Just letting you know I put a new post in on Livejournal...my online writing diary.
I posted the latest fiction piece I turned in this past Monday to my professor. I submitted it as a short story, but I originally intended for it to be a chapter 1 of another YA novel.
Go read it...goes perfect with this week's World Series...has a little bit of baseball in it!
http://minnie-vasquez.livejournal.com/
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Playing With Matches...Will Burn
For Teen Read Week, I have read Playing with Matches by Brian Katcher and I am Legend by Richard Matheson...I highly recommend both books.
Playing with Matches is one those books with gut-wrenching scenes. You can't help but to feel that knot in your stomach when the main character is about to do something he regrets to his sort-of-girlfriend. Leon Sanders is not handsome, nor is he a charmer. Some would consider him to be geeky and nerdy and he only has about 3 or 4 friends in the entire school. He is the kind of guy who watches horrible B level horror films and still has his collection Magic Treehouse books from elementary school. Although he is a 17 year old high school junior, he has not had a girlfriend. But, he is in complete lust with a beautiful, popular girl who smokes cigarettes like there is no tomorrow. This is his dream girl, but what he really desires is for some girl, any girl, to like him for what he has to offer...which is basically himself as he is. For some girl to see him as someone special and someone they enjoy being with.
Well, be careful what you wish for. When a real girl finally says this to him, Leon has some difficulty accepting it. Why? Well, it turns out the girl who is falling for him and the girl he can't help but to begin liking is none other than Melody Hennon, a girl who many consider hideous--a girl whose entire face is a shriveled raisin of burned skin. From the neck down she is absolutely normal, but as Leon admits, he cannot get over her face. Nonetheless, he falls for her too, and just when he finally snags a girlfriend, here come the girl of his dreams with her long blond hair, perfect face, and cigarette breath. This is when you start disliking Leon. You just want to reach into the page and slap him around a bit. All of sudden he feels like he is merely settling for Melody and that his dream girl deserves a bit of Leon. Basically, he acts like a Jerk. He plays with fire, bringing grief to Melody and himself, and hardening Melody against any future with Leon. How low does Leon stoop? Will he come to his senses? Can he accept and love Melody beyond her physical appearance? Would you be able to look beyond extreme physical imperfections into the core of a person's beauty? Just read it...Leon holds nothing back. You will get a full glimpse of his views on girls, dating, and love. You'll hate him, but you'll root for him.
EXCERPT
When I was in junior high, I was a nerd. The kind of guy everyone picked on. The last one chosen for teams in gym class. Now, after years of struggle, I'd succeeded in becoming an unknown. And when no girl knew you existed, odds were they wouldn't be receptive when you tried to get them horizontal.
Of course, my looks didn't exactly make girls turn their heads and drop their pants. At only five foot six, I had to look up at many of the girls at school. Puberty had come and gone without leaving me so much as a chest hair or a whisker. And my face . . . Some guys are just born handsome. I had a mug that looked like it should be hanging in a post office somewhere, with the title wanted for shoplifting and credit card fraud.
Instead of wavy brown hair, I had stringy locks the color of old hay. When I wore a hat, I looked like a scarecrow. I'd inherited my father's generous ears but not his noble nose. I was stuck with my mother's petite button nose.
And then there were my eyes. Some guys had steely blue orbs that, despite any physical shortcoming, could just freeze a woman in her tracks and hypnotize her with their raw power. I had two beady brown eyes that, no matter how hard I tried to look mysterious and cool, always seemed to say "It wasn't me who just farted."
I kicked my locker shut. Three billion women in the world, and the universe couldn't spare one for Leon Sanders.
"Excuse me?"
Female voice! I swirled, waiting to see whatever gorgeous teenage queen wanted my attention.
Disappointed wasn't the word. I was . . .
Sneek Peek of his new book--Almost Perfect
A teen boy falls for a new student and forms a close connection that culminates in a kiss. But, then he finds out something about this girl that sends a shock to his core. His world is turned upside down.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Guest Author Post...Laura Resau
Laura Resau: Short Bio
"With a background in cultural anthropology and ESL-teaching, award-winning author Laura Resau has lived and traveled extensively in Latin America. Her experiences inspired her young adult novels What the Moon Saw, Red Glass, and most recently, The Indigo Notebook. She now lives with her husband, toddler, and dog in Colorado."
Laura Resau's journey as a writer on The Indigo Notebook
Thanks for inviting me here, Minnie! I love your blog-- it's an honor to be here!
After my first book, What the Moon Saw, came out, I started getting lots of reader mail asking me for a sequel. I felt that I was ready to leave those characters and move on to new ones, but I realized how attached readers get to characters they love. I had already written my second novel, Red Glass, by that time (which I also see as a self-standing novel), but I started thinking that my next book could be the first in a series. That way, when readers connected strongly with the characters, they could look forward to more adventures with them.
