by Sandra Gulland | Jun 28, 2015 | Adventures of a Writing Life |
Below are some links I found of special interest this week, and I think you may too. On the home front, I continue to wrestle the WIP. Middles are famously challenging, but so are beginnings and endings. ;-)
Especially for writers …
• 9 Famous Authors Rejected by Publishers. These are the types of stories all writers need.
• Amazon plans to pay many self-published authors based on exactly how many pages readers complete. This is not good news! From an article in The Atlantic: “A system with per-page payouts is a system that rewards cliffhangers and mysteries across all genres.”
• Writing Spaces: Where 9 Famous Creatives Do Their Best Work. The first, of E.B. White, is an image I keep in my office.
For flâneurs through history …
• Taking a Shower in the 1800s.
For Baroque enthusiasts …
• The King Dances — a regal performance with heat and dazzle. I would so love to be able to see this.
For Napoleonistas …
• A perfect time to shed UK’s Napoleon complex. It’s about time!
• 200 Years After Waterloo, Napoleon Still Divides Europe.
by Sandra Gulland | Jun 21, 2015 | Adventures of a Writing Life |
Happy Father’s Day Sunday! I will begin by sharing with you the website I put up in my father’s memory after his death. Such a sweet and cheerful soul! I talked to him every day, and he always made me laugh. Miss him!
Here are some links I think you may find of special interest this week:
For writers …
• I really liked the book Do the Work by Steven Pressville. Jump on this opportunity to get a digital edition free. (The offer lasts until Monday night.)
• The Writer’s Union of Canada offered a course on the publishing process, which was given coast-to-coast. Now they have offered a video of the course for $9.99. To get an idea of what the video offers, watch this short, free video on YouTube.
For flâneurs through history …
• A friend brought the life of Ninon de l’Enclos to my attention. Not that I didn’t know about her, but she is part of the world of the Sun King, and I’ve jumped ahead in history now, to the early Napoleonic era. I have her filed under “Fascinating Woman Whose Story Should Be Told.” Indeed.
• The Original Waist Trainer — on “stays”—or what we now call corsets. Very interesting!
For Napoleonistas …
• With the 200th anniversary of Waterloo, there has been a lot to be found on the Net. I love best Napoleon’s 100 Days in 100 Objects. For example, Smuggling the Crown Jewels out of France, and the panic of the King’s guard on learning that Napoleon was approaching. I found it sadly interesting to find out that Napoleon left the Tuileries for the smaller Élysée Palace because the Tuileries had too many memories.
For readers …
• I’ve started reading Balzac’s amazing series of novels and novellas, The Human Comedy, set in France just after the Napoleonic era. Balzac wrote over 90 for the series in under 20 years. 90! Amazingly, a Kindle edition of the series—translated, annotated and illustrated—is available for only $2.50. From an article in the Guardian:
“Balzac was also incredibly influential. Without him, no Proust, no Flaubert, and – who knows? – no realism.” — Peter Brooks
“The 19th century, as we know it, is largely an invention of Balzac’s.” — Oscar Wilde
by Sandra Gulland | Jun 14, 2015 | Adventures of a Writing Life |
Happy Sunday! I’m newly home from weeks away for wedding festivities and grandmother pleasures—I was going to say “duties,” but “pleasures” is far more apt—and diving back into the WIP. Here are some links I think you may find of special interest this week:
For writers …
• What authors do when they are “Between Books.” I smiled at this:
“We leaf through our dozens of books on the writer’s craft, thinking that maybe there is something left to be said on the subject and that we just might be the one to say it (a great way to postpone writing fiction).
• I’ve mentioned Sarah Selecky’s website Story is a State of Mind before. She’s a wonderful writer and teacher, and if you’re looking for a guide in your work, I highly recommend her courses. I subscribe to her newsletter and read her blog, which I love. Here is her latest blog post, about the importance of attention in writing: What does “show, don’t tell” really mean?
• This made me laugh! If Jane Austen Got Feedback from Some Guy in A Writing Workshop.
For flâneurs through history …
• It is astonishing to me what you can find on the Internet. Have a look at this book, published in 1829: Domestic Duties; or Instructions to Young Married Ladies on the management of their households, and the regulation of their conduct in the various relations and duties of Married Life.
• Imagine busy city streets without any traffic rules whatsoever: London Traffic Rules of the 1800s. Not that long ago.
• It’s hard for us to understand the fears around bathing today, but it’s also hard to imagine the intense paranoia of a post-plague world. A New Idea: Bathing for Health and Beauty.
• It’s No Joke: The Life of a Victorian Street Clown.
For Napoleonistas …
• What did Napoleon Look Like?
For everyone …
• I found Obama’s eulogy for Joe Biden’s son Beau Biden very, very moving: President Obama’s Eulogy for Beau Biden is Mandatory Listening, or here for a direct link to the YouTube recording.
