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Debbie Robson's Blog - Posts Tagged "the-grey-silk-purse"
The Power of Language and using the right words - uploaded to wordpress 16/4/12
I can be a ditz sometimes and very vague as my family and friends will tell you. I recently ordered a coffee whilst in the middle of writing a crucial scene. Fifteen minutes later no coffee. I went up to ask if it was coming and they told me it had been put on my table (behind my laptop) around ten minutes ago. Never noticed a thing! And then today two incidents - both hanging on single words - made me stop and really consider how much we actually take in even when we think we aren't paying attention.
This morning working on a new chapter I ordered a coffee (1/2 strength latte) and a bottle of water. The young waitress was standing by my table holding a bottle of water and she asked me did I want one cup or two. I answered: 'Oh, I've already ordered my latte." She said: "No, the water." I replied. "One glass please (as I was by myself). She put one glass down and I thought: Yep, I am a ditz and went back to my writing.
A moment later she moved to the table nearby holding another bottle of water and several glasses and said: "Did you want two cups." And I realised what had happened. She's obviously been brought up (although she sounded like a regular Aussie) calling glasses cups for some strange reason. For me a glass is what you put wine, water, soft drinks and liquor in. A cup is what you put tea, coffee and hot chocolate in but that was definitely what she called the glasses.
Move ahead to this evening at Brisbane airport. I have arrived and arrangements have been made for me to catch a connecting bus. On my itinerary is the instruction that when arriving at the airport I must report to the service desk of that company to be booked on the bus. Well I spent fifteen minutes looking for the service desk. There were the usual suspects of hire cars and transport companies but not the company I was looking for. I asked two Virgin employees and they had no idea where it was. I showed them my intinerary - no luck. Finally someone directed me outside and what I thought was a bus shelter for the regular buses was a booth with that company's name under the roof.
Yes, I know. If I had put my glasses on I might have seen the name from a distance and walked down there but I didn't because I was actually looking for a service desk which I think to most people's minds is found inside whereas a booth is often outside. Hence my confusion. That's language for you!
A lot of the time of course everything goes smoothly and we don't stop and wonder about such things but when they don't it's amazing how the wrong use of language - in both these instances single words - can lead us astray.
As a writer I am very particular about word usage, especially those particular words that signify and are redolent of an era. In Tomaree I spent quite some time checking up "okay", among other words. (My main character was Amercian.) In researching word usage of WWI for The Grey Silk Purse it is surprising to find that it was common when writing letters and diaries to use "&" for "and". I'm not sure when that stopped. I mean we still do it occasionally but not as consistently as some diary writers from that time.
All this has brought me back to my writing and the question: Am I chosing the right words - the most effective words - to convey my story and weave a convincing web around my readers? I hope so! What I can safely say is that after today I'll be extra careful!
This morning working on a new chapter I ordered a coffee (1/2 strength latte) and a bottle of water. The young waitress was standing by my table holding a bottle of water and she asked me did I want one cup or two. I answered: 'Oh, I've already ordered my latte." She said: "No, the water." I replied. "One glass please (as I was by myself). She put one glass down and I thought: Yep, I am a ditz and went back to my writing.
A moment later she moved to the table nearby holding another bottle of water and several glasses and said: "Did you want two cups." And I realised what had happened. She's obviously been brought up (although she sounded like a regular Aussie) calling glasses cups for some strange reason. For me a glass is what you put wine, water, soft drinks and liquor in. A cup is what you put tea, coffee and hot chocolate in but that was definitely what she called the glasses.
Move ahead to this evening at Brisbane airport. I have arrived and arrangements have been made for me to catch a connecting bus. On my itinerary is the instruction that when arriving at the airport I must report to the service desk of that company to be booked on the bus. Well I spent fifteen minutes looking for the service desk. There were the usual suspects of hire cars and transport companies but not the company I was looking for. I asked two Virgin employees and they had no idea where it was. I showed them my intinerary - no luck. Finally someone directed me outside and what I thought was a bus shelter for the regular buses was a booth with that company's name under the roof.
Yes, I know. If I had put my glasses on I might have seen the name from a distance and walked down there but I didn't because I was actually looking for a service desk which I think to most people's minds is found inside whereas a booth is often outside. Hence my confusion. That's language for you!
A lot of the time of course everything goes smoothly and we don't stop and wonder about such things but when they don't it's amazing how the wrong use of language - in both these instances single words - can lead us astray.
As a writer I am very particular about word usage, especially those particular words that signify and are redolent of an era. In Tomaree I spent quite some time checking up "okay", among other words. (My main character was Amercian.) In researching word usage of WWI for The Grey Silk Purse it is surprising to find that it was common when writing letters and diaries to use "&" for "and". I'm not sure when that stopped. I mean we still do it occasionally but not as consistently as some diary writers from that time.
All this has brought me back to my writing and the question: Am I chosing the right words - the most effective words - to convey my story and weave a convincing web around my readers? I hope so! What I can safely say is that after today I'll be extra careful!
How Many Drafts of Your Novel Should You Do
This post was put up on wordpress on 2nd September.
My answer is six and that is probably my average. If the book proves problematic then I’ve reached eight but that’s generally my maximum. I’ve heard other writers speak of astronomical numbers such as 18, 27, 34 and even fifty odd. I immediately think how do they do that many drafts? But me being a suspicious person, when I hear such amazing figures I often wonder what they consider constitutes a draft. Say, maybe a quick adjustment of a few words here and there, a scan and then start again? Is that what they call a draft? Put the thing away for a week or so, pick it up again, flick through, change another paragraph and that’s draft 25 for you? I don’t know of course. I can only tell you what my methods are so here goes...
Draft 1 is obvious of course. That’s where you get the main storyline down including what scenes to put in, what to leave out and from whose point of view. Last Tuesday I completed the first draft of my work in progress The Grey Silk Purse. Strictly speaking it is not a complete first draft. It is missing one final chapter and the epilogue which is a letter. Both I can’t do at this point until I’ve done heaps more research.
And this is where the 2nd draft comes. I will now go back, look up and check 95 # points of research such as the uniform of staff working in a stationery shop in Newcastle in 1920. In my novel Tomaree. In Crossing Paths I actually don't remember that I had as as many things to check. I managed to do most of my fact-checking as I went along.
