Writing for New Scientist magazine (paywalled), Christopher Paolini – author of 2002 fantasy novel Eragon, which was adapted for the big screen by 20th Century Fox in 2006 – cites Babylon 5 as a major influence on his new science fiction novel, Fractal Noise.
Fractal Noise is a prequel to Paolini’s first SF novel, To Sleep in a Sea of Stars, which was published in 2020. It is the third book in his Fractalverse series.
Paolini told New Scientist:
Although the CGI is pretty janky, as a result of a number of unfortunate studio choices over the years, the writing and storytelling of this series remain incredibly solid. One of the first TV shows to tackle multi-season arcs… and to make them work. Babylon 5 has some of the greatest characters found in science fiction, and some of the most moving and epic moments.
Can’t argue with that. Paolini has always been open about his influences, and the list here includes Frank Herbert’s Dune, the Mass Effect and Marathon video games, and the Culture series by Iain M. Banks, so B5 is in good company.
Fractal Noise is available now from Tor.
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