Rachel Rossano's Blog, page 13

Changing Things Up!

I grew tired of drawing simple checks on my son's progress sheet. He gets a check for a day of "doing his best" at schoolwork, which means he had a good attitude and tried hard.
(c) 2013 Rachel RossanoHe is suddenly very interested in getting more checks just to see what mom will draw next. Who knew my mediocre drawing skills would be so useful for motivating my son. :)

Medieval Word Wednesday - Dining Part 2

See page for author [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
Where one sat in the great hall and what kind of food was provided was greatly determined by class in that time. If you were of importance (in the church) or of high rank, your place would be at the high table or lord's table on a raised dais of wood or stone at one end of the hall. All those who were not noble or in possession of a high position in the church were seated on the tables that filled the rest of the hall.

Wine wasn't kept longer than a year because of inadequate means of sealing containers. After that time, it became undrinkable. Ale was drunk mainly by the servants and made mostly from barley, wheat, or oats and sometimes all three.

Contrary to some presentations of medieval eating manners, the service of food and etiquette of eating was quite carefully defined and followed. Part of a squire's training was learning exactly how to serve at table. The broth of soups were sipped while the solid bits eaten with a spoon. Meat was cut with a knife and then eaten with the fingers. When sharing a dish, the younger served the older and the man served the lady. Everything was adjusted according to importance and rank.

A great emphasis was laid on clean hands and nails. In fact there was general handwashing before meals.

- Above is summarized from Life in a Medieval Castle by Joseph and Frances Gies

Updates!

Events Updates
Wow! There is a lot going on in the next couple weeks. Beginning July 1st, you will be able to enter to win a paperback copy of Wren via a Goodreads giveaway (
On July 6th, I will be making my first official appearance as an author (check out the Facebook event announcement). I will selling and signing books from 7:30 AM to 1 PM. If you are in the area, stop by and visit. :)

Wren is now for sale in paperback (https://www.createspace.com/4292972). I will be offering autographed copies at a slight discount in the middle of July.

Editing Update
The next two books of The Theodoric Saga are in the beta reader stage. I am still waiting on feedback from beta reader of book two, The King of Anavrea. Book three, The Reward of Anavrea, just went out to beta readers and I am waiting on pin and prickers to hear what they think of it.

Also in beta readers' hands is the first of what promises to be at least two Lord Dentin short stories. The Sword of Korma Monroe and Passing the Mantle are going to be two non-romantic short tales to supplement the planned Novels of Rhynan (Duty, Honor, and Loyalty).

Writing Update
Honor stands at 19,801 words and I am shooting for around 80,000. I am running into issues that can only be solved by writing Passing the Mantle first. Lord Dentin isn't being the most forthcoming about his past.

Passing the Mantle is 1,214 words long. I have no idea how long it will be, but I suspect it shall be short.

Other Updates
An article by me is going to appear in InD'tale Magazine this July. I will be posting more details later, but I look forward to hearing what you all think of it. Subscription to the magazine is free for now. It is a great review magazine for those who enjoy indie and small press romance books.

#SweetSat - The Reward of Anavrea

Welcome back to this week's Sweet Saturday Sample. I have a long back list of unfinished, finished and unpolished, and semi-polished manuscripts. I am working through the painful process of getting them all into print (if they are print worthy). This week's sample is from one of them.
The Reward of Anavrea is the third book of the Theodoric Saga and the only one that isn't completely devoted to a member of the Theodoric family. The main character, Liam Tremain, is a veteran soldier and second son that has risen in favor through extraordinary valor. His reward includes land and a fortress on the northern borders of Anavrea (near Rhynan). However, when he arrives the fortress is empty and locked. On the word of a young man, Liam and his men travel to a ramshackle farm to find the keeper of the keys.
~~~~~
Liam knocked firmly on the building’s door before realizing his mistake. The hinges were in as bad shape as the fence. The light from inside seeped through the cracks in the wood. He could hear the hush that fell over the room on the other side. Someone spoke and a few moments later a dark-haired young woman opened the door.
She looked him over solemnly from head to toe; as her eyes fell on the crest embroidered across his chest, she stiffened.
“You have come. Enter.” Her calm voice contradicted her tense body language as she opened the door and stepped back to let him pass.
The room beyond was warm and bright. A rough table stood at the center of the small space surrounded by four children. The food spread before them made a meager meal for so many. Except for a set of twin girls, there was no likeness between the children. The oldest, a boy of perhaps seventeen, was fair in complexion and hair. His blue eyes stared moodily at the food before him. The twins were dark, Ratharian dark, with the olive skin, black hair and eyes that came with the nationality. The youngest, a brown-haloed little one of perhaps five, slipped from her seat and ran to bury her face in the skirt of the young woman. 
~~~~~
How do you think all of the children are related?
Thank you for visiting. For more Sweet Saturday Samples, go to: http://sweetsatsample.wordpress.com/.

Medieval Word Wednesday (a bit late and a bit different)

Yes, I missed yesterday's Medieval Word Wednesday. :( To make up for it, I am offering something a bit late and a bit different. Here is a video that mentions a whole bunch of interesting stuff about measurement (something author's use all the time). It includes some of my favorites like a hand's span and other interesting measurements. I hope you enjoy it.

#SweetSat - Wren Excerpt

Wren is finally in paperback!

To celebrate, I am offering another excerpt from her adventure.


