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* '''[[SoYouWantTo/WriteAScienceFictionStory So You Want To Write a Science Fiction Story]]''' - Time-Travel stories are ''often'' a sub-genre of Science Fiction (and for that reason, this guide, may also be useful to you), but if you are not inclined towards science or physics, and what draws you to this type of story is the kinds of strange adventures you can explore, perhaps you may want to look into some Fantasy, Science Fantasy or even Urban Fantasy concepts, after all, magic ''can'' cause users to time-travel in some stories. But, if you’re playing with Soft Sci-Fi, or Science Fantasy, a lot of what I have to say here is much more loosely applicable, as Soft Sci-Fi often plays hard and fast with scientific concepts and research. ''However'', if you are more interested in something with a semblance of scientific fortitude, then it’s good to look at some of the fundamentals of writing Science-Fiction before specifically looking into the time-travel aspect of such stories.
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* '''[[SoYouWantTo/WriteAScienceFictionStory So You Want To Write a Science Fiction Story]]''' - Time-Travel stories are ''often'' often a sub-genre SubGenre of Science Fiction (and for that reason, this guide, may also be useful to you), but if you are not inclined towards science or physics, and what draws you to this type of story is the kinds of strange adventures you can explore, perhaps you may want to look into some Fantasy, Science Fantasy or even Urban Fantasy concepts, after all, magic ''can'' can cause users to time-travel in some stories. But, if you’re playing with Soft Sci-Fi, or Science Fantasy, a lot of what I have to say here is much more loosely applicable, as Soft Sci-Fi often plays hard and fast with scientific concepts and research. ''However'', However, if you are more interested in something with a semblance of scientific fortitude, then it’s good to look at some of the fundamentals of writing Science-Fiction before specifically looking into the time-travel aspect of such stories.
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But, no matter what story you are dealing with, you will need to work out four things - which I have structured into the easy to remember (and not at all [[ShoeHornedAcronym over-engineered]]) acronym of ''T.I.M.E'' - You will need to determine first '''T'''ravel, then '''I'''deas, also '''M'''echanics & finally, '''E'''xtras. So, let us begin with:
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But, no matter what story you are dealing with, you will need to work out four things - which I have structured into the easy to remember (and not at all [[ShoeHornedAcronym over-engineered]]) acronym of ''T.I.M.E'' E.'' - You will need to determine first '''T'''ravel, then '''I'''deas, also '''M'''echanics & finally, '''E'''xtras. So, let us begin with:
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** '''Pros:''' The benefits of a time vehicle are that the vehicle itself is often a [[TravelCool Cool Ride]], and it can not only be very viscerally exciting for your audience, but it can also lead to many merchandising opportunities on your part (if you’re into that kind of thing). The design of a time vehicle can even be thematically, aesthetically or narratively relevant to your story, like the iconically British phonebox visage of the TARDIS from the ''BBC’s [[Series/DoctorWho Doctor Who]]'', or Emmett Brown’s cheap, modified [=DeLorean=], from ''[[Film/BackToTheFuture Back to the Future]]'' with its iconic gull-wing doors and many plot-relevant operating issues, or even the classic look of the time-travelling sled from H.G. Wells’ ''TheTimeMachine'', which is “technically” a vehicle, but cannot be physically moved under its own power. As well, the fact that time vehicles ''move'' means that they have an advantage for the user, as they will have transport and perhaps even some protection within their vehicle. Of course, if the machine is a space-ship, then that opens up [[TropesInSpace several more possibilities for potential stories]], exploring SpaceOpera tropes and aliens; but this is true of many forms the vehicle may take, be it a [[MilitaryAndWarfareTropes time-travelling tank]], a [[TheBigRace time-travelling racecar]] or even, dare I suggest, a [[InstantAwesomeJustAddMecha time-travelling Giant Mecha]]? This often also includes the benefit that the time traveller usually has more control over their vehicle, and may be free to choose the place and time they wish to travel to, opening up a whole timeline of possibilities for their adventures (although, again, there’s no guarantee).
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** '''Pros:''' The benefits of a time vehicle are that the vehicle itself is often a [[TravelCool Cool Ride]], and it can not only be very viscerally exciting for your audience, but it can also lead to many merchandising opportunities on your part (if you’re into that kind of thing). The design of a time vehicle can even be thematically, aesthetically or narratively relevant to your story, like the iconically British phonebox visage of the TARDIS from the ''BBC’s [[Series/DoctorWho Doctor Who]]'', or Emmett Brown’s cheap, modified [=DeLorean=], from ''[[Film/BackToTheFuture ''[[Franchise/BackToTheFuture Back to the Future]]'' with its iconic gull-wing doors and many plot-relevant operating issues, or even the classic look of the time-travelling sled from H.G. Wells’ ''TheTimeMachine'', which is “technically” a vehicle, but cannot be physically moved under its own power. As well, the fact that time vehicles ''move'' means that they have an advantage for the user, as they will have transport and perhaps even some protection within their vehicle. Of course, if the machine is a space-ship, then that opens up [[TropesInSpace several more possibilities for potential stories]], exploring SpaceOpera tropes and aliens; but this is true of many forms the vehicle may take, be it a [[MilitaryAndWarfareTropes time-travelling tank]], a [[TheBigRace time-travelling racecar]] or even, dare I suggest, a [[InstantAwesomeJustAddMecha time-travelling Giant Mecha]]? This often also includes the benefit that the time traveller usually has more control over their vehicle, and may be free to choose the place and time they wish to travel to, opening up a whole timeline of possibilities for their adventures (although, again, there’s no guarantee).
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More minor formatting fixes.
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** '''Cons''': Just as with the Fixed Timeline, this may bring up [[FridgeHorror daunting questions regarding free will, meaning & hope]] in a universe with an unchanging future. Also, depending on how characters act in the past, you may need to explain why killing George Washington ''didn’t'' [[CloseEnoughTimeline change history as we know it]], or why we don’t see time bounce back against changes happening in the present. For these reasons, many writers are forced to combine a Rubber Timeline with some other form of timeline, implying that time ''can'' change, but only if you do something significant, which is not a point in its favour if you have to alter it to make it work.
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** '''Cons''': Just as with the Fixed Timeline, this may bring up [[FridgeHorror daunting questions regarding free will, meaning & hope]] in a universe with an unchanging future. Also, depending on how characters act in the past, you may need to explain why killing George Washington ''didn’t'' [[CloseEnoughTimeline change history as we know it]], or why we don’t see time bounce back against changes happening in the present. For these reasons, many writers are forced to combine a Rubber Timeline with some other form of timeline, implying that time ''can'' change, but only if you do something significant, which is not a point in its favour if of this kind of timeline, you have to alter it its mutability just to make it work.
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:Crooked Timeline: any change diverts history in a new direction from the original, effectively leaving it “crooked”, and the only way to return to the original is to go back before the redirect and stop the timeline from changing.
:Split: Timeline, any change splits history in half, and the original timeline continues concurrently alongside the new one. In this version, it ''may'' be possible to switch between universes (via your Time Machine, or some form of [[InterdimensionalTravelDevices dimension-hopping machine]]), but even if that is impossible, some writers may simply switch narrative perspective to show how the separate universes unfold.
