My second edition of The Loyalist’s Wife has won this prestigious award!
Yesterday my InBox contained the delightful announcement from Pauline Barclay that The Loyalist’s Wife, second edition, has been honoured with a Chill’s Readers’ Award. She included in her email the following comments from the readers who voted to honour The Loyalist’s Wife with this award.
Here are comments from the readers…
I thoroughly enjoyed it, probably the first in a while that I found hard to put down. A lovely read. Very good. Remarkable story of courage and resilience. An insight into the cruelty of the American War of Independence. A beautiful read.
Thanks so much to those readers who have collectively honoured me and The Loyalist’s Wife. I feel extremely privileged to be part of this illustrious group of writers! And please check out Pauline’s website to learn about other award winners and even to become one of her readers for this award.
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The Loyalist’s Wife, The Loyalist’s Luck, The Loyalist Legacy
November is launch month for The Loyalist Legacy, the third in my Loyalist Trilogy and what a month it has turned out to be. Our thoughts are on our American neighbors to the south and the most vitriolic and divisive election any of us can ever remember. No matter whose side you’re on, this was a dirty fight and it was hard to see dignity and even honesty go out the window.
And it’s the time of year when we specifically remember those who served that we who have come after might live our lives in freedom.
Of course almost my every waking thought is on my book launch with personal appearances, book signings and speaking engagements, and my three-week book tour all over the Internet. Yesterday I did a newspaper interview here in my hometown after two major events on the weekend. So much fun! Meeting people who love historical fiction in general and my Loyalist trilogy in particular is pretty darn rewarding.
As I drove home after one of these events I thought about the connection between my latest book (the Loyalist Legacy), November 11th and Remembrance Day, and this pivotal American election.
Five Items to Make Us Feel Better This November
Though our history is relatively short it is full of catastrophic events which could have ended Canada. Wars, rebellions and civil disobedience are part of our past and yet here we are. My Loyalist trilogy is a testament to the efforts of individuals fighting for a good life here.
Canada suffered through the 1837 Rebellion in Upper and Lower Canada (Ontario and Quebec) yet managed to survive and become one of the best countries in which to live today. William and Catherine Garner, the real couple whose names I borrowed in The Loyalist Legacy, were there for that rebellion and survived.
Reading fiction and particularly historical fiction lets us imagine things that may have happened in the past from which our ancestors recovered. We see the strength in ordinary people when faced with disheartening and even terrifying events going on all around. We can recover.
One of the things my daughter started me writing with her is a gratitude journal. Every day we try to write 3 things for which we are grateful and it helps me to focus on the good in my life as well as have a wonderful view into just who my daughter is. We pick each other up with that journal and we remember how lucky we are.
In The Loyalist Legacy the difficulties of being settlers in an unsettled land, of fighting to save children from disease with no healthcare, and of seeing one’s neighbors divided over just how to solve political and social problems every day–those difficulties seem so much larger than ours just at this moment. There is a bigger picture. Perhaps we can all focus on it while we strive to build a better world.
Today I welcome two wonderful writers to my blog–Mary K. Tod and Helen Hollick–both of whom write delicious historical fiction among other things. Mary has a new book just launched so that is the prime subject today but I’m going to point you to a post she did on Helen’s chock-full blog. It’s kind of like putting chocolate sauce on fresh raspberries. Check out both of these authors. You won’t be disappointed.
Now for some of my personal links to them: Last year at the Historical Novel Society Conference in Denver, Colorado, I stepped onto the elevator and a very pleasant voice said, “Are you Elaine Cougler?” Someone recognized me! So much fun. And that someone was Mary K. Tod. What a delightful happenstance!
At the same conference I met the esteemed author Helen Hollick who wrote earlier in the year from the HNS to tell me my first two historicals had been favorably reviewed online under the HNS banner. Hats and all Helen made quite a splash at the conference and her blog is fantastic.
Have you ever wanted to sit on the sidelines and watch history unfold before your very eyes? Or perhaps you’ve wanted to be part of it, experiencing first-hand the sweat and the swirling smoke after a firing? Well, you can do either of these things. Re-enactors are a welcoming and friendly group and one has even invited me to take part in one of their weekends, even offering to share her tent with me.
