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Revisions
After a sudden car accident, Blake opens his eyes and sees nothing but darkness and scrolling text: “The fact that you’re reading this means you’re a) literate, and b) dead. Congratulations. You’ve met both preconditions.” Before he can read much more, Blake is transported to 1905 Russia, where he’s killed (again) moments after arriving.
Over the next several days, the pattern repeats itself twice more as Blake’s tossed into first century B.C. Rome and then 1941 Hawaii (just before Pearl Harbor). In between these visits – and the deaths that violently end each one – Blake tries to learn the truth about what’s happening to him from his cryptic new mentor, Galen.
“Revisions” first appeared in Battered Suitcase, volume 1, issue 4, September 2008, under the pen name Tom C. Underhill.
Over the next several days, the pattern repeats itself twice more as Blake’s tossed into first century B.C. Rome and then 1941 Hawaii (just before Pearl Harbor). In between these visits – and the deaths that violently end each one – Blake tries to learn the truth about what’s happening to him from his cryptic new mentor, Galen.
“Revisions” first appeared in Battered Suitcase, volume 1, issue 4, September 2008, under the pen name Tom C. Underhill.
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First published September 14, 2011
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About the author
Tom C. Underhill
12 books1 followerTom C. Underhill (real name: Nick Wisseman) lives in Bear Lake, Michigan with his wife, daughter, fifty cats, twenty horses, and ten dogs. (Okay, so there are actually ten times less pets than that, but most days it feels like more). He's not quite sure why he loves writing twisted fiction, but there's no stopping the weirdness once he's in front of a computer. Eventually he hopes to merge this stubborn surrealism more fully with his academic training to produce something in the historical fantasy line. But for now, he's content with the purely speculative fiction he's published in magazines like Allegory, Battered Suitcase, Bewildering Stories, The Cynic Online Magazine, and Mysterical-E.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
December 5, 2018
A short story, perhaps a taster for something else, with an interesting take on time travel. Worth 20 minutes of your time, but you'll probably hanker for more afterwards. Kind of like eating one salted peanut.
January 24, 2018
Revisions by Nick Wisseman might begin with a quick quiz. But the quiz is by text message and you are driving. You should know better than to text while ….
Because when you wake up you are a part of a celebration. The crowds are tremendous, but you don’t understand the language spoken. It might be Russian but before you can react, a raid begins, complete with shooting. Words appear in your mind to let you know where you are: Odessa, Russia during a time of the revolution. Where did the words come from? They appeared almost as words in a cartoon bubble. Blake loses consciousness, he may have been shot.
Upon regaining consciousness Blake faces an almost Santa like figure, Galen. Blake has questions, Galen has answers, but both are on a short time leash. Galen hints at rules for what Blake can and cannot do while in alternate realities but another shift occurs during a question and answer session taking Blake to Roman times before Blake learns anything.
Galen is a mentor for Blake. To what end? That will be the surprise ending as Blake shifts back and forth through different time periods with brief stops at “Galen Station.”
This is an imaginative short story that will pull you out of your daily routine. And it is free from the author website. If you like suspending belief for a while, give this short story a try.
Because when you wake up you are a part of a celebration. The crowds are tremendous, but you don’t understand the language spoken. It might be Russian but before you can react, a raid begins, complete with shooting. Words appear in your mind to let you know where you are: Odessa, Russia during a time of the revolution. Where did the words come from? They appeared almost as words in a cartoon bubble. Blake loses consciousness, he may have been shot.
Upon regaining consciousness Blake faces an almost Santa like figure, Galen. Blake has questions, Galen has answers, but both are on a short time leash. Galen hints at rules for what Blake can and cannot do while in alternate realities but another shift occurs during a question and answer session taking Blake to Roman times before Blake learns anything.
Galen is a mentor for Blake. To what end? That will be the surprise ending as Blake shifts back and forth through different time periods with brief stops at “Galen Station.”
This is an imaginative short story that will pull you out of your daily routine. And it is free from the author website. If you like suspending belief for a while, give this short story a try.
November 21, 2023
Great Plot Bones, Desired More Resolution Even for a Short Story
The plot skeleton is pretty unique as fast was speculative fiction goes and I would love to see this developed into a full novel. I'm going to be thinking about this life after death path for awhile as it feels like early tinkerings of a new literary Universe. Bonus story takes too long to get to the speculative portion
The plot skeleton is pretty unique as fast was speculative fiction goes and I would love to see this developed into a full novel. I'm going to be thinking about this life after death path for awhile as it feels like early tinkerings of a new literary Universe. Bonus story takes too long to get to the speculative portion
October 31, 2022
Like the main character, I spent most of this short not understanding what was happening or why. By the end I did understand what Blake has been tasked with and why...but I'm left with so many questions .
December 13, 2018
Unimpressed.
August 2, 2012
Revisions starts out in the same way as many of this author’s stories, chaotic, disorienting, but definitely engaging. The way the story is told, the reader is as disoriented and unsure about what exactly is happening as the main character. Conversations with a mysterious figure alternate with “jumps” to places and events in history,. With each event little by little the story is revealed. By the end the reader is presented with a startling little twist.
The plot of the story is excellent and incredibly well-crafted. The pacing keeps the story suspenseful and entertaining. similar to many of this author’s short stories, the story ending is abrupt. The story cuts off almost as soon as the final revelation is revealed, leaving the reader hungry for more. It’s an excellent story for people that like science fiction, and history and would make an interesting premise for a book. Revisions is a brilliant short story that will be memorable for many readers.
The plot of the story is excellent and incredibly well-crafted. The pacing keeps the story suspenseful and entertaining. similar to many of this author’s short stories, the story ending is abrupt. The story cuts off almost as soon as the final revelation is revealed, leaving the reader hungry for more. It’s an excellent story for people that like science fiction, and history and would make an interesting premise for a book. Revisions is a brilliant short story that will be memorable for many readers.
April 19, 2012
"The fact that you're reading this means you're a) literate, ... and b) dead."
I read this as part of Underhill's "Outcasts" collection, and this was the only one of the lot that made me chuckle. Really intriguing ideas, presented with a sort of morbid, quirky touch of humor. Probably the most *fun* read of the collection. Definitely worth it as a stand alone.
I read this as part of Underhill's "Outcasts" collection, and this was the only one of the lot that made me chuckle. Really intriguing ideas, presented with a sort of morbid, quirky touch of humor. Probably the most *fun* read of the collection. Definitely worth it as a stand alone.
October 23, 2016
A rather confusing short story. The end is too fast and not clearing much of the mess.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews