Summer Reading List

May3

I don’t usually make lists of books I want to read – I’m one of those “if I stumble on it and it looks good, I’ll read it” types. But over the last few weeks word of some upcoming releases has caught my attention so I thought rather than risk forgetting about them, I’d make a list and grab them when they’re available. And I remembered there were some I’d heard of but hadn’t read yet. And then I thought that in case I happen to have any readers that are looking for some good books this summer*, I’d share. So here you go**.

*A word of warning – these are what many would call, sometimes disparagingly, “beach reads”. I’m big on these. The hot months are no time for heavy thinking. I’d much rather lose myself in a fun story than make my brain sweat as hard as the rest of me.

**None of these authors offered me anything to mention their books. I’d be really excited if any of them even had a clue I existed, but no such luck. (Except Kristin Hannah. She replied to me on Facebook once. But that’s all.)

Someday, Someday, Maybe – Lauren Graham. I liked “Gilmore Girls”. I wasn’t one of the show’s rabid fans, but I watched it when I remembered to, and I appreciated it for what it was. It was a great show. Much of the reason for that is Lauren Graham. Now she’s on a new show, which I don’t watch, but she’s written a novel, which looks like an entertaining read. It takes place in the mid-90s and centers around a girl trying to make it in New York City. I realize to some this might sound like a new version of Sex and the City. By the plot description, though, I really don’t think it is. I guess I’ll find out. This book has already been released.

Revenge Wears Prada: The Devil Returns – Lauren Weisberger. I also liked “The Devil Wears Prada”. Strangely, I enjoyed both the book and the movie. That doesn’t usually happen. The book was deeper, of course, with a few subplots I was sorry to see were left out of the movie, but you can’t go wrong with Meryl Streep and a good makeover. I love films with makeovers. Clueless, Encino Man…but I digress. It looks like Andy Sachs has had a pretty good ten years since leaving Runway, until something happens to thrust Miranda Priestly right back into her life. Miranda’s a great character – I found her more interesting than Andy – so I’m excited to see what happens. This book will be released on June 4.

The Next Best Thing, Fly Away Home, and Then Came You – Jennifer Weiner. I am WAY behind here. I’m a huge fan of Jennifer Weiner – maybe it’s because she’s a really entertaining writer. Or maybe it’s the Philly thing. I don’t know. But I love her. Because I’ve been spending so much time writing my own book (and gobbling up YA novels like they’re Tootsie Rolls), I’ve let her last three books pass me by. This summer, I plan to catch up.

Beautiful Day – Elin Hilderbrand. I’ve never read any of Ms. Hilderbrand’s books, but judging by the description of this one, I think it’s time I started. I’m also maid of honor in my sister’s wedding this October, so when I started to get stressed over bridal shower duties, it might be helpful to read about people with real wedding-related problems. And if I like this one, she’s got about a dozen others. This one comes out June 25.

Fly Away – Kristin Hannah. My mother and I pass Kristin Hannah’s books back and forth like…something that gets passed back and forth. For some reason the only simile that comes to mind right now is something I’d rather not post on my blog. Anyway, this book is the sequel to Firefly Lane, which is the first Kristin Hannah book I ever read, and adored. This one was released on April 23 and I planned to save it for a Mother’s Day gift, but when I give my mom books as gifts she usually hands them right back to me with “You read so much faster than I do, so you can have it first. You’ll be done before I even have a chance to open it.”

So that’s my list so far. What about you? Do your reading habits change during the summer? And what books are on your list?

Writing Spaces

Apr19

One of my dreams is to have a room in my home that I can use especially for writing. I live in a two-bedroom apartment right now, but the second bedroom is full of crap. I am a pack-rat who married another pack-rat. Even after forcing my husband to help me clear the spare room last Christmas, somehow there’s even more crap in it now than there was before. I have come to terms with the fact that not every single thing that comes through the front door must be kept. I’m having trouble convincing DH of that, though. Lots of trouble.

So for now I am resigned to planning my dream office for that day, hopefully in the not-so-distant future, when we have a house (preferably with three bedrooms, or two and a finished basement) and I can have a room to call my very own. With a lock on the door. To which only I will have the key.

In the meantime, here are some writing spaces I can drool over.

Loving everything about this…the desk placement, the huge, gorgeous bookshelves, the spaciousness…sigh

Cushy chair, check. Plant, check. Windows with a gorgeous view, check. The only thing missing is me.

Beautiful. Ideally, mine would be this neat. Realistically, probably not. Image by Mina Vegan

And then of course, everything here.

Another Sneak Peek Sunday!

Mar31

I had so much fun doing my first Sneak Peek Sunday that I thought I’d do it one more time. These six paragraphs are from Chapter Six of Saving Easton, when Samara has decided that the Earl of Easton would be a perfect choice for her husband. Unfortunately, her sister has made the same decision.

♥

“Perhaps you will finally learn how to do the things a proper wife must know,” Katherine added. As Samara swung her incredulous gaze to her sister, Kat favored Lord Easton with a smile that dripped with sweetness. “Samara cannot be bothered learning household tasks. She is too busy being an artist.”