Before I generally start writing a novel I have already done a fair amount of research. Whilst writing the first draft I’ll check as many points as I can but when fact checking starts to really slow me down that’s when I put a # in and move on. With the second round of research I will often have to change the narrative slightly to accommodate facts I have recently discovered. I will also tidy up my prose and check overall length of chapters. Is that scene really necessary kind of thing. With The Grey Silk Purse I have a massive construction problem two thirds of the way through. I will tackle that and will also have to keep a good eye on it in the next draft.
In the 3rd draft I will usually start drilling down, checking my word usage (okay for that particular character or time etc) my paragraphs (are they too long?) I also check how the writing flows. This is a good time to actually really look at any scenes or chapters that still trouble you. Can I do without it altogether or do I need to rewrite? Any extensive rewrites at this stage will have to be checked closely because they will not have been read anywhere near the amount of times of the rest of the work. This is where I often check odd things like the colours of the diaries in The Grey Silk Purse. There are four different diaries that feature in the manuscript and they are all different colours. I will probably check the word count of each diary and that I’ve got the colour correct for each one (particularly as these are referenced later in the novel).
It is usually around the 4th draft that I like to print the whole manuscript out and work at it on paper, pretending I’m a ruthless editor working through page after page, slowly but very carefully. It’s where you really get to see how the manuscript will look in hard copy.
It’s funny how many things you can pick up and fix in this different format. You’ll find it is very handy when looking at dialogue. I also generally write my edits on the page and then do another draft putting them in to my word document. This will then be the 5th draft.
In this draft I will not only put in my changes but do a global search for a particular word that I think I might have used too much. (This is why it is a good thing to keep your manuscript all in one document!) I’ve done this with all my novels and it is never the same words that keep cropping up. It is generally different words for different books. When you realise you’ve got 162 “wondered”s you can then push yourself to find alternatives. (In this 900 word essay I have 13 “check/ed/ing”s. Maybe too many but hey this us what this piece is about.)
The 6th draft (if all is going well) is the final read through. It’s a chance to read the manuscript for the umpteenth time. (Because if you are like me you will often re-read it a lot of times before you even start the second draft). You can check every word for typing errors and watch out for those slippery little suckers the closing quotation marks which (for me anyway) have a habit of disappearing at a great rate. Are there any missing? Can you find any more typos? Realistically you will not find them all so that’s where a friend can come in handy and do a read through for you. Another pair of eyes will always pick up things you’ve missed. That’s my experience anyway.
And now your baby is ready for an amazing journey. Kiss it goodbye and wish it luck.
My answer is six and that is probably my average. If the book proves problematic then I’ve reached eight but that’s generally my maximum. I’ve heard other writers speak of astronomical numbers such as 18, 27, 34 and even fifty odd. I immediately think how do they do that many drafts? But me being a suspicious person, when I hear such amazing figures I often wonder what they consider constitutes a draft. Say, maybe a quick adjustment of a few words here and there, a scan and then start again? Is that what they call a draft? Put the thing away for a week or so, pick it up again, flick through, change another paragraph and that’s draft 25 for you? I don’t know of course. I can only tell you what my methods are so here goes...
Draft 1 is obvious of course. That’s where you get the main storyline down including what scenes to put in, what to leave out and from whose point of view. Last Tuesday I completed the first draft of my work in progress The Grey Silk Purse. Strictly speaking it is not a complete first draft. It is missing one final chapter and the epilogue which is a letter. Both I can’t do at this point until I’ve done heaps more research.
And this is where the 2nd draft comes. I will now go back, look up and check 95 # points of research such as the uniform of staff working in a stationery shop in Newcastle in 1920. In my novel Tomaree. In Crossing Paths I actually don't remember that I had as as many things to check. I managed to do most of my fact-checking as I went along.
Before I generally start writing a novel I have already done a fair amount of research. Whilst writing the first draft I’ll check as many points as I can but when fact checking starts to really slow me down that’s when I put a # in and move on. With the second round of research I will often have to change the narrative slightly to accommodate facts I have recently discovered. I will also tidy up my prose and check overall length of chapters. Is that scene really necessary kind of thing. With The Grey Silk Purse I have a massive construction problem two thirds of the way through. I will tackle that and will also have to keep a good eye on it in the next draft.
In the 3rd draft I will usually start drilling down, checking my word usage (okay for that particular character or time etc) my paragraphs (are they too long?) I also check how the writing flows. This is a good time to actually really look at any scenes or chapters that still trouble you. Can I do without it altogether or do I need to rewrite? Any extensive rewrites at this stage will have to be checked closely because they will not have been read anywhere near the amount of times of the rest of the work. This is where I often check odd things like the colours of the diaries in The Grey Silk Purse. There are four different diaries that feature in the manuscript and they are all different colours. I will probably check the word count of each diary and that I’ve got the colour correct for each one (particularly as these are referenced later in the novel).
It is usually around the 4th draft that I like to print the whole manuscript out and work at it on paper, pretending I’m a ruthless editor working through page after page, slowly but very carefully. It’s where you really get to see how the manuscript will look in hard copy.
It’s funny how many things you can pick up and fix in this different format. You’ll find it is very handy when looking at dialogue. I also generally write my edits on the page and then do another draft putting them in to my word document. This will then be the 5th draft.
In this draft I will not only put in my changes but do a global search for a particular word that I think I might have used too much. (This is why it is a good thing to keep your manuscript all in one document!) I’ve done this with all my novels and it is never the same words that keep cropping up. It is generally different words for different books. When you realise you’ve got 162 “wondered”s you can then push yourself to find alternatives. (In this 900 word essay I have 13 “check/ed/ing”s. Maybe too many but hey this us what this piece is about.)
The 6th draft (if all is going well) is the final read through. It’s a chance to read the manuscript for the umpteenth time. (Because if you are like me you will often re-read it a lot of times before you even start the second draft). You can check every word for typing errors and watch out for those slippery little suckers the closing quotation marks which (for me anyway) have a habit of disappearing at a great rate. Are there any missing? Can you find any more typos? Realistically you will not find them all so that’s where a friend can come in handy and do a read through for you. Another pair of eyes will always pick up things you’ve missed. That’s my experience anyway.
