Posts from the "Blog" Category

• Release Day = Graduation + First Day of School

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  I’m so excited and I just can’t hide it. Heiress Without a Cause has been quietly available on Barnes and Noble all last week, but today is the official launch. It’s like the first day of school, my birthday (before the stupid terrorists ruined it forever), and graduation all rolled into one.

  In many ways, it’s like a graduation — the culmination of a lot of work over several years, ending in one lovely day full of celebrating and laughter and merriment. Some of my friends are taking me out tonight, which will be a great way to end the day, and I’ve gotten some wonderful emails and tweets and comments from all over the world. So today is truly a day to celebrate and reflect on everything that’s happened over the last few years (preferably with some champagne and possibly a mani/pedi).

  But in other ways, it’s more like the first day of school. Will the other kids (readers) like me? Am I wearing the right clothes? Am I smart enough to handle the work? What’s that smell in the cafeteria? (I’ve been shamefully neglecting my kitchen this weekend…). While all the work of getting my book out in the world has culminated in this, the next phase of work — connecting with readers, writing to deadlines, mastering the art of juggling writing and promo — is just beginning.

  Still, it’s an exciting day, and I’m going to enjoy it. Thank you for celebrating with me, and I’m so glad you’re here as I kick off the next phase. If you want to stay updated when the book launches everywhere, or if you want to be invited to signings/events/launch parties, please sign up for my mailing list.

  And really, if my outfit is a wreck, promise you’ll tell me?

  
  Posted on 23 January 2012 * 2 Comments
  Tags: Awesomely Ridiculous * Ferguson and Madeleine * Real Life * Thrilling * Writing Life *

• Vocab for the Regency Challenged

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  In the lead-up to the launch of my debut book, I realized that I have a lot of family and friends who may want to read my book but have no knowledge whatsoever of the Regency period. So, I put together a fast-and-loose set of definitions for some of the most common Regency terms, trying to equate them to modern-day events wherever possible. I’ll keep adding to it as more words come up, so leave a comment if there are any that I missed!

  • stays: Regency-era corset.
  • French pox: before the French were known as surrender monkeys, they had a reputation for syphilis. Really, the British and French should be nicer to each other.
  • protector: a high-class mistress has a dedicated ‘protector’ who pays her upkeep in exchange for sex (or ‘conversation’, if you prefer to believe that). So, Richard Gere in Pretty Woman, if he had just bought Julia Roberts a house rather than marrying her.
  • ton: a French word, short for haut ton, which is basically the English aristocracy. You can only be part of the ton through birth. If you are a dude who makes an insane amount of money, you could marry your daughter to an impoverished baron who needs the funds – you still wouldn’t be accepted in the ton, and she would be smirked at all her life, but her son would be accepted. Awesome plan, right?
  • foxed: drunk (see: end result of my launch party).
  • Gretna Green: a town on the Scottish border famed for its quickie marriages, since it was easier to marry in Scotland than in England. Like eloping to Vegas, only with less gambling/neon lights/Elvis and more haggis.
  • your grace: a duke or a duchess is called ‘your grace’; all other nobles (marquesses/earls/viscounts/barons, in that order) are called ‘my lord’. Oh, and an earl’s wife is called a countess, and a marquess’s wife is called a marchioness. Aren’t you sad that the US got its independence?
  • bluestocking: a woman who likes studying, reading, and learning things. Clearly she must be shunned.
  • ape-leader: a spinster, usually over the age of thirty (shut your mouth about my age) – at that point, a woman was ‘on the shelf‘ and likely wouldn’t marry. Supposedly called an ape-leader because the afterlife punishment for failing to marry and procreate is to lead apes in hell. Awesome!
  • rake: sort of a cross between a manwhore and a metrosexual.
  • gentleman’s club: a place where men could go to eat/play cards/discuss politics. Men visiting London could live at their club rather than renting a house. So, it’s a cross between the YMCA (sans swimming pools and Village People) and a hot nightclub (sans strippers or women of any kind). White’s and Brooks’s are two of the most famous.
  • demimonde: another French word, describing the world inhabited by high-class mistresses and courtesans. They were some of the most famous women of their day, and everyone knew who they were – but well-bred ladies pretended they didn’t exist. It’s like if we all knew who the Kardashians were, but we weren’t allowed to talk about them incessantly.
  • manroot: I’m confident you’ll figure this out in context.
  • Newgate: a freaking awful prison in London (although all prisons were probably freaking awful then). It housed everyone from debtors to murderers, and sometimes their families too. Jailers extorted prisoners, demanding money for everything from food to fresh air.
  • toilette: the general act of getting ready (clothing, hair, etc.). The most famous courtesans/actresses, particularly in the years preceding the Regency, would invite men to watch their toilette – not in the dirty pornographic way that isn’t appropriate for this blog, but rather in a sort of reverse striptease.
  • reticule: a handbag. In the era before my beloved Marc by Marc Jacobs, when people had nothing better to do, a lot of women made their own bags.
  • set-down: a blistering insult meant to trim someone’s sails/cut them down to size. My fave!
  • cut/cut direct: worse than a set-down. A cut involved pretending not to see someone you knew. A cut direct was done by staring at someone, then refusing to acknowledge them. Pretty much considered the most humiliating thing ever, although clearly these people had never seen Carrie.
  • fast: daring. A woman was ‘fast’ if she dampened her chemise so that her gown clung to her body, or if she wore drawers (which were still scandalous during the Regency; it was more appropriate to go commando back then).
  • Mayfair: the most fashionable neighborhood in London during the Regency (and still one of the most expensive today).
  • rustication: if someone was out of money, or in disgrace, they usually went to their estate in the country to ‘rusticate’ (like a rustic).
  • toad-eating: sucking up or trying to curry favor.
  • marriage mart: all the events of a London social season added up to a marriage mart, in which mothers were hell-bent on ensuring their daughters didn’t become ape-leaders, and men were either looking for brides or trying to avoid it all by chilling at their clubs.
  • on dit: a French word for a bit of gossip. The English sure did like their French words, even when they were at war with France off and on for centuries.