What on earth is she doing? Master Hawthorne was suddenly very busy looking for something he seemed to have lost in his wine goblet. But Lord Easton merely raised an eyebrow.

And as Samara saw it, she had two options. She could either deny her sister’s words, or she could fling them right back at her.

An hour later she would wish she had chosen the first, undoubtedly wiser option. Unfortunately prudence was not one of Samara’s strong suits.

“It’s true, I’m afraid,” she said with a sigh. “I’m far too caught up in trying to capture the beauty of the world to be excited by linens and soap like my dear sister.” She smiled at Katherine. “After all, anyone can learn to perform those tasks. Although I will say that Katherine wears the scent of beef tallow better than anyone I know.”

Katherine emitted a very unladylike splutter while Cecily covered her mouth with her hands and giggled. Both Master Hawthorne, still gazing into the depths of his cup as if he expected the dregs to tell him his future, and the earl had pressed their lips together, though the corners of their mouths twitched in a telltale manner. Samara was satisfied. If Kat thought she was going to land the Earl of Easton for herself, she was in for a rude awakening.

♥

Saving Easton, available Summer 2013 from Five Directions Press

Tug of War

Mar29

Those of us who write, at least most of us, don’t do it because it’s easy, or fun, or a nice little time-killing hobby. We do it because we have stories to tell. Because we want to give a voice to the characters that live inside our heads. Because we have to, no matter how arduous a task it might be. It’s what we are. And we love it, even when we hate it.

It’s difficult for people who don’t write to grasp the driving need we have to get words on paper. And it’s not really through any fault of their own. There are plenty of things other people do for which I don’t share their enthusiasm. I’ll never feel the need to start my day by reading the Bible like my husband does. I’m not wired to feel at home dancing on a stage like my sister. But because I write, I understand their need to do those things. They don’t necessarily do them because they think they’re nice ideas. They do them because of who they are.

Unfortunately, not everyone understands this. I’m lucky enough to have been born into a family that gets it – they’ve considered me a writer since I was a kindergartner reading my first poem over the intercom at my elementary school. But for others who came into my life later, it’s not an easy thing to comprehend. Even my husband, who was so adorably excited for me when I finally finished my book, seemed to have thought that was it, that that single book was the only one I had in me. He said “So what’s next? You’ve owned a graphic design business, written a book…what are you going to do now?” And I guess in a way I can understand why he’d think that. For the majority of the time we’ve known each other I’ve only been consumed by one project. He never met the short-story writer I was in high school, or the poet I was in college. He wasn’t around while I was growing up to see how much time I spent holed up in my bedroom, filling spiral notebook after spiral notebook with words, ideas and characters. He only knew me as the person who flitted from interest to interest, whether it was making jewelry, designing wedding invitations or making candles. He didn’t realize that I did those things on top of writing. Because those things were fun, but they weren’t my passion. Not like writing is.

And it’s hard to explain to someone just how passionate I am about it. Just because I don’t talk about it incessantly, or walk around with a pencil stuck in my wild hair, surrounded by crumpled balls of paper and cups of coffee, doesn’t mean I’m not thinking about it. It’s not easy to explain word goals or editing to people who expect you to drop everything so you can go to a party or a bar or play a couple of rounds of Playstation baseball (which I love, but find it hard to concentrate on when all week I’ve been gearing up to use that time to write). To some people, if you’re not receiving a paycheck for what you’re doing, you’re not actually working. But writing is work. It’s hard work. Not all work requires payment with cash. For some of us, accomplishment is enough.

The Churning of the Sea of Milk, Angkor relief. Photo by MeiLyn

I know I can’t be the only one who feels caught up in a game of tug-of-war with my writing and the parts – and people – of my life who have nothing to do with it and no comprehension of what it entails. How do you deal with it? How do you let people know – politely but firmly – that the writing aspect of your life is here to stay?

Bowing to the Demands of Your Characters

Mar22

When I first had the idea for Saving Easton, five and a half years ago, I envisioned it as a trilogy about three sisters coming of age in Elizabethan England. But as I wrote, things changed. The oldest sister, Samara, wasn’t the main character of the first book after all. The middle sister, Katherine, turned out to be such a brat I couldn’t muster the enthusiasm to even think about spending enough time with her to get her book written. And the third sister, Cecily, was just a little girl. I knew where she ended up in life, but not how she got there, and after spending so much time on the first book, I was okay with that. I had an idea for another book – something so completely different from Saving Easton that I was totally reconciled to my imagined trilogy shrinking down to one stand-alone title. I have a notebook full of details and ideas for that second book, and planned to start serious outlining once Easton was finished and published.

