A Lily Among Thorns Winner

The Research Randomizer selected the winner of Rose Lerner's A Lily Among Thorns. Congratulations to:

Susan/DC

Susan, email us at riskies@yahoo.com with your mailing address and we'll pass it along to Rose.

Thanks to everyone who visited with Rose!

The Riskies

A Regency Ghost Story

Happy Halloween!

My quick surfing of the net and peek into Google Books yielded very little information about Halloween during the Regency.

In 1818, Blackwood's Magazine entertained its readers with ghost stories from Wales (as opposed to Scotland, where such stories usually originated, apparently). Witches, ghosts, demons, evil spirits, dogs of hell, fairies, corpse candles, and something called Kyhirraeth, a "doleful foreboding noise before death," were discussed.

This example amused me:

The Rev. Mr Thomas Baddy, who lived in Denbigh town, and was a dissenting minister in that place, went into his study one night, and while he was reading or writing, he heard some one behind him laughing and grinning at him, which made him stop a little. It came again, and there he wrote on a piece of paper, that devil wounding scripture, 1 John iii. ' For this was the Son of God manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil,' and held it backwards towards him, and the laughing ceased for ever; for it was a melancholy word to a scoffing devil, and enough.

Clever fellow, Reverend Tom. Nerves of steel, as well. I believe I would have screamed and run from the room.

It seemed to me that the Regency era people prided themselves on being rational, with no time for such nonsense as ghosts and witches and fairies. I suspect the prevailing view on the occult was similar to Sir Walter Scott's.

In Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft Scott clearly scoffs at ghost sightings and such. He believes in rational explanations for events which are credited to the supernatural.

Here's an example in Scott's words:

The remarkable circumstance of Thomas, the second Lord Lyttelton, prophesying his own death within a few minutes, upon the information of an apparition, has been always quoted as a true story. But of late it has been said and published, that the unfortunate nobleman had previously determined to take poison, and of course had it in his own power to ascertain the execution of the prediction. It was no doubt singular that a man, who meditated his exit from the world, should have chosen to play such a trick on his friends. But it is still more credible that a whimsical man should do so wild a thing than that a messenger should be sent from the dead, to tell a libertine at what precise hour he should expire.

Sir Walter is clearly a skeptic. Too bad he didn't have access to Celebrity Ghost Stories on the Bio Channel.

Perhaps in Wales and Scotland, families practiced old rituals on Halloween during the Regency. Perhaps people told ghost stories by the light of the fireplace at night and carved turnips into jack o' lanterns, but I suspect Halloween was not celebrated among the Beau Monde.

I'm celebrating Halloween today with a contest! Seven authors, including me, are hosting a Novel Trick or Treat Contest. Stop by my website to start. We're each giving away prizes to some lucky commenters, but, like all good trick or treaters, you have to visit each of us in turn. Come join the fun!

How else are you celebrating Halloween today?

Guest Rose Lerner Talks About A Lily Among Thorns

Today we are delighted to have Rose Lerner as our guest author. Rose burst onto the scene last year with her debut book, In For A Penny (Amanda listed this book as one of her 2010 favorites). Today Rose will talk about her second book, A Lily Among Thorns.

Praise for A Lily Among Thorns:

"I loved it, even more than I loved In For A Penny...most of all for a heroine who is independent, prickly, and wonderful all at the same time." -- Courtney Milan, author of Unveiled.

"Rose Lerner is masterful at bringing out the details that make characters human, in a way that reminds me of Judith Ivory and Meredith Duran. I highly recommend this novel and can’t wait for her next novel." -- Kat Latham, Reader I created him.

Rose is giving away one signed copy of A Lily Among Thorns to one lucky commenter chosen at random.

A Big Risky Regencies welcome to Rose Lerner!

Tell us about A Lily Among Thorns.

My heroine Serena has been fighting for the past five years to build her hotel's business and to be safe as a woman alone who's known to have once worked as a courtesan. Then Solomon walks back into her life. She's had a secret crush on him for years, ever since he gave her the money she needed to buy back her contract at a brothel, and walked away without touching her. But love, and the vulnerability it brings, terrifies Serena at the best of times--and these are definitely the worst of times. On the heels of Solomon's arrival, she faces a close friend's betrayal, the threat of losing her hotel, French spies, and a whole mess of other things that could bring her carefully constructed life crashing down around her ears.

What inspired this story?

Traditional Regencies, actually. There was a certain type of alpha hero who was very popular for a while: he never ever expressed his emotions. He barely had facial expressions. And sometimes, he had a deep, broad, and often unexplained knowledge of the criminal underworld. He was generally saved from his own self-hatred and isolation by the unconditional acceptance of an innocent but unconventional young woman. And I wanted to see what that would look like with the genders flipped.

The book grew from there, of course, but that was the seed.

What is risky about A Lily Among Thorns?

Three things. First, Serena is an embittered ex-courtesan. Remember that conversation last year about "unlikeable heroines"? (If not, my post on the subject is here, about how difficult it is as a woman to express anger and not feel guilty about it, and it's got links to the original Dear Author post and another post at History Hoydens that I loved.)

Plus, Solomon, my hero, is a beta. He's socially awkward, geeky, doesn't have a ton of experience with women, and he works as a chemist for his uncle's men's tailoring shop. He's got no problem standing up to Serena when it matters (and since she's got some issues, that's more often than you'd think), but he's perfectly content to stand back and let her run the show in the general course of things.

The third thing is that the secondary romance is between two men, but I don't want to say too much about that because there are some major spoilers involved.

Did you come across any interesting research when you were writing A Lily Among Thorns?

Oh, tons! I researched the London criminal world, gay clubs, annulments, chemistry, ethnic diversity in London, women's property rights, who exactly is entitled to be beheaded instead of hanged, drawn, and quartered when convicted of treason, food and kitchens, the Battle of Waterloo...I could go on. If anyone has any questions about any of those things, I'd love to talk about them with you! Here's two interesting things I discovered:

British people in the Regency did eat plenty of foreign-inspired food, especially French food. But it was much rarer than it would be a little later, or now, to refer to them by their foreign names. So when Solomon says he knows how to make crème brûlée, he calls it "burnt cream."

And that story about Nathan Rothschild getting news of Waterloo in advance, tricking everyone at the 'Change into thinking he knew Wellington lost, and then buying up all the consols and seizing control of England's finances? Totally false. Also, when I was researching that, you would not believe how many scary anti-Semitic websites I found that used it as an example of how Jews control the world. Anyway, if you want to hear more, I've got a blog post about it here with lengthy quotes from a Rothschild biography.

