New
Series Explores: Would You Change Events From The Past If You
Could Time Travel?
Novelist JB Yanni
takes us on a journey with a pair of captivating books (Time Benders
series) that challenge us to confront the moral and practical implications of
time travel. These heartwarming books pack a punch of history, faith, and
science that explore the “what-ifs” of life’s most significant moments.
“The three underlying
messages of the Time Benders series are the closeness of family and how
that makes the individuals stronger; the importance of faith in our lives; and
that young people are empowered to accomplish great things,” says Yanni. “The
books convey this through the characters, the events of their lives, and
lessons learned from their time travel. The books have appeal for girls and
boys and adults by being set in the 1970’s, having elements of history, math,
and science, and are both reliable and believable.”
Whereas the books
begins in 1974, the time travel takes us on trips to Dallas in the 1960’s and
visits Las Vegas in the 1950’s. Both books help give us a perspective not only
on those times but on all of time.
Kirkus Reviews on Time
Benders: The Machine:
“A
breezy, straightforward approach to time travel featuring unforgettable
characters.”
Kirkus Reviews on Time
Benders: And The Two Promises, Book II:
“Appealing
siblings fortify a time-bending tale that offers plenty of drama.”
Yanni,
who is a client of the public relations firm that I work for, is interviewed
below:
1.
What
inspired you to pen a series of books that involve faith, science, and family? I
was inspired to write the Time Benders series by my belief in the importance of
family to build strong individuals, and as the best support system; my faith in
the Lord as a guiding light in my life through good and bad; and my desire to
provide fiction that is relatable and realistic while being adventurous for
young people through characters that can be seen as friends, people they grew
up with and knew, or maybe even themselves as a teen, and a nostalgic but fun
tale for adults.
2.
The
time Benders series zeroes in on some challenging questions, such as: If one
has the ability to time travel, should they? So, should they? I think we all
wonder at some point in our lives, if we had the ability to go back and change
something, would we or should we.
Especially as we get older, we look back on some of our actions or words
and wish we could take them back or change them. I think that’s a normal part
of life. The question of whether we should
do it, if we could, gets addressed in Time Benders and the Machine, through the
many discussions between the characters as they contemplate their time
travel. I think, when you read how the
Fitzgerald kids handled it, and what they learned, you realize maybe you
shouldn’t. The consequences are sometimes more drastic than you plan.
3.
You
also raise a concern over the consequences or rewards of seeking to redefine
the present by changing the past. Is it a good idea to tinker with trying to
stop or remove even awful events from our history? There is a paradox in the
scientific studies of time travel known as the Hitler Murder Paradox. It basically says that changing something
major, like killing Hitler before he came to power, although intended to
prevent some great evil, has a ripple effect that might be much worse than the
original event. The risk is pretty great
that if you change something major, you will cause an even greater
catastrophe. You can read all about this
paradox and several others on www.jbyanni.com by clicking on the link for Time
Travel.
4.
How
did you research the science behind the time travel theories out there? Anyone
who knows me well will know that science isn’t really in my wheelhouse. It was, in fact, my least favorite subject in
school and the challenge to writing the Time Benders series. I, like one of the characters, know how to do
research, however, so I read, and googled and thankfully, one of my kids knows
way more physics than I do. He was a great resource, but also a great critic,
as he hates movies that take leaps with physics, and he kept me on track to
make the science seem as realistic as possible. And, now I know a whole lot
more about physics and the space-time continuum than I did two years ago.
5.
Why
is our literature filled with time travel themes? Its fascinating isn’t it?
Time travel seems like one of the last great unknowns, and so I think the
literature goes there to consider this last big question. The time travel fiction really picked up
steam in the eighteen hundred’s, which was also a time of great technological
advancement and when we humans contemplated travel by air, and space for the
first time in a real sense, so of course the contemporary literature would pick
up steam then as well. As we’ve advanced
our understanding of space, from Einstein onward, the literature I think has
kept pace, and become less fantastical and more realistic. A certain aspect of literature always keeps
pace with what’s important in its contemporary culture.
6.
What
trends do you see for science fiction literature? The young adult trend seems
to me to be more geared toward fantasy, and dystopian worlds and magicians than
time travel or even space travel right now. There has been an increase in adult
fiction with time travel elements in the last year or two, especially from the
independent authors. And there have
been some television shows, like Timeless that have sparked some renewed
interest in time travel. I for one hope
that pushes the trend forward so there’s more material soon. I really like to
see what other authors come up with for solving the paradoxes.
7.
Why
are YA books, like yours, so important for the newest generation to read? I
struggled as a parent to find reading material for my kids that was age
appropriate and interesting to appeal to them, but something I was comfortable
with them reading. That’s one reason I wrote Time Benders. I also think a wider
variety of material is always better for kids to find a subject and storyline
that interests them enough to sit and read.
Plus, with the setting in the 70’s, the Time Benders series gives kids today
a look at a real world they would otherwise never experience.
8.
How
can we get more women to write science fiction – and to appeal to the needs and
desires of today’s reader? I come from a family full of educators, so I have
always understood the value of education.
I think to get more women involved in writing science fiction it has to
start with the availability of interesting material to read, like the Time
Benders series of books, and being exposed to subject matter at an early age so
the interest gets sparked. I read a lot when
I was a kid, so I would say, supporting and encouraging young people to read as
much different kinds of material as possible would help men and women be better
writers and try different genres.
PLEASE
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Brian Feinblum’s
insightful views, provocative opinions, and interesting ideas expressed in
this terrific blog are his
alone and not that of his employer or anyone else. You can – and should --
follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com.
He feels much more important when discussed in the third-person. This is
copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2020. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now
resides in Westchester. His writings are often featured in The
Writer and IBPA’s Independent. This was named one of
the best book marketing blogs by Book Baby http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs and
recognized by Feedspot in 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. Also
named by WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” He recently hosted
a panel on book publicity for Book Expo
