How My Time Travel Works

 

Are you fairly new to reading time travel? When I started writing it, in 2019, I was new to writing it, but not new to reading it. I was a big Diana Gabaldon fan, not just on the TV series, but I've read every one of the Outlander books. Since I was a child I found the idea of going to another time fascinating, but I noticed that every author had a different vision as to how it should work. By know you know that, in my mind, it happens through DNA and family connections, and not with machines.
Recently there was a discussion about the ages of my characters and how it all works. I can tell you this. In my time traveling world, the years are parallel, and by that I mean, they are continuously happening at the same time. Confusing? It is to me, too, which is why I keep a family tree on each line and detailed dates and places. Here's how it goes for the main character, Francine Clark, in the A Slip in Time series. Fran was born in 1994, so at the beginning of the series in 2019, she is 25 years old. When she pops back to 1875, she is still 25 years old. She will age according to her original birth year, but they are always 144 years apart.
In 2025 she is 31
In 1881 she is 31
In 1882 she is 32
In 2036 she is 42
In 1929 she is 79 --that would be 2073-- which is why it would be such a disaster for her to return to her own time.

When you started the new series Branches of Time, Skye, did you notice that Ginny and Daniel were not as old as they were in Yesterday's Memories, Book 12 of a Slip in Time? That's because Skye began in 1907, so they were only in their mid fifties then. In other words, I went backwards twenty-two years to when Skye was only twenty. 2051(future)-144=1907(past)

When you read my books it's best to watch the year changes within that story line, but please don't get too bogged down in the family details and years. I'll keep it straight for you and try to remind you along the way. And I keep a list of characters and their relationships at the back of the book, just in case you need to refresh yourself, but beware of spoilers.
Hope this helps for those of you who have been asking.