Monthly Archives: November 2009

Real Heroes

Updated on November 17, 2009 by Amanda McCabe/Laurel McKee

I’m out of town for a few days and on a borrowed computer, so this week’s post is short and image-heavy! Enjoy…

After I finished the last deadline, and before I started the next one, I had the great luxury of reading not 1 but 2 romances from my TBR pile! One was Carolyn’s Indiscreet, which was wonderful–exotic locale, deep, dark emotion, complex characters. The other (which shall remain nameless, but was not by a Risky!) featured a hero who was such a man-slut (and probably an alcoholic, too; on top of which he was not very bright) I feared the heroine (who seemed like a nice girl) would catch some terrible disease from him. When they married at the end, I thought he would be faithful–until the next woman crossed his path.

To cleanse the palette, I went to my ultimate go-to “cheer up” writer–Jane Austen, of course! I do love nearly all her heroes (except Edmund Bertram, who let’s face it is something of a priss. But he does seem perfect for Fanny, and will probably never cheat on her or have his nose fall off from syphilis! And Knightley seems kinda bossy). Darcy, Wentworth, Tilney, etc–reliable, attractive guys all. It’s the Willoughbys and Wickhams who are trouble (and not the fun kind, either), and who get kicked to the curb in the end. Here are a few reasons to love an Austen man:

(I know he’s not an Austen man, but I couldn’t resist including him!)
Ditto this one…

Who is your favorite???

When Heroes Age

Updated on November 16, 2009 by Diane Gaston

Last Friday Nov 13 was (gasp!) Gerard Butler’s 40th birthday. If you’ve read this blog for any length of time you’ll know I’m a card-carrying Gerry Butler fan. My first reaction to news that he turned 40 was, “Gee, he’s getting old.”

I came late to being a Gerard Butler fan, only catching The Phantom Of the Opera on cable about two years after it was released. Read here (scroll down) to see my reaction. I quickly went on to see Dear Frankie, Timeline, even Dracula 2000.

Gerry’s film debut was in Mrs. Brown, playing Billy Connolly’s younger brother. The role was small but memorable, perhaps because Gerry and Billy ran naked into the sea.

I think lots of women became fans after the movie Timeline. In that movie Gerry played a major role as archeologist, Andre Marek. Or from the TV miniseries, Attila the Hun. It was Phantom of the Opera, though, that really brought in fans in droves. Fan websites sprang up and Gerard Butler conventions were planned. These have become a fairly regular occurance, including a birthday bash this year in Glasgow. Through the conventions and other events Gerry’s fans have raised over a quarter of a million dollars for charity. (See the convention I attended here)

But, still, Gerry did not really achieve star status until the movie 300, where playing the Spartan, Leonidis, he showed himself to be a fine figure of a man. That was in 2006 when he was only 37. Somehow 37 doesn’t sound nearly as old as 40.

This year Gerry appeared in three movies: The Ugly Truth, Gamer, and, just out, Law Abiding Citizen. Already in the works is the much anticipated movie Burns (tying this in to our time period–or fairly close to it), in which Gerry will play Robert Burns. It is a real labor of love to make this movie of the national poet of Scotland. One wonders, though, will he be too old for the role? Burns only lived to age 37.

All this got me wondering. Is 40 to old to be a romantic hero–in our books, I mean. I know Janet’s Dedication featured an older hero, and my favorite Georgette Heyer hero, Demerel from Venetia, was older. But the heroes I write about are usually in their 30s, and most I read about are about the same age.

So, my questions are: What age is too young to be a hero? What age is too old? What age is your favorite for a hero? And the big question, is Gerard Butler now too old?

(p.s. I’m still a card-carrying Gerard Butler fan and always will be. He’s my favorite actor, an awesome actor, even if he is 40!)

******* All photos courtesy of GerardButlerDotNet, the officially non-official fan website

Check my website for new stuff and my ongoing contest.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Gerard Butler, hero's age | 31 Replies

Plodding Along

Updated on November 13, 2009 by megan

Recently, I returned to writing a story that is just so much fun, way sillier and more delicious than my usual stuff (closer to my posts here, I suppose). The thing is, I am trying a new way of writing, working with a relatively final synopsis as a plot guidepost as I write rather than flying into the mist.

Have I mentioned I am a curmudgeon when it comes to change? A long time ago, I had this quote hung up in my kitchen, just to remind myself:

“Change is, by definition, unsettling.”

So anyway. Changing my process is deeply disturbing to me, yet necessary.

