Is there a way to test if something's from the future?

Originally posted by Omega Vision
This is for a short story that I'm trying to perfect before sending out to various magazines.

The story concerns a man who, while digging his own pool, finds a skeleton. He calls the police who take the skeleton away, only to return it to him a month or two later after determining it's his own skeleton from the future.

I need an explanation--it doesn't have to be airtight, just believable--for how they might determine it's from the future. Carbon dating won't work, obviously, and right now I'm planning for them to make the pull by comparing his dental records and also the degeneration of the bones from arthritis (suggesting a more advanced case than his own), but I'm wondering if there's a marker that might suggest something is from the future.

CO2 levels in the bones/soil around the bones? Some kind of radiation that increases in concentration over time?

Well, OK, how about the skeleton is from a 'time slip' from a parallel universe?' You could work around it, to incorporate it into an older version of yourself from that parallel universe. Perhaps your pool is a 'portal' into that PU?

It's just a thought... 🙂

Originally posted by Omega Vision
The story has been published:

http://www.mountisland.com/old-bones.html

Ha-ha, your name's Duckworth. Gonna read the story now.

Originally posted by Laurie
Well, OK, how about the skeleton is from a 'time slip' from a parallel universe?' You could work around it, to incorporate it into an older version of yourself from that parallel universe. Perhaps your pool is a 'portal' into that PU?

It's just a thought... 🙂

Won't ppl naturally assume that the burried skeleton would be more of a clone/twin with identical dental records rather than "time travel corpse"? I mean, that's a bit of a big leap in reasoning for police to simply assume from there.

That said, maybe you can go with something like a "temporal storm that deposits random items from multiple eras that is being investigated by scientists that occured some time back" or somesuch unexplainable plot event plot device (as a foreshadowing) to make the concept of a time traveling corpse palatably acceptable as a possible conclusion to such a discovery?

I would go with a one of s kind heirloom watch that stops on a specific date/time (in the future) myself.... Or a smartphone that contains dated photos of events that hasn't happened yet. Or a new type of prosthesis that has not yet been invented on time of death.

Originally posted by Omega Vision
The story has been published:

http://www.mountisland.com/old-bones.html

Your prose is lean, which makes reading the piece flow. Characterization and setting seemed real enough, given the short story format.

Spoiler:
I thought the Big Reveal of the skeleton being from the future was...a might casual(?), ie, it didn't have quite the impact I would've liked. But the ending was good: unexpected and thought-provoking as to what Murray was thinking and what he might do next.

Overall: good job, OV. I usually don't read nonprofessional works (shame on me, since I fall into that category) because the prose is (imo) typically cumbersome. Not yours.

Originally posted by Mindship
I just read it.

Your prose is lean, which makes reading the piece flow. Characterization and setting seemed real enough, given the short story format.

Spoiler:
I thought the Big Reveal of the skeleton being from the future was...a might casual(?), ie, it didn't have quite the impact I would've liked. But the ending was good: unexpected and thought-provoking as to what Murray was thinking and what he might do next.

Overall: good job, OV. I usually don't read nonprofessional works (shame on me, since I fall into that category) because the prose is (imo) typically cumbersome. Not yours.

As for the impact of the discovery, magical realism demands a measure of understatement to keep it from becoming sensationalistic. It was a tricky scene, but I think I achieved what I was trying for, which was to move the plot forward without the skeleton overpowering the significance of the rest of the story. Really, Murray's relationship with his daughter is the story, and the skeleton is just the mechanism by which that story comes to fruition. My hope was that the reader would read that part, accept it within the logic of the story, and then move on.

Thanks for reading. 🙂

Originally posted by Omega Vision
What do you mean by "nonprofessional?" Do you mean "doesn't have a novel out?"

Originally posted by Omega Vision
As for the impact of the discovery, magical realism demands a measure of understatement to keep it from becoming sensationalistic. It was a tricky scene.

Originally posted by Mindship
Professional meaning more/less established, "name" authors.

I like understatement, and for the most part I agree: you succeeded in your venture. Working the sublime organically into a realistic setting is tricky. I guess I would've liked at least one person (a scientist?) to have had an intense, OMG! moment, but that's just my opinion.

What did you think of the comet?

Originally posted by Omega Vision
Better to think in terms of Unpublished-->Published-->Well-Published-->Famous.

Originally posted by Omega Vision
They probably were, but unlike most of my stories, which focus on intellectual types (professors, philosophers, writers, scientists, politicians), this story is about a salt of the earth guy, and the focus reflects that. Also, there was a lot of impact culturally--he got on Fox News after all (whenever I can, I work Fox News into a short story, it's just too deeply ingrained in my home region to ignore).

What did you think of the comet?

The comet? Honestly? I didn't note it much. Mostly what held was interest was Murray and how he was handling everything, especially the daughter stuff. I believe that was your strongest thread running through the story.

Originally posted by Mindship
Maybe I've collected too many rejection slips.
I was wondering about that reference to Fox. I immediately pictured Martha MacCallum anchoring in a thigh-high blue dress.

The comet? Honestly? I didn't note it much. Mostly what held was interest was Murray and how he was handling everything, especially the daughter stuff. I believe that was your strongest thread running through the story.

If you didn't notice it much, that's probably a good thing--that means it wasn't distracting. I had an idea (I haven't completely abandoned it--it's just sort of on hiatus) for a story collection where all the stories were linked by there being a comet heading for earth and each story would be directly or indirectly tied to that exigency. So far I've only written two stories for it.

Originally posted by Omega Vision
If you didn't notice it much, that's probably a good thing--that means it wasn't distracting. I had an idea (I haven't completely abandoned it--it's just sort of on hiatus) for a story collection where all the stories were linked by there being a comet heading for earth and each story would be directly or indirectly tied to that exigency. So far I've only written two stories for it.

Originally posted by Mindship
Shared-universe stuff: 👆

It's my favorite part of Kevin Smith's films. That while a lot of these characters know each other (mostly the Clerks and Jay and Silent Bob), there are also some that are barely or not at all aware of one another but have mutual friends.

I approve of the shared universe idea as well.

As for the story: not exactly my cup of tea, but it was decently well-written. Good job, Mr. Duckworth.

Loved the bit about the goth kids, by the way.

There are goth kids like that in every small southern town. It's a fact of life.

Originally posted by Omega Vision
There are goth kids like that in every small southern town. It's a fact of life.

For real?

Originally posted by ArtificialGlory
For real?