Today in the United States it's Martin Luther King, Jr. day, a holiday set aside to honor the famous civil rights leader. We've just left behind Christmas and New Year's; coming up in February is Valentine's Day, President's Day, and African American history month (not to mention my birthday). These annual commemorations frame the seasons, remind us of the past, and create new memories in the present, which is just as true in fiction as it is in reality.
I wrote previously about the importance of calendars in Jane Austen's works (shameless plug and link for that post here). It was equally necessary for me to understand the passage of time when crafting Estancia Aldea Norteña.
First, I had to constantly remind myself that seasons are flipped in the southern hemisphere: summer is cold, and winter is hot. I found myself falling into the trap of describing the weather as getting warmer rather than cooler as the novel progressed. February was a challenge since all my lived experience of that month is cold and dreary rather than balmy.
Next, I knew about the cross cultural holy days: Christmas or Natividad, Epiphany/Epifanía, and Easter (Pascua). While there are certainly differences in the Spanish speaking world, like gifts being given by the wise men, there's also a common Christian heritage to provide context. Even though Carnival season isn't as big in the English world, New Orleans has ensured that Americans at least understand the basic trappings of Mardi Gras and Lent. So far, so good.
However, I realized early in my editing process that I completely goofed the school schedule. Again, the southern hemisphere was a challenge since I kept mixing up fall and spring, and had to research when a university student like Catalina's brother would actually begin and end classes. Turns out these dates were not consistent as there have been substantial education reforms during the '90s and '00s. I ended up creating a whole spreadsheet to figure out when each main character began what grade. Thanks goes to the reference section of the "Education in Argentina" Wikipedia page, as well as this website about Argentine culture and an article called "Secondary Education in Argentina during the 1990s" (ResearchGate).
My research also revealed two holidays that conveniently fell very close to Easter in 2008, the year Estancia is set: Memorial Day and Veterans Day. Unlike in the US, only Veterans Day honors the military in Argentina. Memorial Day is actually a fairly new event declared in 2006, when laws associated with the end of Argentina's Dirty War of the 1970s and '80s were repealed. You can read more about the history online (the Spanish Academy has a good overview). This Day of Remembrance for Truth and Justice is a painful reminder of past crimes, a tragic rather than victorious anniversary. Argentina is not alone in recalling a regrettable past or establishing new traditions to learn lessons from it (both Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. day and Juneteenth come to mind in the United States).
To end on a lighter note, one beta reader observed in my very rough first draft commented: "This is fortuitous - Catherine becomes less of a tomboy at 15, just in time for Catalina's Q!" To quote Merriam-Webster, a quinceañera is "a celebration of a girl's fifteenth birthday that is traditionally observed in Latin American cultures to mark her transition to adulthood." I hadn't quite realized how appropriate the timing was until I read this comment, since Jane Austen described Catherine Morland undergoing a similar if less celebratory transition:
At fifteen, appearances were mending; she began to curl her hair and long for balls; her complexion improved, her features were softened by plumpness and colour, her eyes gained more animation, and her figure more consequence. Her love of dirt gave way to an inclination for finery, and she grew clean as she grew smart; she had now the pleasure of sometimes hearing her father and mother remark on her personal improvement. “Catherine grows quite a good-looking girl—she is almost pretty today,” were words which caught her ears now and then; and how welcome were the sounds! To look almost pretty is an acquisition of higher delight to a girl who has been looking plain the first fifteen years of her life than a beauty from her cradle can ever receive.
This same reader let me know she was surprised by how well Northanger Abbey translated to Argentina, and while there were certain changes required, I also found it amazing how many things seemed to fit so well: the build up to Easter is the same, as is the town versus country disparity, and even age milestones all fit together. For all our wonderful diversity, humanity also shares many traits in common, allowing a Southern American like me to find inspiration in both South American and Georgian England. I hope you, as the reader, also find new ideas to enjoy, explore, and celebrate as the novel continues.
