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Swing Time: A Swing Dancing, Time Warping Story
Avid swing-dancer Chance Bryant experiences what the psychologists call anemoia, that is nostalgia for a time in which one has never lived. It bubbles to the surface every time he enters an old ballroom. How many moments of excitement and joy the old ballrooms such as the Valencia in York, PA or Pen Mar Park or the Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo must have seen! How many first crushes and first kisses, and yes, final partings, especially during World War II, took place in those old dance palaces? All those intense moments can’t just disappear forever. Chance and Faith, his dance partner, discover that, in fact, they do not. They found that if the song is right and the dance is right and you’re tuned in to the possibilities that the Universe presents, then you might just be able to touch one of those long ago, but not long gone moments. One of them might even touch you.
51 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 17, 2020
1 person is currently reading
1 person want to read
About the author
Austin Gisriel
18 books6 followersNo matter what topic I may tackle, I often come back to the theme of connection, whether it’s on a personal or on a Universal level. It is fascinating to me that these connections can develop—or dissolve—in a moment.
This fascination partly explains my interest in World War II, especially my interest in the home front, when every day could be a “momentous” one for the entire nation, while at the same time, the next telegram could bring momentous news to a single loved one back home. My interest in the war grew further when I reached that age when I could picture my parents when they were young. It is one thing to read history, and another to feel what those kids—my parents—must have felt as they were asked to put their lives on hold in order to save the world. The Secret of Their Midnight Tears series was born from those two thoughts.
Time Is A Pool, a 10-story collection of flash fiction focuses on moments that can change a life, even if it’s in a humorous vein such as “How No Pants Johnson Gets His Nickname.” Other characters who appear include a charlatan minister who is presented with the opportunity to perform a miracle, and “Benny,” whom we know better as Death.
My passion has always been baseball, perhaps because it is truly a game of inches, which is another way of saying, if the batter had swung 1/100th of a second earlier or later, then perhaps the game and the season and maybe an entire career might have turned out differently. I’ve written about a team, the New Market Rebels of the Valley Baseball League, and a person, Boots Poffenberger, who for a time was baseball’s most colorful character. I’ve written a few baseball short stories, and I’ve also written about why baseball is such a powerful passion for so many people. As the title perhaps implies, Fathers, Sons, & Holy Ghosts: Baseball as a Spiritual Experience, examines the connections to which baseball leads.
Regardless of the subject, I truly enjoy “talking” to readers, although I suppose it’s more accurate in this day and age to say “messaging” with readers. After all, books are really a conversation, just one in which the author goes first and does a great deal of talking initially, but only initially. I hope that anyone who reads my books or simply comes across this author page will feel free to join the conversation.
If you’re a baseball fan, please visit my Baseball Books page where you will find instructions on downloading Their Glorious Summer, the story of two collegiate summer league teams battling for the Valley Baseball League championship even as the Major League ballplayers were on strike in 1981. The download is free because I would like you to give my writing a try.
If you are interested in fiction, please visit my Fiction page to find instructions for downloading “The Bedford Girl.” This is also a free download. Someone had to be the first ashore on D-Day and the famous “Bedford Boys” from Bedford, Virginia happened was that company. Very few survived. Typically, this got me to thinking about what would it have been like for a Bedford girl back home once she received the terrible news?
Please visit my blog where you can read more about me if you like. Let the conversation begin!
This fascination partly explains my interest in World War II, especially my interest in the home front, when every day could be a “momentous” one for the entire nation, while at the same time, the next telegram could bring momentous news to a single loved one back home. My interest in the war grew further when I reached that age when I could picture my parents when they were young. It is one thing to read history, and another to feel what those kids—my parents—must have felt as they were asked to put their lives on hold in order to save the world. The Secret of Their Midnight Tears series was born from those two thoughts.
Time Is A Pool, a 10-story collection of flash fiction focuses on moments that can change a life, even if it’s in a humorous vein such as “How No Pants Johnson Gets His Nickname.” Other characters who appear include a charlatan minister who is presented with the opportunity to perform a miracle, and “Benny,” whom we know better as Death.
My passion has always been baseball, perhaps because it is truly a game of inches, which is another way of saying, if the batter had swung 1/100th of a second earlier or later, then perhaps the game and the season and maybe an entire career might have turned out differently. I’ve written about a team, the New Market Rebels of the Valley Baseball League, and a person, Boots Poffenberger, who for a time was baseball’s most colorful character. I’ve written a few baseball short stories, and I’ve also written about why baseball is such a powerful passion for so many people. As the title perhaps implies, Fathers, Sons, & Holy Ghosts: Baseball as a Spiritual Experience, examines the connections to which baseball leads.
Regardless of the subject, I truly enjoy “talking” to readers, although I suppose it’s more accurate in this day and age to say “messaging” with readers. After all, books are really a conversation, just one in which the author goes first and does a great deal of talking initially, but only initially. I hope that anyone who reads my books or simply comes across this author page will feel free to join the conversation.
If you’re a baseball fan, please visit my Baseball Books page where you will find instructions on downloading Their Glorious Summer, the story of two collegiate summer league teams battling for the Valley Baseball League championship even as the Major League ballplayers were on strike in 1981. The download is free because I would like you to give my writing a try.
If you are interested in fiction, please visit my Fiction page to find instructions for downloading “The Bedford Girl.” This is also a free download. Someone had to be the first ashore on D-Day and the famous “Bedford Boys” from Bedford, Virginia happened was that company. Very few survived. Typically, this got me to thinking about what would it have been like for a Bedford girl back home once she received the terrible news?
Please visit my blog where you can read more about me if you like. Let the conversation begin!
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
September 22, 2020
A peek into the world of a swing dancer
It was easy to read and I enjoyed getting into the head and hearts of swing dancers. Mr. Tommy has a really interesting view about live- what a guy! And I liked Chance saying at the the end... it might last a night or a lifetime. I’d like to find out. And Austin is right... oh the energy of the ballrooms of yesteryear with all the glamour and fun.
It was easy to read and I enjoyed getting into the head and hearts of swing dancers. Mr. Tommy has a really interesting view about live- what a guy! And I liked Chance saying at the the end... it might last a night or a lifetime. I’d like to find out. And Austin is right... oh the energy of the ballrooms of yesteryear with all the glamour and fun.
Displaying 1 of 1 review