Getting Medieval

Want a Signed Bookplate?

I get around as much as I can but I am limited by how much time and money I can expend in my book-related travels. This October when the new book SERPENT IN THE THORNS is released, I will be doing a bit of traveling to promote it. I'll be in San Diego, Thousand Oaks, and Westwood--all in California, but I will also be heading out to Indianapolis for Bouchercon, the big mystery fan convention. I'll be hitting a few bookstores in that area and then I hope to get to a few places in Arizona, Northern California, and Washington state through November. Keep abreast of it on my website on my appearance schedule page. 

But if you can't get to any of those places, just email me your address and I'll send you a Veil of Lies and a Serpent in the Thorns signed bookplate to place in the inside cover of your book! Email me at JeriWesterson at gmail dot com.

   

Seven Basic Plots Rerun

Well, it's time for summer reruns. Here is a post I did way back in March of 2007.

 

The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. —Ecclesiastes 1:9

So every story has already been told. You’ve seen it before. The seven basic plotlines:

1. Man vs. Nature

2. Man vs. Man

3. Man vs. the environment

4. Man vs. Machines/Technology

5. Man vs. Self

6. Man vs. the Supernatural

7. Man vs. God/Religion

We, in fact, see all these themes in the Bible. We can see variations in our favorite books. Heck, I see at least three of these on my weekly shopping list (Man vs. Wallet).

We can even vary this theme further. Ronald Tobias is a screenwriter and has bisected this list into Twenty Basic Plots. Screenwriting, as you surely must know, is a different animal from novels (Novel vs. Screenplay) and therefore breaks it down to simple themes in order to pitch them (Giant Ape Terrorizes New York—the Rudy Guilliani Story). His plots are:

1. Quest—“the plot involves the Protagonist’s search for a person, place, or thing, tangible or intangible” The Noun’s Story. Or every Lord of the Ring’s story. In fact, every fantasy story is a quest plot. Yet Tobias further dissects this into the next entry...

2. Adventure—“this plot involves the Protagonist going in search of their fortune, and since fortune is never found at home, the Protagonist goes in search for it somewhere over the rainbow.” I don’t know about you, but this sounds like a Quest to me. This is a studio executive distinction, no doubt. Wizard of Oz could be characterized as an Adventure but it is also a Quest to find a way home...what you really had all along anyway, blah, blah... 

3. PURSUIT – “this plot literally involves hide-and-seek, one person chasing another.” I suppose he means something like the The Fugitive or Catch Me if You Can. But it works for many thrillers with a ticking clock.

4. RESCUE – “this plot involves the Protagonist searching for someone or something, usually consisting of three main characters - the Protagonist, the Victim & the Antagonist.” Speed, is one.

5. ESCAPE – “plot involves a Protagonist confined against their will who wants to escape (does not include some one trying to escape their personal demons).” The Great Escape, Escape from Alcatraz (I guess “Escape” in the title is a dead giveaway.)

6. REVENGE – “retaliation by Protagonist or Antagonist against the other for real or imagined injury.” Most martial arts movies

7. THE RIDDLE – “plot involves the Protagonist's search for clues to find the hidden meaning of something in question that is deliberately enigmatic or ambiguous.” The Da Vinci Code, searching for some depth.

8. RIVALRY – “plot involves Protagonist competing for same object or goal as another person (their rival).” It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, Tomb Raider which could also be adventure or quest. Who cares? As long as I can watch Daniel Craig...

9. UNDERDOG – “plot involves a Protagonist competing for an object or goal that is at a great disadvantage and is faced with overwhelming odds.” Every damn sports movie ever written.

10. TEMPTATION – “plot involves a Protagonist that for one reason or another is induced or persuaded to do something that is unwise, wrong or immoral.” Momento, but that's not exactly temptation per se. Kidnapped and Ransom, perhaps (talk about themes)

11. METAMORPHOSIS – “this plot involves the physical characteristics of the Protagonist actually changing from one form to another (reflecting their inner psychological identity).” Spider-Man, X-Men and any comic book hero story, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Werewolf movies. Hey, where’d that giant cockroach come from? What should we call that story?

12. TRANSFORMATION – “plot involves the process of change in the Protagonist as they journey through a stage of life that moves them from one significant character state to another.” Not to be confused with Metamorphosis. Although this should be a characteristic of all stories. Unless the point of your story is that your character will not change even with the circumstances.

13. MATURATION – “plot involves the Protagonist facing a problem that is part of growing up, and from dealing with it, emerging into a state of adulthood (going from innocence to experience).” Big. Adam Sandler need not apply.

