I dunno if anyone will respond. I'm in need of feedback on some ideas. The time setting is 1893. Sam Cassidy and his friends are in search of his employer who's been abducted by mercenaries. The last known location - Alexandria, Egypt. I am an amateur writer and I'm writing a pulp hero series of books. An "Action Hero"-type gunfighter for hire globe trotter. Any input would be quite satisfactory. Any suggestions on what should happen next?
1893? I'd be wondering how an American becomes a globetrotter. The back story would be interesting. Off the top of my head, I assume his father is a diplomat or possibly an army/navy guy. Americans didn't really travel internationally......did they? I've just only heard of the British Empire having that type of international exposure to the world.
This is really very vague... you need significantly more detail before anyone can make a sensible suggestion
It was the Victorian age—Phineas Fogg went Around the World in 80 Days. World travel was becoming more and more feasible, though mostly by railroad and steamer (and occasionally by balloon) with segments filled in by renting horses or a carriage. Not sure when air travel became thing, but I guess not until a decade or 2 later. Yeah, the Wright Brothers did their thing around 1900-05. But there were zeppelins before that! Remember, in the Western movies, there were the cowboys and farmers and frontier towns etc, but on the east coast there were victorian gentlemen in spats and top hats. Though a ship voyage across the Atlantic would take probably months.
In revolutionary Egypt, adventurers Sam Cassidy and Chen Tao were invited to Alexandria. Professor Pericles has vanished in the desert while seeking out the tomb of Teshef the Great. They are recruited by Professor Pericles' daughter, whose knowledge and deciphering the hieroglyphic puzzles that pinpoint the location of the hidden tomb. It was believed to be the richest buried along with gold — the Devil's Trident. Things go not as planned, as Sebastian Braddock and his mercenaries head for Alexandria to steal the treasure from Sam and Chen. Sam and his friends face wild Ureesh bandits and Braddock's mercenaries while Sam tackles the horrors that await them. But who will win at the end: Sam, Braddock, or something else?
your time setting is wrong, the Urabi revolt took place from 1879 to 82. It ended in 1882 with the first Anglo Egyptian war, so 1893 is not 'revolutionary Egypt' It is also unlikely that the victorious British forces would have been too impressed with a bunch of mercenaries turning up in Alexandria
tbh theres not enough here to like or dislike - historical mistakes not withstanding. what you have here is a very vague plot idea... you need to flesh it out into a timeline of this happens then that happens etc before anyone else can really help... currently anything could happen
Transatlantic travel was certainly possible by steamship. Brunel launches his steamships in the 1850s. Rigid balloons didn't become a means of passenger travel until around 1910.
A week or two, sailing across the Atlantic took six weeks in 1812 (hence why the Battle of New Orleans took place two weeks after the end of the War of 1812, nobody there knew it was over yet.) Mark Twain traveled the world in the 1860s, I know he hit Hawaii and Europe. But a globe-trot in those days is going to be a journey of years, not simply a bunch of flights like it is now.
I stand corrected. Just checked a timeline of Zeppelins and indeed you are right (but you knew that).
I wrote my first book as part of the series, it was a failure. No readers of any kind. I'm not asking for readers, as I know nobody would read it. Just some ideas. My brain is just about fried. LOL But seriously, this is completely fictional not historically correct. I wanted to do something in the vein of Indiana Jones. Only my MC doesn't carry a bullwhip just a pistol.
It will still be viewed through a historical lens, though. Unless you go completely off the rails, like Abraham Lincoln - Vampire Hunter kind of cuckoo. In which case, you can go to town, though it will help to know which historical things you are deliberately breaking... then you'll be considered irrelevantly clever!
or unless you go the alternate history route like harry turtledove... but again these a major changes not just being wrong by a year, that just looks like a lack of reseacrh
Indiana Jones was set in the 1930s, which made a lot of what happens to him believable. We're not criticising your ideas because we want to dump on you, we're trying to help.