I’ve got a sort-of working synopsis now, and a first chapter, but am stumped as to where to go from here. Let me lay out my options:

1. Heroine spies totally foxy hero from across the ballroom.
2. Totally Foxy Hero (TFH) is unimpressed with heroine. But bored. And doesn’t like it when someone else makes fun of her. So decides, maybe, to make her his project for the Season.
3. Heroine has secret identity. TFH will not discover secret identity until way later in the book, causing the all-important black moment.
4. Heroine has to work on secret identity work.
5. TFH and Heroine have to run into each other, even though he is Man About Town and she is a girl on her third Season.

So what do I do? How do I get them together? I don’t want to lay out all the mundane details of her secret identity life–it involves writing, of all boring to describe things–and I want to get them all hot and bothered as soon as possible. I wrote a scene where her Horrid Mother demands Heroine at least try to get betrothed, but it’s not sitting right in my brain.

Got any ideas? Apologies for the lackluster post, this and the state of my kitchen floor is about all that’s in my head right now. And you didn’t need to read about mopping.

Megan

Posted in Risky Regencies | Tagged Uncategorized | 12 Replies

Flying through the air

Updated on November 12, 2009 by Janet Mullany

A first.

I post Mantitty on the blog.

This is none other than Jules Leotard, who on this day in 1859 performed the first flying trapeze act in Paris, thus revolutionizing the circus. His act lasted twelve minutes in which he turned a somersault in mid-air and jumped from one trapeze to another. A pile of mattresses served as a safety net.

Although he’s not wearing it here, the leotard, which he invented, is named after him. Not a whole lot is known about his life; he was born in Toulouse, France, around 1839, the son of a gymnastics instructor, and as a baby was calmed by being hung upside down. Although his father wanted him to enter the law, young Jules ran away to the circus. He made his debut at the Alhambra Music Hall, London, in 1861, and his New York debut in 1868. He died in 1870 in Spain of smallpox or cholera.

Inspired by Carolyn’s Googlebooks adventures, I went searching for references to Jules Leotard, and found this from Chambers’ 1891 Journal of Popular Literature, Science and Arts:

Jules Leotard was a splendid specimen of manly beauty—a perfect figure united to a strikingly handsome face, always grave and reposeful.

The story of the great gymnast’s career has seldom been told. A native of Toulouse, in the south of France, young Leotard passed many of his earliest years in the beautiful city of the sunny south. His father kept a swimming-bath, having several skylights that were opened and closed by long ropea. It was young Leotard’s office to open and shut these skylights, and he was in the habit of swinging from one rope to the other, doing so with so much grace and skill as to attract much attention from the visitors to the establishment. His first public appearance was as an amateur at the Municipal Fete. It so happened that among the people who witnessed the performance was the director of the Cirque d’Iimperatrice at Paris. This gentleman was astonished at the skill and grace of the young athlete, and also at the novelty of the performance; and the next morning he made his way to the Leotard swimming baths and had an interview with the father. A few days hence and Jules Leotard set out for Paris. On his arrival in the gay city he was taken to a theatrical costumier, and a gay doublet of crimson velvet and gold spangles was fitted over the snow-white tights he had brought from the country.

“Take it off!” he said to the costumier. “I am not going to play the clown.”

“Take it off ! mon petit, the beautiful doublet ? See how well you look in it—grand, magnificent, superb!”

“Think you so? I’ll never wear spangles like a harlequin.”

“Ah ! mon Dieu ! Eh bien ! mon petit, what is it, then, you will wear? You must have a doublet of some kind.”

“Have you any black velvet?”

A roll of plain black velvet was produced, and out of this material was made the young aspirant’s doublet. And subsequently M. Leotard always wore the simple and elegant dress of a black velvet doublet over snow-white tights ; a dress that served admirably to display the magnificent form of the gymnast. The debut of the young athlete in the Paris arena was a veritable triumph, which was renewed on his first appearance in London. The flying trapeze became the rage, and a whole host of flying trapezists appeared at the music halls, none of whom, however, had the skill and marvellous ease of the master.

And yes, Leotard inspired the song The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze, recorded by, among others, Bruce Springsteen.

I think this nineteenth century circus illustration explains why female trapeze acts were so popular.

Have you ever fancied running away to the circus or flying through the air with the greatest of ease, which you can learn to do at Trapeze School in Washington DC or other major cities?

Do you think that facing up to a physical fear–like flinging yourself into the air on a trapeze–will help you overcome other fears? Have you ever done anything like that?

And do you think Manhaunch will ever replace the popular Mantitty on romance covers?

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bruce Springsteen, circus, Jules Leotard, leotard, Mantitty, trapeze, Trapeze School | 8 Replies

Why, it’s the Portuguese lady! ZOMG!!!

