Really ... I did have every intention of posting here while on my amazing trip to Bath and London in September. I confess: I had little opportunity. Why yes it was THAT much fun, but also I had dreadful connectivity issues while there. On 9/11 I dared to board a flight for Heathrow from San …
Category: History
Clockwork Alchemy Appearance
It's that time again ... Clockwork Alchemy, the San Francisco Bay Area's premiere Steampunk convention will be held at the Double Tree Inn, San Jose CA, Memorial Day weekend. Yours truly will be presenting or participating in the following panels: Friday, 5/23, 4pm: Villains - The Worst of the Best Saturday, 5/24, 12 Noon: Real …
A wonderful interview with T.E. MacArthur
Under the Volcano An Interview with T.E. MacArthur http://www.maggie-secara.com/2013/01/under-volcano-with-t-e-macarthur.html Many thanks to Maggie Secara, author of The Dragon Ring and the newly released King's Raven, who posted an interview and excerpt from the upcoming The Yankee Must Die series. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, set your calendars for Feb 15th! Friday, I will post a …
Tweaking History – Uncle Abe has Vampires and the Founding Fathers were pure
I went and saw Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter this past week. Not too bad. I like the films of Tim Burton generally and I’ve become fascinated by the era of the Civil War, so this just promised to be a fun romp for a couple of hours. Buttered popcorn too, if you please. Afterwards I …
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Steampunk and the Cult of Beauty
I’m going to shock you – or, more likely, amuse you: Steampunk is the new Cult of Beauty. Historically minded people are either twitching or snickering. Stay with me on this – humor me. There is some logic to my madness. Per the Legion of Honor’s website, the Cult of Beauty was an “unconventional creativity …
Why oh why don’t we give history a chance?
After weeks of planning, sewing, and just plain excitement about the event, I was forced to sit there with my jaw slack – cursing the current American attitudes towards education, especially history. Let me explain: One of my historical groups held a Dining Out in downtown San Francisco last Saturday. For this event, many of …
That *&%#! delete key
As I complained about the 'ouch' that is necessary in the editing process of my novel (why yes, it was a brilliant scene but not for keeping the story moving along,) I had several folks remind me to save all those deleted sections. My father and another friend went so far as to suggest that …
Huck Finn is not PC
I'm not sure what to think about this latest eruption around Mark Twain's classic book. I suppose the source of this static on the internet is due to a new release of the book which replaces uncomfortable words with easier to digest words. 'Nigger' (I really do hate that word and what it has come …
Steampunk: why I write it.
Most people have never heard the term before. But, Steampunk is one of those up and coming genres that will take the publishing world by storm: if only it can grow up. That's sounds harsh coming from someone who is writing in that genre - and so it should. Strong self-examination often leads to effective …
The Best Historical Novel – How to Write History into Your Fiction – Part 1 – the All Essential Setting
On Wednesday, Nov 18th, I popped up a post on things you can do to help decide what time period and what place to set your historical novel. So now you know where and when. The question becomes, how do you convince the reader (in this case a picky history-lovin’ geek - me) that they …
The Volcanolady's Blog 