I don't think writing about something in the past needs to be all that difficult. People are people, settings are basically settings. Sex is sex. If you go back 800 years, yeah, to make it authentic you probably will need a primer on dialogue and word usage. But, I've written about the early 70's, the late 60's, the early 60's, the 50's, and roughly two thousand years ago. I lived through part of that, but none as an adult, so my stories had to be embellished a bit, and researched.

Research is a good thing. And it need not be tedious. I'm serious. Let's say that the setting was the year 1950. (I know, it would never be that restrictive, but this is for the purpose of illustration.) Here's partially how I would approach it.

1. I'd employ Google as my research assistant, 'cause there is no better.
2. I'd do a search on world events of 1950. See what was happening.
3. I'd think about the ages of the characters, and then I'd look up birth names. So, if my main character was gonna' be a male age 30, I'd look up birth name records for 1920 so I could get an idea of proper names for that time.
4. I'd decide if I was just going to write about ordinary people, or, if I was going to get them involved with extraordinary people. Sorta' like how Forrest Gump did it. Or how I wrote the JFK story. If I was gonna' involve famous people, then I'd do some research and see who was alive then, and then I'd research some facts about them. That way when I wrote the story, I could interweave those facts into the story for credibility sake.

It may sound like a lot of work, but it really isn't. It's amazing how quickly you can gather together information. For example, in the first story I entered in a CAW, Sad Lisa, I needed to know the name of a theatre on Broadway, needed to know a show tune from back then, and needed to know who was starring in it. Took about 10-15 minutes of digging and I got all that I needed.

So, I really really hope that a "historical" theme doesn't make anyone fret.

I don't know what the rules will be with regards to anonymity, etc., but if permitted, I'd be happy to supply some assistance to a writer to wants to participate but is having some trouble with initial ideas or getting some research together.

 

Just a couple of other tips I would like to add to Horse's list:

When using Google for a research tool, consider looking up historical periodicals and news papers of the era (if they existed at the time).

This can grant some additional insights into the small details important to those times, but which no longer apply to our own era (such as dress, 'new' developments (i.e. the first lightbulbs, electricity, cars, or vacuum cleaners)

While such may not be 'critical' to a story, it can add just a touch more of realism, and maybe even become a source for inspiration in a story.

If I may, case in point with my writing of the "Winter War" as an alternative history perspective: I found a two-line reference in one history book on WW2, and became intrigued enough to start digging into the war.

What I discovered was an all but forgotten clash between a democratic nation and communist Russia. In that, the story demanded to be told.

Another resource: look through Amazon for specific books and you may find them printed online or partly printed, and can access them for a reference.

One last thing from the last CAW entry of mine "Ambassador Mulari..."

If you decide to have characters speak in time-specific manner, find out the expressions that fit into the particular era. (Horse convinced me of that little goof on my part)

 

Research is a great tool for improving your story and it can be a lot of fun, but it's not always necessary. I say this not to discourage writers from conducting research but to reassure those scared off by the idea. If you want to write a western, for example, you probably already have countless reference points for the period at your command thanks to general pop culture osmosis. True, the story you write based just on a general sense of a period will not be entirely historically accurate...but plenty of perfectly good writing isn't.

And as always, there are also cheats you can use. For example, if you don't want to worry too much about accurately portraying the dialect of a period, consider setting the story in a non-English speaking country; since you're already then "translating" the character's dialogue from one language to another, you have to worry less about whether the terms used are anachronistic.

Or, you can do the research. It's up to you. Point is, it's no different from any other story: write it the way you think is best for you and for the story itself.

 

I love to research countries and history. I try to be careful and not use anything unless I'm sure of it, as there will always be one person out there who is quick to point out errors. You can use history, but in a broad sense.

I hope this will be an historical period piece. I'm getting excited about writing and I haven't been for months.

