Tag Archives: flotation tank

SENSORY DEPRIVATION IN AN IMMERSION TANK – and how it relates to the science technothriller, A REMEDY FOR DEATH

A while back, I posted here on how author Michael Crichton used an immersion tank to jump-start his idea factory.

That post on immersion tanks drew a lot of clicks, so I thought I’d offer you a long sample from my science technothriller, A REMEDY FOR DEATH –particularly, the section in which Dr. Doug Dalby, a brain researcher, tries out sensory deprivation at a shadowy clinic hidden away in the spooky mountains of central Europe.

How do the immersion tanks and hyperbaric oxygen treatments relate to what’s going on at the Hauenfelder Clinic and why it’s being supported by a cabal of really, really rich old guys? Well, if you really want to know, then I hope you’ll read the book.

(And, by the way, while this clinic is fictional, I suspect the reality may not be so far away–rich old (and not so old) folks have it good this time ’round, and are not eager to leave it all behind. See the archive of my posts on this blog.)

Here’s the link to that free sample, and how to order the book via Amazon: To buy A REMEDY FOR DEATH via Amazon as pbook or ebook

Also, here’s the link to my post “Michael Crichton and how he used an immersion tank to jump-start his ideas: __________

Special sample: how sensory deprivation immersion tanks fit into the plot of the technothriller, A REMEDY FOR DEATH

January 25, 2017

Michael11111

Here’s your free sample drawn from my science technothriller, A REMEDY FOR DEATH. Note: this special sample does not pick up at the beginning of the story, but rather focuses specifically on how sensory deprivation immersion tanks work in the plot.

Click to enter that special world: A REMEDY FOR DEATH— how sensory deprivation immersion tanks fit into the story

Michael Crichton, and how he used an immersion tank to jump-start his ideas

September 12, 2016

Michael11111

Immersion tank mind-altering No Comments

I’ve read most of Michael Crichton’s thrillers–more than once, most of them–so I have his name on my Google Alerts to see what new comes up. Today, from the British site, Den of Geek, came this little tidbit buried in the post.

(Background, just in case not everyone remembers, CONGO was a thriller about apes, set in Africa. It was later made into a movie 15 years later, in 1995, but Crichton had elected not to be involved, for reasons that you’ll learn in the full blog post. Link is below):

What grabbed my eye was this:

“Congo was still only a title and a vague concept when he pitched it to 20th Century Fox producer Frank Yablans in 1979, and yet Crichton’s clout was such that he was handed $1.5m in exchange for its rights. That pay cheque was so huge, in fact, that the normally prolific Crichton wound up with a chronic case of writer’s block. Determined to shift it, he spent hour after hour lying in an isolation tank, gradually formulating his adventure story in the pitch darkness.”

Interesting to me for a couple of reasons. 1) Crichton was incredibly prolific, and I’d never thought that he’d get blocked. But seems he did.

2) It brought to mind that I had tried an isolation tank (also termed immersion tank or flotation tank) when I was researching my own sci-fi thriller, A REMEDY FOR DEATH (which led to the character in the book getting quite a surprise, but I’ll refrain from any plot-spoilers.) I found it a mind-opening experience, and doggone, I think I want to do it again soon! Want to know more, google Dr. John Lilly, who came up with original idea.

The tank is filled with warm salt water, so you float, don’t get cold. It’s dark, and your thoughts go off in interesting ways. Here’s a picture of one. (Full disclosure: the person in this tank is not me!)

By the way, both flotation tanks and hyperbaric oxygen tanks appear in my science techno-thriller, A REMEDY FOR DEATH.

flotation-tank

For the article I referenced in Den of Geek: : http://www.denofgeek.com/uk/movies/congo/43576/the-strange-prehistory-of-1995s-congo#ixzz4K4iRkxIC