Right Place, Right Time by K.M. Mahoney

I have a confession to make: I have a love-hate relationship with time travel. In fiction, movies, television shows, it’s a popular concept. Right Place, Right Time was the first time I’ve used the concept in my own writing, though. Strange, when you think about it. I have degrees in history, and I’ve written science fiction. Perfect combo, right? But I’m not of a scientific mind. Not. At. All. Trying to figure out the logistics of how/when/where, all that good stuff, it drives me nuts. Then there’s the ripple effect. You know, the whole ‘butterfly flapping its wings over China’ concept. One small action changing the course of everything. I get bogged down in the details. I can’t help it.

So when I began to write this story, I made the conscious effort to throw my normally detail-oriented personality out the window. It’s logical, really. I couldn’t tell you how a car engine works, but I know how to drive. My characters aren’t scientists, why would they know how time travel works? Just because they do it doesn’t mean they understand the process. Heck, even our beloved trench-coat-wearing Time Lord finds it complex. Wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey stuff is guaranteed to confuse even the most scientific mind.

The history portion of the story was far easier. No science to confuse this Liberal Arts major! It also allowed me to explore some concepts and questions that I’ve pondered over the years. Most scholars who focus on a period would likely say they would love to visit that era. When Drake, my historian in the book, is approached to join The Oracle Group and travel into the past, he’s thrilled, like any good history geek. But as he quickly finds, there’s a difference between reading an account and living it. When the people in your book become real, when a faceless group becomes friends and neighbors, it changes your perspective. How hard would it be, to know the outcome of something, but be unable to do anything about it? Particularly when that outcome is devastating? It will take Jens’s love and support to get Drake through the reality of history.

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Right Place, Right Time by K.M. Mahoney is now available at Amber Allure.

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