In the meantime, I was working on a collaborative memoir called The Queen of Water (to be released in spring 2011) with my Ecuadorian friend, Maria Virginia Farinango. As research for this book, I went to the Otavalo region to spend time in places of significance in her life. While I was there, I fell in love with the landscape and culture, and heard some stories that sparked my imagination. I began jotting down notes on possible storylines, and imagined that this could be the setting of the first book in the series I wanted to write.
Over a year later, on my second research trip to Ecuador, I began to get a clearer idea of the storylines of The Indigo Notebook. I knew that the protagonist was a teenage girl whose flighty ESL-teaching mom dragged her around the world. I loved this premise, because it would give me the chance to have adventures with these characters for a few years— and to imagine how my life might have been if I'd chosen a wandering life for myself. I wove the storyline of Zeeta's love interest, Wendell's, search for his birth parents, after hearing an interesting true story from an Otavaleno friend of mine. This storyline took on a great deal of significance for me when I decided to adopt a baby from Guatemala that year (a decision I actually made during a healing ritual in Ecuador!)
There will be two more books in the series—one set in southern France (where I lived for a year in college), and the third set in a coastal town in Oaxaca, Mexico (where I used to vacation when I lived in Oaxaca). I'm so excited that my readers won't have to say good-bye to these characters forever… they'll have two more books to look forward to (well, if I can get them written! I've been revising the manuscript of the second installment—it's been hard to focus on it with all my excitement about The Indigo Notebook release…)
Thanks so much for having me here, Minnie! I hope you all enjoy my book! You can find out more about it at http://lauraresau.com/the-indigo-notebook.html .
Happy reading,
Laura
"With a background in cultural anthropology and ESL-teaching, award-winning author Laura Resau has lived and traveled extensively in Latin America. Her experiences inspired her young adult novels What the Moon Saw, Red Glass, and most recently, The Indigo Notebook. She now lives with her husband, toddler, and dog in Colorado."
Laura Resau's journey as a writer on The Indigo Notebook
Thanks for inviting me here, Minnie! I love your blog-- it's an honor to be here!
After my first book, What the Moon Saw, came out, I started getting lots of reader mail asking me for a sequel. I felt that I was ready to leave those characters and move on to new ones, but I realized how attached readers get to characters they love. I had already written my second novel, Red Glass, by that time (which I also see as a self-standing novel), but I started thinking that my next book could be the first in a series. That way, when readers connected strongly with the characters, they could look forward to more adventures with them.
In the meantime, I was working on a collaborative memoir called The Queen of Water (to be released in spring 2011) with my Ecuadorian friend, Maria Virginia Farinango. As research for this book, I went to the Otavalo region to spend time in places of significance in her life. While I was there, I fell in love with the landscape and culture, and heard some stories that sparked my imagination. I began jotting down notes on possible storylines, and imagined that this could be the setting of the first book in the series I wanted to write.
Over a year later, on my second research trip to Ecuador, I began to get a clearer idea of the storylines of The Indigo Notebook. I knew that the protagonist was a teenage girl whose flighty ESL-teaching mom dragged her around the world. I loved this premise, because it would give me the chance to have adventures with these characters for a few years— and to imagine how my life might have been if I'd chosen a wandering life for myself. I wove the storyline of Zeeta's love interest, Wendell's, search for his birth parents, after hearing an interesting true story from an Otavaleno friend of mine. This storyline took on a great deal of significance for me when I decided to adopt a baby from Guatemala that year (a decision I actually made during a healing ritual in Ecuador!)
There will be two more books in the series—one set in southern France (where I lived for a year in college), and the third set in a coastal town in Oaxaca, Mexico (where I used to vacation when I lived in Oaxaca). I'm so excited that my readers won't have to say good-bye to these characters forever… they'll have two more books to look forward to (well, if I can get them written! I've been revising the manuscript of the second installment—it's been hard to focus on it with all my excitement about The Indigo Notebook release…)
Thanks so much for having me here, Minnie! I hope you all enjoy my book! You can find out more about it at http://lauraresau.com/the-indigo-notebook.html .
Happy reading,
Laura
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Author Laura Resau Interview!
Virtual Book Tour Today and Tomorrow:
Laura Resau, Author of The Indigo Notebook
Laura, I am so excited to have you here at Athena's YA Book Reviews! I have been a fan since last April when I read Red Glass. One of the things I really love about your writing is the ability to bring different worlds to life through vibrant, yet simple imagery. By simple I mean natural with everyday words. Your writing is accessible, but yet you have a way of bringing a sort of magic. Thank you for being here with us today and taking time out of your busy schedule. I am looking forward also to your guest author blog post tomorrow.
Interview Questions for The Indigo Notebook:
1. I read the author’s note you provided at the end of The Indigo Notebook where you describe the “limpia” you received from on Ecuadoran healer and your resulting adoption of a boy from Guatemala. It really brings out the idea that what you most wish for in life may not be the thing that you most need and desire, since we, as mere humans, can not see the big picture laid out for us --how sometimes greater things are in store for our lives. After reading your last words, I see “The Indigo Notebook” as a labor of love, merging your love of writing with the love of your son. My question is how do you think the novel would have been different had it not been for your son?