I've also got a post on Regency chemistry up over at History Hoydens.

This is your second book, but we at Risky Regencies always love a debut author story. Your debut received some wonderful buzz. Tell us about your journey to publication?

Thank you! I was actually having a really tough time with writing romance when I sold that book. I was having a tough time, period. When I was about a hundred pages into my first draft of In for a Penny, I found out my mom's cancer was back and that she was going to die. I found out she would never get to read the book, and I didn't write a word for about six months. My mom introduced me to romance novels and she was always the person I wrote for, the person I knew would love my books.

Eventually I forced myself to finish a draft but it was like pulling teeth, and once I was done, I couldn't bring myself to edit it. I couldn't even bring myself to reread it. I had a revised first three chapters, though. I promised myself I'd pitch it at the Emerald City Writers Conference, but if I didn't get any requests for a full, I didn't have to look at it ever again.

Well, Leah Hultenschmidt requested the partial, and I sent it to her, and I didn't hear back. I figured, okay, that's it then. I didn't revise it, I didn't send it out, and I didn't start my next book, either. I thought maybe it was the end of the line for me and historical romance. Maybe the spark was gone. Heck, it wasn't like anyone would ever want to publish me anyway.

Then about six months later, Leah requested the full. For a minute there, I was actually kind of mad. I still didn't believe she was going to buy it, and now I had to go through this whole grueling process and it would all be for nothing, right? But when I read the book again, I kind of liked it. Yeah, it needed a lot of work, but I could fix it. So I dived in, cleaned it up, sent it off, even got my groove back enough to start a new book...and it turned out the spark wasn't gone at all. I just needed to believe that someone might someday read what I was writing. I just needed to believe that someone might love it.

And then Leah called and said she wanted to buy In for a Penny, and the rest is history!

What is next for you?

I'm not sure. I'm almost done with a draft of a book about the 1812 Parliamentary general election. By the local rules of her town, the middle-class heroine's husband would be eligible for a vote…if she were married. The younger-son-of-an-earl hero is sent to the town to find the heroine a husband, but of course he falls in love with her himself! But it's not sold yet so I don't actually know yet if it will be my next book out or when it will be available. I'll keep you posted!

There's plenty to comment about from this interview. Rose's emotional debut story. The risks she took in this book. The research, especially about the Rothschilds. The whole issue of unlikeable heroines. So there's no excuse not to leave a comment and earn a chance to win a copy of A Lily Among Thorns.

Or ask Rose a question! She's coming back from a conference today, but will check in during the evening.

It's not really about the 50,000 words

I don't participate in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo, often abbreviated to NaNo) every year. For two years, dealing with my husband's stroke has made writing impossible. At other times, like this year, I've been in editing mode, which is a NaNo no-no. The goal is 50,000 words of a new novel.

But I've done NaNo three times, "won" twice by hitting the 50,000 wordcount mark, but had a blast each time.

I have heard detractors of NaNo say that it's a waste of time, that participants produce 50,000 words of garbage that are promptly forgotten, etc... What I say is it's great for people who always said they wanted to write a novel to give it a try. If nothing else, they learn something about the work of writing and themselves. But it can also be a boon to serious aspiring writers.

If you are the sort of writer who strives to get every chapter right before moving on to the next--and I know several successful, published authors who work this way--NaNo is probably not for you. Unless you have a lot of time and are a fast writer, you may not be able to write as cleanly as you like and still reach the 50,000 word goal.

But if you are like me and many other writers, NaNo is the opportunity to get in a good chunk of first draft. IMHO it's not about writing 50,000 words that can be submitted to an agent or publisher; it's about generating ideas and learning about one's characters.

I find the wordcount goal helps me to focus on that, by ignoring things I can fix later: awkward sentences, background research that doesn't affect the plot, bits of dialogue that don't feel period, etc... Although sometimes nuggets of "keeper" prose sneak in, they are just a bonus. What matters is coming out with a lot of new ideas I can use in writing the next draft.

Some people don't have as good an experience with NaNo as they'd hoped. I've heard them complain that they started generating pages of blather just to reach their daily wordcount goals. My advice to anyone this happens to is to stop. You need to forget the wordcount at that point, because you may be bogging down on something important. It's likely you've lost touch with your characters.

It's time to back away, take a walk, have a cup of tea, brainstorm with a friend, do a character interview or a Goal/Motivation/Conflict chart as in Deb Dixon's book. Anything that will get energy back into the story. If you solve it, you may be behind on your pagecount but you'll be closer to the real goal of NaNo. IMHO a lesser wordcount and a lot of good ideas are worth more than a winner's certificate and 50,000 words of a story you've lost interest in.

But you also may find that your enthusiasm for the story will rebound and you may end up with the certificate too.

So that's my tuppence on NaNoWriMo. Anyone heading into it, good luck and have fun!

Elena
www.elenagreene.com
www.facebook.com/ElenaGreene

Vanity Fare to be Published!

So this was made official yesterday:

Megan Frampton writing as Megan Caldwell's VANITY FARE, about a 40-year-old Brooklyn mother, recently divorced with a son, who starts writing copy for a bakery, discovers a knack for food-related literary puns, and becomes entangle in a love triangle, to Wendy Lee at William Morrow, in a nice deal, by Louise Fury at L. Perkins Agency (World).

And it was inspired, surprisingly, by that mid-nineteenth century (in)famous classic, Wuthering Heights. I have a friend, an old friend from high school, who comes over every so often to watch period dramas and drink wine. One evening we chose Wuthering Heights, starring Laurence Olivier. I was in midst pour when I said, "Hey, how about Mothering Heights?"

And the idea for the book was born.

I then giggled a lot, told a few people--including an acquaintance of mine, a literary agent--and they all said, "Wow! You have to write that!" The literary agent was very enthused, which gave me impetus to go on.

Then I employed the Carolyn Jewel method: The "What If?" application.

What if my husband left me?

What if I had to do something to make money?

What if I met a few good-looking men?

What if I had to do things I wouldn't do in a million years?

I started writing. The book was originally titled Mothering Heights, but we changed it as we got closer to a deal.

So in about a year, a trade paperback will come out, all started by some wine, a good friend, and my ability to rhyme.

