The immortal words of Louisa May Alcott (or Amy March, to be precise) ring true for most women - hence bobby pins, curling irons, corsets (!), and high-heels. Most of them look a lot like torture devices to me. But torture or not, fashion has always played an interesting role in society and, of course, in literature as well. It is one of the things that can be used to distinguish the various cultures of a fantasy world, while in historical fiction it creates an authentic atmosphere.A few days ago Rachel posted about the styles she has been creating for her novel The Scarlet-Gypsy Song, and as it seemed to me like a good idea, I thought I would follow suit. Pun rather intended. So without further ado, here is a glimpse of the fashion in my most recently completed and my in-progress novels.
wordcrafter
Justin isn't exactly a fashionable sort of fellow; he is comfortable in his blue jeans and sweatshirts, and suits are agony for him. In Tera, however, the styles are quite different. Ethan's people are horse-centered and the men tend to spend much of the day on horseback, so their clothing has been adapted to that purpose. The tunics are of light fabric to allow for easy movement, and the sleeves can be bound back if necessary in order to give the wearer fuller use of his hands; sashes are worn around the waist, tied to the left if the wearer is still a boy, to the right if they have reached manhood. Breeches are padded along the inner leg for comfort while riding (the Horsemen use neither saddles nor blankets), and they are tied about halfway down the calf, above the wearer's boots.
As for the women, the only thing about their clothing that really strikes Justin on his arrival in Tera is the veils. Every girl past the age of ten covers the lower half of her face, and only her father and eventually her husband is allowed to see behind it. All colors except white are acceptable for unmarried women; white is worn by the married women alone, setting them apart.
As for the women, the only thing about their clothing that really strikes Justin on his arrival in Tera is the veils. Every girl past the age of ten covers the lower half of her face, and only her father and eventually her husband is allowed to see behind it. All colors except white are acceptable for unmarried women; white is worn by the married women alone, setting them apart.
the white sail's shaking
And with this we go from fantasy to historical fiction. I must admit that the fashion here is much simpler than it was in Wordcrafter: all but one of the characters wear uniforms. Even here, though, one can add spice. The distinctions between ranks was reflected in the amount of trim and the number - and position - of epaulets on the uniform. Midshipman, for instance, were fairly plain with blue cloth and gold buttons, although in the American Navy they managed to get gold trim on their hats as well (as far as I can tell, the Royal Navy was much duller and didn't allow their midshipman such frivolities). Lieutenants had a single epaulet on the left shoulder, although if they were commanding a ship, they switched it to the right - this would have been the case with Stephen Decatur during his command of the Enterprize. Captains got the distinction of having two epaulets and a lot more gold banding on their uniforms. (Sailing masters didn't get any gold at all - poor them.)
All this is pretty generic, but I doubt that men would have dressed in exactly the same manner simply because they were peers. Tip Brighton and Charlie Bent are both midshipmen, but Charlie, being by far the more refined of the two, has much more "frill" to his outfit; Tip is just a backwoods young man from a none-too-wealthy family, uncomfortable enough in his uniform itself without adding decorations to it.
So there you have the styles in Wordcrafter and The White Sail's Shaking. Naturally it is possible to overdo in this area; but then, it's possible to overdo in any area. You can always go too far and burden the reader with unnecessary and unwanted details, and you can also show the reader nothing and thereby rob them of the ability to experience that element of the story. A good thing to do, therefore, is to create as you write (or before you write, depending on how you like to plan) and let your imagination run, and then later you can edit the descriptions as you like: move them, space them out, polish them, or even delete them if you find you no longer want or need them.
All this is pretty generic, but I doubt that men would have dressed in exactly the same manner simply because they were peers. Tip Brighton and Charlie Bent are both midshipmen, but Charlie, being by far the more refined of the two, has much more "frill" to his outfit; Tip is just a backwoods young man from a none-too-wealthy family, uncomfortable enough in his uniform itself without adding decorations to it.
So there you have the styles in Wordcrafter and The White Sail's Shaking. Naturally it is possible to overdo in this area; but then, it's possible to overdo in any area. You can always go too far and burden the reader with unnecessary and unwanted details, and you can also show the reader nothing and thereby rob them of the ability to experience that element of the story. A good thing to do, therefore, is to create as you write (or before you write, depending on how you like to plan) and let your imagination run, and then later you can edit the descriptions as you like: move them, space them out, polish them, or even delete them if you find you no longer want or need them.
don't forget to enter the new year contest!
