Setting: Universal or Universe Appeal?

Let me just say upfront that I have nothing "against" the Science Fiction genre. Some of my favorite stories (though most of them dystopian) are set in the not-so-distant future. I do not, however, enjoy Star Trek nor Wars to the extent of most of my friends. I think it has something to do with made up languages and aliens feeling too forced and generic but I'm sure there is more to my distaste for space settings.

When I first decided to write this story, I had considered many different locations and time periods. Space travel, as readers know it, can be ancient (a lost secret from ancient civilzations), modern (a heroic tale of man taming machine and nature) or futuristic (aliens and universal councils). None of these settings fit the story I want to tell. So space was out. Not erased, but not considered. My story has it roots on one planet and in one race, humanity. Whether or not its moral structure could be rewritten in a otherworldly setting is something I'll leave up to the screenwriters of the third installment. W&P III: Books In Space.

The main reason I decided to keep the story in a vague time setting is that it centers around a book. A timeless thing. That being said, books are not often found in futuristic tales where one has touch screens and direct-to-brain downloads. Kindle Gone Wild. No, I wanted a real book. A heavy, ancient, hand-written piece of text. That's why I don't have spaceships and aliens. But it's also why I tried to stay more science and less fiction. I wanted each story to taste familiar with just a hint of something exotic.