her own home.
“The cast quality is very
high,” said Shields.
“Kind Lady” will be per­
formed on March 6-8 and
13-15 at 8 p.m., 'and March 16
at 2:30 p.m. in the
McLoughlin Theatre. It will
also be presented in Cannon
Beach at the Coaster
Theatre on March 27-29.
Pilot makes
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January 14, 1986
Page 5