Kilt wearing in Scotland

**ali8780** · 22nd March 09, 02:25 PM

Sounds like you do some farming, good for you.

I actually don't do any farming, but my Mother is a farmer's daughter, does that make up for it? I love your avatar, I just moved to Utah from Arizona (west Maricopa county) and I miss it terribly. Say "Hi" to the cacti for me!

**BroosterB1** · 22nd March 09, 02:26 PM

That really depends on when and where the story is set. Good creative thinking can always come up with something that will work, if it is important to the storyline. The main question is why the charater needs to be kilted, or what does the kilt bring to the story, besides being a kilt?

ith:

**ali8780** · 22nd March 09, 02:30 PM

Well, he's a Scottish farmer, and the story mainly takes place in Scotland. Actually, it's a huge undertaking for me to write about a place I have never been... Wish me luck!

But yeah, the kilt is relatively central to the plot, I could down play it a little, but really, he's going to have to wear it quite a lot.

**ChattanCat** · 22nd March 09, 02:32 PM

Originally Posted by ali8780

Duly noted. Don't worry, I'm not planning on doing any farm work in a kilt (or advising anyone else to either), I'm actually doing some research for a book I'm writing. I was just trying to figure out how plausible it would be to have my character wear a kilt on a daily basis and while doing light farm work.

I guess it depends on the era for the book. If they were sheep herders, in say 1600's or earlier, maybe so. Scotsman back then could use the great kilt as a garment during the day and an blanket at night. Kilt wearing 24/7!

**ali8780** · 22nd March 09, 02:38 PM

I guess it depends on the era for the book. If they were sheep herders, in say 1600's or earlier, maybe so. Scotsman back then could use the great kilt as a garment during the day and an blanket at night. Kilt wearing 24/7!

Haha! Yikes! I was hoping to fit the kilt-wearing into the current century, not the other way around. I can't begin to imagine the work involved with writing a period piece involving a foreign culture!

Thank goodness for fiction though, right? I just hope that all of Scotland will overlook the cultural snafu (assuming it gets published).

Sorry for all of the replies, I'm extremely bored today and can't seem to get off of my computer...

**BroosterB1** · 22nd March 09, 02:39 PM

The key here, is this is fiction. As such you are allowed to bend the rules of reality. To have your central character a kilted farmer in Scotland, sounds reasonable enough, despite the fact that few Scots wear kilts these days on a daily basis.

Actually, you could play that fact up, allowing for the differences in modern style. Depending on how you are portraying this character, this kind of riff on reality could provide motivation as well as a format to explain him more fully.

Cheers

ith:

**Bugbear** · 22nd March 09, 02:40 PM

Originally Posted by ali8780

I actually don't do any farming, but my Mother is a farmer's daughter, does that make up for it? I love your avatar, I just moved to Utah from Arizona (west Maricopa county) and I miss it terribly. Say "Hi" to the cacti for me!

Neat! I live in far east Maricopa county, in a pocket between AJ and Mesa.

Those giant indian fig cacti fell over from the rain earlier this year and now they have become about fifty cacti. Not that I didn't already have about a hundred of them in a hedge.

I will say hellow to them for you, but I won't give them a hug.

Good luck with your writing.

**ali8780** · 22nd March 09, 02:45 PM

Actually, you could play that fact up, allowing for the differences in modern style. Depending on how you are portraying this character, this kind of riff on reality could provide motivation as well as a format to explain him more fully.

I think that's what I will do in fact. It's just that there's a fine line between creative license and creating a scenario/character that people will take seriously (which I realize also depends heavily on the writer's ability). I just didn't want to come off like an ignorant American that fantasizes about an entirely kilted Scotland.

**BroosterB1** · 22nd March 09, 02:55 PM

As long as you don't write like an ignorant American. Looks to me that you are doing your research, and while you can't get everything down like a local, you can get many things right.

If you were to make the entire country a kilt wearing clan, then of course that would be outlandish. However, the main character has to have some dynamic that sets him apart, thats just good storytelling.

Cheers

ith: