Today I have the pleasure of welcoming Marcia DeSanctis to my blog as I continue to seek out writers who are introducing me to France who embody such a beautifully built-in passion for a country of whom winks at me from my ancestral past! I have started to notice a growing trend to where I am leaning more towards non-fictional accounts over fictional stories to help me hinge myself directly into the viaduct of French culture, history, and sensory delights translating straight off the page and into my mind’s eye.
It is not enough to simply devour stories set in a country you have grown to appreciate and hanker for a more intra-personal connection. You have to find a way to breathe in the essence of the country by any means you can. I still remember quite fondly my accidental discovery of a French compilation disc of musical artists who only produced their music in French.
I was wandering around a kitchen & home economics shoppe, whilst enjoying the lovely goodies being given out at a spontaneous tasting as I wandered around with a mind lit alive the with possibilities of which gadgets, gizmo’s, and modern upscaled appliances might whet an interest in my sous chef head of dreams. I tend to lean towards the fundamental pieces you will find in a chef’s kitchen; the ones bent on cooking and baking such sensuous delights that the aroma from the kitchen itself creates an experience.
I find the same can be true by discovering authors such as DeSanctis who do not merely give us a travelogue to absorb, but a transcendence of a state of mind, scope of scale, and a tangible grace towards visiting a place our feet cannot yet tread. She pulls you into the country, but it is more than that, she draws you into the heart of the people and the way in which France translates to the human heart.
Book Synopsis:
Told in a series of stylish, original essays, 100 Places in France Every Woman Should Go is for the serious Francophile, for the woman dreaming of a trip to Paris, and for those who love crisp stories well-told. Like all great travel writing, this volume goes beyond the guidebook and offers insight not only about where to go but why to go there. Combining advice, memoir and meditations on the glories of traveling through France, this book is the must-have in your carry-on when flying to Paris.
Award-winning writer Marcia DeSanctis draws on years of travels and living in France to lead you through vineyards, architectural treasures, fabled gardens and contemplative hikes from Biarritz to Deauville, Antibes to the French Alps. These 100 entries capture art, history, food, fresh air and style and along the way, she tells the stories of fascinating women who changed the country’s destiny. Ride a white horse in the Camargue, find Paris’ hidden museums, try thalassotherapy in St. Malo, and buy raspberries at Nice’s Cour Saleya market. From sexy to literary, spiritual to simply gorgeous, 100 Places in France Every Woman Should Go is an indispensable companion for the smart and curious traveler to France.
You mentioned on your blog that narrowing the list down to 100 Places in total set your world out of orbit a bit, as you were constantly questioning your motives after interacting with people who were critical of not having a particular location included. At the end of the day, isn’t the book the 100 Places you’d want us to see and in effect see the beauty of the moment of what that particular place gave to you? How did you creatively find a solution to respond when someone comes up to you even now, and questions an exclusion? How do you explain the purpose without losing the person’s attention?
DeSanctis responds: Good question! There is nothing scientific about a list, whether it’s People Magazine’s Most Beautiful, or somebody else’s 100 best rock songs of all time. But we do love them – they can clarify our thinking, help shed our doubts or reinforce our own opinions. No one wants to be dictated to, but in the case of travel it can also be a relief when someone else edits a bit, makes those tough decisions for you. I canvassed friends who know and love France, too, and interviewed over 100 people for their opinions. Each of them added something, from a glimmer of an idea to profound insight, like the scientist I interviewed about the influence Marie Curie had on her.
There are many people who know France better than I do, and they would probably come up with a different 100. It came down to a couple of sub-criteria – is there a story of a great woman that could build a frame around this place? Is it so beautiful that we forget ourselves and our hearts stop? Is it somewhere that has a powerful memory for me, like St. Tropez, a place that is somehow eternal – and gorgeous and deeply, poetically French? Or is it something so iconic that it had to be included – something like shopping for lingerie or perfume in Paris? I tried to avoid cliché in writing this book, but France has a strong identity that can, in the best way, force itself upon you when you are there. You can’t avoid champagne, café crème, chocolate and moonlight walks along the Seine. And nor should you.
But yes, everything in the book was mulled over – agonized over, really. I’m delighted, actually, when people challenge me. What about Chartres? What about Montpellier? How could you not mention Musée Chagall? That’s a common one, and I totally understand because it IS spectacular. Chagall is included in the chapter about Joan of Arc, but not in the chapter about Nice, where the museum is located. I wanted to include my own familiar places, rather than a compendium of everything to see there. By nature, lists leave a lot of great things out. And therefore makes for spirited discussion. Read More
As I had stated on my book review for Taking the Cross, when I decide to soak inside a war drama, I like to seek out the humanity and the light; the stories centered around the people who are breathed to life through the characters a writer elects to bring out of the folds of history itself. I always find that the best empathy and compassion can be found whilst pulled inside someone else’s life for a grounding of understanding as much as a knowledge of a life that was lived that is different from your own. For me, the character that still comes back to mind quite fondly from this debut novel is Eva, yet I found it quite incredible the breadth of research that is stitched into the very fabric of the story’s backdrop. This is a credit to the pen wielded by the writer whose passion is translated into the story he produced for us to find.
I was incredible blessed to have found pieces of his research on his website (of which I also noted on my review!) that gave us such a piercing and raw glimpse into the era in which Eva lived. He brings history to life in a way that keeps it palpable as much as intriguing to want to know where the next chapter will lead the characters you simply do not want to stop learning more about! Even Ms. Emma @ France Book Tours cannot wait to read the sequel, and I agreed with her quite readily, what a blessing to know the sequel is already written!
I attempted to query questions that would not take away from what the author already gave a response on his blog, but rather to extend a bit further past what he offered previously and present a compelling conversation for my readers! I hope that you enjoy where my curiosity led me to go and that you might become inspired to give Taking the Cross a chance!
Book Synopsis:
Taking the Cross is a historical novel by Charles Gibson about the little-known crusade launched by the Roman Catholic Church against fellow Christians in France, a time of great religious turmoil and conflict.
In the Middle Ages not all crusades were fought in the Holy Land. A two-pronged threat to the Catholic Church was growing within Christendom itself and Pope Innocent III called for the crusade against heresy to eliminate both the Albigenses and Valdenses, two movements that did not adhere to Church orthodoxy.
Andreas, a knight who longs to go on crusade to the Holy Land, finds himself fighting against one in his French homeland. While Andreas wages war for the lives and religious freedom of his people, a battle rages within his soul.
Eva, a young woman of a new religious order, the Beguines, discovers a secret message within a letter about the death of her father in the Holy Land. As she learns more of her father, she is forced to confront the profound and perilous spiritual inheritance he has bequeathed to her. A legacy for which she must fight.
Hearing of the feats of Andreas, Eva senses her inheritance may lead her to him.
Filled with battles of the flesh and the spirit, Taking the Cross reveals a passionate aspect of Medieval times where some fought ardently for the freedom of others.
Content Warning for Readers: some medieval warfare violence
The section where Eva is first introduced to us, is one of my favourites, as we see her as a woman of twenty before her thoughts and re-collective memories take a stronghold in the text. From thence we find her as a young girl of ten, of whom is listening to her Mum tell her about the Beguine community as much as the benefits of being a Beguine woman can have in the age of where women had less freedom than they do today. Old English words and French words are interspersed throughout the story, but none of them are intrusive nor distracting to the reading Taking the Cross as I give full credit to Gibson for utiltising their inclusions in such a natural way of understanding their meanings. When Eva disclosed her visions and her second sight starting to emerge out of anguished sorrow, I felt a murmuring of Hildegard echoing through my heart.