 

I like it when sexy women get excited. :excited:


@Snowy: Hope you weren't offended by me pointing those things out. They just sorta' jumped out at me. Didn't know you were the author. In fact, I thought Wee Hector wrote it, and you can take that as a compliment, as I have a good deal of respect for his writing. And now yours.

 

Look, you're never going to get everything right. I had a guy leave an angry comment once because I had a Scottish character use the word "creek" instead of "burns." ...and he was right, that was a mistake (although he was a bit more upset by it than I think it warranted...). But nobody expects you to be perfect, particularly when we're working mostly without the aid of a professional editors.

 

When I wrote No Name, it came to me on a commute into work. I knew I wanted it to take place in Dublin, by a river, not even knowing if there was one in Dublin. In 10 minutes I had a location of an actual hotel that contained a sports bar. No pictures, just information. In three days, I had the story posted on various sites.

A reader on another site messaged me and asked when I had been there because he had the previous Friday night. When I told him I had never been to Scotland, he honored me by saying I absolutely nailed the look, sound and smell of the place.

A little research goes a long way.

 

I've done a number of period pieces, and the research doesn't need to be that extensive to create a plausible setting. "Healing" began in the late 1950s with the bulk of the action taking place during the Vietnam War era, the time of my own childhood and young adulthood, so there was no research necessary. "Pin-up Girl" took place during WWII, but information I gleaned through talks with my father and through reading war-time correspondence between my aunt and a serviceman gave me all the info I needed to "sell" the historical setting of that story.

Others have done the same. Private Rickmers' CAW #17-winning story was, by his own account, made plausible by some relatively simple research into physical and historical details of Washington, DC during the time encompassed by the tale. The ejls/ELP collaboration that won CAW #16, "Matryoshka" took place during the Russian revolution early in the 20th century. A small amount of research allowed those writers to infuse their tale with historical cues that made the story believable.

Google is your friend.

 

No offense taken Horse, you managed to point out one little detail in my stories that I need to take into account.

My ultimate goal in the last CAW was to write Mulari in such a manner to see if I could throw at least some people off of my trail. THAT was a challenge to accomplish.

 

Will joint efforts be allowed? I don't want to breach any rules by saying any more but that would give me an opportunity to have a go!!!

 

I want the stories to be as good as possible. In "Laurel" I knew Washington, DC during the late 1970's thoroughly. Nevertheless, I consulted two Marines for authenticity about that part of my story.

If you want your stories to be edited, go ahead. However, if it becomes a joint effort, say so. Name the other person.

I want this contest set up so that people who want to can submit their stories with their nick name, and that people who want to submit their stories clandestine can to that too,

 

Well, that changes things considerably.

 

Sounds like a plan. Any ideas when you're going to officially kick things off, so we can gear up?

 

May as well now, since I imagine the wheels are already turning for everybody. But it's up to the host. There may, perhaps, be some additional rules.

 

:excited:

 

Call me stupid or thick as two short planks, but, I thought Dublin was in Ireland... Did it move? I know we have had some violent storms of late... just askin ;-)

Kinda like the period idea. I have a plan around 1400 AD. Might push a few boundaries though.

 

Um, yes Dublin is in Ireland. Not quite sure about what you are commenting. Is it perhaps that I didn't know there was a hotel with a bar located near the river in Dublin or that I didn't know there was a river that ran through Dublin. Like I said, I had to use research to determine that, given my like of knowledge about Ireland's geography.

 

I have a few ideas as well, it mostly depends on the overall theme for the CAW itself.

 

I wanted to explore the idea of historical romances before declaring the contest. I was afraid that few people would be interested. I am encouraged by the response.

The basic idea is that the story will happen before 1970. It should in some way involve historical events. It may be erotic or not erotic, but it should involve an attraction between a man and a woman.

 

Oh, I think you'll get the typical number of entries, 15+/-. It used to be that there'd be 1/3 meh, 1/3, eh, and 1/3 wow.

Now it is more like 2/3 wow and that has made voting so much more difficult. Pretty amazing the talent that hovers here.