I need help from those living in Eureka (Long Beach, Arcata: houses, buying)

[LauraRiddle]

Hello all, and especially those living in Eureka. I am in desperate need of your help!
I live in SoCal and go to school in Long Beach. I am also working on my first novel that I plan to actually publish, and it is going to be set in Eureka, California and the redwood forest nearby. I do not have the time nor the money to get myself up there and explore the place and interview locals, so I need your help!
I would love it if those who like/dislike Eureka can describe to me what it's usually like in the morning, afternoon, and night. Is it very noisy there? Do you have any interesting stories when going to school? How is Eureka High School built? Is it an indoor or outdoor school? What have been your experiences in the redwoods? Pictures are always a plus, but if you can't, that's fine too.
Thank you so, so, so much for those who help. When I've finished up and write my "Special Thanks" list, you will be on it! (or if don't want to, just let me know).
Thank you!

[iTsLiKeAnEgG]

How can you write a novel that describes a place about which you have no idea? Might as well write about the Amazon forest or some random village on the outskirts of Mexico. You'll get just about the same level of realism as you would writing about Eureka. It hard to capture a communities overall feeling and individual demeanor from someone else recollection. Go on a road trip and explore the place! It's a beautiful drive (I went down there a month ago from SF for kicks) and an interesting place to visit if you're used to big city life.

[nmnita]

I know writing a novel can be challenging but fun and I wish you luck. I would have to echo what the responder had to say, there is no way you can write a book without seeing the place you are writing about. If you have studied anything about writing which I think you have, you would know, the first requirement, write about what you know..

I could tell you a few things like, the highschool is a basic older building built many years ago and is the old style enclosed facility..Crab, during season is caught fresh daily and sold on the water front for about 1/2 or less what you would pay anywhere else. A beaufitul drive in the winter is along highway 1, you can view the snow covered hills to your left (if you are driving south) and the beautiful ocean to your right.

The beutiful victorian houses with their bright colored paint line the streets in the city proper..

Even what I have just discribed will not help you, as you need to be there. Take a short trip, you used to be able to fly to Arcata from LA, spend just a few days, talk to a few people..YOu can not attempt to write a book without spending some money to do research..

With this said, I do with you luck. I could tell you a little more about Eureka if you PM but it is based on many years ago. We lived there in the 70s.

Nita

[Adriatica]

As the wife of a writer, I'd really suggest either A) visiting Eureka to see it first hand or B) writing about a locale that you are familiar with.

If you want people to bother reading/buying your book, you should really bother to know what you're writing about.

[TheDragonslayer]

The Eureka/Arcata airport is actually in McKinleyville. It used to be a turkey ranch till the government took it over for a fog dispersal system called FIDO. They poured diesel fuel in trench's on either side of the runway and the flames would disperse the fog. Highway 1 ends in Mendocino County, only 101 runs through the county in the North and south directions. You would have to visit Eureka to get its feel. 101 enters the town in the South as Broadway and that makes a turn onto 5th for the North bound traffic and 4th for the South bound. 101 resumes as a highway at the Eureka slough and remains a highway from there till Orick, about 35 or so miles. From my experience, it is slow before 8 am and off and on busy till about 6 pm and at night it sort of dies in most areas. Eureka is the largest town here at 28,000, but not enough to maintain a night life. The hills surrounding Eureka contain more than just redwoods. A flight from L A roundtrip to here is not too expensive and a drive up here is not too bad once you pass the S F bay area. If you do not want to make the trip, get some books about Eureka and read up about our area. I will say one thing though, trying to find something exciting about this area is difficult, it is really slow here and nothing much happens. Good luck with your writing.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by TheDragonslayer

The Eureka/Arcata airport is actually in McKinleyville. It used to be a turkey ranch till the government took it over for a fog dispersal system called FIDO. They poured diesel fuel in trench's on either side of the runway and the flames would disperse the fog. Highway 1 ends in Mendocino County, only 101 runs through the county in the North and south directions. You would have to visit Eureka to get its feel. 101 enters the town in the South as Broadway and that makes a turn onto 5th for the North bound traffic and 4th for the South bound. 101 resumes as a highway at the Eureka slough and remains a highway from there till Orick, about 35 or so miles. From my experience, it is slow before 8 am and off and on busy till about 6 pm and at night it sort of dies in most areas. Eureka is the largest town here at 28,000, but not enough to maintain a night life. The hills surrounding Eureka contain more than just redwoods. A flight from L A roundtrip to here is not too expensive and a drive up here is not too bad once you pass the S F bay area. If you do not want to make the trip, get some books about Eureka and read up about our area. I will say one thing though, trying to find something exciting about this area is difficult, it is really slow here and nothing much happens. Good luck with your writing.