Eva’s character for me was the channeling center of the story, as her path in life was quite a unique one to step into as she was given certain gifts which afforded her a great purpose throughout Taking the Cross. Each step of the way, as we unlock hidden glimpses of her patronage and settle inside the ruminations of her own heart, soul, and spirit, we start to acknowledge that she has been given an enlightenment of knowledge not always etched onto a person of her birth. Eva’s courage and her fortitude to rustle out information that gave keener insight to unravell a bit of the puzzling circumstances her region was undergoing provided a bit of foreshadow as much as intrigue. Eva’s best gift as a character is giving the reader a way into the soul of the story itself — to ground us in the suspense and the tentacles of unlocking where this part of history has such a hard time in asserting it’s voice.
What kind of research did you conduct for this novel as far as to insert yourself directly into the era of the Albigenstian Crusade? Did the Crusades in general pique an interest or did you stumble across this particular stretch of history and felt you were onto something with potential for an engrossing historical fiction arc?
Gibson responds: When I was in college, I came across a book about the Albigensian Crusade. It looked like a fascinating time in history and I was surprised I had never even heard of it before. I thought all Crusades went to the Holy Land, but here was one that went to France. So I began to read more about this period in time. I read dozens of books about the history of this time, what everyday life was like, books about different religious movements such as the Beguines, the Waldensians, and the Albigensians, who are also known as the Cathars, books about weaponry, how battles were fought, what sort of foods people ate, and on and on.
Someone asked me once if I did my research on Wikipedia, and the answer is a resounding “no”! In studying about the Beguines, as an example, I first read about them on an online blog, and then I bought a scholarly work on the Beguines called Cities of Ladies by Walter Simons. A unique thing about the Albigensian Crusade is that there are 3 contemporary accounts of the Crusade, that are written by people at the time the Crusade was actually happening. This is unusual for an event that happened before the invention of the printing press. Two of these 3 accounts are my primary source of events and time-line. One of them, The Song of the Albigensian Crusade, was written by 2 different authors, one who was in favor the Crusade, and one who was strongly opposed.
Having read “Citadel” by Kate Mosse, I have become acquainted with the Languedoc region of France, but what I found incredible is how two writers (you & Mosse) have found such a captivating story to interweave through this region. From two incredibly distant eras of unrest, and finding the breadth of story to place on the shoulders of characters who step straight off the page and teach of us something we need to learn. What do you think this region holds within it’s heart that has continued to inspire curiosity and attention in fiction?
Gibson responds:When I traveled to the Languedoc and went to Carcassonne in particular, it was a revelation for me. Walking through the Chateau Comtal and on the walls of Carcassonne, seeing the crossbeams in the Tower of Heretics where those considered heretics were hanged brought the history alive for me. It was as if I could hear them crying out and experience their pain. I also went to Paris on the same trip, but the time in the Languedoc made a deeper impression on me. It was a sense that important things had happened in this region that needed to be told. The result was Taking the Cross, and hopefully more books to follow in the series. I have read Labyrinth by Kate Mosse, and the part of the novel that takes place in the past, follows the same time-line as Taking the Cross.
The background on the Beguines (of which your character Eva represents) is most fascinating, and disheartening at the same time as fear, prejudice without justification, and persecution ended the ability for women to become a Beguine. In your research, did you find any other example of the type of freedom the women had inside this nexus of sanctity elsewhere? Has history become softened and kind to allow something similar to become allowed again?
Gibson responds: I think history is like a spiral in many ways. Often things move forward, and then regress for a time before moving farther ahead than they were before. In the case of the Beguines and of women’s rights, the Beguines represented a huge step forward. Yet the initial founding of the Beguines was driven by need as much as anything, for Crusade widows and their children to protect themselves in a society where women and children were very vulnerable without a husband or outside a convent. As the Crusades came to an end in the later 13th century, so did the immediate need for such protection. Despite the persecution of the Inquisition, the Beguines did persist what is now Belgium into the 16th century. But it was only in the 20th century that more widespread rights for women, such as the right to vote, became more mainstream, but that was only in the industrialized world. In much of the world, women are still marginalized, second-class citizens.
This is a personal endeavor for me as I’m on the board of a non-profit organization that seeks to build shelters for abused women and their children in such countries as Indonesia and India.
Freedom is a theme knitted through your writing endeavours, and the variations of how freedom is expressed, granted, and given. Why do you think stories of freedom from oppression and from stern rule still has merit in today’s modern era? What is the best lesson that every reader can glimpse from reading “Taking the Cross”?
Gibson responds: I think the best lesson to be learned regarding what I call universal freedoms is that such freedoms should not be taken for granted today. It took centuries to get to the place where we have freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, etc. Those are freedoms that people of centuries past only dreamed about, except in places like the Languedoc before the Albigensian Crusade. The Albigensian Crusade also led to the Inquisition. The spirit of the Inquisition persists today, in governments that oppress their people because of their beliefs.
The further we go back into history and the more the folds of time distant ourselves from certain epochs, what do you find to be the hardest way to bring a story to life inside of a novel? How to make the time and setting of the story tangible and real enough to transport us to a specific ‘moment’ that is removed from our knowledge without a reassuring ‘connection’ to help us envision it?
Gibson responds:One of the greatest pleasures of writing Taking the Cross was to bring alive a (hopefully) authentic world from 800 years ago and populate it with characters that are not only authentic to the time but authentic people. One way to make historical fiction authentic, yet have it relate to modern times, is to have characters who are clearly rooted in their time period, and yet are reaching for something better, who are ahead of their time. For the two main characters of Andreas and Eva, their separate quests to see people live in freedom, brings relevance to our times today.
Another way to connect people to the past is to use words that are recognizable to people, but they don’t hear everyday. For example, instead of using the word “dawn” for the break of day, I used “cockcrow”. I wanted to make it feel removed from people’s everyday experience, but not too removed.
We have an author in common, I started to read “The Skin Map” by Stephen Lawhead during last year’s Sci Fi November and will be re-alighting inside it this year (during the same event) to complete my review of his novel. It is interesting that you mentioned Lawhead as there is a level of parallel creativity between the two of you. History has a way of yielding our perception to hidden truths and for enlightening us with a better understanding of where we are heading next. Yet, all the lessons are only worth their salt to a mind that is open to the plausibilities of what is found within the context. What do you think is the hardest aspect of writing historical fiction as far as curating a way to relate to the readers who thrive on historical fact inside historical fiction?
Gibson responds: I’m honored to be compared to Stephen Lawhead in any favorable way. He was the first Medieval fiction author I read. I particularly enjoyed his Celtic Crusades series and his retelling of the Robin Hood legend. Stephen strikes a good balance between using fictional characters within the framework of actual events. I’ve read another author – Sharon Kay Penman – who uses nearly all actual historical figures in her books and follows actual events very closely. While I enjoy reading her books, I prefer to mix fictional character with historical figures. In Taking the Cross, Andreas and Eva are fictional, while characters like Raimon Roger Trencavel and Armand Amaury are real historical figures.
I did follow the actual time-line very closely, but still made a few small changes in the events to suit my story. For example when Raimon Roger Trencavel goes to the city of Montpellier to meet with Armand Amaury, the papal legate and leader of the Crusade, to try to make peace to avert the Crusade, they actually met in a tent outside the city, but I had them meet in a church in Montpellier because it fit my storyline much better.
What was the impetus which gravitate d you into writing? And, when did this occur? Who was your best cheerleader?
Gibson responds:I took creative writing classes in high school and in college. My college professor was instrumental in helping me find my voice as a writer. That is one piece of advice I would give to other writers, is that you need to find your own voice. You may love the voice of another writer, but if you try to write in their voice, you’ll just be a tinny version of that writer, until you find your own voice, and in doing so you’ll learn a lot about yourself in the process.
What are your favourite tools to use whilst writing? And, where do you write to gain the most inspiration?
Gibson responds: Some of my favorite tools I use in writing are music and pen and paper. I love listening to movie soundtracks while I write, instrumental soundtracks. I wrote a lot of Taking the Cross while listening to the soundtracks of the Lord of the Rings movies or the Jason Bourne movies. Both have great instrumental soundtracks. It helps me to immerse myself in the world I’m writing about. When I’m writing a chapter or a new section of the book, I also found that I write better if I use literal pen and paper. Then I go back and type it in on my computer and revise as I go.
Outside your writing life and the research that inspires you to create new stories, what do you find to be your best bit of happiness outside the creative arts?
Gibson responds: The most important aspect of my life is my faith in God. It is the core of who I am. I’ve been through many struggles in my life, and knowing God has brought great peace and healing in my life, and also a purpose. By God I don’t mean religion, in the sense of this denomination or that denomination, or a certain set of rules, but what I consider a relationship with the living God. I enjoy spending time with my family. I’m married and have 2 boys, who are 11 and 6. and my family is a joy to me. I also love to travel. I originally wanted to be a travel writer, and write books about my travel experiences. That may still happen.
About the Author:
Charles Gibson first started reading about history and geography when he was seven. He wrote his first short story at the age of nine. He continues to read and write whenever he can. Charles has spent many years researching the Middle Ages and the Crusades, and has traveled to the Languedoc region in France. He has combined the passions of history and geography and prose to finish his first novel, Taking the Cross. It takes place during the summer of 1209 in France. Charles Gibson has previously written for the inspirational book series God Allows U-Turns as well as for a Minnesota newspaper. He also works as a project manager for a medical device company. He also loves travel writing, and would like to start his own magazine some day about travel as a journey through life. The dominant theme of his writing is freedom.
“It was for freedom that Christ set us free;
therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.”
He lives in Minnesota with his lovely wife and energetic sons.
I am always honoured when I can interview an author whilst hosting a blog tour, especially when I found myself connecting to the heart of the story through a character who illuminated a part of the narrative itself in such a way as to make me curious and dearly interested in reading the sequel! I realise most of the blog tour focused more on the Crusades themselves and of the battlefields therein; for me personally, war is always going to be a part of our lives. What I am more keenly interested in are the people and the transcendence of fortitude of spirit, courage in the midst of fear, and the succession of independence for the oppressed. The metaphysical aspects of the novel itself captured me whole-heartedly and I truly want to re-read all the passages involving Eva directly because there is an echoing nod towards ancient wisdom and elemental truths for humanity itself tethered and tied into her character’s essence. Eva is one of those characters that you are thankful you had the opportunity to meet.
And, I am equally thankful Mr. Gibson gave such hearty responses to my questions! I am not entirely sure why everyone has this cunning sense of logic that points directly towards Wikipedia, as it is merely a stepping stone of a ledger towards further research. There are times where I reference Wikipedia on my blog, but I find it as a tool for reference off-blog rather than the be all total of how far I want to research a subject or topic. This is one reason calling myself a ‘bookish library girl’ is a secondary clue that I spend a considerable amount of time at libraries! The pursuit of knowledge only becomes a heightened adventure with age, and the quest for understanding enhances as well. I appreciated learning more about the books & authors who not only inspired Mr. Gibson but helped pave the way for his novel to come to life on the page. I also agree there is something about writing words down on paper that helps curate a story your attempting to create from scratch. The process of creativity differs per writer, but I always found myself quite humbled and aware that my own creativity takes a traditional route of process!
I had forgotten to mention the language of words in the story on my review, but I did reference ‘Old English’ in a small shout-out of joy! I love learning how times of day were spoken aloud at different timescapes, this is one reason why my readings of The Study of Murder & Murder by Misrule were such engaging reads! I do try to make mention of language, dialect, and the curious differences in spoken patterns of speech, but there are times where I find myself happily distracted by the story itself!
Virtual Road Map for “Taking the Cross” Blog Tour:
I positively *love!* comments in the threads below each of my posts, kindly know that I appreciate each thought you want to share with me and all the posts on my blog are open to new comments & commentary! Short or long, I appreciate the time you spent to leave behind a note of your visit! Return again soon!
{SOURCES: Cover art of “Taking the Cross”, book synopsis, author photograph of Michelle Gable, author biography, and the tour host badge were all provided by France Book Tours and used with permission. Blog Tour badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Tweets were able to be embedded by the codes provided by Twitter. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. France Book Tours badge created by Jorie in Canva.}
One of the most exciting aspects of being a book blogger is the opportunity I have to interview an author I’ve recently read who wrote such a stirring breadth of narrative prose! Although I entered Bitter Greens without the benefit of knowing anything about the original or variant stories of Rapunzel itself, what drew me into the world Forsyth stitched together for us to find is the sheer volume of historical narrative that emerged and flowed throughout the entire story itself! I held such a close attention to key characters throughout the journey through where this enchanting story-teller was taking us, that I can honestly say that a second reading is necessary in order to fully grasp all the elements that she gave to Bitter Greens!
Especially in my case, where a previous novel circumvented the Rapunzel angle of the story for me, and had my heart settling on the secondary thread of the story itself! I, say ‘secondary’ as I believe first and foremost this was a story of who Rapunzel was and who she ultimately became. However, I was hugged closer into the mind of Charlotte-Rose, who simply leapt of the page and demanded my utmost focus of attention!
Today I am especially thankful to bring to you a conversation between the writer and myself, hoping that you will appreciate learning a bit more about Ms. Forsyth as much as I did! Enjoy! Be merry!
The amazing power and truth of the Rapunzel fairy tale comes alive for the first time in this breathtaking tale of desire, black magic and the redemptive power of love.
French novelist Charlotte-Rose de la Force has been banished from the court of Versailles by the Sun King, Louis XIV, after a series of scandalous love affairs. At the convent, she is comforted by an old nun, Sœur Seraphina, who tells her the tale of a young girl who, a hundred years earlier, is sold by her parents for a handful of bitter greens…
After Margherita’s father steals parsley from the walled garden of the courtesan Selena Leonelli, he is threatened with having both hands cut off, unless he and his wife relinquish their precious little girl. Selena is the famous red-haired muse of the artist Tiziano, first painted by him in 1512 and still inspiring him at the time of his death. She is at the center of Renaissance life in Venice, a world of beauty and danger, seduction and betrayal, love and superstition.
Locked away in a tower, Margherita sings in the hope that someone will hear her. One day, a young man does.
Award-winning author Kate Forsyth braids together the stories of Margherita, Selena, and Charlotte-Rose, the woman who penned Rapunzel as we now know it, to create what is a sumptuous historical novel, an enchanting fairy tale retelling, and a loving tribute to the imagination of one remarkable woman.
What do you feel is the hardest part about writing convicting historical fiction whose heart of story is rooted in a remembered part of our combined past? Especially whilst tackling a re-known and beloved fairy tale and etching in your own spirit of creativity into the story-line?
Forsyth responds: The most challenging part of re-writing a well-known tale is that everyone knows (or thinks they know) the story … and so it is hard to build suspense or to surprise the reader. I think suspense and surprise are the two magical ingredients of any story, the thing that keeps readers turning the pages, and so I had to think of other ways to make the book compelling and surprising. I did this in a number of ways – by drawing on older versions of the tale, by finding new and unexpected explanations for well-known plot motifs or events, and by foregrounding the villain of the tale, the witch who locks away the maiden in the tower.
What has led you to soak into the historical fiction genre to such a passionate level and know that it is a niche you want to explore further!?
Forsyth responds: I have always loved historical fiction, ever since I was a kid and read Rosemary Sutcliff and Geoffrey Trease. It’s still my favourite genre of fiction and I have always drawn upon history in my novels in one way or another.
I positively loved your response to the Question pitched to you on behalf of why fairy tales are still breathing a lifeblood of interest in the literary realms (from the Sunday Life Magazine interview). I have noted that there is an equal attraction to ‘re-tellings’ and what I find most curious is how well knitted the stories are inside them. What do you think will be the capstone of your own works, as you continuously find new threads of narrative to explore in this exciting sub-genre?
