The Divergent Panorama is about analysing technological and cultural trends from a holistic perspective and with an optimistic outlook, about looking how things work and how we might change them for the better.
Who are you?
I’m Jetse de Vries. I’m a technical specialist for a propulsion company, and in my spare time I write fiction (and this substack). Expect writing about current and future technological and cultural developments, and how they impact the world and our future. All this through the point of view of an engineer whose main function is to make all the separate pieces work.
I’m not going to mention my (long) list of work credentials, as I want to keep a strict separation between work and my private life. My science fiction credentials:
Over 50 short stories published (see ISFDB, even though that list is quite incomplete);
Part of the Interzone editorial team from 2004—2009;
Edited the optimistic science fiction anthology SHINE in 2010;
After that, I got somewhat burned out, meaning I minimised my contact with the SF community while keeping the day job (bills and mortgage need to be paid, after all).
Of late, I’ve started writing SF novels (together with the odd short story), of which the first two you can read on this substack (amongst other things). Especially The Replicant in the Refugee Camp (and its sequel The Replicant, the Mole & the Impostor) are an example of optimistic, near-future SF—a genre of which I’m a forerunner and I’ve champoined throughout the years—demonstrate my ongoing commitment to optimistic science fiction.
My day job enabled me to travel across the world and I live in the city of ‘s-Hertogenbosch in The Netherlands.
Why become a paying subscriber?
Because you find either my essays interesting, my fiction compelling, or both. Hopefully, if I attract a sufficient amount of paid subscribers, I can start working part-time and spend more time on my writing, allowing me to make TDP very much worth your time. I’m also trying out if mixing non-fiction (essays as original intellectual pieces) and fiction (two novels this year alone) works.
I plan to implement the following features on this substack, per month:
3 essays—often linked essays—each appearing on the first three Tuesdays of the month;
1 review of a book, movie or album that I greatly enjoyed, appearing on the fourth Tuesday of the month;
2 excerpts of my hard SF novel Forever Curious on the second and fourth Friday of each month;
4 excerpts of my near-future novel The Replicant in the Refugee Camp on the first four Sundays of the month;
Please note that I didn’t start at January 1, meaning I’m skipping a review in order to fit the first three essays. After that I’m going to try to stick to my schedule. At the year’s end, the excerpts to both Forever Curious and The Replicant in the Refugee Camp will add up to complete, finished novels.
Subscriptions are $5 a month, or $50 a year. If you subscribe, you receive:
Access to the full content. About 50% is locked, although this may very from week to week. I’m planning to put up free work conssitently, so no worries if you can’t pay as TDP is worth signing up for. You’ll just see one half of it.
By the end of the year, you’ve got two full novels (and I intend to publish their sequels in 2024, if all goes well).
In addition to access to the full content, there are other perks. For example, open threads, ask-me-anythings, some free post will only allow comments from paid subscribers, and I hope to add more as this substack develops.
Ideally, The Divergent Panorama helps create a community that shares my optimistic outlook, that tries to think out solutions for the problems facing us rather than pushing out novel after novel about doom, gloom and apocalypse. A community that recognises that there are uncountable and untold people out there who are trying to create a better tomorrow.
Policies
Comments are encouraged and I try to read them al and respond if necessary. Please maintain a civilised discussion with mutual respect. Insults, provocations, open hostility or other violent expressions will lead to a ban. If you fee a ban is in error or unfair, please DM me on Twitter.