:Split: Timeline, any change splits history in half, and the original timeline continues concurrently alongside the new one. In this version, it ''may'' be possible to switch between universes (via your Time Machine, or some form of [[InterdimensionalTravelDevices dimension-hopping machine]]), but even if that is impossible, some writers may simply switch narrative perspective to show how the separate universes unfold.
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Just fixed some formatting and redlinks
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! Necessary Tropes
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** '''Cons:''' The detriments of these portals, is that they can often have limited control. For instance, with a naturally-occurring time portal, whilst, you may travel through the portal, or back, it means you can only visit two pre-determined time-periods - when you were, and when you end up. Even if the portal is in the control of some “portal device”, it may mean that a traveller is unable to travel to any time ''before'' such a portal was invented, as otherwise there will be no portal device on the other side to step through to, meaning it [[NoWarpingZone either will not work]], or any attempts will cause... [[Tele-Frag ''dysfunction'']]. Which brings up another issue, can the time portal be opened or closed? Even if the portal doesn’t require a device to “contain” it, this can ''still'' mean that if a portal closes after a traveller steps through, they may be stuck in whatever time they just stepped into, with no way back - ''or'', they may even be left at the mercy of those controlling the portal back home to re-open the doorway and allow them back, which may add a ticking-clock element to a time-travel story if they must locate the returning portal at a certain ''time''; or even a certain ''place'', creating a road trip plot where they must get to the new ''location'' of the return portal, in order to get back home.
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** '''Cons:''' The detriments of these portals, is that they can often have limited control. For instance, with a naturally-occurring time portal, whilst, you may travel through the portal, or back, it means you can only visit two pre-determined time-periods - when you were, and when you end up. Even if the portal is in the control of some “portal device”, it may mean that a traveller is unable to travel to any time ''before'' such a portal was invented, as otherwise there will be no portal device on the other side to step through to, meaning it [[NoWarpingZone either will not work]], or any attempts will cause... [[Tele-Frag ''dysfunction'']].''[[TeleFrag dysfunction]]''. Which brings up another issue, can the time portal be opened or closed? Even if the portal doesn’t require a device to “contain” it, this can ''still'' mean that if a portal closes after a traveller steps through, they may be stuck in whatever time they just stepped into, with no way back - ''or'', they may even be left at the mercy of those controlling the portal back home to re-open the doorway and allow them back, which may add a ticking-clock element to a time-travel story if they must locate the returning portal at a certain ''time''; or even a certain ''place'', creating a road trip plot where they must get to the new ''location'' of the return portal, in order to get back home.
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** '''Pros:''' The benefits of a time vehicle are that the vehicle itself is often a [[TravelCool Cool Ride]], and it can not only be very viscerally exciting for your audience, but it can also lead to many merchandising opportunities on your part (if you’re into that kind of thing). The design of a time vehicle can even be thematically, aesthetically or narratively relevant to your story, like the iconically British phonebox visage of the TARDIS from the ''BBC’s DoctorWho'', or Emmett Brown’s cheap, modified DeLorean, from ''BackToTheFuture'' with its iconic gull-wing doors and many plot-relevant operating issues, or even the classic look of the time-travelling sled from H.G. Wells’ ''TheTimeMachine'', which is “technically” a vehicle, but cannot be physically moved under its own power. As well, the fact that time vehicles ''move'' means that they have an advantage for the user, as they will have transport and perhaps even some protection within their vehicle. Of course, if the machine is a space-ship, then that opens up [[TropesInSpace several more possibilities for potential stories]], exploring SpaceOpera tropes and aliens; but this is true of many forms the vehicle may take, be it a [[MilitaryAndWarfareTropes time-travelling tank]], a [[TheBigRace time-travelling racecar]] or even, dare I suggest, a [[InstantAwesomeJustAddMecha time-travelling Giant Mecha]]? This often also includes the benefit that the time traveller usually has more control over their vehicle, and may be free to choose the place and time they wish to travel to, opening up a whole timeline of possibilities for their adventures (although, again, there’s no guarantee).
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** '''Pros:''' The benefits of a time vehicle are that the vehicle itself is often a [[TravelCool Cool Ride]], and it can not only be very viscerally exciting for your audience, but it can also lead to many merchandising opportunities on your part (if you’re into that kind of thing). The design of a time vehicle can even be thematically, aesthetically or narratively relevant to your story, like the iconically British phonebox visage of the TARDIS from the ''BBC’s DoctorWho'', [[Series/DoctorWho Doctor Who]]'', or Emmett Brown’s cheap, modified DeLorean, [=DeLorean=], from ''BackToTheFuture'' ''[[Film/BackToTheFuture Back to the Future]]'' with its iconic gull-wing doors and many plot-relevant operating issues, or even the classic look of the time-travelling sled from H.G. Wells’ ''TheTimeMachine'', which is “technically” a vehicle, but cannot be physically moved under its own power. As well, the fact that time vehicles ''move'' means that they have an advantage for the user, as they will have transport and perhaps even some protection within their vehicle. Of course, if the machine is a space-ship, then that opens up [[TropesInSpace several more possibilities for potential stories]], exploring SpaceOpera tropes and aliens; but this is true of many forms the vehicle may take, be it a [[MilitaryAndWarfareTropes time-travelling tank]], a [[TheBigRace time-travelling racecar]] or even, dare I suggest, a [[InstantAwesomeJustAddMecha time-travelling Giant Mecha]]? This often also includes the benefit that the time traveller usually has more control over their vehicle, and may be free to choose the place and time they wish to travel to, opening up a whole timeline of possibilities for their adventures (although, again, there’s no guarantee).
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* MentalTimeTravel: This is when a person cannot travel physically, and [[CantTakeAnythingWithYou can only take their memories/thoughts with them]], and often requires them to possess the body of someone who ''does'' physically exist in that time. This may mean that a traveller is confined to their own lifetime, only able to possess the mind of their past or future self; but this sometimes allows the traveller to invade the mind and body of a contemporary of the time they travel to.
* TheSlowPath: when someone either simply ''waits'' for the future to come, or occasionally is [[CryoPrison placed/imprisoned in stasis]] or in a [[YearInsideHourOutside time-dilation field]] for a long period of time, which is often the most scientifically accurate form of time-travel, but limits travel to a one-way journey.
* LoveTranscendsSpacetime: This is more common in Soft Sci-Fi, and may result in the Power of Love allowing a time-displaced couple to reunite. It takes many forms, as it is more a magical concept, so I won’t go into explicit detail, except to say that unless you’re writing a Romance, this is a weird choice...
* TheSlowPath: when someone either simply ''waits'' for the future to come, or occasionally is [[CryoPrison placed/imprisoned in stasis]] or in a [[YearInsideHourOutside time-dilation field]] for a long period of time, which is often the most scientifically accurate form of time-travel, but limits travel to a one-way journey.
* LoveTranscendsSpacetime: This is more common in Soft Sci-Fi, and may result in the Power of Love allowing a time-displaced couple to reunite. It takes many forms, as it is more a magical concept, so I won’t go into explicit detail, except to say that unless you’re writing a Romance, this is a weird choice...