Sex, money, and physicality

Amanda mentioned in her post about JASNA that one of the highlights was Andrew Davies' presentation in which he talked about his Austen screenplays. He's such a good speaker that I found myself writing notes--oh my gosh, I must tell the Riskies about this!--and so I thought I'd share what he said about his various screenplays, and also about the cast and crew comments that prompted changes and rewrites (as well as the inside jokes). First, he has a huge oeuvre--minds out of the gutter ladies, although he'd probably appreciate it--check it out. He's got a lot of projects on the boil including a novel based on his childhood as well as other screenplays. I asked him if he'd tackle Mansfield Park because I think he could do amazing things with it and he said he was asked that fairly often. (I also told him I was chaperoning Amanda and not to squeeze her too tightly when we were photographed together.)

Talking of photos, mine were abysmal, so I borrowed this one from Austenprose (thanks, Laurel Ann!). This was taken on the grand parade in Sundance Square. Now I do have to admit that some things about the conference were a bit weird, like running into people who wore their regency stuff all the time even outside the hotel. But on Sunday night when we were all dressed up we had an official parade outside where people took our pics and seemed entertained/bemused. Mr. Davies, as guest of honor, was escorted by two lovely tall blonde Texans who were dressed up in their western gear (and honest, in Texas you do get dressed up in a stetson and cowboy boots. It can look very chic). You can't see it in the pic but their Stetsons featured flashing jewels and they claimed to be the Blingley Sisters.

The conference was about Sense & Sensibility and Mr. Davies explained that he started his screenplay with Willoughby seducing Eliza because this--not the Dashwood deaths with which the book begins--for him is the real start of the story. It was very much an anti-Willoughby interpretation--he described him as "a glamorous shit"--but like many of us he had problems with this novel. It's too much "about girls filling in their time waiting by the phone for unsatisfactory men who don't respond in the right way."

And then there's Edward--how do you explain a hero who's too scared to break off an engagement to a woman he no longer loves, and lies to and deceives both her and the woman he really does love? So he inserted a scene in which Edward pours out his heart to Elinor about his family's expectations and how he wants to be a simple country parson--heck, they virtually do each others' nails--which naturally led the women involved in the production to complain that now he wasn't butch enough. Hence the woodchopping scene (ooh, wet shirt), inspired by a woodcutting scene in Davies' favorite movie, Shane. Incidentally, if you are familiar with English slang you'll appreciate the hilarity of the cast when Fanny['s] hair was mentioned.

I also loved what he had to say about Emma, which was the underappreciated version starring Kate Beckinsale. There's a very long and funny story about the scene with Emma, Knightley and the baby which I won't relate here, but he had these extremely perceptive comments about the novel:

She's a fearful snob with no insight whatsoever who treats other people as though they were dolls or toys. Either she's very young and a slow developer, or she's an artist, a creator, a novelist who's too lazy to write... Austen always has a girl or two who are disadvantaged and succeed despite the efforts of a rich bitch...

in this case the rich bitch is our heroine Emma and the disadvantaged girl Jane Fairfax:

Jane Fairfax is possessed of a deep and passionate nature. She's had the misfortune to fall in love with a handsome psychopath; she's sexually in thrall to a man she has little respect for.

He believes Frank did seduce her in Weymouth and he also mused on Mr. Knightley visiting the Woodhouses every day for years. Why? Not to visit Mr. Woodhouse, surely. He proposed a Tennessee Williams-like scenario in which the young Mr. Knightley visited Mrs. Woodhouse and then transferred his affections to her daughter (hopefully after Emma was 16 or so). Yikes.

And, oh yes, P&P, wet shirt and all, and the title of this post is what Davies saw as the governing idea behind the book--sex, money, and physicality. It explains why he saw the beginning of the story, not with the famous quote, but with Bingley leasing Netherfield, hence masculine guys galloping around on big horses (with Elizabeth being "strangely excited" when she sees them from a distance).

After that it was a question of finding as many opportunities as possible for undressing. The film crew referred to his frequent scenes where Lizzy and Jane exchange confidences in their nightgowns as "hair and shoulders shots."

He decided to bring Georgianna much more into the story, originally to show "Darcy being tender with girls." As he pointed out, until Georgianna shows up we're not even sure Darcy likes women. But I was surprised to learn that his favorite scene is with Georgianna, Elizabeth, Darcy and the Bingleys and as it opens Elizabeth sings an aria from The Marriage of Figaro. As Georgianna plays next, Miss Bingley makes snide comments about the regiment moving to Brighton and brings up Wickham's name. Georgianna stumbles on a note at the piano and Elizabeth moves in to protect her, apologizing that she should have realized the music was too difficult to play without someone to turn the pages. She and Darcy exchange one of those long, significant glances (ooh).

What's your favorite Davies' screenplay? And do you agree or disagree with what he said about the novels?

Alert! Last day to enter the contest on my website (yes I know it says October 26 but it's still up so go for it) and you have a chance to win a copy of Jane Austen: Blood Persuasion at My Jane Austen Book Club.

A Scandal That Lasted into the Regency

My book by Brooks's about Brooks's sidetracked me right away. This story is about a Georgian-era sociopath. The woman, the Countess of Strathmore, is villified throughout even though it's painfully clear she was a victim.

A: The Countess of Strathmore - Lady Strathmore married secondly Lieut. Robinson Stoney, who assumed the surname of Bowes, “than whom a more consummate villain never went through this world unhorsewhipped, and left it unhung.” Her history as the wife of this ruffian forms one of the most extraordinary romances of modern times.
See Lives of A. R. Bowes and the Countess of Strathmore by Jesse Foot, 1812 (Here's a link to the book in Google Books) also Fordyce, History of Durham/
This marriage is believed to have suggested to Thackery the character of "Barry Lyndon."

empahsis added. Because it's true.

A Romance? No. Just, no. (Edited to add: Yes, I know Romance is not being used here in today's sense. But to imply it's a great story eviscerates the horror of what this man did and was.)



According to this account, as quite a young man Bowes married an heiress and once, in a fit of violent rage, pushed her down some stairs. She died shortly thereafter, but it's not clear this was soon after (because of injuries) or some time after. Basically, we are to understand he was a violent man:





Anyway the Countess of Strathmore had been widowed for nine months...

