A Path to Mapping a Story Setting

August 31, 2017| Lynn| 0 Comments|

In our last instalment of setting and social history, we talked about how setting can be a key component in our stories especially when we view it as a character in our family history stories.

Today, we will look at mapping our setting. We will look at the purpose of a map as a tool in writing our family history stories. I’ll show you how I created my own setting map for guiding my writing. There are three features I like to keep in mind when creating my setting map; the main setting, beyond the central location and the activities and occupation that provide the movement throughout the setting. Let’s get started by looking at each one of these key elements.

Your Main Setting

In most cases, the primary setting of your story will take place in a city, town or village. However, your story could be on a ship or any other of many locations. Regardless of where your setting is taking place, we need to include all the internal buildings and places within the setting. For example your ancestor’s home, his place of work, where he worships and where he gathers with other towns people to visit.

Beyond the Central Location

You’ll also want to consider what is beyond the central location. For example, if your story takes places in a small town is it surrounded by lakes, forests, swamps or is it a city surrounded by industry or a ship surrounded by water.

Activities and Occupation

If your ancestor was a farmer, (we have a lot of those in our research), then details of how he performed his job and how he moved about in his day to day activities is very much a part of your story setting. Describing the physical characteristics of a farm, the land, the buildings and so on is one aspect of the setting. Explaining how to fix a broken wagon or harvest the crops in the field is also an element of your story setting. How did your ancestor move about to school, church, and get the groceries? Where were these places located in relationship to your ancestor’s home?

The Purpose of a Setting Map

Creating setting map can be very helpful when writing your family history stories and dealing with the location and activities of your ancestor. They can aid your writing in many ways.

Maps can enable the tracking of your ancestor’s location throughout the story.

As your ancestor moves about, from his job to home and church or the grocery store, it’s important to know where each of these locations is located in the story setting. Place them on your map as a visual tool.

Your map can help to reflect on your ancestor’s awareness of their surroundings.

As you move your ancestor through their activities, your map can help you develop an awareness of your ancestor’s surroundings.

A setting map can act as a tool for measuring your ancestor’s movement from point a to point b.

As you write your ancestor’s tale, he’ll have to move from one location to the next physically. Your map can help you with that. What’s the distance, does he walk, ride a horse, take a boat. This might lead to some further research to answer these questions.

A setting map can help you describe your ancestor’s journey and the world to your reader.

Your setting map will allow you to consider what your ancestor is doing at the place he is on the map and what do the surroundings look like? How is he interacting with his surroundings? Whether it is a short journey to the neighbour’s house or a long journey across the ocean, a map can guide you through writing those details into your stories.

A setting map can help you to visualise the scene and the proximity of your ancestor to other characters and places.

With the movement of your ancestors, they will come in contact with other characters in the story and other locations. Your setting map will make it easier to know when they are within the proximity of greeting another character or hearing the church bells ring.

How to Create a Map

First, you have to take the time to get to know your story setting through research and then as you are discovering the setting or after you’ve completed your research you can create a map of the setting. I like to create the map while I’m researching.

Here’s an example from my research. The town of Stratford is the setting for the story I’m currently investigating. It’s important for me to understand where some key places are located as my main character/ancestor makes his way about town.

As I went about doing my research this summer, I created a map. I uncovered clues and mentions of various places that allowed me to put them on the map. Keep in mind my story is set in 1847, so I need to research and understand what Stratford looked like during this time.

The local museum had a map that is from the period of my story. They allowed me to take a digital picture of the map. I then uploaded the picture to Evernote. This is where it got fun.

This summer, as I worked through my setting and social history research each time I uncovered the location of an important place I marked it on the map. I did this right inside Evernote. In Evernote, I used the annotate feature and created a key with coloured dots, so I have an easy reference to where various places are within the setting. Once I start to write, as I move my ancestor through the story, I can quickly reference where he is on the map and what the surroundings look like and how he might be interacting with those surroundings.

Also in this Evernote note, I created internal links to the information and pictures that I have for each location making it very easy to not only find the place on the map but to find my description notes within my research notebook.

Of course, this is only one of many ways to create a setting map. You certainly can sketch a map out if you like or use mind map programs, you are only limited by your imagination. Here’s an example of a setting map done with Prezi for The Great Gatsby.

Regardless of how you build your map or your map’s purpose, I hope you’ll consider including a map among your writing tools as a means to keeping your family history story on the right path.

Setting as Character – 10 Research TipsSetting as Character – 10 Research Tips

August 15, 2017| Lynn| 5 Comments| 11:55 pm

When beginning any family history story, we look carefully at our ancestors as we attempt to understand and describe them for our reader. We develop an ancestor profile of them drawing details out of our research so that we can bring the most authentic ancestor to the page for our readers.

