Have I told you I’m a genealogist? I am.
I absolutely love digging up dirt on all my relatives–the dead ones, anyway. (Who doesn’t love gossip, especially family gossip? Sadly, I think this tendency contributed to my wasted career in journalism…)
When I do my research, I want to know my ancestor’s stories more than I care about names and dates. Those things are important, of course, but I’d rather hear how someone did in school than know the dates they attended. It’s people’s actions and exploits which make them interesting.
My great-grandpa, for example, spent time in Leavenworth (a prison so infamous, I didn’t have to say “Leavenworth Penitentiary,” eh?).
He ran moonshine.
He was alerted when the revenuers were in the area and warned not to speak to them. But when the men in suits knocked on the front door, he offered to sell them some white lightning.
And then they took him away.
Here’s Your Prompt: Create a character using tales from your family history. If nothing seems “big” enough (surely, there must be at least one interesting character in your family…?) then combine the exploits of two or more to make composite. If you don’t know any stories, dig through some family papers that might be stashed somewhere. Call up an older relative who might have something to share. Go to your local library (or use a service on line) to find some archives of newspapers from the area of where your family is from. Try Google.
If all else fails: borrow someone else’s family history. There’s plenty enough to share.
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