{ A lesson on history }

Photo of the Piazzetta and the Doge's Palace near the mouth of the Grand Canal. 

Like other dorks out there, I like history. In fact, I would go so far as to say I love history. Mostly European, mostly pre-1900, but if it's historical, I'm all over it. I was one of those kids who wanted to go to Williamsburg, VA, not because she had an American Girl doll, but because she freaking loved the historical setting of the doll's stories. 

British period dramas, antique shopping, historical fiction, old fashions, black and white photos, Ancient Egypt, Sherlock Holmes (Jeremy Brett AND Robert Downey Jr.), old school History Channel (you know, before all those reality competitions)--you name it. If it represented the past, I loved it. I even attempted to major in history in college before I realized the professor for European history was Portuguese and I couldn't understand a word she said. And she wanted me to do work. What was up with that? 

So while I've always been drawn to the past, I usually steered clear of it when it came to my writing. I mostly did this because the idea of doing all that research just seemed too daunting. As much as I know Pride and Prejudice inside and out, I'm well aware that that doesn't mean I know everything there is to know about the Regency Era. Before I could even think up a single plot point, I would have to do hours and hours of research in order to write a historical novel. 

And the whole notion of doing 'homework' for a story was off-putting enough that I never seriously attempted to do it. 

Cut to a few years later. 

I can't remember what inspired me to write The Antiquarian way back in the early months of 2008. To boil down the plot for you, it's a mixture of Sherlock Holmes, Indiana Jones and the Da Vinci Code--adventure, mystery and history all rolled into one. 'The Antiquarian' is a treasure hunter and the story centered around his quest for the Ultimate Artifact. There were sidekicks, witty banter and paranormal elements. The Antiquarian had an arch nemesis in the form of one Dr. Septimus Harcourt (best name I never came up with), also known as The Collector. Weaponized walking sticks, old Chinese books and the Crystal Palace also made an appearance. 

It was grand old fun and even three years later, I still enjoy reading it.  It only exists in script format (hypothetically written for a graphic novel) and it doesn't contain a single shred of historical accuracy. The story never left my mind, however, and recently I found myself thinking about it again. It managed to distract me for a few weeks in the end. The blame must be placed entirely with Gail Carriger and her amazing Parasol Protectorate series. I have no affinity for steampunk, but I freaking love her books. The writing and the characters are all top notch. Anyway, I always thought The Antiquarian would make for an entertaining story and therefore had the potential to do mildly well in the market. Since I'd been letting GOFL stew between drafts at the time, I decided to take a crack at doing some research and possibly writing a prose version of the story.

Images include: a map of Venice, the Bridge of Sighs, a gondola, buildings on a canal, Lieutenant in the First West India Regiment, 1881 poster for the second premier of Aida in Venice, interior illustration of La Fenice opera house, Baedeker's travel guide to Northern Italy

To start off my epic search through history, I re-watched Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes and then hopped on over to Gail's blog where I read her post on writing about the Victorian Era. I knew The Antiquarian story began in Venice in 1881, so I used this date as a starting off point and dove in from there.

With Google holding my hand almost the entire way, I was astounded by the amount of information I was able to find. I found everything from old photos and maps of Venice, to travel guides written for English tourists, detailing the city and its many landmarks. With a place like Venice, a city that hasn't changed all that much in the past 130 years, Google Earth even helped me get a 3D view of the canals and Piazza de San Marco. Using all this collected information, I was able to pinpoint the hotel where my characters stayed, the places they visited and even which opera they saw at La Fenice opera house. Borrowed CDs allowed me to sample some Aida by Giuseppe Verdi. That's right folks, I listened to OPERA. Hell, for the one character, I was able to decide on everything from his regiment in the army and where they were based to what kind of cigarettes he smoked. 

For all of those professional history buffs out there who are cringing at my reliance on the internet for my research, I would like to point out that the vast majority of my sources were primary ones in the form of free ebooks found via the Google E-bookstore. I did also buy a photo book on Venice, as well as What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew by Daniel Pool, a basic guide to Nineteenth Century England. 

At the end of the day, I've always known The Antiquarian is a paranormal-historical story, so I have a little leeway with the historical accuracy. But once I dove into all that research, the thrill of discovering all these little details about bygone days just pulled me deeper and deeper into the world. 

Do I still have a lot more to learn before I can accurately write about an Englishman in 1880s Venice? Yes. 

Did I have way too much doing research for something I wasn't even being graded on? Hell yes.