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* MentalTimeTravel: This is when a person cannot travel physically, and [[CantTakeAnythingWithYou can only take their memories/thoughts with them]], and often requires them to possess the body of someone who ''does'' physically exist in that time. This may mean that a traveller is confined to their own lifetime, only able to possess the mind of their past or future self; but this sometimes allows the traveller to invade the mind and body of a contemporary of the time they travel to.
to, à la ''[[Series/QuantumLeap Quantum Leap]]''.
* TheSlowPath: when someone either simply ''waits'' for the future to come, or occasionally is [[CryoPrison placed/imprisoned in stasis]] or in a [[YearInsideHourOutside time-dilation field]] for a long period of time,which getting to the future that way. This is often the most scientifically accurate form of time-travel, but it limits travel to a one-way journey.
trip.
* LoveTranscendsSpacetime: This is more common in Soft Sci-Fi, and may result inthe Power of Love ThePowerOfLove allowing a time-displaced couple to reunite. It takes many forms, as it is more a magical concept, so I won’t go into explicit detail, except to say that unless you’re writing a Romance, this is a weird choice...
* TheSlowPath: when someone either simply ''waits'' for the future to come, or occasionally is [[CryoPrison placed/imprisoned in stasis]] or in a [[YearInsideHourOutside time-dilation field]] for a long period of time,
* LoveTranscendsSpacetime: This is more common in Soft Sci-Fi, and may result in
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!! Levels of Time-Line Mutability
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:Rubber Ball Timeline: If you go back and kill your grandfather, then time will correct itself by bringing him back to life, so it will bounce back ''against'' your change.
:Rubber Band Timeline: If you go back and kill your grandfather, then time will heal itself by making someone else be your grandfather, so it will reshape ''around'' your change.
:Rubber Band Timeline: If you go back and kill your grandfather, then time will heal itself by making someone else be your grandfather, so it will reshape ''around'' your change.
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!! Paradox Events
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!! What is a Causal Paradox?
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!! Glossary
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::WARNING:: Paradoxes are ''by definition'' impossible, and trying to “understand” how they can “be possible” in certain situations can lead to overthinking, stress, and, in some cases, WritersBlock. Keep in mind the genre, tone & target audience of your work, as it is highly recommended that unless your work needs to figure out paradoxes for the sake of the plot, then breaking your brain trying to explain the inexplicable is a waste of your time and brain-power. If in doubt, remember: [[MST3KMantra this is a story, it’s meant to be enjoyable]]. So, if you struggle to wrap your head around any of these, maybe consider a timeline or storyline that avoids paradoxes entirely.
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Clapping your hands with force results in a soundwave (W) with force equivalent to the clapping force’s kinetic energy (Wk) through the potential energy (Wp) of the medium, in this case air (W𝑥 = Wp + Wk); Kicking a ball with force 𝑦 results in the ball moving at a speed of (mass x acceleration) equivalent to that force (F𝑦 =ma).
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Clapping your hands with force results in a soundwave (W) with force equivalent to the clapping force’s kinetic energy (Wk) through the potential energy (Wp) of the medium, in this case air (W𝑥 (W = Wp + Wk); Kicking a ball with force 𝑦 results in the ball moving at a speed of (mass x acceleration) equivalent to that force (F𝑦 =ma).(F=ma).
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Consistency Paradox (or, “Grandfather Paradox”)
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'''Consistency Paradox (or, “Grandfather
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Ontological Paradox (or, “Bootstrap Paradox”)
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'''Ontological Paradox (or, “Bootstrap
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You go to your garage, and discover a time machine there
You go back in time (Adventure Ensues…).
You arrive back at your house, five minutes before you left.
Since you had so much fun, you park the time machine in your garage for you to find.
You go back in time (Adventure Ensues…).
You arrive back at your house, five minutes before you left.
Since you had so much fun, you park the time machine in your garage for you to find.
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#You go to your garage, and discover a time machine there
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You go to your garage, and discover Time Machine blueprints there
You build the time machine from metal, wiring and Phlebotinum from the local store
You go back in time (Adventure Ensues…)
You arrive back at your house, five minutes before you left.
Since you had so much fun, you copy the instructions to build a time machine in a notebook that says “Time Machine blueprints” in your garage for you to find.
You build the time machine from metal, wiring and Phlebotinum from the local store
You go back in time (Adventure Ensues…)
You arrive back at your house, five minutes before you left.
Since you had so much fun, you copy the instructions to build a time machine in a notebook that says “Time Machine blueprints” in your garage for you to find.
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#You go to your garage, and discover Time Machine blueprints there
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This needed expansion, so after a few months work, I expanded it into this. It's not perfect, so it may need tweaking, but it is more thorough ~ Kelnius
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'''Step One:''' Establish the rules of time travel in your universe. Every story has different rules - Series/DoctorWho, Literature/{{Harry Potter}}, Literature/{{Artemis Fowl}}. It's important to understand what the rules and limitations are in ''your'' universe. There's three main ways the timeline can work:
* The Fixed Timeline; if you go back, you have already been back. Any past event that you try to prevent will end up being caused, but you ''can'' go back to a MacGuffin needed to solve a future or a present problem
* The Dynamic Timeline; you can go back alone your own timeline, but you may cause a paradox by doing ''anything'' that will cause you to never go back in time. It should be noted that this is the most unrealistic version of the timeline, as going back in time already makes a different timeline, and thus paradoxes in this timeline are actually caused by anything you can ''prove'' will cause you not to go back.
* The Multiverse Timeline; if you "go back in time", you are actually traveling to an alternate universe, identical to yours up to the point you traveled to. Once in this universe, you cannot return to your own. You simply disappear from your own timeline at one point, and appear in this timeline at one point.
'''Possible questions to think about:'''
1. Why can't time travel be used to solve every problem?
2. How far can one travel through time?
3. How does a person's actions in the past impact the present/future?
* The Fixed Timeline; if you go back, you have already been back. Any past event that you try to prevent will end up being caused, but you ''can'' go back to a MacGuffin needed to solve a future or a present problem
* The Dynamic Timeline; you can go back alone your own timeline, but you may cause a paradox by doing ''anything'' that will cause you to never go back in time. It should be noted that this is the most unrealistic version of the timeline, as going back in time already makes a different timeline, and thus paradoxes in this timeline are actually caused by anything you can ''prove'' will cause you not to go back.
* The Multiverse Timeline; if you "go back in time", you are actually traveling to an alternate universe, identical to yours up to the point you traveled to. Once in this universe, you cannot return to your own. You simply disappear from your own timeline at one point, and appear in this timeline at one point.
'''Possible questions to think about:'''
1. Why can't time travel be used to solve every problem?
2. How far can one travel through time?
3. How does a person's actions in the past impact the present/future?
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! Necessary Tropes
Before you even put pen to paper (or, finger to keyboard; chisel to stone; thought to mental interface...), there are several necessary elements you should familiarize yourself with first.
