Skybound, or Leap of Faith
Hi, I’m Aleksandr Voinov, and I’m joining you today to talk about my historical short story Skybound, freshly out from Riptide Publishing. Thank you very much for hosting me!
For just 13k words, and for a little short story, Skybound packs quite a punch (it did to me. I’ve written novels that were less exhausting than this short). One reason is because it’s a historical story, and I’m absolutely neurotic about research. Part of me always expects my uni professor to show up in the room and say, “Hey, I thought I’d taught you better methodology than that!”
The other reason is that there’s quite a bit of research material (once I knew where to look) and this little short story could easily have turned into a multi-novel series about German Luftwaffe pilots and the men who love them. Errr. That wouldn’t do, either. Not while I’m writing two historical novels in the same period already. The last I needed was for this to go out of control like almost all other short stories who have behaved like mogwais dropped into a swimming pool (or fed after midnight?).
Anyway. One of the things that continue to touch me about Skybound is the juxtaposition of light and dark. The general mood is certainly oppressive—we are in Nazi Germany, in a German (but not Nazi) head, witnessing the final phase of the Second World War. Bombings, casualties, despair and a dogged determination to keep going—not for ideological reasons, but because it’s all Felix, the main character, knows. It’s all he’s ever done, because people depend on him, and because he’s lost the ability to rest or withdraw, or even sleep. He does his duty without fervour, but with a lot of devotion to the fighter pilots, especially Baldur Vogt, whom he admires and loves.
Baldur is resigned to the fact that, fighting a losing battle against a vastly superior enemy, he’s most likely going to die. Felix is pretty sure that is what’s going to happen. Both men pretty much expect the end of the war as the end of the world—as they’ve known it, and they don’t hold out much hope that it’ll get better. They don’t even expect to make it to the other side.
Against this oppressive sense of imminent death, these guys fall in love.
Yeah, I’m a bastard like that.
I think the ability of humans to fall in love is nothing short of miraculous. Love is like that tree root that breaks solid stone or a dandelion that pushed through asphalt. It will literally always find a way, even in a hopeless situation, even when falling in love is taboo, and even when all we can expect is death and destruction.
In that, love is the ultimate leap of faith. Even on a much smaller scale, when we fall in love, it can feel like hurling ourselves off a cliff. Who knows if anything or anybody will catch us? Off we go. Declaring our feelings, that first kiss, opening ourselves up to hurt and embarrassment—all that takes courage and faith and hope, even more in a society that frowns upon your kind of love, but even if all stars are aligned, it’s risky and nerve-wrecking and wonderful and scary at the same time.
For my money, Skybound is very much about the heroism to accept love in the face of terrible odds. There’s one passage that sums this aspect up:
I glance at his fingers, but I’ve never seen him wear a ring. Maybe he’s not married for similar reasons as my friend Otto, the other mechanic. Who marries during war, with the rationing and shortages and most men serving in one way or another? Better to leave a grieving girl than a grieving widow.
Despite this attitude, by the end of the story, Felix and Baldur have made the leap of faith. The war ends. Life goes on. Love soars.
Blurb
Germany, 1945. The Third Reich is on its knees as Allied forces bomb Berlin to break the last resistance. Yet on an airfield near Berlin, the battle is far from over for a young mechanic, Felix, who’s attached to a squadron of fighter pilots. He’s especially attached to fighter ace Baldur Vogt, a man he admires and secretly loves. But there’s no room for love at the end of the world, never mind in Nazi Germany.
When Baldur narrowly cheats death, Felix pulls him from his plane, and the pilot makes his riskiest move yet. He takes a few days’ leave to recover, and he takes Felix with him. Away from the pressures of the airfield, their bond deepens, and Baldur shows Felix the kind of brotherhood he’d only ever dreamed of before.
But there’s no escaping the war, and when they return, Baldur joins the fray again in the skies over Berlin. As the Allies close in on the airfield where Felix waits for his lover, Baldur must face the truth that he is no longer the only one in mortal danger.
Biography
Aleksandr Voinov is an emigrant German author living near London, where he makes his living editing dodgy business English so it makes sense (and doesn’t melt anybody’s brain). He published five novels and many short stories in his native language, then switched to English and hasn’t looked back. His genres range from horror, science fiction, cyberpunk, and fantasy to contemporary, thriller, and historical erotic gay novels.
In his spare time, he goes weightlifting, explores historical sites, and meets other writers. He singlehandedly sustains three London bookstores with his ever-changing research projects and interests. His current interests include World War II, espionage, medieval tournaments, and prisoners of war. He loves traveling, action movies, and spy novels.
Visit Aleksandr’s website at http://www.aleksandrvoinov.com, his blog at http://www.aleksandrvoinov.blogspot.com, and follow him on Twitter, where he tweets as @aleksandrvoinov.
