I will be posting about the upcoming Book II- Past the Past here in the next few months. I’ve had some questions from beta-readers who don’t understand why I use the third-person when speaking of ” Étienne’s story.” Isn’t it my story? Why speak of Étienne as if he’s another person? Well, I thought I’d explain why.

Yes, I do this as a memoir of a past life, and I genuinely believe that the story of my life as Étienne is a true recollection. Nonetheless, when I use first-person phrasing, such as “my life as Étienne,” or “I traveled to Brittany to learn from the Old Man,” I find it troublesome, confusing, and just plain weird! On reflection, these are the main reasons for this:

• It is the riddle of past lives that the “me” recalling the past life is not the same as the “me” being recalled! Like all remembrance, we are reconstructing it from our modern viewpoint. I am very aware of the differences between Étienne and modern me, both as a person and as a personality. I recall my life, his life, vividly and with much emotion sometimes, but there is no doubt that I am selecting a view of these things because it taps into themes and purposes of my modern self. I’m sure that Étienne would tell his memoir differently if this guy from 21st-century America would only let him.
• I also find it essential, when discussing these books, to maintain some authorial distance, especially since I am still in the process of writing it. As a writer, it is crucial to have my reader in mind; after all, I’m not telling my story for its own sake – I want it to resonate with you. A writer must be disciplined to cut out what distracts the reader from the story. Writer and critic Dorothy Parker, when asked for her best advice to new writers, famously said, “Kill your darlings.” When I’m talking about the story, rather than in the telling of it as Étienne, I’ll use the third person to maintain some distance, as any murderer of darlings must.

When discussing the books, I will use the third person and speak of “Etienne’s” story, acknowledging silently that it is also my own. I hope that you will pardon my use of the third person when speaking of Étienne.