Katherine Longshore's Blog, page 5
April 18, 2013
Two Months 'Til TARNISH Teaser
Thanks goodness for Jessica Spotswood, author of the brilliant BORN WICKED and upcoming STAR CURSED. Our second books release on the same day, and I just noticed that Jess is celebrating today on her blog. She's giving away some fabulous books (including her own!), so go check it out.
I've been in manic deadline mode, so I barely know what year it is, much less the date. But when I saw Jessica's post, I had to do a little celebrating myself. So I'm going to share with you a few behind-the-scenes snippets about TARNISH.
My Anne Boleyn doesn't have a sixth finger. She isn't a poisoner. She doesn't sleep with her brother. But she isn't boring.There is some love geometry. Not exactly a triangle. More like a...pentagon. Fun stuff.It was especially fun to write Henry VIII as a charming, sexy younger man--more like Jonathan Rhys Meyers than Ray Winstone.Though all of my characters are based on actual people, my interpretation of them is influenced by people I've known or see around me. Including ex-boyfriends, Benedict Cumberbatch and my husband.My playlist for this book included songs by No Doubt, Mumford and Sons, Of Monsters and Men, Coldplay, the Spin Doctors, KT Tunstall and the Dave Matthews Band.I was terrified to write about Anne Boleyn. But when the voice grabbed me on a long car journey, I couldn't say no. I'm definitely a fangirl now.And just because I feel like it, here's a little hint of that voice. If you want to see more, check out the Tudor Tuesdays Blog Tour that will be run by A Glass of Wine beginning May 7 (the date of the GILT paperback release!)
“Well, if it isn’t George’s little sister.”
The duchess jerks her gaze to find the speaker at the table of gamblers who have been slapping down cards and groats and boasts and bets at the far end of the room. And I whisper a blessing before I turn as well.
George looks how I feel, surprise glimmering for an instant on his face and then vanishing behind welcome. His hair is expertly tousled, his inky velvet doublet smooth and clean, his soft hands no indication of the dirt he gets into. He sits with Henry Norris, who appears to be paying more attention to my bustline than to the conversation around him. James Butler, my future spouse, is next to him, glowering, his hair thick and coarse over his beetling eyebrows. And at the far end of the table sits the speaker, dressed in green like a modern-day Robin Hood, his gold curls sporting a hint of red at the temples—the Kentishman from the king’s disguising.
He leaps from behind the table to approach me, moving with the hidden strength and lissome grace of a cat. I get the feeling this man will always land on his feet.
“Haven’t seen you since I broke my toe climbing the courtyard wall at Hever.”
I swallow a knot of vanity, and it sticks in my throat. Because he has seen me. He just doesn’t remember.
Or perhaps I just made no impression.
He stops and crosses his arms. Leans back and appraises me with his devastatingly blue eyes. He is still several strides from me, so we face each other like players on a stage, our audience all around us.
I glance at my brother, who expects my silence, and then back at this Robin Hood, who expects my response. He expects me to know him.
“Forgive me, sir. But I do not recognize you.”
He laughs.
“Thomas Wyatt.”
I do know him, or of him. His exploits are infamous in the maids’ chambers. Word is, he’s incomparable in bed. And he’s shared many. He’s a poet. An athlete. A miscreant.
“Your neighbor, from your days in Kent? We used to play naked in the fountain at my father’s castle at Allington. Without our parents’ knowledge, of course.”
He winks at me.
The other men laugh, and I hear a rustle of skirts and whispers from the duchess’s confederacy. I twitch a glance at George, who is glaring at me as if this man’s innuendos are somehow my fault. Wyatt smiles like a gambler who has laid down a hand full of hearts. I can’t let him get the better of me. I can’t let this man win.
“It’s no wonder that I don’t remember you, Master Wyatt, for we must have been much smaller.” I pause, blink once, and then open my eyes into blank innocence. “Though for all I know, some things might still be quite small.”
I've been in manic deadline mode, so I barely know what year it is, much less the date. But when I saw Jessica's post, I had to do a little celebrating myself. So I'm going to share with you a few behind-the-scenes snippets about TARNISH.
