Now that the story worthy
problem is set and main character introduced, our hero, François, sets out to
accomplish the goal of helping his pirate mentor-friend rescue his wife and
child. No journey is without problems which builds tension, and provides an avenue
in which to develop his and others' character. However, a problem is added
which our hero will know nothing about until returning—if he returns. That's right,
the hero will resolve the story worthy problem, but may not survive the trek. This side story is
destined to become a story within the story, relating to something his wife, Mariah,
encounters during his absence that must be resolved at home, either by whoever returns.
Returning to the main
story, in steps the angel of death from Mariah's dream, the hint that someone may die. François has difficulty deciding to leave
his family to embark on this adventure, but his family also has trouble letting
him go. Mariah puts up resistance as does his eldest son, Jean-Paul, but
where she angrily acquiesces, we only assume Jean-Paul goes along quietly with
his father's departure. Wrong.
Because of our hero's
past, François has sought to provide a lot of love and stability within his
family. In an unusual stance his wife wanted her husband to be present at the birth
of their first born (and subsequent children) because of the strength and
reassurance he could provide. Except for the two years away being a pirate, he
is very close to his children, but especially to Jean-Paul who is so named to
honor the privateer who raised and adopted François. As most parents will
eventually admit, there comes a time when they find it difficult adjusting to
the fact that their little child has grown up. During this time period becoming an adult occurs within the teenage years. At this point Jean-Paul is
fifteen, a burgeoning teenager, but for all intent in this era, truly a young
adult.
Modern science has
confirmed what parents already know, teens don't act normal from the time
puberty drops on them until they are in their 20's. This is only a guess, but I
believe that was the case in the early 1600's when this story takes place, too.
Francois' son is very attached to his father and determines not to be
separated. He and a close friend swim out and climb aboard as the ship begins
to leave. Problem #1: Throw them overboard to swim back to land (not that far),
or take them along.
The issue addressed here
is how a parent views their child and when is the child no longer a child. This
is as something Francois must reconcile in very little time as the swim becomes
longer with each minute. The decision must be done within context of the
period. He is helped by the one man responsible for his transformation, friend
and fellow pirate Hogshead Shaver, for whom this journey is undertaken.
Angry, Francois relents, but determines that his son shall make the final
transition into the adult world without special treatment. This is done with
the help of certain crew who keep the secret of who the boy really is, and with the stipulation that the
boy will be kept from harms way if at all possible. Of course, this portends
difficulties in the future. Also revealed is why Francois is so protective.
During the first voyage a young orphan joined his crew aboard the Raven with
whom he became very close. The lad's death in battle affected him more than had been
revealed. Problem #2: How do you keep one's son from suffering the same fate
when your ship is obviously going into a fight, not to mention that sailing the
ocean in those days was inherently dangerous anyway?
At the outset of this
series I determined that some historical accuracy should be a major part of the
story. That means some wide ranging research into culture, customs, and
history. While the story takes place in the early 1600's, I found a necessity
to go back further in time, as early as 1492, as events occurring then shaped
beliefs and actions in the story. As with characters, a storyteller needs
to know more than he relates, and avoid overwhelming the reader by determining
how much tho relate.
This is a sea tale, so
things like types of vessels, how they were operated, what went on aboard
when sailing, and when not (either becalmed or in port), navigation, dealing
with weather, seasickness, social problems (and there were some when cramming a
hundred men into a tiny space), sea lore, fears, superstition, a whole barrel
of fun things.
A story should never be
without some comical relief to give the reader a break in the rising tension.
This is achieved by considering what goes on in the crows nest, that little,
bitty platform 100 or so feet in the air that sways back and forth, back and
forth, back and . . .
(Jeremiah, nicknamed
Bones, is Jean-Pauls' companion who also came aboard. He receives his first
assignment from a young Irish sailor, Mr. Cochran, who becomes the boys' close
friend and mentor)
“Now then, Bones, see that platform up there?" he
said, indicating the crow's nest. "Yourself’ll take the watch. Climb up
and have a seat. Be sure and tie yourself to the mast. Don’t want to see
yourself makin’ a quick trip to the deck. And when yourself has to puke, put it
o'r the side and not on deck, or ye'll answer to those below."
“You’re asking me to
climb all the way up there?”
“No, I not be askin’
yourself to climb all the way up there, I’m tellin’ ye to climb all the way up
there. Now, unless it be me boot yourself wants planted in your arse, be off.”