He wasn’t a fool. I admitted that. As I stood in the shelter of a rather large pine with more character than its neighbors, I watched Tourth.
Kat was right. He obviously needed to move to think. He paced back and forth along the top of a fallen tree. He struck the side at regular intervals with a stick in his right hand. I couldn’t hear his voice, but his lips moved as though he were speaking to himself or perhaps praying. A fall of sopping brown hair was plastered to his forehead. I was debating whether or not I should interrupt his thoughts when he turned and jumped off the log with a squelch. Frowning down at his soaked feet, he grew still amid the constant uneven tempo of rain dripping from leaf to leaf over our heads.
I stepped from my shelter and approached him. “Have you decided?”
His head snapped up in surprise. “How did you find me?” he demanded. “I didn’t leave a trail.”

I debated letting on that he had. His trail, though fainter than the one an inexperienced man might have left, was easy to follow. Settling on a more elusive response, I shrugged. “Kat asked us to find you. She is getting worried.”
~~~~~
Do you know someone who needs to move to think?
Thank you for stopping by. For more sweet Saturday samples go to http://sweetsatsample.wordpress.com/.

Wren is in print!!!

In place of the regularly scheduled Medieval Wednesday Post, I would like to announce...




Wren is now available in print!!!!
https://www.createspace.com/4292972
It will still take 5 to 7 days for the listing to go live on Amazon.com, but you can order directly from Createspace in the meantime. There might possibly be an autographed copy opportunity in the near future, but I can't promise when.

Thank you to all of you who have followed her journey from the beginning.

Happy reading!! :)

To be notified of all new releases (Romany Epistles and other books by Rachel Rossano), please sign up for the New Release Newsletter.
Subscribe to our newsletter

#SweetSat - Wren

In honor of my new release, Wren (A Romany Epistles Novel), this week's #SweetSat is an excerpt from her book.


Of all the days to resume wearing a dress, this was the worst. I peered up into the spreading branches of an apple tree and grimaced. If I still wore my trousers, climbing up to fetch the unblemished fruit from the branches would be easy work. However, I wasn’t able to do that decently in a skirt. Even if I tucked up the skirt, I would show off a lot of bare leg to anyone who happened to walk under my tree. I studied my empty bushel basket and debated doing just that.
“Need some help?” Arthus called as he strode down the row toward me. Under one arm, his good one, he carried a ladder. “Tourth sent me to assist you. He said I might find you up the tree already with your skirt about your knees.”
“It is a tempting thought,” I agreed. “However, I do have some sense of decorum.”
Arthus laughed as he lowered the ladder awkwardly to the ground. “I am sorry I have to say this, but it needs to be said. I can’t lift the ladder for you.” He pointed with his chin to his still bandaged shoulder. “I might have over done it with that demonstration of strength this morning.”
He fetched the water for breakfast to prove himself well enough to come with us on our next harvesting trip. It was the only way he was going to get out from under Kat’s watchful eye.
“I think I can manage it for you,” I offered. “Are you going to attempt to climb and pick as well?”
“Oh, no, the ladder is for you. I am here for the ladder, to make sure it doesn’t shift beneath you.”
“The others are not using ladders?”
“They are. They just don’t get a ladder assistant.”
I couldn’t hold back the smile that wanted out. “I thank you then.”
Together, we leaned the ladder up against the nearest tree. Arthus held it steady as I climbed. Once I reached the bottom branch and the first batch of apples, I gathered my apron end, looping it into the apron ties to make a temporary sack to carry my harvest. Arthus watched all of this with great interest.

“You have done this before?”
~~~~~
Fun fact: Arthus was the hero of my first draft of Wren's story, but not the final draft. Does he sound like hero material to you?
Her whole story can now be yours.
Wren is available in ebook on Amazon and Smashwords.More formats and print to come soon.

Medieval Word Wednesday - Dining Part 1

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Walraversijde26.jpg
When sitting down for a medieval meal, many things would look familiar  White linens covered the tables and they used dishes similar to ours. On the other hand, many things would be different.

Instead of glass or ceramic plates, the upper classes used trenchers. Made of hard bread and later wood or metal, the trenchers held the individual's servings of the main dishes. If made of bread, they were collected with the leftovers after the meal and handed out to the poor. (http://thescriptorium.co.uk/glossary.php)

The familiar, though different, spoon and knife lay near at hand. However, the fork would have been no where in sight. A fork or two might be used to spear meat from platter to trencher, but, on the whole, the diners would use their fingers or the tip of their sharp eating knife to bring food from trencher to mouth. The fork as an eating utensil did not become popular until the late 1600s (http://www.hospitalityguild.com/History/history_of_the_fork.htm).

Next Wednesday, I will talk more about dining.

Are you surprised that forks appeared so late in European history as an eating utensil?

New Release - Wren of The Romany Epistles

Today was the day! 
Wren finally made her debut. Her ebook went live. Her book trailer is complete and posted. The print copies are in the final steps of approval, and should only take a few days more. 
Today is a good day! :)


Blurb -A bounty hunter meets a denounced nobleman.
Wren Romany earns her living as a bounty hunter. As winter looms, she decides to stay in one place for the season. She offers Tourth Mynth her hunting skills in exchange for shelter and a share in the game. Facing a hard winter with little food, Tourth accepts.

Wren soon learns the residents of Iselyn need more than simply meat on their table. Unsolved murder and betrayal lurk in the Mynths’ not so distant past. And Tourth’s battle with his emotional scars from the recent civil war will determine the fate of the whole valley.

Has she grabbed your interest?
I am looking for reviewers willing to give an honest review in exchange for a free ebook.Just comment below.
If you are just interested in reading the book without the pressure of reviewing it, you can find it on Amazon and Smashwords (other formats to come) for $4.99. Print copies will be available for purchase soon.
Please spread the word!