The Cinderella Princess. Anne Stuart Future Queen of England 1702-1714 Part Two by Rosemary Morris

 

To find out more about Rosemary's stories click on the cover.

Author’s Note. At heart I am a historian. Before I begin writing a #classi#historical#omance I research the background. I hope you will enjoy this month’s insider blog based on my notes.

Princess Anne was six years old when her mother died in 1671. Her father, James, Duke of York, had taken the unpopular decision to become a Roman Catholic. Her uncle, the childless King Charles II, knew politics demanded his heirs, Anne and her elder sister, Mary, were Protestants. He appointed Lady Frances Villiers, a committed Anglican, as their governess and leased Richmond Palace, where his nieces would live, to Frances and her husband.

The princesses benefited from country air and were privileged to live by the Thames at a time when, due to bad roads, the river was important.

Anne’s indulgent father visited his daughters regularly, showered them with gifts and often stayed for several nights at Richmond Palace. Yet all was not well with the family. In 1673, the Test Act excluded anyone who did not take communion in the Anglican Church from public office, James was forced to resign as Lord High Admiral and give up his other official positions. In an era with fervent religious allegiances, I wonder what effect religious controversy had on Anne, a stubborn child.

What did she think when her father married fifteen year old Mary of Braganza? History relates James was captivated by his bride. Looking at a copy of her portrait, I’m not surprised. She was tall with a good figure, jet black hair, a fair skin, and large eyes her contemporaries at court described as ‘full of sweetness and light’. The proud bridegroom introduced his new wife to his daughters as a ‘playmate’. Anne formed a bond, not with her stepmother, whose children would be raised in the Roman Catholic faith, but with vivacious Sarah Churchill, who would have a profound influence on Anne.

Granddaughter of tragic King Charles 1 how would her life develop?

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Rosemary Morris’#classic#historical#romance fiction set in Queen Anne Stuart’s reign 1702-1714

 

Far Beyond Rubies

Tangled Love

The Captain and The Countess

The Viscount and The Orphan

 With firmly closed bedroom doors, the reader can relish the details of emerging romances.

 

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To purchase my novels choose an online click onto the book cover to choose an online bookstore at https:bwlpublishing.ca/morris-rosemary.

Unlikely Love Lines by Julie Christen

Look for all the love lines in your life, as well as the ones you will read in Nokota Voices coming in April.

Check out my BWL Author page

Julie Christen Author Page 

Unlikely Love Lines by Julie Christen

  When I stop to think about it

       love lines surround me     every day. Appearing in 

unlikely places. They smack me in the face. Or go unnoticed. 

    All shapes and sizes. All intents and purposes. Soft and silent. 

  Laugh out loud or lamenting. Shy or certain.  

                       Quiet or clarion. Day in, day out.

                                 They all say love. 

If I listen.

From Nokota Voices:

  Hike up your big girl panties and quit the waterworks, said my dead grandma.

    

  Prairie’s patient, golden gaze said, “You are not alone.” 

  

 “Paisley, we try to live a simple life here. Sustain ourselves as best we can. 

 In the meantime, we attempt to do good things.” She looked at me square on. 

 “What are you good for?” (Aunt Bert)

From My Love:

  

   "Yes, Honey. I will build you an outhouse."

   "Thanks for not being a pain in the ass."

   "I'm not going anywhere."

From Me to My Love:

  

   A packed lunch every morning.  

   "Yes, Honey. Let's go to the hay auction, again."

   "Let me read to you."

From My Friends:

  

   "I miss you."

   Silence, together.

   Laughing 'til our faces hurt.

From My Pets:

  

   My little Paisley's amber eyes gazing up at me like I hung the moon.

   RainyDay's dark, soul-filling pools and snuffling, velvet muzzle.

   20 mini t-rex chickens running for joy straight to me, mobbing me for treats.

   "Purrr, prrr, prrrr ..."

Can you hear your love lines? 

My time Writing Down the Bones with Natalie Goldberg (Part 1) by Diane Bator

 

The very first writing book I ever owned was a Christmas gift from my brother-in-law and his wife way back in 1993. It was a copy of Natalie Goldberg’s Writing Down the Bones. Dog-eared now and covered in notes and highlights, it is still one of my favorite books and I’d always dreamed of joining one of her workshops even though going to Santa Fe wasn’t something I could afford. The dream lingered.

Fast forward to 2007. Since receiving that book, I have moved across Canada from Alberta to Ontario and, in order to meet some like-minded people, joined a writing group that uses Ms. Goldberg’s teachings as a template to run their meetings. It’s the closest opportunity I have to actually attending one of her workshops, so it’ll do.

Then along came Covid and things changed. Some of them for the better! One of those things was making mentorships even more accessible than ever.

A few weeks ago I found a link from Prajna Studios, a division of Shambhala Publications, about a virtual Writing Down the Bones webinar featuring my dream mentor—you guessed it!—Natalie Goldberg.

“Yeah. Right. It’s going to cost a fortune,” I told the link, but clicked on it anyway.

Up came a video with Natalie sharing three key points that came to guide and anchor her writing life over the past decades. The video was a little hard to hear but in a nutshell, they are:

1. Continue under all circumstances.
2. Don’t be tossed away.
3. Make positive effort for the good.

Trust me, everyone who clicks on the link gets to hear them. I’m not giving away deep dark secrets!

The deeper into the rabbit hole I dug, the more I realized I could actually learn from the woman who was a huge inspiration to me so many years ago without having to pay a small fortune!

