Gravity has been kind to me
Gravity has been kind to me – I have few wrinkles. Gravity has also been kind to a special few, destined to fly. Pale was not one of those. With the name Pale Sudds, she could hardly expect to be destined for something special. I first discovered Pale when Judy, a colleague in our office watched the men walk past her and the other women of a similar age, as if they did not exist, their eyes, and everything else, focused on the attractive younger woman seated at her desk. “You reach an age,” Judy said, “when you become invisible.” Pale was always that age. With men and with women.
Yet there was something special about Pale, she could have been anybody, male or female, who at some time in their life has been ignored, over-looked and sad. But she was Pale, stirred with a resilience she did not know she possessed. And like so many she had a choice. Yet like so many, she had no choice, because she did not believe the choice was hers.
The universe of science fiction and fairy tales clarified that choice, it was incredible, stark wonderful and unbearable. Choose to act or choose not to act, both have consequences, both are Pale’s and Princess Samantha’s choice. Each with different ends. One of them will determine the fate of loved ones and friends. Our life on Earth rests on Pale’s choice. Our life in the perfect kingdoms of fairy tales, rests on more likely heroes.
A great thing about science fiction and fairy tales is they can take ordinary events, going to work, going to the shops, going out and cast them in an unexpected light, unhinging our expectations, perspectives, choices. Tales that transport us to other worlds, helping us realise more about our own world and strange possibilities. In our ordinary, extraordinary, wonderful lives, we are the Pale Sudds, the Princess Samantha’s and Frederick’s, with the power to change our world – to change our life, our expectations – or not.
In another life, another time, I worked for one of the largest local governments in England, writing strategies and reports for Social Care and Health. Many of which required the same talents as writing a novel or fairy tale, imagination, a touch of credibility and a wondrous suspension of disbelief. Although I researched, developed and wrote the strategies, they rarely bore my name, I was the writing hand of a senior manager. If you ever wonder how some people seem to do so much, they probably have many hands. I preferred the anonymity. It allowed me the freedom to write in different styles, not focused on how I was presented but how the strategy, senior manager and organisation were presented, how they engaged with the public and how they made the case for change. In writing Yellow Earth and The Princess Behind, I wanted to capture that freedom of thinking and development, to create a novel, a tale, a world, as Chris Before. So Chris Before is the author, the name, the focus and I am content to remain, as I am, in the background.
Chris Before Books on:
Amazon Author Page: www.amazon.com/author/chrisbefore
Apple Books: Apple Books
ChrisBeforeBooks.com