Hi all! Dave Cole, author of The Window (out February 2nd from Dancing Lemur Press) here with a guest post on writing the future. Welcome, Dave! --Shreya Looking Forward“I can’t wait to see you,” I recently told a friend, knowing we were hundreds of millions of vaccinations away from that happening. Still, it was true that I was looking forward to the reunion. We are always looking forward because our optimism tells us the future is bright (maybe so bright we have to wear shades). But what if it isn’t? What if the future is a glimpse into hell? If you had the chance to see when you were going to die, would you want to know? Or think back to early 2020—if you could have foreseen what was coming, would you really have looked forward to it? Stories about seeing into the future aren’t new—Stephen King’s The Dead Zone, Philip K. Dick’s stories Minority Report and The Golden Man (basis of the movie Next) and, of course, Macbeth by William Shakespeare. One of the common themes in these prescient stories is the question of predestination versus free will. Is the future preordained or is there something we can do to change it? A subset of this theme is subtle, but crucial. If we can indeed change what is to come, should we? What is the price we will pay for a new future? Could altering the future make things worse? The YA novel The Window takes on the broad theme of predestination versus free as well as first love, teenage angst, and what we are willing to sacrifice for a friend. Through a mysterious window that only Brian Bingham can see, he gains a portal into the future. It’s a narrow view, his foresight strictly limited to what he can see out of the small octagonal window in his attic. When the window reveals his best friend’s horrific death, Brian’s world is turned upside down. Already burdened with his parents constantly fighting, his plummeting grades, and his new relationship with Charlotte, a girl way out of his league, the vision of the death of his friend is almost more than he can handle. Brian must find a way to change the future…or die trying. Sounds straightforward but stories, like life, often take surprising turns. First, while the window’s predictions are accurate down to the smallest detail, they are frustratingly vague on when things will happen. Brian’s only clues are the color of the grass in his front yard and what people are wearing as they walk past his house. Second, if it is possible for him to alter the future, isn’t it equally feasible for someone (or something) to undo his changes? What is this window that grants him a view into the future? Why does Brian sometimes see only gray beyond the glass? What is the window hiding from him? When Brian finally understands the power of the window, is it too late for him? Has he really changed anything or was he merely a pawn in a game with a preordained finish? A dark window to the future… Everything changed the day Brian Bingham looked out the attic window and saw something that wouldn't happen for another week. Through a mysterious window no one else can see, Brian gains a portal into the future. But the future is not always something he wants to see. Brian has enough troubles in the present without worrying about the future. His parents are constantly fighting, his grades are plummeting, and his new relationship with Charlotte, a girl way out of his league, is in jeopardy. When the window reveals his best friend's brutal death, Brian’s world is turned upside down. He must find a way to change the future…or die trying.
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The BaronessHey, I'm Shreya! I love to read, write, travel, and drink tea. Disclosure: I am an affiliate of bookshop.org and I will earn a small commission if you click the above link and make a purchase.
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