My Anne Boleyn doesn't have a sixth finger. She isn't a poisoner. She doesn't sleep with her brother. But she isn't boring.There is some love geometry. Not exactly a triangle. More like a...pentagon. Fun stuff.It was especially fun to write Henry VIII as a charming, sexy younger man--more like Jonathan Rhys Meyers than Ray Winstone.Though all of my characters are based on actual people, my interpretation of them is influenced by people I've known or see around me. Including ex-boyfriends, Benedict Cumberbatch and my husband.My playlist for this book included songs by No Doubt, Mumford and Sons, Of Monsters and Men, Coldplay, the Spin Doctors, KT Tunstall and the Dave Matthews Band.I was terrified to write about Anne Boleyn. But when the voice grabbed me on a long car journey, I couldn't say no. I'm definitely a fangirl now.And just because I feel like it, here's a little hint of that voice. If you want to see more, check out the Tudor Tuesdays Blog Tour that will be run by A Glass of Wine beginning May 7 (the date of the GILT paperback release!)
“Well, if it isn’t George’s little sister.”
The duchess jerks her gaze to find the speaker at the table of gamblers who have been slapping down cards and groats and boasts and bets at the far end of the room. And I whisper a blessing before I turn as well.
George looks how I feel, surprise glimmering for an instant on his face and then vanishing behind welcome. His hair is expertly tousled, his inky velvet doublet smooth and clean, his soft hands no indication of the dirt he gets into. He sits with Henry Norris, who appears to be paying more attention to my bustline than to the conversation around him. James Butler, my future spouse, is next to him, glowering, his hair thick and coarse over his beetling eyebrows. And at the far end of the table sits the speaker, dressed in green like a modern-day Robin Hood, his gold curls sporting a hint of red at the temples—the Kentishman from the king’s disguising.
He leaps from behind the table to approach me, moving with the hidden strength and lissome grace of a cat. I get the feeling this man will always land on his feet.
“Haven’t seen you since I broke my toe climbing the courtyard wall at Hever.”
I swallow a knot of vanity, and it sticks in my throat. Because he has seen me. He just doesn’t remember.
Or perhaps I just made no impression.
He stops and crosses his arms. Leans back and appraises me with his devastatingly blue eyes. He is still several strides from me, so we face each other like players on a stage, our audience all around us.
I glance at my brother, who expects my silence, and then back at this Robin Hood, who expects my response. He expects me to know him.
“Forgive me, sir. But I do not recognize you.”
He laughs.
“Thomas Wyatt.”
I do know him, or of him. His exploits are infamous in the maids’ chambers. Word is, he’s incomparable in bed. And he’s shared many. He’s a poet. An athlete. A miscreant.
“Your neighbor, from your days in Kent? We used to play naked in the fountain at my father’s castle at Allington. Without our parents’ knowledge, of course.”
He winks at me.
The other men laugh, and I hear a rustle of skirts and whispers from the duchess’s confederacy. I twitch a glance at George, who is glaring at me as if this man’s innuendos are somehow my fault. Wyatt smiles like a gambler who has laid down a hand full of hearts. I can’t let him get the better of me. I can’t let this man win.
“It’s no wonder that I don’t remember you, Master Wyatt, for we must have been much smaller.” I pause, blink once, and then open my eyes into blank innocence. “Though for all I know, some things might still be quite small.”
April 8, 2013
Best. Conference. Ever.
This weekend was my local region SCBWI's annual conference. They call it Spring Spirit, and it really is a wonderful way to get that bright, new inspiration into my writing.
Spring Spirit 2008 was the first writing conference I ever attended. The amazing Kirby Larson gave the keynote address. She made me want to leap up out of my seat and dance. She made me want to run home and write my heart out. And I did.
This year, our keynote speaker was supposed to be the fabulous Richard Peck. But due to an unfortunate series of events, he couldn't make it. I received a phone call from our amazing regional advisor, Patricia Newman. It went like this. "Hello, Katy? This is Patti. I have a problem." She then asked me if I could fill in for Richard Peck (!!) during one of the novel track breakout sessions. I'd recently talked to groups of seventh graders about historical fiction and how to put the real into a story. So I expanded my presentation and found myself in the main conference hall at 11:20 on Saturday morning, facing a microphone and about fifty writers.
I'm a little afraid of microphones. I'd never given this presentation before. I couldn't decide if I was starving or needing to throw up. But I gave my presentation (even getting a few laughs in the right places!) and then got to go to lunch (turns out I was hungry.)
