outline for The book of Hatrack

The book starts with a prologue, perhaps 5 chapters, laying out the origins of Hatrack. It starts in the 1600s. I chose that time period not so much because I had any great interest in the 17th Century but because that time period was the hayday of piracy. So long as pirate ships avoided fortified towns and didn't show their true colours until they were certain of victory then it's easy to understand why these were heady times for pirates. That's quite an easy way to make a living if you can pick your battles. It's no wonder why so many men (and some women) chose that type of life.

I've toyed with the idea of Nfld being Hatrack, as they have a long and famous history of piracy.

Also Haiti ( Hispaneol) is an obvious alternative. Hispaneol is already in the book. It would be hard to write about about piracy in the Caribean without mentioning it.

I get stuck on how to get to Hatrack as it's cut off from the modern world and can't spend their vast wealth in treasure. I , of course though of the standard pirate curse BUT that is such an over- used ploy I decided against it...

Hatrack is basically my version of Halifax NS the way I would imagine it to be in the 17th Century. Although it hadn't been founded yet ( that didn't happen until the 18th C ) there were ships of all kinds, all along the eastern seaboard, and although there were no docks in place it would be easy for a ship to dock in Halifax Harbour and row a ships crew ashore. So, its not a big stretch of the imagination to imagine pirates in Halifax at that time.

I was interested to learn that pirate ships were very democratic places . They didn't need to much of an excuse to kill someone but the world itself at that time was a very cruel place. There were terrible working conditions for most people and no such things as workers rights. So the lure of piracy would be very strong . Also, the pirates crew would split their booty ( no I don't mean bum) fairly amongst the crew according to rank or station, the captain of course getting the lions share. But even the lowliest crew member, whether he be a cook , musician or cabin boy would get a share far more attractive, comparable to what he'd earn as a cook , musician or cabin boy on a merchant ship or the Royal Navy.

My book deals with modern times but the pirates are stuck in the mythical island of Hatrack. They have hoards of money but have the frustraion of not being able to spend any of their ill -gotten gains because there is no way out! So, their society is what I would term a post- piratic society. They are no longer pirates of course because they have no ships but in some ways they have kept their pirate ways. School of course would be very scary because mis-behaviour would be rewarded. It would be a tough job being a teacher. This post-piratic society would be dangerous in all kinds of different ways. There would be no gentlemanly way of settling a score. Duels would be a very common occurence in Hatrack. Also, things like job- safety would be regarded as a very sissy practice so don't expect job safety in Hatrack!!!

I've given a lot of thought about what kind of vehicles they would have in Hatrack. Or would they be still stuck in horse age? I always liked the idea of golf-carts being the main mode of transport.

Maybe , while its impossible to squeeze into Hatrack a full sized car they do have success getting a golf cart.