And now your baby is ready for an amazing journey. Kiss it goodbye and wish it luck.
Arthur Streeton and the Battle of Amiens
This blog was posted on wordpress on the 14th November with a picture of Arthur Streeton's wonderful painting of Amiens.
I love hunting facts down, following paper trails and discovering interesting pieces of information. I mentioned in a previous blog that beginning my second draft of The Grey Silk Purse I had 98 points of research to check - things such as the location of the Niagara Cafe in Newcastle -
http://www.facebook.com/groups/LostNe...
the weather in London on a December day in 1917, locations in Greece and various birds in the Hunter around 1920 to name some points.
Well I'm down to 10. Yay! and have been working on a very important research point - where my main male character Adrian Langley loses his leg. Before I could choose a location, I needed to choose a battalion for Adrian. I decided that although he is originally from Sydney, he actually joins up with his Mayfield cousins and in early 1917 becomes part of the 35th Battalion "Newcastle's Own Regiment".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/35th_Bat...
Immediately the battle of Lena Wood (see picture in link above) caught my eye and with the mention of woods I decided to research the landscape of the Battle of Amiens, August 1918 and quickly found Arthur Streeton's wonderful painting above. The sight of the painting really changed my thinking and brought with it more questions. Why was the landscape so beautiful and not ravaged? Did Streeton purposely paint an unaffected area of the battle or was this his idealised vision of the pre battle scene? The woods look wonderful, the scenery is green. The whole thing evokes a pleasant summer stroll and that thought led me to recreating AND transforming Adrian's loss of his leg in a dream. Here is what I wrote inspired by the painting above:
"...Sometimes too the beautiful woods near Amiens loom large in his dreams. Often he is alone, strolling not fighting. August 1918. A summer’s day in northern France. A feeling of peace, contentment and then a sniper parts the green that conceals him and sends an arc of bullets that tears the ground up in front of him, rips Adrian’s right leg apart and slams into his hip and shoulder. It would be better to dream of the way it was but his mind has condensed and transformed the incident until it is almost completely unrecognisable. At least he’s not surrounded by men dying beside him and he is thankful for that. They inhabit the other dreams. Not this one."
By researching the landscape of Amiens I had found the place where my character loses his leg but it also gave me the opportunity (because of the beauty of the place) to set it against the muddy, soul destroying landscape of a previous battle. Adrian's most terrible nightmares are from the Battle of Passchendaele where his battalion was bogged down in the mud and only 90 from 508 remained at the end but it is not where he receives wounds (at least not physically) that almost kill him and cripple him for life. Hopefully my future readers will appreciate the irony
I love hunting facts down, following paper trails and discovering interesting pieces of information. I mentioned in a previous blog that beginning my second draft of The Grey Silk Purse I had 98 points of research to check - things such as the location of the Niagara Cafe in Newcastle -
http://www.facebook.com/groups/LostNe...
the weather in London on a December day in 1917, locations in Greece and various birds in the Hunter around 1920 to name some points.
Well I'm down to 10. Yay! and have been working on a very important research point - where my main male character Adrian Langley loses his leg. Before I could choose a location, I needed to choose a battalion for Adrian. I decided that although he is originally from Sydney, he actually joins up with his Mayfield cousins and in early 1917 becomes part of the 35th Battalion "Newcastle's Own Regiment".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/35th_Bat...
Immediately the battle of Lena Wood (see picture in link above) caught my eye and with the mention of woods I decided to research the landscape of the Battle of Amiens, August 1918 and quickly found Arthur Streeton's wonderful painting above. The sight of the painting really changed my thinking and brought with it more questions. Why was the landscape so beautiful and not ravaged? Did Streeton purposely paint an unaffected area of the battle or was this his idealised vision of the pre battle scene? The woods look wonderful, the scenery is green. The whole thing evokes a pleasant summer stroll and that thought led me to recreating AND transforming Adrian's loss of his leg in a dream. Here is what I wrote inspired by the painting above:
"...Sometimes too the beautiful woods near Amiens loom large in his dreams. Often he is alone, strolling not fighting. August 1918. A summer’s day in northern France. A feeling of peace, contentment and then a sniper parts the green that conceals him and sends an arc of bullets that tears the ground up in front of him, rips Adrian’s right leg apart and slams into his hip and shoulder. It would be better to dream of the way it was but his mind has condensed and transformed the incident until it is almost completely unrecognisable. At least he’s not surrounded by men dying beside him and he is thankful for that. They inhabit the other dreams. Not this one."
By researching the landscape of Amiens I had found the place where my character loses his leg but it also gave me the opportunity (because of the beauty of the place) to set it against the muddy, soul destroying landscape of a previous battle. Adrian's most terrible nightmares are from the Battle of Passchendaele where his battalion was bogged down in the mud and only 90 from 508 remained at the end but it is not where he receives wounds (at least not physically) that almost kill him and cripple him for life. Hopefully my future readers will appreciate the irony
My twitter community and why they are so important to me.
This post was originally blogged at wordpress on 15/12/12.
I went to the #NewyTwistmas party at Honeysuckle Thursday night attended by 60 plus and had a wonderful time meeting fellow peeps, most for the first time. I chatted to so many interesting people, including @CCLETS a dedicated potter, @whereismymuse a poet and @kimcoo and her husband who are relationship counsellors. It is a community that know me as a writer. That’s who I am – @lakelady2282, BookCrosser, author, amateur photographer. I tweet photos and the progress of my WWI novel The Grey Silk Purse. I also tweet/retweet about books, writing and history. That’s me!
To my friends and family, I am something else. With my family I’m mum and grandma. With my girlfriends I’m just a single woman in my fifties complaining about the lack of interesting men. (I have this theory that 75% of the single male population in their forties and fifties have been beamed to another planet and nobody’s noticed. But that’s another story.) My friends know I write but I don’t think they are aware of how much my writing means to me and in that sense they don’t know me.
My twitter people do. My wonderful Crossing Paths publisher @SkiveMagazine knows how important writing is to me and I love tweeting about his mag. The latest edition is an erotica collection so peeps get out there and buy it. Also @drdrdr09 knows. He became aware of how much I was agonising over finding an historically accurate way to get my main character from Le Havre to Salonika, late 1917 (avoiding submarines and nasty Germans). I tweeted in frustration to my twitter community and he stepped into the breach (WWI speak) and we had a fun time tweeting back and forth.