Great question. As I was writing this, I was also going through adoption workshops and trainings, and waiting for all the legal paperwork to clear so that we could bring our son home. I think that all this reflection made me empathetic to how Wendell has felt about his adoption throughout his life—and of course, it definitely made me empathize with the feelings of his parents. I doubt that Wendell's parents would have played as much of a role as they did if I hadn't been able to clearly imagine what they were going through. Adopting my son made me especially aware of the spiritual aspect of adoption. As the story suggests, I truly believe that he and I were meant to be together… that there has always been something like a red ribbon connecting our spirits. This is something I might not have included in Wendell's story if I hadn't experienced myself.
2. You mention on your website how Layla and Zeeta are dual expressions of yourself--”the mystical traveler and the common sense realist.” I can imagine how difficult it would be not to find a little of yourself in any character your create even if they are part of different novels. Question: How is Zeeta similar and different from Sophie, the lead character of your novel “Red Glass”?
After I finished writing Red Glass, I wanted to write a book with a protagonist who was pretty self-confident in contrast with Sophie (who was fairly insecure and fearful, at least, before her transformation). Although on the surface, Zeeta is a worldly, courageous character who's an expert at navigating different cultural norms, underneath that, she feels a deep longing for a safe and "normal" life. She tends to wake up at three a.m. feeling anxiety about her wandering life—feelings that during the day, she can keep somewhat hidden. So she does have some degree of anxiety, like Sophie in Red Glass. I think that what both Sophie and Zeeta have in common is that they are sensitive, thoughtful, and observant, always trying to look beneath the surface of the people in their lives in an effort to connect with them.
3. Can you give a glimpse of the new world Zeeta and Wendell will encounter without actually revealing it to us? What I mean is can you give us two or three beautiful sentences like the many you have of Ecuador in “The Indigo Notebook“--a few lines to put us into the scene?
The story is set in and around Otavalo, a colorful town in the Andes mountains. On my research trips there, as I was taking notes on the setting, I kept writing, "green green GREEN!" There were so many dazzling shades and rich textures of green— patchworks of forests and field all spread out over the mountain landscape. I kept thinking I'd love to have a dress stitched together with bits of green velvet and silk that would swirl around like the folds of these mountains. I also loved writing about the marketplace in Otavalo, with its smells of alpaca and wool, and rainbows of scarves and sweaters and rugs. Colors and textures and smells are so much fun for me to notice and weave into setting descriptions.
4. Do you think you could ever write about a place you have not visited? And, how much of a challenge would you face in creating the world of the novel if you had never experienced it first hand?
I honestly can't imagine writing about a place I've never visited. For me, writing setting is all about being observant with all my senses, trying to capture tastes and smells and sounds… things you can't always get from photographs. I also love talking to people and getting a sense of the personalities in a place… and letting this come out in dialogue. Many snippets of dialogue in my books are taken from real conversations I've had—and without being there, in Ecuador (or Mexico or Guatemala…), I wouldn't have that inspiration to draw on.
5. Why do you love writing YA literature?
The books that have had the biggest impact on how I understand life were books I read as a young teen. I think it's a huge privilege to write books for this age group, and I absolutely love it when I get reader mail that says my book changed the way someone sees the world. What an honor!
Fun Fact Questions
The last time you had a Mexican dish and what was it?
Delicious, spicy tamales from the farmers' market down the street.
Least favorite chore?
Oh—there are so many! I'll have to say cleaning my car out. I hardly ever do it. I tend to toss pistachio shells and banana peels on the floor, and leave chocolate on the dashboard where it melts into the shriveled up apple cores. Seriously, my car is disgusting!
Historical era and place you’d most like to visit?
Maybe New Mexico before the Spaniards came (over 500 years ago). While I was in grad school in anthropology, I worked on a research project that involved transcribing and translating old Spanish documents about the Hopi (or Moqui as they were called then). I would love to go and hang out with a family for a few days.
Cat or dog person?
I like the idea of cats, but I'm very allergic to them. I have a devilish little dog—a funny-looking half-corgi-half-Lab with very short legs.
Favorite Hollywood classic?
I love old sci-fi TV shows, like Outer Limits, The Twilight Zone, and the original Star Trek. I'm also a fan of The Avengers—a very cool British adventure/mystery show with great humor.
Actress and actor you’d like to see in a movie about Zeeta and Wendell in their late 20’s?
Wow. Hmm. You know, I'd love it if they were "undiscovered" actors, at least until this movie makes them world-famous, of course… ;-)
Thanks for a lovely interview, Minnie!
Great question. As I was writing this, I was also going through adoption workshops and trainings, and waiting for all the legal paperwork to clear so that we could bring our son home. I think that all this reflection made me empathetic to how Wendell has felt about his adoption throughout his life—and of course, it definitely made me empathize with the feelings of his parents. I doubt that Wendell's parents would have played as much of a role as they did if I hadn't been able to clearly imagine what they were going through. Adopting my son made me especially aware of the spiritual aspect of adoption. As the story suggests, I truly believe that he and I were meant to be together… that there has always been something like a red ribbon connecting our spirits. This is something I might not have included in Wendell's story if I hadn't experienced myself.
