Back to Top

Monthly Archives: January 2010

Today’s the anniversary of the day Edward Jenner (1749-1823) introduced the smallpox vaccine in 1799.

Smallpox was a terrible disease, now eradicated, that killed one in three of those who caught it and could severely disfigure anyone who survived. Yet folklore, as Jenner knew, held that milkmaids or others associated with cows, caught a minor form of the illness (cowpox) which seemed to protect them from smallpox. Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, during her time in Constantinople, became a convert to variolation, an early form of vaccination, and brought the practice back to England. There were several other contemporaries of Jenner’s, including a Dorset farmer who successfully vaccinated his wife and two children, who were thinking along the same lines.

In 1796, Jenner tested his theory by inoculating an eight year old boy with material from the cowpox blisters of milkmaid Sarah Nelms, who had caught it from a cow named Blossom. Blossom’s hide hangs in the library of St. George’s Medical School, University of London–sadly, I could not find a picture.

In 1801 James Gillray produced this cartoon of the Smallpox Inoculation Hospital in St. Pancras, London.

And here, yuk, is the arm of William Pead, from an 1800 engraving, an illustration used by Jenner in An Enquiry into the Causes and Effects of the Variola Vaccinae.

Jenner named the procedure vaccination from the Latin word for cow, vacca.

His home in the town of Berkeley is now a museum. This is his Temple of Vaccinia in the grounds. The museum has a petition to sign to return Jenner’s statue to Trafalgar Square this year to commemorate thirty years of the eradication of smallpox, so if you’re a UK citizen, please sign it!

I’m having trouble thinking of an appropriate followup question. I don’t want to know about any pustules you may have developed and I doubt many of us own cows so I can’t ask you the name of your favorite cow.

So, how about inventing a bit of dialogue for Jenner and his milkmaid, Jenner and his cow, or someone about to receive a vaccination without knowing exactly what is involved, such as:

“Just a little prick, my dear.”

“Oh, la, sir, you are too modest.”

The one I like best will receive a prize, a truly dreadful collection of the plots of Austen’s novels in verse, that I was sent by my favorite ex-sister in law in England, who probably acquired it at a church jumble sale. It is signed by the author.

So get busy!

 

Posted in Giveaways | Tagged , | 9 Replies

(This weekend I’m soooo happy and excited to launch Laurel McKee’s debut book here at the Riskies! Countess of Scandal is on the shelves now, and we’ll also be giving away a copy here to one commenter–along with an Irish lucky penny. The lovely Kwana Jackson from Kwana Writes agreed to interview me about the book, and then I in turn interviewed my editor at Grand Central Publishing, Alex Logan, to get her take on the book…)

Countess of Scandal combines a passionate romance with a nail-biting plot. The author’s research shines through to make the era come alive, as well as her characters. An exciting tale out of the common mold” —Romance Reviews Today

“McKee sets the stage for a romantic adventure that captures the spirit of Ireland and a pair of star-crossed lovers to perfection” —RT Book Reviews, 4 stars

“How is it possible to take such a devastating time in history and turn it into a heart-warming, tender love story? The answer it appears is the writing ability of Laurel McKee and the talent to turn what could be seen as only sadness and despair into love and romance. This book gives you a history lesson that makes you understand how personal this fight was and help the reader understand how tragic the circumstance was but yet how two people that really love one another can make the best of the worst time. Excellent Read!” —The Reading Reviewer, 5 stars

“Laurel McKee’s magical pen captivates you instantaneously! In Countess of Scandal she has fashioned a hero that takes your breath away, a heroine that you immediately wish were you, blistering sensual romantic scenes, and a love story that will forever be etched in your mind. I don’t know how I’ll manage the wait until book two is out!” —Romance Readers Connection

Kwana: Hi, Amanda! Thanks so much for having me over here at the Riskies. It’s an honor to be hanging with so many women that I’m a huge fan of and admire so much. I’ll try and contain myself and do a proper interview.

So, I was thrilled to receive a surprise ARC of Countess of Scandal in the mail recently by someone named Laurel McKee. I was like, now where did I hear that before? That said, let’s talk about this alter ego of yours, Laurel McKee, shall we? Is this anything like the whole Beyonce/Sasha Fierce alter ego thing? How is Laurel different from Amanda McCabe?