  Like I said above, I’ll keep updating this list as I get questions, so leave a comment if anything isn’t clear. And anyone who comments on any blog post between now and Sunday, 1/22/12, at 11:59pm PST is entered to win one of three free copies of Heiress Without a Cause!

  
  Posted on 20 January 2012 * 1 Comment
  Tags: Research * The Regency *

• What the #%&@ is the Ton?

  Blog

  One of my relatives read HEIRESS WITHOUT A CAUSE last night and called me to tell me he was halfway through. I was flattered that he actually read it — given that I’ve known him my entire life, I was hoping he’d shell out $3.99 for it, but reading it was a bonus. And he seemed to enjoy it, although he did say there were fewer submarines in it than the stuff he normally reads (note to self: create a heroine who is into submersibles).

  Anyway, he mentioned that he’d had to look up more words with this book than anything he’s read in a long time. “Ton” was the hardest, since a Google search for “ton” won’t easily turn up an explanation on English upperclass society, but there were all sorts of words that flummoxed him (“flummoxed” included, although I don’t think I used it in HEIRESS). And that led me to wonder…how do readers approaching their first Regency romance understand what the heck is going on? I read my first Regency almost twenty years ago, so I can’t remember a time when I didn’t know the difference between a curricle and a phaeton, or that a marquess is ranked higher than a viscount.

  What words or social customs did you find confusing when you first started reading Regencies? Anyone who comments on my blog between now and Sunday, January 22nd, at 11:59pm PST will have a chance to win one of three Nook copies of HEIRESS WITHOUT A CAUSE – so have at it! Tell me what words I should define for new Regency readers, and I’ll enter you in the drawing. I’ll also post my definitions on Sunday, and hilarity shall ensue.

  And by the way, “the ton” is short for “haut ton”, a French phrase that the English used to describe their aristocratic class — the dukes, earls, barons, and other titled people and their families who were part of the “upper ten thousand”. It’s sort of like a cross between the 1% and being a Hollywood A-lister, except you are born into it and can’t rise into it (unless you were extremely, absurdly wealthy, and even then it would take a couple of generations and some great marriages before your family would be accepted). So Suri Cruise would be haut ton, but that upstart Snooki would never be invited to anything.

  
  Posted on 17 January 2012 * 7 Comments
  Tags: Contests * Research * The Regency *

• Guest Blogging Today at History Hoydens

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  The official release date for HEIRESS WITHOUT A CAUSE is one week from today (although I’ll whisper to you that it’s technically available as of this morning for the Nook at Barnes and Noble) – and I’m a nervous wreck. Luckily, I have very kind friends who are willing to hold my hand (virtually, at least; physically, my hands are chapped from too much dishwashing in the aftermath of a dinner party last night, which makes me feel less like a Regency heroine and more like a charwoman).

  My friend and fellow San Francisco RWA chapter member Isobel Carr interviewed me for the History Hoydens blog today. I talk all about my favorite bits of Regency history, my hatred of the word ‘pantaloons’, and how Ferguson’s hair used to be red until I was told that people were picturing Carrot Top instead of a hottie mchotterson as I intended. Check it out here – and a random commenter will get a free copy of HEIRESS!

