The Weekend After

So, I used to think RWA was the loudest, the most crowded, the most emotional group experience there was. But that was before I saw 80,000 people screaming as fireworks went off, confetti flew, and history got made. It was truly amazing. I don't want to bore everyone here by prattling on about politics. I can only say I see now what drove women like the Duchess of Devonshire and the Countess of Bessborough (and Abigail Adams and Elizabeth Cady Stanton) to get out there and work so very hard. The idea that it's within our power to affect real change in our lives is wonderful stuff, especially since within the space of just two generations we have come so very far (when my grandmother was born in early 1920, women still had four months to go before they got the right to vote). No matter what happens in November, I saw great things happen this week, and I will always be grateful for that.

And now, I am exhausted and hoarse, running on little sleep and lots of strong tea! But I want to say happy 211th birthday to another extraordinary women, Mary Godwin Shelley. Mary Shelley was born August 30, 1797 to the philosophers and radicals Mary Wollstonecraft (who died in childbirth) and William Godwin. In 1814, she fell in love with one of her father's political acolytes, Percy Bysshe Shelley (who was married), and eloped with him to the Continent (along with her wild stepsister, Claire Clairmont). She didn't marry Shelley until 1816, after the suicide of his first wife Harriet and the death of their first baby.

In 1817, she spent a famous summer with Shelley, Claire, Byron, and John William Polidori in Switzerland, where she came up with the idea for her most famous work, Frankenstein. They went to Italy in 1818, where they had 3 more children (only one, Percy Florence, survived childhood). In 1822, Shelley drowned when his sailboat sank during a storm in the Bay of La Spezia. A year later, Mary returned to England, devoting the rest of her life to the memory of her husband, the upbringing of her surviving son, and literary endeavors. She died in 1851 at the age of 53.

She is mostly (only?) known now for Frankenstein, but she also wrote historical novels such as Valperga and Perkin Warbeck, and the apocalyptic novel The Last Man, as well as travelogues such as Rambles in Germany and Italy.

A couple of sources on Mary Shelley I really like are Miranda Seymour's biography Mary Shelley and Janet Todd's Death and the Maidens. (When I was a teenager, there was a terribly cheesy movie I rented once. I think it was called Haunted Summer, and it was fun, though I don't know if it's still out there! Young Frankenstein is also fantastic, though maybe not strictly in the tone of Shelley's book...)

Happy Birthday, Mary Shelley! And happy Long Nap Weekend to me! What is your favorite Mary Shelley work?

Word Up!

Like many of you (and I know I've even blogged about it here before), I delight in finding words new to me. Without being boastful, lemme just say I have a large vocabulary. Which is why it's so much fun to find new words. And now another generation has joined the fray: My son.

Yesterday, we did some back-to-school shopping. At the counter, I picked up a pocket dictionary for the boy because lately he's been asking me what words mean, and I want him to be able to find them on his own. Mommy doesn't always know for sure what the words mean, and I don't want to lead him astray.

On the way back to the car, I showed it to him, he made a sound of glee, and immediately dove into it. His first word to look up? Despondent. Apparently a supervillain has that as his last name, and he wanted to know for sure what it meant. And then, little nihilist that he is, he looked up 'death.'

Me, I had to text a friend to define "ichor," which is the blood of Greek gods, rumored to be in ambrosia. I couldn't wait for a regular dictionary, and it wasn't in the son's, and it was driving me crazy. And then I looked up "coruscate," which was there, which means sparkling. Both those words were in the book I was reading.

I like interesting phrases, too; we are at the Jersey Shore ("down the Shore," for those in the vernacular know), and we always go to a candy store that has "own make" candies.

My husband and I talk a lot in shorthand, citing phrases and lyrics that have come to mean something particular to us. It's fun being married to someone as word-geeky as I am, although it's REALLY ANNOYING when one of us uses a word incorrectly, and the other one corrects her.

What are your shorthand phrases? Or favorite idiosyncracies? What word did you look up most recently?

(And apologies for not coming back to comment last week and this, I am on dial-up down the Shore, it's hard to get online).

Megan

Stories that stick in your mind

Over at the Wet Noodle Posse this month we're winding up a series on inspiration but I haven't participated (sorry!). The reason is I don't know what inspires me or gets the writing juices flowing, and I regard it as such a delicate process I don't want to mess around with it.

Truly, for me it's like walking a tightrope.

But occasionally I hear about something fascinating that sticks in my mind and I think about it and wonder how I could work it into a story. Even if I can't, I believe that this sort of speculation breeds other stories, other ideas.

One story that sticks in my mind is from a 2004 episode of PBS' History Detectives. Archaeologists working on the Lost Towns Project (Anne Arundel County, Maryland)--that is, the seventeenth century settlements before Annapolis became the capital--discovered a skeleton in the basement of the house. It wasn't a burial, in fact the corpse seems to have been thrown in with the rubbish. At first they thought it might have been a casualty, or an executed prisoner from the only Civil War (English) battle fought on American soil, the Battle of Severn (1655).

But the skeleton didn't have battle wounds. Examination of the bones revealed that he was a young male who had done hard physical labor all his life. His horrific dental decay alone would have made him very sick, and he also suffered from tuberculosis. He was regarded with such indifference that his body was thrown away like garbage when he died at around the age of sixteen.

The conclusion the History Detectives reached was that he was an indentured servant, one of the many who came to the New World hoping that after a specified number of years working for someone else they would be able to make a living. Some came as punishment, some because options at home were so few. By the Regency/federal period slavery was a more viable financial option for landowners.

The History Detectives found that abuse and neglect of indentured servants was very common. In addition, the Commonwealth of Virgina was obliged to pass legislation around this time requiring that indentured servants be given proper burial, which implies that throwing bodies into basements or ditches was all too common.

The story of this poor kid whose name we don't even know has haunted me. After several years of dithering around I've started writing a story, not about him, but about the lost settlements of Maryland.

What stories have stuck with you?

Women Who Run With the Wolves

I was going to tell you all about my travels but I'm still getting my life and household back in order. After our 10-day trip, I took my kids on a weekend camping trip with a group from our UU church, then had my parents visit for an overnight, followed the next day by my husband's cousins from Chicago. The sink is still full of dirty dishes and I can't even find our camera to upload our Monticello pics!

So I'll talk to you about a book I've been reading on and off this summer: WOMEN WHO RUN WITH THE WOLVES: Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype, by Clarissa Pinkola Estes. I first read about it on a writers' listserve and recently my friend Therese Walsh urged me to read it.

Having been a sensitive girl, raised full of Catholic guilt, I used to try hard to be "good", to not make waves, to not seem too different, yet the mold that was prepared for me never quite fit. Over the years, and especially with motherhood, I've grown stronger and more assertive. This book is a powerful aid, an exploration of myths regarding the Wild Woman archetype and an exhortation to transcend the boundaries imposed by a judgmental society and dark elements in one's own psyche.

One chapter that especially spoke to me at this point was 9, on "Homing: Returning to Oneself". Estes writes that all women need to occasionally return to themselves and practice intentional solitude.

"There are many ways to go home... My clients tell me these mundane endeavors constitute a return to home for them... Rereading passages of books and single poems that have touched them. Spending even a few minutes near a river, a stream, a creek. Lying on the ground in dappled light... praying. A special friend. Sitting on a bridge with legs dangling over. Holding an infant. Sitting by a window in a cafe and writing. Sitting in a circle of trees... Beholding beauty, grace, the touching frailty of human beings."

Through a summer spent with kids and visiting with friends and family, I've managed a few stolen moments to "go home." I'm feeling the need for a longer stay there, though, along with a bit of guilt for wanting to be alone. I know it's good for me, but it's nice to read Estes's reassurance.

"It is preferable to go home for a while, even if it causes others to be irritated, rather than to stay and deteriorate, and then finally crawl away in tatters."
"It is right and proper that women eke out, liberate, take, make, connive to get, assert their right to go home. Home is a sustained mood or sense that allows us to experience feelings not necessarily sustained in the mundane world: wonder, vision, peace, freedom from worry, freedom from demands, freedom from constant clacking. All these treasures from home are meant to be cached in the psyche for later use in the topside world."
"It is better to teach your people that you will be more and also different when you return, that you are not abandoning them but learning yourself anew and bringing yourself back to your real life."

For me, going home includes walking, journaling, swimming and writing. How about you? How do you go home? Has anyone else read this book? If so, what did you think?

Elena
www.elenagreene.com

Cara at the World Science Fiction Convention

The first week in August, as soon as I returned from the Romance Writers of America conference in San Francisco, I flew off to Denver to attend the World Science Fiction Convention, a gathering of authors, artists, fans, agents, editors, costumers, musicians, and more, all to celebrate science fiction and fantasy. Whee!

The Guest of Honor this year was Lois McMaster Bujold, who's won award after award for her science fiction and fantasy novels (and who's one of my favorite authors ever.)

First, I read through the program to see which panels and events I didn't want to miss.

On the first day I attended a reception held in Bujold's honor, called Summerfair on Barrayar.

(In Bujold's science fiction books, Barrayar is a planet recovering from centuries of a semi-medieval existence (complete with lords, duels, horses, and arranged marriages), and joining a much more sophisticated, modern galaxy in which -- gasp! -- starship pilots are often women, and sometimes hermaphrodites or clones.)

Some of us came in costume -- and there was dancing. (Both are shown in this photo taken by the official Worldcon photographer, Keith McClune. Todd is the ghem lord in the makeup, and I'm the Vor lady on the left.)

The next day was Bujold's Guest of Honor speech -- and she made lots of interesting points about science fiction, fantasy, and romance.

Bujold also was on plenty of panels, and had two signings and two readings. (More on those later!)

One of her panels that I found particularly interesting was a discussion between her, SF author Lillian Stewart Carl, and fantasy writer Patricia Wrede (Regency fans may know her as the author of the Regency-set MAIRELON THE MAGICIAN books or as the co-author of the SORCERY AND CECELIA series.)

Pictured here (photo also by Keith McClune) with moderator Peggy Rae Sapienza, they talked about how they had come together as a critique group back when only one of them was published, and how they've stayed friends through all the ups and downs of their three very different careers.

By the way, Bujold herself has a Regency link -- her A CIVIL CAMPAIGN is dedicated to Georgette Heyer, among others, and is a romantic comedy in the true Regency style (with science fictional twists, of course!)


When I wasn't worshipping at the altar of Bujold, or buying way too many books and pieces of elvish pottery, I could often be found attending the panels of a bright young fellow named Todd Brun.


Here are two more Keith McClune photos:



(1) photo of Todd explaining quantum computers...


and


(2) photo of the rapt audience.



(Rapt.)


(Completely.)


(Some in cool costumes.)


(Or with other accoutrements.)


(Don't you wish you'd been there?)



Todd was on several panels...


including one in which he explained how to build a time machine in your basement.


(See how serious he looks?)


(Because time machines are serious things.)


(You wouldn't want to mess up and accidentally delete the human race or something.)


Todd, of course, is hard to equal...


But I must say the high point of the convention for me was when Lois McMaster Bujold read the first several chapters of the next Vorkosigan book!!!!!!!!



Even her editor hadn't yet laid eyes on it.


And it won't be published for something like two years.


And we got to hear it!!!!!

Here she is...

reading from her manuscript...


Ah.


What more could a fangirl ask?


So...that was me at Worldcon.

How about you? Have you ever been to a SFF convention, a fan convention, or similar? Have you ever read any Bujold (or Wrede or Carl)? Ever bought any elvish pottery? (I LOVE this stuff. The artist, Peri Charlifu, does AMAZING work.)

All answers welcome!

And be sure to visit us next Tuesday, when we'll be discussing the film MASTER AND COMMANDER as part of our Jane Austen Movie Club!

Cara
Cara King, author of My Lady Gamester and fangirl extraordinaire

Scandal! Gossip! Research

I was quite impressed that so many of our Risky friends expressed an interest in the history behind our books. Gee. I'm glad we asked. Reading Regency Romance gave me my interest in history. Writing it made it more of an abiding passion.

Scandalizing the Ton, my October book, is what I call my "Regency Paparazzi" story. It was inspired by our present day obsession with celebrities, but we didn't invent an interest in the rich and famous. Nor did we invent a press willing to do almost anything for some good gossip about them.

The eighteenth and nineteenth centuries abounded with newspapers. Some of them even reported important news, like what was happening in Parliament, social issues, important events. It was during this period that some of journalism's standards and ethics were beginning to be established, things like not revealing sources, acting as society's social conscience, which was not always a good idea.