2. You mention on your website how Layla and Zeeta are dual expressions of yourself--”the mystical traveler and the common sense realist.” I can imagine how difficult it would be not to find a little of yourself in any character your create even if they are part of different novels. Question: How is Zeeta similar and different from Sophie, the lead character of your novel “Red Glass”?
After I finished writing Red Glass, I wanted to write a book with a protagonist who was pretty self-confident in contrast with Sophie (who was fairly insecure and fearful, at least, before her transformation). Although on the surface, Zeeta is a worldly, courageous character who's an expert at navigating different cultural norms, underneath that, she feels a deep longing for a safe and "normal" life. She tends to wake up at three a.m. feeling anxiety about her wandering life—feelings that during the day, she can keep somewhat hidden. So she does have some degree of anxiety, like Sophie in Red Glass. I think that what both Sophie and Zeeta have in common is that they are sensitive, thoughtful, and observant, always trying to look beneath the surface of the people in their lives in an effort to connect with them.
3. Can you give a glimpse of the new world Zeeta and Wendell will encounter without actually revealing it to us? What I mean is can you give us two or three beautiful sentences like the many you have of Ecuador in “The Indigo Notebook“--a few lines to put us into the scene?
The story is set in and around Otavalo, a colorful town in the Andes mountains. On my research trips there, as I was taking notes on the setting, I kept writing, "green green GREEN!" There were so many dazzling shades and rich textures of green— patchworks of forests and field all spread out over the mountain landscape. I kept thinking I'd love to have a dress stitched together with bits of green velvet and silk that would swirl around like the folds of these mountains. I also loved writing about the marketplace in Otavalo, with its smells of alpaca and wool, and rainbows of scarves and sweaters and rugs. Colors and textures and smells are so much fun for me to notice and weave into setting descriptions.
4. Do you think you could ever write about a place you have not visited? And, how much of a challenge would you face in creating the world of the novel if you had never experienced it first hand?
I honestly can't imagine writing about a place I've never visited. For me, writing setting is all about being observant with all my senses, trying to capture tastes and smells and sounds… things you can't always get from photographs. I also love talking to people and getting a sense of the personalities in a place… and letting this come out in dialogue. Many snippets of dialogue in my books are taken from real conversations I've had—and without being there, in Ecuador (or Mexico or Guatemala…), I wouldn't have that inspiration to draw on.
5. Why do you love writing YA literature?
The books that have had the biggest impact on how I understand life were books I read as a young teen. I think it's a huge privilege to write books for this age group, and I absolutely love it when I get reader mail that says my book changed the way someone sees the world. What an honor!
Fun Fact Questions
The last time you had a Mexican dish and what was it?
Delicious, spicy tamales from the farmers' market down the street.
Least favorite chore?
Oh—there are so many! I'll have to say cleaning my car out. I hardly ever do it. I tend to toss pistachio shells and banana peels on the floor, and leave chocolate on the dashboard where it melts into the shriveled up apple cores. Seriously, my car is disgusting!
Historical era and place you’d most like to visit?
Maybe New Mexico before the Spaniards came (over 500 years ago). While I was in grad school in anthropology, I worked on a research project that involved transcribing and translating old Spanish documents about the Hopi (or Moqui as they were called then). I would love to go and hang out with a family for a few days.
Cat or dog person?
I like the idea of cats, but I'm very allergic to them. I have a devilish little dog—a funny-looking half-corgi-half-Lab with very short legs.
Favorite Hollywood classic?
I love old sci-fi TV shows, like Outer Limits, The Twilight Zone, and the original Star Trek. I'm also a fan of The Avengers—a very cool British adventure/mystery show with great humor.
Actress and actor you’d like to see in a movie about Zeeta and Wendell in their late 20’s?
Wow. Hmm. You know, I'd love it if they were "undiscovered" actors, at least until this movie makes them world-famous, of course… ;-)
Thanks for a lovely interview, Minnie!
Thanks, Laura for giving lovely answers! Congratulations on your book release!
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Flash Fiction Piece
Just letting you know I updated LIVEJOURNAL again. This time I posted some actual writing. Maybe you'll start believing I actually want to be a writer!
It's about the YA story idea I posted previously.
Check our Adventures in Writerland (my journal title) and tell me what you think.
http://minnie-vasquez.livejournal.com/
It's about the YA story idea I posted previously.
Check our Adventures in Writerland (my journal title) and tell me what you think.
http://minnie-vasquez.livejournal.com/
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
The Indigo Notebook Book Tour Oct 15 & 16
Just about time! Make sure to visit Athena's Oct 15 & 16 for a VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR OF THE INDIGO NOTEBOOK BY LAURA RESAU! I am anxiously awaiting her responses and guest post. As soon as I get them, they'll go up.
Personal Note...I survived my week of graduate school stress...but now I'm on to a new week of stress...another film analysis paper, a film mid term, and a short story/chapter due next Mon and Tues. Hey, I wanted grad school so I would be forced to write and submit things on a timely basis. Guess I'm getting all that and more.