Forsyth responds: I’m glad that my thoughts on fairy tales touched you! I have always been drawn to fairy tales and fairy tale re-tellings myself, and it was natural to me to want to write my own. Apart from BITTER GREENS – my retelling of Rapunzel interwoven with the true life story of the woman who wrote the tale – I have written THE WILD GIRL, which tells the story of the young woman who told the Grimm Brothers many of their most famous fairy tales, and am now working on a retelling of the Grimm version of Beauty and the Beast, set in Nazi Germany. I hope I will continue to weave together tales of history, mystery, romance and magic for as long as I live!
You have a beautiful way of converging philosophical insight with the subtlety of symbolism as you describe where your own heart lies in the craft of story as much as the interconnected weaving of all story-tellers across the ages. Did you have other early influences of fairy tales outside of the Brothers Grimm to chart your course towards infusing inspiration with your stories?
Forsyth responds: I was always interested in myth and superstition as well as fairy tales, and I tend to draw upon these in my writing as well as the better known stories. I also love Celtic myth, and have drawn upon Scottish and Welsh fairy tales and folklore a lot as well. I’ve also used Hans Christian Anderson’s The Little Mermaid in one of my novels (DANCING ON KNIVES, which can only be ordered from Australia).
What were your early influences and wanderings in literature!? Which authors spoke to you as far as a style of story-telling endeared itself to you ahead of creating your own stories? Are there any titles you could share which are still brought forward to mind in fond affection? (outside the realms of fairy tales)
Forsyth responds: I’ve always been a voracious reader – I spent my childhood with my nose in a book. Favourite writers include C.S. Lewis, Enid Blyton, Eleanor Farjeon, Nicholas Stuart Grey, Elizabeth Goudge, Susan Cooper, Lloyd Alexander, Joan Aiken, Diana Wynne Jones … as I grew up, I loved the work of Mary Stewart, Mary Webb, Georgette Heyer, Jane Austen and the Brontë sisters. As an adult, my favourite authors include Tracy Chevalier, Joanne Harris, Sarah Dunant, Geraldine Brooks, Kate Morton, C. J. Sansom, Marcus Zusak … oh, far too many to list!
The best gift you are giving to your readers is the balance between light and darkness, of which you’ve readily spoken about in other interviews. I always appreciate this focus myself, as I appreciate a character journey through the darkness which leads them back round into the Light. Which contemporary writers do you feel are emerging forward like you are to give the reader a hearty read whilst keeping this traditional arc intact?
Forsyth responds: I do think that books which draw upon mythic structures in their books are ones which feel much more perfect and powerful than others. Books by contemporary authors that I think are very beautiful and moving are The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver, The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafron, and The Ocean at the end of the Lane by Neil Gaiman.
By giving your story a grounding in historical fiction, you were able to breathe more more breadth into the story as it evolved forward – if you were ever to take up the notion to write outside your preferred genre, where do you think your imagination would alight?
Forsyth responds: I have always written across genres, which can sometimes make my writing hard to classify. Some people call me a historical fiction writer, some people call me a fantasy writer, some call me romance. I don’t really mind. I just write the books I want to write, putting into them all the things I love best about books – a compelling story that keeps you reading long after you should have been in bed, a twist of suspense, a dash of romance, a splash of magic…
As you bring Charlotte-Rose into the background of “Bitter Greens” do you feel that having a biographical fiction element not only enhanced the novel, but allowed for there to be a splilt between the fantastical elements and the reality of the time in which it was set, but to provide a prospective of a writer who was crafting stories to both haunt and educate their readers? Why do you think psychological suspense and Gothic Literature has always taken a fireblood of attraction to readers of all ages?
Forsyth responds: I chose to entwine my fairy tale retelling with a narrative inspired by the true life story of the woman who first wrote the tale for a number of different reasons. I very much wanted the story to feel real, as if it had really happened, and so I wanted a strong historical setting for the book. I’m also very interested in who tells stories, and why, and this gave me an opportunity to explore that through a story of my own. I was also wanting to do something totally unexpected, that would allow me to surprise the reader and destabilise their expectations.
What was the impetus which gravitated you into writing? And, when did this occur? Who was your best cheerleader?
Forsyth responds: I’ve always wanted to to be a writer. My mother says I began writing poems and stories as soon as I could hold a pencil. I wrote my first novel when I was seven, and I’ve never stopped since. I think it was born in me – there was no eureka moment, no flash of realisation. I had my heart set on it right from the very beginning, and I’ve worked all of my life to make it happen. I have an incredibly supportive family – my mother, my sister and brother, my husband, my children. I’m very lucky.
What are your favourite tools to use whilst writing? And, where do you write to gain the most inspiration?
Forsyth responds: I buy a notebook for each new book and that gives me a lot of pleasure – I try and choose one carefully. I write all my flashes of inspirations, all my ideas, all my questions down in my notebook, but I compose straight on to the computer. My favourite place to write is my study as it is all set up just the way I like it. It has all my research books to hand, plus I have a gorgeous view out over my garden, across the harbour to the ocean.
What is your favourite part of being a wordsmith who spins tales out a palette of words which convey a visceral journey for the readers who find your novels?
Forsyth responds: Everything! I love the first flashes of inspiration, I love the daydreaming phase and the research, I love the actual writing and I’m one of those rare writers that loves to edit too.
Outside the realm of writing and research, what enriches your spirit the most? Where do you find your serenity?
Forsyth responds: In my garden, swimming in the ocean or in our pool under the starlit sky, walking through nature, and cooking something for my family. I love to listen to music too!
I want to extend a warm welcome to Ms. Leslie Wells to Jorie Loves A Story, as it is not often I get the chance to interact with an Editor who is also a writer! It has happened on occasion and each time is always a blessing for me, as I find Editors have incredible insight into the changing tides of the book industry itself as well as the gift for seeing how even though a few things might change as time moves forward, a few things will always remain the same! I have been holding back a few questions in regards to the shifting climate of print vs ebooks, the addition of POD printing options (for those of us who read traditionally), and the myriad of changes in an evolving climate of today’s publishing market. I felt Ms. Wells would be the best person to address these questions, as she has had one foot in traditional publishing whilst embracing a foot inside the world of the Indies.
Her strength and achievements throughout her career in having such a blessed duality of focus is an incredible well of knowledge to pass forward, and I was thankful I had the pleasure of interviewing her and sharing the conversation we had with my readers – as some of my regulars are writers themselves, and are dipping into the Indie world of the market or attempting a more traditional trajectory.
A quick note on why I chose to participate on this particular blog tour is due to the fact that I am constantly curious about new avenues to pursue as a reader. I have my comfy niches inside the genres I routinely duck inside, but there are times where I like to step outside of that familiarity and embrace something quite a bit different yet altogether has a knitting of the heart I hope to find inside any story I come across. I have lost a foothold in the Contemporary world of story craft and when I saw this was going on tour, I simply knew I wanted to become a part of it!
I look forward to sharing my ruminations on the novel & an Excerpt of the opening bits of the story a bit lateron in October! Until then, enjoy our conversation!
Book Synopsis:
Julia is a book-loving publisher’s assistant. Jack is a famous British rock star. “Opposites attract” is an understatement.
It’s 1981. Twenty-four-year-old Julia Nash has recently arrived in Manhattan, where she works as a publisher’s assistant. She dreams of becoming an editor with her own stable of bestselling authors—but it is hard to get promoted in the recession-clobbered book biz.
Julia blows off steam by going dancing downtown with her best friend, Vicky. One night, a hot British guitarist invites them into his VIP section. Despite an entourage of models and groupies, Jack chooses Julia as his girl for the evening—and when Jack Kipling picks you, you go with it. The trouble is … he’s never met a girl like her before. And she resists being just one in a long line.
