This week I submitted a story unlike anything I’ve ever written before.  It was the first non-erotic piece of fiction I’ve written since high school or my early college years, which pushed me pretty far outside of my comfort zone.  While my novel has two distinct stories happening in different time periods, there are clear time lines and what has happened in the past can’t be changed.  “Choices” has multiple timelines and the past can be changed…at least once.  It went through many iterations before my editor and I found a way to tell the story that worked, instead of being a bunch of random scenes, making it a story that went through a very different writing process than my work typically does.  Finally, it was a different experience for me in that it was the first time I’ve been asked to write a story for a specific anthology rather than submitting to an open call for submissions.

The story was inspired by a fairly unlikely source–the movie Kate and Leopold. It occurred to me that the only real difference between Leopold and someone diagnosed with mental health issues in the real world is unbearable hotness.  Why else would you believe his story?  What would happen if I started swearing that I was from the future?  I would most likely end up medicated and/or committed.  But what if that happened AND I was right?  What then? Thus “Choices” was born.

I think we can all agree I wouldn’t get a commercial

You will hopefully be seeing “Choices” in print before the end of the year–more information as I have it.  Today, though, you’ll get a sneak peek

Temporal Authority Central Processing Center – Admiral David Smithson’s office

“Do you know why you’re here?” The admiral raised an eyebrow at Commander Jenna Robinson.

“Because my fourth request for a starship captaincy was the charm?” At least, she hoped that was why she’d been called in.

He glared at her. “Try again. You took Charlotte Donnelly into custody today, didn’t you?”

Uh oh. Should’ve known he’d find out.

“Yes. I removed her before she could splinter the timeline.”

“Commander. The guidelines clearly state you can’t interfere with your own lineage until you are at least 10 generations removed. You are four generations—”

“Five.”

“Commander!” She’d witnessed volcanic explosions with less heat than his eyes were emitting.

Jenna ground her teeth. “Sorry. Sir. But can the record state that if I hadn’t interfered, I wouldn’t be standing here to have this argument with you—”

Smithson cut her off. “Let’s go see your granny. Her records are now designated OEO.”

Our eyes only.

“Yes. Sir.”

I do want to state up front that I don’t mean to make light of mental health issues.  I have bipolar disorder and I know all too well that medication can be the thing that makes it possible to live instead of barely survive your day to day life.  However, one of my deepest fears is losing the line between fiction and reality; of one day needing more help than medication can give me.  So, in some way, taking someone who has been considered beyond help and validating that they were right and the world was wrong I’m also attempting to defang that fear.  Sort of.

At any rate, this has been an at times painful learning process, and I hope it won’t be the last time I publish something non-erotic.

Filed under: acceptance, In Progress, process, Submitted, Writing | Tagged: delilah night, fiction, time travel story, work in progress, writing process |