Amanda/Laurel: LOL! Well, I don’t have a weird robotic glove thing like Sasha Fierce, though maybe I should get one. And I like to blame any dumb thing I do on Laurel (she’s always forgetting to pick up milk and dog food, and buying shoes that don’t match anything else in the closet). I once read that Beyonce uses Sasha to help overcome shyness and let loose on stage (not that Beyonce ever seemed paralyzed by shyness to me…), so that could be really useful! (Luckily Laurel is my real-life middle name, so she’s not entirely unfamiliar to me)

But when it comes to writing we’re not so different. I do a ton of research on all my stories (that’s one of the fun parts of this job!), and I love to use history to create conflict. Real life is usually so much weirder and more interesting than anything we could totally make up! Laurel’s books are a little longer, a little more action-packed and fast-paced, and the length means I can use more secondary characters and subplots to add to the main conflict.

Kwana: How did the idea for the “Daughters of Erin Trilogy” come to you?

Amanda/Laurel: I’ve wanted to do an Irish-set book for a very long time! My own Irish family background is very inspiring, and Ireland itself is such a gorgeous country, with a dramatic history filled with passionate people. But I knew I would have to find just the right characters and situation. A few years ago, I happened to read 3 books about strong women in Georgian Ireland–Janet Todd’s Daughters of Ireland (about the scandalous King sisters and their heiress mother), Stella Tillyard’s Aristocrats (along with the gorgeous “Masterpiece” series), and an old book I found in an antique store called Women of ’98 by Mrs. Thomas Concannon. And I also remembered touring Castletown, the enormous, beautiful estate of Lady Louisa Conolly (one of the Lennox sisters from Aristocrats, who married the richest man in Ireland, and transformed this Georgian house into one of the most elegant places in 18th century Ireland–which is saying a lot. Georgian architecture reached a zenith in Ireland!). That was how I happened to meet the 3 Blacknall sisters and learn their stories.

Kwana: Now Ireland during a bloody rebellion doesn’t sound like the most romantic setting, and at times it was very bloody and downright heartbreaking. What drew you to this particular era for Eliza and Will’s sexy love story in Book 1, Countess of Scandal?

Amanda/Laurel: It’s definitely true that an uprising is not the first setting people think of when you think ‘romance’! (though you can’t get away from them in writing about Ireland!). A Regency ballroom, maybe, or a Medieval castle. But Ireland in the late Georgian/early Regency period has so many of the things I love in a great Regency story (beautiful architecture, glittering parties–the Irish Ascendancy loved to party!, dashing men, and especially really great clothes. My stories have to have great clothes!). It also has passionate convictions and heightened emotions, acute danger, as well as the deepest of stakes. It made Eliza and Will’s love story feel very immediate and Romeo and Juliet-ish to me. At times I feared for them, even though I was the one writing the story!!! (They were childhood sweethearts, torn apart when they were young by family expectations, and going on to their own lives–marriage and rebellion for Eliza and the Army for Will. Even when they met again as adults, free to make their own choices, the fact that they stood on opposite sides seemed to keep them apart! Every day was a new adventure writing about them…)

Kwana: Tell us a bit about your research process for your stories. How do you begin and how deep do you go in order to be historically accurate?

Amanda/Laurel: Research is one of my favorite things! I would have happily stayed in school forever, buried in a library, and this gives me a chance to do that in a way. Once I had the idea for the story of Countess of Scandal, I started with the books I already had on my shelf–the 3 I’ve already mentioned, plus sources like Thomas Pakenham’s The Year of Liberty and Thomas Bartlett’s The 1798 Rebellion: An Illustrated History, as well as books with visual resources, like the gorgeous volume Irish Georgian from the World Design series. (there’s a more complete list of sources on my website here, along with some historical background info). I wanted to be very careful to give an accurate portrayal of the country and the events.

Kwana: Anna’s story is up next (Duchess of Sin, December 2010). Give us a little bit about Anna. What makes her a heroine to get behind?

