Well-Chosen Words

Legend has it that Abraham Lincoln scrawled the Gettysburg Address on the back of an envelope as he traveled to the battlefield to dedicate a cemetery. But the legend belies Lincoln’s struggle to carefully choose the right words. Words that must soothe a fractured nation, inspire change and chart the course for the nation’s future. Because his speech in Gettysburg will change history, but not necessarily in the way he hopes.


Written by a Sidewise Award winner for Best Alternate History, “Well-Chosen Words” first appeared in an anthology called Alternate Gettysburgs.  


“Kristine Kathryn Rusch looks at the anxiety Lincoln had in selecting the ‘Well-Chosen Words’ he would speak at the dedication of the cemetery at Gettysburg, while his host, David Wills, fretted about the success of the event itself. The story is well written, with both characters coming to life…”

—Steven H. Silver, SF Site