In our [November/December issue, on sale now], Allen M. Steele concludes the story of the missing crew behind the Lemuria 7, which vanished on the moon. Read our latest interview with Allen to learn how curiosity inspired him to create a trilogy from what was originally meant to be a standalone story
Asimov’s Editor: What is the story behind this piece?
Allen M. Steele: “The Recovery of Lemuria 7” is the third novella of a trilogy, concluding a storyline that began with “Lemuria 7 Is Missing” in the May/June 2023 issue and continued with “The Hunt for Lemuria 7” in the May/June 2025 issue. “Lemuria 7 is Missing” was originally intended to be a single standalone story, but almost as soon as it was published I began hearing from readers who wanted to know why six people vanished without a trace on the Moon. And to be honest, since I didn’t know myself why that happened, I wanted to learn the answers, too. So I wrote two more stories to find out.
AE: How did this story germinate?
AMS: The first story came about when I became interested in aircraft disappearances through history, which led me to wonder what might happen if the same anomalies were to occur again in Earth orbit or on the Moon now that space tourism has become a reality. The rest of the series came around because I followed the advice given by the late Theodore Sturgeon: “Ask the next question.” I kept asking questions, and since each answer prompted a new question, I sought to answer those, too. This is a method I frequently use to germinate stories, and it works very nicely.
AE: Do you particularly relate to any of the characters in this story?
AMS: To any one character in particular, no, but in general I relate strongly to the people in these stories who are involved in the ongoing investigation of Lemuria 7’s disappearance, which takes place over the course of many years. Whenever there is an incident like this where something unexpected and inexplicable occurs, there are people who are delegated with the task of trying to figure out what happened. As a former investigative journalist, I know what it’s like to try to find an explanation when there’s little solid evidence and a lot of conflicting information. So I found myself able to empathize with the people in these stories who are trying to solve this mystery.
AE: How much do current events impact your writing?
AMS: As far as the Lemuria 7 stories are concerned, I was prompted by an incident a few years ago where an abandoned cargo freighter—a so-called ghost ship—ran aground off the coast of Belize. No one aboard, dead or alive, and no indication where the ship had come from or what happened to it. This prompted the first question, “What would happen if something like this were to happen in space with one of those space tourist ships that are beginning to go up?”
As a former investigative journalist, I know what it’s like to try to find an explanation when there’s little solid evidence and a lot of conflicting information. So I found myself able to empathize with the people in these stories who are trying to solve this mystery.
AE: Are there any themes that you find yourself returning to in your writing?
AMS: For me, science fiction is the literature of discovery, of venturing into the unknown. My stories have most often been about space exploration simply because the universe is so vast, but on occasion I’ve explored other frontiers, like time travel or undersea exploration. These stories have been the first time I’ve dealt with what ostensively is a paranormal theme, but it’s still a form of exploration or discovery.
AE: What other projects are you working on?
AMS: Along with the Lemuria 7 stories, which will soon be published as a novel by Fantastic Books, over the past several years I’ve successfully revived and updated a classic science fiction pulp hero, Captain Future, and brought him back as a series of short novels published by Amazing Selects. I’ve just begun writing my first major nonfiction book, a history of space opera titled How the Galaxy Was Won. And I’m also gearing up to do something a lot of Asimov’s readers have been asking for and writea new series of Coyote stories, now that the original series is coming back in print from Open Road Media. So, yeah, I’m keeping busy.
AE: If you could choose one SFnal universe to live in, what universe would it be, and why?
AMS: I think I like to live on my own world, Coyote. It’s frontier world that’s still largely unexplored, and although parts of it are rather dangerous it’s also a place that’s uncrowded and unspoiled. SF writers often invent worlds that are their own visions of Utopia, and Coyote is unapologetically mine.
AE: What SFnal prediction would you like to see come true?
AMS: With the caveat that the purpose of science fiction is not prediction but projection—that is, extrapolation of what could be in the future, not what actually will be—I don’t think it would come as a surprise to anyone that I’m hoping for the colonization of space, starting with the Moon and extending into the cosmos as far as we can go. Much of my life’s work as a writer has been to positively influence this into becoming reality.
AE: What are you reading just now?
AMS: Because I’m researching the history of space opera, I’ve been locating and reading a lot of classics of science fiction, including some that are long-lost or overlooked. For example, the two novels I’ve read most recently are A Honeymoon in Space by George Griffith, published in 1900, and Battle for the Stars by Edmond Hamilton, one of his last novels, published in 1961. Very different books from each other, but very entertaining all the same.
AMS: Do you have any advice for up-and-coming writers?
AE: Don’t do what everyone else is doing. Strive for originality. If you have an idea for a story that seems to belong to a popular trend, then either find a different direction in which to take it or abandon it entirely and do something else instead. How do you find a different direction? Follow the advice from Theodore Sturgeon that I mentioned earlier: “Ask the next question.”
AE: How can our readers follow you and your writing?
AMS: You can find more information about my Captain Future series from its website: Captfuture.com. My personal website has been down for a while, but I’m currently rebuilding it and it ought to be up again soon: allensteele.com. And I maintain a Facebook page, too.
From Earth to the Stars 