Jack exposes her to new experiences, from exclusive nightclubs in SoHo to the Chateau Marmont in Hollywood; from mind-bending recording sessions to wild backstage parties. Yet Julia is afraid to fall for him. Past relationships have left her fragile; one more betrayal just might break her.
As she fends off her grabby boss and tries to move up the corporate ladder, Julia’s torrid relationship with Jack takes her to heights she’s never known—and plunges her into depths she’s never imagined.
With a fascinating inside look at publishing, this entertaining story of a bookish young woman’s adventures with a rock superstar is witty, moving, and toe-curlingly steamy.
Author Biography:
Leslie Wells left her small Southern town in 1979 for graduate school in Manhattan, after which she got her first job in book publishing. She has edited forty-eight New York Times bestsellers in her over thirty-year career, including thirteen number one New York Times bestsellers. Leslie has worked with numerous internationally known authors, musicians, actors, actresses, television and radio personalities, athletes, and coaches. She lives on Long Island, New York.
By having the insight of a career rooted in the traditional publishing paradigm and shifting out of it into the Indie side of publishing, what is the greatest gift you received as a writer as well as a woman who opened her eyes to both platforms of literary vehicles?
Hi Jorie, thank you so much for having me on your fantastic website!
The greatest gift that I have received has been the amazing support and reviews from readers and bloggers. When Come Dancing receives a good review, I feel like I’m on cloud nine; I literally float on a tide of happiness all day long. And since I’m working on a sequel, it has been extremely helpful to me to see what readers have enjoyed in particular, and what they’d like to see more of in the second book!
I have also been so pleased that people have responded positively to Julia’s career in book publishing. I really wanted that to be a part of the novel, and not to write perhaps a more typical romance that only focused on the heat between the characters (although there’s certainly plenty of that!). The other aspect that readers have responded to is the 1981 setting, when there were no computers, no cell phones or texting, and when records were still vinyl LPs.
To me a measure of success for any writer is the level of enthusiasm from the reader(s) who start to discover the work that is left behind for them to read. However, I have noticed that more oft than not, success in the publishing industry isn’t brokered on the gratitude of the readers but against the bottomline returns. Do you notice a shift of emphasis and on acknowledgement between the different markets (i.e. Traditional Publishing, Indie Press, and/or Self Publishing platforms) or are they more akin to each other than they are different?
I respect authors need to achieve a living wage for the work they are contributing to literature but what I meant to ask is why is a readership that is dedicated to the work of an author not outweighing the size of the returns? Small, medium, or large the dedication of readers should be held in high regard as the true gift of all the stories being created are to inspire a reader to soak inside the world and heart of a character; transforming their life for the moment the pages are in their hands. How do you measure your own success as a published author?
Great question! I have definitely seen a shift in traditional publishing toward more emphasis on the bottom line, as opposed to sticking with an author throughout the natural peaks and dips in his or her career. In part, the shift is a result of conglomeration: big (non-publishing) corporations acquiring publishing houses in search of media synergy, for instance. But for even bestselling authors, this means that if one book doesn’t perform well, they may not get a contract for their next book, no matter how fantastic it is.
That’s why the option of indie or self-publishing is so terrific. I have a number of author friends who have opted to go that route, and who have been thrilled with the results. Certainly it takes more effort to self-publish; you have to create (and pay for) your own cover, book design, marketing, and so on. But the creative control is extremely rewarding.
In addition, being able to price the book as you like (which is not an aspect of traditional publishing) is a great option. For instance, I have kept Come Dancing at $1.99, because I wanted to attract the largest possible readership and make my book available to everyone. Sometimes I lower the price to 99 cents as a special promotion; again, something you can’t do if you aren’t indie published. And for me, being read by the largest number of readers who (hopefully) like the story—and also want to read the upcoming sequel—is how I would measure my success.
Did you ever worry about accidentally having a quasi non-original idea stepping into the role of a writer after being in Book Acquisitions as an Editor who had guided and nurtured other writers into their own voices of thought and creativity? I oft wondered if those who work behind-the-scenes in publishing ever have any thoughts of concern when they start to pick up the pen themselves. How did you take the Editor hat off and not approach writing from the standpoint of an Editor’s point of view?
After thirty-plus years of being an editor, one learns to entirely separate the editing from the writing. I have a totally different mindset when I’m editing, as opposed to when I’m writing; I’m always extremely careful about that. Actually many editors also write fiction—it’s kind of a tradition in book publishing!
What was the impetus which gravitated you into writing? I realize you previously disclosed it was out of the ether of a dream, yet did you have any inkling of gravitating towards writing prior to that moment? And, when did this occur?
My first novel was published in 2001 by Warner Books. (It’s very dark and literary, so I don’t connect it with Come Dancing, which is fast-paced, funny and commercial.) Then for a number of years, I didn’t have an idea that excited me until I literally woke up from a dream, and the words “Please Do Not Touch” were echoing in my head. I felt compelled to go downstairs and write the scene that became a chapter in my book, when Julia and Jack first come together romantically.
I also knew that I wanted to write about my first years in New York City, and I drew upon many of my own experiences to create Julia’s life: going out dancing in downtown nightclubs, buying funky clothes at second-hand stores, getting by on a minuscule publishing salary. And I wanted to write about the punk/rock scene in Manhattan then, which was incredibly exciting and edgy.
I read in an interview you gave that part of the inspiration for Come Dancing was directly due to the fact that a particular portion of modern history still had a bubble of safety for those who wanted to enjoy the nightlife without the flash of cameras and the tracking of lives through the press. I applaud you for tackling a modern slice of contemporary life and fusing it into a modern historical window of the past – as more often than not, historical glimpses go further back in time, say to the World War eras and beyond. Do you find there is an absence of writing that captures how life is being lived in the latter half of the 20th Century and beginning of the 21st where anecdotal stories like this one could breathe new life into Contemporary fiction?
I definitely agree, and I think that is why Come Dancing seems to have really captured people’s imaginations. So many readers have commented that they loved the Eighties setting, and the reminder that not so long ago, people had to use landlines and phone booths. Back then, when you went out to a nightclub, there was much more open mingling between celebrities and regular people, because everyone didn’t have a camera (ie, a cellphone) with them 24/7.
I do think there is a dearth of contemporary fiction that takes place in modern times, yet not the 2000s. (“Contemporary Romance” and “Contemporary Fiction” are defined as fiction that takes place after 1950.) I hope that Come Dancing helps to fill that gap.
What are your favorite tools to use whilst writing? And, where do you write to gain the most inspiration?
Usually I get up very early in the morning (between 3 and 4 am) to write. I bring my dog into my home office, have a cup of coffee, and write on my computer until I have to get my kids up for school. My daytime hours are spent editing other people’s books.
What do you think the publishing world has lost with the addition of ereaders and the ebook industry? And, what do you feel it has gained?
I love to read hardcover and paperback books, so I’m a little sad that the next generation of readers will probably do most of it on ereaders. I also wonder about the future of brick and mortar bookstores, if print books are on the way out in future decades. That said, I’m thrilled that more people than ever seem to be reading, and I do think that the inexpensive nature of ebooks has helped with this increase in the number of books downloaded.
As I am a reader who does not own an ereader and will not be crossing into the emarket of literature, how do you feel the industry reacts to those of us who are traditional readers whilst caught up in a world bent towards a digital age? As some of us cannot read the breadth and length of stories on digital formats, do you find there is a shift in perception of who a reader is in today’s world?
