Critique please!

[pearl1863]

I'm preparing to write a novel about the civil war, half civilian POV, half soldier. What I wanted to ask was what do people usually pick at or look for for authenticity and good representation of the era?

Elizabeth Martin

[paulcalloway]

Re: Critique please!

Too generalized a question to even attempt to answer.

Please sign your full name to every post.

[Spinster]

Re: Critique please!

Dear Mrs. Martin,

You are very new here--welcome.

This site is full of people who are passionate about various aspects of the War, both from a military and civilian perspective.

And we pick at pretty much everything, because we are passionate about excellent living history portrayals.

For an excellent education----start reading. Thread after thread in each forum, with pages of older threads. Follow links and references out to original source material, as any good historical writer should. You'll find plenty.

The search function works very well on this board--plug in a term or topic and see what comes up. As you read, you'll also pick up on the culture here, and how folks expect a question to be asked. Folks here are happy to share when someone has done their homework, but nobody is interested in spoon-feeding information that is already there for the reading.

Good Luck!

[DougCooper]

Re: Critique please!

Elizabeth - Like any other endeavor (such as movies) historical fidelity is important to some and not so to others. What would be good entertainment to some is fictitous tripe to many of us on here. I would immediately contact Bill Watson (billwatson on the members list). There are hundreds of CW novels and for most of us the bar on what we will read is VERY high, as Terre hints at below. Bill's novel made it over my bar (its a lonely place) and he can give you some guidance about the process.

[Hank Trent]

Re: Critique please!

As those above have said, basically, everything.

Maybe a better way to approach it would be to ask specific questions about things you're not sure of, or are having trouble researching.

Or, better yet, post a small sample of your writing that includes a fair amount of concrete detail, and see if folks here think it generally rings true to the period, or doesn't convince them.

Hank Trent
hanktrent@voyager.net

[CJDaley]

Re: Critique please!

If you're looking for a quick and easy fix, I would recommend:

Everyday Life During the Civil War: Writer's Guide to Everyday Life Series

This won't give you enough information to go on the lecture circuit as an expert on 19th Century material culture, but it will give you a broad overview which you can certainly use for your novel. (Imagine trying to capture life in 2007 in less that 275 pages?)

You may also want to try: The Expansion of Everyday Life, 1860-1876 which goes into a bit more detail as is more of a text book than Clif Notes.

Good luck with your book.

[Becky Morgan]

Re: Critique please!

I am by no means a rivet-counter/stitch nazi/whatever you understand as an extreme detail specialist. However...
Things that will leap off the page at me:

1. Modern attitudes and expressions. Characters who belong in 1863 should not be acting as though they are in 2007. The spirit of the times should be there. The only cure for a lumpy 2007 heroine sticking out of a Civil War book is a whole lot of reading primary sources.

2. People where they don't belong. General Lee did not visit every single plantation in the South. Believe it or not, no matter what some folks think, General Sherman didn't burn every single one with his own Zippo lighter, either. On the other hnd, if you deal with a specific, real place and General Lee *was* there, his absence will stick out like a sore thumb. If you choose to portray a town that didn't exist, your job is easier, but the residents of Genericville and their lives still have to be plausible. Bear in mind that things changed a great deal during the war because of the number of men away, supply problems, etc. That was particularly true in the South, of course.

3. People traveling impossible distances at great speed. This is tricky because we're so used to cars. For instance, Wheeling, West Virginia is twenty-five or thirty minutes from my house...NOW. In 186-whatever, it would have taken a lot longer, the time varying by whether riverboat, wagon or foot travel was the choice. Also, armies on the march don't move as fast as a few horsemen or a single person walking. Once again, the cure is to research a real campaign, the speed and type of movement involved, and if possible, to go to the site and walk it yourself.

4. Military and civilians crossing paths where and when they shouldn't, or not crossing paths when they should.

5. Peaceful times when they shouldn't be, or a major battle inserted where there shouldn't be one.

6. Lengthy descriptions of clothing, especially if they're wrong for the period.

If you want to PM or e-mail me with a few more details about where and when you want to place your story, I'll gladly point you to some of my favorite online resources and give you some hints on how to use them.

[Frenchie]

Re: Critique please!

Believe it or not, no matter what some folks think, General Sherman didn't burn every single one with his own Zippo lighter, either.

