The Journey of a Pirate's Family

Peter Leavell

My wife sat at the canoe’s bow. I played rudder in the back, while my son (16) and daughter (13) rowed. We floated on heavy waves within sight of Seattle’s Space Needle.

We weren’t making much headway against the wind.

I offered encouragement. “Throw your back into it, me hardies.”

To keep their spirits up, I started singing a sea chantey—as fathers are wont to do.

My daughter asked my son if a mutiny and a keelhauling were in order. Their accents descended to 17th Century Spanish Main pirates.

None of this helped my wife’s seasickness, but like the true sailor she is, she kept a stiff rowing pace for the rest of us.

Our captain’s cabin was still a mile and a half away.

I was thinking, how absurd is this? Humans travel 24,000 miles per hour to grace the moon with our presence. We rowed at about .00001 knots per hour. But gravity presses us against the water, wind shoves us backward, and our muscles fight against both. Why? Why put ourselves through the torture?

Why write? Why did I spend ten years, three manuscripts, one million words that no one will see simply to see a book on the shelf for six months? Why did I dig deep into myself to see if I could conjure something people would pay to read? Why all the emotional pain, suffering, and ecstasies with every defeat or success?

Traveling to the moon would be easier.

Here’s my story on why I did what I did—yours is probably different. God gave me the desire. I performed the work (with His blessing). And one day, I woke up, and I was an author. Ten years of effort.

So what was the point?

The journey.

Grinding through plots, getting to know my characters, researching the past and the locations—there’s the magic. The entire point of Ecclesiastes is to enjoy the moment. Because that’s all the satisfaction we’ll find—loving the work God give us. The joy reflects His character.

Yes, your dreams can come true. But then what? You look back on the journey.

Ready to set out.

Our arms ache from rowing. We kiss the dock. Slaps on the back and a cool drink of iced tea inside the captain’s cabin for all. Our dinner discussions ranged from how we looked for surfacing nuclear subs to Jaws to pirating a nearby barge next time we’re at sea.

Writing, as in life—the journey that brings the most pleasure. Pause and enjoy your characters. Love the setting. Revel in the plot. Let God take care of the agent or editor.

And, if given a choice. Be a pirate. Always be the pirate.

Aarrrr.

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Peter Leavell is an award winning historical fiction author. He and his family research together, creating magnificent adventures. Catch up with him on his website at www.peterleavell.com, or friend him on Facebook: Peter R. Leavell. 

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I’d Rather Research than Write – Musings of a History Nerd By Susan F. Craft

Today, author and editor Susan Craft gives us her experience with researching her latest novel, and throws in a few resources! -- Sandy

Susan: Since I want my history to be right in my novels, I do extensive research and travel to the locations of my novels to absorb, to breathe in, everything I can: sights, sounds, smells. Thank goodness my husband drives us, because I have no sense of direction and can get lost in my driveway.

Our most fun trip was one we took to the North Carolina Outer Banks to research for my upcoming books—Laurel and its sequel, Cassia.

In Laurel, which takes place in 1783, my characters are shipwrecked on Diamond Shoals (the Graveyard of the Atlantic).

Cassia, which takes place in 1799, has pirates.

Between the two books, I knew I needed to learn more about the ships that sailed at that time, some of the nautical terms, and seafaring jargon. In Beaufort, NC, I found a gem of a resource in the Maritime Museum where I spent hours in the library that still uses a card catalogue system (at my age, I felt right at home).

I learned about the wild ponies that have roamed Ocracoke Island for hundreds of years and I became fascinated by the pirate lore of the area.

A local restaurant owner pointed out an area for us to visit that still looks the same today as it did in the late 1700s. Locals have turned out to be some of my priceless resources.

I always like to share some of my resources for research that can be relied on. Here’s a short list, but you can find more on my website www.susanfcraft.com:

• Colonial Quills: http://www.colonialquills.blogspot.com

• Revolutionary War Archives: http://www.revolutionarywararchives.org/index.php

• Contemporary Makers: highlights contemporary craftsmen and women creating replicas of historical items http://contemporarymakers.blogspot.com/

• Jas Townsend and Son have an extensive selection of videos at YouTube demonstrating 18th century skills. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKNGPMefJ_A&feature=relmfu

• Here’s a cool site—the Central Intelligence Agency’s information on spies during the Revolutionary War: https://www.cia.gov/kids-page/6-12th-grade/operation-history/revolutionary-war.html

• Historical Fiction a Light in Time: my blog http://historicalfictionalightintime.blogspot.com

• A Writer’s Guide to Horses is a compilation I did for the International Long Riders’ Guild with just about anything a person would want to know about horses. Working with NY Times Best Selling author, Doug Preston, and with author Jeremy James (both Long Riders) we came up with this Guide to help authors “get it right about horses in their works.” http://lrgaf.org/guide/writers-guide.htm

Finally, I’d like to put in a good word for the SC Archives and History Department. One of their archivists, Marion Chandler, was my go-to person. He answered all my questions that ran the gamut from “Greek landowners in the Blue Ridge Mountains,” to “which colonies taxed men—and how much—for being bachelors.” He also read each of my novels for historical accuracy. I’m sure each state has a similar agency.

What on-site research has been most helpful to you? Do you have favorite resources to share?

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Susan F. Craft writes historical romantic suspense. Her Revolutionary War novel, The Chamomile, won the

Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance Okra Pick. Susan recently retired after a 45-year career as a communications director, editor, and proofreader. Forty-five years ago, she married her high school sweetheart, and they have two adult children, one granddaughter, and a granddog. An admitted history nerd, she enjoys researching for her novels, painting, singing, listening to music, and sitting on her porch watching the rabbits and geese eat her daylilies. She has two post-Revolutionary War novels being released in 2015 by Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas—Laurel, in January, and its sequel Cassia in September. She is represented by Linda S. Glaz, Hartline Literary Agency.

About Laurel— Searching for their toddler and her Cherokee aunt kidnapped by slavers, Lilyan and Nicholas Xanthakos trek from their North Carolina vineyard, through South Carolina backcountry to Charleston, a tinderbox of post-Revolutionary War passions. There Lilyan, a former Patriot spy, faces a grand jury on charges of murdering a British officer. Once free, they follow Laurel’s trail by sea and are shipwrecked on Ocracoke Island. Will they be reunited with their dear child or is Laurel lost to them forever?