Victoria Janssen's Blog, page 61
May 20, 2011
Regarding the Miracle of Time
I'm blogging over at Novelists, Inc. today – Regarding the Miracle of Time.
Also, have a pretty picture:
May 18, 2011
The Jetsons Future of J.D. Robb
I've been slowly reading the Eve Dallas mysteries by J.D. Robb (Nora Roberts), a few at a time, and recently passed number 25 in the series. Even while reading the first in the series, Naked in Death, I've thought the future New York City Robb presented was a "Jetsons Future."
By the way, this is not a critique. It's more me musing about a concept, and how Robb put it into practice; how she used science fictional trappings within the context of a noir detective series, while keeping...
May 16, 2011
"Garrow's Law," Series 1
I have a new post up at The Criminal Element today, titled Dynamic Duos: Wimsey and Vane.
I recently finished watching Garrow's Law, Series One.
The series is a little bit like Law and Order: Georgian England, with Andrew Buchan in the lead role. It's about William Garrow, a real historical figure, and how he changed how the accused were defended in court. He's best known because he first introduced "innocent until proven guilty." The cases used were drawn from real cases tried at the...
May 15, 2011
"Conscripts," Siegfried Sassoon
Conscripts
Fall in, that awkward squad, and strike no more
Attractive attitudes! Dress by the right!
The luminous rich colours that you wore
Have changed to hueless khaki in the night.
Magic? What's magic got to do with you?
There's no such thing! Blood's red, and skies are blue.'
They gasped and sweated, marching up and down.
I drilled them till they cursed my raucous shout.
Love chucked his lute away and dropped his crown.
Rhyme got sore heels and wanted to fall out.
'Left, right! Press o...
May 13, 2011
Where, When, and How I Read
I read everywhere. If I don't have a book with me (or these days, my Kindle), I constantly glance around, feeling as if I've forgotten something. Like a limb. Going out for the day always involves deciding what I'm going to bring with me to read.
For the most part, I read fiction. I read it fast, in greedy gulps. When I was younger, up through my first years after college, I tended to re-read favorite books, or often just my favorite parts of those books. Favorites from the...
May 12, 2011
You're My Waterloo: Napoleonic Wars Heroes & Heroines
If you missed it yesterday, I have another post up at Heroes and Heartbreakers: You're My Waterloo: Top 5 Napoleonic Wars Heroes & Heroines.
There's some discussion going about other folks' favorites in that category.
May 11, 2011
Brenda Novak's Online Auction for Diabetes Research
I'm participating in author Brenda Novak's Annual Online Auction for Diabetes Research. You can bid here on an autographed print copy of The Duke and The Pirate Queen. You must register to bid.
Fast Time and Slow Time in Fiction
I've been reading The Art of Time in Fiction: As Long as It Takes by Joan Silber for a while now. It's a small book, and easy to read, but it packs in a lot of concepts, and I don't want to rush my reading of it both for that reason and because I'm enjoying it so much. There's a mix of lofty concepts of time and story with practical writing tips.
In fiction, things might happen at a "normal pace," depicted in scenes. Or events might be summarized, so in effect something that would...
May 9, 2011
Planning for RWA 2011
Next month, at least at the end of next month, I'll be attending the annual National Conference of the Romance Writers of America; on the same trip, I'm attending IASPR's conference, so I'll be staying in two different hotels. Which means that I need to make sure I have all of my ducks in a row, because that week of travel will be upon me faster than I think.
Both IASPR and RWA are being held this year in New York City, which for me is quite convenient, since I live in Philadelphia...
May 8, 2011
"The Last Meeting," Siegfried Sassoon
The Last Meeting
I
Because the night was falling warm and still
Upon a golden day at April's end,
I thought; I will go up the hill once more
To find the face of him that I have lost,
And speak with him before his ghost has flown
Far from the earth that might not keep him long.
So down the road I went, pausing to see
How slow the dusk drew on, and how the folk
Loitered about their doorways, well-content
With the fine weather and the waxing year.
The miller's house, that glimmered with grey...
