Elizabeth Moss's Blog, page 5

Wolf Bride in the Sunday Times

I was interviewed a few days ago by the arts editor of the Sunday Times for a feature on Wolf Bride, the first in my forthcoming Tudor trilogy (Hodder & Stoughton).

The article is in the Sunday Times today.

The series by Elizabeth Moss is aimed at the female readers who made bestsellers of Hilary Mantel’s account of Thomas Cromwell’s rise to power and EL James’s tales of sex and bondage.

The first instalment in Moss’s trilogy is called Wolf Bride and appears in late August. “Yes, the name is not entirely coincidental,” she admits ...

READ MORE.

You can pre-order Wolf Bride on Amazon or via your local bookshop. Digital editions available from August, paperbacks from November.

Regency titles all massively reduced!

To celebrate the forthcoming publication of Wolf Bride (Hodder & Stoughton), first in a Tudor romance series set against the backdrop of Anne Boleyn's downfall, I have reduced the price on all my Regency ebook titles.

You can now purchase these Regency tales for only 77p in the UK and under a dollar in the States.

Better hurry while the promotion lasts.

Happy reading!


Elizabeth Moss Regency Romances for Kindle or iPad/iPhone users:

The Earl and His Tiger: Stranded in a remote cottage during a snowstorm, the rakish Earl of Stanton is staggered to discover that his sturdy "tiger" - an elite Regency groom - is actually a female in disguise. (Find on US Amazon site.)


The Uncatchable Miss Faversham: No one knew the "Uncatchable" Miss Faversham was not a respectable virgin. Except Lord Nathaniel Sallinger. And he was never going to let her forget it! (Find on US Amazon site.)


Poppeia and the Petticoat Club:  Miss Poppeia Pickford is sure she does not want a husband. It is just a pity that polite society does not agree with her view ... and nor does her heart, when she encounters a highwayman whose laughing grey eyes seem to penetrate her soul. (Find on US Amazon site.)


A Most Dangerous Lady: Lord Trajan does not believe in the "Petticoat Club", a legendary gang of women who take their revenge on rakes and noblemen like him. But all that is about to change. (Find on US Amazon site.)

Wolf Bride: acquisition announcement

I'm delighted to announce the acquisition by Hodder and Stoughton of a three novel series under my name Elizabeth Moss. This is 'a tantalisingly steamy Tudor romance series' to be published over the next year.

WOLF BRIDE, Book One, is an erotic Tudor Court romance set during the last fateful months of Anne Boleyn's reign and bursting with seduction, passion, jealousy and love.

When Eloise Tyrell is told by her father she is to give up her post as one of ill-fated Queen Anne’s maids of honour and marry the cold, mysterious Lord Wolf, she is horrified. But she soon learns that there is more to her new adventurous husband than first seems – and he ignites a passion in her that she has never before experienced…

WOLF BRIDE is a scandal-ridden, debauched, decadent and passionate story and will be perfect for fans of Philippa Gregory, Sylvia Day and raunchy, revved-up BBC costume dramas like The Tudors.  
Elizabeth Moss was born in Essex, and currently lives in the South-West of England with her husband and young family. She also writes commercial fiction under another name.
Hodder & Stoughton will be publishing WOLF BRIDE in e-book on 29thAugust 2013 and in paperback on 7th November 2013. You can pre-order your copy on Amazon now.

Book Two will follow in January 2014.

Anne Boleyn's Execution

Anne Boleyn: probably a copy of a painting made in 1534Few events in the history of the English monarchy have excited as much interest as the execution of Queen Anne, second wife to Henry VIII. To truly appreciate how this death must have electrified both the English court and that of other European monarchs, you have to realise that the execution of a queen was quite extraordinary and unprecedented, and many noblemen must have been left terrified and bewildered by its ramifications.

One moment, these English nobles were kneeling before their reigning queen in obedient duty and - for Anne Boleyn was by all accounts beautiful, witty and charming - in admiration. The next, they were forced to witness her head being struck ignominiously from her shoulders, while their king celebrated his imminent nuptials elsewhere with a new lady.

The doomed queen left her lodgings at the Tower of London some time before 8 o'clock on the morning of May 19th 1536, surrounded not by her own beloved ladies but by women appointed to her care by her enemies. Clad in dark grey, with an ermine mantle and sober hood, Anne made the short walk to the scaffold, which stood draped respectfully in black for her execution.

