by Sandra Gulland | Aug 30, 2015 | Adventures of a Writing Life, On Research, Resources, Resources for Readers, Resources for Writers |
Readers of this blog — I <3 you! — will already know that I went to a painting worship last Sunday, given by the talented Joyce Burkholder. It got me all revved up! I’m painting a bit every day, mostly following YouTube videos. (Awesome.) I love it.
What I don’t love is that I can’t figure out how to share photos of paintings with you here. Our rural Net connection is never great—especially on week-ends—and our bandwidth is limited, so I’m putting off syncing my enormous photo library to iCloud. Which means, basically, that photos I take with my iPhone do not end up on my computer. Yes, I emailed them to myself…but they never showed up. And that’s another story.
Not fair sharing my Tech headaches with you! Everyone suffers.
And besides, I have a nicer photo to share, one I came upon recently, one that is already on my computer. This is granddaughter Kiki at our daughter’s wedding at the end of May. Such pride and joy!
{Photo by the wonderful Danielle Blancher of Toronto.}
It has been a week of highs and lows. Early in the week I learned that writer and friend Paul Kropp died. So sad. Such a shock!
I also learned that an on-line interview of me had been posted to Jane Friedman’s blog.
I’m very pleased with this interview. It is a rare pleasure to be interviewed by someone who has dug deep and asks interesting and pertinent questions. I like that the questions focus on the broader issues having to do with publishing in general.
Jane Friedman has an enormous following—there was quite a flurry of attention on Twitter. Nice.
And through all this, I write … It is coming along.
This week’s delicious Sundae Sundries
(Is it a coincidence that I’ve developed an unrolling passion for ice cream this summer?)
Links for writers …
• One of these days, I will emerge from my plot maze. In the meantime, I grab onto every life raft within reach. (I know, mangled metaphors.) Julianna Baggot is a wonderful writer — I interviewed her here and here some time ago — and her own plot analysis tool is intriguing.
• Be aware when research and prep become a crutch. At some point, you need to actually start WRITING. Indeed! That said, I read a research text late one night. The information gave me what I needed to finally write the scenes.
• I’ve been listening to a new Elizabeth Gilbert podcast: Magic Lessons. It’s a run-up to a book she has coming out at the end of September: Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear. I’m enjoying the podcast and I’ve ordered the book. :-)
Links for all us time-travellers …
• 5 Creepy Victorian Fads. I do believe this stuff.
• High tech tools used to understand medieval manuscripts.
A link for real travellers …
• For a More Creative Brain, Travel.
Have a great week!
by Sandra Gulland | Aug 22, 2015 | Adventures of a Writing Life, Resources for Readers, Resources for Writers, The Writing Process |
What a surprise! “13 Brilliant Authors You Probably Didn’t Know Are Canadian” C’est moi, #3, and on BuzzFeed, no less.
I’m posting this on Saturday, because I will be going to a watercolour workshop tomorrow, given by Joyce Burkholder.
I enjoy learning about brushes, paints and paper, colour and line. I’ve taken over a table at home, and poke away at a painting off and on all day, usually following an instruction video on YouTube. This is my latest, following this on-line lesson by Matt Palmer.
Painting is a lovely thing to do between spells of writing and research. For me, right now, it’s all about learning technique and how to use the tools. (And, I must say, learning patience, as well.) You can see all my paintings my website page.
I’ve been researching (and writing about) the daily routine at Hortense’s school in Saint-Germain-en-Laye. I was excited to discover Lettres de deux jeunes amis, which I took at face value, as letters between girls, one a student at Madame Campan’s second school in Ecouen. I was dismayed to learn that they’re fiction … yet written by Madame Campan, so in fact they are still of great value to me, because she would correctly describe how her school was run.
This week’s delicious Sundae Sundries
Links for writers & other creatives …
• I love Amanda Hocking’s board on Pinterest: Writing Tips & Tricks & Other Helpful Advice. And, while you’re on Pinterest, check out my own board: Tools & Toys for Writers.
• One of the items on Amanda Hocking’s Pinterest board (see link above) caught my eye: Writers: Get Into the Writing Mood With This Free Online Tool.
Too cool! AudioSparx is a music site for film-makers, but it’s free for writers, who only want to listen. Click mood upper right, and click on the emotion of the scene you wish to write. (Ignore the occasional “review” word popping up.)
I just clicked on “Canned Monkeys” track in Hectic, but soon I’ll be switching to something in Confrontational as I prepare to write a scene in the WIP. This is fun, but it is also seriously effective.
