"The Opposite of an Epitaph"
You can now read my Waters of Time-’verse story, “The Opposite of an Epitaph,” on my website for free, or as a downloadable 99-cent ebook at Kindle or Smashwords.
This story covers a temporary, accidental distraction during one of George Merrill’s early time-travel adventures, from the perspective of someone he meets in the past. His 1752 mission centers around a) the arrival of the first incarnation of the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, b) the adaptation of the Gregorian calendar by Britain and its colonies, c) something to do with Benjamin Franklin, that we never find out about. (The famous kite experiment had occurred in June of the same year; perhaps he was still fiddling with electricity.) But all of that is filtered, in this story, through the interests and preoccupations of 13-year-old Ruth Gregory.
I’m hesitant to bill this publication as an inexpensive advertisement for my novels, not because I’m not proud of it, but because it’s rather different in style than my usual work - first person present! OMG! - but please feel free to promote it that way. George is certainly himself herein, if a somewhat younger man than we meet in Time for Tea, not so far along on the journey of knowledge about the workings of time and the history of his own country. Themes of liberty and patriotism - George’s versions thereof, and by extension mine - also turn up in the novels, most especially in Time Goes By and (I hope) in the as-yet-unwritten fifth book. Like time, love, and honor, they are not such simple concepts as many would like to believe.
I hope you enjoy the story!
This entry was originally posted at http://hedda62.dreamwidth.org/86364.html. There are currently
comments there. Comment here or there.
This story covers a temporary, accidental distraction during one of George Merrill’s early time-travel adventures, from the perspective of someone he meets in the past. His 1752 mission centers around a) the arrival of the first incarnation of the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, b) the adaptation of the Gregorian calendar by Britain and its colonies, c) something to do with Benjamin Franklin, that we never find out about. (The famous kite experiment had occurred in June of the same year; perhaps he was still fiddling with electricity.) But all of that is filtered, in this story, through the interests and preoccupations of 13-year-old Ruth Gregory.
I’m hesitant to bill this publication as an inexpensive advertisement for my novels, not because I’m not proud of it, but because it’s rather different in style than my usual work - first person present! OMG! - but please feel free to promote it that way. George is certainly himself herein, if a somewhat younger man than we meet in Time for Tea, not so far along on the journey of knowledge about the workings of time and the history of his own country. Themes of liberty and patriotism - George’s versions thereof, and by extension mine - also turn up in the novels, most especially in Time Goes By and (I hope) in the as-yet-unwritten fifth book. Like time, love, and honor, they are not such simple concepts as many would like to believe.
I hope you enjoy the story!
This entry was originally posted at http://hedda62.dreamwidth.org/86364.html. There are currently
comments there. Comment here or there.