Katherine Longshore's Blog, page 14
February 29, 2012
GILT playlist -- Cat's theme song
A few weeks ago on my Facebook page, a reader asked the question, "What is Cat's theme song?" I replied that I would have to do a blog post about my playlist in order to explain fully. Because some of my choices require explanation...
I listen mostly to modern music, much of it "alternative" or inspired by punk. Though I do have some CDs of Tudor and baroque chamber music, much of what inspires me is what I hear on the radio or is recommended by friends who share my taste. It was important to me to put entirely modern music in my GILT playlist because I wanted the book to have a modern atmosphere and be compelling and relatable to a contemporary audience. I kept thinking of how well "I Want Candy" by Bow Wow Wow fit into the film Marie Antoinette by Sofia Coppola.
Cat, in GILT, is Catherine Howard, Henry VIII's fifth (and youngest) wife. I wanted to write a character who was smart and manipulative, self-involved and overly aware of her own appearance. I also wanted to write someone who didn't have awareness of her own actions and their repercussions. Someone who acts on whim and desire and does an awful lot for show.
For me, this was all represented in the song "The Fear" by Lily Allen. The lyrics go, I want to be rich and I want lots of money/I don't care about clever, I don't care about funny/I want lots of clothes and (I want lots) of diamonds/I hear people die while they're trying to find them...I have a feeling that the irony would escape Cat, but it suits her to a T. And the title hints at something more ominous.
This song includes explicit language, so be warned if you search for it on YouTube!
I listen mostly to modern music, much of it "alternative" or inspired by punk. Though I do have some CDs of Tudor and baroque chamber music, much of what inspires me is what I hear on the radio or is recommended by friends who share my taste. It was important to me to put entirely modern music in my GILT playlist because I wanted the book to have a modern atmosphere and be compelling and relatable to a contemporary audience. I kept thinking of how well "I Want Candy" by Bow Wow Wow fit into the film Marie Antoinette by Sofia Coppola.
Cat, in GILT, is Catherine Howard, Henry VIII's fifth (and youngest) wife. I wanted to write a character who was smart and manipulative, self-involved and overly aware of her own appearance. I also wanted to write someone who didn't have awareness of her own actions and their repercussions. Someone who acts on whim and desire and does an awful lot for show.For me, this was all represented in the song "The Fear" by Lily Allen. The lyrics go, I want to be rich and I want lots of money/I don't care about clever, I don't care about funny/I want lots of clothes and (I want lots) of diamonds/I hear people die while they're trying to find them...I have a feeling that the irony would escape Cat, but it suits her to a T. And the title hints at something more ominous.
This song includes explicit language, so be warned if you search for it on YouTube!
February 27, 2012
And the Winner is....
After a little delay, I can finally announce that the winner of the ARC of Saundra Mitchell's THE SPRINGSWEET is Jaskirat@SeeitORreadit! Congratulations! E-mail your address to katylongshore(at)gmail(dot)com and I'll have it in the mail as soon as I can.
February 24, 2012
Follow Friday -- Saundra Mitchell
Today's Follow Friday is a screenwriter, author and blogger who consistently makes my day. I love the intriguing things she posts on her blog, her sunny disposition on Twitter and the lovely prose of her novels.
Recently, I've been visiting Saundra Mitchell's blog for her posts on marketing and self-promotion. She offers up specific and digestible chunks of advice and backs it all up with why and how it works. Every time I go to her blog for information, I feel better as I speed toward the debut of GILT. Marketing is scary for introverted writers, and Saundra just makes it seem a little more doable.
I also love Saundra for her continuing and enthusiastic support of all things authorly and debut authors in particular. She knows how hard it is and she extends a helping hand, a kind word and promotion with her 9 Spot Interviews.
Basically, I want to be Saundra Mitchell when I grow up. And I hope I can be as inspiring as she is.
Find Saundra at her website.
On her blog.
On Twitter.
And in bookstores! Her novel THE VESPERTINE is in stores now and THE SPRINGSWEET will be available April 17. I was lucky enough to pick up an ARC at the NCIBA trade show and am only willing to part with it because I can buy a copy in April.
