  Action/Adventure
This week: Edited by: larryp
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“Good writers write the kind of history good historians can’t or don’t write. Historical fiction isn’t history in the conventional sense and shouldn’t be judged as such. The best historical novels are loyal to history, but it is a history absorbed and set to music, so to speak, changed into forms akin to opera or theatrical productions.”
Daniel Aaron, Professor Emeritus of English, Harvard University
This edition of the newsletter will discuss historical fiction in the Action/Adventure genre.
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An enjoyable method of writing in the Action/Adventure genre is taking a specific time or incident and creating imaginary characters in historic events.
I remember, as a child, I had quite an imagination. I liked to play ‘cowboys and Indians’ and ‘cops and robbers.' In these settings, I could imagine being a variety of characters, from train robbers to county sheriffs. As Action/Adventure genre authors, we have opportunities to put such imaginations into writing. One way we can accomplish this is by taking an event or era from the past and writing what is called historical fiction.
Some the most enjoyable novels I read are a series entitled The Spanish Bit Saga by Don Coldsmith, a native Kansan. Creating fictional characters and settings, Mr. Coldsmith follows the history of the North American Plains Indian.
The Spanish Bit Saga, arguably Coldsmith’s best known work, chronicles the unique moment in history when the horse was introduced to the Plains Indians by Spanish explorers, two of whom are separated from their party and are adopted by a fictional Plains tribe. The adventures and experiences of the explorers’ Spanish-Indian descendants make up the bulk of the Spanish Bit series.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Coldsmith
Historical situations provide interesting reading for many readers. Writing fiction in the Action/Adventure genre regarding history often requires a great deal of research. The author wants to be sure the things he presents in the story coincide with actual events and times. For instance, if you are writing about a military battle, research the weapons used in the specific era. If you are writing about the Revolutionary War, don’t mention a machine gun, which was not yet invented. Study traditions and beliefs of the people of the era – be true to the period of history. True history buffs can instantly spot when something is ‘out of character’ for the setting or era. Respect the reader and do your homework.
Build believable characters who act and dress according to the era of the story. For instance, if you are writing a story about a ‘medicine man’ for a North American Plains Indian, research the topic. Make the fictional character true to the roles played by real ‘medicine man’ of a North American Plains Indian people. If you are writing a story about refugees from Cambodia, research the topic. Know what trials the people faced. What terrain did they traverse? What did they eat for survival? What sicknesses did they battle? Make the characters believable and don’t insult a knowing reader.
A good example comes from my personal experience. I once wrote a story of two brothers in the days of the Old West. In the story, I mentioned that the brothers let their horses loose for the night, unrestrained. A reviewer informed me that I knew little of the skittish nature of horses, for most horses let loose at nighttime would be long gone before daybreak. If you are writing a story about an historic expedition involving horses, you need to have the characters hobble the horses or make sure they are fenced in or tied up. A knowing and alert reader will quickly spot such discrepancies.
Writing Action/Adventure stories based on historical facts allows for much imagination and creation. It is an enjoyable venue for writing stories and poems and draws the interest of many readers. It is also a learning experience for the writer, who gains valuable information in doing the required research. With the instant access available on such sites as Google, a writer has very little excuse for not doing the appropriate research.
No harm's done to history by making it something someone would want to read.
David McCullough, American historian and best-selling author
"The historian serves the truth of his subject. The novelist serves the truth of his tale. As a novelist, I have tools no historian should touch: I can manipulate time and space, extrapolate from the written record to invent dialogue and incident, create fictional characters to bring you close to the historical figures, and fall back on my imagination when the research runs out."
William Martin, American author of historical novels
"But people of the past were not just us in odd clothing. They were people who saw the world differently; approached human relationships differently; people for whom night and day, heat and cold, seasons and work and play had meanings lost to an industrial world. Even if human nature is much the same over time, human experience, perhaps especially everyday experience, is not. To wash these differences out of historical fictions is not only a denial of historical truth, but a failure of imagination and understanding that is as important to the present as to the past."
Anne Scott MacLeod, Professor Emeriti (children’s literature) at the University of Maryland
While the quotes in this newsletter are directed mainly at historical novels, the same may be applied to fictional short stories and poetry. Historical fiction is an excellent venue for the Action/Adventure enthusiast.
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This poem relates the life of a girl (in first person point of view) who is a member of a wagon train headed for Oregon during the 1800’s U.S. westward movement across the untamed wilderness.
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This flash fiction writing follows the journey of a young father of Native American Kickapoo heritage.
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#1198548 by Not Available. |
This historical fiction short story is about a young girl on her way to a concentration camp in the days of the Holocaust.
This non-fiction story is a story of two men who became friends, though their nations were at war.
This is the tale of an elderly man searching for gold. This conquest for gold led many people westward in the 1800’s United States.
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Two men on opposite sides meet on a Civil War battlefield in this piece of historical flash fiction.
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In this poem, a woman speaks of heritage and racism.
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This is an historical fiction short story about a former slave in post slavery USA.
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Some interesting information about historical fiction
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An historical short story about a commanding officer in a battle, with a different twist.
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Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter!
https://www.Writing.Com/go/nl_form
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Thank you very much for including my short story, "Hok-e-hey", in your Editor's Picks for the 5/23/07 newsletter.
Fionnrua  
Fionnrua
You are quite welcome, Fionnrua. I hope you received some good constructive reviews as a result.
Larry, interesting newsletter. You're an added asset to the editorial staff. ~~ Viv
Vivian 
Thank you for the encouragement Viv.
Very nice overview on the story! Enough I haven't read this, it really pulls you in like you almost know his struggle. Very good newletter!
strider7901
Thank you Strider. I appreciate the feedback.
Hey awsome newsletter. It was very interesting and the extract from the book was also very well thought. You did a good job!
What I want to see in a future newsletter, would be weapons and fighting style. I associate action/adventure with lots of combat, so it's natural. Thanks!
likenion
Thank you DayDream. In the future, as a guest editor, when given the opportunity, I will bring the War and Military genres into combination with the Action/Adventure genre for a newsletter topic. Hopefully, that will meet your request.
I want to offer an apology to all those who gave such great responses to my first Action/Adventure newsletter regarding the uns. I only recently discovered how to retrieve the feedback to my newsletters. After reading the feedback each of you gave, I am truly sorry that I did not respond. Thank you so much for your encouragement. I guess even 'newbie' moderators have a lot to learn.
Thanks to each one of you.
Larry
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Action/Adventure: June 20, 2007 Issue [#1780]
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