Here's the skinny. The main character is working in a mine. He hasn't proven himself to the other miners yet so he is not all that well liked yet. They want him to do something in the mine to prove that he has what it takes and he chickens out because to him what he has to do sounds ludicrously dangerous. The problem I'm having is I don't know what they would want him to do.
I would strongly advise you consult a mining-specific forum community about any initiations they may (or may not due to Health & Safety) have. A quick google will give you a likely looking one in the form of Coal, Colliery And Mining Forum. I think your chances of finding many face-workers here are slim, though, of course I may be wrong.
i agree... it sounds like you know nothing about mining, which makes it not a good idea to write a story based on it... unless you do the requisite research first, and learn how to get it right...
I agree. It sounds like this premise could work in a variety of settings. Is there a reason for the specificity of the mine? A metaphor you're trying to go for, perhaps?
I did join the forum, though I haven't gotten any answers back yet. I'm working on a short scifi piece that involves a mine. Its essentially a bunch of blue collar workers who have to defend themselves using only the equipment at hand.
This is just my opinion, I don't know any miners in real life, but I don't think they would tell someone as green as your character to do something stupid, if only because Miners do know that their job comes with risks. If you want a good mining read, pick up October Skies (AKA Rocket Boys) which deals with the realities of what mining families go through (and blowing up rockets, for the mythbusters fans). But if anything will alienate a miner from his co-workers, it would be his lack of saftey and willingness to continue in such a manner. There's just so many things that could go wrong, that an experienced miner would probably never risk it by telling some green pup to do something stupid.
in a perfect world, maybe, hs... but in this one, 'boys will be boys' and men too often do not act the way they should... just one proof of this sad fact [bolded by me]:
I would say something that is very dangerous to the mine or too his job. For example, stealing a gold watch out of the owner's back pocket, or setting off fireworks nearby the miner's workshop. You could possibly make it something extreame, like drug running, or, something random, like stealing something from the owner. It's all up to you! Hope that helped Writewizard
