Stalemate in My Story

There is a stalemate in the book I am writing. Whether to hire two carriages to take the families with the brides and grooms, or let the two couples go by stage.

In the South, mixed marriages have only recently been accepted. But in my book, I have two couples who will be marrying, and they will both be mixed couples. The book is set in 1804. In fact, at that time, it was against the law for a white person to marry a person of color. They will have to go north to marry.

The families want to be present for this occasion, but there will be too many for a stage. The parents have important jobs in the community. One is a store owner, another an apothecary, and the other a midwife. It would take them away from home for about two or three weeks. Travel was very slow at that time. About 20 miles a day would be all you could do at best. You have to consider Indians, robbers, mud, rain, snow, and stagecoach problems.

So after much consulting with Lynn Coleman, who is a genius on travel, I have decided the two couples will chaperon each other and go by stage. It will take longer, but it will leave the most important people of the community at home.

Now that it is decided for me, I can go on with the story. I appreciate all the comments Lynn made to help me through this. It is wonderful to have good writing friends.