Guest on Anastasia Pollock's Blog

11^th April. Today I am a guest of Anastasia Pollock, crafts editor and reluctant amateur sleuth, on her blog, Crafty Knitters. My article features naval captain, Edward Howard, the hero of my novel, The Captain and The Countess. Edward’s outstanding artistic ability makes him more perceptive than most gentlemen in Queen Anne Stuart’s reign, 1706-1714. 

LINK:

 

http://www/anastasiapollack.blogspot.com/2016/04/crafts-with-anastasia-guest-author.html

 

Rosemary Morris

Multi Published Historical Novelist

www.rosemarymorris.co.uk

Free Prize Winning Flash Fiction Story

Watford Writers invited members to submit a Flash Fiction 350 word Valentine's Day story. I'm delighted to have won second prize for Unchained Love. I hope you enjoy it. Your comments will be very welcome.

Unchained Love

 

The consultant broke the news. “I’m very sorry to tell you both that Paul only has two months to live.”

He and I packed as much as possible into December and January. His last birthday celebrated at a restaurant, although he could eat little. Christmas, at our daughter’s house. My final goodbye at the graveside.

February brought slate grey skies and curtains of rain. Valentine’s Day approached. No cards or flowers for me this year

The shop is filled with heart-shaped balloons. Invitations to Be My Valentine. Cards ornamented with glitter, beads and ribbons are filled with romantic messages, and decorated with roses or cupids with bows in hand ready to shoot arrows.

I splash my way to Paul’s tombstone where I prop my card, wrapped in cling film. The rain washes away my tears, but can’t kill the powerful fragrance of red roses. It pierces my heart. I arrange the flowers in a vase and place them on the marble slab. God, please bless, my darling. One day, may we be reunited?

I trudge between graves, on some of which are sodden teddy bears. So much loss. My own threatens to overwhelm me. I want to run back to Paul’s last resting place and fling myself onto it. To tell him life is unbearable without him. Instead I catch the bus to the house we shared, every part of which brings poignant memories. Oh, we weren’t the perfect couple. Sometimes we had arguments, but they couldn’t have been important because I can’t remember what they were about.

I answer a knock on the front door. My next door neighbour holds out red roses. She smiles but looks curiously at me. “These came for you while you were out.”

Who on earth could they be from?

Alone, I read the card that nestled in the heart of the bouquet.

“My love, you filled my life with joy. Although I’ve left you, for my sake, please fill yours with happiness.”

I don’t know if I can ever again be happy, but day by day, for Paul’s sake, I shall try.

Interview at Book Club

Yesterday, I was interviewed by Book Club.

http://www.anastasiapollack.blogspot.com/…/book-club-friday….

Unfortunately, an 80 year old relative, who has a pacemaker, fell down the stairs from top to bottom. Blood everywhere from a cut on his head. Shocked, battered and bruised, he is fortunate not to have broken an arm and a leg. I went to the hospital and returned late to tired to promote the interview yesterday,

All the best

Rosemary Morris

Historical Novelist

Tuesday's Child Is On Schedule

I've been neglecting social media. This year I didn't have a new novel published and decided I write too slowly. I need to be more productive without sacrificing quality so I decided to write Tuesday's Child without research, revision or edits. I wanted to finish the first draft by the end of November or December 10th at the latest. I have almost met my target. I wrote 70,000 words and then realised I should revise Tuesday's Child to make sure that I tied up all the loose ends. I have revised and edited 100 pages of the second draft and am making notes on the contents of each chapter. Next, I shall write the final 5,000 words or more. It's a new way of writing for me but, hopefully, I will be ready to submit the novel to MuseItUpPublishing by the end of March, if not before. Phew!

About: Far Beyond Rubies: Early 18th century novel

 

 

Far Beyond Rubies by Rosemary Morris

Back Cover

 

 Set in 1706 during Queen Anne Stuart’s reign, Far Beyond Rubies begins when William, Baron Kemp, Juliana’s half-brother claims she and her young sister, Henrietta, are bastards. Spirited Juliana is determined to prove the allegation is false, and that she is the rightful heiress to Riverside, a great estate.