It was then that I met a fan. A real fan. A woman who was raised on Tudor history. Who had recently decided she wanted to write for kids. Who said she loved my book. Who was delighted that Richard Peck hadn't made it because it meant she got to meet me.
My friends love my book. My family loves my book. My editor loves my book. But I've never had a complete stranger approach me in person to tell me how deeply my characters touched her. It meant the world and more. She is my hero, in more ways than one.
This experience taught me two things:
Do it. Even when you're afraid. Amazing things can come of it.
And:
Tell others how much you love their work. Online. In person. I've just started learning to do this. I used to think, "They know how good they are!" but sometimes we all need to hear it. Mine came at just the right time. So again, I have to remind myself: don't be afraid. Amazing things can come of it. It means the world.
Spring Spirit 2008 was the first writing conference I ever attended. The amazing Kirby Larson gave the keynote address. She made me want to leap up out of my seat and dance. She made me want to run home and write my heart out. And I did.
This year, our keynote speaker was supposed to be the fabulous Richard Peck. But due to an unfortunate series of events, he couldn't make it. I received a phone call from our amazing regional advisor, Patricia Newman. It went like this. "Hello, Katy? This is Patti. I have a problem." She then asked me if I could fill in for Richard Peck (!!) during one of the novel track breakout sessions. I'd recently talked to groups of seventh graders about historical fiction and how to put the real into a story. So I expanded my presentation and found myself in the main conference hall at 11:20 on Saturday morning, facing a microphone and about fifty writers.
I'm a little afraid of microphones. I'd never given this presentation before. I couldn't decide if I was starving or needing to throw up. But I gave my presentation (even getting a few laughs in the right places!) and then got to go to lunch (turns out I was hungry.)
It was then that I met a fan. A real fan. A woman who was raised on Tudor history. Who had recently decided she wanted to write for kids. Who said she loved my book. Who was delighted that Richard Peck hadn't made it because it meant she got to meet me.
My friends love my book. My family loves my book. My editor loves my book. But I've never had a complete stranger approach me in person to tell me how deeply my characters touched her. It meant the world and more. She is my hero, in more ways than one.
This experience taught me two things:
Do it. Even when you're afraid. Amazing things can come of it.
And:
Tell others how much you love their work. Online. In person. I've just started learning to do this. I used to think, "They know how good they are!" but sometimes we all need to hear it. Mine came at just the right time. So again, I have to remind myself: don't be afraid. Amazing things can come of it. It means the world.
March 18, 2013
Witness Steubenville
I hardly know where to begin. I'm not normally political on my blog. I write about history and writing and other writers. But every once in a while, something occurs that I just can't keep quiet about. For a while I thought I should. "It's not my business," I said to myself.
But it is my business. In my first book, GILT, my narrator, Kitty Tylney witnesses a rape. And does nothing. She's afraid--for her safety, for her position, for her life. She has reasons. To her, they seem like good reasons. And she continues to allow things to happen without acting. Until her own inaction comes back to haunt her.
The idea came to me after a case in a California high school where students witnessed a rape and did nothing. I wanted to explore the psychology of a young person who experienced that and suffered the consequences. Near the end of the book, Kitty has an argument with a young man named Edmund, who also witnessed (perhaps even abetted) the rape.
"I did nothing wrong!" Edmund tells her. After all, he didn't rape the girl. (He didn't hold her down. He didn't post pictures on Facebook or take a video.)
"No, Edmund," Kitty replies. "You did nothing. And that's not the same thing."
Everything about the Steubenville case makes me wonder what we've learned in the past four hundred years. In 1539, Henry VIII pardoned Thomas Culpepper for raping an unknown girl. Because Culpepper had a "promising future" at court. There were other men present at the scene of the crime. They are not named in the historical record. They did not face prosecution. They did not suffer consequences. (You might say that karma eventually got Culpepper and the king, when Henry had Culpepper beheaded for committing adultery with the queen, but that's another story altogether.)
What kind of world have we created where a girl can be sexually assaulted and it becomes entertainment? First via text and YouTube and then via media that turn the case into a global morality tale--about social networking. Outcry should not be about how young people display their entire lives for everyone to see.
