: How do I make it so my story happens in an ambiguous time frame? Nothing extreme, of course. No mentions of futuristic time-traveling gadgets or teleportation or the like. Or, conversely, nothing

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I don’t think it’s possible. I have a short storybwhere I want to keep it open as to when it happens, but only within a 10–20 year window. That is, does it end in present day, or begin in present day, with two acts separated by 10 years.

So consider helping a pizza-delivery driver who has mechanical or weather-related problems. Today, would someone knock on a door to ask for help, or just use her own phone? In the past, is pizza delivery even a thing? Would women be doing it? Does it make sense if it predates automobiles, or would you have condern for the horse be up-front in the interaction?

So many things about the situation date it to some extent, even without mentioning specific tech. The latter can broaden it: e.g watching a movie at home implys some tech level even if you avoid specific mention of the media used.

Deciding on a specific range will be easier than trying to make it completely open. Even if it's all ruminations, would a ancient Roman care about such issues?

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Be reflective, not descriptive.

For example, a guy wants to talk to a girl. Descriptive writing would specifically mention how he gets to talk to a girl - using stationary phone, cell phone, Skype-like technology or maybe even telepathically. This type of writing would likely mention scratches on the apparatus and ringing tone.

Reflective writing, on the other hand, will focus on thoughts and feelings. This guy would be thinking about a girl, their relationships, her voice and how he misses her, while sparing no thoughts about the technology. At the end, it's just he called, and she answered.

I understand this may require you to change or at least adjust your style. I personally may find it difficult to skip the scratches on apparatus.

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I'd say there are two basic things you need to do.

First, make the story based on personal attributes, personal growth, relational issues, - Anything that is timeless. You can write about the insecurities of a teenager, wanting to find their way in the world. Or about a person facing their own mortality (perhaps they have learned they are terminally ill) and the personal journey they make in doing so. Or, about a psychosis. Romance. Greed, exploitation.

^ Whatever you choose as your story's theme, those are the things you try to focus on in your writing. Add to these as you can, to augment the strengths you find there.

Second, prune out anything that dates your story. You've identified slang and tech. You might also want to pay attention to the roles of people in society. Be aware if you are writing in a way that implies male dominance (suggests an older time) or gender equality (suggests a more recent time). Prune out anything that tips towards a time. Clothing, behaviors, cultural tip-offs like the role of religion - these things can date your piece. Make sure they are not doing so.

^ These are the things to remove from your story.

But, also, if you are strong on the human elements, on the realism of the journey that characters go through, on a compelling narrative about .... strength through adversity or some such, then in a sense you will have some leeway with the second part. Classic books like Catcher in the Rye or Moby Dick (etc) are 'timeless' even though they can be placed to a particular date. You want to avoid distracting with slang, tech, etc, but don't get hung up too much on that part of it.

-Two cents.

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Creating your own world allows you to do just this. Something that is foreign enough not to seem in the past or the future, simply the present. Harry Potter for example, shows Hogwarts and the world of magic to be timeless. Sure the buildings and the mannerism is that London 100-200 years ago, but you don't feel like you are back in time, nor do you feel like you are in the future due to magic and gadgets.

If you are looking to have the story take place using actual cities and regions from earth, this will be fairly hard to pull off. Even the clothing, the means of transportation, and the view of the world will require some details that will automatically date it in the present, past, or future.

If you are going for the affect of having a reader 200 years from now apply their current view into the world then you could try not describing communication, clothing, transportation, setting in too much detail. Leave it up for the reader's mind. A reader today will add the culture of today to it. A reader 100 years from now will add in that culture.

But to have a world that does not tie into any timeline of the known world that people will say that is the past or future, I would say it is better to make your own world so that it is dissociated from any time lines that a brain would try to link with a "realistic" world.

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