 

On his way to deliver a letter to William, Gervaise Seymour sees Juliana for the first time on the grounds of her family estate. The sight of her draws him back to India. When “her form changed to one he knew intimately – but not in this lifetime,” Gervaise knows he would do everything in his power to protect her.

 

Although Juliana and Gervaise are attracted to each other, they have not been formally introduced and assume they will never meet again. However, when Juliana flees from home, and is on her way to London, she encounters quixotic Gervaise at an inn. Circumstances force Juliana to accept his kind help. After Juliana’s life becomes irrevocably tangled with his, she discovers all is not as it seems. Yet, she cannot believe ill of him for, despite his exotic background, he behaves with scrupulous propriety while trying to help her find evidence to prove she and her sister are legitimate.

 

Far Beyond Rubies is available from: MuseItUp Publishing, Amazon Kindle, Nook, Omlit, Bookstrand Mainstream, Kobo and elsewhere.

To view the book trailer, read the first three chapters and reviews please visit. www.rosemarymorris.co.uk

 

 

 

Writing & Researching Historical Fiction

I had decided to complete the first draft of my new novel, Tuesday's Child, a traditional Regency Novel, without pausing to research. Until yesterday I put a word in bold to remind me to research a fact when I work on the second draft. Having made that decision I decided on the minimum number of words I should write every day in order to finish the first draft by mid December. Yesterday, the current chapter didn't evolve according to plan. I spent most of the time dedicated to writing researching essential facts and failed to complete my self-imposed number of words. That is annoying because it's so difficult to find time to catch up when I don't reach my targets. If I had a report card I would enter :'Must try harder.'

Sunday's Child by Rosemary Morris Traditional Regency Romance

Sunday’s Child By Rosemary Morris

A Regency Novel

Back Cover

 

Georgianne Whitley’s beloved father and brothers died in the war against Napoleon Bonaparte. While she is grieving for them, she must deal with her unpredictable mother’s sorrow, and her younger sisters’ situation caused by it.

 Georgianne’s problems increase when the arrogant, wealthy but elderly Earl of Pennington, proposes marriage to her for the sole purpose of being provided with an heir. At first she is tempted by his proposal, but something is not quite right about him. She rejects him not suspecting it will lead to unwelcome repercussions.

 Once, Georgianne had wanted to marry an army officer. Now, she decides never to marry ‘a military man’ for fear he will be killed on the battlefield. However, Georgianne still dreams of a happy marriage before unexpected violence forces her to relinquish the chance to participate in a London Season sponsored by her aunt.

 Shocked and in pain, Georgianne goes to the inn where her cousin Sarah’s step-brother, Major Tarrant, is staying, while waiting for the blacksmith to return to the village and shoe his horse. Recently, she has been reacquainted with Tarrant—whom she knew when in the nursery—at the vicarage where Sarah lives with her husband Reverend Stanton.

 The war in the Iberian Peninsula is nearly at an end so, after his older brother’s death, Tarrant, who was wounded, returns to England where his father asks him to marry and produce an heir.

 To please his father, Tarrant agrees to marry, but due to a personal tragedy he has decided never to father a child.

 When Georgianne, arrives at the inn, quixotic Tarrant sympathises with her unhappy situation. Moreover, he is shocked by the unforgivably brutal treatment she has suffered.

 Full of admiration for her beauty and courage Tarrant decides to help Georgianne.

Available from MuseItUp Publishing, Amazon Kindle, Nook, Omlit, Bookstrand Mainstream, Kobo and elsewhere.

 

To read the first three chapters and view the book trailer please visit: www.rosemarymorris.co.uk

 

Early Morning Service & Weeding

I attended morning service and returned home feeling cheerful. After a glass of water and a snack, I worked in the garden. I cleared a flower bed of grass and weeds, and found a space for one of the hollyhocks planted from seed and debated whether or not to dig up the geraniums in the bed, pot them up and put them in the greenhouse. Usually, they survive over winter in my greenhouse.

Novelist's List of Things To Do

I like to be as organised as possible. Writing and 'writerly' activities 6 a.m. to 10 a.m., even if I break off mid-sentence at 10 a.m.when drafting my new novel,Tuesday's Child a sweet Regency romance, and between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. Mind you, the hours are not set in concrete but I do write etc., nearly almost every day.

