Category Archives: Historical Fiction

Keep it Relevant…Even with Historical Fiction…Even with Kindergarteners

Posted on by under Historical Fiction, Kindergarten, Storyteller

In a recent kindergarten storytelling, one child called my china teacup “a pinky cup.” Another called my metal ladle “a soup slurper.” And when I named the ladle a “dipper,” kids in each class shouted out: “The BIG Dipper!” Well, it was. Big.

I also showed and told some string stories. Parents and grandparents were also in the room. After several pulls with the prattling of the story going on, I showed them a completed broom. On the lovely little faces in front of me, the kids wore blank looks. When I then asked the kids if any of them had ever seen a broom before, the adults snickered but the kids kept up with their stoic blank looks. Although no one replied, I could see their answer in unison: “I donno.”

On the way home, I evaluated my school visit. I realized that even though I talked about things 400 years old, I honestly thought (oh-ha-ha) that six-year-olds would have a knowledge of certain, what I thought were, basic things. What it ended up being was like telling a very funny joke, but having to explain the buildup for them to understand the punch-line, by which time no joke is really quite funny any more.

Still evaluating…

I had fun. The kids seemed to, too — by eye contact and responses to my comments or questions.

Among a ton of other things, they learned that a dipper is more than a constellation and that brooms make a sound that go “swish-swish-swish.” Although I’m not sure they know what they swished, nor where the batteries went.

From the four pictures that one of the teachers took with my iPhone, my coif (cap) had fallen downward over my forehead, over my eyebrows. Hmmm. I was so into the exciting stories that I didn’t even notice.

400 years ago, or even 150, kids would have had the same basic knowledge about dippers and brooms and teacups. Today, I wonder what basic knowledge is. It makes me wonder what they think of Sleeping Beauty, when Beauty pricks her finger on a wooden-machine-with-a-wheel-you-push-to-go-around-that-makes-yarn-and-cloth-for-later-weaving-or-sewing-clothes-because-they-didn’t-have-stores. There. Put that in your story. Or just call it a spinning wheel and hope for the relevant best.

Writing Exercise — Weather

Posted on by under children's writer, Historical Fiction, Writing Exercise, Writing Ideas

Literature Blogs

We’re in part of the “monster storm” area. Eighteen inches of snow is predicted to fall tonight, over top the six or so we’re to get during the day. Power will be iffy. We are also on a well-system, which means if the power goes out, so does our water pump (i.e., no flushing toilets, no showers, no leaving water dripping through the pipes with single digit tempts outside to keep the pipes from freezing). If we use our fireplace, we must keep the flu open or smoke will fill our house. But if we do use the fireplace, that means more warm house air will escape up our chimney than stays inside, because we don’t have a blower. With single digits in the forecast the day after tomorrow, someone would have to be up all night feeding the fire. We simply don’t have the wood supply for that.

This is exciting.

Why?

I am a writer.

Yes, I know there is real-life danger issues with this storm. But as a writer… I’m taking notes, and suggest you do, too. What are my emotions ahead of the storm? During? After? How can I describe the various stages of the storm? What can happen with candles? Then there are always the “what-ifs.” What if this were 1800? (– for those writing historical novels.) What if someone was pregnant and went into labor, but the roads were impassable? What if a child wanted to play outside, alone? What if a tunnel had to be shoveled to the barn to take care of the animals? What if that heavy snow and resulting power outage and … brought people together? How? What? Where? Who?

What fun.

I’m grabbing my journal and pens and pencils (pencils in case the ink in the pens freeze). Bring it on.

WriteOnCon 2010, part II

Posted on by under children's writer, Historical Fiction, Reading, Writers Conference, writing

 Literature Blogs

I attended 2 days of the very first WriteOnCon last week, but then had to leave town on Thursday. I look forward to catching up with the third of the conference which I missed. The thing about writers conferences, is that I have attended over a dozen of them… in person. Some of the things the speakers talk about are “old hat” stuff to me.

Here are some things I gleaned from the first two days of the conference:

1) It was fascinating to “listen in” on the thought process of agent Natalie Fisher. She reminded us all that what she mentioned was only her own opinion, and other agents might not feel the same way. It was interesting, and helpful. Learn what the agent to whom you are submitting is looking for.

2) I now have a list of about 100 additional books to read, both about writing, and written for MG/YA. (Oh, the time. The time! How to find the time to do all the reading and writing I want to do!)

3) Stay current! Classics are nice, but some of those loved stories wouldn’t cut it in today’s highly competitive market. Read them. Love them. But write for today’s kids.

4) (related to #3) Kids hate retro. (Thank you, J.S. Lewis.) Don’t write about YOUR childhood, unless it’s a historical novel. Write for today’s kids and about today’s kids.

5) Know what the acceptable word counts are for today’s market. Yes, yes. We each can name several books which break the rules, but unless you are an established author with a great fan following, stick to the rules.

(More to come, both on the first two days, and the third day of WriteOnCon!) (Yeah to the organizers!)