Outcry should be about two young men who took advantage of a girl who could not say no. (incapacitation through alcohol is no different from incapacitation by force. Culpepper had his friends hold his victim down. The Steubenville boys had their friends take pictures).
Outcry should be about what our children learn. It's not OK to take advantage of someone who can't defend herself. It's not OK to excuse yourself from your actions because "she was drunk" or because you have a "promising future". It's not OK to take or process or pass around or publish photographs of humiliating, violent actions. Ever.
Outcry should be that rape is illegal. It is morally reprehensible. It is emotionally corrupt.
It is wrong.
And it's not OK just to let it happen. To watch, to witness and not take action. Because sometimes doing nothing is still doing something wrong.
But it is my business. In my first book, GILT, my narrator, Kitty Tylney witnesses a rape. And does nothing. She's afraid--for her safety, for her position, for her life. She has reasons. To her, they seem like good reasons. And she continues to allow things to happen without acting. Until her own inaction comes back to haunt her.
The idea came to me after a case in a California high school where students witnessed a rape and did nothing. I wanted to explore the psychology of a young person who experienced that and suffered the consequences. Near the end of the book, Kitty has an argument with a young man named Edmund, who also witnessed (perhaps even abetted) the rape.
"I did nothing wrong!" Edmund tells her. After all, he didn't rape the girl. (He didn't hold her down. He didn't post pictures on Facebook or take a video.)
"No, Edmund," Kitty replies. "You did nothing. And that's not the same thing."
Everything about the Steubenville case makes me wonder what we've learned in the past four hundred years. In 1539, Henry VIII pardoned Thomas Culpepper for raping an unknown girl. Because Culpepper had a "promising future" at court. There were other men present at the scene of the crime. They are not named in the historical record. They did not face prosecution. They did not suffer consequences. (You might say that karma eventually got Culpepper and the king, when Henry had Culpepper beheaded for committing adultery with the queen, but that's another story altogether.)
What kind of world have we created where a girl can be sexually assaulted and it becomes entertainment? First via text and YouTube and then via media that turn the case into a global morality tale--about social networking. Outcry should not be about how young people display their entire lives for everyone to see.
Outcry should be about two young men who took advantage of a girl who could not say no. (incapacitation through alcohol is no different from incapacitation by force. Culpepper had his friends hold his victim down. The Steubenville boys had their friends take pictures).
Outcry should be about what our children learn. It's not OK to take advantage of someone who can't defend herself. It's not OK to excuse yourself from your actions because "she was drunk" or because you have a "promising future". It's not OK to take or process or pass around or publish photographs of humiliating, violent actions. Ever.
Outcry should be that rape is illegal. It is morally reprehensible. It is emotionally corrupt.
It is wrong.
And it's not OK just to let it happen. To watch, to witness and not take action. Because sometimes doing nothing is still doing something wrong.
March 7, 2013
Winners!
Congratulations to the winners of the UK celebration giveaway! Thank you to everyone for entering, and for telling me all the reasons you love British history. I love that so many people share my passion for it!
The winners are:
The ARC of TARNISH goes to Kelly Grabowski!
The UK paperback and English treats go to Rachael Hanson!
And the final UK paperback goes to Petra @SafariPoet!
Congratulations and thank you all!
The winners are:
The ARC of TARNISH goes to Kelly Grabowski!
The UK paperback and English treats go to Rachael Hanson!
And the final UK paperback goes to Petra @SafariPoet!
Congratulations and thank you all!
February 28, 2013
Cheers, Britannia! TARNISH and GILT Giveaway!
Today is a very, very special day for me, my friends, because today GILT makes its debut in the UK (and Commonwealth!!). As you know, I am born and raised a California girl, but fell in love with England and embraced it as my adopted home many years ago. I lived there for five years, go back as often as I can for research and cultural immersion and spend most of my days with characters from English history as my companions.
So it's a dream come true for my book to be on the shelves of British bookstores. And thanks to Simon&Schuster UK, it has a gorgeous cover, as well. I just love that Kitty gets a chance to shine.
I'm celebrating today with all of you, and wanted to share my joy by giving away copies of the UK publication. One I will send internationally, the other to someone in the US or Canada along with fabulous British treats (Jammie Dodgers, McVities Digestives and Rowntree Fruit Gums--though I couldn't find any Hula Hoops or Walkers Crisps and refrained from including Mushy Peas or Marmite--you either love it or you hate it).