Besides his Lordship having died so unexpectedly and in the prime of life the affairs of income were left perplexing and some of his own estates in Scotland were obliged to be sold and it was from serious reflection that the late Lord's friends saw that a second marriage even with any body was against their and the children's interest

Therefore when the Countess was addressed by Mr Gray they kept aloof and when she was abused and vilified attacked and defended in the Morning Print during the months of November and December previous to her marriage with BOWES in January they thinking that the abuse was useful to prevent the uiiion of Gray with the Countess suffered it to go on without the least opposition rather pleased at the treatment she met and for thus saying I have the authority to tell that the friend in Palace Yard and myself saw one of these attacks in manuscript before it was ever sent to the printer It was a letter condemning the Counters on her conduct towards her late Lord and comparing her with the QUEEN in HAMLET for being about to marry a second so soon after the death of her first husband and this letter was written and published under the signature of HAMLET

Bowes is plotting it seems...

The family now in the Square consisted of the Countess, Mrs Parish, the governess of the children, Miss Eliza Planta, sister to the governess and confidante of the Countess secretly in the interest of Bowes, the Rev Mr Stephens just now about to be married to Miss Eliza Planta, also in the interest of Bowes, the chief visitors of the family were Mr Magra a botanist and friend of Dr Solander and Mr Matra a consul at Barbary. These besides accidental visitors were the DRATMATIS PERSONAE at the Temple of Folly in Grosvenor Square.

Still plotting.....

Another stratagem he brought to his aid. Knowing that the Countess entertained romantic and visionary notions of things, he had a conjuror tutored to his wishes and got Miss P to make a party with the Countess and some others to have their fortunes told.

Not safe from his Clutches

The countess goes to visit her mother in Paul's Walden, and Bowes sends her a letter that reads in part:

I am all impatience to see your Ladyship. I really cannot wait till Saturday. I must have five minutes chat with you before that time. You will think me whimsical but upon Thursday next at one o clock I shall be in the garden at PAUL'S WALDEN.  There is a leaden statue or there was formerly and near that spot (for it lives in my remembrance) I shall wait; and can I presume that you will condescend to know the place? Eliza shall be our excuse for this innocent frolic and the civilities shall never be erased from the remembrance of your faithful &c

 Then, it seems, Bowes contrives to undermine his competition, the Mr. Grey her family originally objected to, by have a letter sent to her by another woman, that reads in part:

One moment's pause in the prosecution of your present cruel resolution may save me from destruction and make your character immortal. Cultivate Mr Gray's affections because your late Lord's friends and relations will accept of him as your husband but not of Captain S------. It is impossible that Mr Gray should keep these secrets from you. Mr Gray has had the address (which my simple and easy fool never could obtain) of first establishing his pretensions to you upon the confidence and zeal of your late Lord's relations and friends Mr L---- Mr and Mrs O----- and Lady A S-----. It is with their warm approbation that he has wisely made his way to your heart. Plunge not therefore an artless hopeless desponding and forsaken maiden as I am into destruction and utter but restore some ray of comfort to the unfortunate.
     S

Which is pretty dang devious . . .  But then the narrative blathers on a bit and then this:

Of the person of the Countess when 1 first saw her I shall as far as I recollect give a description. It was the morning after the duel that she entered Bowes's apartment at the St James's Coffee House. [More blathering, basically the author goes on to say the Countess was hot and and a great rack.]

A duel

WTF? What duel??  Anyway, there's this duel with swords AND pistols. They were effing serious, these guys. They fought at the Adelphi Tavern and someone shot a mirror. One Rev. Mr. B------ was not badly injured but Bowes was not so well off, according to the doctor (the author, Jesse Foot):

[U]pon examination I saw the wound on his right breast from whence the blood was then trickling upon a closer inspection I saw two wounds on the substance of the right breast about four inches distance from each other in an oblique line with each other. As I was given to understand that swords had been used as well as pistols and as I saw the swords one of which had been bent I never have had any other opinion but that these two wounds on the breast were made by the point of the sword passing in at the one and coming out at the other. There was another wound but not so important. His opponent was also wounded and by the wound being externally on the right thigh it excited considerable pain from the anatomical nature of the part and though not dangerous required rest and care to prevent inflammation.

However, both the duelists recovered and denied both the duel AND the wounds.

It's all about the money . . .

The duel, however, took place before the marriage with the rival Gray unaware Bowes intended to marry the Countess. For her money. they were married 4 days after the duel after which he took possession of her Grosvenor Square house and its contents.

The purpose of the trial when the witness I allude to was called to prove that Bowes was not wounded was to recover estates mdde over to Bowes by the Countess in May 1777, a few months after their marriage in order that he might raise money upon them and when the Countess escaped from Bowes in the year 1785 and swore the peace against him these estates were claimed from Bowes founded upon the proof that they were obtained from her not with her fair consent but by ill usage and compulsion.

 
Lady Strathmore's mother dies of the shock of the marriage. Then Bowes basically takes what he can get from and for the Grosvenor Square house, gives Mr. Gray 12,000 pounds (to get lost??) and spends the rest and the house is soon deserted. They move a couple times and four months later (!!) the countess delivers a baby. So yeah. Either there's a missing 5 months or . . . .

Spending the Money . . .

Anyway, stuff happens. Bowes is busy decimating his wife's fortune and, it kind of seems, the fortune of anyone else dumb enough to lend him money. If something can be sold, Bowes is selling it. He's like this Georgian Nigerian scammer, writing letters about how he'll unload property X for a bargain rate and YOU CAN KEEP THE PROFIT!  (I put in the caps for effect.)

Also, he's taking out a lot of insurance on Lady S's life. That can't be good:

I shall take it as a favour if you will the persons you employ in this business to write me occasionally to mention what progress make as well as to send me a list of the they may have procured for though Lady more is in PERFECT HEALTH yet as she is child. I am determined to insure her life if I can do it for three guineas and I trust you will use your utmost to have this matter properly accomplished for me with all possible expedition.

There are several more letters asking if the insurance had been obtained yet. 18,000 pounds worth. Then it gets a bit dull, what with all his letters asking for money really what's the deal, you won't lose a penny....  Then Bowes wants control of  his wife's daughters by Lord Strathmore. They already have guardians, but he's scheming to get his hands on their money. Any money, really:

Escape?

The countess manages to make an escape and, it seems, gets legal protection from the duke of Norfolk and a court appointed bailiff. Bowes has also knocked up a maid. Actually, several maids. Then he plots the kidnap of his wife.  She's in a carriage, on Highgate Hill, and he basically takes over the carriage.  The next day, they're 195 miles from London. He has her for 11 days, and beats her and threatens to kill her if she won't sign papers to stop the legal (separation) proceeding against him and agree to live with him as his wife. Several times. It's horrifying, actually.

People are getting a bit upset about this, so he makes two servanst pretend to be him and his wife so that everyone thinks things are fine. What he does next is can only be described as torture.