* '''[[SoYouWantTo/WriteAScienceFictionStory So You Want To Write a Science Fiction Story]]''' - Time-Travel stories are ''often'' a sub-genre of Science Fiction (and for that reason, this guide, may also be useful to you), but if you are not inclined towards science or physics, and what draws you to this type of story is the kinds of strange adventures you can explore, perhaps you may want to look into some Fantasy, Science Fantasy or even Urban Fantasy concepts, after all, magic ''can'' cause users to time-travel in some stories. But, if you’re playing with Soft Sci-Fi, or Science Fantasy, a lot of what I have to say here is much more loosely applicable, as Soft Sci-Fi often plays hard and fast with scientific concepts and research. ''However'', if you are more interested in something with a semblance of scientific fortitude, then it’s good to look at some of the fundamentals of writing Science-Fiction before specifically looking into the time-travel aspect of such stories.
* '''[[SlidingScale/MohsScaleOfScienceFictionHardness Mohs Scale of Science Fiction Hardness]]''' - Writing always has some challenge, but I am not referring to hard/easy difficulty, so much as just how much science you want in your fiction. If you want to explore more scientific concepts, of causality, paradox & relativity, and you’re interested in the mechanics of divergent time-streams and other pseudo-scientific principles, then you’re likely hoping to explore Hard Sci-Fi. However, if you’re not as interested in the science and physics as much as the story and the adventure, the unusual time-periods - dinosaurs and robots - then you’re probably wanting to write something that is Soft Sci-Fi, which means you needn’t stress too hard about figuring out the science-fiction theory - heck, this may not be science-fiction at all! You can have a Fantasy or ScienceFantasy story, using magic to travel through time.
But, no matter what story you are dealing with, you will need to work out four things - which I have structured into the easy to remember (and not at all [[ShoeHornedAcronym over-engineered]]) acronym of ''T.I.M.E'' - You will need to determine first '''T'''ravel, then '''I'''deas, also '''M'''echanics & finally, '''E'''xtras. So, let us begin with:
! Travel
This is a simple question - how, exactly, shall your character travel from one time to another? What is your TimeMachine? Of course, not all time-travel requires a machine, but whether by magic or science, there are many and varied possibilities, and each has its fair share of Pros and Cons. So let’s look at a few common ones:
* [[PortalToThePast Time Portal]] - This type of time-travel comes in the form of a door, or perhaps a two-dimensional plane of some sort, which the prospective time-traveller simply steps through - although this can occasionally come in the form of a platform that one stands upon, or some form of time-energy projector. This makes the process of time-travel itself relatively easy for the traveller (the time and effort it takes to accumulate whatever energy, alignment or resources the portal requires, notwithstanding), as they can simply step into or through time like you or I walk into a room. Of course, there may be added dangers or safety measures, depending on how you want your portal to work.
** '''Pros:''' One of the benefits of this is that it often means that the person is displaced literally ''just'' in time - especially if the portal travels to ''“itself”'' - the person steps through the portal, and steps out of the same portal in the same place, but a different time period (although this is [[PortalNetwork not necessary]]). This is useful not only for travellers to get their bearings, but it means that the Portal cannot be stolen (although, it is possible that it may be [[AllYourBaseAreBelongToUs taken over]]). For dramatic purposes, having the portal stay still can add to the tension, because it means that in order to deal with any problems happening in any particular time-period, your traveller must physically remove themselves from the location of the portal in order to go anywhere, which can add tension if they ever want to use the portal to change the period they reside in, or even simply to get back home. Another benefit is that this type of time travel
** '''Cons:''' The detriments of these portals, is that they can often have limited control. For instance, with a naturally-occurring time portal, whilst, you may travel through the portal, or back, it means you can only visit two pre-determined time-periods - when you were, and when you end up. Even if the portal is in the control of some “portal device”, it may mean that a traveller is unable to travel to any time ''before'' such a portal was invented, as otherwise there will be no portal device on the other side to step through to, meaning it [[NoWarpingZone either will not work]], or any attempts will cause... [[Tele-Frag ''dysfunction'']]. Which brings up another issue, can the time portal be opened or closed? Even if the portal doesn’t require a device to “contain” it, this can ''still'' mean that if a portal closes after a traveller steps through, they may be stuck in whatever time they just stepped into, with no way back - ''or'', they may even be left at the mercy of those controlling the portal back home to re-open the doorway and allow them back, which may add a ticking-clock element to a time-travel story if they must locate the returning portal at a certain ''time''; or even a certain ''place'', creating a road trip plot where they must get to the new ''location'' of the return portal, in order to get back home.
* [[OurTimeMachineIsDifferent The Time Vehicle]] - This is a moving machine, such as a car, motorcycle, train, boat, space-ship, or some other science-fiction vehicle of your own design. Whatever the vehicle is, it is capable of motion in three-dimensional space (although this may have limits), but also has the ability to move through the fourth-dimension of time, and take any and all occupants aboard with it to this new time-period.
** '''Pros:''' The benefits of a time vehicle are that the vehicle itself is often a [[TravelCool Cool Ride]], and it can not only be very viscerally exciting for your audience, but it can also lead to many merchandising opportunities on your part (if you’re into that kind of thing). The design of a time vehicle can even be thematically, aesthetically or narratively relevant to your story, like the iconically British phonebox visage of the TARDIS from the ''BBC’s DoctorWho'', or Emmett Brown’s cheap, modified DeLorean, from ''BackToTheFuture'' with its iconic gull-wing doors and many plot-relevant operating issues, or even the classic look of the time-travelling sled from H.G. Wells’ ''TheTimeMachine'', which is “technically” a vehicle, but cannot be physically moved under its own power. As well, the fact that time vehicles ''move'' means that they have an advantage for the user, as they will have transport and perhaps even some protection within their vehicle. Of course, if the machine is a space-ship, then that opens up [[TropesInSpace several more possibilities for potential stories]], exploring SpaceOpera tropes and aliens; but this is true of many forms the vehicle may take, be it a [[MilitaryAndWarfareTropes time-travelling tank]], a [[TheBigRace time-travelling racecar]] or even, dare I suggest, a [[InstantAwesomeJustAddMecha time-travelling Giant Mecha]]? This often also includes the benefit that the time traveller usually has more control over their vehicle, and may be free to choose the place and time they wish to travel to, opening up a whole timeline of possibilities for their adventures (although, again, there’s no guarantee).
** '''Cons:''' However, the time vehicle is not without flaws. Namely time vehicles are notoriously difficult to operate, as time travel is often a [[NonSequiturCausality highly-precise]]; [[PowerSource energy-intensive]]; [[EquivalentExchange resource-heavy]] or even [[TimeIsDangerous violent]] operation, which can lead to [[TemporalSickness dysfunction]], [[TemporalParadox malfunction]] or [[TimeCrash tragedy]] if the time traveller isn’t fully versed in the safe operation of the vehicle. This also means that a time vehicle is prone to breaking, meaning that a traveller may be forced to fix the vehicle before they can GetBackToTheFuture. Also, if your vehicle is too uniquely designed, it may be conspicuous and [[FishOutOfTemporalWater attract a lot of attention in certain time periods]] - even if it’s not unique, if a device is taken to a time before that vehicle was invented (such as, taking an aeroplane to medieval times), you may not only confuse and scare the locals but possibly even cause a temporal paradox ''on sight'', and travelling to the future in a machine which is outdated may be [[TimeTravelersAreSpies ''just'' as conspicuous]]. Another issue is that if the time machine is a single device which travels with you, then the traveller is at the most risk in the event that their vehicle is [[GrandTheftPrototype commandeered by someone with ill intent]], as they will have [[TrappedInThePast lost their only means of returning to their domestic time-period]].
