Trying to keep my timeline straight in Marlowe and Kyd land.
For the first time in my whole life, I am making a spreadsheet. I am old, guys. I have never done this before.
At this point I have read like 20 non-fics about the people and the historical context, (and religion, and wealth, and spy-sneaks, and dungeons, and theater stuff.)
I have found that looking up Shakespeare makes it easier. There are more S-centric books out there. He may or may not come into my story, but learning about him helps. He and Marlowe were exactly the same age, came from similar families too. (Dad S made gloves, Dad M made boots. Both ran shops out of home. both had big piles of leather lying everywhere and awls and toxic goop for improving leather. both families had little ones not live to grow up, but the fact that kids survived speaks to the awesome power of their baby-proofing.)
Marlowe went to college on scholarship, Shakespeare did not.(Neither did Kyd, who was a little older than the other two.) But still, I figure, the words, the sights, sounds, clothes, frustrations, all quite similar. They even went on to live in the same part of town, at the same time. They were like two bridge and tunnel commuters, working in Manhattan. Even in different office buildings, the experience carries.
Of course I realize that there are dangers in taking it too far. S was married. M was not. M had training in religion and much more Latin, and also Greek.
So, in short, this is fun.
For the first time in my whole life, I am making a spreadsheet. I am old, guys. I have never done this before.
At this point I have read like 20 non-fics about the people and the historical context, (and religion, and wealth, and spy-sneaks, and dungeons, and theater stuff.)
I have found that looking up Shakespeare makes it easier. There are more S-centric books out there. He may or may not come into my story, but learning about him helps. He and Marlowe were exactly the same age, came from similar families too. (Dad S made gloves, Dad M made boots. Both ran shops out of home. both had big piles of leather lying everywhere and awls and toxic goop for improving leather. both families had little ones not live to grow up, but the fact that kids survived speaks to the awesome power of their baby-proofing.)
Marlowe went to college on scholarship, Shakespeare did not.(Neither did Kyd, who was a little older than the other two.) But still, I figure, the words, the sights, sounds, clothes, frustrations, all quite similar. They even went on to live in the same part of town, at the same time. They were like two bridge and tunnel commuters, working in Manhattan. Even in different office buildings, the experience carries.
Of course I realize that there are dangers in taking it too far. S was married. M was not. M had training in religion and much more Latin, and also Greek.
So, in short, this is fun.
Profile
eglantine_br- eglantine_br
Comments
Right now I am just coming up to the post Hog lane arrest. And this makes a nice bracket with poor Kyd's time in Bridewell, later. (At least that is my plan-- they may go galloping off to some yet unknown direction.
I'm looking forward to doing some vicarious learning here. I know very little about this period, but I'm sure I'll absorb some of your learning by osmosis by reading your fics :)
I have timelines for about 6 people, who all lived and died and went to jail, and got educated, and wrote things at slightly different times.
One very nice thing though... I was looking up Scadbury, the estate of the Walsingham family. Francis W was, as I understand it, sort of like Elizabeth 1's Dick Cheney. He was wealthy and subtle, and sneaky and smart, and willing to get very dirty to protect her interests. He ran spies. (Probably including our hero.)
And he had a nephew Thomas, (another Thomas,) who may have been Marlowes lover for a while.
So this Scadbury still exists, as a preserve of some sort, and it is the home range of the delightfully named Great Crested Newt. Look him up, he is glorious!
Sadly I have never seen one. A great crested newt that is. I don't think you get them in Scotland. Dragons on the other hand...
I am determined-- but scared too. I have come to love them. And they were real, (not fiction real, but really-real. they loved, and walked around, and in the end they suffered and died. They all seem to have had pretty unpleasant deaths, and by our standards very young.) I know that I am inventing, but I want to do it with respect.)
Dave