Beyond the Book

Christopher Bulis has been a fan of Doctor Who since the very first episode. He wrote the first third of Shadowmind in 1991, at which time he submitted a proposal for the novel to Peter Darvill-Evans, who liked it, but wasn't able to commission the book until July 1992, at which time Bulis was asked to write the rest of the book by the end of November. In four months, Bulis not only had to write the remaining two-thirds of the book, but also had to revise the first third to include Bernice, change Ace's character and move the adventure's setting from the 28th to the 27th Century.

Bulis cites Star Trek as a major influence in his work, particularly in the creation of other worlds. He set himself the task of finding convincing scientific principles for futuristic technology, especially as regards spacecraft.

One of his first ideas was to create a future in which the people and places encountered by the TARDIS crew were nice for a change.

Bulis describes himself as an artist first and a writer second. He received the commission to paint the cover and submitted several possible cover sketches. One of these featured the Doctor, Bernice and Ace being shot at in a forest; a second had Ace under fire in a street; another has her fighting off attackers near the TARDIS; and a fourth was the one eventually used.