James Leigh Hunt and his brother, John, published serious news in their London newspaper, The Examiner, including calling the government to task for the heavy taxes levied on the people. In 1812, they printed an article criticizing the Prince Regent for his gambling and womanizing and running up huge debts while not doing anything to better the lives of the citizenry. Although what they printed was true, the Hunts were sued for libel and imprisoned for two years. Leigh Hunt continued to edit The Examiner from his prison cell.

In contrast to the responsible and ethical journalism of the Hunts were the newspapers that flourished by reporting the scandals and peccadilloes of the wealthy, the political elite, and the aristocracy. In his wonderful book, Scandal: A Scurrilous History of Gossip, Roger Wilkes gives examples of the eighteenth and nineteenth century love of gossip, and how the newspaper reporters purchased the juicy tidbits from loose-lipped servants and gentlemen and ladies willing to expose their friends. Not only did newspapers purchase gossip, they also blackmailed their potential victims, taking money to not print some embarrassing incident.

They also just made up stories. In Punch Thackeray and his colleague Jerrod parodied that sort of newspaper with their creation of the reporter, Jenkins, who rarely left his humble abode, preferring to invent his stories about the latest shocking antics of important people.

In my opinion the worst of them all was Theodore Hook, a charming and pleasing fellow who came into the Regent's favor as a very young man, winning a government job at the ocean paradise of Mauritius. Hook lived an idyllic life for four years until a clerk embezzled lots of money that was Hook's responsibility. He returned to London under a cloud and, in 1820, to make back the income he lost with his government job he started the Sunday newspaper, The John Bull.

Unlike the Hunt brothers, Hook allied himself with the Prince Regent and whipped up scandal and gossip about prominent Whigs. Favorite targets included The Regent's estranged wife Queen Caroline and the ladies who attended her. One he branded as 'strangely susceptible to the charms of her own sex' ; another he accused of having "criminal affection" for a menial servant (Wilkes, 2002).

Hook had no qualms about paying servants to betray their employers, but most of what he learned was through his own ears. Hook succeeded in keeping it secret that he was the editor of The John Bull. Because he was well-connected enough to move in high circles, he dug his dirt in anonymity, from the very people who extended him their hospitality. Such inside information had huge appeal and the newspaper flourished.

In this secret position of power, Hook mercilessly pilloried those who crossed him. When suspicion grew that he was the editor of the Bull, Hook even wrote a letter to the editor (himself), protesting that he was not the editor. He was a known prankster. In his most famous prank, The Berners Street Hoax, he wrote 4000 letters calling for tradesmen, delivery men, professional men such as physicians and dentists, potential empoyers, wig-makers, dressmakers, members of Parliament and of the aristocracy, all to descend upon the house of an innocent middle-class woman, Mrs. Tottenham. While the street became clogged with people, Hook and his friend stood by and laughed. All I can think of is what a cruelty this was to all those people who were only going about their ordinary lives. He cost them all time and money and dignity.

When Queen Caroline died The John Bull turned to more serious journalism. Eventually Hook was made to pay for the embezzlement, a huge amount that took all his assets and landed him in debtor's prison for two years. After prison he turned to writing novels, none of which were particularly distinguished. He continued his high living until his liver gave out and he died at age 53.

What do you think of today's paparazzi? 'Fess up. Do you like to read about celebrities?
What is the worst prank that was played on you? What is the best prank you ever pulled off?

In Scandalizing the Ton there isn't any journalist quite as reprehensible as Theodore Hook, but the shady tactics and irresponsible journalism of the Regency are depicted.

Watch my website for more news about this new release!

Thanks to Scandal: A Scurillous History of Gossip by Roger Wilkes, Atlantic Books, 2002, for most of this information

Winners!

Here are our Birthday Week Winners!

All Winners please email us your contact information at riskies@yahoo.com

Diane's Winner......Santa!

Santa wins the special Mills & Boon Centenary edition of The Vanishing Viscountess, the one that includes the bonus story of The Mysterious Miss M AND a Risky Regency button.

Cara's Winner......Maya Rodale!

Maya wins ONE of the following three prizes:
(1) three Signet Regencies: THE ABDUCTED BRIDE by Dorothy Mack; TWIN PERIL by Susannah Carleton; and MY LADY GAMESTER (signed, natch) by Cara King.
(2) a Region One (i.e. US & Canada) DVD of the 1985 miniseries of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE starring Elizabeth Garvie and David Rintoul.
(3) Guidebook to the Museum of Costume & Assembly Rooms in Bath (with lots of full color pictures.)

Elena's Winner......Caffey!

Caffey wins - a copy of LADY DEARING'S MASQUERADE; - plus her choice of one of Elena's earliest releases, either LORD LANGDON'S KISS or HIS BLUSHING BRIDE (an anthology with Regina Scott and Alice Holden).

Janet's Winner.......Susan Wilbanks!

Susan wins a signed copy of each of Janet's books, Dedication, The Rules of Gentility, and Forbidden Shores (the last written as Jane Lockwood) or a critique.

Megan's Winner......Lois!
Lois wins a copy of Megan's book, A Singular Lady, as well as a copy of the 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue.

Amanda's Winner......Kammie!

Kammie wins copies of both Amanda's Renaissance books, A Notorious Woman and A Sinful Alliance (or, if you have already won these, a copy of one of Amanda's out-of-print Signet Regencies!), plus a silver Brighton bookmark!

Ladies, email us at riskies@yahoo.com with your addresses and, if you need to make a choice, what choice you've made.

And thank you all for being a part of Risky Regencies!

Megan Meanders

Yay for us Riskies!

It's been so much fun being here, it's great to come geek out about the Regency, clothes, characters, books, books and writing.

But what I like most, most, most about our place is the diversity of opinions and visitors. Where else could you get Cara's Pope-ian twinings of Trek and Austen marching alongside Elena and Diane's fact-filled research posts as Amanda's equally fact-filled posts duke it out with her fashion obsessions, Janet poking massive fun at us all in her occasional skewers?

And that's not even to mention the visitors here, all of whom have become personalities in their own right.

I don't have that many favorite of my own posts--mostly, I'm horrified at how little I have to say, generally--but I did like the Dress For Success one, Accessible Beauty, Heroes, Death-Wish and my annoy-Janet tweak, Obligatory Hot Guy Post.