Like you, Jorie, I read print books (hardcovers/paperbacks) when I read for pleasure. Because I work on a computer all day with my editing, I don’t want to stare at a screen at night. I do know that publishers are in something of a catch- 22 with the increasing ebook readership. They can see ebook reading increasing every year, yet they still need to print and publish hard copies of books for those who don’t use an ereader. How many copies to print (ie, the book’s first print run) has always been somewhat of a guessing game, based on the orders that the sales reps get from bookstores before publication. A publisher can be left holding the bag if they vastly overestimate how many copies will be sold; it’s also bad to underestimate and not have enough books to fill the orders, because a reprint takes time to print, ship, and then stock in the stores. And obviously creating a print copy is much more expensive than a digital version—so those are some of the issues facing publishers in terms of format.
The best blessing for me is finding stories released straight into ebooks originally are eventually being released into POD and/or traditional print editions six months to a year after their original publishing dates. Is this the new route books are taking in publication, as originally hardback editions pre-empted a paperback release? And, with the resurgence of the Indie Bookshoppe spreading like wildfire across the country, have you noticed a turning back towards more traditional markets whilst the explosion of the emarkets starts to hit its peak?
I do think that print on demand (POD) will become increasingly popular, so that readers who want a print version can immediately obtain it. I believe that people who want to read a hard copy will always find a way to do it, and independent bookstores are great about ordering hard-to-find books. The great thing about POD is that a book never needs to go out of print, whereas in previous years, if it went OP, you’d be hard-pressed to find a copy.
At the heart of Come Dancing is a woman wrapped inside of an awakening within her soul and of the choices she is choosing to elevate her position in her career. What enticed the make-up of Julia’s outside persona and internal conflict of character to become explored in this first installment of a story which continues in a forthcoming sequel? What drew you inside this part of Julia’s life to be revealed as a way for a reader to understand her?
The early 1980s was when I first got into publishing in NYC, and it was a magical time for me personally: coming to the city from a small town in Virginia, and being exposed to so many different experiences for the very first time. In some ways, I wanted to relive that very exciting time in my own life, and explore it through the fictional character of Julia.
Whilst building the arc of the central characters together, you put an emphasis on trust, communication, and friendship to become nurtured first in the beginnings of Jack & Julia’s growing relationship. Why do you think these traits are oft-times absent in Contemporary Romance stories, yet the true path towards having a meaningful relationship that is not hinged to physical attraction alone?
I very much wanted Julia and Jack’s relationship to start off a bit slowly, because I knew that Julia was not the kind of person to trust someone with such a bad-boy rocker reputation. She would have been very cautious in getting physically involved with someone like that, frankly suspecting that he would want a one-night stand and then move on to the next willing girl. Also, unlike her friend Vicky (who was such a fun character to write about), Julia wasn’t into bed-hopping. And she had just been badly burned in her previous relationship; not to mention having general issues about trust after her father abandoned her mom when Julia was fourteen. So for all of those reasons, she wanted to get to know Jack as a person (as opposed to his superficial superstar image), and needed to trust him before she got closer to him. Then, once they did get physically involved, the sparks really flew because of the buildup!
The start of the sequel presents a change of location for Jack and Julia (as they go to England), did you originally conceive a bicontinental setting for the story to evolve into after the first half was told or did the sequel grow out of the years spent with the characters whilst writing Come Dancing? Is this going to be a full-on series or limited to two installments?
The sequel takes Julia and Jack to England to meet his Mum over the holidays, then it moves right back to New York City and continues from there. I really had fun writing the scenes where Julia interacts with Jack’s mother and sister; there are some very funny misunderstandings based on British slang (hint: a “kip” is having a nap—not having sex!). Right now I’m responding to requests from readers and reviewers that I write a sequel (which made me feel great!). If the same demand exists after the second novel, I may well write another.
If someone was meeting you for the first time, what would be a surefire clue you were bookish and happily geeky whilst being a champion of stories and the craft of creating them? What would you share with them to encompass this part of who you are?
The greatest clue that I love books would be my favorite question to ask people once I get to know them a little bit: “What kinds of books do you like to read?” I’m always so interested in the answers, and have discovered so many great books that way! And I would share that I’m a book editor who truly loves what I do.
Thank you so much for these fascinating and thought-provoking questions, Jorie!
Warmly,
Leslie
I would like to thank Ms. Wells for being especially keen to answer my thought provoking questions inasmuch as she gave us a hint of what is yet to come for Julia & Jack! I must confess, I am always on a bit of pins to know whether or not I should disclose my own thoughts on potential sequels, as I have generally taken the route of holding back a bit in this regard. Reading her responses in this interview has led me to change my opinion on this, as the next time I am reading a novel where I feel there is a window of an opening towards a sequel or a succession of books in a series that could carry forward what had become rooted in the story I have read, I will include a small notation on my forthcoming reviews! I am even going to keep in mind as I continue to read Come Dancing on potential reflections on behalf of what I hope is expanded in the sequel!
Ah! Yes, I can give a bit away about my own findings of joy in Come Dancing, where I felt it was wickedly brilliant there was a backwards focus on ‘other pieces of tech’ outside the sphere of the digital age where all of our lives have grown a bit muddled in the pursuit of ‘now’ and ‘immediate’ replies and/or material possessions. The slower pace of previous decades where you had to wait for a phone call whilst darting back home to see if a message was on your answering machine fit well with the pace of my own life now in the 21st Century. No smart phones for me, in other words! And, more than a handful of my followers on Twitter are oft-times surprised I tweet traditionally as I am always on a computer when I am tweeting out my Joyful Tweets!
I will keep a bit of a surprise on my reaction to the book world for my review, but I simply wanted to say as far as technology is concerned, the story proves that even thirty to thirty-three years into the past; life carried on quite well without all the instant gratification and gadgetry of 2014! I did have a computer in the early 80s, so I am not sure when that came to be — I do know I had one a year after the story is set as by 1982 I was a savant at using one! As far as the internet is concerned, I didn’t hop on the web until at least 1990 or thereabouts. My life is a time capsule of the technologic age apparently!
I did find it disheartening the shift in the paradigm of traditional publishing — yet, I have witnessed this happening left, right, and sideways; especially with authors I have followed as I read their releases to conversations I’ve had with authors who were eager to sort out a non-traditional path that might allow them a more positive return on creative freedom and liberty to tell the stories they want to see flourish rather than losing the control of where their stories are being led. My heart simply warmed with a bright glow when I read Ms. Wells express this:
And for me, being read by the largest number of readers who (hopefully) like the story—and also want to read the upcoming sequel—is how I would measure my success.
I had to smile inwardly when she touched on one aspect of publishing I had already considered myself as a way to circumvent the wave of ebooks — to seek out the releases via POD editions, whilst acknowledging there is a developmental change yet not resolving that all my next reads can only be occupied by what was published in the past. I do believe we will start to see niche market publishers rise up a bit as well — to carry forward the traditional writers who want to publish in print and opt-out of the ebook trade completely.
I am not as worried about brick and mortar bookshoppes after seeing the Indies take back the physical selling and trade market of the industry. Even states where the Indies died out to near extinction are starting to see a re-surge in the economy where new Indie booksellers are re-defining the passion for traditional bookshoppes outside the scope of the conglomerates. I believe this is happening due to the same reason more writers are opting for non-traditional publishing platforms (especially on the level of Self-Published, Hybrid, and/or Indie Press & Publishers) to create a path that is not readily known but provides the most blissitude in the end.
I personally am applauding the path towards Jack & Julia’s relationship being developed in Come Dancing as it is quite literally non-typical given who Jack is and the background of his previous relationships. The story itself parlays it’s own unique voice and attributions on a part of celebrity centered limelight that fuelled my interest as each time I turnt a page, I was drawn more into seeing where these two budding lovebirds were going to go next! They are writ individualistically strong and they have conversations to ignite a proper sense of where each of them stand in their relationship instead of opting only for physical desires and pleasures. I applaud this as I am a reader who appreciates reading relationship-based Romances where the story is explored through the choices the couple makes in order to be together or to live apart; as sometimes you do not always get a happy ever after. Thankfully, knowing a bit about the sequel of Come Dancing before I started it, I knew a resolution I might appreciate could be waiting for me in the end! Yet, the bits in-between the beginning and the end!? Ooh, now that was the wicked bits for me to explore!