Also, because TARNISH will be published almost simultaneously in the UK and the US, I will be giving away an ARC internationally.
So please, help me celebrate! Tell me why you love British history. Help me tell the world how excited I am. And let me thank you--for reading, for being history geeks and/or Anglophiles, for loving books.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
So it's a dream come true for my book to be on the shelves of British bookstores. And thanks to Simon&Schuster UK, it has a gorgeous cover, as well. I just love that Kitty gets a chance to shine.
I'm celebrating today with all of you, and wanted to share my joy by giving away copies of the UK publication. One I will send internationally, the other to someone in the US or Canada along with fabulous British treats (Jammie Dodgers, McVities Digestives and Rowntree Fruit Gums--though I couldn't find any Hula Hoops or Walkers Crisps and refrained from including Mushy Peas or Marmite--you either love it or you hate it). Also, because TARNISH will be published almost simultaneously in the UK and the US, I will be giving away an ARC internationally.
So please, help me celebrate! Tell me why you love British history. Help me tell the world how excited I am. And let me thank you--for reading, for being history geeks and/or Anglophiles, for loving books.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
February 25, 2013
10 Reasons Why I Love British History
My first novel, GILT, will be published in the UK and Commonwealth on the 28th of February, and I'm celebrating this week with my love of Britain and British history. And on Thursday, I'll be hosting a little blog party and giveaway (including chances to win the British paperback of GILT and an ARC of TARNISH!)
But today, I have to tell you why I'm such a history geek (though the reasons are countless, I've managed to nail down a few...)
10. Blackadder. History and quirky, irreverent British humor all rolled up into a sneering anti-hero, written by some of the funniest writers working today (Richard Curtis of Four Weddings and a Funeral, Rowan Atkinson, Ben Elton) and Britain’s best comedic actors (Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie, and the fabulous Tony Robinson of Time Team). I have a cunning plan to write a book starring Elizabeth I, just so I can have her say, “Who’s Queen?”
9. Errol Flynn. I know he’s Australian. But my first introduction to history was through Robin Hood and Captain Blood and for years I expected history to be populated by handsome rogues.
8. Castles. Crenellated walls, stone towers, clammy dungeons. From motte and bailey structures of Norman England to the pretty, showy palaces of the Tudors. I especially love the ruins—like Corfe Castle, destroyed by Parliament during the English Civil War. There’s real history in those walls, my friends.
7. British television costume dramas. Pride and Prejudice, Downton Abbey, Vanity Fair, Call the Midwife…I could to on and on and on. But that will have to be a blog post of its own.
6. Archaeology. After seeing Raiders of the Lost Ark as a kid, I wanted to be an archaeologist (but ended up studying cultural anthropology instead). I totally dig Time Team. And the recent discovery of Richard III’s bones in a Leicester car park? Made. My. Year.
5. Costumes. I spent part of my college career studying costume design for the theater. I love those flat Renaissance bodices, 1920’s dropped-waist dresses, the elegant lines of Edwardian fashions (think Mary in Downton Abbey), Marie Antoinette’s hair, Joan of Arc’s armor…
4. Shakespeare. Richard III is my favorite history play, though old Will put a lot of fiction into his historical fiction.
3. Murder and mayhem. Why does this entice us so? The Gunpowder Plot. The execution of Anne Boleyn and all of the men accused of treason with her. The Blitz. I think it’s because in the midst of all the violence and injustice, we see who we really are and what side we’d take.
2. Romance. Not necessarily in the Romeo and Juliet, boy-meets-girl sense, though I love that, too. But in the chivalry of King Arthur, the beauty and humanism of the Renaissance, the way Windsor Castle looks from the far end of the Great Park. Blake’s vision of romance.
1. Characters. Kings and queens and commoners. Matilda, Henry V, Francis Drake, T. E. Lawrence, Emmeline Pankhurst, Oliver Cromwell, and, of course, Anne Boleyn. Fascinating people who lived in fascinating times. I love to find the story in history, and story is all about the characters.
February 15, 2013
A Tale of Three Covers
My Tudor series has had a makeover. Many of you saw that the fabulous Fallon Prinzivalli over at MTV's Hollywood Crush agreed to reveal the new cover of TARNISH, and said some lovely things about it, too.
