100 things #84 - The little Details matter

There is one thing to always remember about historicals, the people who read them then to know their history. They will not hesitate to point out if you're wrong. I remember this even though it's been several years, a 20-something member of one of my on-line writers group cheerily announced she was going to write a historical but she found research boring so she wasn't going to do any. Several of us tried to point out that this would probably Not. Go. Well. We got that 'shut up, old people' attitude. I wonder sometimes if she ever really tried it.

The big things in history are pretty easy. Not even all that much research needed to find copious amounts of material. It's the little details that can be a downright bear to find. And not every historical period is as 'glamorous' as others. Victorian, Regency, Roman, you're covered. I'm struggling to find out things for the 1930s (especially specifically for Pittsburgh that isn't steel mill orientated). Yeah there's the Depression, thanks for that. Never knew. Rolls eyes. Now, it is important to find out things like when was Prohibition lifted (one of my first readers thought it was earlier than it was).

But what I really wanted was, how did every day life go? Yeah I asked grandma who was less than helpful (in spite of being married with a kid by then so I know she damn well remembers it). I have remnants of it in her house. My friend silvrethorn mentioned the other day about the rural areas not even having electricity or running water in the 19-teens (I forget now why we were discussing this other than she's writing a historical as well with the extra added layer of 'fun' because it's in another country, another language). Grandma had the kerosene lamps, the bowl/pitcher wash up combo, the metal wash tubs (we store wood in it now), cast iron clothes irons (I use it for a pannini press) and an outhouse (until 1952). The other grandma had the ginormous radio.

And that's what I mean by little things. In Soldiers of the Sun, Temple is an enormous fan of the radio. He loves music, loves to dance and is a radio drama junkie. He, like the other demon hunters, live in apartments inside the Soldiers' complex. It's not that spacious but the man has the biggest radio he could jam in there. It occurs to me, however, that some readers will have no idea that the radio I'm talking about isn't some little thing on a shelf (it is described a little).

So today I was at the Mothman Festival which was great for story ideas. Let's be honest, my upcoming holiday contemporary short story is an aberration for me and crazy stuff like Mothman gets my mind whirling (and let's not think too hard on the idea of normal doesn't enter my thoughts too often). It's my tradition to always go to the Mason Jar, a sizable antique store in Point Pleasant (gets me out of the sun, it's one of the few shops that doesn't die in PP's sadly decaying city center and I love antiques). This time I found two 20s-30s radios. Either of them would be perfect for Temple (wish they had the dates more specific) so I thought I'd share them.


This one is probably a little newer. It has knobs.

This is more what I had in mind. The door is used as volume control. If I had a house instead of a crappy apt, this one would have come home with me. I love it. It's in beautiful shape.

So yes, definitely, dig as much as you can to find those little details.

Two great charity anthologies

One you've heard me talk about before, the other you haven't. Let's start there. Check out the Hope & Love Anthology This one is supporting the Milwaukee LGBT Community Center. There are a ton of stories in this anthology. It looks so good and it's for a good cause. There is still time to check out the upcoming facebook release party for this one (all the pertinent links are in the link I provided).

I don't have to tell the readers of my blog the struggles and outright horrors far too many LGBT youth (and adults for that matter) face. The amount of LGBT youth who end up homeless is far too much. I've championed many children/youth causes over the years. I firmly believe that if children have a safe, loving place to grow up in, so many of our other problems would lessen. (Of course thinking about this anthology reminds me how sad I am I no longer live in WI).

So click that link if you want to help out. And while you're at it, you can also check out this one as well. I've blogged about Project Fierce before because it's the one my story is in in and it's doing pretty much the same thing as Hope & Love only in Chicago. You can check it out here. Project Fierce: Everyone Deserves a Home

Two great anthologies, one very important cause.

This song by Abney Park puts me in mind of what Strange, the protagonist in my story, Nothing But Himself felt like at the beginning of the story. I suspect it cuts close to the bone for many of these kids.