Yes! I know exactly what you mean about a confusion of British expressions — as if someone is especially vexed and flaming red in anger, an American might say “you’re quite pissed aren’t you?”. Yet, across the Pond this particular expression of anger has nothing to do with emotional signals but a must-need desire to visit the loo! Although, I also found that it can mean a person drank a bit too much alcohol and is decidedly drunk. I love reading across the countries because it gives a level of realism for realising that even though we are only separated by the North Atlantic, we are a bit of a world apart as far as how we use language and words to reflect different meanings out of ordinary life situations. I loved seeing how you inserted certain British words to reflect Jack’s origins yet grounding him with a bit of American English as he has grown used to being over here as well. You found a good balance between where he came from and where his career is starting to grow.
I had a good bubble of a laugh reading your last response — I am always at a plumb loss as to know which story to mention first as I have the tendency of being deeply passionate about more than a small handful all at once! My tweets this month will start to reflect that, as I want to shine a book cheerleader light on some of the most beautiful and captivating stories I’ve read this past Summer! I wasn’t always able to tweet past my tour stops, so I want to spread a bit of bookish cheer now that Autumn is winking it’s way into our lives — a happy respite from the angst and fiery weather!
I want to thank you for giving such hearty answers and for being pleasantly forthright about your observations! I appreciate your insight and the joy you bring to your readers by remaining insightful and mindful of our reading differences. You have a keen eye for finding your readers and for allowing them the grace of inspiring you with the stories your continuing to pen. I pray you will always remain open and responsive, as this is one attribute I appreciate the most in the writers I have found along my literary wanderings! I love to interact and I love to share my thoughts on what I loved inside of a book a writer has written that left me with a head full of heady thoughts and an imagination of warm memories!
Similar to blog tours, when I feature a showcase for an author via a Guest Post, Q&A, Interview, etc., I do not receive compensation for featuring supplemental content on my blog.
I positively *love!* comments in the threads below each of my posts, kindly know that I appreciate each thought you want to share with me and all the posts on my blog are open to new comments & commentary! Short or long, I appreciate the time you spent to leave behind a note of your visit! Return again soon!
{SOURCES: Cover art of “Come Dancing”, Leslie Wells Books badge, book synopsis, author photograph of Leslie Wells, author biography, and the tour host badge were all provided by Book Junkie Promotions and used with permission. Blog Tour badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Tweets were able to be embedded by the codes provided by Twitter. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination.}
When I first learnt of this novel going on tour with Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, I was a bit intrigued by the premise, as I have been reading quite a few immigrant stories of late, and this particular one interested me because the McClusky family was arriving in America from Ireland. I have newly defined ancestral roots to Ireland, and now that I know for a bonefide fact I descended from an Irishman, I have noticed my appreciation for reading about the Irish who came to America has increased tenfold. A bit due to the fact there is such a breadth of unknown factors and stories that are simply out in the void of the past; inches away from knowing anything further about this side of my family and perhaps even, the route they took to arrive not only in America but as settlers on land they chose to farm.
I was captured by this one particular family’s plight to forge their own future in a country so far removed from their own, and encouraged by their determined spirit to make it irregardless of what would come across their path! Therefore, I was quite happy that I could take a moment to Interview the author who is going to pen a series around the McClusky’s and giving us a bit of a taste of who they are inside Tower of Tears!
Betrayal. Despair. Murder. Mystery. Romance. Blackmail. “If God be good, Mr. Landon will burn in the eternal flames of hell. If God be bad, he will suffer much worse.” In 1820, a young woman and her son leave Ireland for a better life in America. She soon suffers heartache and tragedy, while residing with family whom she has never met.
Unbeknownst to her, the family had already set her up with employment in a factory–a factory run by a lecherous man. This is the first book in a series that will follow the McClusky family while they become Americanized while face with the Potato Famine, the US Civil War, and the Industrial Revolution.
Author Biography:
Rhoda D’Ettore was born in Woodbury, New Jersey, into a family of 5 siblings–which has provided her with plenty of comical material. She began working at the United States Postal Service at 25 years old, and over the past 15 years has accumulated many humorous stories about situations that the public never gets to know about. Her first ebook, “Goin’ Postal: True Stories of a U.S. Postal Worker” was so popular that readers requested it in paperback. Recently, she published the humorous “Goin’ Postal” in paperback along with another story entitled, “The Creek: Where Stories of the Past Come Alive”. Combining these two into one book may seem strange, as one is humorous and the other is a heart wrenching historical fiction, however, doing so proves to the reader Rhoda D’Ettore’s versatility.
Rhoda D’Ettore received her degree in Human & Social Services while working at USPS, has travelled extensively, and loves history. Over the years she has volunteered for several community service organizations, including fostering abused and neglected dogs for a Dalmatian rescue.
Your novel “Tower of Tears” encompasses such a startling moment inside one immigrant family’s life towards a new beginning in a new country. Did you base the premise of the story which is the first of a new series on research or a connection through your own ancestral past?
D’Ettore responds: I did use my ancestral past. Almost all of the characters are named after real people, and I thought it important that their spirits are remembered. In 1820, a woman named Jane Lindsay came to Philadelphia from Ireland and was my first immigrant ancester to arrive. The character of Eva is a combination of my own mother and her aunt, Eva. Both are strong and independent women as portrayed in the book. As far as the story—that is completely fiction. Other than having lots of children and the family being devoutly Catholic, there is no similarity.
Did you find it difficult to decide which portions of our own living history to coincide with the history of the McClusky family inside the series as a whole? Or did everything simply call into place right as it should when you wrote the series?
D’Ettore responds: I don’t outline and plan the stories. For this story, I sat at the computer and tried to imagine a terrified woman leaving her home and what the conditions must have been like for her. Then I thought, “How can I screw this woman’s life up?” I did do a lot of research as to current events of the day and even the speech patterns. When I needed to find Jane a job, I researched the businesses in Philadelphia for that time period. Sparks Shot Tower is a real place that still stands. It really did make the shot pellets and have a contact to make the bullets for the War of 1812. Eva resembles my real life mother who constantly watches the news and tells me what is going on in the world. To make her character pop, I researched the newspaper headlines of the early 1820s. As for the entire series, the potato famine, the building of the railroads and the US Civil War will all be great backdrops for the future books.
What do you feel is the hardest part about writing convicting historical fiction whose heart of story is rooted in a remembered part of our combined past?
D’Ettore responds: Historical Fiction needs to have accurate descriptions and events to be convincing. An author loses credibility if he/she write about an atomic bomb going off in 1620 Virginia. His/Her entire target audience would immediately lose interest. For that reason, I think the research and details are the hardest part of writing historical fiction. In almost any other genre, the author can create anything he/she wants and no one can claim they are wrong. But with historical fiction, if the author says something was invented in 1840, it better have been invented in 1840. The readers are smart and they demand their authors to respect the past.
What prompted you to choose the specific events that are highlighted in the series? Were they of personal interest or did they come to fit the story in a way that benefited the inclusion?
D’Ettore responds: I tried to grip the reader by either putting humorous family banter, some sort of shocking or exciting scene or details of conditions and events into each chapter. There are certain issues that everyone can relate to: disease, love, death, betrayal, family, etc. No matter what time period is discussed, these topics are relevent. I simply tried to choose events that fell into those topics during that particular time period.
What has led you to soak into the historical fiction genre to such a passionate level and know that it is a niche you want to explore further!?