GILT also got a revamp. And there have been some interesting reactions to it. Personally, I love looking at book covers. I love the mood they set, the way they feel, what they suggest about what's inside. It seems like most readers feel the same way--but not the same way about each cover.
As an author, it's interesting to hear what people say about the covers of my books. It's one of the things that I have absolutely no control over. And I find it fascinating what images come up in other people's minds when they read what I've written. So getting several different cover treatments has been very eye-opening. And kind of like Christmas on a regular basis. Oooh! A new cover! Shiny!
The designers at Penguin are such a creative team, and I think each GILT cover has had a very distinct feel. I think each of them beg to be picked up for a different reason.
This is the image on the hardcover that many of you are already familiar with. I have always loved how different it is from just about every other YA novel out there. I adore the font and am still looking for the perfect match to the lipstick.
This is the original paperback design and I hate to tell you it will never be printed. Again, the gorgeous font, the lush imagery. Though some were worried it might be a bit too suggestive for teen readers (or their parents!)
So my publisher decided on a redesign for both books. No models. No sexytimes. But still elegant, luxurious and something that I, personally, would pick up in an instant.
What do you think?
The paperback of GILT will be released May 7.
GILT also got a revamp. And there have been some interesting reactions to it. Personally, I love looking at book covers. I love the mood they set, the way they feel, what they suggest about what's inside. It seems like most readers feel the same way--but not the same way about each cover.
As an author, it's interesting to hear what people say about the covers of my books. It's one of the things that I have absolutely no control over. And I find it fascinating what images come up in other people's minds when they read what I've written. So getting several different cover treatments has been very eye-opening. And kind of like Christmas on a regular basis. Oooh! A new cover! Shiny!
The designers at Penguin are such a creative team, and I think each GILT cover has had a very distinct feel. I think each of them beg to be picked up for a different reason.
This is the image on the hardcover that many of you are already familiar with. I have always loved how different it is from just about every other YA novel out there. I adore the font and am still looking for the perfect match to the lipstick.
This is the original paperback design and I hate to tell you it will never be printed. Again, the gorgeous font, the lush imagery. Though some were worried it might be a bit too suggestive for teen readers (or their parents!)
So my publisher decided on a redesign for both books. No models. No sexytimes. But still elegant, luxurious and something that I, personally, would pick up in an instant.
What do you think?The paperback of GILT will be released May 7.
February 4, 2013
It's Really Richard!
Most of you know I'm a bit of a Ricardian at heart. Last week, I posted about history's bad boys over on Corsets, Cutlasses and Candlesticks. I'm smitten.
By Richard III.
So I've been following the archaeological dig at Greyfriars in Leicester with avidity. I paid more attention to the British news articles on it than the Superbowl yesterday. I almost work myself up in the middle of the night to watch the press conference live.
But this morning, I hesitated to turn on the computer and find out. I love a good mystery. I love an underdog--and poor Richard has been vilified for centuries. I knew I would never be able to avoid knowing altogether, but I kept my eyes closed for a minute or two longer than I normally would.
And it's him. The fatal wounds found on the skeleton describe a warrior who went down fighting. The scoliosis in the spine describe a man with a physical challenge, but certainly not the twisted and withered monster Shakespeare gives us. He was not a big man--the news article I read described his build as "almost feminine". But they're sure it's him. Hastily buried in a church that Henry VIII had demolished, so the location was forgotten for centuries.
Now, I'm sure I'm not the only one who hopes that they also find a way to test the bones they have in Westminster Cathedral. The ones that are claimed to be those of the Princes in the Tower--Richard's nephews, whom he is reputed to have murdered. And perhaps another mystery can be laid to rest.
Then again, maybe I don't want to know....
If you want to know more, check out this excellent article on the BBC News website.
And this is a fascinating article on archaeological facial reconstruction and an image of what Richard may really have looked like.
By Richard III.
So I've been following the archaeological dig at Greyfriars in Leicester with avidity. I paid more attention to the British news articles on it than the Superbowl yesterday. I almost work myself up in the middle of the night to watch the press conference live.
But this morning, I hesitated to turn on the computer and find out. I love a good mystery. I love an underdog--and poor Richard has been vilified for centuries. I knew I would never be able to avoid knowing altogether, but I kept my eyes closed for a minute or two longer than I normally would.