(gasp!) Oh, the bitter disillusionment! :)

Ms Martin, my advice is the same as was given to my college writing class: write what you know already, in a style that matches the ambiance you're trying to achieve. Most importantly, though, read... find books about the people and the times and read, read, read, think for a while, talk about it, then read a great deal more. Rinse and repeat. Swim in a sea of words. Drown in them. When you're good and sick of reading, then start writing.

I took the above advice seriously, which is why I didn't become a writer :D (except for three years as a technical writer, which don't count because it was more copying and proofreading than writing).

Bonne chance!

[Dreamer42]

Re: Critique please!

Welcome and may I please suggest reading certain litterature from the period to get a feel for forms of speech and expression. One such book is actually a collection of short stories by authors such as Louisa May Alcott, Mark Twain, Ambrose Bierce and Stephen Crane called "Civil War Memories" which was edited by S.T. Joshi (2000). It may give some insight into both areas you are seeking and at the same time provide the flavor many works today are lacking, in my opinion. Good luck.

- Jay Reid
Dreamer42
9th Texas/165th NY

[ElizabethClark]

Re: Critique please!

Dittos with the others.

Being a dressmaking instructor, I notice clothing details. I also notice "modern rebellious women" and modern religion and spiritual notes ("Purpose Driven" type religion in 186X? Nope. For a taste of relgion a la' mid-century, read published sermons from various sects as a good start.) The details of commerce and trade are also biggies. Too many novels treat the mid-century as "olden days", without recognizing the huge technological developments of the early 1800s.

And no, people don't like to watch "historical" movies with me, either. :)

[KarinTimour]

Re: Critique please!

I'd like to echo what everyone else has said -- and if you're only doing research on-line, I can pretty much guarantee that much of what I look for in historical fiction is going to be missing.

Some of my pet peeves:

1. Clothing that wasn't there, or that is put on or removed in the wrong order: "She sighed and turned back to getting dressed. Over her chemise she added three layers of petticoats, and a then topped it all off with her corset, then reached for her cage crinoline last. Her dress settled over it all with a swish....."

"Pulling her rayon stockings on, she sighed that the blockade had made nylon impossible to obtain.....

2. Food that wasn't available in that season: "He sat down to dinner with satisfaction -- while the corn was still green, the first March peas were delicious and the newest potatoes were ready for the St. Patrick's day festivities. Rounded off with strawberry shortcake, it was a feast for the Gods."

3. Modern attitudes concerning slavery,people of color, racism, as Elizabeth noted, religion, etc. "She knew the sewing circle would welcome the help and laugh at the funny stories that Mammy Brown always told her own daughters-in-law as they sewed together. She knew the Governor's wife had been closely attached to her own maid and decided to send a note asking her to bring her along. Afterwards, when they were wanting a break from sewing, they could all pass around the lemonade, the distinctions gone as maid and mistress sewed and chatted together like old friends."

4. Modern slang or expressions: "That was a 'DUH' moment," etc.

5. Women travelling by themselves -- this is one of my especial pet peeves. There had to be an extraordinary event for a woman to travel alone in our time period. Women outside without headcoverings -- another pet peeve.

6. Wrong names for tools: "She sighed as she gathered up her knitting and made the shuttles fly."

"He bent to work, the harrow turning a beautiful straight furrow as he plowed back and forth across the field."

"Gripping the crupper firmly in one hand, he forced the horse to part his teeth and got it firmly in it's mouth, then lead it by the reins out to the mounting block."


Just a few examples. Keep in mind that readers of historical fiction, especially those of us interested in the Civil War have read about this time period for literally decades. We read not only memoirs and diaries, but contemporanious sources as well. If you're going to talk about what was printed in Godey's, Peterson's, Harper's Weekly, DeBow's Review, etc. some of us are extremely familiar with these publications, and not a few of us have read them straight through the war years.

Karin Timour
Period Knitting -- Socks, Sleeping Hats, Balaclavas
Come see me at September Storm, I'll have the sock line with me.
Atlantic Guard Soldiers' Aid Society
Email: Ktimour@aol.com

[pearl1863]

Re: Critique please!

Thanks everyone for the advice. I really appreciate it (though I feel a bit silly asking so blindly and in such a general tone). Thanks for the examples too, Ms. Timour. All of this will definetly help. ^_^

Elizabeth Martin