Where I Get Story Ideas

Posted on by under Historical Fiction, Setting, Story Ideas, Storyteller, writing, Writing Fodder, Writing Ideas

 Literature Blogs

I find bits of story ideas from history, from news, from something I did or heard or saw, and from nightmares or by daydreaming.

I wrote my first historic novel from a fascinating bit of news I heard which happened in 1873. I couldn’t stop thinking about it and what it must have been like to have gone through that event and in that setting. So I researched and wrote about it.

I’ve had nightmares and scary visions of the end times lately — of man destroying this world not by nuking it, but by greed, causing gushing oil to ruin the water world we live on. YIKES. Some things are too close to reality for me to write about! I’m very thankful that after 86 days BP finally found a solution which seems to have stopped the leak in the Gulf of Mexico. What the effect of all that oil damage is yet to be seen. (Even more daydreaming fodder.)

Yesterday, my husband and I drove through what we later found out was a thunderstorm watch. But I wasn’t watching. Mostly, I had my eyes closed! Instead of going 75 on the interstate, people who hadn’t pulled over (like my husband and a truck driver or two) were driving 40 mph in the sideways pelting rain, gripping onto the steering wheel which the wind threatened to take control of. Lots of interesting story ideas could come from that experience alone. However, I’ll share here on my writing blog a really fascinating thing I saw for the first time in my life. That is, to me it was fascinating, and therefore writing fodder.

We were heading west. As we came out from under the storm, although it was still raining, we hit sunlight and blue skies. My husband commented, “There’s got to be a rainbow somewhere.” I knew that in order to see a rainbow, you needed two things: sun and rain, and that the sun had to be at your back. Because of our van roof, my vision was very limited. I looked out my side rearview mirror and found my rainbow. It was following us. The rainbow was made in the spray shooting up from our tires turning on the wet road.

There are ideas all around each of us. Storytellers can’t help thinking, reflecting, weaving. It’s half of the fun of being a writer.

Sticking Out Tongues and Pigtail Pulling

Posted on by under children's writer, fantasy writer, Historical Fiction, Reflections, Times are Changing, writing, Writing Ideas

Literature Blogs 

The other day I was thinking about the naughty things kids used to do just a few decades ago– like, when they got mad at each other, they’d stick out their tongues while “making a face.” Or, if a boy wanted to tease a girl, he’d pull on her pigtail.  The victims tattled, and the offenders got disciplined, usually by staying after school for a certain amount of time.

Flash forward to today — and I know this from recently teaching and subbing in elementary schools in three states. When today’s elementary aged kids get mad, they can threaten lives (“I’m going to kill you.”), they say words one would need to watch R rated movies to hear, or they grab the opposite sex in “the privates,” with the boldness to lie about it to the adults who witnessed it, and then threaten to sue the teacher and the district if there is any discipline done. And no one can stay after school because most students are bussed.

I have taken razor blades away from a fifth grader, and broken up many fist fights. One parent tried to run me over with her car after school on the day she found out the principal gave her son a three-day in-school suspension. Her son was one of my students. Another parent yelled at me for several minutes in the hallway, defending her first grade daughter for  angrily throwing markers at my back. I know teachers and counselors who will not place their desks near windows for fear of being shot at.

Times are a’changing. No more tongues sticking out nor pigtails getting pulled. Is childhood innocence really a thing of the past? If so, what’s a writer to do?

One could write fantasy, mysteries, or historical fiction. Or best yet, no matter what the genre or age of your reader, write truthfully, and give your readers hope.

Happy, safe writing.

Spell-Binding History for Writing Fodder

Posted on by under Historical Fiction, Reading, Reflections, Writing Fodder, Writing Ideas

 Literature Blogs

I just read a news report from the BBC about a mass grave found near Weymouth (UK) last June, where construction workers discovered 51 decapitated men, recently determined to have originated from Scandinavia (i.e., Vikings). They were apparently buried naked since no metal objects, nor bone buttons, etc., were found near them.

Many things struck me concerning this article, which has me still reeling in thought. I find that from either point of view (Vikings or Saxons), the story is emotionally charged.

There is the wonder and horror of the Saxons living near the coast, getting invaded by Vikings, probably more than once in order to be so prepared. There is the remarkable capture of 51 men, assumedly warriors. There is the killing by beheading of these invaders, assumedly witnessed by many people. There is the unceremonious mass burial. Then, there is the last line of the article: “Most of them were in their late teens to early 20s, with a handful in their 30s.”

My father-in-law was born in Sweden. My mother-in-law was the only one of her original family not born in England. My mother’s people are from England (5 generations ago). My sons are in their late 20’s. I love being on the sea.

Is there a story in this find? Certainly. Undoubtedly many stories.  Will I attempt to put flesh and blood on the skeletons for a story? Not sure. It’s still too soon after reading the article for me to process the implications, but for some strange reason, the story is hitting very close to home. I can almost see their story, from the boat, from the land. See their faces. See their hopes. See their fears. See the horror. It all flashes before my eyes as if I’m right there, over 1,000 years ago, carrying a video camera on my shoulder, a silent observer in this tragedy-victory. I can’t seem to stop shaking.