That is, until I woke up one morning a few weeks ago with little Cecily Haughton – although not so little anymore, at twenty-six years old – banging on the inside of my head, informing me that I must tell her story after all. I had mixed emotions about this. First of all, it was 3 o’clock in the morning. My alarm goes off at 4. Couldn’t she have waited and allowed me that last, precious hour of sleep? Apparently not. Second, I’d already started to get kind of excited about the new book I planned to write, the one that had nothing to do with Tudors, England, or any of the Haughton girls. Third, Cecily told me that her story begins in France in 1572. I know enough about France at that time to be able to identify the images she showed me, but not enough to write about it. So that means more research. Loads of it, because she eventually returns to England and gets caught up in the Elizabethan witchcraft persecutions. She told me this much, and then she deserted me. So I have to fill in the rest.

But I am happy. I’m glad Cecily decided to wake me up and ask (rather, demand) I tell her story. I’m looking forward to branching out and getting to know another country rather than staying comfy and complacent in England. And as far as I know, the subject of Elizabethan witches is one that hasn’t been done to death. I’m excited to read more about it.

Un matin devant la porte du Louvre, 1880, by Edouard Debat-Ponsan. Représente Catherine de Médicis dévisageant les protestants massacrés au lendemain du massacre de la Saint-Barthélémy. Can any French speakers translate? It will give you a hint about the next book…

What about you? Are there any writers out there who had one story in mind, only to have your character completely derail you?

Historical Research

Mar20

As a writer whose first novel is set in Marian England, is toying with the idea for a sequel set in Huguenot-riddled France and Elizabethan England, and wants to someday write something Georgian, research is important to me. How much is too much? What should be put in and what should be left out? How and where should I even begin?

Adrian Goldsworthy answers those questions and more in his post, On Research to Write Historical Novels, originally posted on March 7 on http://www.writinghistoricalnovels.com.

Guest Post from Katherine Grey

Mar13

Happy Wednesday! Today I have with me the lovely Katherine Grey, Regency romance author. She’s here to talk about her research process. Katherine, thank you so much for stopping by!

♥

When I decided to stop playing at it and actually write a book, I knew without a doubt it would be Regency set. Now I’m sure every writer on the planet has heard the adage, “Write what you know.” Well, despite reading Regencies for years, there was a lot I didn’t know so I began learning as much as I could about the time period.

I purchased books full general information such as What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew: From Fox Hunting to Whist – the Facts of Daily Life in 19^th Century England by Daniel Pool and The Writer’s Guide to Everyday Life in Regency and Victorian England from 1811-1901 by Kristine Hughes. While these were informative, I wanted to know specifics, first hand accounts if possible so I’ve spent years haunting antique bookstores looking for what I felt I was missing.

I now have books on the Napoleonic wars, British titles of the nobility, food and drink, fashion, the different furniture and architectural styles of the time. I even have a thin book about insults and endearments used. One of my favorite research books is An Elegant Madness: High Society in Regency England by Venetia Murray while there are inaccuracies in the book, it includes excerpts from memoirs, letters, diaries and journals. Those alone helped me immeasurably.

Another favorite research book is The Regency Underworld by Donald A. Low. This book is about the criminal element of the time from Resurrection men, to common thieves, to “vice peddlers,” to all manner of crime. It helped me a great deal in writing my second novel, An Unexpected Gift.

The problem with having all these great resources at my fingertips is I’ll go to look up something and find myself either going off on a tangent from something I’ve read or spending hours reading more than I need to because I get lost in the pages. But what wonderful places they are to be lost in.

♥

Katherine Grey is the author of Impetuous and The Muse. Her latest release is An Unexpected Gift.

An Unexpected Gift

Known only as Lazarus to the band of cutthroats and thieves he leads, William Prescott will do anything to find his missing sister, even blackmail a fragile young woman into helping him. But he never plans to fall in love with this mysterious woman with a troubled past.

Haunted by the memories of war, Olivia St. Germaine wants nothing more than to live a normal life. But when her brother, a doctor, suddenly leaves town without a word, she is forced to use her medical knowledge to help an injured man who puts her life in danger. Can she keep herself safe as she tends Lazarus, or is her heart more vulnerable than she realizes?

♥

Removing her hat, she crossed to the dressing table and pulled the pins from her hair, letting it tumble down around her shoulders. She massaged her scalp, then ran her fingers through the thick strands.

“Watching you do that could give a bloke ideas.”

Olivia whirled around, her hand pressed against her chest. Her heart stuttered for a moment, then began racing like that of a runaway horse. She reached behind her and grabbed her hairbrush. As a weapon, it was the best she could do. She scanned the shadows for the intruder.

Lazarus lounged in her favorite reading spot, his feet crossed at the ankles while he rested his elbows on the arms of the chair. Situated as it was near the window, his dark clothing blended in with the shadows among deep blue drapery. He watched her over his linked fingers.

“Aren’t you going to ask why I’m here?”

She didn’t answer; the warning she’d received earlier replayed itself in her mind. Fear ran its fingertip down her spine.

“Shall I tell you then?” He stood with slow careful movements, then advanced on her until there was no more than a hair’s breadth between them.

She took a step back and banged into the dressing table, setting the small collection of bottles jangling.

“Afraid?”

Olivia shook her head. “Of course not.”

“You should be.”

♥

An Unexpected Gift can be purchased through The Wild Rose Press, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble. You can reach Katherine Grey through Facebook or her website.

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