When I wrote
Evoguía, I was reacting to all the genetic manipulation stories that had become popular in SF; there seemed to be unending ways to identify and catalog specific DNA fragments, isolate them, inject them into a subject, and produce the super-soldier of the month, easy as pie. Unfortunately, we've already established that a few DNA bits don't just trigger a desired bodily change... they have to work in conjunction with many other DNA bits, proteins, chemicals and specific timing, little of which we understand... what most people imagine about DNA manipulation is akin to believing a light switch, properly powered, can grow a house.
On the other hand, there were examples, going back centuries, in which men and women had self-engineered changes to their essential infrastructure, right down to their autonomous nervous system, through combinations of self-hypnosis, meditation and self-training. Evoguía mentions the famous Pacific pearl divers who can hold their breaths for minutes while underwater, and yogis who can slow and practically stop their heartbeats during meditation... these are documented examples of man's ability to self-alter bodily systems that are supposed to be outside of his control.
In
Evoguía, Dr. Anitra Juarez has traveled the world studying these phenomena, and returns with a theory that using the latest in biofeedback and monitoring equipment can allow any person to learn how to access and manipulate those autonomous systems... essentially, using technology to induce self-hypnosis.
The initial subjects of her experiment are:
- Nami Waters, Atlanta police detective, whose senses are dulling as she ages, jeopardizing her career and the lives of herself and her fellow officers;
- John Jafar, an average man with a small and weak body, who wants to find new ways of improving his physique;
- Harvey Taim, a boy with learning difficulties who hopes to improve his cognitive skills; and
- Nicolette Larson, a chronically-sick woman who hopes to strengthen her immune system and improve her daily health.
The story only starts with them... and as the results of Dr. Juarez' experiments become tangible--and much more far-reaching than any of them could have expected--the story continues through the next two generations of these characters, and the world in which they come to be major influences. And it finishes, generations beyond that, in a surprise culmination that brings a closing to the
Evoguía saga.
Evoguía is broken up into four parts, each telling the story of a different period in the history of the characters. Although technology figures in the story, this is about the people and their struggles to fit into the new world they've helped to create, and which constantly pushes back at them. It's a story of evolution, and of the difficulties and fearfulness of change.