* [[DimensionalTraveler The Time Jumper]] -This is, simply put, a person who can travel through time without a vehicle or external machine. This may be because they have an ''internal'' machine, or a small/wearable device on or within their person, or, this may even be a natural ability that this person or their species has been granted, or was born with. This is often related to teleportation, either allowing the traveller to move through space and time simultaneously, or the traveller may simply be able to teleport, and the time-travel is another, related ability.
** '''Pros:''' This obviously has the benefit that it requires less preparation on the part of the user, they not only do not need to drive a vehicle, but they don’t even have to take a single step, they simply need to ''activate'' the ability. It also means that their travel can be more inconspicuous, so long as they travel to a place and time where persons like them existed (although they may have to [[ChangedMyJumper change their clothing so as to fit in]]), and don’t do so in the middle of a crowded street. This form of time-travel is also the least susceptible to theft, especially if the ability is natural/biological making theft highly improbable (but not impossible). Also, whilst time travel can be just as difficult no matter the device used, as the time jumper often requires either innate ability or a compact device, the time travel mechanics are ''usually'' much simpler or safer to operate, in order to allow for a single person to travel unprotected, and/or for the mechanism itself to be so compact. This also means that they often have a low energy cost and/or resource drain, requiring low - or no - maintenance.
** '''Cons:''' There are, of course, some downsides. Firstly, the fact that the traveller is so exposed means that there are some places which will be much harder, if not ''impossible'' to journey to, such as into a warzone, or anywhere with radiation or extreme heat, cold or weather, any place without an immediate ground to stand upon & anywhere lacking atmosphere; and the very instant that the traveller materializes/appears in their chosen time, they are vulnerable to any present dangers. Also, if this ''is'' a natural/innate ability, then precision is generally much harder to achieve, meaning that a person may only be able to jump forward or backward several dozen, hundred or ''thousand'' years at a time (or, in some cases, they may only be able to make small jumps forward or back a few minutes or hours, depending on the scope of the story). But, even if precision ''is'' possible, there’s still the issue that this kind of travel often limits the travelling capacity to ‘one’, meaning that if the traveller makes any friends ([[TimeTravelRomance or lovers]]) along the way, or they wish to [[ScrewDestiny save someone from their fate/destiny]], they probably won’t be able to simply stow them away on their return journey, and thus all problems faced in any time-period must be solved in the present moment (relatively speaking). Also, on the rare but nonetheless possible occasion that such a device ''does'' break, it may take some incredibly precise skills and technical efforts to repair, if it’s not entirely impossible to repair at all - especially if this is some innate or biological ability, as depending on its mechanism it may require surgical expertise, physiotherapy, biochemistry or, in some cases, mental or psychiatric care in order to be “repaired”. Also, this form moreso than the others is the most prone to giving the time-traveller ''no control at all'' as to when a time jump is initiated, [[UnstuckInTime or in which time period they will arrive]].
Of course, those are the most common ways. There are some others which occasionally pop up, such as:
* MentalTimeTravel: This is when a person cannot travel physically, and [[CantTakeAnythingWithYou can only take their memories/thoughts with them]], and often requires them to possess the body of someone who ''does'' physically exist in that time. This may mean that a traveller is confined to their own lifetime, only able to possess the mind of their past or future self; but this sometimes allows the traveller to invade the mind and body of a contemporary of the time they travel to.
* TheSlowPath: when someone either simply ''waits'' for the future to come, or occasionally is [[CryoPrison placed/imprisoned in stasis]] or in a [[YearInsideHourOutside time-dilation field]] for a long period of time, which is often the most scientifically accurate form of time-travel, but limits travel to a one-way journey.
* LoveTranscendsSpacetime: This is more common in Soft Sci-Fi, and may result in the Power of Love allowing a time-displaced couple to reunite. It takes many forms, as it is more a magical concept, so I won’t go into explicit detail, except to say that unless you’re writing a Romance, this is a weird choice...
Note: Please do keep in mind, not only are these possibilities not the ''only'' possible means of time-travel, but some works combine these together! Consider Doctor Who, the Tardis is technically a time vehicle, but it operates by opening a ''portal'' to a Time Vortex. There are also some time portals which exist within a moving vehicle, essentially making the vehicle akin to a time vehicle, even though the vehicle itself doesn’t travel through time. There are also some time-jumpers which can take others with them, meaning that by giving someone a piggy-back, they are effectively turning a single time-jumper into a living time vehicle. The possibilities are literally endless, you simply need to pick a form of travel that suits your story best.
! Ideas
So, what can you do when you go back in time? Well, just like the options for the forms of travel itself, the ideas you can explore are also ''literally endless''. But, the concept of time travel has also been around for millennia. One of the earliest time travel stories can even be found in the Mahabharata, an ancient Hindu text first written in 400 BCE, which includes the tale of legendary King Kakudmi who visits Heaven to speak to Brahma, the creator, and returns home to see that “27 ''chatur-yuga''” (roughly 100 million years) have passed, because time moves differently in Heaven. There are also similar stories in Jewish myth and Japanese fairytales, which deal with people traveling into the future after meeting gods or monsters. The point is, we have been exploring time-travel stories for literal ages, so there are quite a few different
So, let’s have a look at a few common time-travel story ideas, for some potential inspiration...
* AdventuresInTheBible: Someone travels to the past, to experience or re-enact a well-known story from history (often a biblical one, hence the trope name, but not necessarily).
* BackToTheEarlyInstallment: The characters in an established story use time-travel to return to a previous point in that story, such as an earlier chapter, episode, instalment or series.
* ChristmasEveryDay: A story where Christmas (or another holiday/special occasion) repeats every day - often used to teach some kind of moral about that day’s importance, but not necessarily.
* ConquerorFromTheFuture: A conqueror from the future goes back in time to start his conquest in the past.
* FutureSelfReveal: Someone is revealed to be the future version of someone else.
* GetBackToTheFuture: Someone gets stuck in the past and has to find their way back.
* GodwinsLawOfTimeTravel: Someone tries to change the past, and ends up creating an alternate history where the Nazis won - this is worryingly easy to do in fiction.
* GroundhogDayLoop: Someone - or a group of people - gets stuck repeating the same day.
* OminousMessageFromTheFuture: Someone from the future send a message back in time, warning that something bad is going to happen.
* PrecrimeArrest: Someone is arrested for a crime they haven't even committed yet.
* SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong: Using time travel to undo bad events/consequences from history.
* TerminatorTwosome: Two people go back in time, one to change history and one to stop them.
* TimePolice: People who either outlaw time travel or enforce laws related to time travel.
* TimeTravelRomance: Falling in love with someone from another time.
* TrappedInThePast: Someone ends up in the past without knowing how to come back.
* YouWillBeBeethoven: Someone travels to a significant historical event, whereby the historical figure at the centre of that event dies (or never existed) and realizes that in order for the timeline to remain intact, they will have to "be" that person.