And it's him. The fatal wounds found on the skeleton describe a warrior who went down fighting. The scoliosis in the spine describe a man with a physical challenge, but certainly not the twisted and withered monster Shakespeare gives us. He was not a big man--the news article I read described his build as "almost feminine". But they're sure it's him. Hastily buried in a church that Henry VIII had demolished, so the location was forgotten for centuries.
Now, I'm sure I'm not the only one who hopes that they also find a way to test the bones they have in Westminster Cathedral. The ones that are claimed to be those of the Princes in the Tower--Richard's nephews, whom he is reputed to have murdered. And perhaps another mystery can be laid to rest.
Then again, maybe I don't want to know....
If you want to know more, check out this excellent article on the BBC News website.
And this is a fascinating article on archaeological facial reconstruction and an image of what Richard may really have looked like.
February 1, 2013
ALA Amazingness
Last weekend, I went to Seattle. I adore Seattle. I spent a year almost living there (ask me about this sometime, and I'll tell you about it) and always assumed I'd moved there. But then moved to England instead. (hey, the weather is the same!)
The Washington State Conference Center hosted the American Library Association mid-winter conference. My Corsets, Cutlasses and Candlesticks sister, Cat Winters was going to be signing. My editor and agent sibling (and now good friend) Stasia Ward Kehoe, offered a place to sleep in her wonderful home where I got to meet her delightful family. And my editor arranged a pass. So of course I jumped at the chance.
For two days, I was surrounded by books and book people. Publishers, agents, writers, sales reps, and, of course, librarians. Lots of librarians. (And you know, I love librarians). My Class of 2k12 sibling, Jennifer Shaw Wolf, author of BREAKING BEAUTIFUL, picked me up at the airport, showed me some Seattle sights, wandered the exhibits with me and we both killed our feet in our fancy boots. I picked up galleys of some fabulous spring and summer books. I attended book buzz panels to see what publishers are interested in. Stasia and I met the Penguin sales rep (the delightful Colleen Conway) for coffee. I went to a session where I learned which books of 2012 the local teens loved the most (and the least). My favorite quote? "Scarlet (from AC Gaughen's Robin Hood retelling, SCARLET) is the best female character since Hermione Granger." I couldn't have put it better myself.
And I met writers.
I had dinner with several authors, including Allyson Valentine, author of the forthcoming HOW (NOT) TO FIND A BOYFRIEND, Helen Landalf, who wrote FLYAWAY, Karen Finneyfrock (another editor sibling) whose THE SWEET REVENGE OF CELIA DOOR is coming out this month. We were joined by J. Anderson Coats, author of the fabulous THE WICKED AND THE JUST, and another 2k12 sib. And also the lovely book blogger, Jean Vallesteros.
This weekend, I'm catching up on my revision for Book 3.
The Washington State Conference Center hosted the American Library Association mid-winter conference. My Corsets, Cutlasses and Candlesticks sister, Cat Winters was going to be signing. My editor and agent sibling (and now good friend) Stasia Ward Kehoe, offered a place to sleep in her wonderful home where I got to meet her delightful family. And my editor arranged a pass. So of course I jumped at the chance.
For two days, I was surrounded by books and book people. Publishers, agents, writers, sales reps, and, of course, librarians. Lots of librarians. (And you know, I love librarians). My Class of 2k12 sibling, Jennifer Shaw Wolf, author of BREAKING BEAUTIFUL, picked me up at the airport, showed me some Seattle sights, wandered the exhibits with me and we both killed our feet in our fancy boots. I picked up galleys of some fabulous spring and summer books. I attended book buzz panels to see what publishers are interested in. Stasia and I met the Penguin sales rep (the delightful Colleen Conway) for coffee. I went to a session where I learned which books of 2012 the local teens loved the most (and the least). My favorite quote? "Scarlet (from AC Gaughen's Robin Hood retelling, SCARLET) is the best female character since Hermione Granger." I couldn't have put it better myself.
And I met writers.