Giveaway
Thank you for reading and stopping by! If you have any questions, I’ll be here to respond. To celebrate the launch of Skybound, I’ll be giving away a $25 Amazon gift certificate to one commenter on the tour, with two more receiving book swag (so please leave your email address so I can be in touch). The contest runs through August 26th.
*smiles a bit idiotically* Now you’ve hurled me right back in that terribly romantic mood of mine and wiped all the coherant thoughts out! *shuts up and keeps on smiling* 🙂
Ooops, sorry! (‘cept not!)
Hi, Aleksandr.
I have recently begun to read your writing, which is very tardy of me, but better late than never.
I am fascinated by this book. I think setting it at the end of WW2, at the collapse of Nazi Germany, is a very bold thing to do, and it’s a fascinating time period, if fraught with disaster for the people of Germany.
I love the Luftwaffe angle too, as my dad was in the RAF for many years, and I’m quite fascinated by early planes, especially those of WW1.
So this is a must-have for me.
I wonder, do you have any close links to the Luftwaffe? You don’t have to answer, of course, because that’s a bit personal, but I did wonder if a family link might have inspired your interest.
Oh, I also love the medieval period, so will definitely read ‘The Lion of Kent’ which you wrote with Kate Cotoner, whose books I was familiar with first.
Hi Sue! Thanks for commenting (and finding my work!) And – yep, I get the fascination. I was more a tank person before Skybound (and I might yet write about tankers), but that has vastly expanded.
Personally, I have no connection to the Luftwaffe. My grandfather (the one who lived to see the war, he other died in the late 1920ies) was the NCO of an anti-aircraft gun (flak) and saw action in the Balkans, Greece and Russia, where he was injured by shrapnel and flown out before the Sixth Army was encircled and destroyed. He was the only survivor of his unit, which gave him a life-long survivor guilt problem, and I’m pretty sure he was heavily traumatised overall. What I found fascinating about the Luftwaffe was that air of gallantry and that it was very much its own thing. I’ve read pilot memoirs and its hard not to admire them–they were pioneers in many ways and frankly, what they did would scare me witless, and then in such dire circumstances and against those odds.
I hope you’ll enjoy “Lion”. I really need to write the rest of my crusade-era books, but first I have to wrap up my WWII phase, which looks like at least 3 more novels. 🙂 And I love Kate’s work; I was a fan before I even knew her as a person, and she’s extremely nice and kind and generous.
Great post Aleks! You’re still awesome as always.
Darien – thanks! I’m trying. 🙂
Sounds like a fascinating story, and all in only 13K words! I very much like that both characters aren’t pilots. With one on the ground and one in the air, you can do so much more with the viewpoint character’s perspective.
Val – thanks for stopping by! It’s all told from the POV of Felix, who is in the ground crew, though I’d be quite interested in exploring the wingman/wing leader dynamic too. Damn, so many stories! 🙂
Last night, I finished your story. As you said in this posting, it’s a juxtaposition of light and dark. There is a foreboding sense of finality or fatalism that haunts the story, but yet, there is such tenderness and hope that appears in it. Your use of Norse mythology and the Battle of Thermopylae were so effective in their symbolism in the book. Now, I’ll have to go back over the weekend to re-read all of your postings and comments about the book, characters, background etc.
It’s a beautifully written story, which I wanted to continue reading on and on past the last sentence.
strive4bst(At) yahoo(Dot) com
Jbst – thank you! I can tell you now that the original ending I had in mind was Baldur dying, which I struggled against. I knew somebody *would* have to die, but while I worked, I understood that the sacrifice was somewhere else.
The symbolism makes it all much larger–you have two saviour characters in there–both Norse Baldur and then Christensen, who was originally called Christ (but my editors found that too confusing, so I adjusted the name). Christensen “never coming back” is a subtle apocalyptic hint, too. And the defiant “fight to the last man” theme of the 300 Spartans is another clue. So it all screams death and apocalypse, and then I turn it all around, not unlike wrenching a Stuka dive bomber back up after it’s delivered the payload. At times I feel really clever, and sometimes I think I’m just an idjit who gets lucky every now and then. 🙂
I’m not generally a fan of historical fiction, but you make it seem too good to pass up!
tmadamski(at)msn(dot)com
Tina – thank you! I think historicals when done well (=not boring) are an awesome genre, but it’s not easy to write and take a lot of research to get right.
I like the economy of form in a short story done well. This sounds great!
vitajex(at)aol(Dot)com
There was a time when I thought I would make a good author. But after reading these posts,I know I could never do it,…at least not well! The research alone is staggering! Love your books, Aleks, and truly appreciate everything you put into them. Thank you!
Grrrrr….. seritzko AT verizon DOT net
Sounds great – I’m up for it! 🙂
albrookeATmeDOTcom
Anne
xxx
I loved your metaphor of love as a “dandelion that pushed through asphalt”, I think of the flower as so fragile but so persistent at the same time. It’s really remarkable that people find love in the most dire times.
Joan
0401romance(at)gmail(dot)com