Also, writing a screenplay is fun! My thing now is how to make a historical epic into a high concept feature film! How to take my story of Carthage, politics, and love and do something new with it...
Personal Note...I survived my week of graduate school stress...but now I'm on to a new week of stress...another film analysis paper, a film mid term, and a short story/chapter due next Mon and Tues. Hey, I wanted grad school so I would be forced to write and submit things on a timely basis. Guess I'm getting all that and more.
Also, writing a screenplay is fun! My thing now is how to make a historical epic into a high concept feature film! How to take my story of Carthage, politics, and love and do something new with it...
Sunday, October 11, 2009
A Constant Heart Excerpt
Enjoy the Excerpt...maybe you'll want to read the rest!
"But how could he not like you?"
"He is an earl, Joan!"
"And you, Marget, are to be his countess."
...In several short months I was to exchange my life as a knight's daughter for life as a countess. That thought still had the power to drain the blood from my face as if January's salt-laden winds were whipping in from the Wash, stealing my breath as they continued on their way.
"Think you. For how many years now have you trained for this?"
"Twelve." It had begun at the age of five. If I whispered the number it was only because, of a sudden, I did not wish for the training to end...
"But what if—"
"What if what? What if you cannot please him?" Joan's voice was rising, as if my worries were trifles too small to warrant her attentions. "Do you not know a dozen ways to dance? Can you not sing like a songbird? In how many languages can you read? And how many stitches can you work upon a canvas? How can you fail to please him, Marget?"
"What if he is ... aged?"
"Then you will spend less time in bed and more time in delighting yourself with ... all the means of a countess at your disposal."
I could not keep a blush from spreading through my cheeks. "But his first wife—"
"The marriage was annulled. Is that not what you told me?"
"Aye. 'Tis true."
"Then she was no wife to him at all."
"But what if—"
..."Truly. What if I cannot please him?"
"Are you meaning to ask me if you are to play the role of your mother?"
My fingers tightened around her arm.
"He will not be your father, Marget. You will please him. He will stay in your bed. Is that what vexes you?"
I could not bring myself to nod, but Joan knew me almost better than I knew myself.
"Hear me: there is nothing in you that could make him cast you off."
"But—"
"Hush you. Last time I noticed, earls were still men." She said it as if that settled everything. As if there were no reason for the worries that churned in my belly.
"But—"
"And last time I looked, Marget, you still had the face of an angel." Her gaze softened before she continued on. " 'Tis nothing like my own."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It was enough to drive a man mad!
Any nobleman worth his title could write poetry. That was what my tutor had taught me long ago. That was what I had always believed. But then came Philip Sidney and Edmund Spenser, and now rumors of some person named Shakespeare. They had ruined it for us all. It was no longer acceptable to just dash out a sonnet. One must employ mythology and politics, and work for days to cultivate allusions aplenty.
But now, all I needed was a rhyme for carriage.
Her Majesty's comportment, her carriage, could be compared to ... Bah! It had been at the edge of my mind the entire forenoon. Carriage ... carnage.
Nay.
Carriage ... cleavage.
There was no hope for it. It would come. I could feel it, but I might as well do something else, something more productive, until it did. Why did poetry have to require so much work? I was replacing the quill in the inkwell when a knock sounded upon the door, and then it opened forthwith.
It was Nicholas. He was carrying something in his hand. "For you, my lord." He straightened from a bow and extended a document toward me. "From the east, my lord."
...I spread it on the desk before me but still could not focus on the words long enough to read them. Pushing away from the desk, I gestured Nicholas toward the paper. "Read it."
"Aye, aye. Does he accept the terms or not?"
...finally, he lifted his eyes to mine. "Aye. After all of that, in the very last phrase, he agrees. You shall have the hand of his daughter in marriage."
"Thank heaven!"
"Congratulations, my lord. It is my fondest hope that the young lady will bring you nothing but happiness."
I looked at him. Though his mien revealed nothing but innocence, I knew him too well. "You mean to say, as opposed to the first young lady?"
Nicholas merely stood there.
I frowned as I regained my desk and removed my quill from the inkpot. "The young lady is of no importance."
"I beg to argue, my lord...As a knight's daughter, her only wish will be to please you. You must not punish her for another's mistakes, my lord."
"Do you think me some cruel tyrant?"
"Nay, my lord. But it was you who said she was of no importance."
"Relatively speaking, Nicholas. 'Tis her dowry that I am after. Her knight-father's riches will allow me to regain Holleystone. If there is anything to rejoice over, 'tis that fact. You and I shall both be going home. 'Tis for that God is to be praised."
Nicholas cleared his throat, a sure sign that I had been ignoring him. "The young lady, my lord."
"What of her?"
"You will not neglect her, my lord?"
"Certainly not! Luck's chosen vessel must be looked after ..."
My thoughts turned toward all the ways in which I might, very soon, become lucky. I might be selected to receive a venerable Garter Knighthood. I might be asked to take a seat on Her Majesty's Privy Council. I might be given another estate or even a chance to purchase a monopoly.