She manages to escape and get back to London and the legal proceedings against her husband. He gets find 300 pounds, sentenced to 3 years in prison, and afterward post bonds of 15,000 pounds to stay away from the Countess for 14 years. She obtained a separation and a divorce.

While in prison, Bowes managed to seduce a young lady and lived with her afterward as well. He had five children with her while he kept her more or less a prisoner:

Upon the sickness of her children I happened to see her a few times but it was impossible to say one word more to her than what belonged to the case as Bowes was always present hurried the visit as much as possible locked the door and took the key in his pocket.

The countess died in 1800, and Bowes attempted to gain control of her remaining property, chiefly rents from properties he extorted from her.

It is my duty here to observe that Mr Scott who formerly had been Bowes's counsel and to whose name Bowes had so often referred in his letters to his friend from Paris was the now Lord Eldon the Lord Chancellor before whom the revived litigation was to be heard he having succeeded the Lord Rosslyn and that Lord Eldon from motives of the nicest delicacy upon the hearings of the Lord Ross lyn's LATENT ORDER called the master of the Rolls Sir William Grant to be present with him during the hearing of this cause. (emphasis added).

He spent a lot of time scheming and suing and behaving like the sociopath he seems to have been. He died on January 16, 1810 and was buried on the 23rd.

My final thoughts

1. I am damn glad I live in a time when the laws concerning women are more equitable.

2. I think we should all spend a moment or two remembering Mr. Bowes as the monster he was. He deserves to be held in contempt.

Halloween!

So next M0nday is my very favorite holiday--Halloween! Unlike, say, Christmas or Thanksgiving, there is no weird family stuff, no obligations, no gifts to buy, just candy and dressing up and fun. I love it--especially the dressing up! This year I am going to be a French maid, if my modiste finishes my costume on time...

Halloween has its origins about 2000 years ago, in the Celtic festival of Samhain (summer's end). It marked the death of summer and the beginning of the new year, and the boundaries between life and death were thought to be thinner. It was a moment of change, of magic and supernatural power. The Romans adapted this into the harvest festival of Pomona, goddess of the harvest, and the Christians made it All Soul's Day. Trick or treat has its origins in the Middle Ages, in parades where the poor would go door to door begging for "soul cakes" in return for prayers for the cake-givers' deceased relatives.

I've been doing lots of research on the Victorian era for my current WIPs, and like so many Victorian holidays Halloween became a bigger deal during the later 19th century than it had been before. The Victorians loved any excuse to have a party, and they also loved spooky, ghost-y things (seances, mediums, mourning jewelry, etc). Halloween became more romantic and sentimental, centering around divination games (like the "looking glass spell," where a girl could see her future husband in a mirror), harvest-type games like bobbing for apples, ghost story-telling, and general partying with friends. There are some adorable Victorian Halloween postcards!

So to celebrate the holiday, let's look at some examples of mourning jewelry and those adorable postcards....














BTW,for a good site about Victorian mourning jewelry you can go here...

What are you doing this Halloween? Any mirror games??

Jane Austen Made Me Do It Winner

Kasey A, you're the winner!

Please send your contact info to riskies@ yahoo.com and we'll forward it on to Laurel Ann Nattress.

Vauxhall Gardens

Last week I wrote a version of this blog for my Harlequin Historical Authors Blog, but I thought some of our readers here might have missed it. I wrote about a book I thought so wonderful, I wanted to be sure everyone interested in the Regency heard about it. My thanks to the Beau Monde member who mentioned it first (Isobel Carr/Kalen Hughes, perhaps?).

The book is a new research book, Vauxhall Gardens: A History by David Coke and Alan Borg, a coffee-table sized volume brimming with everything you'd want to know about these historical pleasure gardens. It was worth every penny I spend on it and I spent a lot of pennies!

I think of Vauxhall Gardens as the Disneyland of its time, a place people of all walks of life and social classes flock to for recreation, to see wonders that thrill, amaze, or simply entertain them. Things like fireworks and tightrope walkers, musical performances, frescos made so real you felt transported to a different land, spooky dark walks featuring a hermit at the end. There was food special to the place, just like the special foods we find at amusement parks or State Fairs. Paper-thin slices of ham, tiny whole chickens, orgeat (the soft drink of the day), poor quality wines, cider and ale.

Jonathan Tyers opened Vauxhall Gardens in 1729 and from the first made no distinctions between the classes. Everyone paid the same price of admission, so from the first, the classes mixed in the various entertainments like a Venetian Carnival. Throughout the years Vauxhall Gardens entertained visitors with music, a mix of performances from serious styles of music to light-hearted popular tunes of the day. A grand organ was included. Handel was featured. Popular vocalists appeared.

Artwork was always a part of the gardens, including paintings by Hogarth and sculpture. A statue of Handel came to personify Vauxhall and remained in the gardens most of its almost 200 years.

Other entertainments appeared, some from the beginning and some as years went on. Fireworks. Fountains. Lamps which were lit all at once. A rope dancer named Madame Saqui. I once mentioned Madame Saqui in one of my books and received a letter from a reader in the UK whose last name was Saqui. She'd not known of this possible ancestor until reading of her in my book

I love using Vauxhall Gardens as a setting in my books. Flynn, my hero in Innocence and Impropriety became smitten with Rose as she sang at Vauxhall Gardens. In A Reputable Rake, Morgana brought her courtesan students to Vauxhall Gardens to practice their lessons. A masked Graham Veall chose Vauxhall Gardens as a place to meet Margaret and hire her as a temporary mistress in my homage to Phantom of the Opera, The Unlacing of Miss Leigh.

I'm using Vauxhall Gardens again in Leo's story, the last of the Welbourne Manor books, due to be released in 2012. This book is set in 1828 and I was delighted that my new research tome could give me detailed information of what happened at Vauxhall Gardens that year.

New was the Grand Hydropyric Exhibition, consisting of cascades of colored fire and water. A new vaudeville called The Statue Lover was introduced, as well as a short comic ballet called The Carnival of Venice. Even though there had been complaints of excessive noise the previous year, a reenactment of the Battle of Waterloo took place on the battle's anniversary. They also introduced a lottery with dozens of different prizes.

I may not use any of those new entertainments in the book, but I did learn that Vauxhall Gardens did not open until June 4 of 1828. I'd set my story in May of that year, but now have moved it to the end of the London Season (because I like to be as faithful to history as I can be)

We're all probably thinking of fall holidays instead of summer amusement parks like Vauxhall, but Vauxhall's Dark Walk to visit the hermit could be akin to a ghost ride on Halloween. Or a Hay Ride, because a lot of hanky-panky went on on the Dark Walk.