Lists help me to plan what I'm going to do. I have three lists titled, Urgent, Necessary and non-urgent. At the moment I have the following on my lists. Complete 30,000 words of my novel by the 30th September. Complete 60,000 words by the 31st October. Write a blog for Love Romance, which will be published in mid-October. Learn more about Amazon alogorithms and social media. Add my author's page to amazon.ca. And various other 'writerly' matters.

On today's urgent list. Sow the broad bean seeds which have been soaking in water overnight and also sow rocket outdoors. Cover the turnip and radish seedlings with fleece because an animal - probably a fox - dug a hole at the end of the rows. Plant green and purple basil in pots and stand the pots on the heated propagator. Make spiced vinegar for beetroot pickle made with beetroots from the garden which I have already cooked - this is on my urgent list but it won't take long.

However, lists are not infallible. Yesterday, one of the most urgent things on my shopping list was sugar because I plan to make more marrow and ginger jam spiced with cardamon, and some apple butter with windfalls this week. I forgot to buy the sugar and had to pop into the corner shop to buy some before I attended my 14 year-old grandson's birthday.

Gardening Organically & Cooking

Beautiful day here in S. E. England, so I took advantage of it. I sowed winter lettuce in a trough in the greenhouse, and also sowed land cress, mizuna and rocket in trays. I use home made compost and add liquid manure to it i.e. chicken manure steeped in water. A couple of days ago I boiled rosehips and cooking apples until they were soft. I then left the mixture to strain through a jelly bag. I didn't have time to make the jelly so I put the liquid in the fridge. Today, I m...ade the jelly. Phew, it's always difficult to judge when the fruit has set. I also made macaroni cheese and cooked potato, carrots and runner beans from the garden for lunch. For desert I had stewed Bramley Apples - the apples from the garden. Then, with a little time left over I made scones to have with butter and homemade jam before I give my daughter a hand with her children this evening. All in all a very satisfying morning.

Ideas & Characters for Novels

When someone asks me: Where do you get the ideas for your historical fiction?:  I reply that reading historical non fiction often triggers an idea. For example, while reading about James I's flight from England, I sympathised with noblemen whose honour did not allow them to swear an oath of allegiance first to his daughter Mary and her husband William of Orange, who ascended his throne, and, after their deaths, to his daughter Anne during his life. I asked myself what the effect of their refusal would be on their children. With the plot an theme in mind, I imagined the hero and heroine and their circumstances. Next I named them. Finally I filled in detailed character profiles. When they were completed I wrote the first sentence of Tangled Love. I find lengthy character profiles for major characters and shorter ones for minor characters very useful to refer to as I write. Instead of pausing to consider, for example, who their parents are or where they went to school I already the answers. However, this doesn't mean they can't surprise me.

Growing Tomatoes

At last, a sunny day after several chilly, rainy days. I took advantage of it after I completed the self-imposed quota of words for my new novel.  I sowed a row of radish seeds and then cut off the foliage on the tomato plants in the front garden so that the plants would put all their energy into the fruit.. Short of time earlier in the year I planted the pot grown tomatoes in the front garden, but from then on did not have time to nurture them. More recently I discovered masses of tomatoes on the plants that were sprawled over the ground. I shoved stakes into the earth and tied the plants to them. Today I picked a few ripe ones. Hopefully, more will ripen before the first frost is forecast. If they do, I'll have the best harvest I've ever had and might stop growing any in the green house. Cross fingers the crop won't be ruined by tomato blight. I think I'll make a tomato sandwich to eat at teatime.

Productive Day

Very productive day. Off to a good start with the novel when everything fell into place as I wrote. I might hate it when I revise, but for now I'm pleased. Early in the day the sun shone so I decided to sow radishes and winter lettuce after I finished working on the novel. To my annoyance it poured with rain. Housebound, I made five pounds of apple chutney. I also simmered rosehips and apples to make rosehip jelly. The juice is now dripping through a jelly bag.