Rewrites and Quick Revision Mode

Posted on by under children's writer, Historical Fiction

 Literature Blogs

I did NaNoWriMo for the first time last November. I came up with about 37K words.

By the end of December I had 44K, finishing the story line.

Then started my “quick revision mode,” which means slashing and burning all irrelevant stuff, and building bridges to make a story arch.

The first week of January, I was left with 3K. Yep. That would be three thousand words, down more than 10,000. Permission to write dreck during NaNoWriMo left me with a skeleton at the rewrite stage, but a very nice skeleton.

Now, mid-February, I am up to 23K with three chapters to revise/rewrite.

Seems like my MG novel will be short even for a MG. When I’m “done,” after I sit on it for a while, I’ll get back to it again for some more rewrites and revisions. I hope to have this baby ready to be submitted by spring. That would be the shortest amount of time I ever spent on a book — not by hours, of course, but by days. Because I’m not working full time, I can spend a lot more time writing instead of spreading it out over years. Pretty cool.

A Luke by any other name

Posted on by under children's writer, fantasy writer, Historical Fiction, MG fantasy

 Literature Blogs

As I reviewed which of my unpublished novels I’m putting up for a whole-book critique next month, I discovered something peculiar: my Lukes.

In my MG historical novel I’ve been working on the past few months, the MC’s uncle is Uncle Luuk.

In my MG SF I wrote 4 years ago, the MC’s brother is called Jean Luk.

And in my MG fantasy novel, the friend of the MC is called Lucas, although he’s had lots of other names prior to settling on this one.

So what’s up with Luke? I don’t think I even know anyone by that name. I neither like the name nor dislike it. And the root meaning isn’t very exciting, like meaning warrior or tree-man (although my Italian friends may contest exciting as it comes from a location in Italy).  And still, here “he” shows up in three of my novels. Someone please clear the cobwebs from my subconsciousness, and tell me your favorite Luke. Maybe something will click for me. In the meantime, I’m off to play around with some alternative names.

Post NaNoWriMo, 2009

Posted on by under Historical Fiction, writing

Literature Blogs

This past Monday, my on-line critique group went back to submitting & critiquing 5K for the week. We’d taken the month of November off for NaNoWriMo. I was up to sub first. It was difficult for me to switch from historical fiction to fantasy, but I don’t need to be doing revision from their comments any time very soon. I used to be able to easily work on more than one project at a time, but lately I’ve felt the need to focus on just one project at a time. No multi-tasking for Sandy any more.

Writer Friend Sue — from about 45 minutes away from me, and not in my critique group — gave a challenge for us to continue working on our stories and report simply the word count to each other each Friday. Although I’d made several entries in my journal this week, and dealt with more moving-father issues, and started the many Christmas season activities, I reported to her my meager 300 count for the week (for words on story, not journaling). I felt embarrassingly miserable about that, even though I’d done better than Sue!

Tonight I typed in another 1150 words on my NaNo story. Still, it’s a pitiful count compared to what I was putting out in November. This morning I went through my NaNo writings and transferred only those scenes/chapters I was going to keep for sure over into a new file.  I did more reorganizing and rearranging and filling out a few things. I have more story to work on before I even start in on the revisions or rewrites. Yet, I have about 27,000 words. My goal for this historical fiction MG novel is 32,000 words. I’m sure I’ll easily surpass that, if needed. But now (Post NaNoWriMo) I’m no longer as worried about word count as I am story. It felt refreshingly wonderful for me to type words today and then go back and self-edit before proceeding. Very satisfactory.

I’m hoping this month, even with all the extra Christmas activities going on and family concerns, that I’ll be able to work on this historical fiction to somewhat completion. Then, in the new year, I’ll get back to my fantasy series and let this story sit and ripen for a while.

I challenge anyone reading this to try for 2K words each week, even in the very busiest of  times.

The Trouble with Writing Historical Fiction

Posted on by under Historical Fiction

Literature Blogs

I’ve written several historical fiction stories. Here’s one major problem I’m finding which drives me nuts — conflicting facts.

Will someone PLEASE tell me how facts can conflict with each other?

Obviously, they don’t.  Some “facts,” like eye-witnesses of an accident, do indeed tend to conflict with the various accounts, each person certain that what they saw and tell is the truth. This is exactly why eye-witnesses aren’t used much in jury trials any more. Most unreliable.

I figure I have three choices to solving my problem: 1) research deeper; 2) avoid the subject in question; or 3) make something up.

Okay. I’m laughing like crazy at #3, which I won’t do, of course, but it still makes my eyes sparkle with the What-If possibilities. Then my story would no longer be historical fiction. It would simply be fiction. *sparkle* Oooo. The things you can do in fiction.

Okay, again. Back to seriousness… and digging deeper. (Sigh.)