Are you planning any Fall holiday outings? This Friday I'm going to the Library of Congress to hear my friend Carol Brown talk about costuming for places such as Dragoncon or the Renaissance Fair (12 noon in the Pickford Theatre and open to the public for any of you in Washington, DC)

On Halloween, Risky friend Michelle Willingham has gotten a bunch of us to have a Trick or Treat contest. Deb Marlowe is one of the "houses" for Trick or Treat, and my friend Darlene Gardner who writes for Superromance. We'll all have prizes. Hey, Halloween is my next blogging day! I'll have to try to find a Regency connection to Halloween. Check my website soon for complete details.

I also have a new contest going on my website. My September book, Valiant Soldier, Beautiful Enemy, is still available online, and don't miss my October 2011 Undone short estory, The Liberation of Miss Finch.

October Overload

October started out well enough. I had a slight cold, but the writing was going well and one weekend, I got out to pick apples and late raspberries with my daughters. The following evening, we made fruit crisp with vanilla ice cream. Yum!

Then my cold worsened into a sinus infection and I dragged for a while. Fortunately, this week I’m feeling better and working on catching up on everything I dropped, also getting back to exercize and writing. I’m feeling well enough to (perhaps foolishly) volunteer for stuff. A misunderstanding amongst volunteers has left our church Halloween Party hanging by a thread. It’s a much-loved event, the highlight being a Haunted House constructed by our very talented youth group. So when it seemed in danger of not happening, I stepped in for what my oldest called “a noble rescue”. That has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?

So I’m sorry I’ve had no time to write a well-researched post on Halloween or Samhain customs and what people would have done at this season during the Regency! I’m too busy making plans for food, activities and crafts. I’m also finishing up costumes for my kids. Once again, the theme is Star Trek, though this year they aren’t going to “be” Vulcans.

I don’t always dress up, although one year, strapped for time, I went as a Tired Mom in bathrobe and slippers, bearing a ginormous mug of coffee. This time, since I’m coordinating the party, I’m feeling the urge to do something more special. Since my daughters aren’t using their Vulcan ears, I am thinking about borrowing them and going as some sort of Vulcan matriarch. T’Pau would be cool and properly intimidating to any rowdy kids, but the costume looks a bit complicated. And could I find two hunky Vulcan dudes to carry me in? I need to think about this some more!

What have you been busy with this October? Any costumes or other fun stuff in your plans?

Elena

www.elenagreene.com

www.facebook.com/ElenaGreene

Jane Austen Made Her Do It

Today's guest is someone I've known online for sometime but met in person just this last weekend at the JASNA-AGM in Fort Worth, TX: Laurel Ann Nattress, the editor of a fabulous anthology of Austen-inspired stories, Jane Austen Made Me Do It (and I'm one of the authors!). We had a terrific book launch party for JAMMDI, my Jane Austen: Blood Persuasion, and the newest release from another anthology contributor, Carrie Bebris' The Affair at Lime.

A life-long acolyte of Jane Austen, Laurel Ann Nattress is the author/editor of Austenprose a blog devoted to the oeuvre of her favorite author and the many books and movies that she has inspired. She is a life member of the Jane Austen Society of North America, a regular contributor to the PBS blog Remotely Connected and the Jane Austen Centre online magazine. An expatriate of southern California, Laurel Ann lives in a country cottage near Snohomish, Washington. Visit Laurel Ann at her blogs Austenprose and JaneAustenMadeMeDoIt, on Twitter as @Austenprose, and on Facebook as Laurel Ann Nattress.

Tell us the story behind the story--how did this anthology come about?

As a long-time Jane Austen fan, I had read all of her novels numerous times, moved on to the movies and sequels, and started my blog, Austenprose, in 2007. While working with Austenesque authors on publicity for their books, I began to see a thread that connected them all together. What if I edited an anthology of short stories inspired by Austen? At that time, there were many sequels and Austen-inspired novels in print, but no short story collections. My biggest challenge was how to get it published. I had no idea, but asked authors Diana Birchall, Margaret Sullivan and Laurie Viera Rigler for advice. Before I could reach out to anyone with my book proposal, I received an email from an agent of an author who I was working with on my blog thanking me for the great job I had done his client publicize the book. I saw an opportunity and immediately wrote back and pitched my anthology. He was an Austen fan too and immediately loved the idea. Within a week, I had my deal with Ballantine. It was just too surreal.

You've anticipated my usual question of whether your book was a hard sell, but that's an awesome story. Congratulations!

My “road to publication” story is one in a million. When I started my blog years ago, I never dreamed that it would culminate into a book, but it did. One hears horror stories of how authors pitching their novels for years and enduring painful rejections and multiple rewrites before they capture the deal. Many times it never happens. The industry can be brutal. After my deal with Ballantine closed, I felt terribly guilty for about five minutes. I had to remember that I had been working diligently for years and give myself credit for developing relationships with so many of the Austenesque authors. I also had to credit the Fates. My number was up and all my stars and planets were in perfect alignment.

The thought of doing what you did (and dealing with people like me) terrifies me: was it really like herding cats?

Oh Janet. You are such a card. Authors difficult? Naw! You are not the first person to liken authors to herding cats. I am a cat lover, so it was not a challenge. ;-)

I was all prepared for diva dramatics, but they did not materialize. Sorry to disappoint, but you were a charm to work with, and so were all other twenty-three authors! Luckily, we had many months to develop stories and edit them. I credit my editor at Ballantine for giving a newbie editor the extra time. It made all the difference in getting stories that the authors had a chance to contemplate and refine before they submitted them. We also allowed a bit of time for rewrites. It was the perfect storm.

Lizzy and Darcy … why do they continue to fascinate us endlessly, as opposed to, for instance, Anne and Wentworth? Do you think another Austen couple could be the next big thing?

Lizzy and Darcy are a hard act to follow. I think that they are legendary because their romance is hard wrought and so satisfying. Lizzy goes from disliking Darcy intensely and rejecting his proposal, to being transformed after seeing his great estate at Pemberley! It may sound mercenary, but in Regency times, a man’s estate was a reflection of his integrity and style. Darcy saving her family’s social reputation by finding the naughty elopees, Lydia and Wickham, and then buying off the groom did not hurt either. It’s hard to pinpoint which of Austen’s couples could ever match them. I don’t think it is possible, but I do root for Catherine and Henry Tilney. Northanger Abbey is terribly underrated and I hope that readers will come to love it and the young hero and heroine more in the future.