In writing your own time-travel stories, you can
*
The most important thing to remember when exploring these ideas for your story is, once again, you are writing a STORY. Whilst I personally think the idea of travelling to the future and playing the latest videogames using VR future-tech sounds incredibly cool, the vast majority of fiction tends to revolve around some kind of Conflict or Tension, so don’t simply focus on the aspects of time travel which sound really cool, you should also be asking what can go wrong… which brings me neatly to.
! Mechanics
By currently known science, with only the exception of travelling forward, slowly (relatively speaking), through time, [[RealLife time-travel is impossible]]. For this reason, when exploring the concept of time-travel, [[ArtisticLicense writers are given a lot of freedom]] to determine how exactly travelling through time will affect the past, present and future - if at all. Essentially, a Time Machine is the Practice of Time Travel, it’s the act itself; whereas Temporal Mechanics is the Theory of Time Travel, it’s the science/principle behind how it works, and why the Time Machine ended up when it did. So, what are the principles of Temporal Mechanics that must be considered? Well...
!! Levels of Time-Line Mutability
Can you change time? If so, how? What happens when you do? To answer these questions, there is already a page discussing TemporalMutability with several examples, but in this guide, I will list them (in order of mutability) with some pros and cons to consider while choosing which suits your story:
*[[StableTimeLoop The Fixed
** '''Pros''': This is light on temporal mechanics, since it requires a perfectly stable time-loop, and deviation from the set path is inherently impossible. It also appears to be the most scientifically consistent form of time-travel, as (in part due to the Anthropic Principle), we’ve only ever experienced time happening one way, so it makes sense that there is only one timeline. It can also be satisfying for the viewer to see, out of order, how exactly you tie up every loose thread of your story to stabilize the timeloop (assuming you DO tie up all the [[PlotHole loose threads]]).
** '''Cons''': Writing a story that sidesteps paradoxes doesn’t always satisfy reader curiosity. Sure, you avoided the Grandfather Paradox when the grandson’s assassination attempt failed, but that doesn’t actually address the paradox, so it can leave some readers [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse wondering about what might have happened]], instead of paying attention to the plot. Similarly, the fact that time is unchangeable brings up issues of why the main characters bothered to travel through time in the first place... you can’t exactly SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong if the timeline is fixed and unchanging. This often results in plots where ignorance or naivete is the driving force behind most time-travel, which can turn your story into an IdiotPlot. Also, the fixed timeline may evoke the [[FridgeHorror creeping realization that we have no willpower, freedom of choice or hope of escaping our inevitable destiny]], which can really bum some viewers out.
*[[RubberBandHistory The Rubber Timeline]] - ''In this case, there is one time-line and you cannot change the past, because if you try, the timeline will adjust to correct itself. '' The name says it all, as much as you try to
:Rubber Ball Timeline: If you go back and kill your grandfather, then time will
:Rubber Band Timeline: If you go back and kill your grandfather, then time will heal itself by making someone else be your grandfather, so it will reshape ''around'' your change.
Either way, time deals with all changes by either bouncing back towards the original path, or stretching to redirect the timeline back to the original path, no harm done.
** '''Pros''': This resolves the issue of the ButterflyOfDoom, whereby any action taken in the past could have catastrophic consequences, since any minor missteps in the past will be resolved by the time you get back home. Also, this kind of change appears to be [[SentientCosmicForce giving Time itself a will and perhaps even a personality]] (perhaps playful, perhaps vindictive), as time itself is acting against your changes to fix it, which can help with the tone of your story. It’s also suitable for Soft Sci-Fi or Fantasy stories, especially if you don’t want to deal with AlternateHistory.
** '''Cons''': Just as with the Fixed Timeline, this may bring up [[FridgeHorror daunting questions regarding free will, meaning & hope]] in a universe with an unchanging future. Also, depending on how characters act in the past, you may need to explain why killing George Washington ''didn’t'' [[CloseEnoughTimeline change history as we know it]], or why we don’t see time bounce back against changes happening in the present. For these reasons, many writers are forced to combine a Rubber Timeline with some other form of timeline, implying that time ''can'' change, but only if you do something significant, which is not a point in its favour if you have to alter it to make it work.
*[[RealityBreakingParadox The Brittle Timeline]] - ''In this case, there is one time-line and you cannot change the past, because if you try, you might break it.'' This can follow a lot of the same rules as the fixed timeline, except that if you attempt to change the timeline and create some kind of alternate history or paradoxes, this results in some catastrophe. Perhaps life, the universe & everything will be annihilated; perhaps it leads to an [[WorldWreckingWave apocalyptic unravelling of space-time]]; perhaps it will reset the timeline; perhaps [[RetGone you will cease to exist]], become UnstuckInTime or die horribly; perhaps it will cause this timeline to change its mutability; or perhaps... well, perhaps it hasn’t happened so far, and we [[WritingByTheSeatOfYourPants don’t want to risk finding out]].
** '''Pros''': This has all the pros of the fixed timeline that you have stable time loops and avoid paradoxes without the con of predestination paradoxes or loss of free will and choice, since the characters still have agency to choose. But if they make the wrong choice, it might destroy time/life/reality as we know it. Another advantage is that the way the timeline breaks may be interesting to explore. There have even been stories/chapters/episodes which start with time being
** '''Cons''': If the destruction of time is too catastrophic, or you [[TheWorldIsAlwaysDoomed reuse the threat of its destruction too many times]], then it can lend your characters some PlotArmour, as the audience realizes there’s still so many pages, or so much run-time, left, so obviously the universe has to continue for at least ''that'' much longer (although you could be all avant-garde, and end your story by leaving the last half blank after a time-wipe). And if you want your characters to break the fragile timeline during the course of your story, you’ll need to find some way of breaking time that suits your story and doesn’t feel like something [[AssPull you’re making up just so you can get to the next chapter already]].
*[[AlternateTimeline The Branching Timeline]] - ''In this case, there is one time-line, and you can change the past, but doing so creates a second timeline. '' This resolves paradoxes by simply saying that any paradoxical events happened in the other timeline. This resolves some issues, but there’s two main ways to have a branching timeline perform, either with the original branches are pruned and left ''crooked'', or the branches ''split''.
:Crooked Timeline: any change diverts history in a new direction from the original, effectively leaving it “crooked”, and the only way to return to the original is to go back before the redirect and stop the timeline from changing.
:Split: Timeline, any change splits history in half, and the original timeline continues concurrently alongside the new one. In this version, it ''may'' be possible to switch between universes (via your Time Machine, or some form of [[InterdimensionalTravelDevices dimension-hopping machine]]), but even if that is impossible, some writers may simply switch narrative perspective to show how the separate universes unfold.
** '''Pros''': This kind of timeline resolves the paradoxes by giving you more timeline to work with, and it can create the classic SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong scenario, as well as give you the chance to explore alternate histories without having to rewrite your story’s canon (unless you want to). Also, if you use the split timeline version, it can create some [[SplitTimelinesPlot fascinating stories]] as well as narrative structures, switching between, especially if you have the [[AlternateSelf two timelines]] [[FlashSideways interact somehow]] - it’s even been used in [[MaybeMagicMaybeMundane non-science fiction stories]]. And if you create several split time-lines, you might even create a [[TheMultiverse Multiverse]]!