Comment on these, or anything you want, to be entered in to win a copy of my book, A Singular Lady, as well as a copy of the 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue.

And thanks for sharing in our celebration!

Megan

I'm back and celebrating!

Hello! I'm back from a wonderful, wonderful vacation (more on that later) and now bravely facing the overgrown lawn and garden, hundreds of emails and mountains of laundry--along with celebrating the 3rd anniversary of the Riskies and our amazing makeover. :)

Being near the end of the week, I'm at risk of echoing what other Riskies have already said, but I can only say that the most delightful thing about this blog and our lovely community is the shared passions for history, the Regency, romance and the writing journey itself.

Looking back at this year, I've enjoyed writing all sorts of posts. Here are some of my favorites.

In Heroines and Heroes, the Good, the Bad and the Ugly, I blogged about the actors I use for inspiration for my characters and how they did or didn't translate to cover art. I hope you all found the insight into that process entertaining!

I always love to share research tidbits, especially in matters military, such as in Roughing It. This is the perfect place for it...where else can one debate the potential hotness of the Duke of Wellington without being thought a complete lunatic? (Of course since visiting Monticello I'm considering the potential hotness of Thomas Jefferson, but that's another post.)

Sometimes I like talking about topics related to romance, such as How much should we care? (about romance being dissed in the media) or Tortured or trite? (on romance conflicts that involve PTSD, addition and other serious trauma). I always love to hear all your viewpoints, even if (perhaps especially if) they don't match my own. I like having my world expanded and you all have helped to do that one way or another. Thank you!

Many of you have already told us which sorts of posts you enjoy and what you'd like to see more of, but do please feel free to add more! And let me know which sorts of posts of mine you enjoy most.

To a commenter chosen at random, I will send:
- a copy of LADY DEARING'S MASQUERADE
- plus your choice of one of my earliest releases, either LORD LANGDON'S KISS or HIS BLUSHING BRIDE (an anthology with Regina Scott and Alice Holden).

Remember, prizes will be awarded at the end of this week so feel free to visit earlier posts as well.

Thanks again for making this such a delightful community!

Elena
http://www.elenagreene.com/

Happy birthday to all of us!

Three years...a lifetime in the blogosphere, and thanks to you--our lurkers and readers and commenters--for your great comments and for dropping by so often. And extra special thanks to your employers for so generously lending us your time.

I've learned so much from everyone here--it's been a real education. And I've been humbled and amazed, too, by the smart, knowledgeable, funny people who have joined the Riskies family.

With little originality, I'm going to remind you of my favorite posts over the last year.



In my tireless campaign against gratuitous mantitty, I counterattacked with a post about Hot Old Men like the lovely and talented Alan Rickman: Women swooned at his imcomprehensible upperclass mumble and the slow crawl of his jowls seeking freedom from his high collar. And I promise, I will post about Hot Old Women sometime, too.

I love our interviews too, and this year I was fortunate enough to get an exclusive with Cupid on Valentine's Day. The Regency wasn't bad, all things considered. Not too much whalebone, and no steel--that was tough, dealing with Victorian corsets. You wouldn't believe the number of arrows I ruined. ...

You might think blogging on holidays is easy, but how on earth do you relate an American holiday, such as Thanksgiving, to the Regency? Fortunately, Thanksgiving 2007 was also George Eliot's birthday and I pondered on why one of my favorite, flawed novels, Daniel Deronda, is like a turkey dinner.

I also enjoyed our week celebrating the birthday of Jane Austen, and chose Mansfield Park--mainly because I suspected none of the other Riskies wanted it. I wasn't even sure I wanted it myself. What a revelation, to read this sexy, difficult, daring book, and what a great discussion. Did anyone read it as a result? Tell us what you thought.

I find there are topics we return to again and again, because they're fascinating and influential, and we discover new facts we have to share. I blogged about the great astronomer William Herschel on March 13, the anniversary of the day he discovered the planet Uranus. I'm sure one of us will mention him again soon. I revisited another favorite topic, servants, in response to an email from a blog visitor who highly recommended Mrs. Woolf and the Servants by Alison Blight, and wondered how Woolf's attitude to her servants was like or unlike that of Regency-era masters.

Please tell us if there's a topic you'd like to talk about--we love to hear from you! And if you're a lurker, come by and make your first comment. Don't be shy!

Prizes? Oh yes, prizes.

If you're a writer, I'll offer a critique of your first chapter and synopsis.

If you're a reader, you can win a signed copy of each of my books, Dedication, The Rules of Gentility, and Forbidden Shores (the last written as Jane Lockwood).

Happy Birthday To Us!

Hello, everyone! Amanda here, sitting in for Elena, who is off traveling the world. She'll be with you on Saturday to wrap up our anniversary/new blog look week. In the meantime, I am finishing up the WIP, thinking of new projects, and coming up with all the ways I love the Riskies. (I am also going to borrow from Cara, and list some favorite posts of the past year!). So, what I like the most:


1) The friends, of course! Building a cozy little place here has introduced me to so many far-flung new friends, who share not only my love of history (some would say geek-dom of history, but they just don't understand...) but let me ramble on about fashion, perfume, English real estate, and Orlando/James/Matthew. It's great to come here every day, even if work is dreary or the book is stalled, and know something fun will be going on and there will be people to "talk" to.


And speaking of history geek-dom, I really enjoyed putting together this "Dating Life: 2008 vs 1543" post because I got to talk about Katherine Parr. I was astonished to hear that everyone doesn't have a favorite wife of Henry VIII! :)


I also really liked doing this "Women in Politics" post, centered around the Duchess of Devonshire and her political campaigning. I am going to the Democratic National Convention next week, so things like this have been much in my mind lately. We have certainly progressed, though maybe not as quickly as women like Georgiana would have liked!


2) Interviews! I love doing interviews with authors, either ones who are already friends or ones whose work I've admired but have never been able to meet them in person. The last thing I need is more books on that TBR pile, but when I hear about the great ones coming out I can't help myself! Yes, I am Amanda and I am a bookaholic. I really enjoyed this Nicola Cornick interview from July, though now that she has been recruited to be my tour guide to Hever Castle next month she might be sorry she came here!