In my “normal” life, I mentioned to my friends the other day that I was having trouble with my epilogue. There was dead silence and then a change of conversation. In all fairness what can most non-writers say to such a statement? Some people would suggest a writing group. After all you get to sit down with “real” people and discuss writing problems but I’ve tried a few groups and they weren’t for me. (I once joined a screenplay writing group and one of the participants said, “I hate writing dialogue. Do you think that will be a problem for me?” She was serious). I didn’t go back.
For me twitter is my writing group, my photography group, my friends group, my “did you hear they found the cave from Island of the Blue Dolphins?” group. It is my arts world in a way that Facebook (that funny other social media with all the thumbs up things) has never been. It is where I’m lakelady2282 and it's where on Friday morning I tweeted I had lost my job. I didn’t message my friends. I still – as of writing this article - haven’t posted it to Facebook. Without thinking I just tweeted. It was the community that I wanted to tell.
I went to the #NewyTwistmas party at Honeysuckle Thursday night attended by 60 plus and had a wonderful time meeting fellow peeps, most for the first time. I chatted to so many interesting people, including @CCLETS a dedicated potter, @whereismymuse a poet and @kimcoo and her husband who are relationship counsellors. It is a community that know me as a writer. That’s who I am – @lakelady2282, BookCrosser, author, amateur photographer. I tweet photos and the progress of my WWI novel The Grey Silk Purse. I also tweet/retweet about books, writing and history. That’s me!
To my friends and family, I am something else. With my family I’m mum and grandma. With my girlfriends I’m just a single woman in my fifties complaining about the lack of interesting men. (I have this theory that 75% of the single male population in their forties and fifties have been beamed to another planet and nobody’s noticed. But that’s another story.) My friends know I write but I don’t think they are aware of how much my writing means to me and in that sense they don’t know me.
My twitter people do. My wonderful Crossing Paths publisher @SkiveMagazine knows how important writing is to me and I love tweeting about his mag. The latest edition is an erotica collection so peeps get out there and buy it. Also @drdrdr09 knows. He became aware of how much I was agonising over finding an historically accurate way to get my main character from Le Havre to Salonika, late 1917 (avoiding submarines and nasty Germans). I tweeted in frustration to my twitter community and he stepped into the breach (WWI speak) and we had a fun time tweeting back and forth.
In my “normal” life, I mentioned to my friends the other day that I was having trouble with my epilogue. There was dead silence and then a change of conversation. In all fairness what can most non-writers say to such a statement? Some people would suggest a writing group. After all you get to sit down with “real” people and discuss writing problems but I’ve tried a few groups and they weren’t for me. (I once joined a screenplay writing group and one of the participants said, “I hate writing dialogue. Do you think that will be a problem for me?” She was serious). I didn’t go back.
For me twitter is my writing group, my photography group, my friends group, my “did you hear they found the cave from Island of the Blue Dolphins?” group. It is my arts world in a way that Facebook (that funny other social media with all the thumbs up things) has never been. It is where I’m lakelady2282 and it's where on Friday morning I tweeted I had lost my job. I didn’t message my friends. I still – as of writing this article - haven’t posted it to Facebook. Without thinking I just tweeted. It was the community that I wanted to tell.
The Next Big Thing - The Grey Silk Purse
This blog was originally posted on wordpress on 21/1/13.
1) What is the working title of your current/next book?
My current work in progress is entitled The Grey Silk Purse and is set in 1917/1918 Serbia and Mayfield, Newcastle in 1920/1930.
2) Where did the idea come from?
Several years ago whilst doing book talks for Tomaree, a bookseller showed me a card advertising a New Year's Eve party at the Trades Hall, Newcastle for 1930 run by The New Moon Dance Club. Whilst searching for more info about the mysterious club I came across a November, 1922 ad: "Lost yesterday Lady's handbag between Elizabeth & Henry Streets, Tighes Hill along Port Waratah tramline or left in 6.42pm Port Waratah tram from Newcastle, contains 6 pounds, metal season railway ticket, keys etc. Finder handsomely rewarded on return to Miss Summerville, Room 5, Carrrington Chambers, Watt Street."
I kept the name Miss Summerville but couldn't find Carrington Chambers. Somehow I made the jump from there to my current project.
3) What genre does your book fall under?
Historical fiction
4) What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?
Strangely I have no idea for this one. I cast Crossing Paths though. The main characters were played (in my head) by Rose Byrne, John Cusack, Rupert Penryn-Jones, Miriam Margoyles and Helen Mirren (in an uncharacteristically timid role).
5) What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
It is January 1920 and Miss Summerville living in a beautiful house in Mayfield, Newcastle begins a diary detailing how, after a long illness, she has woken up and can't remember the last two years of her life.
6) Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
I hope to finish the manuscript very soon. (I'm on the second last draft now.) I'm determined to find an agent and a mainstream publisher and that is my goal for 2013.
7) How long did it take you to write the first draft?
Much longer than Tomaree. Approximately two and a half years.
8) What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
The Winter of the World by Carol Ann Lee
The Soldier's Song by Alan Monaghan
Armistice by Nick Stafford
9) Who or what inspired you to write this book?
Heroic Australian women from both world wars, including Olive Kelso King, Alice Kitchen, Vivien Bullwinkel and Nancy Wake.
10) What else about the book might pique the reader’s interest?
Hopefully the wonderful Scottish Women's Hospitals who ran 14 field hospitals during WWI. Many of their doctors, nurses and orderlies were Australian, including Stella Miles Franklin who worked at the Ostrovo Unit in Serbia, the unit featured in The Grey Silk Purse.
I'm now tagging three people to keep this meme going. They are:
Matthew Glenn Ward @ Matthew Glenn Ward
Anthony Wood @ Want For Words
Janna G. Noelle @ The Rules of Engagement
Happy writing!
1) What is the working title of your current/next book?
My current work in progress is entitled The Grey Silk Purse and is set in 1917/1918 Serbia and Mayfield, Newcastle in 1920/1930.
2) Where did the idea come from?