Among the crowd would have been some who wished her ill and rejoiced to see her brought to this end. Others must surely have wept - at least secretly - at the cruelty and injustice of this officially sanctioned murder of a queen. Those watching included Sir Thomas Cromwell, the senior courtier who many believe had almost single-handedly orchestrated her accusation and trial, plus noble dignitaries such as the Duke of Suffolk, the King's illegitimate son Henry Fitzroy, who was Duke of Richmond, and Thomas Audley, Lord Chancellor.

Silence fell in the crowd. Perhaps surprisingly, after tales of her hysterical laughter and erratic behaviour in the days leading up to her execution, Queen Anne's demeanour on the morning itself was apparently calm, untroubled. She gave a speech which neither admitted her guilt nor blamed the king, carefully avoiding any comment which might cause her baby daughter Elizabeth to be treated poorly after her death.

Her women removed her cloak, hood and mantle, following which the slender-necked Anne hid her beautiful hair under a plain cap, a sight which must have been quite heartrending in its pathos. She forgave her executioner - a time-honoured tradition on the scaffold - and possibly also paid him.

The executioner was a Frenchman, hired for his skill with a sword, for Anne was not to be executed in the common way with a rough block and axe, but decapitated with a sword, kneeling in the European style. The legend goes that the executioner was much moved by her beauty, and so found his task doubly difficult.

Blindfolded, Queen Anne was helped to kneel before the crowd. In her last moments, she called out in prayer, most likely: 'O Lord, have mercy on me, to God I commend my soul.'

Again, legend steps in at this moment to have the executioner call loudly for his sword, though he had it to hand. This feint might have been employed to ease the queen's passing, by making her unaware that death was imminent. While she was waiting for the sword to arrive, he struck off her head with one clean blow.

Cannon were fired to announce her death. No doubt a message would also have been borne swiftly to King Henry, to let him know he was free to remarry. The queen's body, together with her head, were swiftly buried in St Peter ad Vincula, the ancient chapel within the confines of the Tower of London, where many high-ranking traitors also found their final resting-place.

A few years later, the unfortunate young Katherine Howard, also Queen of England, joined her there, accused of similar crimes of adultery and treason.

The execution of Anne Boleyn features in my forthcoming Tudor novel, WOLF BRIDE, to be published by Hodder & Stoughton in August 2013. Now available for pre-order.

Wolf Bride Playlist 1

I always listen to music while I write, it's part of who I am as a writer, and most books demand a different musical approach for the maximum inspiration. Each stage of a book may require different music, tailored to the 'mood' and overall dynamic of the story and characters.

I particularly enjoy listening to fast, upbeat, uptempo music when writing, as it seems to increase my speed!

For my latest novel, WOLF BRIDE, which is an erotic Tudor Court romance set during the last fateful months of Anne Boleyn's reign, I listened to the following songs, many of which are retro. Though not quite Tudor!

This is Playlist 1 for the early part of this novel, and I am now listening to different tracks for my inspiration. I'll post those up later!

SMOOTH (feat Rob Thomas) - Santana

I'LL FIND MY WAY HOME - Jon & Vangelis

WILLING AND ABLE - Prince and the New Generation

GAMES WITHOUT FRONTIERS - Peter Gabriel

L'AMOUR LOOKS SOMETHING LIKE YOU - Kate Bush

HYMN TO HER - Pretenders

ALL ALONG THE WATCHTOWER - Bob Dylan

DANCING GIRLS - Nik Kershaw

SHE - Charles Aznavour

BRILLIANT MIND - Furniture

UNDREDTIDE - Mediaeval Baebes

Poppeia and the Petticoat Club on FREE Kindle promotion

My highwayman story POPPEIA AND THE PETTICOAT CLUB, a quick and fun Regency novella with pistols and romance, is currently FREE to Kindle readers.

UK readers can download it for FREE here: Poppeia

US readers can download it for FREE here: Poppeia

And if you enjoy the story, please do let other people know on Amazon if you have a few moments to spare. At the moment, this quirky little novella has one review on Amazon UK, and 3 reviews on Amazon US.

It would be wonderful to know what other people thought of it!