"But how could he not like you?"
"He is an earl, Joan!"
"And you, Marget, are to be his countess."
...In several short months I was to exchange my life as a knight's daughter for life as a countess. That thought still had the power to drain the blood from my face as if January's salt-laden winds were whipping in from the Wash, stealing my breath as they continued on their way.
"Think you. For how many years now have you trained for this?"
"Twelve." It had begun at the age of five. If I whispered the number it was only because, of a sudden, I did not wish for the training to end...
"But what if—"
"What if what? What if you cannot please him?" Joan's voice was rising, as if my worries were trifles too small to warrant her attentions. "Do you not know a dozen ways to dance? Can you not sing like a songbird? In how many languages can you read? And how many stitches can you work upon a canvas? How can you fail to please him, Marget?"
"What if he is ... aged?"
"Then you will spend less time in bed and more time in delighting yourself with ... all the means of a countess at your disposal."
I could not keep a blush from spreading through my cheeks. "But his first wife—"
"The marriage was annulled. Is that not what you told me?"
"Aye. 'Tis true."
"Then she was no wife to him at all."
"But what if—"
..."Truly. What if I cannot please him?"
"Are you meaning to ask me if you are to play the role of your mother?"
My fingers tightened around her arm.
"He will not be your father, Marget. You will please him. He will stay in your bed. Is that what vexes you?"
I could not bring myself to nod, but Joan knew me almost better than I knew myself.
"Hear me: there is nothing in you that could make him cast you off."
"But—"
"Hush you. Last time I noticed, earls were still men." She said it as if that settled everything. As if there were no reason for the worries that churned in my belly.
"But—"
"And last time I looked, Marget, you still had the face of an angel." Her gaze softened before she continued on. " 'Tis nothing like my own."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It was enough to drive a man mad!
Any nobleman worth his title could write poetry. That was what my tutor had taught me long ago. That was what I had always believed. But then came Philip Sidney and Edmund Spenser, and now rumors of some person named Shakespeare. They had ruined it for us all. It was no longer acceptable to just dash out a sonnet. One must employ mythology and politics, and work for days to cultivate allusions aplenty.
But now, all I needed was a rhyme for carriage.
Her Majesty's comportment, her carriage, could be compared to ... Bah! It had been at the edge of my mind the entire forenoon. Carriage ... carnage.
Nay.
Carriage ... cleavage.
There was no hope for it. It would come. I could feel it, but I might as well do something else, something more productive, until it did. Why did poetry have to require so much work? I was replacing the quill in the inkwell when a knock sounded upon the door, and then it opened forthwith.
It was Nicholas. He was carrying something in his hand. "For you, my lord." He straightened from a bow and extended a document toward me. "From the east, my lord."
...I spread it on the desk before me but still could not focus on the words long enough to read them. Pushing away from the desk, I gestured Nicholas toward the paper. "Read it."
"Aye, aye. Does he accept the terms or not?"
...finally, he lifted his eyes to mine. "Aye. After all of that, in the very last phrase, he agrees. You shall have the hand of his daughter in marriage."
"Thank heaven!"
"Congratulations, my lord. It is my fondest hope that the young lady will bring you nothing but happiness."
I looked at him. Though his mien revealed nothing but innocence, I knew him too well. "You mean to say, as opposed to the first young lady?"
Nicholas merely stood there.
I frowned as I regained my desk and removed my quill from the inkpot. "The young lady is of no importance."
"I beg to argue, my lord...As a knight's daughter, her only wish will be to please you. You must not punish her for another's mistakes, my lord."
"Do you think me some cruel tyrant?"
"Nay, my lord. But it was you who said she was of no importance."
"Relatively speaking, Nicholas. 'Tis her dowry that I am after. Her knight-father's riches will allow me to regain Holleystone. If there is anything to rejoice over, 'tis that fact. You and I shall both be going home. 'Tis for that God is to be praised."
Nicholas cleared his throat, a sure sign that I had been ignoring him. "The young lady, my lord."
"What of her?"
"You will not neglect her, my lord?"
"Certainly not! Luck's chosen vessel must be looked after ..."
My thoughts turned toward all the ways in which I might, very soon, become lucky. I might be selected to receive a venerable Garter Knighthood. I might be asked to take a seat on Her Majesty's Privy Council. I might be given another estate or even a chance to purchase a monopoly.
Friday, October 9, 2009
A Constant Heart...in a World of 16th Century Hollywood
Yay! More historical romance!
A Constant Heart by Siri Mitchell brings out the intrigue of Queen Elizabeth's court at the height of the English Renaissance. A period of elegance, beauty, progress. Or, if you want the reality...A period of artificiality, indulgence, and want. White, stiff paints for the face, masking natural beauty with an imitation of the queen; court clique's concerned merely with appearance and wealth. Extravagant spending by courtiers for the mere whims and short attentions of the queen; personal indulgences inspite of multiple debts and lack of payment for working classes. A want of more power and more prestige; a want of food and warmth by the masses. This is the world of 16th century England where the court rules without regard to morals as long as the queen is pleased. A court where to be 36 years old means to be a hag, and to be young and beautiful is a curse.