3) Theme weeks. Once we get them together (I believe Janet mentioned something about herding cats...) they are great fun. This year we had Waterloo Week and a whole week of celebrating Jane Austen's birthday


I also love discussions of historical movies (the rest of the year should be full of this, with releases like The Duchess and Young Victoria), writing tips, travel advice, etc. Too many things to list here!



So, what are your favorite things about Risky Regencies? What sort of posts do you enjoy the most? What would you like to see more of in the future?


I will give away copies of both my Renaissance books, A Notorious Woman and A Sinful Alliance (or, if you have already won these, a copy of one of my out-of-print Signet Regencies!), plus a silver Brighton bookmark!

Cara's Risky Year in Review

Welcome to Day Two of the Risky Regencies THIRD ANNIVERSARY celebration!

For our last anniversary, we talked about which posts of the previous year we were proudest of or had the most fun with...and I had such a good time that I'm going to do it again.

So to be eligible for my prize (which is detailed below), just tell me which of the following posts you like best (or least!)


Northanger Abbey

(Part of our "Jane Austen Week" discussion...)


Austen Trek: Borg and Prejudice

(Another installment in my "If Jane Austen Wrote Star Trek" series...)


Pace vs. Depth

(Cara wrestling with writing issues...)


Austen Idol

("Austen Trek" goes off the deep end...and we see What If Jane Austen Wrote American Idol...)


How Captain Stanton Came to Be

(As part of our Waterloo Week, I analyze the decisions that went into my military hero...)


And if there's something you want to see more of here (e.g. posts about Heyer or Austen or covers or craft or Gerard Butler), please share!


Ah, yes -- the prize! I always like to give a choice, so the winner can choose ONE of the following three prizes:

(1) three Signet Regencies: THE ABDUCTED BRIDE by Dorothy Mack; TWIN PERIL by Susannah Carleton; and MY LADY GAMESTER (signed, natch) by Cara King.

(2) a Region One (i.e. US & Canada) DVD of the 1985 miniseries of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE starring Elizabeth Garvie and David Rintoul.

(3) Guidebook to the Museum of Costume & Assembly Rooms in Bath (with lots of full color pictures.)


All answers welcome!


Cara
Cara King, author of MY LADY GAMESTER and many silly posts

Surprise!

We have a new look!

What better way to kick off our anniversary week than to launch our newly designed blog? Our new design is by the lovely and talented Haven Rich, with considerable input from the Riskies and even some polling of our readers.

This is the result.

The image in our logo is from Pierce Egan's Life in London: "Tom, Jerry and Logic Making the Most of an Evening at Vauxhall" by Robert and George Cruikshank. If you received a Risky Regengy button at RWA, you'll notice the two dancing figures are from that image. Clever were we not?

So.....What do you think?

Change is hard, even welcome changes. As a result, I'm not entirely certain how I feel about the new design, but only because I miss what is familiar. We human beings tend to stick to the familiar, the secure, but we also sometimes gain the courage to change.

That's what each of us Riskies did when we first decided to write a book. We mustered up the courage to do something different than we'd ever done before, to change from a person who didn't write a book into a person who does write a book. I'm glad I did, because it has given me this happy life where I can spend my days in Regency England or hang out with my fellow Riskies and all our friends.

In honor of change and growth--and our anniversary--I'm going to give away a copy of The Vanishing Viscountess, the special Mills & Boon Centenary edition, which includes a bonus story, The Mysterious Miss M--and a Risky Regency Button!

There will be more prizes announced each day this week. All our winners will be randomly selected at the end of the week from all the comments this Anniversary Week. So comment often to increase your chances to win.

And, today, tell us what you think of our new look!

Eccentric Glamour, Etc

This week, I am still suffering from Post Conference Brain Freeze, plus Near Deadline Dementia, so I have not much left over for blogging. No research tidbits. No writing tips. No new lipsticks or perfumes to recommend. Naught. Zilch.

So, I will turn for help to a very amusing book I recently read, Simon Doonan's Eccentric Glamour: Creating an Insanely More Fabulous You. Not only will it give you a laugh, it just might also help in constructing the perfect Eccentrically Fabulous (hereafter referred to as EG) heroine!

Mr. Doonan, like many of us, deplores the new trend for "fake hair extensions, fake nails, fake spray tans, fake lips, and fake boobs." He implores women everywhere to "seek out eccentrically glamorous alternatives to the ubiquitous cheapness and tackiness that currently pass for personal style. Banish the badonkadonkdonk! Say no to porno chic! Say no to ho! And yes to Eccentric Glamour." He gives us profiles of various modern EG women like Dita Von Teese, Tilda Swinton, and Lucy Liu, and tells us the best way to find our own EG style. It's easier than you might think, as there are really only 3 routes to EG (with a few sub-genres. Sort of like "historical romantic suspense," or "urban fantasy Harlequin Presents" if you will). They are:

1) The Gypsy

This is for those who are "a hazy, lazy, rustic, poetic, ethereal free spirit," or have always wanted to be. "There is much to recommend the Gypsy lifestyle. First, it's incredibly romantic. You can be wild. You can be tempestuous. You can be Carmen."

There is the Euro-glam Gypsy. The Isadora Gypsy (I like this one! Doonan says "She wears panne velvet and vintage lace and medieval-ish robes and turbans a la Edith Sitwell. She adores massive rings, beading, and devoree velvet." She also spends a lot of time "contemplating the translucency of an Art Nouveau vase on the Portobello Road.") And there is the Green Gypsy (think Natalie Portman), and the Hollywood Gypsy (who claim Ali McGraw as their patron saint).

2) The Socialite

"Of all the three styles, the Socialite has the least amount of eccentricity. Her style has a classic panache. She herself is not particularly creative. She leaves that to the Valentinos, Lagerfelds, and Puccis of the world," but "she has a wicked wit." Jackie Kennedy, Babe Paley, and CZ Guest "are the primordial ooze from which all subsequent Socialites emerged."

3) The Existentialist

"This is the edgy, belligerent, provocative, creative face of eccentric glamour," Doonan tells us. "There are no A-list celeb Existentialists: Jennifer Connelly and Charlotte Gainsbourg are about as close as it gets. The Existentialist is an angry rebel who eschews the superficiality of contemporary culture."

