The University of Maine DigitalCommons@UMaine Honors College Spring 5-2018 The Hum of Distant Novas Emily Jane Lewis University of Maine Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/honors Part of the English Language and Literature Commons Recommended Citation Lewis, Emily Jane, "The Hum of Distant Novas" (2018). Honors College. 338. https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/honors/338 This Honors Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UMaine. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors College by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UMaine. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. THE HUM OF DISTANT NOVAS by Emily Jane Lewis A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for a Degree with Honors (English) The Honors College University of Maine May 2018 Advisory Committee: Sarah Harlan-Haughey, Associate Professor of English and Honors, Advisor Reuben Dendinger, Graduate Teaching Assistant, Wicks Fellow, Advisor Naomi Jacobs, Professor of English Margo Lukens, Professor of English Joel Anderson, Assistant Professor of History © 2018 Emily Jane Lewis All Rights Reserved ABSTRACT The Hum of Distant Novas is a science fiction story about a woman in need of a community. It builds on the medieval frame narrative tradition and existing works of speculative fiction to create a world in which storytelling is a very grounding, very human part of the day. The protagonist, Jo Wake, books passage aboard a spaceship captained by Tempest Lane in order to reunite with her younger brother across the galaxy. The crew and passengers of Fascination tell each other stories to entertain, to react, to speculate, to hurt, and––most vitally––to feel together as they travel through the merciless void of space; they are part of a trend in science fiction that looks to interplanetary space voyages and extraterrestrial expansion with hope.