When Did It Happen?

[glennagirl.livejournal.com]

Today on mfu_shortstorie one of mine has been rec'ed by k1p2psso It's a story that features Illya, A Russian In Survival School on MfU Archive.
In it I have IK at Survival School at the age of 22, something that seemed reasonable to me at the time I wrote this, which was fairly early on in my short span of writing years.
Now that I look at that, it doesn't seem correct in terms of a timeline.  I know I've  probably referenced it differently in later stories, but I'm curious to know how you, readers and writers, have that event in your own timelines for the Russian.
Inconsistencies are the bane of writers in this genre, hopping from one year to another.  Unless you're meticulous in how you place your details (I'm thinking of mrua7 in that respect), then you're liable to be like me and run into some surprises when going back to earlier works.
I've gotten better, but how are some of the rest of you doing?
I suppose we're in good company, the series writers were notorious for throwing things in that made no sense whatsoever.  Are we influenced by that, or just not keeping track of our own work?
Tell me.  Speak up!

Comments

[jantojones.livejournal.com]

I haven't got a proper time line worked out yet as I'm still fairly early in my writings. I know, however that it is going to get complicated. If I remember correctly, Illya stated he graduated survival school in '56. So if he assume he's about 30 in '64, that would mean he graduated when he was 22.

That wouldn't leave a great deal of time before that to have Navy and KGB careers.

[mrua7.livejournal.com]

Sounds like you have your timeline worked out well enough.

Have you ever seen this? http://www.pjfarmer.com/woldnewton/UNCLE.htm

It's a timeline based on many fan works, and is rather interesting. I don't exactly follow it in my timeline, though like you I have IK working for Soviet Military Intelligence (given he was in the Navy) rather than working for the KGB... in my AU stories. Illya has a half-brother in KGB, as well as his mentor in GRU who was disgraced by an action of Illya in his early days at the Sorbonne. That mentor eventually crossed over to KGB.

Illya was at the Sorbonne at the age of 18...so I have him a little younger as on operative.

In my stories was recruited by Waverly after being offered up to UNCLE by the Directorate. He was 3 years in England before coming to NYC...but since he was an experienced agent Waverly pushed off Illya's Survival School training until his tenure in the UK was at an end. Under the tutelage of Harry Beldon...Illya got his 'sea legs' with UNCLE>

Given he was experienced, that's why he was asked to stay a month more at Survival School to teach his class in demolitions etc.

We all have our variations on the theme, getting IK to New York in the early 60's to coincide with the years of the show.

[franciskerst.livejournal.com]

Seems logical to me.

[lindafishes8.livejournal.com]

There's a ton of info in that link.It includes the paperbacks. I didn't consider those.

[glennagirl.livejournal.com]

I seem to remember asking someone about the date, which must be why I had him graduating at 22. Still, later on we have the business with getting a doctorate (which must have been a correspondence course ;)

[reapermum.livejournal.com]

You don't get a PhD by study and exam, you have to do original research. Quantum physics fortunately just needs thinking and paper, so he could have done it between missions.

[glennagirl.livejournal.com]

So he could have been employed by UNCLE by then, still in Europe and able to work on that PhD while out and about on UNCLE business.
That certainly makes it easier to fit things together.

[reapermum.livejournal.com]

That's what I thought. If he had been doing lab based research it wouldn't have been possible.