Links for perpetual students …
• Readers of this blog know that I’m a Coursera enthusiast. I’ve just signed up for Exploring Beethoven’s Piano Sonatas, because playing piano is one of Hortense’s many talents.
• For fans of Historical Fiction, this is a great course: Plagues, Witches, and War: The Worlds of Historical Fiction. Coursera courses are free, and once signed up you may watch the lectures at your leisure.
Links for readers …
• Poor Doris Lessing! M15 spies followed writer Doris Lessing for more than 20 years. They even came with her on vacation.
Have a great week!
by Sandra Gulland | Aug 21, 2015 | Adventures of a Writing Life, The Writing Process |
One would think that after over 30 years writing and 5 novels published, I would be more accustomed to overcoming resistance to writing.
Not.
Once past the first draft and into revision, I will do virtually anything to avoid actually writing a new scene: dishes, laundry, FaceBook, mail, research, weeding, filing, and even (gasp) taxes.
And now: blogging—for I am writing this instead of writing the #%$ scene!
Ok, enough of this: I’ll check in back here in 1 hour to report.
43 minutes later …
… and I’ve yet to even set the timer. I think of all the hard-working writers with day jobs, burning the night-oil, and here I am with a day ahead, writing not a word. Instead? I fell into the Net: FaceBook, Kickstarter (where, by the way, I did contribute to a worthy documentary about Emily Dickenson).
Now, the timer. Sheesh.
1 hour later …
OK: 1 hour accomplished, and it wasn’t even all that painful.
I’m working on a section incorporating a lot of the research I’ve been doing this week into the daily life of Madame Campan’s boarding school for girls. (Hence the photo: these are the actual stairs.) It’s awkward—like force-feeding a narrative with details—and these scenes will need to be revised many, many times so that they doesn’t feel stuffed.
At the same time, it’s rather fun seeing this boarding school come to life. I’ve recently discovered what time the bells rang, the dining-hall procedures, bed times and all that. Punishments and rewards. How clothing was labeled and when linens were changed and feet washed. Exam schedules, etc. etc. etc.
(How much of this will stay in the novel? That remains to be seen. You can kill a story with TMI.)
Small steps
The truth is that small steps work wonders. I could have said: OK, write for only 15 minutes, and that would have opened it up. It’s always that first hurdle.
Now: to exercise … groan!
What do you do to motivate yourself? What works for you?
by Sandra Gulland | Jan 3, 2013 | Baroque Explorations, On Research, The Game of Hope |
On July 31, 1794, Madame Campan opened her boarding school for girls on rue de Poissy in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, a town not far from Paris.
In the spring of the following year, on May 25, she rented Hôtel de Rohan on 42, rue de l’Unité—now 42, rue des Ursulines—opening the school there on July 1, 1795.
Two months later, on September 1, Josephine de Beauharnais (soon to marry and become Josephine Bonaparte) enrolled her daughter Hortense and her niece Émilie. Her son Eugène was enrolled in a school for boys next door.
Images of the former Hôtel de Rohan
The French government provides all sorts of information on historical sites. This one is a treasure of information and images:
Here is a map detail from the mid-18th century:
And another one from 1820:
The inner courtyard (mid-19th century):
The basin in the entry:
You can see it filled with plants here:
And here’s a detail of the staircase:
The “school” today
The former Hôtel de Rohan is now an apartment block. On a research trip in 2014, a former resident of the apartments was kind enough to show me in to see what remains of Madame Campan’s school.
Much of it is new, but there are some remnants of the former Hôtel de Rohan:
In the back garden, there was this intriguing bit of antiquity:
A bit of the former chapel, perhaps? One can only guess.
Here is the layout of the apartment complex, “Le Parc des Ursulines.” The photo of the arches above are where the “I” is on this plan. The grotto is in the garden beyond.
On the name of the school
How was Madame Campan’s school referred to at the time? Here are two possibilities:
L’Institut National des Jeunes Filles/National Institution for Young Women
I’ve also seen (but only in English): National Institution for the Education of Young Women.
l’Institut national de Saint-Germain/The National Institution of Saint-Germain
I have doubts about this last name because during the Revolution the name of Saint-Germain-en-Laye had been changed to Montagne-Bon-Air. It was changed back to Saint-Germain-en-Laye 28 février, 1795, but would Madame Campan have been so bold as to use the former aristocratic name immediately?
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