Several years ago whilst doing book talks for Tomaree, a bookseller showed me a card advertising a New Year's Eve party at the Trades Hall, Newcastle for 1930 run by The New Moon Dance Club. Whilst searching for more info about the mysterious club I came across a November, 1922 ad: "Lost yesterday Lady's handbag between Elizabeth & Henry Streets, Tighes Hill along Port Waratah tramline or left in 6.42pm Port Waratah tram from Newcastle, contains 6 pounds, metal season railway ticket, keys etc. Finder handsomely rewarded on return to Miss Summerville, Room 5, Carrrington Chambers, Watt Street."
I kept the name Miss Summerville but couldn't find Carrington Chambers. Somehow I made the jump from there to my current project.
3) What genre does your book fall under?
Historical fiction
4) What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?
Strangely I have no idea for this one. I cast Crossing Paths though. The main characters were played (in my head) by Rose Byrne, John Cusack, Rupert Penryn-Jones, Miriam Margoyles and Helen Mirren (in an uncharacteristically timid role).
5) What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
It is January 1920 and Miss Summerville living in a beautiful house in Mayfield, Newcastle begins a diary detailing how, after a long illness, she has woken up and can't remember the last two years of her life.
6) Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
I hope to finish the manuscript very soon. (I'm on the second last draft now.) I'm determined to find an agent and a mainstream publisher and that is my goal for 2013.
7) How long did it take you to write the first draft?
Much longer than Tomaree. Approximately two and a half years.
8) What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
The Winter of the World by Carol Ann Lee
The Soldier's Song by Alan Monaghan
Armistice by Nick Stafford
9) Who or what inspired you to write this book?
Heroic Australian women from both world wars, including Olive Kelso King, Alice Kitchen, Vivien Bullwinkel and Nancy Wake.
10) What else about the book might pique the reader’s interest?
Hopefully the wonderful Scottish Women's Hospitals who ran 14 field hospitals during WWI. Many of their doctors, nurses and orderlies were Australian, including Stella Miles Franklin who worked at the Ostrovo Unit in Serbia, the unit featured in The Grey Silk Purse.
I'm now tagging three people to keep this meme going. They are:
Matthew Glenn Ward @ Matthew Glenn Ward
Anthony Wood @ Want For Words
Janna G. Noelle @ The Rules of Engagement
Happy writing!
On Losing a Dear Friend
Originally posted at wordpress on 1/3/2013.
From the moment I started writing in the early 80s, talking to elderly people has been a very enjoyable part of my writing life. The first person I remember interviewing was a friend of the family of my first boyfriend. I was now a married woman (not to the first boyfriend) and beginning a novel that was later abandoned. From memory she was very interesting to talk to. (Her name escapes me now.) She had grown up in an old log cabin somewhere in the sticks and as a middle aged woman had written parodies of the romantic short stories featured in the Woman’s Day and the Woman’s Weekly at that time. The stories were actually accepted much to her amusement. I can’t remember her name but after our short interview I didn’t see her again.
In late 1982 or early 1983 I interviewed two wonderful WWI soldiers living in a retirement village in Collaroy. One of them was a veritable minefield and I still have the notes I took from speaking with him. He was a sniper and told me some fascinating details not found in any history books. One interesting fact that concerned soldiers digging in under fire I actually used in my long short story The Running Lady published in Reveille in 1988.
In 2002 I was very lucky to be able to interview many elderly residents of Nelson Bay and Shoal Bay in regards to the US soldiers stationed there during WW2. At one stage I was driving up there once a fortnight to speak to someone about those fascinating times and I was always made to feel welcome. I think they enjoyed talking to me and I definitely enjoyed listening to them, including among many Mrs Blanch and Mrs Norburn.
In January 2010 I came up with the idea for a new novel and almost immediately I decided to set the novel, with the working title of The Grey Silk Purse, in Mayfield. I was unemployed for the first few weeks of that year and I spent a lot of time walking the streets and taking photos of beautiful old houses. I was also doing a lot of research on the net about the history of Mayfield. Two names repeatedly came up - Vera Deacon and Helen Marshall. I contacted Gionni di Gravio, the archivist at Newcastle University and asked him if it was okay to contact both of them. He said yes and told me where they lived.
I didn’t record the date I first rang Helen Marshall but we hit it off immediately and from May 2010 on I saw her quite regularly. I would visit her beautiful home in Elizabeth Street and mercilessly ask her questions. She loved talking about the old Mayfield and she would describe walks she went on with her father. I loved hearing about Mayfield as it was in the 30s and 40s and her memory was prodigious.
On one occasion she helped me map out a walk my character took near Platts Channel. She described in great detail a gate that led into the property of Argyle House (later the Murray Dwyer Orphanage). I explained what my character was doing. Helen described the gate for me, the latch and that there was lantana nearby. She could still remember the smell of the lantana. When I mentioned which way my heroine was walking home - up the steep slope by the side of the property to reach Bull Street - Helen told me that my heroine wouldn’t be opening the gate if she was going that way. I asked why and Helen explained that you only needed to open the gate to walk through the property if you were walking along by the channel. I was astonished that she could remember so much about a gate from around 1933 or so! I said as much and we had a good old laugh.
She also had very detailed memories of Waratah House which her father sketched before it was pulled down. On one of my visits Helen helped me mark out a map of the land near Platts Channel choosing the approximate location of Argyle House, Waratah House, the potteries, the ponds, the wheat field, a well and the dairy. (Not an easy feat with Industrial Drive and extensive industry transforming the landscape.)
Another day we actually designed the garden of the fictional house Summerville in Crebert Street. I still have the sketch in her hand. We also had some lovely talks over the Greg Ray books and an excellent book about the Middle East campaign of WWI. But apart from all this we were the best of friends. She wasn’t just an elderly lady with a fund of knowledge. She was someone that I knew I would have been life long best friends with in a parallel universe. As it was I only had less than three years to have lovely chats with Helen but I valued my time with her. I now miss her terribly. Her quick wit and her kindness were a joy to me and I know it will take me quite some time to get used to the loss of her friendship. I can still hear her saying happily: "You clever girl!" or "You are devious!" when I explained some plot intricacies in my writing. I know she enjoyed our talks and I definitely did. I'm so grateful that I knew her, if only for a short time.