A Constant Heart by Siri Mitchell brings out the intrigue of Queen Elizabeth's court at the height of the English Renaissance. A period of elegance, beauty, progress. Or, if you want the reality...A period of artificiality, indulgence, and want. White, stiff paints for the face, masking natural beauty with an imitation of the queen; court clique's concerned merely with appearance and wealth. Extravagant spending by courtiers for the mere whims and short attentions of the queen; personal indulgences inspite of multiple debts and lack of payment for working classes. A want of more power and more prestige; a want of food and warmth by the masses. This is the world of 16th century England where the court rules without regard to morals as long as the queen is pleased. A court where to be 36 years old means to be a hag, and to be young and beautiful is a curse.
Beyond Shakespeare, sonnets, and corsets, London lay in filth and waste--a perfect breeding ground for the Plague. And, if the Plague didn't kill, then surely childbirth or the lead based white paints for the face. Jealousy, betrayal, illicit propositions...anything goes when you are a courtier or are married to one.
Marget, daughter of noble merchant, finds herself married to a man who seems to despise her. She is now a countess and married to a lord, the Earl of Lytham. From the first day he sets eyes on her, he wants nothing to do with her and not because she is lacking in looks. In fact, she is beautiful, more beautiful than his first wife. But, therein is the problem. His biggest vice is beauty as beauty only masks all that women are capable of doing to bring misery to man. His first wife betrayed him in their own bed.
The Earl wants nothing to do with her, but marries her because of her dowry. It is not a love match and that's how he intends to keep it. He has devoted his life to be a courtier--a lifelong admirer of the queen. So, although he has a wife, his first service is to the queen. As for Marget, she only wishes to elevate his status at the court and she goes out of her way to do this from changing her appearance to bargaining with those closest to the queen. She sacrifices her health, her love, and her very character to please a man who wishes to please someone else.
Marget, daughter of noble merchant, finds herself married to a man who seems to despise her. She is now a countess and married to a lord, the Earl of Lytham. From the first day he sets eyes on her, he wants nothing to do with her and not because she is lacking in looks. In fact, she is beautiful, more beautiful than his first wife. But, therein is the problem. His biggest vice is beauty as beauty only masks all that women are capable of doing to bring misery to man. His first wife betrayed him in their own bed.
The Earl wants nothing to do with her, but marries her because of her dowry. It is not a love match and that's how he intends to keep it. He has devoted his life to be a courtier--a lifelong admirer of the queen. So, although he has a wife, his first service is to the queen. As for Marget, she only wishes to elevate his status at the court and she goes out of her way to do this from changing her appearance to bargaining with those closest to the queen. She sacrifices her health, her love, and her very character to please a man who wishes to please someone else.
Will the Earl come to love Marget? Will Marget survive this marriage? Will the Earl ever leave the queen's side? Will Marget ever be accepted by the court and the queen herself? Or, will she remain an outsider and take her husband out of the court's favor?
*Note--not a YA book because it deals with the adult world, but the novel is clean, as in nothing explicit. Marget is very young when she marries--probably a teenager, and the novel changes from her point of view to that of the Earl.
*Note--not a YA book because it deals with the adult world, but the novel is clean, as in nothing explicit. Marget is very young when she marries--probably a teenager, and the novel changes from her point of view to that of the Earl.
There is intimicay and plenty of romance, but I have no problem with someone young reading it. Actually, it is very interesting and provides a whole other view of the ultra-cultured society many people envision when they hear of the Renaissance. There is even "A Note to the Reader" wherein the author gives an overview of the health risks related to the use of the white face paints. I highly recommend it...after reading it, you'll get a better sense of how our world could be so materialistic and concerned with image. It's just history repeating itself.
Siri Mitchell falls under the "Christian" author category, but the book is in no way preachy. It is just a good, provocatice, yet clean crossover novel that appeals to young adults and adults. Actually, if I had not found this title under Christian fiction, I would not have even known. Of course, there are passages relating to religion, but how could it not when Europe was consumed by the Christian faith at that time period. Although the Renaissance had a highly humanistic focus, meaning a focus on the creations of man, Chrisianity was still a major part of society. Wars were fought between Catholics and Protestants; major pieces of art had Christian themes. Consider "The Last Supper" by Leonardo da Vinci or Michaelangelo's paintings in the Sistine Chapel--both notable Renaissance men.
Siri Mitchell falls under the "Christian" author category, but the book is in no way preachy. It is just a good, provocatice, yet clean crossover novel that appeals to young adults and adults. Actually, if I had not found this title under Christian fiction, I would not have even known. Of course, there are passages relating to religion, but how could it not when Europe was consumed by the Christian faith at that time period. Although the Renaissance had a highly humanistic focus, meaning a focus on the creations of man, Chrisianity was still a major part of society. Wars were fought between Catholics and Protestants; major pieces of art had Christian themes. Consider "The Last Supper" by Leonardo da Vinci or Michaelangelo's paintings in the Sistine Chapel--both notable Renaissance men.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Today's YA Release...Leviathan
I love history, so of course I can not wait to get my hands on this! On Leviathan...a YA novel based on an "alternate history" of WWI. So, it's like Sci-fi & Fantasy genre meeting Historical Fiction...but in a Steampunk way. What? Steampunk? I'll tell you more about that later. But, I just have to say first that I really like Scott Westerfield, with my favorite book being Peeps. I know many teens have read the Uglies series, but my fav is still Peeps. Maybe now it will be Leviathan.