Their variables include: The Existentialist Gamine (think Audrey Hepburn at the beginning of Funny Face. "There's nothing quite like a black turtleneck to suggest an inner life, even where there may be none"). There is also the Rive Gauche Existentialist ("The elder sister of the Gamine"); the Existentialist Garconne (think Garbo and Dietrich!); and the Existentialist Ghoul. But be careful when trying the Ghoul--"Adopting this kind of scary look limits your social interaction to those who are dressed exactly as you and is therefore recommended only for the very young."

Once we have found our EG niche, Doonan urges us to "Go forth and shop!" That, I can do. I haven't quite figured out exactly where I fit on the EG continuum. I think I am a bit of an Isadora Gypsy/Existentialist Gamine, but that changes every day. The heroine of my WIP, Thalia Chase (the third of the "Muses of Mayfair") is definitely a Gypsy. Her sisters Calliope and Clio, the heroines of Books One and Two, were respectively a Socialite and an Existentialist. They have definitely banished the badonkadonkdonk! (Or whatever the Regency equivalent would be...)

Now, it's your turn. What kind of EG are you? What about favorite heroines (either from your own writing or for favorite books)? For instance, it's pretty clear Jane Eyre is an Existentialist, but what is Elizabeth Bennet??? Discuss! (and be sure and join us next week as we celebrate our 3rd birthday! Lots of prizes and fun)

Friday On My Mind

"Friday On My Mind" by the Easybeats:

Tonight....I spend my bread,
Tonight...I lose my head,
Tonight...I got to get tonight
Monday I have Friday on my mind.

This week was my first full week after National and Family-Visiting. And an eventful one! My new agent sent pitches out on That Subtle Knot, my Regency-set historical. I've been writing "Fortune's Lady," my super-sexy novella, and a writing friend (known as The Delightful Phone Friend at my blog) just told me my writing's getting better and better (good thing, too, or else this post would have been a lot more dour. Now I am happy.)

Question to more-published authors: What is a reasonable waiting period before I start deluging my agent with anxious emails?

The whole family has been getting Olympics fever, so much so that the could-not-sleep Spouse ended up watching women's gymnastics last night. Bet I'll never be able to say that last clause ever again in my entire life. My son, an enthusiastic swimmer, has taken to calling Michael Phelps "Phelpy" which is so cute I can not stand it. And track and field is still to come!

By the way, I have long been a fan of director Zhang Yimou, who has got to be the most amazing visionary in terms of color and scenery ever. He is the Chief Creative Director of the opening and closing Olympics ceremony, and my goodness, he did not disappoint. For more of his work, check out Hero, House of Flying Daggers, and Curse of the Golden Flower.

Next week is my 44th birthday, which I like 'cause 4 is one of my two favorite numbers (19 is the other one; guess what day my birthday is on?). I am looking forward to sushi and gelato that evening, having lunch with a girlfriend sans Son that day.

And then the whole family goes to the Jersey Shore for a week. Yay! The VERY Hard-Working Spouse needs a break.

And then? AND THEN? School starts September 2!

The bad news is that my shift key is being a PITA. But that is minor, right?

I am not accustomed to being optimistic and forward-looking. My brain is frantically trying to find stuff to worry about, and it is succeeding. But still. Things are good.

Are you happy about anything? What are you doing for the last few weeks of summer? Are you watching the Olympics? Which is your favorite event thus far? Which athlete are you crushing on (mine is Ryan Lochte)?

How's your summer going?

If only...

Ideally this is how I'd like to spend my summer (add catering and it would be perfect). As it is, if we open windows mosquitoes come in (although they get in anyway; the opportunistic little critters zoom in as soon as a door is opened, knowing that I, ripe, juicy and desirable, will be their dinner). If I put flowers in a vase I'd have to clean off the table first. Heck, I'd have to clean off the sofa first.

I don't know if I could live with that wallpaper, though.

So how am I spending my summer?

Job hunting. Yes, my job fell apart in July and I really, really need work--I just don't function well without it. It's not as though I have set myself up a rigid routine (exercise! write! read! do good works!) although I probably should. My routine generally goes like this: get up early because I'm used to it, fiddle around reading email, run errands if there are any to run, write a bit, apply for some jobs, avoid the siren call of the tv and the hundreds of cable channels that still don't provide anything to watch.

I also do odd bits of housework but god knows I don't want anyone (spouse) to take this sort of thing for granted or, worse, that I start to think this sort of thing is essential. It's a fine line.

So what are you doing this summer?

Cara's Brain is Woozy

Sorry this post is so late.

I just got back from attending the World Science Fiction Convention (a.k.a. Worldcon) yesterday.

I woke up this morning with a headache....and my new headache medicine apparently makes me woozy.

(Hmm...I wonder what the derivation of "woozy" is? If I weren't so woozy, I'd go look it up in a dictionary. After all, I have three within reach right now. But that would take effort....)

So here are a few random pics for you...which will hopefully make more sense than I do right now!

I'll talk more about Worldcon later...

But just a few tidbits for now:

The Guest of Honor was the amazing Lois McMaster Bujold.

And I got to ask her questions.

And hear her talk.

And listen to her read the first two chapters of her upcoming new Vorkosigan book!!!!!!!

I also got to hear Todd, who was on three panels, tell folks how to build a time machine in the basement. (Half of that sentence isn't exactly true, by the way, but I'm too woozy to remember which half.)

Speaking of wooziness...(hey, that's a cool word...wooziness...wooziness...if you say it three times fast, then it begins to describe your state of mind...)...I just attended two conferences back to back.

Does that make me an expert on hotel shower curtains?

Or finding cool restaurants? (I had Singaporean food with Elena in San Francisco, and German food with Todd in Denver...)

Hey, wait -- wasn't the Woozy one of those L Frank Baum magical creatures? (My woozy brain is coming up with a picture that seems to be a bendable doglike creature made of silvery metal... Does this make sense?)

Google, and ye shall find.

Here's a picture of the Woozy (the fellow clinging to the tree) as illustrated by John R. Neill, in Baum's THE PATCHWORK GIRL OF OZ.

Yep.

That's my brain.

Clinging to a tree.

S-N-O-O-Z-I-N-G.

Cara the woozy (though not Cara The Woozy)

What Diane Bought at the Silent Auction

The History Conference held on the Wednesday before RWA kicks off held a Silent Auction during the Afternoon Tea. I've attended several of these Silent Auctions and pride myself on having a fool-proof strategy.

This year was no exception!

