Hi :) First post here, so apologies if my format's a bit unusual.
For a story I'm writing, the protagonist, an archaeologist (an actual archaeologist, not a tomb-robbing antiquarian- no Heinrich Schliemann here), is undertaking an (unsponsored) expedition into an area similar to Mezoamerica to look for lost cities, on the behalf of a British Empire-esque state (for the moment called Albion; I might change it later). This is a Miyazaki-esque steam/dieselpunk setting (think Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind), so amongst other things the protagonist must maintain the upkeep of the zeppelin he owns for the purposes of the expedition, which will be undertaken by air until they reach the likely area according to his maps, whereupon they will embark upon foot to search the jungle.
I'm wondering at the moment what sort of roles he would need amongst his hirelings- I'm trying to be as realistic as possible here. The Lord Carnarvon-equivalent sponsor would be absent, as the protagonist is acting as his own sponsor. So far, I have;
- Airship crew (already flashed-out, no problem); protag (captain), cook-soldier, engineer, navigator, helmsman. All fine.
- Artist/Photographer? I can't think which would be more suitable for the time period, in scientific circles; a sketch by a good artist might be clearer than a black and white camera of the period- I'm no expert. You are XD
My question (sorry for rambling rant) is whether the above role is suitable, and which other roles would be expected. Any questions that you have, I shall be happy to answer.
Thanks! : )
Hi there - we're happy to approve your question related to your creative project, and we are happy for people to answer. However, we should warn you that many flairs have become reluctant to answer questions for aspiring novelists and the like, based on past experience: some people working on creative projects have a tendency to try to pump historians for trivia while ignoring the bigger points they were making, while others have a tendency to argue with historians when the historical reality does not line up with what's needed for a particular scene or characterization. Please respect the answers of people who have generously given you their time, even if it's not always what you want to hear.
Additionally, as amazing as our flair panel is, we should also point out that /r/AskHistorians is not a professional historical consultation service. If you're asking a question here because you need vital research for a future commercial product such as a historical novel, you may be better off engaging a historical consultant at a fair hourly rate to answer these questions for you. We don't know what the going rate for consultancy work would be in your locality, but it may be worth looking into that if you have in-depth or highly plot-reliant questions for this project. Some /r/AskHistorians flairs could be receptive to working as a consultant in this way. However, if you wish for a flair here to do this work for you, you will need to organize this with them yourselves.
For more general advice about doing research to inform a creative project, please check out our Monday Methods post on the subject.