Time traveling Dresden - explains “continuity errors?”

[Stiletto]

The last several books have been awesome, but there have been several apparent continuity errors, some minor, some glaring. For example, in Changes, Harry’s office moves to another floor. Someone somewhere said JB’s betas pointed this out to him, but it was left in intentionally by JB, that he told them it had to be this way for a reason. Why?!? What floor the office was on didn’t matter for the plot of the book, and it would have been an easy fix. This is admittedly an unimportant error, and something a lot of people wouldn't have noticed or cared about. Admittedly you could just shrug and assume his office moved at some point and wasn't mentioned. But why leave it in?!? Since there is a reason, that reason has to be important, and the reason sure wasn’t explained in Changes.

A far more major error is when everyone in SG agrees that Nicodemus was the original buyer for the shroud, and Marcone interfered. This is backwards. And repeated several times in SG, by both Harry and Anna Valmont. This is a HUGE error, imo. And not one the betas could possibly miss.

Let’s assume for the sake of argument this was a mistake by JB - how could that happen? JB has said he looks at wikipedia to find info on his prior books.

Per Wikipedia: “Dresden's onetime lover, Susan Rodriguez, escorts him to a high society art sales charity event run by Johnny Marcone, where the Shroud will likely be sold. The sale is interrupted by the Denarians, who seize the Shroud and kidnap Dresden.” (Emphasis added)

So if JB followed his stated procedure, he would have realized Nicodemus was not the original buyer, and this error wouldn't have happened. So for this to be an error, JB would have ignored his stated procedure, and each and every beta missed a huge error.  Seems highly unlikely.

So instead, I am betting this is evidence that things have been changed through - or because of - time travel. Thoughts?

[nadia.skylark]

So if JB followed his stated procedure, he would have realized Nicodemus was not the original buyer, and this error wouldn't have happened. So for this to be an error, JB would have ignored his stated procedure, and each and every beta missed a huge error.  Seems highly unlikely.

I had heard that the betas did point it out and Jim had meant to fix it, but that something happened and he forgot.

[kbrizzle]

@Stiletto
Agreed the ‘retcon’ about Nic being the buyer in SG & not Marcone was weird to me too - Marcone is clearly the buyer in DM - Harry even overhears a conversation between him & Valmont regarding price.

There is also the continuity error about the name of Bianca’s paramour - it changes between StF & GP.

Hopefully there is a TT explanation for all of it & not just carelessness. Knowing JB, it’s likely the former.

[nadia.skylark]

There is also the continuity error about the name of Bianca’s paramour - it changes between StF & GP.

Jim's gone on record saying that this one was just a mistake. I think in the books it's justified as one being her "on the job" name and the other being her real name, or something like that.

[Bad Alias]

Mort was living in the wrong house and neighborhood (Harwood Heights) in Ghost Story, Mort had "finally given into the inevitable," and Harry sees him with a fully shaven head for the "first time."

In Dead Beat Mort had moved out of the home transported from "Southern California" was living in a converted duplex in Bucktown and was "shaving his head completely bald."

The house and neighborhood could be explained by saying Mort never sold the first home and was using both. The shaved head is harder to explain because Harry is able to remember things he never remembered before.

[nadia.skylark]

Also, if I remember correctly, at the party in Cold Days Harry says that he is seeing the Erlking without his helmet for the first time, even though he saw him without his helmet in Changes.

[Bad Alias]

He removes his helmet in Chapter 36 of Changes. In Chapter 5 of Cold Days, Harry states it "was the first time I'd seen him wearing something other than a helmet." This isn't necessarily a continuity error, but it would take a weird reading of that sentence for it not to be.

[morriswalters]

I'll point to a reddit thread about the shroud.  Fifteen books in, the wonder is that there aren't more continuity errors and retcons given what Jim has said about the writing the books.  If someone just has to have time travel or bust consider the various revisions as alternate time streams.  Has anybody produced a word count of the books to this point?

[Bad Alias]

Morris makes a really good point. The counter to "it's just a mistake" is that I've often heard that Jim did it on purpose for this or that instance. (Never directly from him though, so it might just be a rumor).

The thing about continuity errors is that they can be so jarring that they can ruin a chapter or even a whole book (for me). A lot of mistakes in otherwise good/great fiction can be like that. (I haven't found any to be that jarring in the Dresden Files).

[Eguzky]

He removes his helmet in Chapter 36 of Changes. In Chapter 5 of Cold Days, Harry states it "was the first time I'd seen him wearing something other than a helmet." This isn't necessarily a continuity error, but it would take a weird reading of that sentence for it not to be.

Not really. I wear trilby hats. If Dresden ever met me outside my house, I'm always wearing one. Even if I was not, I would be wearing nothing on my head.
If I then went to a baseball game and worse a ballcap, Dresden could say it 'was the first time I'd seen him wearing something other than a trilby.'
It's only referring to the fact that all Dresden has seen is a helmet or nothing.

Now if he said 'It's the first time I saw him without his helmet on', that would be a different matter.

[Bad Alias]

But he wasn't wearing something other sort of head gear.

Fedora > trilby.