What is the date you began writing this piece of fiction and the date when you completely finished the piece of fiction? The Other Side of Now has a long history. I wrote the original version, Zeitsprünge (which can roughly be translated as Leaps in Time) in the mid-1990s. It was published in 1998 by the Klio-Verlag here in Bern, Switzerland. In 2012, I decided to revise the manuscript and it became Jenseits dieser Zeit, which was published by the Frankfurter Publishing Group. I kept the foreign language rights to the book and in 2015, decided to have it translated into English.
My translator, Roger Johnson, gave the book its English title. We met for the first time in Perugia in 2016 during his holiday in Italy. Roger was at one time a German professor at the University of Southern Mississippi, before continuing his career at different Universities in the USA and has even lectured on Goethe’s Faust to students in China. Before beginning his academic career, he studied mathematics, German and comparative literature at UI Urbana/Champaign earning his doctoral degree along the way. He is a writer and has published essays and poetry in various literary journals. Roger translated the novel from his home office near Pennsylvania State University, where he was working part-time. I could see some of his office during our Skype calls. It was completely different from mine and well-suited for a language professor with its wall-to-wall, ceiling-to-floor bookshelves. His cat would often visit us during our calls.
The second edition of Jenseits dieser Zeit has recently been revised and is scheduled for release later this year. My editor, Marcel Maier, studied English at the University of Southern Mississippi and met Roger while he was studying there.
Where did you do most of your writing for this fiction work? And please describe in detail. And can you please include a photo? I am a lawyer by trade and spent a lot of time during my career writing legal briefs and even some non-fiction books on politics and economics. The idea for The Other Side of Now cameto me while I was working. It was most likely influenced by my interest in both the history of mankind and physics. I have always been an avid reader and have read extensively in both areas. The idea for the story stayed with me so I decided to set aside two hours each day and wrote the first draft in my office after work.
My office had a modern, minimalist décor. Even my bookshelf was bare except for a collection of law books. I kept my desk clear of any unnecessary paperwork, and I always had a computer or laptop at my disposal. Through my window, I could see the sandstone edifice of the police station, which was built in 1784 and was originally an orphanage.
I am retired now and no longer have that office. Since retiring, I spend more of my free time in the mountains.
What were your writing habits while writing this work- did you drink something as you wrote, listen to music, write in pen and paper, directly on your laptop; specific time of day?I wrote the majority of the manuscript after work in the evening in two-hour stretches. I scheduled my writing time so that I wouldn’t be disturbed by anything else. It was basically me, my computer, no music, or drinks.
Please include just one excerpt and include page numbers as reference. This one excerpt can be as short or as long as you prefer.This scene takes place in the second half of the novel. Prior to it, the main character, Daniel von Arx, has traveled into the future and is learning to navigate his new world. Those responsible for his journey have “uploaded” necessary information into his brain, but they have also allowed him to keep most of his memories. He knows he can’t go back in time. In this scene, he uses his access to data to check up on his brother, Michael, and some of the other people he left behind only a few days earlier. It is taken from the chapter, This Side of Then, pages 298-299.
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Over the next few days, I became more familiar with the new world and learned to use my brain’s basic package. One morning I powered up the communication device in my hotel room. A friendly voice answered. I asked for the Archive of the National Bureau of Vital Records. After a short while, the voice said, “Bureau of Vital Records, how may I help you?” At first, I was surprised to hear the same voice. Then I realized I wasn’t talking to a person but to a computer.
“Go to the twenty-first century,” I said.
“Next,” said the voice.
“Give me data from ….”
First, I asked about Michael—first name, last name, date of birth. The information came promptly. According to the Bureau, he had married a woman named Ada Schwartz at age 28. I didn’t know her. He had three children and died at 95. No other information was available.
I hesitated. I wanted to know the fate of so many people I had known. The first names that popped into my head were those of my girlfriends. Then I wondered if it was right to delve into their lives. I finally told myself that it was a long time ago and I couldn’t change anything. I mustered my courage.
“Bureau of Vital Records,” I said again, “go to the twenty-first century and give me information regarding Marianne….”
Again, the response came quickly. She had married three years after my disappearance but apparently had not been happy. The computer reported a divorce four years later. At thirty-five she had married a second time and had a child. I wondered what that really told me. It was precious little information. Then I had an idea. “Computer, find her last passport and show me her photo.” Some five seconds later the face of a wrinkled old woman appeared on the screen. I looked closely at the image. I thought I saw a faint resemblance to Marianne. But the old woman had little in common with the pretty girl I had seen just a few days ago.
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Why is this excerpt so emotional for you as a writer to write? And can you describe your own emotional experience of writing this specific excerpt? I can’t say that writing this scene or this book was an emotional experience in the traditional sense for me. Instead, while writing this novel, I would say I was driven by a passion for history, physics, and a desire to better understand the development of humankind. I also hoped that my story would encourage readers to explore these topics. As much as possible, I tried to keep the historical aspects of the scientists and other historical characters as accurate as possible. I decided to include this excerpt because one of my readers wrote to tell me that she found it quite melancholy.
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Were there any deletions from this excerpt that you can share with us? And can you please include a photo of your marked up rough drafts of this excerpt. I am sure there were extensive edits – both on my side when writing Jenseits and on Roger’s during his translation process. I am afraid those files no longer exist. However, I can show you the evolution of the covers over time.
Max Meyer is a lawyer from Bern, Switzerland and currently resides primarily in Canton Grison (Graubünden). He is an avid reader and when not re-reading Goethe’s Faust, he enjoys books about history, physics, and politics. He has published significantly in the field of economics. This is his first work of fiction.
the other side of now – Max Meyer (max-meyer-author.com)
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Most of the INSIDE THE EMOTION OF FICTION links can be found at the very end of the below feature:http://chrisricecooper.blogspot.com/2021/03/stephenson-holts-arranged-marriage-is.html