Who is your favorite Austen couple?

I tend to like the antagonists in Austen oeuvre more that the feature romantic couple. They can be so much more interesting. Brother and sister Mary and Henry Crawford from Mansfield Park are just twisted enough to be intriguing, and Lady Susan Vernon and Reginald De Courcy in Lady Susan are about as far from innocent star crossed lovers as you can get. I guess you can say I like to be shocked by breaches in propriety – all within the realm of proper Austen decorum mind you! If I had to choose a nice couple to root for, it would be Harriet Smith and Robert Martin from Emma. They end up together after a few detours and their personalities leave the door wide open for some bumps in their married life.

Which is your favorite Austen? Why?

I will be presumptuous and assume that you mean my favorite Jane Austen book, right? Oh this is so hard to choose. I could give the politically correct answer and say that my favorite Jane Austen novel is the one I am currently reading, but I won’t, and will go out on a limb and say it wavers between Mansfield Park and Lady Susan. Are you shocked? Oh, I do dearly love to laugh with Pride and Prejudice and get pierced through my soul with Persuasion, but I am one to root for the underdog, so I will stick with my first choices. Both stories have very strong antagonists that are actually the protagonists. I love that dichotomy.

Which biography of Austen would you recommend?

Definitely Claire Tomalin’s Jane Austen: A Life. Great research and scholarly detail, but told in an interesting fiction-like manner.

Tell us about the pemberley.com contest and the judging process for it.

The Jane Austen Made Me Do It Short Story contest was an incredible challenge for me all around, but it was also great fun too! Jane Austen was devoted to her craft and has been inspiring writers for centuries. A short story contest for unpublished authors was in spirit with her ideals, so I pitched the idea to my editor and she liked it also. We never expected to receive eighty-eight stories! With the help of Myretta Robens at The Republic of Pemberley , we proofed, formatted and posted on the contest board about three quarters of those stories within the last three days! Talk about writers procrastination! The voters narrowed down the list to the Top Ten and my editor and I chose the Grand Prize winner. It was a tough call. I trusted my initial gut reaction to the winning story. The Love Letter by Brenna Aubrey made me cry. It was an incredible debut story that I hope many will have the chance to read.

What's next for you?

Hmm? That’s a tricky question Janet. If I answered you honestly, I would let the cat out of the bag. Since I like to herd cats, I will leave that to your imagination.

Thanks for hosting me today on Riskies during my Grand Tour of the blogosphere in celebration of the release of Jane Austen Made Me Do It. It was a pleasure.

Enter a chance to win one copy of Jane Austen Made Me Do It by leaving a comment by Sunday, October 23, stating what intrigues you about reading an Austen-inspired short story anthology. Winners to be drawn at random and announced on October 25. Shipment to US and Canadian addresses only. Good luck to all!

Books and Stuff about Books

The making of Regency Books from the awesome Regency Redingcote.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE reading about the making of books. Back in 2001, when I was still in grad school, I was researching a Regency era author. Here's a link to an article I wrote for Rakehell.com about the price of Romance.

And boy, it probably won't come as any surprise to authors that publishers in those days took advantage of authors. There wasn't any need to track royalties because publishers acquired the copyright outright. No license. No advance. No foreign rights. No translation rights. If your book ended up selling lots but you sold the copyright for 5 pounds, you were limited to counting what was left of your 5 pounds because you were never going to see a penny of that sales money. That circumstance might put you in a position to sell your next book for more money. Maybe.

It wasn't uncommon to pay for publication yourself, if you had the money, or seek a patron. That's why you can find so many 18th and 19th century books with a lovely dedication to Lord SoandSo, who defrayed or may even have entirely covered the publication costs. I've also seen books that were published by subscription, that is, get enough people to buy the book in advance, and voila, you could publish it. Yes, Kickstarter isn't all that new an idea.

Digital publishing is the first truly significant change to the business of book publishing in centuries, really. For the first time, any author with internet access can put their book into the stream of commerce. Speaking quite literally, it can be done for no money out of pocket, but for time, electricity and possible internet charges. Yes, I know it would be unwise to put out a book with no cover, no editing or proofreading, but it can and has been done.

Authors have always risked anonymity, of course. If you publish a book in the forest of Books and nobody reads it, do the words between the pages actually exist?

For the first time since humans moved away from oral traditions as the primary vehicle for story-telling, ANYONE meeting those minimum requirements (access to a computer and internet) can write and publish a book.

Amazon's change in percentage paid to the author created a set of conditions where Do-It-Yourself publishing can actually be profitable to the author as well as cheaper for the reader. I am, of course, setting aside all those pesky issues of quality, discoverability and talent, because that's not quite the point I'm making.

My point is that for centuries publishing has been a business that didn't change all that much.

And now it has.

So, what would Jane Austen think of publishing today? Would she have self-pubbed Pride and Prejudice?

JASNA Fun!

Happy Tuesday, everyone! I just got back Sunday evening from the JASNA AGM in Fort Worth celebrating the 200th anniversary of Sense and Sensibility, and it was a fabulous time. I met other Janeites (which is a relief to my family, since they get sick of me talking about Austen novels and movies so much! That was not a problem there--no one ever gets sick of Austen in JASNA....), ate some fabulous food, bought too many books and other stuff in the Austen emporoium (including a Pride and Prejudice board book for my one-year-old goddaughter--you can can never start P&P too early!), and got to spend time with Risky Janet (who declared herself my "chaperone" for the Saturday night ball!). It was a great weekend.

Since there were about 10 workshops in each session, I wasn't able to go to everything I wanted. But here are a few things I did make it to:

1) Victoria Hinshaw's "The Sensible Regency Wedding" (Vicky wrote some fabulous Regencies for Kensington, and it was great to get to see her again...plus to hear about respectable and not-so-respectable marriages!)

2) "Chawton House Library Asks; Are You An Elinor or a Marianne?" (actually a discussion of the vogue for "sister novels" and their meanings in the Romantic age. I especially enjoyed hearing about a short 37-page story titled The Castle of Montabino, an adventure story involving scandal, kidnappings, ghosts, good and evil twins, and moral lessons...)

3) "Sense and Sensibility as Austen's Problem Novel"

4) Plus workshops on snuff and cravats, Fanny Burney, horrid novels, the Emma Thompson adaptation, and Austen's writing income (among other things!).