Amanda/Laurel: Oh, I love Anna! Ever since the first time I met her, in the assembly room scene in Countess, I looked forward to telling her story. She’s the middle daughter, the ‘beauty,’ not considered as “intellectual” as her sisters, maybe a little spoiled, but very generous and big-hearted, fun-loving and kind. Her experiences in the rebellion affect her very deeply, and when we meet her in her own book (set around the upheaval of the Act of Union between Ireland and England in 1800/01) she tries to erase the trauma with parties, card-playing, and mischief. It’s during one of those escapades that she encounters again the dark, dangerous Irish Duke of Adair. Since their book is out in December, I got to do research on an Irish Christmas!

Kwana: Finally, the cover gods seem to be totally on your side! They are just gorgeous. Tell me, do you have some shrine hidden in your closet or a chant that you’d like to share with the rest of us mortals?

Amanda/Laurel: Well, you need sandalwood incense, a bowl of wine, a dish of sea salt, set up before a statue of the Goddess of Covers (whose name shall not be said). Then you need to find someone to teach you the Super Secret Cover Chant (which I have sworn to said goddess not to reveal).

I’ve had a few covers that weren’t so great (IMO), but they just make me appreciate the beautiful ones all the more. Grand Central has done an amazing job on these first 2 covers–they’re beautiful and eye-catching with those bold colors, and also suit the stories. I can’t wait to see what they do for Book 3, Caroline’s story (Lady of Seduction, 2011). Harlequin has also been doing some lovely covers lately–I couldn’t be happier! (Though I do give that cover chant before opening any email cover attachments from my editors!)

Kwana: Thank you so much for letting me interview you today, and being here at Risky Regencies. It was an honor and I thoroughly enjoyed Countess of Scandal!

(Watch for Kwana’s review of the book to be at Booksquawk)

(And my editor at Grand Central, Alex Logan, was kind enough to take time to be interviewed as well…)

Amanda/Laurel: What was it that first drew you to this book when it landed on your desk?

Alex: For me, the main attraction of this book was the historical backdrop of war-torn Ireland. We often talk about the setting as one of the characters in a book, and this is a good example. From the glittering society parties to the fatal battles in the countryside, Ireland during this period comes alive. We receive many wonderful Regency-set submissions every single month, so the Irish history really made this one stand out!

Amanda/Laurel: And what do you think readers will like best in the story?

Alex: Despite all the wonderful things I just said about the setting, I think readers will love Captain Will Denton best! We have a strong heroine to admire, too, but I think a good romance is all about falling in love with the hero. I can’t say it better than author Michelle Willingham: “I wanted to lick the hero like an ice cream cone”

Amanda/Laurel: LOL! What are you looking for in submissions right now (besides lickable heroes)?

Alex: Well, I’m working on quite a few continuing historical series right now. So I wouldn’t rule out another great historical if it came my way, but I’m actually setting my sights on romantic suspense. I like my romantic suspense pretty gritty. If there are any writers reading this and thinking “Me, too!” please let your agent know to send it my way. Thanks!

So there you have it! Comment on this weekend’s post for a chance to win a signed copy of Countess of Scandal


Any moderately well-read Regency reader can spot an anachronism from pages away: A woman who refers to her gown as having an Empire waist, zippers, chocolate, calling people of other nationalities by politically-correct names. Sure, and some of us authors (ahem!) have fallen down on the job of getting titles right, etc.

But what about the more subtle nuances? Or things that seem anachronistic, but aren’t?

For example, this week I watched a Chinese romantic comedy called Needing You. It stars my new favorite, Andy Lau, and the adorably cute Sammi Cheng. They work in the same office, and Lau is Cheng’s boss. The movie was made in 2000, so I was stunned when Lau commented to one of the other women in the office that her outfit would look a lot better if it was lower to show her boobs and the slit in her skirt were higher. Whoa, he said that?!? That would never pass muster in an American-made film, unless later he were forced to wear the outfit in question and go through a cat-call gauntlet. Not to mention it’s illegal in American workplaces to mention anything about appearance (right? I don’t work in a workplace, so I can compliment myself as much as I want, since I’m the only one here).

There were a few other instances of double standards in the workplace in the film, and it was hard for an American woman such as myself to take them in stride. But that reality is their reality, not mine, and if it’s something that rings true to them, so be it. I’m the outsider who has to deal with it.