Do I dive in? The price was reasonable. How could I refuse?

Or do I pretend I never saw the link? Never went down that rabbit hole as inviting as it is?

Writing for me is like breathing. Ink runs in my blood. If I didn’t dive in and do this, would I regret it later?

I didn’t hesitate long. I dove right in and made sure I had all the reading materials. I’ve finished my first section and halfway through the second while reading many chapters from Natalie’s various books.

The best part is I've already been meeting other classmates. Some we chat on a forum and three others I’ve joined for a regular Sunday Writing session. We write to prompts and share what we have written. We also encourage each other to write and have fun with our projects.

Hopefully, you have also discovered a mentor. Someone who will encourage you along your path no matter what that may be.

Next month, I’ll share more about what I’ve learned and will even get to do live, online sessions with Natalie!

The 30,000-foot view of writing by donalee Moulton

 

Click here to visit donalee Moulton's BWL Author Page

The 30,000-foot view of writing by donalee Moulton

We’ve been talking about editing, an essential element in the writing process that writers relish.  When you’re creating characters, polishing plot, and tossing red herrings around to mystify readers, it can be easy to lose sight of the book as a whole, to remember what happened in chapter four when you’re on chapter fourteen.

Writers also get close to their work, sometimes too close. We spend time, often at 4 a.m., thinking about the novel, the action, the actors, the unfolding of the story. It’s hard to see the whole when you’re immersed in the parts.

That’s where editing comes in. But we’ve been talking about editing as if it’s one thing. It isn’t. There are several kinds of editing, and they take place at different points in the writing process.

Substantive editing. This is where the high-level work begins, the 30,000-foot view before we delve into the weeds. It involves rethinking and rewriting. This may mean rewriting whole paragraphs or the entire document. It may involve restructuring or reorganizing parts of the text. It may include identifying where new information is required or existing information should be deleted.

Editors Canada has this to say about substantive editing, which is also called structural or developmental editing.

Structural editing

Assessing and shaping draft material to improve its organization and content. Changes may be suggested to or drafted for the writer. Structural editing may include:

 ·       revising, reordering, cutting, or expanding material

·       writing original material

·       determining whether permissions are necessary for third-party material

·       recasting material that would be better presented in another form, or revising material for a different medium (such as revising print copy for web copy)

·       clarifying plot, characterization, or thematic elements

Substantive editing is major surgery. It is about ensuring the medical team is ready to operate. Blood work has been analyzed, the plan for the procedure reviewed, the instruments lined up neatly, everything and everyone sterilized. The goal: to ensure a successful outcome.

That’s what writers want for their readers. Substantive editing helps them do that. Editors Canada notes that this type of editing supports writers as they define their goals, identify their readers, and shape the manuscript in the best possible way. It enables writers to clarify the argument, fix the pacing, suggest improvements, and draw missing pieces from the author. 

It makes the view from 30,000 feet truly spectacular.

 

New Releases for BWL Publishing February 2023

NEW RELEASES FEBRUARY 2023

 

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All the Furs and Feathers

 

Smokey, an architect employed by Fluffington ArCATecture, lands the account of her dreams -- designing the first ever cat park in Faunaburg. Her boss, Abigail Fluffington, says that if Smokey is successful, she'll become a partner and inherit the business.

 

A dream come true? There’s one problem. The proposed park is adjacent to Rodent Way. Activist Jerome J. Ratley, quickly forms R.A.T. (Rodent Action Taskforce) and stages a protest.

  

Meanwhile, Smokey’s lovable but quirky sister and cooking savant, Autumn Amelia, is busy dishing up meals too delicious for any fur or feather to resist. And wandering uninvited into the kitchens of local restaurants to improve their recipes. 

  

Together with their furred and feathered friends, Smokey and Autumn Amelia must find a way to make the proposed park a reality. But how to abolish the long-standing animosity between felines and rodents?

 

 

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Finding Katy

 

Nurse Claire Burton is shocked when she hears Aunt May’s dying words, ‘Your mother didn’t die, dear.’ She determines to find answers to the mystery that had hung over her all her life. She had always known that she was adopted but questions about her real parents had been brushed aside.

 

Flashback to World War One and a house in mourning. Sixteen-year-old Katy Woodward, the daughter of a prominent Sussex businessman, is grief stricken. Her brother has been killed on the front and she prays her lover, farm boy Tommy, hasn’t met the same fate.

 

Then she discovers she is pregnant. Innocently, she had not realized the consequences of her loving farewell to Tommy before he left for the Front. When the baby is born, Katy’s parents blame Nanny May for neglecting her charge. Her father orders May from the house and tells Katy the baby has died,

 

Katy breaks down and her father has her sent away to a private institution. But she is convinced the baby survived.

 

Years later Claire, still looking for answers, confides in Doctor Philip Reade who promises to help.

 

Will Claire ever be reunited with her birth mother?

  

 

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Rebel Heart

 

Rebecca Prentice has always been the obedient daughter of a political figure. It’s hard being perfect―and boring. It’s time for a change. So, when her girlfriends plan to check out local bars using different personas, Rebecca calls herself Reb and goes looking for fun. But when she meets a bad-boy musician in a biker bar, she gets a lot more than she bargained for.

  

Mick has a secret. He doesn’t live on the wild side. However, if that’s what it takes to keep the beautiful and exciting Reb in his life, this straight-arrow tax attorney is ready to take her on the ride of her life.

  

But what happens when the truth comes out?