** '''Cons''': If you create several split time-lines, ''you might even create a Multiverse''. AlternateHistory can be confusing at the best of times, but AlternateContinuity is almost impossible to wrangle, even with several writers at the helm, and some readers find it overwhelming. But even without a multiverse, the split timeline creates the issue that you still can’t actually ''change'' the timeline, since any attempt leaves the timeline as it was, and creates a new, different timeline. Which reality is [[EarthPrimeTheory actually real]]? And you might need to consider, if a villain changes history, and you go back and stop them, are you actually “repairing history” or simply “creating a ''[[ExpendableAlternateUniverse third]]'' [[ExpendableAlternateUniverse timeline branch]] in which you won”, [[FridgeHorror effectively leaving behind two branches of reality]] [[GoodJobBreakingItHero where you failed]].
These are some of the most common in Time-Travel Stories, but there are some forms of time-line which show up, that you might consider, but I include these for the interests of completeness:
*[[ComicBookTime The Floating Timeline]] - ''In this case, there is one time-line, but the past slowly drifts forward to close the gap between the'' present ''and the'' time of publication, ''often deliberately avoiding using exact dates, even for critical events like Births, Deaths, Marriages, Wars or Catastrophes. '' This is commonly known as a Sliding Timescale, or ''Comic Book Time'', as it exists due to comicbooks trying to stay “modern” without throwing out the continuity of the past. It’s inevitable in [[LongRunners longer-running series]] that attempt to stay modern, as it takes [WebcomicTime longer to write, create and publish a work of fiction]] than it does to... well, ''exist''.
** '''Pros''': It means the audience can more easily relate to the characters as they feel contemporary, no matter when you start reading. It also helps to set the tone for a less-realistic story or cartoon, especially for a LongRunningSeries
** '''Cons''': It makes literally no sense if you try to [[ContinuitySnarl understand how the timeline works]], and it punishes long-time fans for bothering to remember older publications of your story. Unless you want to [[ContinuityPorn attempt to make sense of it all...]] Also, some attempts to appeal to modern audiences can [[TotallyRadical fall flat]].
*[[TimeyWimeyBall The Wibbly-Wobbly, Timey-Wimey Ball]] - ''In this case, there isn’t a timeline, so much as a convoluted ball of spacetime, wherein the mutability of time varies, changing due to factors like inter-temporal traffic, space-time stability or [[ArmedWithCanon the whims of the writer]].'' This concept was both named by - and exists because of - DoctorWho, a British time-travel show for children which has existed since the 60s, so inevitably the rules of time-travel haven’t been able to stay consistent during all of those writers over all of those years. This concept means that you can utilize the advantages of any and all of the timelines mentioned above, but if you’re not careful, it also means you may fall into the pitfalls of any and all of the disadvantages as well.
** '''Pros''': This allows for a much more fun, free and adventurous story, as you don’t need to worry too much about timeline consistency - you can use the rules which suit the chapter or episode of your story as you see fit, to make it work. It can fit well into a Soft Sci-Fi or Fantasy story very well, and it can be used for comedy. It also means that if two of the timeline concepts appeal to you, but you can’t decide, you can easily use them both. A timeline may be fixed, until some catastrophic cosmic event causes it to branch apart. Perhaps a timeline is rubbery and self-healing, but if you stretch it too far it branches off into several timelines. Or perhaps the timeline is brittle, but when you accidentally break it, you realize it’s actually been fixed all along and completely unchanging. Or, a timeline could be a branching timeline, but as you split it too far, it weakens reality and becomes brittle. There’s much more freedom to play with concepts, if you don’t want to follow strict rules.
** '''Cons''': Some readers like Rules. It doesn’t matter if your [[AppliedPhlebotinum science device]] can cause you to create matter out of thin air, or uses perpetual motion machines, oe even magic, some readers are willing to suspend suspension of disbelief so long as [[MagicAIsMagicA the unrealistic effects remain consistent]]. Similarly, this does work best with a more light-hearted tone. That’s not to say you can’t have darker or more serious stories with a Wibbly-Wobbly Timeball, but if there’s more freedom to affect the flow of time, it might be harder to explain why you ''can’t'' go back and stop your mother’s death, whilst you ''can'' go back
* The Dynamic Timeline;
!! Paradox Events
Some of these forms of temporal mutability are designed to avoid paradoxes, since a paradox is, by
::WARNING:: Paradoxes are ''by definition'' impossible, and trying to “understand” how they can “be possible” in certain situations can lead to overthinking, stress, and, in some cases, WritersBlock. Keep in mind the genre, tone & target audience of your work, as it is highly recommended that unless your work needs to figure out paradoxes for the sake of the plot, then breaking your brain trying to explain the inexplicable is a waste of your time and brain-power. If in doubt, remember: [[MST3KMantra this is a story, it’s meant to be enjoyable]]. So, if you struggle to wrap your head around any of these, maybe consider a timeline or storyline that avoids paradoxes entirely.
There are a few categories of paradox, so for the sake of simplicity, I will
!! What is a Causal Paradox?
This category of paradox is simply when causality is interrupted, broken or unbalanced. In reality as we understand it effect follows cause. Things can’t happen, unless we make them happen
To ''clap your hands'': The '''Cause''' is swiftly colliding your hands together, the '''Effect''' is a loud “smack” sound.
To ''kick a ball'': The '''Cause''' is your foot colliding with the ball at speed, the '''Effect''' is the ball moving.
This is not only necessary for understanding consequence, but also physics. Newton’s Third Law of Motion states that “For every Action there is an Equal and Opposite Reaction”.
Clapping your hands with force results in a soundwave (W) with force equivalent to
So, Cause not only leads to Effect, it should
Causal Paradoxes break this rule, by having Effect precede Cause; Effects without Causes or, in some cases, disruption of these fundamental Causal Chains. So, what kind of Paradoxes can result?
Consistency Paradox (or, “Grandfather Paradox”)
This one is the most
This is the most common paradox as it’s the easiest to fall into by mistake, since if you go back in time “for a reason”, then by resolving the problem you are also removing the need to go back in time in the first place, creating this paradox once again.
Consider a common one - Kill Hitler - Adolf Hitler is one of History’s most infamous tyrants and genocidal maniacs, and that has inspired a lot of people to say, if they had a time machine, they would go and kill Hitler. But, if you go back in time and Kill Hitler as a baby… then Hitler doesn’t exist, doesn’t create that history, meaning that by travelling in time, you remove the desire to travel back in time in the first place.
Ontological Paradox (or, “Bootstrap Paradox”)
This one is less well-known, but it does show up in a lot of fictional works (often as a joke). Ontology is a branch of metaphysics that studies the nature of existence and being, and this paradox is effectively caused when something’s existence is illogical. The paradox can be explained like this...
You go to your garage, and discover a time machine there
You go back in time (Adventure Ensues…).
You arrive back at your house, five minutes before you left.
Since you had so much fun, you park the time machine in your garage for you to find.