Another film I saw this week was Inglourious Basterds, where a spy was found out because he made a gesture no German would do. It wasn’t even anything he thought about because it was so subtle, but it was a beacon for the gestapo guy sitting across from him. Societal norms are so strong within each of us that we don’t even think about the way we eat, or hold a pen, or make our “7”s, or wear our jeans–but you can always spot someone who’s not from around your parts by any of those tiny tells.

Then there’s language. Some of our ‘dirtiest’ language has been around for centuries, even though it might seem like a modern invention. So sometimes when it’s used in our books it’s not just for the shock value, but because that’s how they spoke. And, yes, certain sexual acts have been around forever, too, even though once I heard (laughably) an author say indignantly that Regency people didn’t do that. In a pig’s eye, I say; as long as men have had those, and we’ve had all this, all those acts have been done. Just saying.

Of course, that’s not to say Regency authors should worry less about historical and social accuracy, but just to say that there were doubtless exceptions for every accepted fact in our history. Things couldn’t exist that hadn’t been invented, but it is important to remember every Society has its own quirks, even societies existing within the same time period such as my Chinese film above; it’s kinda fun to think about, actually, and makes reading and writing the books even more fun.

What’s the most egregious error you’ve ever spotted? What have you thought was an anachronism that wasn’t? Which anachronisms bother you the most?

Megan

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 7 Replies

Today’s the anniversary of the first public gas lights in London in 1807, which illuminated Pall Mall. Or possibly not, because according to this article in The Times, the two-hundred anniversary was celebrated on June 18, 2007, when a lamplighter, using the traditional pole, lit a lamp on Pall Mall. In 1985 a timing device was introduced to light the lamps, maintained by a team of six lamp light attendants. London has 1600 remaining gas lights, mainly in the areas of Buckingham Palace, St James’s Palace, the Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey and the Mall. Here’s one at Lincolns Inn.

For some other really gorgeous pictures of gas lights, visit urban75.org.

The possibilities of using coal gas to illuminate buildings and streets was not a new idea. In 1735 Dr. John Clayton of Wigan entertained his friends, and then the members of the Royal Society, by capturing “the spirit of coal” in animal bladders and then setting them alight (boys will be boys). In 1792, William Murdoch (or Murdock) refined the method of capturing and controlling gas and illuminated his house in Cornwall. The technology was first seized upon by industrialists who saw it as a way of expanding the workday and their profits, and then applied it to lighting the streets of cities.

London, like all large cities of its time, was a riotous and dangerous place, riddled with gangs and criminals. The only protection, other than footmen for the wealthy, were the night watchmen, ineffective and figures of fun. So the idea of illuminating the mean streets caught on worldwide. France experimented with gaslights in 1801. In 1812, the London and Westminster Gas Light and Coke Company used wooden pipes to light Westminster bridge in time for New Year’s Eve, 1813. You can read the transcript of the 1819 Parliamentary debate on the pros and cons of gas lighting online here.

Baltimore became the first city to be lit by gas in 1816. Germany’s inaugural gasworks opened in 1825, by which time in London, over 40,000 gaslights illuminated 215 miles of streets.

Here’s a Rowlandson cartoon from 1809 celebrating the Pall Mall lighting. From left to right, the speech captions are as follows. I particularly like the new challenge that gas lighting offers to the sex trade:

Well-informed gentleman: “The Coals being steam’d produces tar or paint for the outside of Houses — the Smoke passing thro’ water is deprived of substance and burns as you see.”

Irishman: “Arragh honey, if this man bring fire thro water we shall soon have the Thames and the Liffey burnt down — and all the pretty little herrings and whales burnt to cinders.”

Rustic bumpkin: “Wauns, what a main pretty light it be: we have nothing like it in our Country.”

Quaker: “Aye, Friend, but it is all Vanity: what is this to the Inward Light?”

Shady Female: “If this light is not put a stop to — we must give up our business. We may as well shut up shop.”

Shady Male: “True, my dear: not a dark corner to be got for love or money.”

And now the bad news. I discovered quite a lot of this information from an article in the Guardian, Life Before Artificial Light, which went on to discuss a book–yes, it’s another one for the TBR pile, I’m afraid, by Roger Ekirch, At Day’s Close. What artificial light did, in addition to making the streets, and people’s homes, safer at night, was to change sleep patterns that are probably prehistoric in origin.