My strategy, honed by these years of experience, was to bid on several items so that I would have a good chance of winning at least one or two of the items I most desired. I put my claims in early and checked now and then (between tea sandwiches) to see how I was doing. As time ticked on, I became a little nervous. No one was bidding against me! I was winning EVERYTHING. Several more checks confirmed my fears. I won each and every single thing I'd bid on. The only saving grace to my pocketbook (strained after two and a half days of shopping in San Francisco)was that I'd bid low.
(these series of 3 photos are courtesy of The Beau Monde)

I don't know. Maybe I should not have attended the Gentleman's Tipple workshop where we sampled about ten different types of alcohol of which Regency Gentlemen would have imbibed. I tasted them all.

At least I won some treasures!


This lovely plate, donated by our Risky friend, Jane George.















Two prints Jane also donated. These I added to my already long list of items because no one else saw their incredible value and I got them for a SONG. David's portrait of Napoleon and this other one. I think it says, "The Bank Looking Towards Mansion House."







A CD - Napoleon: Music of the Empire 1800-1815. This was my year for Napoleon, I guess.

Books, of course. I always donate books to the Silent Auction. Every year I donate the duplicate copies of books that I have purchased for myself. Yes. I do forget and buy the same book twice. This year I donated three books... and purchased three books!

Recollections of the Last Days of Shelley and Byron was first published in 1858. The author is Edward Trelawny, who met Shelley and Byron on a trip to Italy. Trelawny was also the guy who designed the boat that Shelley and Edward Williams took out to sea on the last day of their lives.

The Young Melbourne by David Cecil looks good, too. Melbourne is William Lamb, the poor guy who married Caroline Lamb, who had a famous affair with Byron.

And the last book looks like more fun. The Scouring of the White Horse. If you are driving in the Berkshires you might come upon the white chalk figure of a horse carved into a hillside. This book tells about the 1857 festival of the cleansing of the horse by the people of Uffington. It is an eye-witness account by the author of Tom Brown's School Days.

Many thanks to Jane George and Delle Jacobs for all their hard work on this very successful Silent Auction!

The background of my photos is the Pashmina I purchased in China Town. They assured me it was 100% Pashmina, all for $14.99.

If you attended the Silent Auction, what did you win and what did you lose? What was the most disappointing thing you ever lost in an auction?
'Fess up. You've purchased duplicate books, too, haven't you?

Visit my website and enter my contest. They both are still there!

RWA Wrap-Up, Etc

I read this horoscope yesterday:

"Here's a passage from Kurt Vonnegut's novel Breakfast of Champions: 'Kilgore Trout once wrote a short story which was a dialogue between two pieces of yeast. They were discussing the possible purposes of life as they ate sugar and suffocated in their own excrement. Because of their limited intelligence, they never came close to guessing that they were making champagne.' This scenario has some resemblance to what you're doing, Capricorn. Fortunately, you're much smarter than two pieces of yeast, and so you will not do the equivalent of drowning in crap. But I bet you'll create something comparable to champagne."

This is very encouraging, considering I have hit the point which comes in every WIP where the story seems, well, crap. A terrible idea from top to bottom. I want the characters to fall off a cliff and leave me alone. Yes, I am on the downhill slide, about 30 pages left to go. Along with recovering from RWA, it's a slog. But hopefully, all unknowing, it's slowly changing into bubbly champagne. I do like champagne, and luckily there was plenty to be had in San Francisco!

Here I am with Risky Megan!

With Diane and Michelle Willingham at the Harlequin party (I think this is before the infamous tree felling!)

Some mysterious dandy with Elena at the Beau Monde Soiree

And with Megan...

And with Deb Marlowe!

It was wonderful to meet so many of you "in person" at RWA! I can't wait for next year. In the meantime, what were some of you own highlights of conference? And wish me luck on finishing my yeast, er, champagne...

More Risky Pix!

Like many of the Riskies, I am still recovering from last week's National Conference. I spent a few extra days visiting friends and family, so the jet lag is hitting me hard.

But rather than make you suffer by listening to my complaining, I figured I'd share some of the photos I took. Pardon my inability to make the captions line up properly underneath, trying to make it work would make me complain EVEN MORE THAN USUAL.

All six Riskies!



Cara, Julia Justiss and Keira Soleore
at the Riskies breakfast

Amanda looking cute and perky, as always.




Diane--a lefty!--at her signing



Janet giving a big ol' smile



Elena in her ravishing attire



Andrea Pickens, Megan and Amanda during our workshop on keeping Historical Characters Real

In praise of hot water

I'm catching up on baths.

Yes, my wonderful hosts at San Francisco (who were very sweet about their front room being turned into a slum) did have a bathtub, but I was too tired every night to do anything but wade through my belongings strewn all over the floor and drop into bed. I was also inspired by Elena's post yesterday about her visit to Monticello to remember a well-kept secret in Bath County, Virginia--Thomas Jefferson's warm springs. Elena, you must go there!

In the accurately, if unimaginatively named town (I think it's a town) of Warm Springs, VA, a couple of hours southwest of the Washington, DC metro area, you can bathe in true Regency (or federal) era style in natural 98-degree mineral water. Jefferson built the original men's bathhouse in 1818--since it's of wood, who knows how many times timbers have been replaced--and a women's bathhouse was added, chastely next door, in 1836.

Now the baths are owned by a huge, luxurious resort up the road in Hot Springs, the Homestead, which has a rather different sort of bath (and all sorts of decadent goodies) and offers full spa services.

But if you want the historical experience, go to Jefferson's pools. The buildings are round wooden structures, open to the sky, and although they were probably used year-round in his time, now they're only open in the summer. It's very relaxing to float in the water--you can also ask the bath attendant to open the sluice while you sit in a sort of wooden channel and receive a water massage (there's a continual flow of water in and out). According to this article, you can also have a natural ginseng massage.

Bathing suits are optional--my husband reported that all the guys were stark naked (of course). In the women's house, lithe young things in bathing suits looked on in horror as women of a certain age flaunted their scars, stretchmarks, flab etc.

Here's more information on Bath County, Virginia.

Do you have any hot water, natural, au naturel, or other, experiences you'd like to share? Your favorite, hidden-away spot somewhere?

I need a vacation!!!!!