Ten Tips For Writing Sex

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Slow Build-up - or Don't Forget The Foreplay</span><span lang="EN-US"> </span></h4><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">A slow build-up is vital in a romance, excellent for creating sexual tension in an erotic novel, but less important in a short erotic story (where things need to develop quickly). </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Women readers in particular like to 'know' a character before they can really identify with that character having sex. For women, a strong emotional connection is where it's at. Here are some tried and tested ways to build up to sex slowly: use meaningful dialogue; focus on eye contact (without overdoing it); employ brief descriptions which flash an image across the page rather than force it down a reader's throat; fall back on a little indiscreet public touching (the hip jar as two people squeeze through a door at the same time, for instance); or deliberate brushing against each other in a situation where no sex can happen (on the train during the daily commute, or in a crowd).</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">So take it easy. Most of us wouldn't rush into bed with a stranger, unless that's our secret fantasy. Fictional sex is often the same. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><h4 class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">2.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Don't think of sex as action - Sex is <i>character in action</i>. </span></h4><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">As with so much in life, the WHO and WHY of sex in a novel is far more important than the WHAT and HOW.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Feeling, motive, subtext: these are what should inform your sex scenes rather than Tab A fits in Slot B. On a very basic level, sex writing should not read like instructions for the floor game Twister:</span></div><blockquote class="tr_bq"><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">'Blake slipped his left arm about her waist while his right hand toyed with her nipple. Teresa kissed him back passionately, her right leg rubbing against his left leg, one buttock perched on the arm of the sofa, the other wavering precariously in mid-air.'</span></div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">This level of detail can very rapidly become either boring or comic. So write less on the nose, and always bring the sexual act back to the characters involved:</span></div><blockquote class="tr_bq"><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">"Blake slipped his arm about her waist, holding her so tight she could hardly breathe. Standing on tiptoe, Teresa kissed him back, revelling in the intimacy of their embrace. At last, she thought, at last!"</span></div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Beyond mere physical descriptions, sex in a novel should reflect who these two - or more! - people are, and why they want to fit together so intimately. No two people will have sex the same way (thank goodness). So don't just think back to your own best bedroom performance (you wish) or sexual experience when writing these scenes.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Focus on your characters and how you, as their creator, think they would have sex. Vicars will fondle their loved ones in a different way to porn stars, one would reasonably assume. So repeat the mantra <i>character, character, character</i> - and you can't go far wrong. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><h4 class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">3. Sex Is Not a Filler! </span></h4><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Sex in a novel needs to happen for a reason or at a key moment. Choose a point which it feels natural and organic, or a highly dynamic place for sex to occur. Only use sex in a novel, in other words, where you know it will develop or deepen a plotline. This is true even for an erotic novel, where there might be several scenes in a chapter. Don't just chuck a sex scene in every few pages. Consider their best placement for greatest impact on the reader, and try to vary them in mood, style and approach.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><h4 class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">4. Sex Is Different for Everyone</span></h4><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">As a further progression of point 2, always remember what kind of people your characters are, and what kind of sex they are most likely to have. Don't fall into the trap of copying sex scenes you're read elsewhere. Tailor each one to your characters very closely, and think about character motivation in particular.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Here is a thought which may not be apparent to everyone. Sex is not always about pleasure, desire or the basic urge for procreation. For instance, in a BDSM novel, sex can be about power, fear, or control. It can be about punishment or revenge. It can also be about healing the scars of early trauma. None of these attributes need to be sexual in nature. They become sexualised by the context in which they occur between characters, i.e. when having sex together, or by withholding sexual contact or subverting it into something different.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Again, look for the sexual subtext and employ it. Sexual subtext can be a deliciously subtle tool in the right hands, if you'll pardon the expression. If you can find a strong theme or symbol to underpin sexual subtext in your novel, so much the better. Just don't clout readers over the head with it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><h4 class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">5. Keep Sexual Content Appropriate</span></h4><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Genre and subgenre become incredibly important when writing sex in your novel. When in doubt, do your research at plotting stage, and save yourself the hassle of rewriting later when your sex scene proves inappropriate for the genre. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">If writing Young Adult fiction, for instance, check with the editor you're targeting or do some major market research before having your teens enjoy wild, unprotected sex. Some YA books do include sex, but it's rarely very detailed. There are also the thorny questions of contraception, consent, and sexual responsibility to consider in that market. So be advised and play the sex down in fiction for young adults unless it's absolutely central to your plot. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">For older or Christian readers, sex may need to be more muted too, with an emphasis on loving and committed relationships. Always think: is this sex right for my target reader? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Of course, you can't please everyone all of the time. So decide on your target readership - or write your story following a publisher's guidelines, if you prefer - and stick to that. In general, don't assume you'll gain or lose readers by modifying your work in some way. Just write the sex that moves and excites you personally, and there's a good chance that it will excite your readers too. Unless you're into something very odd and unusual! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><h4 class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">6. Talk Sexy</span><span lang="EN-US"> </span></h4><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Don't use too much rambling dialogue during sex. It kills the mood. Equally, too little dialogue makes sex feel mechanical and uninspiring if they're basically silent during sex, or using dialogue which adds nothing to our understanding of this scene or these people.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Each exchange of dialogue in a novel should DRIVE the novel forward to its destination, and that includes during a sex scene. There's no place in your novel for lazy dialogue like this: 'Yeah, do me, baby!' or 'Oh my god, it's massive!'</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Look back to No.s 2 and 4 above. Always write the words your characters would say at this special and heightened moment, not some generic sexual exchange that adds nothing to the tension. And please, don't have them quote poetry at each other during the act unless you're a brilliantly accomplished writer or their romance is intended to be comic.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><h4 class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">7.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Where to Stick It</span></h4><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Sometimes an early sex scene is necessary for the plot (rather than to catch a browsing reader's eye). When this happens, try to keep it low-key in comparison to the longer and more elaborate scenes to come. You can always describe mood rather than actual moves, and then contrast these early scenes with later ones to show how a relationship or character has developed.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">When plotting, it's important to think seriously about structure, and to shape a book's sex scenes to make the tension rise slowly and incrementally, like Ravel's 'Bolero'.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">For instance, a short romance might have three major sex scenes: let's say at 20,000; 35,000; and 55,000 words, each one hotter than the last. Longer romantic novels would have something similar at the same ratio, and if a subplot involves a second couple - this is useful to ring the changes or swell out a thin plot - they can provide a second to last sex scene near the end.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">If you're writing a straight novel that contains sexual activity, your sex scenes should occur wherever it is most useful for character or plot development, and in a way that is reflective of the overall plot.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">N.B. All of these so-called 'rules' about structure can be ignored. The book will still work if you're a good writer and the reader trusts you. But if you're flailing about, unsure where to stick your sex scenes, it's a good rough guide.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><h4 class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">8. Light a Cigarette and Roll Over</span></h4><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">What happens after sex in your novel can be just as important as what happens during it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">You might choose to have that longer conversation now, which would have felt awkward during passion. Or perhaps a sudden shift in mood that again drives the plot forward by REVERSING what readers were expecting from the scene. In one of my recent books, I had a character call his lover by the wrong name during sex. So what started out passionate and loving ends up with a fight.</span><br /><br /><span lang="EN-US">If you end a chapter or other section with sex, as frequently happens - readers often need the breather of a fresh chapter after a strong sex scene - then consider pace and mood. Your reader may turn straight over to the next chapter, all flushed and panting. So don't start the next section with a gruesome hospital operation or a child's nappy being changed. Let them come down slowly.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Though in a comic novel, a child at breakfast saying, 'Mommy, I heard funny noises in the night,' could provide a funny moment.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><h4 class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">9. Keeping it Hot and Tight</span></h4><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">In an erotic novel, as opposed to sex within a straight novel or romance, it's vital to maintain both tension and contrast. If a couple are at it every few pages, for instance, look for ways to ring the changes: threesomes, different places, different moods - angry sex; playful sex; dirty sex - new positions etc. Whatever feels new and exciting.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">One of the best ways to maintain sexual tension within erotica is to concentrate on language and subtext. If one sex scene is very crude and graphic, make the next one about mood., i.e. instead of 'He entered her with one powerful thrust,' make it, 'He felt like one with her as they made love.'</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Be sparing with obscenity. Too many swear words and crudity soon desensitises a reader and makes a story boring and predictable. You want to thrill and excite the reader, not dull her senses. Remember: even erotica needs a plot and a good writing style. So keep things relevant: ask each scene why it exists. And don't just dash down any old sentence. Respect your reader's intelligence.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">But don't over-write and draw attention to your style. The story is what counts.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><h4 class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">10. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Miss Whiplash</span><span lang="EN-US"> </span></h4><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Know your market. Perhaps you're already established in hot romance and would like to move into BDSM erotica. Be aware though, highly specialised erotica should only be written by those who already read and understand it, so avoid wasting your time on something that won't ultimately suit you as a writer.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Niche erotica pushes specific buttons for readers, and uses code which other enthusiasts will spot and respond to: master, slave, rubber, whip, suck, squirt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So read up on the subject, do your research thoroughly. Don't write what you don't enjoy yourself; your disinterest will soon show. And beware both e-market and traditional publishing censorship if planning any bold pushing of the boundaries: all characters these days need to be over-18s, there should be no non-consensual sex, no physical violence that causes actual harm or grief (mild consensual punishments aside), no necrophilia, and no sexual contact with animals.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><h4 class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">And lastly, good luck - have fun with it! </span></h4>