Heartbroken over the tragic death of her fiancé, seventeen-year-old Zora Stewart leavesBaltimore for the frontier town of West Glory, Oklahoma, to help her young widowedaunt keep her homestead going. There she discovers that she possesses the astonishingability to sense water under the parched earth. When her aunt hires her out as a"springsweet" to advise other settlers where to dig their wells, Zora feels the burden ofholding the key to something so essential to survival in this unforgiving land.Even more, she finds herself longing for love the way the prairie thirsts for water.Maybe, in the wildness of the territories, Zora can finally move beyond simply survivingand start living. (from Goodreads)
All you have to do is tweet this:
Want a chance to win an ARC of THE SPRINGSWEET by @SaundraMitchell? Find out why @KALongshore is following her: http://katherinelongshore.blogspot.com
And/or leave a comment below.
This contest is open internationally and ends at 12 pm EST on Monday, February 20. I will announce the winner Monday afternoon.
Recently, I've been visiting Saundra Mitchell's blog for her posts on marketing and self-promotion. She offers up specific and digestible chunks of advice and backs it all up with why and how it works. Every time I go to her blog for information, I feel better as I speed toward the debut of GILT. Marketing is scary for introverted writers, and Saundra just makes it seem a little more doable.I also love Saundra for her continuing and enthusiastic support of all things authorly and debut authors in particular. She knows how hard it is and she extends a helping hand, a kind word and promotion with her 9 Spot Interviews.
Basically, I want to be Saundra Mitchell when I grow up. And I hope I can be as inspiring as she is.
Find Saundra at her website.
On her blog.
On Twitter.
And in bookstores! Her novel THE VESPERTINE is in stores now and THE SPRINGSWEET will be available April 17. I was lucky enough to pick up an ARC at the NCIBA trade show and am only willing to part with it because I can buy a copy in April.
Heartbroken over the tragic death of her fiancé, seventeen-year-old Zora Stewart leavesBaltimore for the frontier town of West Glory, Oklahoma, to help her young widowedaunt keep her homestead going. There she discovers that she possesses the astonishingability to sense water under the parched earth. When her aunt hires her out as a"springsweet" to advise other settlers where to dig their wells, Zora feels the burden ofholding the key to something so essential to survival in this unforgiving land.Even more, she finds herself longing for love the way the prairie thirsts for water.Maybe, in the wildness of the territories, Zora can finally move beyond simply survivingand start living. (from Goodreads)
All you have to do is tweet this:
Want a chance to win an ARC of THE SPRINGSWEET by @SaundraMitchell? Find out why @KALongshore is following her: http://katherinelongshore.blogspot.com
And/or leave a comment below.
This contest is open internationally and ends at 12 pm EST on Monday, February 20. I will announce the winner Monday afternoon.
February 23, 2012
New Design!
While I've been hard at work on Book 2, my brilliant web designer, Madeira James at Xuni has been hard at work designing the perfect backdrop for not only my blog, but also my soon-to-be revealed website. Because of timing issues, the blog gets the makeover first, and I am so excited to share it with you! What do you think?
When the website does go live, I'll have a little party and give away an ARC of GILT and maybe some GILT-related items, so stay tuned...
When the website does go live, I'll have a little party and give away an ARC of GILT and maybe some GILT-related items, so stay tuned...
February 20, 2012
Message in a Bottle
Anybody out there ever listen to the Police? I had a thing about Sting in my twenties and seriously had a crush on a guy, despite his lack of interest or even knowledge of my existence, because someone once said he had Sting's nose. Shallow much? Fortunately, I've matured.
That said, I still love the music. The references to Greek mythology and Nabokov. The vaguely misogynistic creepiness of it all. The cheerfulness with which they approach such heavy topics as suicide and pedophilia.
Lately, I've been thinking about "Message in a Bottle". You know how it goes.
Just a castaway, an island lost at sea-oh,
Another lonely day, no one here but me-oh.
Sometimes social networking can feel like this. Like every Facebook update, every tweet, every blog post is really that message in a bottle, sent out into the void. Looking for some kind of response.
Woke up this morning, don't believe what I saw,
A hundred million bottles, washed up on the shore.