In this case... where did the time machine come from? A physical object, composed of matter, atoms, mass, and presumably complex circuitry, now exists in this
But this gets more complicated, because existence isn’t limited to physical objects, what about energy, or information? What if instead of “discovering a time machine there”, you
You go to your garage, and discover Time Machine blueprints there
You build the time machine from metal, wiring and Phlebotinum from the local store
You go
* The Multiverse Timeline; if you "go
You arrive back at your house, five minutes before you
Since you had so much fun, you copy the instructions to
It’s a perfect time loop... but that’s the problem. Who invented the time machine? Sure, all the matter is accounted for, but where did the idea come from? Remember, you can’t get something for nothing, so how can you learn something (especially something as complex as time-machine construction), without it ever being discovered?
This kind of paradox is also known as a Causal Loop, since it has no definitive starting cause in the loop of recurrent events, implying that “the loop caused itself”. Causal Loops apply to any effect without a definitive cause, not just ideas for inventing time machines. A lot of works of fiction use this as a joke, where some famous quote, lesson, song, joke or concept gets explained to the “creator” by the time traveller. But, if the time traveller learnt it because it was passed down through culture over time by the creator, and the creator learned it because the time-traveller told them… who learnt it first?
Predestination Paradox
Is this even a thing?
! Extras
So, as I’ve explained here, there’s a lot that can be done with time-travel stories, based on how it works. But, you might still want a bit more information about Time-Travel. So, I have a few more resources, as well as a glossary of common and useful terms, in regards to time travel.
!! Glossary
* '''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Closed_timelike_curve Closed Timelike Curve]]''': In theoretical physics, a closed timelike curve is a stable model of reality (which can be represented with Lorentzian manifolds and spacetime embedding diagrams), which would allow spacetime to curve back on itself, allowing travel backwards in time. Whilst it is entirely theoretical, it can be a good starting point
* '''Fermi Paradox''': The discrepancy between the high potential for the existence of aliens, compared with the rarity of evidence for aliens. Often expressed simply
'''Possible questions
1. Why can't
2. How far can one
3. How does
* '''Imaginary Time''': This is a
* '''Novikov Self-Consistency Principle''': This is a principle which asserts that temporal paradoxes are impossible. It was proposed by Russian physicist Igor Dmitriyevich Novikov. In all honesty, whilst he wrote a book about the subject of "closed timelike curves", this principle was little more than his opinion, but it sounds good for technobabble.
* '''Ontological''': Regarding one's being, or existence. As existence is often referred to as temporal, time travel has the potential for bringing up ontological dilemmas.
* '''Paradox''': A statement, instance, or scenario, which either contradicts itself, or is inconsistent with the fundamental [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_thought laws of logic]].
* '''Retrocausality''': Relating to a cause which comes after its effect.
* '''SanDimasTime''': An arbitrary, or artificial, sense of urgency during a time travel story, despite the fact that the ability to time travel would render any deadline ineffective (may be justifiable, depending on the temporal mechanics of a story).
* '''Trouble with Tenses''': in a world whenin time is traversable, it may become necessary to develop new language to refer to one's position, origin and destination in spacetime. Some examples of potentially useful new words include… ** ''Elsewhen'' - At a time different from the one being experienced or referred to (the temporal equivalent of "elsewhere")
** ''Everywhen'' - To exist throughout all time, (the temporal equivalent of "everywhere").
** ''Nowhen'' - To not exist in time, at all (the temporal equivalent of "nowhere").
** ''Precedent'' - An instance of something, or someone, from an earlier time; past
** ''Subsequent'' - An instance of something, or someone, from an earlier time; future version; consequent; resultant.
** ''Somewhen'' - At some unknown or unspecific time (the temporal equivalent of "somewhere").
** ''Whenabouts'' - The time someone, or something, is generally occupying (the temporal equivalent of "whereabouts").
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'''Step One:''' Establish the rules of time travel in your universe. Every story has different rules - Series/DoctorWho, {{Harry Potter}}, {{Artemis Fowl}}. It's important to understand what the rules and limitations are in ''your'' universe. There's three main ways the timeline can work:
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'''Step One:''' Establish the rules of time travel in your universe. Every story has different rules - Series/DoctorWho, {{Harry Literature/{{Harry Potter}}, {{Artemis Literature/{{Artemis Fowl}}. It's important to understand what the rules and limitations are in ''your'' universe. There's three main ways the timeline can work:
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Changed line(s) 1 (click to see context) from:
'''Step One:''' Establish the rules of time travel in your universe. Every story has different rules - {{Doctor Who}}, {{Harry Potter}}, {{Artemis Fowl}}. It's important to understand what the rules and limitations are in ''your'' universe. There's three main ways the timeline can work:
to:
'''Step One:''' Establish the rules of time travel in your universe. Every story has different rules - {{Doctor Who}}, Series/DoctorWho, {{Harry Potter}}, {{Artemis Fowl}}. It's important to understand what the rules and limitations are in ''your'' universe. There's three main ways the timeline can work:
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'''Step One:''' Establish the rules of time travel in your universe. Every story has different rules - {{Doctor Who}}, {{Harry Potter}}, {{Artemis Fowl}}. It's important to understand what the rules and limitations are in ''your'' universe.
to:
'''Step One:''' Establish the rules of time travel in your universe. Every story has different rules - {{Doctor Who}}, {{Harry Potter}}, {{Artemis Fowl}}. It's important to understand what the rules and limitations are in ''your'' universe.
universe. There's three main ways the timeline can work:
* The Fixed Timeline; if you go back, you have already been back. Any past event that you try to prevent will end up being caused, but you ''can'' go back to a MacGuffin needed to solve a future or a present problem
* The Dynamic Timeline; you can go back alone your own timeline, but you may cause a paradox by doing ''anything'' that will cause you to never go back in time. It should be noted that this is the most unrealistic version of the timeline, as going back in time already makes a different timeline, and thus paradoxes in this timeline are actually caused by anything you can ''prove'' will cause you not to go back.
* The Multiverse Timeline; if you "go back in time", you are actually traveling to an alternate universe, identical to yours up to the point you traveled to. Once in this universe, you cannot return to your own. You simply disappear from your own timeline at one point, and appear in this timeline at one point.
* The Fixed Timeline; if you go back, you have already been back. Any past event that you try to prevent will end up being caused, but you ''can'' go back to a MacGuffin needed to solve a future or a present problem
* The Dynamic Timeline; you can go back alone your own timeline, but you may cause a paradox by doing ''anything'' that will cause you to never go back in time. It should be noted that this is the most unrealistic version of the timeline, as going back in time already makes a different timeline, and thus paradoxes in this timeline are actually caused by anything you can ''prove'' will cause you not to go back.
* The Multiverse Timeline; if you "go back in time", you are actually traveling to an alternate universe, identical to yours up to the point you traveled to. Once in this universe, you cannot return to your own. You simply disappear from your own timeline at one point, and appear in this timeline at one point.
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'''Step One:''' Establish the rules of time travel in your universe. Every story has different rules - {{Doctor Who}}, {{Harry Potter}}, {{Artemis Fowl}}. It's important to understand what the rules and limitations are in ''your'' universe.
'''Possible questions to think about:'''
1. Why can't time travel be used to solve every problem?
2. How far can one travel through time?
3. How does a person's actions in the past impact the present/future?
'''Possible questions to think about:'''
1. Why can't time travel be used to solve every problem?
2. How far can one travel through time?
3. How does a person's actions in the past impact the present/future?