Have you guys ever heard of Steampunk? I barely found out about it sometime last year when I was trying to create an alternate universe for a novel idea I have. Hmmm...you're probably thinking "well, where are all these ideas...why aren't they in books yet?" Give me a break...I just got started as an "aspiring writer" about 1 year ago!
But, Steampunk is a genre of Sci-Fi and Fantasy as well as a subcultural movement promoting the aesthetic appeal of Victorian-era style and the steam powered technology of that time and merging it with modern technology. So, basically if you "google" it, you can find images of laptops and ipods that have been transformed by Steampunk to something reminiscent of of the 1800s, with many gears, polished wood, and brass. Of course, these are not steam-powered, but in Steampunk genre, most of the technology and machines used are powered as locomotives once were--by steam. Steampunk as a genre and subcultural movement has been around since the 1980's, but Steampunkers take their inspiration from writers of the 19th century such as Jules Verne, author of Around the World in 80 Days.
Yeah, so I have a Steampunk novel series in my head, besides all the other dozen ideas I have written in my brain.
But, for now...LET'S CELEBRATE THE RELEASE OF LEVIATHAN BY SCOTT WESTERFIELD! The moment I found out about this book, it just screamed Steampunk to me.
Watch the trailer.
Have you guys ever heard of Steampunk? I barely found out about it sometime last year when I was trying to create an alternate universe for a novel idea I have. Hmmm...you're probably thinking "well, where are all these ideas...why aren't they in books yet?" Give me a break...I just got started as an "aspiring writer" about 1 year ago!
But, Steampunk is a genre of Sci-Fi and Fantasy as well as a subcultural movement promoting the aesthetic appeal of Victorian-era style and the steam powered technology of that time and merging it with modern technology. So, basically if you "google" it, you can find images of laptops and ipods that have been transformed by Steampunk to something reminiscent of of the 1800s, with many gears, polished wood, and brass. Of course, these are not steam-powered, but in Steampunk genre, most of the technology and machines used are powered as locomotives once were--by steam. Steampunk as a genre and subcultural movement has been around since the 1980's, but Steampunkers take their inspiration from writers of the 19th century such as Jules Verne, author of Around the World in 80 Days.
Yeah, so I have a Steampunk novel series in my head, besides all the other dozen ideas I have written in my brain.
But, for now...LET'S CELEBRATE THE RELEASE OF LEVIATHAN BY SCOTT WESTERFIELD! The moment I found out about this book, it just screamed Steampunk to me.
Watch the trailer.
Monday, October 5, 2009
My Screenplay for Class
I just updated my Livejournal
http://minnie-vasquez.livejournal.com/
...check it out to get a glimpse of my screenplay (n0t the YA novel, but my other project for graduate school this semester)--a tale of love and political intrigue set in northern Arica at about 150 BC.
Have a great day!
http://minnie-vasquez.livejournal.com/
...check it out to get a glimpse of my screenplay (n0t the YA novel, but my other project for graduate school this semester)--a tale of love and political intrigue set in northern Arica at about 150 BC.
Have a great day!
Sunday, October 4, 2009
The Indigo Notebook Book Tour Oct 15 & 16
Congratulations to my friend and author, Laura Resau, whose novel, The Indigo Notebook will be released on October 13! I just finished reading it this past week, and I love it. I knew it'd be great, especially since I only had wonderful things to say about her previous novel, Red Glass. If you haven't read that review, make sure you check my archives.
Laura will be visiting with us here at Athena's on October 15 and 16 with an interview and guest author post. Of course, I'll be posting a review pretty soon. But, I have to wait unitl I buy the book again because, sadly, I lost the advanced reader's copy she had sent to me! I am still so upset about it--about losing it at pee-wee football pictures for my son! Basically, I took the book out to use for a check I was writing. I must have put the book down when I paid...and didn't realize it until like 5 hours later when I noticed my "Save Planet Earth" tote was so light!
But, here is a book trailer made by the author, Laura Resau. Enjoy!
Laura will be visiting with us here at Athena's on October 15 and 16 with an interview and guest author post. Of course, I'll be posting a review pretty soon. But, I have to wait unitl I buy the book again because, sadly, I lost the advanced reader's copy she had sent to me! I am still so upset about it--about losing it at pee-wee football pictures for my son! Basically, I took the book out to use for a check I was writing. I must have put the book down when I paid...and didn't realize it until like 5 hours later when I noticed my "Save Planet Earth" tote was so light!
But, here is a book trailer made by the author, Laura Resau. Enjoy!
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