Missing Heroine

I worked on my novel for longer than usual. Afterwards something niggled at the back of my mind while I collected a prescription from the doctor's surgery, had it filled in at the chemist and then withdrew some money from the bank. I hurried home to greet son number two whose birthday is today. Off we went to my favourite vegetarian restaurant, Sakonis, in Harrow. As usual the food was delicious. While enjoying both the meal and my son's company, I realised what was wrong the part I wrote this morning. The hero attends a dinner at his parents' house to which, I realised, the heroine should have been invited. Tomorrow, much to her relief and my own she will be there.

Almost Wasted Day

Apart from being on target with my new novel, today has been unsatisfactory.  Yesterday I went for a deep tissue massage. This morning when I woke I ached all over and some of my joints hurt. Nevertheless, I forced myself to make a birthday cake for son number two. I tried a vegan recipe in this month's edition of Asda's free magazine. It includes maple syrup, dates and pecans. The flavour is delicious but the cake is heavy. I weighed all the ingredients carefully, followed the instructions and backed it in a pre-heated oven. After lunch, because the after effects of the deep tissue massages always make me tired on the following day I continued reading Mary Called Magdalene by Margaret George and then had a nap.

Nature's Bounty

After a weekend at my youngest son's house I brought home four pounds of blackberries picked in the woods behind his house. I also came back with a couple of pounds of rosehips from his garden with which I shall make either rosehip syrup or jelly. In addition to the blackberries and rosehips I brought home a large bag of apples from his garden. Added to those from my four apple trees if they store well I'll be lucky. Unfortunately, the internet service at my son's house is  pedestrian.  Yesterday, I was busy so I did not post any messages. Today I got on with writing Tuesday's Child before making four pounds of blackberry and apple jam, after which I went for a deep tissue massage.  Tomorrow, as the masseuse suggested I should take things easy.

New Novel - Introducing the Back Story

My new sweet Regency Novel is a follow on novel from Sunday's Child published by MuseItUpPublishing. The heroine is one of the characters in Sunday's Child. It is essential to include some of her back story. Although I didn't intend revise the novel until I finished the first draft I realised that I needed another way to present the back story to the reader. After worrying about it while I wrote 22,600 words, I realised the best thing to do would be to write a prologue with the relevant, but amended, text taken from Sunday's Child. I drafted the prologue this morning and think I've solved the problem.

First Draft of My New Novel - New Technique

This is the first time that I have written the first draft of a novel without revising and editing each chapter after I have finished it. It is also the first time that I have not researched details as I write. For example I referred to a child riding a pony and wrote pony in bold. When I revise the novel I will research ponies and name the breed which he is riding. I am nervous, but if I can stick to my target to write a set number of words every day the first draft of my novel, Tuesday's Child, which will be approximately, 95,000 words, should be finished in late December or early January. At the moment real life has intervened so I'm 1,800 words behind, and this weekend I'm visiting my youngest son and his children. Hopefully, I will manage to fit in some writing.

Writing, Gardening

The sun's shining today. It's not too hot and there's pleasant breeze. I couldn't resist cutting an hour off my writing time and getting on in the garden. I transplanted hollyhocks grown from seed. They are biennials but if they are cut back to the ground after flowering they should thrive for several years.  I've planted them against the wall in two beds in the front garden. Their spires of flowers should make a splash of colour next summer. I also transplanted alpine strawberries grown from seed in the greenhouse.. I panted a double row which form a miniature hedge. The delicious  taste of their small fruit always lingers in the mouth.  I'll catch up with my writing schedule this evening.

Excuses for Not Writing

Shame on me I haven't posted here or blogged for two days or met my writing targets for several reasons. First of all I was engrossed in a historical novel, which held out the promise of a new slant on the Princes in the Tower of London allegedly murdered by Richard III. Bitterly disappointed because the slant was not new. Secondly, surprise visitors took up most of my time. They were welcome but prevented me from meeting my writing targets. Finally, yesterday I prepared a la...rge marrow to make marrow and ginger jam, cooked a huge pasta for daughter's children who will come to tea after school, picked apples and pears and did so much more. In the afternoon I went on line to order a repeat prescription, and to order winter lettuce and radish seeds. In the evening I read Grow Your Own from beginning to end and began to read the latest edition of Writing Magazine.