nyxelestia | What Have I Gotten Myself Into? (Need some help, my dear F-List!)

I recently started writing the prologue for my

paperlegends fic. I'm not even halfway done and it's already touching up to 5,000 words. I don't think I'll have any trouble making the 30,000 minimum word requirement (the question is whether or not I can freaking finish it on time). On the bright side, I can definitely say I'm already 1/6 done with my Merlin bigbang fic.

It's a modern!AU, with Prince of Wales!Arthur and PM's son!Merlin. Prologue takes place just after Hunith has become Prime Minister, when the boys are about 10-11 years old. So much fun to write! ^+^ That said, this is a lot of heavy British culture and politics and I'm an American. You can see the difficulties that lie ahead. :|

Any of you Brits (or anyone else very familiar with British politics and culture) out there willing to put up with me incessantly asking questions about the most inane things (i.e. tea, food, drinks, schools, ect.) for the sake of accuracy? Anyone feeling like getting barraged by an annoying and frizzled out me?

Please and thank you!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Ask away!

I will!

...right now, actually. o.O I don't suppose you know any places where the really really rich and really really famous might hold banquets and parties and things? (Like, say, if Uther were throwing a banquet for Hunith to try and cement King-PM relations?) One with a lot of gardens and/or spaces for ten year old boys to get in a fist-fight within the sight of a few dozen eyewitnesses/reporters? :) I've currently just picked the Dorchester hotel after Googling "luxury hotels in London" and clicking the first one that offered event hosting.

If it's King Uther then they are likely to have it at Buckingham Palace. Security is already in place, having these things at hotels is more work. Big gardens!

Or Windsor Castle with even more gardens!

Both would have a lots of gardeners.

Also popular are state lunches or dinners, less people, as might occur between the PM and the Queen now.

Hope this helps?

It does, actually.

I seem to be getting mixed messages about just how close the Queen and PM(s) are, or are supposed to be, in Britain. And considering the sheer-AU-ness of my fic, a lot of that might change. My first/handwritten draft of the fic actually had it at Buckingham Palace, but then I read a lot of stuff about how the Royalty is supposed to be all Distant and Things, so I thought that might be overstepping it. But if Buckingham or Windsor (in this case Pendragon/Camelot/something-more-canony?) Palace works, then I'd love to put that back in.

Thank you! :D

*waves* I'll help if I can too - culture more than politics, though I do have two friends that might be able to help out there (my housemate, a history/politics nerd and her boyfriend, a military/politics nerd) so I've got them as well :)
Shout if you need anything :D That story sounds epic, by the way.
H

Awesome! Thank you.

...okay, I actually already have a question:

Am I safe in assuming that if it's to go retrieve the Prince of Wales and the Prime Minister's son, and that once finding their location it's a bit remote and their captors are still in close proximity, the SAS could/would be deployed?

The reply I got from my militarily knowledgeable friend is this:
SAS with possible SBS depending if naval landing rescue is apropriate special air and special boat service respectively. Probably with RAF helicopter extraction team and army medical corps waiting on standby with liasons from m15/mi6 and royal protection team of the Metropolitan police at the initial briefing of the resuce team.
I hope that helps!
H

Yes, it does, very much so. :D Thank you!

Alas, being an American as well, I'm not the person to ask, but I still have to say: Prime Minister Hunith? Best. Idea. Ever. You are awesome! *dances*

^+^

I had pondered having Balinor as PM, but the feminist in me won out. :P

I'm not even halfway done and it's already touching up to 5,000 words. I don't think I'll have any trouble making the 30,000 minimum word requirement (the question is whether or not I can freaking finish it on time).

Ha! This is kind of where I stand right now. Um, about 10K in, and oh, like, 1/10th of the way through my plot.

Crap.

We long BBers shall have to cheer each other on!!!!

*cheers* We will be epic together!

I can act as back-up!

♥ I'll be sure to start bothering you with questions immediately.

...actually, I will. \o/

I don't suppose you know any places where the really really rich and really really famous might hold banquets and parties and things? (Like, say, if Uther were throwing a banquet for Hunith to try and cement King-PM relations?) One with a lot of gardens and/or spaces for ten year old boys to get in a fist-fight within the sight of a few dozen eyewitnesses/reporters? :) I've currently just picked the Dorchester hotel after Googling "luxury hotels in London" and clicking the first one that offered event hosting.

OK, my initial thought would be that the King wouldn't hold a function at a public venue. Buckingham Palace is in London and has gardens. There are parties held there for special serving members of the public - my friends' grandfather once went there for a garden party when he was mayor of our town.

Just outside of London is Windsor Castle, and in Norfolk (a couple of hours from London) is Sandringham House. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandringham_House

If you're set on a public hotel, I'll have a think.

I'm not, not by a longshot - my original draft had it set at Buckingham palace! But then I started getting mixed messages about just how close/distant the monarch and the PM are, and are supposed to be, so I thought a public venue might be more plausible. But you and someone else both said palaces could work, so I'm totally putting it back at Buckingham, or moving it to Windsor (or Camelot, if Windsor palace, as the same suggests, is more closely related to the current royal family rather than British royalty in general as Buckingham palace's name suggests...?)

I think you could use any of them. Given this is your fiction, I think you can plausibly determine with your story the closeness of the monarchy and the PM, regardless of the current RL situation.

I know, but I would like to be a realistic as possible. :)

What Have I Gotten Myself Into? (Need some help, my dear F-List!)

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