From the moment I started writing in the early 80s, talking to elderly people has been a very enjoyable part of my writing life. The first person I remember interviewing was a friend of the family of my first boyfriend. I was now a married woman (not to the first boyfriend) and beginning a novel that was later abandoned. From memory she was very interesting to talk to. (Her name escapes me now.) She had grown up in an old log cabin somewhere in the sticks and as a middle aged woman had written parodies of the romantic short stories featured in the Woman’s Day and the Woman’s Weekly at that time. The stories were actually accepted much to her amusement. I can’t remember her name but after our short interview I didn’t see her again.
In late 1982 or early 1983 I interviewed two wonderful WWI soldiers living in a retirement village in Collaroy. One of them was a veritable minefield and I still have the notes I took from speaking with him. He was a sniper and told me some fascinating details not found in any history books. One interesting fact that concerned soldiers digging in under fire I actually used in my long short story The Running Lady published in Reveille in 1988.
In 2002 I was very lucky to be able to interview many elderly residents of Nelson Bay and Shoal Bay in regards to the US soldiers stationed there during WW2. At one stage I was driving up there once a fortnight to speak to someone about those fascinating times and I was always made to feel welcome. I think they enjoyed talking to me and I definitely enjoyed listening to them, including among many Mrs Blanch and Mrs Norburn.
In January 2010 I came up with the idea for a new novel and almost immediately I decided to set the novel, with the working title of The Grey Silk Purse, in Mayfield. I was unemployed for the first few weeks of that year and I spent a lot of time walking the streets and taking photos of beautiful old houses. I was also doing a lot of research on the net about the history of Mayfield. Two names repeatedly came up - Vera Deacon and Helen Marshall. I contacted Gionni di Gravio, the archivist at Newcastle University and asked him if it was okay to contact both of them. He said yes and told me where they lived.
I didn’t record the date I first rang Helen Marshall but we hit it off immediately and from May 2010 on I saw her quite regularly. I would visit her beautiful home in Elizabeth Street and mercilessly ask her questions. She loved talking about the old Mayfield and she would describe walks she went on with her father. I loved hearing about Mayfield as it was in the 30s and 40s and her memory was prodigious.
On one occasion she helped me map out a walk my character took near Platts Channel. She described in great detail a gate that led into the property of Argyle House (later the Murray Dwyer Orphanage). I explained what my character was doing. Helen described the gate for me, the latch and that there was lantana nearby. She could still remember the smell of the lantana. When I mentioned which way my heroine was walking home - up the steep slope by the side of the property to reach Bull Street - Helen told me that my heroine wouldn’t be opening the gate if she was going that way. I asked why and Helen explained that you only needed to open the gate to walk through the property if you were walking along by the channel. I was astonished that she could remember so much about a gate from around 1933 or so! I said as much and we had a good old laugh.
She also had very detailed memories of Waratah House which her father sketched before it was pulled down. On one of my visits Helen helped me mark out a map of the land near Platts Channel choosing the approximate location of Argyle House, Waratah House, the potteries, the ponds, the wheat field, a well and the dairy. (Not an easy feat with Industrial Drive and extensive industry transforming the landscape.)
Another day we actually designed the garden of the fictional house Summerville in Crebert Street. I still have the sketch in her hand. We also had some lovely talks over the Greg Ray books and an excellent book about the Middle East campaign of WWI. But apart from all this we were the best of friends. She wasn’t just an elderly lady with a fund of knowledge. She was someone that I knew I would have been life long best friends with in a parallel universe. As it was I only had less than three years to have lovely chats with Helen but I valued my time with her. I now miss her terribly. Her quick wit and her kindness were a joy to me and I know it will take me quite some time to get used to the loss of her friendship. I can still hear her saying happily: "You clever girl!" or "You are devious!" when I explained some plot intricacies in my writing. I know she enjoyed our talks and I definitely did. I'm so grateful that I knew her, if only for a short time.
Beginning the long journey of writing a new novel
Yes, I know, I've just finished my manuscript The Grey Silk Purse and have made my first submission but I'm nervous. As a diversionary tactic I'm researching a new novel. I even have a title - Paris Next Week.
I'm at the absolute beginning which is always exciting. I have a vague idea about the plot and I have the two main locations - Sydney and Paris in the 1920s. I've just picked up my first book to read. It is Women, the Arts, and the 1920s in Paris and New York edited by Kenneth W. Wheeler and Virginia Lee Lussier and even after a quick glance it looks like the perfect ticket. The ship hasn't docked yet but I already have a list of books to take on the voyage and some of these books may even help determine aspects of characterisation and plot.
That's the fun of researching. You read to learn about something new. It may be Serbia in 1917, Port Stephens in 1942, England in the middle ages and as you find out more information you often stumble across an amazing fact that alters your writing completely.
Originally at the very start of The Grey Silk Purse I had a vague idea that my main character would be a nurse in Salonika, although something nagged at me that this profession wouldn’t suit my Miss Summerville. I began reading about the Australian nurses working there during WWI and discovered that other Australian nurses were working in Serbia, of all places! When the Australian troops were sent to France a lot of our girls were sent to the little known Macedonian Front. I began to read about Serbia in earnest and very quickly stumbled upon the wonderful Olive Kelso King who drove an ambulance. That was more like it. This is what my girl would have been doing!
Through reading I discovered not only the beautiful and very important location Lake Ostrovo for my novel but what my character did during the last year of the war. I read six memoirs of women involved in the Scottish Women’s Hospital and I drew from their knowledge to set the scenes for the most crucial chapters in the book - the why and wherefore of life in a field hospital. I can’t imagine the completed manuscript without all these facts now common knowledge to me. I don’t reveal them all of course but they are crucial to a lot of decisions I made (or my character makes) during the course of her war work.
I now have an even greater admiration for the women who were involved in this terrible conflict. We often talk about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. We can now see that returned soldiers from all major offensives were victims but how did the women cope? We know the men either ended up in asylums or drank excessively after both world wars but what happened to the VADs, the ambulance drivers and the nurses when they returned to civilisation? That question is the driving force of the novel and it’s one I really couldn’t have asked without at least the basic facts behind me. So happy research reading. You’ll never know what you may stumble upon!
