WHAT'S HAPPENING IN MY WRITING WORLD

Between my own bouts of 'flu and the families ills and chills I've been making slow headway through various projects.

I'm wanting to e-publish a collection of my historical short stories and I've gathered together seven stories so far. Most of them have needed tweaking, rearranging and in some cases extending. They were all written for competitions with word limits so I'm enjoying the freedom of having that restraint removed.

Some were written a couple of years ago and it's good to see that my writing has improved since then, even though that means more work in rewriting. But it's not just the writing I'm looking at. The story I'm working on at the moment, for example, needed some words and historical facts checked.

The Shacklock orion coal range. 

Set in the time of our one and only bush-ranger - Henry Garrett - it features what is probably his most famous misdemeanor. The robbery of 15 men at the foot of the Maungatua mountains, with unloaded pistols. He was a gentleman you see! Checking a few facts I realised that although the sticking-up took place in 1861, I had eluded to Shacklock's wonderful new coal ranges which  were not produced until 1873!  Here's a photo of one. I would simply love to have one in my own kitchen.











And somehow those majestic horses with the feathered feet became Drysdales. I've now renamed them correctly as Clydesdales.

I'm halfway through this project and have decided to put off the whole technical task of formatting and horrible tax things until I'm finished. By then it should be summer and hubby will be on holiday with a little more time to advise me. Hubbies are very useful, aren't they?

On the novel writing front, I've left poor Amelia standing in the doorway of the Crown Hotel's dining room, staring at Mr Theodore Brennan. Poor girl has been there for a week or two - I hope her muscles haven't atrophied. I'm having trouble with her. I just can't seem to bring out her best side and stifle her rather selfish behaviour. She really is a lovely girl and deserves much better treatment from me.

I think I need to leave her there and jump forward in the story. Write lots of scenes where you can't help but like her and feel a little sorry for her predicaments. Hopefully I'll then be able to go back and salvage the mess I've left her in.

And on a final note: NaNoWriMo is fast approaching and I think I'm going to give it another go this year. More on that later.

Enjoy the weekend!

THE MAUNGATUA STICKING-UPS

As promised, here are the details surrounding the first 'sticking-ups' in Otago.

Dunedin, prior to the discovery of gold at Gabriel's Gully in 1861, was a quiet little village with an almost total lack of crime. The one small gaol was used primarily for the incarceration of runaway sailors and the Gaoler, Mr Johnny Barr, often released his prisoners for the day with strict instructions to return before nightfall or they would be locked out!  It would seem that the prisoners were obedient.

Along came the advent of gold and the sleepy village became a seething mass of newly arrived diggers from Victoria, California and further afield. Although most of the miners were hardworking, honest men, there came with them a criminal element.

One such criminal stands out: Henry Beresford Garrett. A tall, strong man who was reportedly good natured and humorous. Transported from England to Norfolk Island in his youth, he went on to lead a life divided between spells in prison and outlaw pursuits. A more in depth look at this man's fascinating life can be found in THE FIRST NEW ZEALAND BUSHRANGER by David McGill. I haven't read this book as yet, but it promises to be a good read.

The very first 'sticking-up', which has been attributed to Garrett or one of his gang, occurred on the track between Gabriel's and Tokomairiro. The robber, with blackened face and pistol, relieved his victim of 3 pound.

It is the second 'sticking-up' which has caught my imagination and provided fodder for a short story. This  robbery was executed on a much larger scale with Garrett's gang of seven men.

The trail from Gabriel's came through the township of Waipori, crossed the shoulder of Maungatua (almost 3000ft high) and dropped down through bush to the Taieri Plains and on to Dunedin. On a lonely spot on Maungatua, near Woodside, Garrett's men laid a daring plan.

At the bottom of a gully, by a creek surrounded in trees, they accosted passing travelers. Holding them at gun point, they robbed them, then tied them up. By the end of the day, the victims numbered fifteen and the gang had amassed four hundred pounds in stolen cash and gold.

The good natured Garrett cheered the prisoners as the day wore on, lighting their pipes, holding cups of tea to their lips and imparting nips of gin. Toward evening he told them he was leaving, but would send someone along soon to release them. His parting gift was to wrap them up warmly with tents and blankets, before the gang mounted their horses and galloped away.

Only two men were ever brought to trial for this crime. A Mr Anderson who was nabbed from a local hotel and Garrett himself who was caught in Sydney and shipped back to Dunedin where he was imprisoned.

But for me the most interesting and humorous event of the day is the large shipment of gold that escaped Garrett's gang.

Sixteen year old George Calder from the North East Valley quarry, in Dunedin, was transporting 200 ounces of gold in the back of a dray, when he came across two of Garrett's men. Posted at the head of what is now called 'Sticking-up Gully', these men were charged with advising travelers to take the short cut down to where the gang lay in wait. Ascertaining that the track was too steep for Master Calder's dray, they offered him a drink of water and sent him, and 800 Pounds worth of gold, on his way!