I had a wonderful time in SF, between the totally awesome and inspiring Historical Writers' Conference, dancing at the soiree, boning up on craft and research, meeting Riskies and friends. I'm still on an emotional high but after a week of running on adrenalin my body has *crashed*.

But there is no rest for the weary. My To Do List includes items like unpacking, mowing the lawn, cleaning the fish tank, identifying and removing anything that looks like a science experiment from the fridge, preparing materials to send to prospective new agents.

Somehow I will do it all but I really need a vacation!

Fortunately that's the other thing on my plate this week: getting myself and the family ready for a trip. Soon we will be driving to Florida where my husband and I will deposit our darlings with their grandparents and go for a short 20th anniversary cruise. We've never cruised before but thought it would be fun to try. Four days of relaxation and fornication can't fail! On the return trip, we'll go more slowly, stopping to visit relatives and friends in Asheville, where we also plan to tour Biltmore House. Then we'll visit Monticello on the way home. My kids are budding history geeks, so I expect they'll enjoy the historic home tours as much as I will.

So this trip will be part sightseeing, part unwinding. If I were going on holiday during the Regency, I'd still want that sort of mix. Time and budget allowing (and of course it would, because in my Regency fantasy my husband would be worth ten thousand a year) we might go to the Continent for sightseeing and shopping. But I'd also be happy rambling around the Lake District or by the seaside.

Just imagine this scene from PERSUASION:


“They went to the sands, to watch the flowing of the tide, which a fine south-easterly breeze was bringing in with all the grandeur which so flat a shore admitted. They praised the morning; gloried in the sea; sympathized in the delight of the fresh-feeling breeze--and were silent…”

So how about you? Have you been on--or are you planning--any cool vacations this summer? What would be your fantasy Regency vacation? If anyone has cruised before, do you have any advice to share?

Elena

www.elenagreene.com

Bertie at the Beau Monde

I am, essentially, a man of peace.

Any of my fellow Exquisites would tell you so.

(After all, Brawling and other Low Sports tend to disarray one's hair, and they can even lead to dust landing on one's clothes.)

I say this to clarify what I am about to relate.

With only the most generous motives did I attend the Ball held by the Beau Monde. (I am, after all, a member of the beau monde, if not of the Beau Monde. And all balls and assemblies are delighted to have my attendance, regardless of whether or not I paid for a ticket with filthy lucre...or, rather, clean lucre, which is the only sort I would ever carry.)

Moreover, I had a purpose both simple and enchantingly noble: to dance with each of the Risky Authors, and thus bring great delight and honour and elegance into their authorly lives.

(And I cannot believe that authorly lives have much delight or elegance in them, in the general way; after all, what delight or elegance can there be to sit in front of a computing machine, all alone, with no one to admire one's profile or envy one's coat?)

But study carefully the picture above, and you may guess what my difficulty was!

The Risky ladies had been already claimed by a Mysterious Gentleman in blue.

When I asked Mme Frampton to dance, she responded that her dance was already spoken for by this unnamed gentleman.

What is even more astonishing -- I was answered in the same manner by all of the other five Riskies!

(Very well, I admit -- the other four. I never could locate Mlle McCabe. But I did ask Mlle Soleore, Milady George, and the Great Empress of All Canines, and they all responded that they, too, were claimed by the azure adventurer!)

In all good will, I decided to ask the strange gentleman what his secret was. And so I approached him, and asked him if he could meet with me to explain his mystical powers over the female population.

But the fellow misunderstood me!

Such an impatient man. As soon as I had said "Could you meet me--" he declared that his second, Sir Reginald SomeOneOrOther, would be calling upon my second!

Now, I ask you -- why would women flock to such an aggressive male? I cannot understand it.

And after I took one look at this Sir Reginald fellow (shown here), I decided that discretion was the better part of keeping my cravat spotless, so I smoothly departed through the servants' entrance.

Which is why I failed to dance with any of you.

But I meant to.

For the moment, I shall be at an undisclosed location. If any frightening gentlemen ask after me, please do not share any information with them...

Yours in elegance (which must be assiduously guarded),

Bertie the Beau

I think I left my heart in San Francisco

I'm home but already missing my friends from RWA.
This was such a special conference, because for the first time EVER all the Riskies were in one place at the same time AND so many of our Risky friends were also there.

On Tuesday of last week Keira and I spent the day walking around San Francisco and, yes, we did walk up and down hills. Our last stop was at Pier 22 (or something) and here is the proof.


Wednesday was the Beau Monde HHRW Conference and Amanda and Megan and Risky friend Andrea Pickens held a workshop on how to make your historical time period come alive. Amanda brought along Shakespeare and Jane Austen.

Then there was the Soiree, where Louisa aka doglady aka Pam won her category in the Royal Ascot.
Here is lovely and elegant Risky pal janegeorge and our Risky friend, the equally elegant Julia Justiss
















Here is Julia again, Louisa, AMANDA, and the beautiful Indian princess, Keira










O Doggie One (Louisa) and me


I pretty much stopped taking photos from there. Here, though is a photo of Amanda, Deb Marlowe and Me at the Harlequin Party.






And, finally, all the Riskies. From Left to right: Elena, Cara, Diane, Amanda, Janet and Megan.















What would you like to know about RWA? We'd be glad to share.

Come visit Diane at her website and read the newly posted excerpt of Scandalizing the Ton and enter her new contest!

Jane Austen Movie Club Thing Postponed, by order of Bertram St James, Exquisite

Hallo, all you risking populace!

It is I, Bertie the Beau, at your service.

And, being at your service, it is my sad duty to inform you that the Jane Austen Movie Discussion Thingumbob which was scheduled for this Tuesday, has been postponed until the first Tuesday of September.

Why?

Simply put, Mme Cara King has been burning the candle at both ends (is that actually possible? I once tried it, and burnt my middle finger, and dripped wax on my favourite coat -- I do NOT recommend doing so.)

So the moving picture production announced for this week, the Commander and Master (or what ever it may be called) shall be discussed on Tuesday, the second of September...

And THIS Tuesday, you shall have the pleasure of a post from me. (As Mme King shall be flying in an airship to Denverton to attend the Science Fiction Convention of the Universe (or some such thing.))

You may now applaud.

yr obt svt,

Bertram St. James, Exquisite

See You Soon!

If it's Saturday, it must still be RWA! But we will be back on Monday to share all the Risky news and photos. In the meantime...
















Enjoy your weekend. :)