I'm at the absolute beginning which is always exciting. I have a vague idea about the plot and I have the two main locations - Sydney and Paris in the 1920s. I've just picked up my first book to read. It is Women, the Arts, and the 1920s in Paris and New York edited by Kenneth W. Wheeler and Virginia Lee Lussier and even after a quick glance it looks like the perfect ticket. The ship hasn't docked yet but I already have a list of books to take on the voyage and some of these books may even help determine aspects of characterisation and plot.
That's the fun of researching. You read to learn about something new. It may be Serbia in 1917, Port Stephens in 1942, England in the middle ages and as you find out more information you often stumble across an amazing fact that alters your writing completely.
Originally at the very start of The Grey Silk Purse I had a vague idea that my main character would be a nurse in Salonika, although something nagged at me that this profession wouldn’t suit my Miss Summerville. I began reading about the Australian nurses working there during WWI and discovered that other Australian nurses were working in Serbia, of all places! When the Australian troops were sent to France a lot of our girls were sent to the little known Macedonian Front. I began to read about Serbia in earnest and very quickly stumbled upon the wonderful Olive Kelso King who drove an ambulance. That was more like it. This is what my girl would have been doing!
Through reading I discovered not only the beautiful and very important location Lake Ostrovo for my novel but what my character did during the last year of the war. I read six memoirs of women involved in the Scottish Women’s Hospital and I drew from their knowledge to set the scenes for the most crucial chapters in the book - the why and wherefore of life in a field hospital. I can’t imagine the completed manuscript without all these facts now common knowledge to me. I don’t reveal them all of course but they are crucial to a lot of decisions I made (or my character makes) during the course of her war work.
I now have an even greater admiration for the women who were involved in this terrible conflict. We often talk about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. We can now see that returned soldiers from all major offensives were victims but how did the women cope? We know the men either ended up in asylums or drank excessively after both world wars but what happened to the VADs, the ambulance drivers and the nurses when they returned to civilisation? That question is the driving force of the novel and it’s one I really couldn’t have asked without at least the basic facts behind me. So happy research reading. You’ll never know what you may stumble upon!
Digging deep into Sydney's past
Basement and underground station deep actually! Did you know that under The Strand Arcade was the Ambassador's Cafe? It was opened in late 1923 and the cafe was in the newspapers off and on throughout 1924 because of the illegal sale of liquor. You can imagine me jumping for joy when I discovered this. In point of fact this last week I've been seriously thinking of changing the opening chapter to January 1924 instead of October. Maybe even have my main character Sarah visiting the cafe on that fateful night in February. Just a thought...
At the moment I've written only four and half pages. This is the first novel that I have actually started without doing at least several months research beforehand, which is why I'm in a bit of a pickle. Very early on I was planning a garden party to be hosted at Sarah's house in October with her controlling mother in her element and Sarah dodging as many eligible and boring bachelors as she can. But I'm guessing that not many garden parties in the twenties would have been hosted in the middle of summer. If I go ahead with the change in timeframe to accommodate all those lovely police raids I will have to forfeit the garden party.
I am now stuck wondering what social event the mother could organise in January - if any at all! You see this is just one of the many challenges historical writers face when they are recreating the past as accurately as they can. Challenges surface, more research is needed and then you stumble on an interesting fact that can trigger a scene, an event, even a very important location in the storyline.
I stumbled on the Scottish Women's Hospitals in 2010 and what those women achieved during WWI ended up being a major theme in The Grey Silk Purse. In Paris Next Week, my new manuscript, my theme is the lost generation of the twenties - the frenetic surface glitter of their lives which I believe was a actually a psychological recreation to the great losses of WWI. How I can depict that aspect of history and still create an enjoyable novel is the task I've set myself, as well of course as getting to know Sydney in 1924.
It's early days yet but I already know that Hyde Park was a mess from construction of St James Station so I can't have Sarah and her beau conducting a romantic walk there. The very famous Australian restauranteur Azzalin Orlando Romano worked at the Ambassador's cafe before opening his own restaurant. There was a police raid on Maxine's - a dance hall in 1924 (another scene in Paris Next Week very possibly) and according to Jack Lindsay there was at least one coffee shop called Mockbells but more details are proving elusive. Something called The Blues was the new dance craze and there was a Hungarian cafe in Castlereagh Street. Heady stuff! This is where I long for the Tardis to just nip back to 1924. Oh to scout around and be a fly on the wall! I can only hope to do Sydney in 1924 justice.
Stay tuned.
At the moment I've written only four and half pages. This is the first novel that I have actually started without doing at least several months research beforehand, which is why I'm in a bit of a pickle. Very early on I was planning a garden party to be hosted at Sarah's house in October with her controlling mother in her element and Sarah dodging as many eligible and boring bachelors as she can. But I'm guessing that not many garden parties in the twenties would have been hosted in the middle of summer. If I go ahead with the change in timeframe to accommodate all those lovely police raids I will have to forfeit the garden party.
I am now stuck wondering what social event the mother could organise in January - if any at all! You see this is just one of the many challenges historical writers face when they are recreating the past as accurately as they can. Challenges surface, more research is needed and then you stumble on an interesting fact that can trigger a scene, an event, even a very important location in the storyline.
I stumbled on the Scottish Women's Hospitals in 2010 and what those women achieved during WWI ended up being a major theme in The Grey Silk Purse. In Paris Next Week, my new manuscript, my theme is the lost generation of the twenties - the frenetic surface glitter of their lives which I believe was a actually a psychological recreation to the great losses of WWI. How I can depict that aspect of history and still create an enjoyable novel is the task I've set myself, as well of course as getting to know Sydney in 1924.
It's early days yet but I already know that Hyde Park was a mess from construction of St James Station so I can't have Sarah and her beau conducting a romantic walk there. The very famous Australian restauranteur Azzalin Orlando Romano worked at the Ambassador's cafe before opening his own restaurant. There was a police raid on Maxine's - a dance hall in 1924 (another scene in Paris Next Week very possibly) and according to Jack Lindsay there was at least one coffee shop called Mockbells but more details are proving elusive. Something called The Blues was the new dance craze and there was a Hungarian cafe in Castlereagh Street. Heady stuff! This is where I long for the Tardis to just nip back to 1924. Oh to scout around and be a fly on the wall! I can only hope to do Sydney in 1924 justice.
