For over a decade, while I was developing my writing skills, I had the great good fortune to work at a large outdoor ethnic museum near Milwaukee called Old World Wisconsin. This historic site includes a crossroads village and ten working farmsteads, with restoration dates ranging from 1845 through 1915. Old World Wisconsin is a place where Interpreters get their hands dirty, so my knowledge of historical domestic and agricultural processes grew exponentially. I learned how to warp a loom, how to milk cows, how to make rennet and lye soap. I prepared wine, sauerbraten, hops yeast, and Finnish egg coffee. And I’ve passed many of these skills, of course, on to my characters. But hands-on experience brings much more to a writer’s toolbox than technical understanding. Living history sites and events can provide the specific sensory details that bring a scene to life. I know what hog intestines smell like when they’re being prepared for sausage casing, how flax fibers feel between my fingers as they twine into linen thread, what threshing machines sound like when they rattle to life in the middle of a newly-shorn wheat field. And because I have a novelist’s vivid imagination, my experiences at the site provided compelling insight into the lives of people long gone. Standing on a brick kitchen floor until my knees ached, having to fetch draft horses that broke through fences on a daily basis, wanting to weep when cabbage moths or drought destroyed crops I had carefully nurtured, cutting oats with a sickle so slick with sweat it was hard to grasp-this kind of experience provided new perspectives of the women who peopled both the restored homes I worked in and the pages of my novels. The good news is that, to varying degrees, anyone can gain some hands-on perspectives about the people they are writing about. If possible, visit a working historic site. Obviously this is easier for those writing about, say, the nineteenth-century farm experience than those writing about Biblical days. But even sites only tangentially related to your time and place might provide some useful sensory experiences. Ask the interpreters (guides) questions. Visit during different seasons. Hang around, take photographs, jot sensory details and impressions in a notebook. Look, too, for reenactors interested in your period. Ask reenactors questions that go beyond process and facts, and get to the experiences of the people they portray. Ask if you can hold their musket, or try your hand at tamping cabbage into sauerkraut, or whatever else is going on. Volunteer to help out at the next event. Get involved. Finally, be creative about finding ways to experience bits of life. Sew (or order) a wool frockcoat, or a corset and period-appropriate dress. Learn how to tat lace or carve shingles with a drawknife. Grow heirloom vegetables. Ask a farmer to show you how to pluck chickens. Make a fire pit in the back yard, and try baking bannocks or cooking stew or frying flatbread. Get your hands dirty. You, and your readers, will be glad you did.
Archive for January, 2010
Shelley’s Bookshelf.: An article from: MBR Bookwatch
Product DescriptionThis digital document is an article from MBR Bookwatch, published by Midwest Book Review on March 1, 2010. The length of the article is 826 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.Citation DetailsTitle: Shelley’s Bookshelf.(fiction)(Book review)Author:> Shelley’s Bookshelf.: An article from: MBR Bookwatch
Posted in Historical Fiction Books 
Tags: Article, Bookshelf., Bookwatch, from, Shelley's 
Comments OffScience Fiction Throughout the Ages and Into the Future
The evolution of science fiction movies over the last 50 years can be attributed to much more than the advances in special effects and movie-making technology (although those changes have had an effect); the biggest influence on scifi during this time period are the events that occurred in the real world. These past five decades leading up to today have been subject to an ever-accelerating onslaught of technological achievements and world-changing events. While every movie is subject to the trends of each time period, science fiction has an intimate connection to both technology and the real world. The very definition of science fiction references the impact that current and past events have on the genre. As defined by scifi author Robert A. Heinlein, science fiction is a realistic speculation about possible future events based on the past and present knowledge of the real world. For these reasons, the cause of the evolution of science fiction movies is the real world, stated in another way: science fiction comes from reality. During the 1960s, radical revolutions in technology and related technological achievements, such as the moon landing, had a significant impact on science fiction movies. In addition, the Cold War, JFK’s assassination, Martin Luther King, the Vietnam War, and Woodstock all influenced science fiction movies during the decade. Some of the most notable science fiction movies of the time included 2001: A Space Odyssey, Fahrenheit 451, and The Time Machine, each impacted in some way by the events that occurred during the 1960s. More specifically, the look and feel of the spacecrafts featured in 2001: A Space Odyssey were very similar to the spaceships being used during the 1960s. Improvements in film making and the success of science fiction in the 1960s rapidly advanced the development of science fiction movies during the 1970s. Achievements in technology during the 1970s included many that changed the everyday life of many people, including the pocket calculator, car airbags, barcodes, Sony Walkman, and the home computer. Other influential technologies included the Space Shuttle, Neutron Bomb and the supersonic Concorde. A population explosion to 4.4 Billion people as of 1978 also had an impact on the genre. The hedonistic atmosphere of the decade was featured in the 1976 scifi movie Logan’s Run, while concerns about overpopulation were featured in the 1973 movie Soylent Green. With the proliferation of computer technology in film-making, new, more advanced movies began to be produced in the 1980s. These new technology were used to produce some of the most mind-blowing special effects ever featured in science fiction movies, as seen in Predator, The Terminator, and Flight of the Navigator. Blade Runner was one of the first scifi films that featured a dystopia, rather than the all-out apocalypse seen in The Road Warrior or