I had dinner with several authors, including Allyson Valentine, author of the forthcoming HOW (NOT) TO FIND A BOYFRIEND, Helen Landalf, who wrote FLYAWAY, Karen Finneyfrock (another editor sibling) whose THE SWEET REVENGE OF CELIA DOOR is coming out this month. We were joined by J. Anderson Coats, author of the fabulous THE WICKED AND THE JUST, and another 2k12 sib. And also the lovely book blogger, Jean Vallesteros.
This weekend, I'm catching up on my revision for Book 3.
January 2, 2013
The End of the Internet Blackout
As many of you know, I spent December in a self-imposed Internet blackout. My friend, Corrine Jackson, author of IF I LIE and TOUCHED, did this back in October, and came out of it with a fresh lease on writing and life--to listen to her talk about it was like listening to someone come back from a near-death experience (or alien abduction?). She was power-charged, enthusiastic, and writing. So I had to try it.
The thing is, I love the Internet. I love Twitter and Facebook. Many writers are great eavesdroppers, and Twitter especially gives us the perfect chance to indulge. Social networking also gives us the opportunity to experience a simulation of social interaction--we spend an awful lot of time alone with a computer or a pen and pencil, after all.
But for me, the Internet was also disrupting my writing life. When I got stuck in the middle of a paragraph or a scene, or didn't know what happened next, I'd just click over to Twitter. Check my e-mail. Research St. Stephen's Day on Wikipedia.
And not write.
So I took a month off. I couldn't quit cold-turkey. I had blog posts to write the YA Muses, the Class of 2k12 and Corsets, Cutlasses and Candlesticks and couldn't add to anyone else's already packed workload by refusing to do them. I responded to personal messages on Twitter and Facebook. And I had to use my e-mail--the YA Muses, especially, are a life-line for me--so supportive and encouraging, and as I slogged through the muddled middle of my WIP, I needed them more than ever.
But the biggest thing I learned this month is that the best way to cure writer's block is to sit in front of the blank screen until I write. It could be a minute, it could be twenty. But trawling the Internet only served as distraction, not inspiration. So as I head into 2013, my resolution is to find the balance. Only allow myself blocks of time for Internet and socializing on it, and turn it off when I'm writing.
I, too, have come out of this month recharged. I read nothing but non-fiction--history, biography, books on craft. I watched a shed-load of happily-ever-after movies recommended by Facebook followers--When Harry Met Sally, Romancing the Stone, A Knight's Tale, The Princess Bride (though I can't help envisioning the final scene that William Goldman put in the book--his own little retaliation to the happily-ever-after). And I wrote.
I wrote 47,320 words in December.
More than I've ever written in a single month before. So yeah, it was worth it.
The thing is, I love the Internet. I love Twitter and Facebook. Many writers are great eavesdroppers, and Twitter especially gives us the perfect chance to indulge. Social networking also gives us the opportunity to experience a simulation of social interaction--we spend an awful lot of time alone with a computer or a pen and pencil, after all.
But for me, the Internet was also disrupting my writing life. When I got stuck in the middle of a paragraph or a scene, or didn't know what happened next, I'd just click over to Twitter. Check my e-mail. Research St. Stephen's Day on Wikipedia.
And not write.
So I took a month off. I couldn't quit cold-turkey. I had blog posts to write the YA Muses, the Class of 2k12 and Corsets, Cutlasses and Candlesticks and couldn't add to anyone else's already packed workload by refusing to do them. I responded to personal messages on Twitter and Facebook. And I had to use my e-mail--the YA Muses, especially, are a life-line for me--so supportive and encouraging, and as I slogged through the muddled middle of my WIP, I needed them more than ever.
But the biggest thing I learned this month is that the best way to cure writer's block is to sit in front of the blank screen until I write. It could be a minute, it could be twenty. But trawling the Internet only served as distraction, not inspiration. So as I head into 2013, my resolution is to find the balance. Only allow myself blocks of time for Internet and socializing on it, and turn it off when I'm writing.
I, too, have come out of this month recharged. I read nothing but non-fiction--history, biography, books on craft. I watched a shed-load of happily-ever-after movies recommended by Facebook followers--When Harry Met Sally, Romancing the Stone, A Knight's Tale, The Princess Bride (though I can't help envisioning the final scene that William Goldman put in the book--his own little retaliation to the happily-ever-after). And I wrote.
I wrote 47,320 words in December.
More than I've ever written in a single month before. So yeah, it was worth it.
