Sparking Your Historical Muse

The rhythmic pounding of drums, the silvery click-click of rattles, and the ethereal, high-pitched piping of flutes had my blood pulsing to a primal beat, transporting me far away in time and space to Ohio Territory in 1776, among the embattled Shawnee. Draped in the fresh pelt of a great, grey wolf, the shaman, Wolfslayer, was leading his followers in a hypnotic dance to seek a new vision from their god Moneto. Meanwhile, my hero White Eagle watched from the shadows, brooding over his adversary’s designs to wrest leadership of the tribe from him.

Sounds like a mystical experience, doesn’t it? In a way it was. That morning I was weaving my Mini around Highway 70’s tight curves below sheer rock cliffs along the Harpeth River, heading west to my office in Nashville, Tennessee. Mentally and emotionally, however, I was in a scene in Wind of the Spirit, book 3 of my American Revolutionary War series. I could see it unfold in my mind’s eye, and I groped for my trusty digital voice recorder to capture the vision before it could melt away.

Do you ever use music as a sort of muse to spark your imagination? I suspect many of us do, perhaps casually, as is the usual case for me—or perhaps intentionally, as I’m finding myself doing more and more. They say music has power to tame the savage beast. I’m discovering it also has power to bring scenes in my stories to vivid life. As a result, I’m putting the CDs I’ve collected over the years to a use I never intended when I bought them.

For example, back in December I was looking for a CD of colonial Christmas music, and on Amazon I found Sing We Merrily: A Colonial Christmas. The first time I listened to it, I immediately came up with a scene that will take place near the end of Wind of the Spirit. Following a separation of almost a year and a half, my heroine, Elizabeth Howard, has found her beloved, Jonathan Carleton, among the Shawnee in Ohio Territory. She brings him back to rejoin Washington’s army, and on Christmas Eve they find the bedraggled colonials encamped just across the Delaware River from Trenton, New Jersey, where they have been pushed by British General Howe’s forces after being driven out of New York City.

Ragged, hungry, without supplies, the badly mauled and outnumbered remnant of Washington’s battered brigade huddles around meager, smoky campfires all across the snowy Pennsylvania fields during that bleak night. For many, their enlistments end New Year’s Day, and regardless of their commander’s pleas, most intend to give up the struggle and return home, effectively breaking the back of the rebellion. Now, at their darkest hour, a soldier at one of the campfires impulsively begins to sing. And one by one, his fellows join in.

A virgin unspotted by Prophet foretold,
Should bring forth a Saviour which now we behold,
To be our Redeemer from death, hell, and sin,
Which Adam’s transgressions involved us in.

Then let us be merry, put sorrow away,
Our Saviour, Christ Jesus, was born on this day.
Then let us be merry, put sorrow away,
Our Saviour, Christ Jesus, was born on this day …

As yet unknown to them, the following night Washington will lead them across the ice-clogged Delaware on a desperate gamble to attack the Hessian outpost at Trenton in the teeth of a nor’easter the like of which few had ever experienced. Two men will freeze to death in their tracks while waiting to board the Durham boats ferrying them across the Delaware. Raked by gale-driven sleet, snow, and hail, the troops stumble through snowdrifts, many with bloody feet bound in strips of rags. But the morning of December 26, 1776, against all odds, they win an astounding victory over the formidable Hessian troops. As a result, many who had planned to abandon the cause will choose, instead, to reenlist and hang in there with Washington for a little while longer, thus saving the rebellion for another year.

If you haven’t yet discovered the power of music to practically write scenes for you, start to think about what songs or genres of music would fit with the stories you’re writing. What kind of music does your hero/heroine love or dislike? What kind of music would your characters commonly hear being played around them as they go about their daily lives? What hymns are sung at their church services? I know my buddy Lori has been checking out spirituals for her family saga set in 1790s North Carolina, and I think she’s even writing one for her characters to sing. Now that’s exciting!

Over the years, I’ve collected a rather eclectic mix of music CDs, and I often play one or another while I’m taking that one-hour drive from my home to my office in Nashville and back again. Offhand, I don’t know how many scenes I’ve written as a result, but there have been several. Just a few of the CDs in my collection are Mesa Sunrise and Ancient Canyons, modern Native American music by John Huling that has inspired more than one scene in Wind of the Spirit; Colonial and Revolution Songs by Keith and Rusty McNeil; a number of CDs of medieval carols and motets, chant and polyphony by Anonymous 4, which will enliven my medieval epic tragedy once I get back to it; Elohim, modern Jewish worship music—who knows what story that might spark; classical music from several different eras; 4 CDs of popular WWII songs that are giving me lots of fodder for my WWII era Mennonite romance; and country (for my Nashville-based music industry-centered contemporary romance), gospel, and contemporary music in a variety of genres from the 1950s to today that harbor endless possibilities. I’m even tinkering with a story based on Randy Travis’ award-winning song “Three Wooden Crosses.”

Searches on the Internet, including on retail sites like Amazon, yield all sorts of fascinating and helpful music as well as information that can lead you further. Don’t overlook this rich source of inspiration and creativity!

This is shaping up to be an eclectic week as far as topics are concerned. I’m going to hop around a bit. Tomorrow I plan to dip into a subject that’s especially appropriate for the beginning of the New Year: the history of our calendar. Do you know what our calendar is called? How did our calendar develop? How old is it? What calendar was in use before the one we’re using today? Does everyone use the same calendar? I’ve come up with lots of fascinating information on the subject, so be sure to drop by tomorrow.

On Wednesday, reviewer extraordinaire Michelle Sutton is going to share a sneak peek at Loving Liza Jane, an excellent historical romance coming out in April. I’m working on getting an interview with the author for next month, so keep watching for that.

Thursday and Friday are up for grabs, i.e., I haven’t definitely decided on topics yet. If you’ve been harboring a question or idea you’d like to see covered, post it in a comment, and I’ll consider it for our discussion.

If you post a comment this week, you'll automatically be entered in the drawing to win a copy of Deeanne Gist's A Bride most Begrudging. The lucky winner is going to be in for a treat, so be sure to jump into our dialog. See you tomorrow!