The Terminator future. One topic that seemed to be featured repeatedly was the concept of the evil, all-powerful corporations that rule the world and beyond. This concept can be found in Robocop, Aliens, Blade Runner, and the Terminator. Huge technological strides and discoveries were made during the 1990s, all with the potential to significantly impact science fiction movies. Just some of the achievements included gene therapy, the World Wide Web, text messaging, global positioning, genetic modification, computer generated films, deep space photography, cloning, and the International Space Station. The disappearance of the threat of World War III with Russia had been replaced by an increasing amount of smaller conflicts. The first significant ground war since the Vietnam war, the first Gulf War, occurred, featuring some of the newest military technology ever used in battle. Computers began playing a more important role in special effects and movie production, featured in revolutionary movies like Jurassic Park and Men in Black. Natural catastrophes were a recurring theme, with disaster movies like Armageddon, Deep Impact, and Waterworld, as the now-prominent topic of global warming and saving the world started to have an influence. The Matrix was released in 1999, heralding a new age of science fiction movie making using complex plots, cinematography, and special effects. The 2000s have been a busy decade for technological achievements related to space travel and astronomy. New solar systems and Earth-like planets have been found, countries like China have launched people into space, several robots have landed on and explored Mars, new moons have been found in our solar system, we’ve collected and retrieved comet dust, and dozens of unmanned probes have been launched throughout space by organizations around the globe. We’re seeing the advent of space tourism and the commercialization of space travel. In addition, the political climate has rapidly shifted following the events of 9/11 and we’ve had one of the most momentous presidential elections in history. With no shortage of technological achievements and world-changing events to influence science fiction movie-makers, a variety of new scifi films have been released. Worldwide natural catastrophes were themes in Artificial Intelligence: AI, The Core, and Sunshine; genetic engineering and cloning in The 6th Day; Mars in Mission to Mars and Red Planet. There have also been numerous movies created from comic book characters, super heroes, and video games, including X-Men, Resident Evil (1, 2, and 3), Iron Man, The Hulk, and many more. New movie making technologies were used in Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. Donnie Darko is a modern-day cult classic featuring a mysterious antihero and Children of Men is said to be a modern-day Blade Runner. So what does the future hold for scifi movies? What will the 2010s be all about? If the past is any indication, I believe we’ll see influential events of the next three years impact the 2010s greatly. Terrorism will be a recurring theme along with futures rife with economic hardships. A fear of people will grow as the current global recession influences crime rates, murders, war, and every other type of violent event. People’s concern for the planet, which has been prevalent during the recently slayed high-oil-price age, will be replaced by a concern for personal safety. As the jobless [...]
Posted in Historical Fiction Books Tags: Ages, Fiction, Future, Into, Science, Throughout Comments OffFiction Books: Full of Suspense and Secrets
Traditionally human beings have been inclined towards the world of fiction. The word ‘fiction’ means ‘imagination’. Philosophers always opine that human beings find solace being in the state of imagination. That is why, these days fiction books are always in great demand. But very few people know about the different kinds of genres of fiction books. Such books are known in different names such as imaginative books, fantasy books etc. In addition, many people end up buying the costly books. As an intelligent buyer, one should always look forward to buy the most popular imaginative books at cheap price. Fiction books are really appetizing when a reader goes through out the whole book. In such books, folks get to experience some imaginative characters which are portrayed artistically by the writers. It is impossible to get the exact count of the whole variety of imaginative books. With the advent of World Wide Web, now people can explore the different types of fantasy books. There are infinite sites which are into the selling of these books. The advantage of buying these books online is that customers get to make use of various online discounts. Such kinds of reductions let book lovers get their favorite books at a much cheap price. Most of the fiction books help readers to get a reflection of their own lives. Life is full of sorrow, happiness, adventure, tragedy as well as fun. These are some of the characteristics of imaginative books, which revolve around the stories of such books. Many people all around the world have hobbies of reading these books. The number of people opting for such a range of books is getting higher. The main reason for this is the wide-spread of internet facility and the price of fantasy books is getting cheaper day by day. In addition, people can opt for online books in which they can also look out for imaginative books. These are the most useful ways of buying cheap fantasy books. All websites do not let people buy fantasy books at the less amount of money. In order to buy cheap fantasy books, people have to gather some information on the sites which surely sell these books at a cheaper price. Such kind of research can be done at ease with the help of informative tools like search engines. People can write down ‘cheap fiction books’ in the search box and instantly a good count of websites dealing in the selling of cheap imaginative books will be cascaded to them.
Murder on Lenox Hill
ISBN13: 9780425206102 Condition: NEW Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark. Product DescriptionMidwife Sarah Brandt and Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy’s most disturbing case to date begins not with a murder, but with the pregnancy of a young woman-who is mentally still a child herself. And when suspicion falls on a beloved minister, the sordid affair could take its toll in innocent lives…. More >> Murder on Lenox Hill