Jeremiah wasn’t too
sure about this, but quickly figured he didn’t have much choice. “What should I
be watching for?”
“It be rocks, other
sails, somethin’ that might be a problem to navigatin’. If’n ye see somethin’
shout us down the word, “Ahoy on deck,” and says whatever it be. Now, look
lively.” (My sense of humor is not going to let this scene slip away
without having a bit more fun. More on that in a moment.)
Meanwhile, Jean-Paul,
nicknamed Curly, is introduced to the ship and his chores which includes what
every seagoing person needs to know—where's the bathroom? And if unable to make
it, there's a bucket which Curly and Bones are expected to empty or the
contents end up in the bilge (the very bottom of the ship) to stew, and that will require a periodic cleaning. Oh, the joy of sailing tall ships. anyway, Curly also
gets his turn in the nest.
Just before calling Bones down to acquaint him with the ship layout, (he knows next to nothing about a ship other than it floats and can sink) the young man
sees something and makes his report. As the reader may have noticed, his
initial instructions were a bit vague so it is natural this happens.
As he (Mr. Cochran) was
about to call Bones down the lad cried out, “Ahoy below. Gray thing ahead
shooting steam.”
“What in Neptune’s name
do you mean by a gray thing?” Parker answered. (The Sailing Master)
“A small island, or
rock, or something.”
“Or something! Good
grief, what have we got up there? No steaming islands around here.” He grabbed
a telescope and climbed up to take a look. “Where is it?”
“Kinda right of the
pointy thing at the front of the boat,” Bones said while pointing forward.
Parker rolled his eyes
and mumbled, “What kind of lunatic have I got here?” He looked, but couldn’t
see anything, then peering through the telescope he saw it clearly. Looking
again without it, he couldn’t make it out, and his eyes were still sharp. The young man's eyesight was impressive. “Well, my apologies, lad. That be a whale and she be blowin’.”
Not all officers were
cruel, mean, scallywags. Many were fathers and treated the boys under their
command accordingly—firm, but with a degree of caring. In any event, the reader
is introduced or re-introduced to some historical details of sailing and a
ship's layout while enjoying a bit of humor.
Once the issue of Jean-Paul is
more or less resolved for the time being, there is Problem #3, recovery of
Francois' pirate ship, Raven. It has come to rest at the mysterious
ghost island of San Borondon. This is a fascinating legend from at least the
time of Ptolemy (AD 90 – 168) that tends to persist today. Then, El Hierro was considered the furthest western point of civilization, except for this island frequently seen in the distance. There
are not only maps of San Borondon, but also pictures, and this being a novel
resting on an historical foundation, inclusion of the story is natural. Through
dialog and narrative, the history of San Borondon is presented along with some
superstitions. Of course, the recovery and rescue is not an easy task, somewhat
reminiscent of what Herakles encountered in Homer's The Odyssey.
 |
| From old maps in Museo Canario, Las Palmas, Gran Canaria |
To this point, more
characters important to the story are added, and the backdrop further colored
in, which brought me to an editorial decision. I have read a few stories in
which the author went into considerable detail about sailing and the
description of a ship using lots of terminology. I have a book published in 1754 (thank you Google) giving a lengthy description of every nautical term used.
How much detail to include is something an author must consider. Jules Verne went into
great detail to explain the science used in his works. Sir Arthur Doyle did
likewise. I did not wish to inundate the reader and loose them completely by
using more nautical terms than needed to move characters around. Just something
to consider.
Bumps along the trail are necessary and realistic to any adventure. Some are easily resolved, some not so easily resolved, and some not at all. With the recovery of the
Raven the journey continues, but not without Problem #4—sailing open waters
in something not much longer than a large yatch that leaks.
 |
| 110' Brigantine, Raven |
Crossing the open ocean under sail in 1600 was no cakewalk. Depending on the wind, it took anywhere from 30 to 45 days. The Raven is a Brigantine, two masts with a combination of lateen sails (triangular affairs) and square sails with oars as backup. When cooperative, the wind could push her along at 7 to 10 knots an hour (8-11.5 mph), the average speed being closer to 5 kts. (6 mph). The average walking speed is 2.5 kts. (2.5 to 3 mph.), a jog 5 kts. What does that provide? Boredom, especially if the speed in zilch.