  
  Posted on 16 January 2012 * Add a Comment
  Tags: Interviews * Nerves * Thrilling *

• Writing Retreats – Finding Your Focus

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  I’m not afraid to admit that my writing has been a bit unfocused of late. I traveled like mad this summer, which is why my blog went on a bit of an extended hiatus. I also submitted my latest book to publishers this spring, and I’m always a bit of a basketcase during the submission process (perhaps a post for another time). But now that I’m settled and eager to get back into my writing, I needed to jumpstart my process and find my focus again.

  Ironically, I found that the best way to focus was to run away again. Pray, tell me more! →

  
  Posted on 16 October 2011 * Add a Comment
  Tags: Hermitage * Productivity * Retreats * Writing Life *

• Recently Read: JUST LIKE HEAVEN by Julia Quinn

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  Just Like Heaven by Julia Quinn
  My rating: 4 of 5 stars

  This book was just what I needed when I read it – a fun, airy story without any uberangst. Julia Quinn’s Bridgerton books are some of my all-time favorites, and “Romancing Mr. Bridgerton” will forever hold a place on my top-ten list. Compared to that, “Just Like Heaven” is…well, just like, but not quite as, heavenly (sorry, couldn’t resist).

  That said, it was wonderful in a light sort of way. There’s virtually no conflict, and the conflict is so lacking that I found myself wondering if JQ would ever get through an agent/editor submission these days, since they’re beating the conflict drum with all the intensity of the cave trolls and orcs going to war in “The Two Towers”. But the lack of conflict is made up for with the lovable characters, the wonderful internal/external dialogue, and the simple joy of revisiting the Smith-Smythe musicales that played such a central role in the Bridgerton series. Fans of JQ will love it; people who like their heroes and heroines angry/wounded/betrayed/bitter/desperate, not so much.

  View all my reviews

  
  Posted on 14 October 2011 * Add a Comment
  Tags: Goodreads * Reviews * Sara's Books *

• How to Final in the Regency Golden Heart

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  I’m over at the Ruby Slippered Sisterhood blog with my fellow ’09 Regency finalists – we’re discussing what it takes to final in the Regency category of the Golden Heart. If you’re entering, considering entering, or even just thinking about how to polish your Regency manuscript, please stop by!

  
  Posted on 11 October 2011 * Add a Comment
  Tags: Craft * Golden Heart * The Rubies *

• Grief and the Regency

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  “Grief and the Regency” doesn’t have quite the same appeal as “Sex and the City,” but bear with me. I have tried to write this blog post for six months. Perhaps I should have let it go. And yet every time I opened WordPress, I couldn’t ignore the draft and move on – or force myself to write it.

  In April, one of my friends died suddenly of a pulmonary embolism. He wasn’t quite thirty. I had dinner with him and his fiancee the previous week, and he seemed fine – happy with life, excited about the wedding, eager for the next step. A week later, I was sitting in his fiancee’s parents’ living room, crying with her and mourning what was supposed to have been. Their save-the-date cards had been delivered the day he died. Pray, tell me more! →

  
  Posted on 19 September 2011 * 2 Comments
  Tags: Oversharing * Real Life * Somewhat Uninformed Social Commentary *

• Back From the Dead

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  I’m sitting in a friend’s apartment in New York City, about to relocate to the Marriott for the Romance Writers of America annual convention. I must apologize for the abrupt, unusual silence on the blog; I’ve had quite the spring, including a three-week roadtrip involving 4500 miles of driving around the Great American West and a sudden unplanned move to a new apartment in San Francisco. But, once the conference (and a two-week trip to Germany for a friend’s Indian/Scottish wedding immediately after the conference) is over, I shall blog again in earnest!

  Check back this week for updates, though – I’ve got a lot of exciting events coming up, including breakfast with Sarah Maclean and Sophie Jordan, dinners with the 2009 and 2011 Golden Heart finalists, and the Golden Heart awards ceremony (where all shall be revealed). It’s all going to be fun, and I can’t wait to share it with you.

  
  Posted on 26 June 2011 * Add a Comment
  Tags: Real Life * RWA Nationals * Travel *

• Check Out My Guest Blog on Using Screenwriting Tricks in Your Novel!

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  Apologies for the blogging hiatus, dear readers; one of my friends passed away a month ago, just before I went on a three-week roadtrip (during which I drove 4500 miles), and it has taken me awhile to get back into my regularly scheduled life. I will be active here again any day now — but to tide you over, check out my guest post on the Ruby Slippered Sisterhood blog. I’m chatting with my fellow 2009 Golden Heart finalists about using screenwriting tricks to plot your novel — please stop by and say hi!

  
  Posted on 23 May 2011 * Add a Comment
  Tags: Real Life * The Rubies * Writing Life * Writing Process *