All those people out there tweeting and blogging and tumbling their little hearts out. Dick Costolo, CEO of Twitter, reported in June that 100 million people use Twitter every day. A hundred million bottles, my friends. All trying to reach someone.
Why do I bring this up? Because in a way, a novel is like a big note in a slightly bigger bottle in that ocean. We all write for the same reasons, whether our messages contain 140 characters or 82,000 words. We write to be read. Not just to hear ourselves talk. (though that can be fun, too, sometimes). Because any kind of message can be scary to send out there into the world. Whether you're posting photos of your cat or commenting on the guy next to you on the bus or sticking poems into the fork of a tree branch like Lennie in THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE. Because you never know what's going to happen when that bottle reaches the sand.
So cheers to all you fearless people out there, sending out your thoughts and feelings and daily cravings. Sting says, "Seems I'm not alone in being alone." And I, for one, am glad of it.
Thank you all so much for your comments, for your follows, for your views and your silent readings. For taking away whatever you find here, whether I know it or not. But most of all, thank you for your support and enthusiasm for GILT. That bottle seems like it is such a fragile thing for something that holds my heart and dreams.
That said, I still love the music. The references to Greek mythology and Nabokov. The vaguely misogynistic creepiness of it all. The cheerfulness with which they approach such heavy topics as suicide and pedophilia.
Lately, I've been thinking about "Message in a Bottle". You know how it goes.
Just a castaway, an island lost at sea-oh,
Another lonely day, no one here but me-oh.
Sometimes social networking can feel like this. Like every Facebook update, every tweet, every blog post is really that message in a bottle, sent out into the void. Looking for some kind of response.
Woke up this morning, don't believe what I saw,
A hundred million bottles, washed up on the shore.
All those people out there tweeting and blogging and tumbling their little hearts out. Dick Costolo, CEO of Twitter, reported in June that 100 million people use Twitter every day. A hundred million bottles, my friends. All trying to reach someone.
Why do I bring this up? Because in a way, a novel is like a big note in a slightly bigger bottle in that ocean. We all write for the same reasons, whether our messages contain 140 characters or 82,000 words. We write to be read. Not just to hear ourselves talk. (though that can be fun, too, sometimes). Because any kind of message can be scary to send out there into the world. Whether you're posting photos of your cat or commenting on the guy next to you on the bus or sticking poems into the fork of a tree branch like Lennie in THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE. Because you never know what's going to happen when that bottle reaches the sand.
So cheers to all you fearless people out there, sending out your thoughts and feelings and daily cravings. Sting says, "Seems I'm not alone in being alone." And I, for one, am glad of it.
Thank you all so much for your comments, for your follows, for your views and your silent readings. For taking away whatever you find here, whether I know it or not. But most of all, thank you for your support and enthusiasm for GILT. That bottle seems like it is such a fragile thing for something that holds my heart and dreams.
February 17, 2012
Friday -- Revision Edition
Forgive me. I've tried to write a Follow Friday and a Friday Five this morning and all I can think about is my revision. Epic blog fail today, but I promise to get back on my feet next week.
In the absence any of my own ideas, here are some that belong to some others:
Mostly Reading YA is talking about book covers, and has chosen some doozies as example.
Some of my Apocalypsies siblings are on the Indie Next List for the Spring. Some great titles here, people. Get reading!
And with that, I have to go and tackle the 16th century. See you next week!
In the absence any of my own ideas, here are some that belong to some others:
Mostly Reading YA is talking about book covers, and has chosen some doozies as example.
Some of my Apocalypsies siblings are on the Indie Next List for the Spring. Some great titles here, people. Get reading!
And with that, I have to go and tackle the 16th century. See you next week!
February 15, 2012
3...2...1...HELP!
In exactly three months, GILT will be on bookstore shelves, ready to face the world. I think I'm similar to all writers in feeling that this is a dream come true. An event similar to a birth or a wedding.
Which calls for a party.
I love parties. I spent nine months planning my own wedding -- not because I was bridezilla, but because I couldn't wait to celebrate with my husband, my family, and my friends. I feel the same way with this launch.
The problem is, I haven't been to many launch parties. In fact, I can count them on one finger. So I'm not entirely sure what to expect, what's expected of me, or what to plan. I'm full of questions:
Do I have it on a weeknight? A weekend afternoon?