The same can be said for the setting of our family history story. The setting can be a character in our story. If we treat the setting like a character, we are more likely to bring that setting to life for your reader in a big way, in a way that adds to the story. However, before that can happen, we must complete some in-depth research.

Authentic Ancestors 2

It’s important to take the time to get to know your ancestor’s world. It’s not enough just to know the year and location of your story. We need to know details about the setting to bring the personality of the setting to the page. If there are several settings in your story, then it’s necessary to give this in-depth attention to all of them. Our goal is to be able to give the story setting a heart and soul, and for the writer to be able to show how the characters in our story are influenced by the setting.

When we take the time upfront to create not just a setting but an atmosphere we accomplish two things: first the reader will feel connected to your story; and second, the setting and your ancestor will feel more real, authentic, and understood through the descriptions and details of their surroundings.

The setting can also have a significant influence on your ancestor and their backstory. Was the setting a friend or foe to your ancestor? Did it change their behaviour and choices?

The setting comes alive partly in its details and partly in the way that our ancestor experiences and interacts with their surroundings and what is going on around them. Together they deliver a sense of place.

When we head out to research the setting of our family history story, consider the following 10 tips to better recreate the most specific and telling setting in our story.

No. 1

Look for the essential features of the location as you begin your research. The obvious physical attributes of the place, amenities, landmarks, gathering spots, etc. The more specific the details the more authentic the story feels.

No. 2

Keep your eyes open for major and concrete and specific details of the houses, the roads, the weather.

No.3

Look for what is remarkable about the setting and what is not in the surroundings. Are there things that are common place to the setting and yet other things that stand out and not common. It is the uncommon features that make the setting unique and memorable.

No. 4

Consider the history of the setting and how its back story may have influenced its current personality. Just like characters in a story, settings can have a back story, a history that occurred before your ancestor arrived. That history may strongly influence its personality and behaviour.

No. 5

Who are the major personalities in the setting? Whether your setting is a town, street, etc. there are often major personalities who inflict their thoughts and ideas on to the setting. How do they contribute to its history and how the town thinks and acts? In my story, there are two major town personalities who conflict to be the town leader and major influence. The personalities in the setting can greatly infect your ancestor’s thinking.

No. 6

Consider the local culture. What cultures make up this setting how are they reflected in the environment. What flavour and uniqueness do they bring to the setting. How do we see, hear, smell, touch and taste these cultures in our setting? Where does your ancestor stand within the cultural context of the setting? For example, the culture of my setting includes Irish, Scots and Germans.

No. 7

Is there a socioeconomic divide within your setting? How and why? Where does your ancestor stand within that divide? Are they on the right-side or wrong-side of the tracks?

No. 8

What is the political makeup of the setting and where does your ancestor position himself within that framework? For example, in my current story, there is a clear political divide between the Irish Protestant and the Irish Catholics. An age-old conflict carried over from the old country.

No. 9

It can’t be overstated the importance of specificity in your setting. Look for specific names and details of the setting. Use street names of local businesses that exist in that area. For instance, my ancestor visits a general story on a regular basis. Don’t just call it the general store. What is the name of the store, who operates it, what sits in its front window? What types of items would be in this store at this time? What would my ancestor have bought there? The more specific the details, the more realistic your story becomes.

No. 10

Consider the location of your setting—weather, climate, geography, topography. Does this place create physical conflicts for your ancestor? For instance, the roads in my ancestor’s story present a challenge for my ancestors. As well, the town is built on swamp land so mosquitos present a challenge as does stepping outside your door and being met with wolves. On the plus side, the deer are plentiful. These are all important to our ancestor’s day to day challenges and how they interact with their setting and how their surroundings influence them. Does the weather, geography or topography of the setting make your ancestor’s life easier or harder?

Research your setting with the same care and detail you research your ancestor. Find the personality of the setting. How does this setting influence both to you as a writer and to your ancestor?What is the meaning of the setting? This meaning may become significant in how you portray the setting in your story, as an ally or antagonist and may offer some help in developing your theme. You also will want to consider how your ancestor’s position within the setting and local community affects their evolution and journey throughout the story?

Writing a Family History When You Don’t Have All the FactsWriting a Family History When You Don’t Have All the Facts

November 15, 2016| Lynn| 0 Comment| 11:50 pm

Probably the most commonly asked question throughout my online classes, speaking engagements, and workshops are how do I write my family history when I don’t have all the facts?

What do I do when I don’t have enough family history research?