I did not dance much on Saturday, but I think Janet did not sit out a set! And I tried my hand at cards but was pretty hopeless at it (as usual). And I loved looking at all the wonderful gowns...

I think the highlight of the conference was listening to Andrew Davies in his lecture "Mr Darcy's Wet Shirt and Other Embarrassments: Some Pleasures and Pitfalls in Austen Adaptations"--he was so much fun to listen to. Janet and I decided they should have a whole conference centered around watching the adaptations while he told anecdotes and insights.

I am still tired from all the adventures this weekend! I had to force myself to get up off the couch (where I had laid down to watch my S&S DVDs) and get back to writing today, but I'm also feeling very inspired.



What would you want to do if you went to the JASNA AGM? What workshops would you like to see? Which is your favorite film adaptation???

A Medieval Adventure

This weekend I attended my husband's family reunion in New Jersey near the Jersey shore, about 25 members in all, some from up and down the east coast, some from the west coast. On Saturday some of us drove into NYC and toured the Cloisters, the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Medieval museum.

The park and building that houses the medieval collection were donated by Rockefeller and opened in 1938. The building was inspired by medieval architecture and covers collections from 1000 AD to the 1500s.

It was a real step back into that time period and all I could think of was how I wished my medieval author friends could see this place!

Here is some of what I saw:

A French Chapter House from the twelfth century -

The monks sat on the stone benches around the room for business meetings.

A Spanish fresco, ca. 1200s

My husband taking photos on the West Terrace overlooking the water.

Look what a beautiful day it was!

A painted box, ca 1200s, depicting the capture of Orange

The Unicorn in Captivity, ca. 1500s

A familiar image!

It was a wonderful day!

Have you ever discovered history when you least expected it?

Look for a new contest from me this week at my website. The current contest ends today! Enter now!!

Musings on reader reviews

Now and then, writers' groups will discuss reader reviews, the sort posted on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads and other places. Negative reader reviews can cause angst, especially among new authors.

Although I once hoped to learn from reviews, I've found that is tricky unless there are enough reviews to show trends. Looking at individual reviews, one reader will love exactly the aspects of a story that another hates. I don’t think readers should be expected to be objective, not when professional reviewers often disagree. Objectivity isn’t the point, I think. Customer reviews are about voicing opinions and when possible, discussing them. In my opinion, that’s a good thing.

I don’t often post reviews myself, because it takes time away from writing and reviewing fellow authors could lead to all sorts of awkwardness. I do make an exception for books I love, especially if I feel they haven't gotten the attention they deserve.

Would I make any rules for customer reviews? I’m not sure.

I recently heard that on some sites, there are customer reviews posted before the book is released or even before advance review copies (ARCs) are available. This one is pretty easy. I really don’t think anyone should review a book without having read it!

But does one have to finish? Personally, I wouldn’t review a book (or score it in a contest) without reading all of it. But a few years ago, I decided that I don’t have to finish a book I’m reading for pleasure if it isn’t delivering. I'll always read at least a few chapters; there are books on my keeper shelf that I thought started slow. But if I’m not enjoying a book by about a third of the way in, I don't force myself to read the rest. So by my rules, I’d never give a book less than a 3. But maybe it's OK for readers in general to say “I couldn’t finish” (and the why of it would be helpful).

As for virulently angry reviews, authors benefit by being philosophical about them. Everyone gets savaged once in a while. There was a reviewer who said my first book gave her a headache; it hurt, being an early review, but I felt better when I found out she’d also given 1’s to books by Mary Balogh, Mary Jo Putney and a number of other favorite authors. It's all in the free expression of opinion.

Anyway, I wouldn’t make any rules other than those usually in place (don't change the facts, no personal attacks). You can hate the book, but don’t hate the author.

So readers, if one of my books ever starts to give you a headache, I give you permission to stop reading, right away. Then write a scathing review if it will help, but a nice, hot cup of tea might help, too. :)

How about you? Do you have any personal rules for reviewing, or rules you think others should follow?

Elena
www.elenagreene.com
www.facebook.com/ElenaGreene

Photo by Laurel Fan

One for the Book

Apologies for missing last Friday--I wish I could say I was swept up in some fabulous adventure, but I was working, got busy, and totally flaked.

But anyhoo. I am here now, and that is all to the good.

Today, this afternoon, in fact, I am getting a second tattoo to join the first I got with fellow Risky Carolyn Jewel (Amanda has promised to consider it when we are together, too). My first is a hosta plant on my right hip, a tribute to my maternal grandmother, who was a hosta proselytizer (say it out loud, it rolls right off the tongue!) in her adopted home of Minnetonka Beach, MN.

The second will be visible, unlike the first, on my left wrist. It'll be a two inch by one and a half inch picture of a book, very similar--exactly like, in fact--the picture above. This one is inspired by my dad, an unrepentant bibliophile, albeit a non-fiction one. My dad would likely chastise me for doing something like this, but also be secretly pleased at the honor. Loving books is definitely something he passed on to me, and it's been a good thing in so many ways. I figure, too, I'll never tire of books like I might, say, if I got my favorite band tattooed on my arm back in the day.

Plus I've been assured it won't be as painful to get as the one on my hip, which is apparently one of the most painful spots. I like that I will always have a book, no matter where I am.

If I can, I'll post pics of the actual thing next week.

What have you done to honor or pay tribute to people you love?

A preview of my corset!

Here is my corset! Brand new, picked up last night from the staymaker, an amazing lady who outfits many museums and costumed reenactors in the area. She machine stitches anything that's not visible and hand stitches the rest and the quality of her work is awesome.

She is the only person to whom I say upon arrival, "Shall I take off my bra?"

She also made me a linen shirt and altered my gown, because (ahem) I'd put on a bit of weight AND with two layers of sturdy twill plus boning you need some extra space.

Interesting things about my corset:

• It's front-lacing.
• It really is that short and wide. So am I.
• It fastens with a single length of tape threaded into a bodkin that Homeland Security may not like.
• When it's on I can't see my knees and
• in true Regency style I could balance a can of beer on my bosom

I'm taking a camera so next week expect many interesting pics of me and Amanda in our finery. I have a fabulous headdress made out of Christmas stuff. I'm so excited about this conference--seeing Amanda, meeting Laurel Ann Nattress who's my guest next week and having a book launch party, so if you're in Fort Worth, TX please come on over tomorrow and say hi! Details here (scroll down) and on my website where you can also enter my contest, find me on my blog tour and read about JANE AUSTEN: BLOOD PERSUASION.
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