Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers)

If I might borrow your eyes*

Never mind the allusions, (literary and psychological); today’s Post is simply me trying to hear my thoughts out in the world, as opposed to entirely inside my head. And writing a post is surprisingly close to the feeling of sitting around with friends having a non-outcome-oriented conversation. Funny thing this blogosphere.

As most of you know, I’ve started writing another serial story, ‘the Hobbomock Chronicles’. The plan is to post an Episode each week. Nothing unusual there.

I don’t, as of this moment, have a plot. While I’d love to be in a position to burst into the room, step to the table (that’s lit from hanging circular lamps), sweep the documents and map with little Monopoly-Figure ships carefully positioned here and there, off the table, boldly proclaiming, “Never mind that! Here is the Plan.” The lack of a clear story outline is not a matter of concern. Overly.

But, I’m thinking,  ha!

(the Wakefield Doctrine does a number of things very well. Mostly it offers a perspective on the world and the people who make it up. But it is also possessed of a genius for short-little sayings that encapsulate the way-deep understanding of human nature. To wit: clarks think, scotts act and rogers feel.

Damn! with that phrase alone, any of us could wade ashore at some metaphorical desert island and totally transform the society and culture isolated from civilization for its entire existence. And… and! maybe even get a date with Maryanne!)

…Where were we?

The Hobbomock Chronicles. If this writing project were claiming to be a simple story, I probably wouldn’t need to discuss it. I’d target a climax-conflict-resolution and write my way towards it. (yeah, kinda like these posts). What passes for my writing technique is to find characters in interesting situations and try to become their friends. When successful, its just a matter of writing down everything they tell me. What has me concerned is the multi-timeline thing that seems to be shaping up.

Primary story: (born, btw, of a real open house sitting in a real summer house on a rainy day at the shore) Our protagonist finds himself in 1965. The formerly un-occupied and semi-abandoned grand victorian home is alive with people spending a summer’s day enjoying the last remnants of a predictable and good-if-you’re-not-poor-or-disenfranchised world as the decade passes the halfway point. Simple enough, right?

Secondary story: a ship founders off the southern New England coastline and a single survivor lives to be found by a hunting party of Narragansetts. The year is 1630s(ish) and Roger Williams is just setting up his clarklike experiment, establishing a colony that is open to anyone. (Major challenge: names! Haven’t found a resource for what kinds of names did these guys had, back then. Real names, not conquered indigenous people’s names). Gots to find a source of life-among-the-incumbent-people**** Having a lot of trouble in this part. And, although I have no need to become an actual expert, or even well-informed writer, I do have a need to learn enough not to jar the narrative. You know, ‘Sachem Esposito’ or the children played soccer around the summer campfire.’

Tertiary story: you know, time-travel stories are not all that uncommon, in fact, they’re approaching trope status. But what I don’t seem to recall are stories that deal with the time from which the time traveler leaves. And besides, you all know that, since colonial New England was nothing if it wasn’t all, cursed-bloodlines, dark family secret passed down through the generations, heaven. So naturally the story of the ship-wrecked woman has to connect to the time-traveling real estate broker.

ya know?

Thanks for the listen. This has helped.

*ewww… surely Shakespeare considered how it sounded out-loud when he wrote ‘...countryman, lend me your ears.’ But it’s still not as awkward as my variation. Guess thats what the talent thing is all about.**

** this line:  Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill.   Damn! Why did it occur to him to use that semi-reverse order at this line…***

*** is this guy comparing himself to Shakespeare!?!? Jeez, what kind of blog is this? But, since you brought it up, how did the Bard avoid sounding like Yoda?

**** yeah, minor rogerian expression lol