I'm writing a novel that is set on a remote Carrabian style island (I'm not sure if it's in our world or not yet) in which my paratagenist wakes up on an island alone. I've wrote the first chapter already and he has found a village of friendly natives, the problem is, I have no idea where to take it after that. I've got the basic story planned, and he has woken up to find himself in the middle of the village and safe (at least he thinks) among them. But how do natives spend there time during the day? Is it spent purly fishing/farming/gathering food? How should I fill up the days in an interesting way so then i can move onto the nights when the action starts? I've thought about adding a second village onto the island that these people can be at war with, but I don't feel that is enough.
It's your story, why don't you just make up their society? Or research a certain people if you want reality. I'm thinking of doing a story set on the island of Tinian, in the Marianas, so I researched the history of the Chamorro people, the natives. But I'm only doing this because it's a historical novel and must be accurate. A few years back, I did a horror story on an unnamed South Seas island and populated it with 20 men and 20 women, all with filed teeth. These people ate nothing but the fruit of the grove they lived in. There never has been such a tribe, so I could let my imagination run free. Your possibilities are endless, volcanoes, wild boars, exotic fruits, strange sea life, tribal warfare, cannibalism, etc. Let your whimsy run wild and see where it takes you. Take care, JohnB
Research. Sit down and do it, if you want your story to have a realistic/authentic feel. Find out what island tribes similar (in location, composition, etc.) to what you have in your fiction novel do. Are they hunter-gatherers, agricultural, even nomadic--from island to island if you want to mix things up. I am sure beyond the internet, there is more resources available at the local library/university library (from National Geographic Magazines to scientific studies) than you could ever use. Once you have the foundation of the island/tribal culture--needs, you can alter it as you see fit for the novel. Terry
i live there, john!... and am in the middle of editing a huge scholarly work on the history of tinian in re the a-bombs, by a well-known and much-published local guy who's the unofficial 'marianas historian'... so, when you want the real skinny on the island and my chamorro neighbors, just ask! love and hugs, maia
How does a person get to live there? I'm asking from the view point that I would love to live somewhere like that for awhile. (No money now unfortunately) do you have to be rich?
I know you live there, Mama, and I'm still trying to figure out how to pay for the shipping to get some books to the kids on the island. As I mentioned, I'm hoping to do a fictional piece set in the Marianas. Take care, JohnB
sorry, john... i deal with so many people on the sites and at home in email, that i can't keep all their names/usernames straight, so didn't connect you with the generous soul who offered to send books... anyway, i can certainly help with any info on the marianas, as i'm working with two historians here now, as well as with the editor and publisher of MP [marianas pride], a coffee table quality slick mag based in saipan... fb... ...if you're a us citizen, you just come here and move in!... ...if you did, i sure wouldn't be living here, as i do nothing for money and my only income is soc. sec. ;-) ... the min. wage is $3.50, so you can guess what the standard of living is like... the most expensive thing is getting here, which costs $1,000-1,800 depending on what part of the states you leave from... but $200/mo. apt and house rentals are standing empty all over the island, so housing isn't a problem... utilities are, however, with elec bills way over $100/mo, if you use a/c to beat the tropical humid heat... and cable tv can cost around the same, with 1-2 premium movie channels and no satellite tv service available, unless you want only chinese stations... some foods/other stuff you can't get on the island and have to do without, or go to saipan to get... and some things you can't even find there, but can do what i do and order them from amazon, drugstore.com, walmart, and others of the few online shopping venues that will ship some stuff here... still, some items can't be shipped directly and you have to have someone on the mainland forward them... ...if you want to know more, drop me a line... love and hugs, maia
Is there a languae barrier between this guy and this tribe? Or a cultural one? If so you could show some of the difficulties of the "funny looking fellow who speaks gibberish and clearly knows nothing of proper behavior" fitting in with all the natives. That alone probably filled the better half of the beginning of "Shogun".
I would suggest checking out writers such as Malinowski, EEP, Geertz, Levi-Strauss, or any of the older school grand ethnographers. Also, remember that many hunter-gatherer groups spend around two hours per day procuring the necessities of survival. Much less than our eight. Think about the sheer amount of additional time for social interaction, cosmological musings, &c.
to be honest with ya, Lemex, i like the fact that you have the slow and rather uninteresting days compared to the upheavel of the nights. it is like a good contrast almost, like it is amazing during the day until darkness falls. i know you want to pad out the days a bit more though, so have things like day visits to other islands, or a shark attack or something like that. it might help
*Noted* I might just do that! Thanks Heather! I never thought of that! Shark Attacks, Vists to other places. Also, anyone know any good Servival guide sites? I've lost my Chris Ryan book that I had been using as a source for this story.