14. LOVE – “plot involves the Protagonist overcoming the obstacles to love that keeps them from consummating (engaging in) true love.” Wondered when we’d get to this. I guess we can see what Tobias likes to write. Any light summer date comedy here. Or steamy love story. Or nastiness like Closer.

15. FORBIDDEN LOVE – “plot involves Protagonist(s) overcoming obstacles created by social mores and taboos to consummate their relationship (and sometimes finding it at too high a price to live with).” Moby Dick—a tender story about a man and his...whale?

16. SACRIFICE – “plot involves the Protagonist taking action(s) that is motivated by a higher purpose (concept) such as love, honor, charity or for the sake of humanity.” Romeo and Juliet, sword and sandals movies.

17. DISCOVERY – “plot that is the most character-centered of all, involves the Protagonist having to overcome an upheavel(s) in their life, and thereby discovering something important (and buried) within them a better understanding of life (i.e., better appreciation of their life, a clearer purpose in their life, etc.)” The Pursuit of Happyness, Cast Away.

18. WRETCHED EXCESS – “plot involves a Protagonist who, either by choice or by accident, pushes the limits of acceptable behavior to the extreme and is forced to deal with the consequences (generally deals with the psychological decline of the character).” Quentin Tarantino movies, Sin City, and other noir classics.

19. ASCENSION – “rags-to-riches plot deals with the rise (success) of Protagonist due to a dominating character trait that helps them to succeed.” Harry Potter, Erin Brockovitch--together at last! There's a movie!

20. DECISION – “riches-to-rags plot deals with the fall (destruction) of Protagonist due to dominating character trait that eventually destroys their success.” Wall Street

Of course, a good story may have several of these elements interwoven throughout. There is no one theme in anyone’s life, after all, but mostly we are seeing only a slice of a life, at their worst point or their best or most triumphal. Variations on a theme. Plot, plot, fizz, fizz. Oh, what a relief it is! 

Chirp...or Rather, Tweet!

Well, I said I wouldn't do it, but I was dragged into Twitter. Yes, another social network thingy (see how tech savvy I am). Crispin has a myspace page (www.myspace.com/CrispinGuest) and a Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/crispin.guest) and now Twitter (jeriwesterson). And now my Twitter updates are here in the left margin. Look over there to the left. Lower. Lower. Bottom. There it is. You can even follow me. God help you. 

What does all this social networking do for you or for me for that matter? Dunno. It helps us, um, network. Socially. And, of course, it assists in the neverending quest to Get My Name Out There and Promote the Books. I can easily see how this can become a pit of a timewaster, though, something you sneak while you're at work...like right now...but it can be a good source for Readers to connect in a more personal way with authors. So here we go. Tweeting. Happy Fourth!  

Pope Says Bones are St. Paul's

The tradition that had Emperor Constantine building a basilica in 324 AD on top of the vineyard that was supposed to be the site of Saint Paul's execution and burial, was confirmed by the Pope, according to an article in the Guardian today.

Apparently, a tomb was discovered outside the walls of Rome in 2006. An independent lab carbon dated the bone fragments to between the first and second centuries. A purple cloth, incense, and other items were found in the tomb, but no marker that says absolutley who we have here. No archeologist would verify that without more evidence, but it is an interesting slice of history here, if true.

To read the whole article, go here.  

Richard II: Parallels with his Infamous Ancestor

I’m proud to be a part of the long tradition of historical fiction and the not-so-long tradition of historical mystery with last year's debut novel Veil of Lies; A Medieval Noir and the upcoming release of the second in the series, SERPENT IN THE THORNS. My protagonist Crispin Guest is a disgraced knight turned detective on the mean streets of fourteenth century London, solving a French-courier’s murder tangled with international intrigue, an assassination conspiracy, and a mysterious religious relic. All for sixpence a day…plus expenses.

But what does a fourteenth century detective have to do with his thirteenth century ancestor Edward II?

Plenty.

Edward II was the great grandfather of Richard II, the boy king who took the throne at the time my novel is set. Though Richard’s reign began with great promise—as did his famous ancestor’s—like his noble great grandfather, it also ended in civil unrest and tragedy.

In 1384 when my novel takes place, Richard had already been king for some seven years, ascending the throne when he was a boy of ten. Neither he nor his nobles ever expected that he would be on the throne so soon. His father, the gallant Edward of Woodstock (also now known as the Black Prince) was an accomplished warrior, but after contracting dysentery in Spain in 1370, he never fully recovered his strength. In 1376, Edward died of his long illness. His father Edward III wasn’t doing too well either, and parliament was running scared that Prince Edward’s brother, John of Gaunt, the duke of Lancaster—the wealthiest man in England and a superb warrior in his own right—would seize the throne. This was not an unwarranted fear at a time when thrones seemed to change hands with the seasons. So young Richard was ushered through the ceremonies of becoming the Prince of Wales and many other titles his father had had, perhaps a bit like that famous scene of Danny Kaye in the Court Jester getting his knighthood (at least I can’t stop picturing it that way).