What do I do if I’ve never met them; I don’t even have a picture of them?

How do I write their stories when my research just isn’t enough?

In my early days of writing my family history stories I wondered this myself. The answer is simple, and yet at the same time complicated; by placing your ancestor within the historical context of the time.

What does it mean to place your ancestor in historical context?

Historical context uses historical knowledge of people, events, trends, and cultures to shed some light on your ancestor. To get to know them on a more intimate level, to understand their actions and reactions to events in their life. When we take both the intimidate knowledge of our ancestors that we have acquired through our research and the understanding of the times in which they lived, we can interpret them and their actions. We can close in on those missing pieces of our stories.

It was a book called Bringing Your Family History to Life through Social History by Katherine Scott Sturdevant that helped me to understand historical context on a deeper level.

The simple statement in Katherine’s book brought it home for me. “Social history is the study of ordinary people’s everyday lives. ”

It all starts with your research, the documents, pictures, and artefacts you have acquired over the years. You’re ready to shape that story, but there are some holes, somethings you just don’t know enough about your ancestor that you feel is necessary to write their story. You then must turn to understanding the social history of your ancestor’s life. Even if there are no holes in your research, social history can give you a greater depth of knowledge of their life and decisions.

When we study social history, we place our ancestors in groups and understand and learn how these groups behaved. We can then begin to fill in some of those behaviours and thought patterns of our ancestors. When we place our ancestors into social groups based on their culture, religion, age, sex, social status (the list is plentiful), we begin to fill in the missing pieces. We start understanding our ancestor on a deeper level, have knowledge of their actions and reactions and the influences that shaped their decisions. We get inside their head.

As an example, if I wanted to write the story of my three times great-grandfather, I need to understand the social history of his day. What was life like for an Irish man in Kilkenny in 1820’s? What was it like to be a Catholic at that time? To be a peasant farmer? To be an immigrant during that period? How did he cope as an early settler in the rugged unchartered land known as Upper Canada? When I study these groups, I can help to understand what my ancestor experienced, put him in those experiences and ultimately understand his actions and reactions. Social history can help me to shed some light on who my ancestor was, on how and why he made the decisions that he made.

When we understand the historical context of our ancestor’s time, we can make some inferences about their lives.

An inference is an art of drawing from evidence to recognise the relevant results of something. It is the act of drawing conclusions based on a premise and accumulated facts. It is speculation. Genealogists speculate all the time. We draw assumptions based on what we suspect might be true scenarios based on the research we have acquired. An inference is the same. We can speculate on our ancestor’s lives not only based on our research but in addition to the historical and social history influences of the day.

By researching social history, the study of ordinary, similar people to your ancestors, and blending that information with the specific research of your ancestors you can paint a fuller story of your ancestor’s life.

Your inference is then based on solid social history research that you can in fact source and cite.

You will also state your conclusions directly never implying them and misleading the reader. When you write a statement of fact, you have a document that backs up your claim. If you do not then, you need to reword what you’ve written and make it clear that you are inferring or speculating.

Using Tag Words

You can use tag words such as ‘almost certainly,’ ‘probably,’ or ‘perhaps’ to indicate that you are speculating and to not mislead the reader.

In the article “Perhapsing”: The Use of Speculation in Creative Nonfiction, author Lisa Knopp explains,

In order to write the essay, Kingston needed a deeper, fuller understanding of her aunt’s life and a clearer picture of what happened the night she drowned. Since the only information Kingston had was the bare-bones story that her mother had told her, Kingston chose to speculate an interior life for her aunt. I call this technique “perhapsing.”

Using an Introduction

Your speculation can also come in the form of an introduction at the beginning of your story, such as in the case of Only a Few Bones by John Phillip Colletta. John lays out clearly to the reader that he is recreating the setting, that there are no fictional characters, and he depicts no action that is not suggested by documented circumstances. John goes on to state that he labels supposition. He also goes on to elaborate how he handles dialogue.

John states, “For family historians, therefore, this book represents a case study of how to build historical context around an ancestral event.”

When we infer or speculate we do so from evidence; evidence that we have accumulated through our genealogical data and social history research. We must have sufficient enough historical knowledge to infer, knowledge that can be cited and sourced. We can then conclude or deduce a conclusion based on a premise and our accumulated facts. We can interpret the peoples and or their actions. We can close in on those missing pieces and ultimately write a family history narrative that will satisfy the reader and that we trust is based on sound research, historical context and speculation.

Watch for part 2 in Writing a Family History When You Don’t Have All the Facts, as we delve into the study of social history research – the various topics we can research and where to find them.