Was Josepine very promiscuous?

Was Josepine very promiscuous?

The above image is a portrait of Josephine before she met Napoleon.

It is always hard for me to read biographies about Josephine. I’ve yet to read one I don’t have a quibble with. The same holds for a “Great Lives” BBC broadcast I listened to recently on Josephine. It pleases me that Josephine was chosen as one of the “Great Lives,” but there were a number of statements made that I very much question. One statement made was that she was very promiscuous. I ask you: How many lovers does a “very” promiscuous woman have?

How many lovers did Josephine have?

For Josephine, there was General Hoche, and—as is claimed — Director Barras, and — also claimed — Captain Charles.

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Portrait of General Hoche.

Although there is no absolute evidence regarding Josephine’s involvement with General Hoche, I personally believe that he might have been her lover. We really know nothing concrete, but Hoche was a lovable, attractive man, and she could very well have loved him.

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Director Paul Barras

Regarding Director Barras, the question posed on the broadcast was, “What did she have to offer him?” The question was rhetorical: I.e. nothing, it was implied.

Au contraire. My historical consultant, Dr. Catinat, an authority on Josephine, told me that what Josephine had to offer were connections to wealthy Caribbean bankers, contacts she had made as a Freemason. (Women could be Freemasons then.) Barras, although powerful, was very much in need of financial aid, and Josephine was able to put him in contact with men who could help.

Josephine received money from Barras, no doubt, but Dr. Catinat felt that in balance, Barras was the one who came out ahead. This perspective is never mentioned. Instead, it is assumed that because Josephine was receiving money from Barras, she had to be sleeping with him.

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A UK political cartoon showing Josephine and her friend Therese dancing naked for Director Barras, Napoleon looking on.

Several mentions were made of the cartoon of Josephine and her friend Therese dancing naked for Barras, as if this was something that actually happened. They failed to note that the cartoonist was from the UK, which was at war with France. Enemies delight in portraying the enemy in a vile light. Again, while writing the Trilogy, I checked with my knowledgeable French consultants, who declared such stories untrue.

Was Director Barras heterosexual?

Dr. Catinat also told me that Barras was homosexual, possibly bisexual. He had no progeny — in spite of claims that he had many female lovers. I am personally inclined to think that he was more homosexual than bisexual, but there really is very little to go on.

Long ago someone told me that, in her opinion, Josephine was a woman who enjoyed the company of Gay men. Frankly, that rings true to me. Josephine was bohemian, and she loved men and women of the theatre and the arts.

And what about Captain Charles?

Which leads us to Josephine’s third so-called lover: Captain Charles.

Sweet Captain Charles, Josephine’s business partner.

Hippolyte Charles, too, had no progeny — that we know of — and although we know next to nothing about his personal life, in manner he was gay as a tea party. Supremely fashionable, he enjoyed dressing as a woman.

Furthermore, at the time when Josephine was supposedly having a torrid affair with the Captain, she was quite ill, suffering from fevers and violent headaches, likely brought on by a premature menopause (the result of her imprisonment during the Revolution).

The portrait of Josephine as a woman having a torrid love affair at this time is hard to fathom. I don’t know about you, but I simply cannot see Josephine in the bed of either of Director Barras or Captain Charles. And even if I could, would these three lovers make her worthy of the label “very promiscuous”? I think not.

The BBC broadcast mentioned that Josephine was mesmerizing to men. Yes, she certainly was. What they failed to mention is that she was well-beloved by women as well.  As a rule of thumb — at least in my book of Observations of the Human Species — is that a promiscuous, manipulative, calculating woman is given a wide berth by other women. Josephine was trusted by women.

I rest my case.

(For more on this theme, see Josephine: Saint or Sinner? (Who knows?)

What have I been doing?

Other than spending quite a bit of time in Physio Therapy to help my Hip Bursitis (ouch!), I continue to wrestle with the Moonsick outline. It’s a big job, but I’m happy to report that it is coming along.

Great links to share…

The news continues to be dire. I am given hope by the resilience and creative joie d’vivre of the Belgians in their response to the order not to post telling photos to social media during the lock-down. National emergency? Belgians respond to terror raids with cats. This one is one of my favourites:

Cat

This YouTube video of people dancing on a Paris Metro is pure joy to watch.

I belong to a FaceBook group of authors, and now and then one of the members asks for help with coming up with a title. One of the authors posted a link to a Title Generator. It may never come up with a usable title, but it’s fun.

I started writing historical fiction because I wanted to imagine a world “peopled” by horses. I no longer have a horse of my own, and my riding days are behind me, but I continue to be captured by these beautiful creatures. This video on wild horses is stunning.

Have a great week!

Tech challenges, a happy toddler & a Twitter surge  — plus Sundae Sundries: links for writers & travellers, both virtual and real

Tech challenges, a happy toddler & a Twitter surge — plus Sundae Sundries: links for writers & travellers, both virtual and real

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!

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{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?)

SundaeWeb

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!

Watercolour therapy, #BuzzFeed, spies & faux letters — plus Sundae Sundries: links for writers, readers & other dreamers

Watercolour therapy, #BuzzFeed, spies & faux letters — plus Sundae Sundries: links for writers, readers & other dreamers

What a surprise! “13 Brilliant Authors You Probably Didn’t Know Are Canadian” C’est moi, #3, and on BuzzFeed, no less.

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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.

 

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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

SundaeWeb

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!

Overcoming resistance: the first stage of the writing process

Overcoming resistance: the first stage of 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.

Staircase, early 18th century

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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?

On organizing research: citation information, bibliography & notes

On organizing research: citation information, bibliography & notes

440px-Bibliothek_St._Florian

(St. Florian Library at Melk Abbey in Austria.)

I’m at sixes and sevens today (a soon to be Mother-of-the-Bride, so understandable). Even my 100-word writing minimum is a challenge. At such times, I turn to organizing research. It’s important to do, and it doesn’t require creative energy.

Organizing research: recording citation information

My system for organizing research texts is simple. I keep the list of all books or magazine articles in a Notebook application, but any outlining program would do. Each book or magazine is assigned a number (I’m up to 1148, yikes), which I write in pencil in the book or on a post-it note which I stick on the inside front cover.

Organizing research.

The application Notebook makes it possible for me to annotate the listings and add “stickers.” The double S sign shown here means that the book is in my library in Canada. I have stickers to indicate books that are in Mexico, books that go back and forth, library books and books that are on-line. For the on-line listings I will include a link in the citation.

Organizing research: organizing the bibliography

Then I moved the citation into the list of books I’m using for the WIP — the novel about Josephine’s daughter Hortense in this instance, and Notebook automatically alphabetizes them.

Organizing research

Organizing research: taking notes

And then the hard part: reading the texts and taking notes. Each reference I make to the book or magazine I reference with the text’s number, and page number:

[1145-58]

That way I can track back to the source, should I need to later.


See also:

For more on my research process and research in general, go to On Research, and specifically, My Research Method.

How do you organize your research?

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