I don't know if a lot of people will know a lot about the American wild west outside of America so I suppose you could write that your character has some special talent with his 6 gun revolver so he always hits what he's aiming at and can survive a trek through the "wild west" with a Stenson hat, a lasso, and a pistol. Maybe a Henry rifle? In terms of getting your character into an international scene.....he could be a part of the military, perhaps the navy as they would travel. Other than World Wars One and Two, I don't really remember America being involved in international conflicts. I know there was something called the Roughriders which were volunteers who fought in Cuba...or Spain? His family would need to be merchants or diplomats for him to have these experiences during his formative years and then he could sell his services as an "expert" bodyguard to wealthy benefactors as an adult. Any of the famous explorers in the olden days usually had money - exploring the ends of the earth was very difficult, especially getting there. Sure, there might be people in the military that got tapped to be scouts such as Lewis and Clark but..... Another thought, instead of going backwards, why not go into the future? What if we discover a new planet and this character explores it? Or.....take a native American Indian from the old, old west and this character leaves America to explore the world, discovers Europe? What would happen? **BTW, the above are my assumptions based on what I've heard/remembered....are they accurate? Who knows. The gist of it is probably true but don't take my word for it.
EEK! The Spanish-American War of 1898, in which America took the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and Cuba (Cuba was liberated rather than annexed because one Senator Teller of Colorado didn't want "domestic" competition from Cuban sugar) from Spain featured the Rough Riders, lead by former Assistant Secretary of the Navy (and later US president) Theodore Roosevelt fought the Spanish in Cuba. The US invasion of a little place called Guantanamo Bay was the first modern amphibious invasion involving machine-guns and support by naval gunfire. Roosevelt was later (1906) awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in negotiating an end to the Russo-Japanese war, a war in which Japan was the first "colored" nation to score a major victory against a "European" country in the naval Battle of Tsushima, which was the first modern naval battle involving steel battleships and radio in major roles. Umm... sorry. Bit of an interest in that period. But anyway, if he's a former Rough Rider it has to be at or after the turn of the 1800-1900 century is what I meant. Don't worry, most Americans don't remember those wars either.
It wouldn't really be an Indiana Jones style adventure series if he's in the military, he'd be a soldier, going where he's sent and doing what he's told. But I think the solution to the travel-money problem is suggested in the title—he's hired to go places and shoot people. @Iain Aschendale —I've never even heard of those conflicts!! I was going to say the US didn't get involved in overseas conflicts (aside from the WWs) until Korea and Vietnam! But then I don't know much history.
Wow....I apparently don't know much American history. I'm not American though. As far as "westerns" go, I think most people only have the view of the American west from the western movies. Are these accurate? "Unforgiven" "Deadwood" "Pale Rider" **Oops - "Deadwood" was a television show, not a movie. I thought it was a made-for-tv movie. Guess not. When I was a kid (I'm 47) in school we read about the development of North America. The Orgeon Trial, the fur trade, the war of 1812, etc. We didn't read about the history of Asia or Africa. Europe was a history subject because we were descendants of the European settlers. Do people in England or Spain or Brazil read about American history, especially the 1800s-1900s? There are some books which seem to rehash the same plot again and again - "The Trailsman"; "Lonestar"; there have to be two or three more what are their names.....????
I was only vaguely aware of them until I found an American History class in my schedule one year. As a student, that sort of random inclusion could be worrying but as a professor it was terrifying. Especially since I had to develop the whole course on the fly. Turned out to be quite popular with the students, so you can guess what happened to it.
He could always desert once he's wherever he wants to be. If he's going to advertise in some newspaper "Hired Gun Available for $_____ per day plus expenses. Have gun, will travel" why would the person hire him? I'm also a little skeptical of the idea that someone can hire Mr. X and he goes to China/Vietnam/Spain/Brazil/France/you pick the country and starts shooting people. Aren't the local police going to have a really, really big problem with him?
may be hes like a nineteeth century A team... if you have a problem and no one else can help, and if you can find him, you can hire texas joe and his trusty dragoon colt (I'd read that)