Five Cynical Tips for Mid-List Authors

TIP ONE: Make Sales Or DieWe're all grown-ups here, so let's be straight with each other. The publishing industry as our role models knew it - those star-dusted writers whose novels we read and loved as kids - is dead.

Long live the new publishing industry!

In this brave new world, the mid-list author who can't make a bestseller list becomes very rapidly a pest and a bore. They can be as talented, professional and competent as you like, but if they can't consistently hit the new sales quotas, they're toast. Soon they will see the editor's eyes glazing over at lunch meetings - if they've not already been downgraded to coffee shop status, or 'just a quick phone chat'. Not long after that, their contracts will fail to be renewed or may actually be cancelled.

So don't get too comfy once you have a safe little contract and a slowly growing backlist. The fairy-story ending for successful writers has been edited to read 'Keep making sales or die!' It has become clear that writers can no longer rely on one publisher, or genre, or source of income.

Cynicism is the new trust in publishing. Publishers - and even readers, sadly - can turn fickle on the publication of each new sales report. So don't worry too much about building a following in one place only, but keep a suitcase packed by the door. Just in case.


TIP TWO: All Of Us Write Debuts, But Some Write More Debuts Than OthersFollowing on from the above, be prepared to reinvent yourself from scratch periodically. This can mean a new pen-name, a new genre, and definitely new readers. Invent a new persona for each name, with a separate email address, Twitter and Facebook accounts, blog and website.

Try not to tangle the reins, despite the temptation to retweet promo via a different account just because the previous account has more followers. And watch tone in social media. It should match your new persona, not sound just like the original you with a funny hat on.

Duplicitous? You betcha. This is the age of the debut novel. Try to write one at least every three years.


TIP THREE: Dust Off Your Childhood Dreams Becoming jaded is a perennial danger for the mid-list author. After a few novels, you may start to feel you've seen it all before, and probably written it all before too. Hold on, didn't you use that same plot twist three books ago? Oh well, no one will notice ...

Stay fresh by constantly revisiting your vision of yourself as an author. Once upon a time, you knew where you were going. Right to the top! Then you became a published writer and suddenly things were a bit more complicated.

Well, now is a good time to return to that vision and see how it panned out. Why did you start writing in the first place? Are you achieving what you hoped you would achieve as a published author? If not, what's standing in your way? It may be that you always intended to write for the stage, but that nice agent persuaded you to try a crime thriller. Now nobody cares about the socially significant play you were always tinkering with in college, and just want another gritty Bob Hardarse thriller from you.

Adjusting your career can mean a major shortfall in income. Are you prepared for that? (Though given that publisher advances are disappearing into the toilet right now, it won't be quite such a shock to find a new playwright may only get paid for bums on seats.)

You may even find that reviving your early vision of yourself as a writer juices up your usual writing. One can but hope.


TIP FOUR: The Social Media DrainTwitter is just marvellous. What did we do before Twitter? Sat around making paper aeroplanes, no doubt, or having affairs with the milkman instead of writing our novels ...

But there's a catch. While social media brings the lonely writer much-needed industry contacts, endless promotional opportunities and the undying approval of your lovely editor, it can also make you deeply insecure and an unpleasant companion for the cat.

"How does X get so many followers? He's a complete toad!" -- "Why did Z land that lucrative contract? I can write rings round that guy!" -- "Oh please! Not that old promo link AGAIN!"

Worse still, social media can eat into your writing time like acid. Suddenly you can't even manage the bog-standard 1000 words a day, because you're writing half that cumulatively via Twitter, Facebook and blog sites.

To avoid potentially disastrous over-tweet, set strict limits to how often you connect with people online. Try not to compare yourself to others in your field. That way madness lies. And be particularly careful who is silently following you (and listening to your tweets). Remember, they've all got it in for you.


TIP FIVE: Sod The Lot Of ThemAh, so you're between contracts. Or perhaps between agents (which is probably worse). It happens to the best of us. In fact, it happens to most of us. Luckily, the brave new publishing industry is good for something at least in this respect. It's called, self-publishing.

You've sent out a submission or a pitch to agents/publishers. Maybe half a dozen. But don't sit there waiting to hear back from them. Instead, strike out on your own and start earning a small but probably useful amount of money without even parting with a percentage as commission to your agent.