As it happened, Edward III died the following year and Richard—his handlers surrounding him—was set upon the throne. Much was made of his divine right: Three kings were present at his birth and comparisons to a certain manger in the past attended by another three kings was a natural fit. There is even the endearing story of his losing a slipper while going through the long and probably exhausting ceremony of coronation, something a bit boring, no doubt, to a ten-year-old boy. He dozed off and lost his shoe and he was scooped up by none other than his uncle the duke of Lancaster.

We have a difficult time imagining it today, but it was a precarious time when monarchs changed crowns. Perhaps the closest we can come to it in recent memory was the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Certain as Americans were in the Constitutional line of succession, there is still a bit of uncertainty when the seat of great power is left empty too long. These feelings rumbled through the kingdom when Edward III died, leaving a ten-year-old heir. To have the nobles—including the possibly dangerous John of Gaunt—supporting him was probably a relief to the populace.

And so it was with great promise that Richard took his crown. Like his predecessors, he spoke French, but the language of court these days was English, at least Middle English. As a language, English was coming into its own. Geoffrey Chaucer, who’s patron was John of Gaunt (who had a long time affair with Chaucer’s sister-in-law, Kathryn Swynford, and finally married her, reminiscent of Prince Charles and Camilla) was a popular author/poet in his day. In English. Changes were afoot. Indeed, even the peasants felt their own sense of Englishness enough to take their protest of high taxes to the king himself. In 1381, the peasants revolted (I know, I know), with the enigmatic Wat Tyler at its head. The rabble reached London and even burnt down the Savoy, John of Gaunt’s London palace. Richard agreed to meet with him himself and when they met in a field outside of London, it looked as if the tide had turned. Richard agreed to many of the stipulations Wat Tyler demanded—until it all turned ugly.

Did Richard merely lure Tyler to his doom, pretending to agree to his demands, foreswearing his chivalric code to speak the truth and be fair in all his dealings? We don’t really know today, but at the time, he was seen as a shrewd manipulator. It was only in his later years when he came to insist on his rights as king, to be addressed as “Majesty” and “highness” that we see these seeds in his dealings with Tyler: as King, he was far, far above the normal rabble. He was anointed, he was born on Epiphany--an auspicious birth from a noble father and a nobler lineage.

But he took it too far.

In later years, he had a falling out with his cousin, John of Gaunt’s son, Henry Bolingbroke, and banished him for ten years. By this time, there was much grumbling amongst the nobles about the favors Richard was conferring on his favorites, ignoring those who used to counsel him. When Gaunt died in 1399, Richard seized Bolingbroke’s lands. And when Richard left England to campaign in Ireland, perhaps trying to prove he was worthy of his Plantagenet heritage, something that the nobles were beginning to doubt (after all, he couldn’t even beget an heir) Henry Bolingbroke took that opportunity to return to England...with an army.

No longer being well-liked by the populace, Richard didn’t stand a chance when Henry captured him in Wales. He was forced to abdicate and Henry was urged to take the crown, becoming Henry IV.

After a brief stint in the Tower, Richard was sent to Pontefract Castle where he was essentially starved to death. Was Richard a terrible king? He wasn’t a tyrant as some kings have been. Much like Edward II, he surrounded himself with the wrong characters, and when push came to shove, Richard and Edward found themselves utterly alone. I don’t think Richard was a terrible king, but certainly was he neither a particularly good one. Even when you are born to it, a crown does not rest comfortably on every royal head.

Note: This blog post of mine first appeared in 2008 as a guest post on EdwardtheSecond.blogspot.com

Two Great Author Events

Yesterday and today, I was at two unusual author events.

Last night, it was baseball at the Epicenter Stadium in Rancho Cucamonga, home of the Quakes minor league baseball. Author Eric Stone put together a slew of authors (pictured left. Who's that green guy in the middle?) for a "Writer's Cafe" where books were sold and authors sat at individual tables waiting to chat with readers. And watch a little baseball, too. Free hotdogs and dollar beer for the starving writers. I think we sold a few books, watched a bit of the game, and enjoyed some fireworks, too boot.

And today, I was in Temecula on the site of the old Vail Ranch (which is now mostly the Redhawk community and shopping centers) in the big Red History Barn. Another slew of authors (from when I belonged to a local critique group) got together to sell their books. A decent weekend for book sales.  