Stay tuned.
My Tips for Writing Historical Fiction
This post appears at ABC Open. https://open.abc.net.au/explore/88500
A little while ago Anthony Scully of ABC Open invited me to do a post on writing tips for historical fiction. It has been quite a journey working out my tips and whitling down my list to five. Along the way I contacted Justin Go, the author of The Steady Running of the Hour. His webpage details the research journey the writing of his novel took him on. I hope you enjoy my tips and would love to hear yours. Writing Historical Fiction.
There is so much to keep in mind when researching and writing an historical novel. Here are the main, important points:
1. Research is your Tardis. Start with general reading on the subject. I chose the Macedonian Front for my manuscript The Grey Silk Purse. I read about the front in WWI, discovered the Scottish Women’s Hospitals and then began reading memoirs of people who served there. My research took me on an incredible journey - see My Adventures with the Scottish Women’s Hospitals.
2. Go back to the source. The internet is a great research tool but don’t neglect Primary and Secondary sources. Primary sources are original materials. As wiki says: “Information for which the writer has no personal knowledge is not primary.” These, of course are difficult to obtain if you are writing a novel set in the Middle Ages. Secondary sources is “any source about an event, period, or issue in history that was produced after the event, period or issue has passed.”
Another source are novels written during the time you are interested in. Novels, for example, written in the 1920s become almost historical documents when read carefully in the 21st century. Think F S. Fitzgerald’s short stories - a mine of information on the jazz age. And then there are people! If your novel is set in the last seventy years or so, you might be able to interview people who are knowledgeable about your subject matter.
3. Walk in your character’s shoes. It’s not enough to get the clothes and living conditions right. What opportunities were available for your character back then? Is your character an artist in the 1890s, for example? Look at biographies of people that lived during that time. By studying what happened to them (a grant from a wealthy patron perhaps or painting in Paris) you can begin to create your character’s world. This new information will enable your character to interact truthfully with their environment, rather than merely being a 21st century transplant.
4. Don’t forget landscape. You can read countless books and articles but images really do speak a language of their own. Photographs can give you a sense of walking through another time. Trove and flickr have many images that do not come up on google. Take for instance the demolition books of the City of Sydney Archives - streets and building now gone from 1900 to 1949. Before 1840, of course, you will need to search paintings instead. Maps, where available, can give an idea of streets, or lack of them. I have a map of the Burragorang valley before it was flooded for Warragamba Dam - crucial for several scenes of an early manuscript.
5. Details, details, details. I once read a romantic novel that was completely lacking in specific details. When was the damn thing set? Sometime between 1960 and 2000? There was mention of a pop poster on the wall. Cliff Richard? David Cassidy? George Michael? Kurt Cobain? The author didn’t bother to choose.
I am currently reading The Steady Running of the Hour by Justin Go. He writes about his research journey. “What did London taxicabs look like in 1916? What do poplar trees look like in Picardie in the fall? What kind of ice axes did the British take with them to Everest in 1924?”
As an historical novelist you need to find the answers to similar questions and occasionally leave them out. Strive to bring the past alive with the details you have researched but don’t swamp your characters. Let them breathe. And most importantly of all, have fun on your journey.
A little while ago Anthony Scully of ABC Open invited me to do a post on writing tips for historical fiction. It has been quite a journey working out my tips and whitling down my list to five. Along the way I contacted Justin Go, the author of The Steady Running of the Hour. His webpage details the research journey the writing of his novel took him on. I hope you enjoy my tips and would love to hear yours. Writing Historical Fiction.
There is so much to keep in mind when researching and writing an historical novel. Here are the main, important points:
1. Research is your Tardis. Start with general reading on the subject. I chose the Macedonian Front for my manuscript The Grey Silk Purse. I read about the front in WWI, discovered the Scottish Women’s Hospitals and then began reading memoirs of people who served there. My research took me on an incredible journey - see My Adventures with the Scottish Women’s Hospitals.
2. Go back to the source. The internet is a great research tool but don’t neglect Primary and Secondary sources. Primary sources are original materials. As wiki says: “Information for which the writer has no personal knowledge is not primary.” These, of course are difficult to obtain if you are writing a novel set in the Middle Ages. Secondary sources is “any source about an event, period, or issue in history that was produced after the event, period or issue has passed.”
Another source are novels written during the time you are interested in. Novels, for example, written in the 1920s become almost historical documents when read carefully in the 21st century. Think F S. Fitzgerald’s short stories - a mine of information on the jazz age. And then there are people! If your novel is set in the last seventy years or so, you might be able to interview people who are knowledgeable about your subject matter.
3. Walk in your character’s shoes. It’s not enough to get the clothes and living conditions right. What opportunities were available for your character back then? Is your character an artist in the 1890s, for example? Look at biographies of people that lived during that time. By studying what happened to them (a grant from a wealthy patron perhaps or painting in Paris) you can begin to create your character’s world. This new information will enable your character to interact truthfully with their environment, rather than merely being a 21st century transplant.
4. Don’t forget landscape. You can read countless books and articles but images really do speak a language of their own. Photographs can give you a sense of walking through another time. Trove and flickr have many images that do not come up on google. Take for instance the demolition books of the City of Sydney Archives - streets and building now gone from 1900 to 1949. Before 1840, of course, you will need to search paintings instead. Maps, where available, can give an idea of streets, or lack of them. I have a map of the Burragorang valley before it was flooded for Warragamba Dam - crucial for several scenes of an early manuscript.
5. Details, details, details. I once read a romantic novel that was completely lacking in specific details. When was the damn thing set? Sometime between 1960 and 2000? There was mention of a pop poster on the wall. Cliff Richard? David Cassidy? George Michael? Kurt Cobain? The author didn’t bother to choose.
I am currently reading The Steady Running of the Hour by Justin Go. He writes about his research journey. “What did London taxicabs look like in 1916? What do poplar trees look like in Picardie in the fall? What kind of ice axes did the British take with them to Everest in 1924?”
As an historical novelist you need to find the answers to similar questions and occasionally leave them out. Strive to bring the past alive with the details you have researched but don’t swamp your characters. Let them breathe. And most importantly of all, have fun on your journey.
