Today is the birthday of my partner-in-crime! And where I love fiction, he’s all about nonfiction and history. While I love learning on my own terms, he’s all about academia. In fact, he’s currently gearing up for a PhD on “social organizations,” which is a fancy way of saying “Freemasons,” which itself is a fancy way of saying secret societies!

Of course, by this point, I’ve heard him talk so much about Masons and other societies that I suspect there’s really not that much secret about them. In fact, in honor of the day, I’ve put together a list of Things To Know About Secret Societies:

  1. They do, in fact, have secret handshakes.
  2. They’re usually just an excuse for a bunch of guys to meet up for a steak dinner and cigars.
  3. They might tell you that they’re descended from ancient artisans or secretive knights . . .
  4. . . . But chances are good that they’re not.
  5. Like really, chances are incredibly good that they’re not.
  6. Just chalk up anything they tell you about “history” as myth, in fact.
  7. But do admire their fun architecture! Just because it’s not crazy old doesn’t mean it isn’t interesting.
  8. On that note, they often have physical meeting halls, which are almost always labeled right out in plain sight. 😉
  9. They have all the internal drama of high school cliques.
  10. Last but not least, a personal favorite of mine (a direct quote, no less!): “They can’t even organize a charity blood drive; there’s no way they’re organized enough to run a shadow government.”

I have to admit, I’ve often though of incorporating a secret society or two into my books, because a) the mystery of a potential conspiracy has mass appeal, and b) the actual human “logistics” of running a potential conspiracy has mass relatability. 😉

Happy birthday–you know who you are, out there watching this! 😀