Updated on November 11, 2009 by carolyn

Well. I had this brilliant idea of searching Google Books for 11 November and limiting my search to 1800 – 1825. Because I wanted to avoid the poignancy of the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, 1918. It makes me sad. Do please take a moment to think about the men and women who have given their lives for the country you’re from.

That said, what about November 11 in history prior to 1825?

Oh. My. God. Can you spell B. O. R. I. N. G?

Some dude, I can’t even remember his name filed a patent for an improved truss. Then this other fool was going on about the United States, Britain and impressment and his stupid letter of November 11 the previous year (which would have been 1813), Skipped that because there were no sailors at all.

Catalogue of Merino Sheep sold at auction? That just made me hungry and not because I was thinking of mutton which I don’t like all the much. Or lamb chops, which I probably do but can’t eat ever since the day my mother served us lamb chops made from the lambs which until recently had been gamboling in our field. All five siblings (yours truly included) looked at our plates in dead silence. As I recall, we had Cheerios for dinner instead. I got hungry because the auction yard 2 miles down the road has this awesome hot dog stand, and they have a really spicy polish you can get with cold root beer. Anyway, the sheep auction was actually on November 2, but at 11:00. In case you’re wondering.

Then there was this writ of Supersedas (No 11) against a surgeon for gross negligence and carelessness. The court did not grant a new trial. That was in 1826.

One interesting result was from 1808, but Google seems to think there’s a copyright issue. WTF? No. Google. There’s not. Just why, I would like to know, are so many books that are more than 200 years old, being withheld on grounds of copyright? I thought the whole point of this was that Google got to scan all this public domain stuff so the public could actually see it. This is not an isolated incident and now I’m just [delete bad word] not happy.

There was lightning on November 11 1808 but that is also rendered a mostly useless snippet (said with great scorn) by a spurious claim of copyright. I am unable to tell you where in the UK this lightning occurred.

However, I did learn that owners of fisheries in the Counties of Southampton and Wilts may take salmon from 11th November, to 1 August; but not after 1 August til 12 November following. I have a headache trying to figure when these poor folks could fish for salmon. There’s a fine of 5 pounds if you get it wrong.

Library of the late Charles Long, Esq. of Hurt’s Hall, Suffolk …: which will be sold by auction … on Thursday, November 11, 1813, and five following days (Sunday excepted).

I can’t tell you what was in his library because, you guessed it, Google thinks there’s a copyright issue and won’t show a document that is in the public domain.

At this point, I’m afraid, I was both BORED out of my mind and really, really irritated.

So instead, I searched for demons 1400 to 1825 and that was more fun. But kind of weird. People took their demons very literally. And used extra large fonts like this DEMONS!!! and also like this SATAN and Beelezebub!!!!!

In Act 5 of a Play called The Brothers, a woman was invited to a wedding only to find that the happy groom was her own husband! Check it:

Via. Thus insulted, I can contain myself no longer. Upon what infernal shore am I cast? Into what society of demons am I fall’n, that a woman, whom by an act of honour I would have redeem’d from misery and ruin, should have the insolence, the inhumanity, to invite me to be a spectatress of her marriage with my own husband!

Pat. With your husband I What do I hear? Is Mr. Andrew Belfield your husband?

Via. Ay, do you doubt it ( Would I could say he was not)

Pat.Just Heaven! You then are the Violetta, you are the Portuguese lady I have heard so much of, and married to Mr. Belfield : base and perfidious!

Why, madam, both Miss Dove and myself conceived that ’twas the young adventurer with whom you suffered shipwreck, that —

Fio. What? Lewson, the brave, generous, honourable Lewson

Pat. Lewson? Lewson? I as sure as can be you mean young Belfield; for now the recollection strikes me, that I’ve heard he took that name before he quitted England. That Lewson, madam, whom we believed you married to, is Robert Belfield, and younger brother to your husband.

Via. Mercy defend me, into what distress had this mutual mistake nearly involved us

Pat. Come then, madam, let us lose no time, but fly with all dispatch to Cropley-castle ; I have a postchaise waiting, which will convey us thither in a few minutes ; but, before we go, I’ll step in and direct,

And thank goodness for the postchaise, just waiting there.

Plus how many of you think (as I do) that the brave and generous Lewson wasn’t all that brave but was probably all too generous? And, what do you think happens at Cropley-castle? Is she married to Andrew or Robert and who the hell is Lewson?

Boy, they just don’t write plays like they used to.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Carolyn gets bored | 11 Replies