Award-winning Mead

This last weekend my husband and I went to the fair. The San Diego County Fair, that is, or as the locals knew it, the Del Mar Fair. We went not necessarily to see the animals (though we did see them. In fact, I saw more varieties of pigeons that I have ever heard of. Some were downright chicken-sized!) We went because my husband is an award-winning Homebrewer and he had entered a few of his brews for the competition. Hubby favors British-style beers like porters and stouts. But he didn’t win with those. No, I’m gonna take the credit here, because years ago I asked him to start making mead for me. I thought it would be a fun thing for me to sip mead whilst I wrote my medieval novels. Drinking and writing hard-boiled mysteries is an old tradition, after all. 

But you know what I discovered? What seemed like a brilliant piece of writing while you are sloshed, seems a little disjointed when sober the next day. Big surprise. But no matter. Mead it is, he said, and frankly, he’s been winning awards with it ever since. A few years ago he took home a Best of Show from this fair. This last weekend he walked away with a First Place ribbon. Still damned good. 

But what is this mead, you say? It is often referred to as honey wine, but strictly speaking, it is not a wine. It’s cooked, which puts it in the brewing category and therefore takes up shelf space with beers and ales. Mead goes way back. To China in 7000 BC and in Europe to about 2000 BC. The Ancient Greeks liked it. The Danes liked it and brought it to England for their mead hall festivities. The word derivation of “mead” is remarkably the same in a panoply of languages: Old Frisian mede, Middle Dutch mede, meed, meede, meedt (Dutch mede, mee), Middle Low German medde, mde, meit, meth, Old High German medo, met, meto, metu, mito (Middle High German met, mete, German Met), Old Icelandic mjr (Icelandic mjö, mjöur), Old Swedish miödher, mioer (Swedish mjöd), Danish mjød, Gothic *midus (only attested in Greek transcription as , given by Priscus as the name of a drink used in place of wine at the Hunnish court A.D. 448) < the Indo-European base of Sanskrit madhu (neuter) honey, sweet drink, ancient Greek wine, Old Irish mid mead (Old Welsh med, Welsh medd), Old Church Slavonic med honey, mead, Lithuanian midus mead, medus honey. The word may have been originally a use as noun of an adjective meaning ‘sweet’; compare Sanskrit madhu (adjective). The Germanic word post-classical Latin medus (all from the Oxford English Dictionary). 

The keeping of bees was a necessity if one wanted some sweetness in one's life. Fruit didn't go that far and sugar--considered a spice--was priced that way. Keeping your own bees assured a few sweet treats, including mead.  

It is said that young married couples would be supplied by the in-laws with enough mead for the first month of wedded life, hence the term “honeymoon,” but I don’t have a citation for that. It might just as well refer to the sweetness at the beginning of the month, but that the sweetness wanes as does the moon. Since mead is so ancient a drink I suspect such etymologies would be difficult. 

The kind of mead I like best is of the sweet, slightly effervescent variety, and, of course, tastes strongly of honey. It is a fermented beverage made without fruit—as in wine--or grain—as in beer. The honey and the yeast provide the flavors. Fruit and spices can be added to make different varieties of mead. Still, it’s fun to drink when I write and when I don’t. And I know that mine, at least, is a winner...as is the brewer. ☺

I'll Be the Judge of That!

I volunteered to be a judge for a mystery writing organization award this year, and though I knew intellectually I was in for it, the reality hadn't started setting in until the books began to arrive. I'd find great, bulging boxes of books from publishers on my doorstep just about every other day. How the hell was I going to find the time to read all of these?

Well, the first thing to do was to eliminate those that didn't qualify. The rules require that the books be hardcover, so eliminating the paperbacks came first (why would a publisher waste the time and postage when that would clearly disqualify those books?) and then I would read blurbs and online info on some of the others to make sure the detective qualified under the rules. More eliminations. Looks like my local library is going to be very happy with me. 

And then it's getting down and dirty and reading. What's great about this is having the opportunity to read some authors I wouldn't ordinarily think about reading. What's bad about it is finding authors that I wouldn't bother reading again.

And then there is the expectation. I grab a couple of books to read based on the cover. Cool covers. Looks like I'm going to enjoy this one. But it turns out that you can't always judge a book by its cover. 

I hate to be mysterious about this (but it is what I do). Obviously, I can't give too many details about the process while in the throes of it. Suffice it to say, it has become a very interesting exercise in patience and time management. There are gems to be had. Someone's gonna win this contest, after all. Finding new authors that I'd happily read again makes me think that I might come out a winner, too.