MTS Reading Week - Steve Cole Visits the Lower School

He explained how his love for Doctor Who and James Bond as a child has translated into a fascinating career as an author for the Young Bond series and for numerous Doctor Who publications. He went as far as to show some of his original works from his childhood, showing that a career in writing can start at any time.

When speaking about his Young Bond books, Steve described how interesting it can be writing a character whom everyone is familiar with, especially knowing he will become a double 0 agent as an adult. What led him to such a career?

Steve later delved into the intricate world of espionage, describing some of the real-life gadgets used in the 1930s and 40s which inspired many moments in his Young Bond books. Steve also ran a workshop for a select group of Thirds, chosen by their English teacher, looking at Steve’s Swarm Rising series, written with astronaut Tim Peak. Whilst on the International Space Station, Tim was fascinated by the vast distances in space between us and the trillions of stars and planets.

When asked to describe how it might feel to step onto another planet, the Third Form students created some intriguing excerpts, looking at what could be familiar and what would be different, making us wonder what would happen next. Please enjoy some of their work below:

L Warnapala:

After all the tedious years, a thud awoke me. The spaceship had descended. I gradually hopped towards the exit when a blinding green haze enveloped me, suffocating me with its putrid scent. I felt lightheaded and my feet felt like they were glued to the surface. With great force I walked amongst the mist until I caught sight of a collection of beings, and then it all went black.

G Mali:

A barren wasteland, nothing in sight. Only the surface of this peculiar planet and the vast void loomed ahead. When you roam around, you see nothing. It feels like the sun is on your shoulders.

There is a scent of stingy toilet, it smells horrible. You look over to the other side and in the distance, you see a planet but no ordinary planet, a planet in the shape of a cube. There are asteroids and stars hurtling around it. It is amazing.

But suddenly your body starts to disintegrate as the heat burns your spacesuit and is burning your flesh. You look down just to see your bones. It feels like hell. I just saw my arm fall off. I collapse.

A Mehta:

As the spaceship descended through the inky, purple sky, I awaited our landing nervously. From above I gazed below at a sprawling, black desert. Bright cactus sprouted irregularly – the only form of life I could see. BOOM. We were here. We had finally landed on a new planet.

My foot lingered above the ground as panicky thoughts flashed through me. “What if I sink through? What if some alien comes and devours me?” I gathered my courage and stepped down.

The intense gravity seemed to pull me into the planet’s core. As far as I could see, black sand stretched into the horizon. An emerald sun peeked its rays from above and a mixture of toxic gasses swirled around like a whirlwind. A strong odour of volcanic ash wafted up my nostrils. I slowly bent down to feel a nearby cactus. It was sticky – an orange sap had latched on to it. That was when the ground swallowed me up…

J Singh:

Just as I stepped through the shining blue portal, I was bombarded with several streams of light. I attempted to very slightly open my eyes and glimpse at this new unimaginable alien planet. I suddenly felt myself floating. I felt as if I was in a dream. I could now see something that was not a barrage of yellow light rays.

I could suddenly smell something like strawberries. I could see creatures flying through the air. However, as I was lifted higher, the sky turned into sudden darkness. I tried to swim my way back down, but the air wouldn’t let me. I could now hear a sort of growling and rumbling. My vision went black.

D Gami:

A beaming light shot in my eyes as I cautiously stepped off my huge shuttle. I stood in awe, temporarily blind for a few seconds. I nearly suffocated from the pungent, putrid smell and coughed vigorously. The breathtaking view was uncomplimentary compared to the horrendous smell.

I took a few steps, still searching for any life near me. I was sequestered in the middle of a forest; suddenly I heard something. BEEP, ARGH, BEEP! What was it? I searched through the stiff red grass beneath me and in the blue bark of a tree. The noise got louder.

Then I searched in the bushes…

It was teeming with life; hundreds of small bee-like creatures were flying everywhere. I studied them carefully in the stiff bush, draped with nettles.

Suddenly a deafening sound like a shriek and a growl broke the serene atmosphere. Questions flooded my minds. ‘What was it?’ and more importantly ‘What should I do?’

A Pitamber:

As the airlock opened with a supressed hiss, a wave of heat instantly blew over me. I looked around at the dry, barren landscape that lay in front of my – miles and miles of a dark sandy substance. As I took my first step on the new land, I felt my foot almost sink in, as if it were quicksand.

I looked around. Blackness stretched in every direction, beckoning me to come closer. Taking another step, I could feel the gravity was similar to that of Earth. I thought back about my memories of my home planet, knowing that I might never return. Suddenly a blinding flash shook me from my daydream and once I had recovered from the shock, a wave of nausea overcame me. I was surrounded by a macabre scene of blood, flesh, and bones with a dark figure on top of the bodies.

I staggered back in fear, but a bony hand grasped my shoulder. The figure looked at me with a curious look, tilting his head. In a robotic voice it croaked “We do not accept visitors. You will be exterminated.”

 

L Ajina:

As I cautiously stepped onto this alien planet, unaware of the dangers I might face, I couldn’t help but ask myself “Where am I?”

After a terrible incident of me losing my fellow astronauts and my spaceship sending me hurtling to an alien planet, I was tired and hungry, but I could smell something wonderful and my body sort of took me to this smell.

As I got close, I could taste it in my mouth and at last I found the source. There was someone there. I crept quietly in an attempt to steal this food but suddenly, the creatures head turned all the way around like an owl and looked me dead in the eye for a few seconds before snapping its fingers. That’s all I could remember before passing out.

M Hussain:

Finally, my spaceship arrived at this mysterious alien planet. It had been a long treacherous journey. As I stepped on this unknown surface, I immediately felt the gravity start to kick in. As I turned around, I could see a planet full of vast and endless possibilities. The Earth loomed in the background; I never know that the earth looked like that from outer space.

An odour started to waft in the air. It smelt musky, and volcanic. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted an obsidian silhouette. My mind was taken off the scent and drifted to the creature. Hurriedly I went after it without realising that there was no gravity. Distraught, but still hopeful I made my way towards it. It was there in front of me. My hopes were crushed in one second. I thought I had found an extra-terrestrial creature, but it turned out it was…

D Patel:

After years of searching, we have finally found a planet where we could start a colony independent from Earth. I raised my foot and took one glace back at the battered probe that took us through that black hole. I jumped down. CRUNCH!

The feel of alien soil beneath my feet and the warmth of the alien sun was astonishing. Unus shone brightly on the surface of Demeter. What a fitting name for a planet full of vegetation, crops, and forests.

We decided to go exploring, and soon found a booming metropolis, not dissimilar to New York. Cars with gleaming bonnets hovered over us and blotted out the sun. That’s where things took a turn for the worse.

L Warnapala:

This is it. The first step.

I looked at this new planet excitedly and hoped to have a glimpse of alien life. Five seconds into walking, I felt that I had to exert more and more force to stay on the ground of this rigid, sandy surface. My first significant sightings were seeing some queerly shaped buildings. It’s not what you’re think, I bet. They were upside down! I pondered carefully on how this species could get into their homes so easily.

Anyways, enough of that. Let me tell you the vital part of this story.