In 1741 George Frideric Handel wrote Messiah, his greatest musical creation, at the age of 56 in a single wild writing jag lasting 24 days. According to Newman Flower’s George Frideric Handel: His Personality and His Times: “He (Handel) completed the first part in seven days, the second part in...
This Regency individual intrigued me early on and those of you so fortunate as to have read my novels know that I included this notorious woman a couple of times. Before I get into a dissertation about her, let me just say that one aspect of the fun in writing...
Today I bring you the sixth installment of my series on Georgian and Regency Era servants. As noted last week, this entry will conclude the staff members who worked within the walls of the country manor or London townhouse. Next week I shall move outside, as it were, and begin...
Continuing on with the series on Regency Era servants and staff — blogs can be found listed in the Pemberley Library or by a site search — it is time to move into the kitchen areas of a Regency house and meet the servants dwelling within. To fully understand the duties...
In July of 2011, I shared a link to an article in the Sheffield Telegraph titled: Christine’s Glimpse into Running a Stately Home. My Scottish pal May had sent me the link to the online article, and I did share it here on my blog way back then. This week’s...
Here is the 4th installment in my Regency Servants series. So many servants… so many essays to write! I suspect another three posts on the folks who kept a country estate operating, with an additional two or three on related topics. I sure am having fun with this subject, and...
I’m back again with the third installment in my series on country estate servants during the Regency/Georgian eras. So far I’ve written an introductory post and covered the Land Steward, Valet, and Lady’s Maid. Links to those two posts are in the Pemberley Library or via a search. If you...
Continuing my series on servants during the Regency/Georgian eras, here is essay #2. If you missed the first blog, read it now since it gives an introduction that helps explain all the servants and the hierarchy. Servants at a Country Estate: An Overview & the Steward Today I will continue...
With 8 full-length novels and one novella written in The Darcy Saga thus far — and more on the way — I suppose it is obvious that my brand of plotting and telling a story is unique. There are several reasons for choosing this style, but one of the main...
One of my greatest joys in writing The Darcy Saga novels is uncovering tidbits of history. As much as possible, I try to weave the facts into the story in a fun and informative way. For some readers, this is too much like a history lesson! I wish I could...
Blogging this month will be inspired by a fact of some sort that I uncovered while writing Darcy and Elizabeth: Hope of the Future. Today, from a chapter where poor Mr. Darcy attempts to shop for Elizabeth. Lost amongst the vastness of Harding and Howell, he is assisted by three...
Titles of nobility are one of those areas Americans have particular trouble wrapping our minds around. It doesn’t help that the rules and application of British titles are extremely complex, and have changed in multiple ways over the centuries. In some respects, reading the various titles or hearing them uttered in a movie is akin to...
If you have read my first novel, Mr. & Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy, then you know that a duel with swords takes place toward the end. Naturally, in order to present a realistic duel, or simply have a duel at all, I needed to research the hows and whys as pertinent during the Regency...
November 5th is “Bonfire Night” in the UK, the day when Britons everywhere set fire to massive piles of flammables, light fireworks, and host parades. Straw dummies representing Fawkes, as well as those of contemporary political figures, are tossed into the bonfire. Why, you may ask? Well, here is a bit of...
I love this portrait of David Lyon. Isn’t he dashing? Possibly a bit Darcy-esque? He has the refined air, proud stance, slender musculature, and elegant, chiseled face we all imagine when envisioning Mr. Darcy. His richly nuanced clothes, from the fur lining his coat to the slim cane and dandyish handkerchief, the gentleman in...
