Ideas for writing come from all kinds of
places. My Buffalo Soldier historical series grew out of a combination of
inspirations. One day, I was sitting at
my computer, surfing the Internet, and I came across a site about the Buffalo
Soldiers of the 9th and 10th US Cavalry on the western
frontier, and I realized that not many Americans know a lot about the colorful
history of these African-American soldiers and the role they played in the
westward expansion of the country.
The germ of an idea was planted. What if I did a series of short stories (more
like novelettes actually) that introduced them to readers? The more I thought about it the more it
excited me. Several years ago, when I
lived in North Carolina, I was a writer and artist for a short-lived magazine, Buffalo that was based in California. I had a regular cartoon feature, did a few
historical articles, and did the illustrations for several of the magazine’s
covers.
So, I already had a bit of grounding in the subject;
it was just a matter of how to kick it off.
I decided to center it on a few fictional characters, with the main
character, Sergeant Benjamin Franklin Carter, and show the kinds of activities
they were engaged in. While I strive to
make it historically accurate, I try to avoid long lectures on history. Instead, I insert the historical facts and
incidents in through the characters’ dialogue, or short descriptive passages to
establish context. My main objective is
to tell an interesting story that will keep the reader turning the page.
I can’t be sure I've succeeded. Reader feedback has been limited, but what
has been received is encouraging. There
is, for instance, this review of the latest in the series, Buffalo Soldier: Incident at
Cactus Junction that a reader posted on Amazon:
Charles Ray does a great job setting the stage for a slightly
different classic western tale involving the "Buffalo Soldiers" of
yore. The story follows Sgt. Ben Carter and the soldiers he commands on a
mission to the sleepy town of Cactus Junction which needs help with finding out
who is rustling the local rancher's cattle. The townsfolk are surprised to see
black men in uniform and are at first reluctant to accept them or work with
them. However as Ben and his men take on the task of finding the missing cattle
- and the tough men who took them - the town soon warms to the Buffalo
Soldiers. The story was put together well with great characters and
descriptions. Although the plot is simple and the story straightforward, it
should satisfy those readers who, like me, enjoy the old American west tales of
adventure and action. If you're a western fan you'll enjoy this one.
This California reader gave the book four out of
five stars, which I take as high praise indeed.
My friend, Zimbabwean author Virginia Phiri (Highway Queen), who has read and reviewed a number of my books,
also commended the series, describing them as ‘good writing, and good reading.’
I use a lot of my own military background, as well
as my childhood in Texas during the 50s and 60s, to establish the social,
cultural, and geographic setting, as well as trying to make the language used
by the characters as credible as possible.
None of the specific incidents in the stories are real, but they’re all
based on historical events of the era after the Civil War when America was
opening up the western frontier to settlement and development.
I do research on a continuing basis seeking new
story ideas, and to make sure that the equipment, tactics, and events have a ring
of credibility. For instance, during my
research, I discovered that the US Cavalrymen, contrary to what you might see
in the movies, didn't use repeating rifles during this period. They used the single shot Springfield because
the army viewed it as more reliable and durable than the new Winchester
repeaters, and it was cheaper. Even in
those days, the government was concerned about the bottom line. I also learned that white soldiers received
$24 dollars a month pay, and black soldiers $12 – which wasn't bad money in the
1870s when you consider that when I enlisted in 1962, my pay was $72 per month.
So, you see, ideas for your writing can come from
anywhere. You just have to open all the
doors and windows in your mind and let the light shine in.
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