Foreword:

When reading On a Blue Moon, or book II, The Daughters of Firth Tales, it’s tempting to classify it as Science Fiction. While there are alien beings, space and time travel involved, true Science Fiction is steeped in known science, or credible scientific theory, which does not apply here.

How about Science Fantasy? If space and time travel were central to the storyline, that would be valid, but they are not. They are only used as a portal to worlds where natural laws are expanded upon, and life forms redefined. Portals to another world can also be; a rabbit hole (Alice in Wonderland), a mirror (Through the Looking-Glass), a wardrobe (The Chronicles of Narnia), et al.

It is suggested these tales be considered a Fantasist’s Memoir told from the collective viewpoint of characters within the tales, the teller of the tales being one of those characters. That genre is alluded to by the first paragraph of Willow’s Prologue to On a Blue Moon:

“There are many voices inside my head, of people and other beings I’ve known. Voices of those I have loved. Voices echoing from thousands of years in the past, and calling back from hundreds of years into the future. All want their tales to be told.”

From Willow’s own experiences, and through the experiences related to her by people, and other beings she’s known, she gives voice to their life’s journeys.

Though Willow is the teller of the tales, she tells them in the third person, representing all the voices, not just her own. However, it’s not an omniscient perspective. Instead, the perspective is her own, combined with those of her companions, but not of any characters whose perspective she had no knowledge of.

Make note that Willow is the teller of the tales, as in oral rather than written. The society she is born into has no written language, the history of the society being passed down orally. Over time the people’s ability to memorize is enhanced, especially true in Willow’s case.

In that one must suspend disbelief to fully appreciate fantasy tales, it is also suggested to suspend disbelief and imagine Willow is telling you the tales as you read them. And keep in mind that, for efficiencies sake, there is a certain brevity in verbiage that tends to make the telling move along more quickly than if it were written.

The tales are interconnected by an initial conversation Willow has with other characters. Their dialogue carries on from one tale to another, leading into the telling of the next tale. In essence, it ties the five tales together into one story, a memoir of Willow’s life, and that of the people and other beings she’s known. A

Prologue:

There are many voices inside my head, of people, and other beings I’ve known. Voices of those I have loved. Voices echoing from thousands of years in the past, and calling back from hundreds of years into the future. All want their tales to be told.

This first tale is closest to my heart. It tells of a child living a carefree life before having her innocence shaken from her. She was lucky, she had a protector. Her mother did not when she was tortured by the same demon, a demon that preyed on the most vulnerable in his society. The tale also tells of another child, and her brother, tormented throughout their youth by hate and prejudice.

The voices tell of a tyrant coercing good people to act badly, of a woman’s unfaithfulness destroying the lives of her children and grandchildren, and they expose the ruthlessness of a dictator using his power to eliminate anyone who dares defy him.

Not all is woe to be told. There is love and faithfulness, and the courage of individuals risking their lives protecting those they love.
Through my body, but many minds, this tale is told for all those who suffered, who had courage, and who loved. W