BTTF Fanfix: The Hill Valley Chronicles

Kind of a prequel of sorts to "No Place Like Home", the Hill Valley Chronicles are essentially a mini-series of sorts that, well, chronical Marty McFly's five years in the nineteenth century with Doc and Clara. Or, for the uninitiated, think of it as a hypothetical fic -- a "what if." In this case: "What if something happened to the DeLorean that trapped both Marty and Doc in 1885 for a while?" The thematical elements are bottomless. Honestly, the idea for the kind of weird, quirky project that the Hill Valley Chronicles -- or HVCs -- are had it's roots in the fall of 2002. I was working on NPLH at the time, and when it came time to sit down and get into the Marty's head that got stuck in 1885 for 5 years, I had a lot of fun. I wrote an 18 page chapter summarizing a lot of the stuff in this story in about 2 days, which was pretty damn good for me. And I was intrigued with the ideas and what was coming out. So I thought, "What if, for a lark, I wrote it out in greater detail, a kind of side project...." Originally, I figured this would be a little thing just for me, or maybe a couple close, trusted friends. But after the whole story [NPLH] got posted in February and March 2003, I was surprised by a lot of people expressing interest to see a "sequel" of sorts with some of the alternate characters, so.... I started writing the first of these stories in late May, while I was awaiting my "beta readers" reviews on the first draft of the second book in my "Partners in Time" series, knowing it would be an easy piece to come and go from. So, in other words, this thing will expand intermittently. The format of this is somewhat unconventional for me. Each segment -- not chapter, not really -- has a mini-title of it's own, and a little adventure or whatnot I felt was relevent enough to detail. This is a work in progress (right now). I have about 11 different "adventures" and stuff I want to detail, and when I finish a new one, it goes up. I think of this kind of as a series of vignettes -- or a miniseries. There is also a reason why this is tucked away off the NPLH page -- unless you read the story, you will have no freakin' idea on what's going on, or may not appreciate it as much. For the uninitiated who haven't read that particular story (and why are you even here?!?), I suppose the very first chapter -- er, segment -- would establish the situation fairly well. This is sort of a prequel, I suppose, to an alternate dimension Marty and Doc, the set that the characters we know spend the most time with. (Does this make sense? My brain is starting to hurt trying to explain it all....) The Segments Note: These are listed in the chronological order of events. "Volume I: The Accident" In which something goes terribly wrong getting the DeLorean up to speed.... Written: May 2003 - July 2003 | Length: Approx. 21,000 words "Volume II: Three's a Crowd" In which the inventor and the schoolteacher become engaged...and Marty struggles with life in the 1880s.... Written: August 2003 - December 2003 | Length: Approx. 40,000 words "Volume III: The Newlyweds" In which Doc and Clara marry.... Written: December 2003 - October 2004 | Length: Approx. 37,000 words "Volume IV: For Better or For Worse" In which Doc and Clara recieve an unexpected surprise.... Written: October 2004 - October 2005 | Length: Approx. 63,000 words "Volume V: ...And Baby Makes Four" In which the trio cope with the arrival of a new baby.... Written: January 2006 - June 2007 | Length: Approx. 58,000 words "Volume VI: Meet the Parents" In which Clara's parents pay a visit.... Written: June 2007 - July 2010 | Length: 72,000 words