1980 Olympics — Zimbabwe

Over the course of five books—soon to be six—I have perfected the art of twisting fiction to fit the facts. Several years ago, an enthusiastic London agent corrected me when I told her that my genre was ‘historical fiction’. “No,” she replied, having read a few sample chapters. “In UK literary circles, we refer to this genre as ‘faction’.”

Referring to it as a portmanteau, she’d just taught me two additional definitions for the words ‘faction’ (fact + fiction), and ‘portmanteau.’ (To one extent or another, we all collect ‘stuff’ —I like collecting words).

Here’s an excerpt from ‘A Bastion of Truth’ —Book#4 in the Dax Hunter Files:

As they negotiated Moscow’s busy streets, Apple caught sight of a familiar landmark. Filling the view through the windshield, the iconic St Basil’s Cathedral reminded her of several faded photographs from one of her husband’s old albums.

Taking advantage of a competitors’ break during the 1980 Olympics, Dax and two of his friends had elected to take a tour of the city. Standing in front of the centuries-old cathedral, the three Zimbabwean athletes had taken turns posing for the camera. Spotting an opportunity, Antonette directed Parrington and Dax to stand together for one final photograph. While the two men adopted a comradely posture, Antonette angled her camera in such a way as to create the appearance that the men were wearing multicoloured turbans.

Dave Parrington and Antonette—my two friends mentioned in this scene—represented Zimbabwe in diving at the 1980 Olympics in Moscow. While Dax Hunter (pictured on the right) is a fictitious character, Dave’s likeness in this AI-generated image is uncannily accurate.