Do I serve food? Nibbles? Cake?
Should I provide wine? Sparkling cider? Both?
Do I want to do a reading? Give a speech?
Do I have door prizes? Gift baskets? Tons of swag?
Should my party have a theme? Should I wear a costume? (please say no.)
Should we have decorations?
Do I have an after party?
Where?
Do I provide food there? Themed food? Open bar?
Invitations! E-vites? Postcards? Do I send them to local schools and libraries?
As you can see, I need your help. Yes, yours. Give me tips and anecdotes! Ideas from launches you've attended or planned. If you were me, what would your dream launch party look like?
Which calls for a party.
I love parties. I spent nine months planning my own wedding -- not because I was bridezilla, but because I couldn't wait to celebrate with my husband, my family, and my friends. I feel the same way with this launch.
The problem is, I haven't been to many launch parties. In fact, I can count them on one finger. So I'm not entirely sure what to expect, what's expected of me, or what to plan. I'm full of questions:
Do I have it on a weeknight? A weekend afternoon?
Do I serve food? Nibbles? Cake?
Should I provide wine? Sparkling cider? Both?
Do I want to do a reading? Give a speech?
Do I have door prizes? Gift baskets? Tons of swag?
Should my party have a theme? Should I wear a costume? (please say no.)
Should we have decorations?
Do I have an after party?
Where?
Do I provide food there? Themed food? Open bar?
Invitations! E-vites? Postcards? Do I send them to local schools and libraries?
As you can see, I need your help. Yes, yours. Give me tips and anecdotes! Ideas from launches you've attended or planned. If you were me, what would your dream launch party look like?
February 13, 2012
RIP Catherine Howard
On Friday, I wrote about Catherine Howard's trip to the Tower of London. She was executed on February 13.
One of the things that most fascinates me about Catherine is that she requested the executioner's block to be brought to her room the night before. She wanted to practice with it, and make sure she got it right. The girl who didn't really act like a queen when she was alive wanted to look like a queen at her death.
There's something very poignant about this, and I think it's a beautiful glimpse into her character. It is something, perhaps, that many of us would not be able to do. It shows courage as well as a little vanity.
Catherine's body was buried in an unmarked grave in the chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula in the Tower grounds.
One of the things that most fascinates me about Catherine is that she requested the executioner's block to be brought to her room the night before. She wanted to practice with it, and make sure she got it right. The girl who didn't really act like a queen when she was alive wanted to look like a queen at her death.There's something very poignant about this, and I think it's a beautiful glimpse into her character. It is something, perhaps, that many of us would not be able to do. It shows courage as well as a little vanity.
Catherine's body was buried in an unmarked grave in the chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula in the Tower grounds.
February 10, 2012
This Day in History -- Catherine Howard
Four hundred seventy years ago today, young Catherine Howard was taken to the Tower of London. She was no longer queen, as her titles and possessions had been stripped by an Act of Attainder earlier in the month. She was just a girl, convicted of treason, taken to the Tower to die. We don't know exactly how old she was, because her birthdate was never recorded. She was somewhere between seventeen and twenty-two. 
The stories say that Catherine was moved from Syon to the Tower by a barge that "shot the waters" that rushed under London Bridge. When she saw the water gate (now called Traitors' Gate), she began to cry, and had to be hauled from the boat and into her lodgings.Catherine wasn't the first queen in English history to enter the Tower through Traitors' Gate. And she wasn't the last.
Before I started writing GILT -- back when this novel was just an idea -- I wandered alone through the Tower to get a sense of it. To try to see it as it might have looked in 1542. The Tower is probably as crowded now as it was then -- only these days with people carrying cell phones and long-lens cameras, and speaking languages from all over the planet. But I don't think it's as forbidding. Today, the Tower feels like history. Back then, it must have felt like obliteration.
Traitors' Gate brought this side history home for me. The sharp points at the bottom of the portcullis. The slick stairs leading up from the river. No wonder Catherine cried.
February 8, 2012
Horrible Histories
Still revising (yes, I will be for a while) and it's making me a little slap-happy. Luckily, the BBC has just the tonic....