My husband used to fly in and out weekly when he worked for a Timber company in Eureka, I did it a couple of times, I forgot it was not actually in Arcata...

Nita

[Steve97415]

Remember the first rule of writing: Write about what you know.
For a variety of reasons -- many of them involving potential litigation -- most writers invent fictitious names for smaller cities when setting a story in the current time frame or the recent past. There are creative reasons for doing this as well, particularly if you've never been to the locale in question. If the city in your story doesn't actually exist on the map, no one will begrudge the minor inaccuracies of the setting you've dreamed up. There are cases where writers really got the environment wrong (Snow Falling on Cedars comes to mind), but were still successful because they created a good story inhabited by interesting characters.
I would encourage you to thoroughly research the State of Jefferson and understand how it has created a context for what Eureka would evolve into. It would be difficult to imagine the jumble of different peoples and cultures around Humboldt Bay without spending quite a bit of time there. It would be easy to stereotype Eureka as a pot-growing mecca or a haven for West Coast hillbillies, but that would be two-dimensional and inaccurate; Eureka is quite heterogeneous. This thread offers some insights to get you started. The posts by thomasw98 and Shadowplay should be particularly helpful to you. http://www.city-data.com/forum/calif...-eureka-4.html

[LauraRiddle]

Thank you everyone for your help. I am looking for books on the area as well as using the internet to find personal experiences. I may end up going up there next summer, since I am saving money to see an old friend in France for a couple of weeks. Also, I am going to school full time (14-16 units a semester) and I work about 20-25 hours, and the way it's been going, I'm going to school four days a week and to work for the last three. So right now, I'm just getting the story down and trying to be as accurate as possible now. I've found a lot of pictures and my mom's been up to the redwoods before, so I really do want to go, I just can't right now. This is why I usually stick to worldbuilding, because it's just easier for me to research different cultures and countries and create everything with my own rules, but I want to challenge myself and do something in the real world and in a place that I'm not familiar with, so in order for me to write about it, I must learn more about that place. Which is why I'm doing all this research in the first place! >< Also, I'd figure more people would be more open about living in Eureka on the internet than me just going up to someone and ask them point blank how they enjoy living in Eureka. I also would like to explore the school, but I'm not sure if the officials would let me. -_- Which I wouldn't particularly blame them...
But yes, looking back, maybe I should have explained my situation and how I wouldn't be able to make it to Eureka this year, so I'm doing what research I can to help me write my story now. I know I wouldn't do it justice if I didn't visit the city at least once, but I need to write the story now before I forget about it!
@ TheDragonSlayer
Your post is of enormous help to me! Thank you so very much!
@Steve
Yeah, those posts were a great help! Thank you!

[LauraRiddle]

Originally Posted by Steve97415

Remember the first rule of writing: Write about what you know.
For a variety of reasons -- many of them involving potential litigation -- most writers invent fictitious names for smaller cities when setting a story in the current time frame or the recent past. There are creative reasons for doing this as well, particularly if you've never been to the locale in question. If the city in your story doesn't actually exist on the map, no one will begrudge the minor inaccuracies of the setting you've dreamed up. There are cases where writers really got the environment wrong (Snow Falling on Cedars comes to mind), but were still successful because they created a good story inhabited by interesting characters.

Hmm...that is a good idea. It's like Gotham City! Similar yet not the same...
I really do like the idea, but I'm still going to do research on the area so I'm not totally off-kilter. Thanks!

[LauraRiddle]

@Nita
Oops! Forgot to put you in. Thank you for your descriptions too! Unfortunately, my story is set in present day, but if I do need information during that period of time, I'll pm you.