No one needs know what you're up to. (Unless you tell them.) You can become Felicity Doppleganger while still writing respectable chicklit or Roman mysteries for your traditional publisher.

It's never been easier to self-publish. And if you need an editor to tidy things up, you can always hire one discreetly. Though most experienced mid-list authors will be able to do a reasonable job on their own, and save the expense. These days the odd typo or continuity error may even galvanise an offended reader to review your book on Amazon, and you know what they say: all publicity is good publicity.

Waste my precious time on self-publishing? Never!

Ah, but the short story is king on Amazon at 77p. So time wasted is at a minimum. Pick a popular genre, such as sci fi/fantasy, paranormal or romance, and you need only knock out short fiction under 10,000 words. And that's a generous amount. If you lean towards erotica - and it does pay to be saucy - you could go as low as 6000 words at a push.

Though I always feel readers appreciate a little more effort than that, and we all want to be loved by our readers. Don't we?

If you have enjoyed this blog post, please support the writer Elizabeth Moss by browsing her books on Amazon. Well, some of her books ...

Sex and the Tudors

If The Tudors show is anything to go by, the Tudors were constantly at it. I'm currently writing a Tudor romance, so I've been researching sex in Tudor times, as one does. Perhaps the most fascinating thing I've discovered is that sex wasn't entirely unprotected in those days. No, many couples went to great lengths to avoid pregnancy occurring.

This was despite the fact that contraception was against the law. It was considered a sin to have intercourse outside marriage, and therefore all intercourse was supposed to take place within marriage. Since it was part of God's plan that married couples should procreate - 'Go forth and multiply!' - trying to prevent that happening was considered a sin against God. Those who tried to interfere with that natural law could be condemned to death - and sometimes were, especially if they were of the wise old village woman variety, i.e. considered to be witches.

Nonetheless, this not being an ideal world, much sex occurred outside marriage, most commonly between men and prostitutes, between married men and their mistresses - sometimes married women themselves - and between young couples unable to wait for the sanctity of marriage. In all these cases, pregnancy would have been a very bad idea indeed.

Even married couples sometimes preferred not to add yet more children to their tally. (Childbirth being one of the key killers of women at the time, this is not entirely a surprise.)

So here are a few of the methods of contraception used by these more wily Tudors: 

Depending on who you ask, Elizabeth I either practised abstinence, remaining a Virgin Queen to her death, or else had several secret children by a number of different candidates, such as the Earl of Leicester.

Abstinence. Yes, well ...

Withdrawal. Still popular today, this was not a foolproof method of avoiding pregnancy, as a man is easily distracted at the vital moment.

Keeping the current child on the breast. (Clearly this was unreliable and only worked for those who already had a baby or young child.)

Avoiding the more fertile time of the month, a method which they didn't really understand, so not a great tool in the fight against pregnancy. So to speak.

Magickal objects (one source cites 'weasel testicles' to be worn about the neck), spells and incantations. Um ...

Pessaries and morning-after pills. These consisted of all kinds of grim and unpleasant substances, including the acidic medium of vinegar, taken orally or crammed inside the woman prior to intercourse, or sometimes after it. I should imagine most were utterly ineffectual. See magickal objects above.

Those concoctions designed to induce abortion may have contained pennyroyal among other herbs, and even mercury. Babies are notoriously hard to dislodge once implantation has taken place, so some of these potions may have killed the mothers as well as the babies they were carrying.

Condoms. Here, controversy enters. Some historians believe these may have existed in some minor form during Tudor times, others consider they did not arrive in England until the late seventeenth century. Some believe these early English condoms may have been made of leather, though animal intestines treated with oil were popular in other countries at this time, and parchment condoms have even been suggested. Bizarre!


Also see:
Sex in Elizabethan England by Alan Haynes
http://www.elizabethfiles.com/info/tudor-life/tudor-contraception/
http://queryblog.tudorhistory.org/2008/09/question-from-hilary-tudor.html

Moving back - hotting up

The notorious King Henry VIII of England. How many wives and mistresses does one king need?Some exciting news here for Elizabeth Moss readers. For my next few novels at least, I will be heading back in time, writing Tudor romance instead of Regency novels. And they will be even more romantic than before. Yes, the temperature in here is about to start rising ...

My first Tudor title is in progress at the moment, and should be published later this summer. I'll keep you all posted on how it goes. Meanwhile, wish me luck!

Elizabeth x