Ekirch discovered that pre-industrial revolution sleep patterns, from the time of Homer onward, seem to have been segmented, with a “first sleep” until about midnight, when people would awaken and maybe get up for a time, followed by a “second sleep.” (People were probably going to bed, at the latest, at around 10 pm.) The waking up period, with what light was available, lamps, rush lights, candles, might include card games, conversation, reflection, and the obvious. A sixteenth century doctor reported that sex was better after than before the first sleep, which makes sense.

Furthermore, a study at NIH which deprived young males of artificial light reported that they naturally fell into this sleep pattern (no, I don’t know if they had sex, or with whom, in the middle of the night).

Interesting stuff. Have you ever lived entirely with natural light and did you find your sleep patterns changed? Do you think you’d enjoy a first and second sleep pattern? What would you choose to do in the middle of the night?

Today I am telling you the true story of four books I resisted reading for no good reason except well, nothing. I had no good reason.

A Summer to Remember by Mary Balogh.

There was a time when I belonged to a book club where if you did nothing, they just sent you books. If you were the organized timely sort of person, you could decline the choices or change them to books you did want. Well, I’m not all that organized and not all that timely so I often ended up with books I didn’t want. Of course, you could send them back, but you had to be timely about that, too. Which I wasn’t. A Summer to Remember was a book I ended up with that I hadn’t wanted but, being disorganized etc. Well, there it was. I was going to send it back but by the time I found where I’d put it, it was too late. Then the book sat around for nearly a year. I didn’t like the cover very much and I’d never heard of the author. Why would I want to read it?

Then one day I ran out of other books I wanted to read and I was feeling guilty about all the bad thoughts I’d been sending toward that book with the cover I didn’t like and the author I’d never heard of. So, I said to myself, I’ll try it. I figured I’d read a page or two, not like it, and could then toss it with impunity.
Mea Culpa. Mea Maxima Culpa.

How wrong could I have been? So, very very wrong. I adored the story. I adored the writing. As soon as I finished it, I re-read it. And then I went about getting everything I could by this author I had never heard of.

The Wild Baron by Catherine Coulter

I didn’t want to read this book because I thought the title was lame. If I recall correctly, someone gave me this book along with several others by various authors. Free books! I like free. But didn’t want to read about a plain old Baron. Not even if he was wild. I wanted earls, marquesses and dukes. Boo for Barons, said I to myself. As with Balogh, I had at this time, not read anything by Catherine Coulter though I had at least heard of her. Again, I found myself in a desperate reading situation so, in a kind of pissy mood, I started reading it.

Oh.

Oh!

I loved Coulter’s style of writing. I loved the hero of this book even though I would have preferred something better than a Baron. I forgave him this shortcoming about two sentences after his appearance. And then I dug out the other Coulters in the stack and read them. One of them was the infamous Rape Scene story and the other was the But I Used Cream story. But I liked them anyway even though I thought those two heroes were jerks. I read all the historicals of hers I could find. I was very sad when she stopped writing historicals.

The Viscount Who Loved Me, by Julia Quinn

Right. So I also picked up this book because I heard lots of buzz about her way back when. Once again, I thought the title was lame. I still do, actually. I did, however, like the cover. It was a very pretty blue and didn’t have a clinch. I have never been fond of the clinch cover. I didn’t want to read the book because I was being a stubborn idiot. No band wagon for me, please. No way.
But I finally cracked the cover and started reading.

And I LOVED the breezy writing EVEN THOUGH there were historical inaccuracies. I adored the hero. And I about busted a gut when the heroine was hiding under the hero’s desk as he’s (supposedly) alone with a lover. And he steps on her hand — knowing she’s there.

I’m saving the most embarrassing for last.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

For whatever reason, I was never assigned this book in Junior or Senior High School. But I knew, oh, hoh! I knew this was a Book You Must Read. So I didn’t read it for twenty years. Twenty years! I would be interested to know if anyone else resisted a book for that long. If you did, fess up.

Well, of course, when I finally broke down and read the book, I wanted to kick myself for waiting so long.

What can I say? I have now fessed up. Any of you have similar confessions?

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | 12 Replies
Follow
Get every new post delivered to your inbox
Join millions of other followers
Powered By WPFruits.com