D’Ettore responds: I have always been a lover of history & politics. The past fascinates me because one tiny moment can define a person or nation. So many people have gone before us, and we often make assumptions about their lives. But can we truly know what it was like to sit on a chamber pot on a rocking ship with over 100 people who haven’t bathed in weeks while holding your three year old son’s hand and not having toilet paper? NO! And most people have never thought about it either. My writing is a dedication to those who went before us and suffered. It is a great big “thank you” to all of the people who paved the way for a woman such as myself to publish opinions and ideas that would have been chastised in the past. It is also a symbol of the accomplishments those of the past made to conquer their obstacles we no longer have to endure. So heck yeah, I’m passionate about it!
Your story “Tower of Tears” has such a layered intensity within its pages, simply from the catch words of the synopsis, how did you decide to craft a novel that does not fit entirely into one genre but rather encompasses several as the the story is told? Do you find that stories alight in your mind with a genre in mind or is the genre second to the telling of the story?
D’Ettore responds: This probably goes back to the “write what you know” rule. I know large families headed by strong women, because my mother raised five kids on her own after my father died. I also know history and love true crime stories. If you put all those things together, you get a family saga crime drama with a historical backdrop. I knew one of the characters of Tower of Tears was going to be murdered, but I had not decided who the killer was. The easiest way for me to continue writing was to make all the characters appear guilty and decide later. Before it was finished, my beta reader said, “I know who the killer is!” So I took the name she gave me and made sure that person was not the killer! Next thing I knew, readers were calling it a murder mystery. I think I will let the readers decide what my stories are, and just keep writing what I know.
Outside of the 19th Century, is there a moment in the folds of the historical past you might be curious to explore?
D’Ettore responds:
Nazi Germany:
My next book, Newborn Nazi, was supposed to be about a boy being forced into a Hitler Youth training facility which prompted his sister to help save Jewish lives. As I continued to write it, it took on the dimensions of a spy novel with the backdrop of Nazi Germany. I intend on having New Nazi available for sale within the next month. But again, the same wit and scarcastic humor as well as strong family ties are weaved throughout this book.
1950s South Philadelphia:
I also have a work in progress entitled Mob Kids: Growing up in South Philly. It takes place in the 1950s and depict what children of mobsters went through when dealing with arrests, fathers in jail and being subjected to violence they thought was normal.
Do you travel to destinations that are reminiscent of locales or scenes that are inside your novel(s)? Or is most of your research condensed to what you can draw out of materials outside of travelling? I think it works both ways personally, as not everyone can travel to each country or city where their novel is set.
D’Ettore responds: I have used both. My first book, Goin’ Postal & The Creek, as well as Tower of Tears were set in the Philadelphia/New Jersey areas where I live. Drawing upon local history is easy to do having lived here my whole life. However, my upcoming novel, Newborn Nazi, takes place almost entirely in Germany. Again, I drew on my family history to write this book because I have never visited Germany myself. The interesting thing about Newborn Nazi is that although fictionalized, the main characters were real. Edmund was forced into a Hitler Youth camp and eventually became an officer in the SS. His sister was indeed horrified by the Nazis and began housing Jews and even American soldiers. The brother was put in a difficult position of family vs country loyalty conflict. It makes for a great book! The ending scene of the book has become part of my family legend. The point: They were real, and I did not have to be there or travel to their homes to appreciate them. There is a story behind every life and some stories should be told. Sometimes even those you were taught to hate were the “good guys”.
Where does the second and third book in the series start as far as era and generations? Did you continue to have well-known events highlighted behind the storyline as the series moves forward?
D’Ettore responds: Books 2 & 3 are still works in progress. Book 2 is entitled “Liam’s Longing” and will pick up about ten years after Tower of Tears. The same characters will be utilized, as well as some family members who flee Ireland due to the Potato Famine. Tragedy will strike in the family once again, and one of the characters will blame himself for turning his back on the Catholic Church. Also, many of the Irish worked to build the railroads and a real-life murder mystery took place in the Pennsylvania area that I intend to draw upon. The best thing about historical writing is that there is always something in real life that can be included for credibility. One of the biggest criticism I received about Tower of Tears was not developing the children’s characters enough. However, that is something I intended to do in the later books. Children are a little difficult to develop for me. They do not commit murder or worry about bills. All you can do is make them sick or kill them. I have no intention of abusing children in my novels, so I will wait until they reach 18, then make them miserable.
What was the impetus which gravitated you into writing? And, when did this occur? Who was your best cheerleader?
D’Ettore responds: Two years ago, an online friend of mine sent me his crime thriller manuscript and I loved it. Then I realized he was only 20 years old. If he could write a novel, so could I. He became my inspiration, but my brother, Alan, became my driving force. As I stated on the Tower of Tears‘ acknowledgment page he would often tell me, “That author sucks, you can write better than that!” But even he was shocked by some of the scenes in my first novella.
What are your favourite tools to use whilst writing? And, where do you write to gain the most inspiration?
D’Ettore responds: WritersDreamTools.com is a Godsend for Historical Fiction writers. It lists events, people and slang from every decade over the past 400 years. I use that constantly. I usually write on my laptop laying in bed, or at time at work on my lunch break. The USPS can be very inspirational! (see my other book as to why)
Outside the realm of writing and reserach, what enriches your spirit the most? Where do you find your serenity?
D’Ettore responds: I’m not married and I don’t have any kids, so my home is fairly peaceful and serene! Just joking. I have made it a point to travel and do all of the exciting things in my life I wanted to. I have done everything from bungee jumping to playing with a tiger. Now I have written several books/ebooks/audiobooks. I feel at peace with my life for those reasons. I also make it a point to volunteer or donate to worthy organizations, such as Toys for Tots or the National Military Family Assoc.–$1 of each book sale will be donated to the defenders of our freedom, although they deserve so much more.
I would like to thank Ms. D’Ettore for giving me such a wonderful response to my Questions, not only on behalf of the first McClusky novel in the new series, but for giving me a good impression on who she is as a writer and about her process to create the stories she brings to life on the page! I appreciated seeing her passion for creating the worlds her character’s live inside, but also, that part of her character lives actually stem and fuse together with her own ancestral roots and family lore from stories which are passed down through generations! I was encouraged hearing this as I oft wondered if other families had living histories shared through stories person to person as their generations continue to grow and prosper! It is one of the many reasons I always enjoyed having such a uniquely diverse ancestral past which stems into different countries of origin!
I am going to be posting my book review for “Tower of Tears” on Friday, in lieu of Thursday, as I still find myself recovering from the three/four day migraine that off-set my entire blog schedule this week! I am thankful to the author for giving all of us a special treat in understanding her inspiration and hopefully inspiring my readers to pick up her novels! I am quite eager to see where my readings lead me in Tower of Tears, as much as I wanted to say that I do find some writers prefer to write older children and/or college-aged adults as it is simply where their pen takes them with greater ease. I am always curious how each writer I ask about ‘serenity’ will answer the prompt – wherein I am only truly curious how they spend their time outside of writing & research. For me, we all need a bit of peace and quiet in our lives, a bit of downtime, and the hours to alight in our everyday life where we can sit back and just ‘breathe’ rather than always be rushed to meet a deadline or finish a project. I love simple joys in life and that is in part what inspired me to ask that question. I was thankful to learn she gives back to our military and their families as they are always in need of kindness and charity as a way to give back a bit of the gratitude we all feel on behalf of their dedicated service.
Virtual Road Map of “Tower of Tears” Blog Tour found here:
See what I’m hosting next for:
Similar to blog tours, when I feature a showcase for an author via a Guest Post, Q&A, Interview, etc., I do not receive compensation for featuring supplemental content on my blog.
{SOURCES: Book Cover for “Tower of Tears”, Author Photograph of Rhoda D’Ettore, & Author Biography were provided by Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours and used with permission. Blog Tour badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. Jorie asked to host the author ahead of reading the novel as she is most keen on Jane Austen & the sequel authors who give us such a wonderful joy to read their literary muse after being inspired by Austen herself; she was most happy to receive his replies from the Interview through Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours via the author himself.}