These pictures of an event at Fort Erie earlier in the season come through a bit of a circuitous route from a diligent re-enactor, Ryan, who is a member of two units. He belongs to a naval unit (Simcoe Squadron) and an infantry unit (British Indian Department). And he will be at Fanshawe Pioneer Village for Fanshawe 1812: The Invasion of Upper Canada days August 27 and 28. He has generously shared these pictures taken by Meagan Ashleigh-Moeyaert and Steve Zronik (Laughing Devil Photography). Enjoy!
by Meagan Ashleigh-Moeyaert
by Meagan Ashleigh-Moeyaert
by Steve Zronik, Laughing Devil Photography
by Steve Zronik, Laughing Devil Photography
by Steve Zronik, Laughing Devil Photography
And here’s Ryan keeping watch at the end of the day. Thanks so much to the photographers and to Ryan Moore who made this post possible. Be sure to see the re-enactors at Fanshawe the last weekend in August. I’ll be there!
 Here’s a great post about the new book out by a whole list of authors. Cryssa Bazos is a 17th century enthusiast but writes this post highlighting this book about what might have happened in 1066 in an alternate reality. Check out 1066 Turned Upside Down. It’s next on my list of books I simply must read. Click through and Enjoy!
Have you ever wanted to write a book or to meet published authors face-to-face? On Civic Holiday, Monday, August 1, 2016, you are invited to meet 6 London area authors, face-to-face, and peruse their books at a fabulous event hosted by Chapters, Wellington Road, and the London Writers Society.
You Are Invited
What:Â Â Â The London Writers Society Inaugural Authors Day. Six featured local authors will speak about their writing and be available for book signings.
When:Â Â Â Â Civic Holiday Monday (Aug. 1) from noon to 3:00 p.m.
Where:Â Â Â The Chapters Book Store, 1037 Wellington Road, London, Ontario (519) 685-1008
Who:Â Â Â Â Six local authors whose storytelling and writing matches that of best selling authors. Featured authors will be:
Pat Brown, prolific author of gritty detective mysteries and historical fiction.
Elaine Cougler, award-winning author of an historical fiction trilogy based on the Loyalists.
Colin Forbes, writer of a thought-provoking autobiography about his work as a physician on four continents.
Rita Hartley, author of a compelling memoir about trekking back from loss to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro.
John Matsui, award-winning writer who’s won critical acclaim for his urban fantasies and thrillers.
Aldous Richards, author of acclaimed sci-fi literature
Why:Â Â Â Â Â Â Fans around the world know these talented writers. The London Writers Society wants to introduce their works to a wider local audience.
What reviewers are saying about:
KRONOS DUET by Aldous Richards- “it will leave you breathless.”
LATE BITE by John Matsui- “Kept me up all night.”
LONG CLIMB BACK by Rita Hartley- “Clever and witty and inspiring throughout.”
FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART by Dr. Colin Forbes- “(Forbes is) deserving of the word – humanitarian.”
THE LOYALIST’S WIFE by Elaine Cougler- “Her storytelling ability is awesome.”
L.A. HEAT by Pat Brown- “Brutal, Thrilling, Romantic and HOT.”
So now you have all the info. Here’s the blatant promotion part: Please come and say hi to these six authors. We’ll be delighted to chat with you and tell you all our tricks. You can see how extraordinarily different we all are. You can even buy our books! 🙂
From www.lostateminor.com, this photo makes me want to visit Buenos Aires.
From time to time I get emails in relation to my Pinterest account and the boards I’ve shown interest in. One of those boards is libraries and I have many lovely library pictures from around the world.
This article (by Inigo del Castillo) and delectable photo, however, came through Facebook and its splendor caught my attention immediately. If you read through the article, at the bottom you’ll find many more shots of what is touted as the second most beautiful bookstore in the world.
I’ve been to a couple of gorgeous renovated theatres with wonderful frescoes painted on the ceiling over the proscenium arch so I recognized that feature immediately. Makes me wonder what Da Vinci’s back was like after he painted the Sistine Chapel.
Turning this old theatre into a stunning bookstore, however, is a new concept to me. I could browse there for days although the management probably wouldn’t let me take in the shopping cart I’d need for all my book choices.
Just a couple of weeks ago I went into the local Chapters/Indigo store with a wonderful gift certificate from my daughter. Yay! I could indulge myself. Ha! Half or more of the store is taken up with candles and wraps and fuzzy animals and the like. Usually I find more books I want than what I can afford. This day I searched for substance among rows of flimsy flights of author fancy, none of which interested me. I couldn’t find much I would even consider reading let alone buying. I’ve never had that experience in a bookstore before. When I finally settled on a book, Stalin’s Daughter, I headed for the cash.
The path to pay is a veritable gauntlet of non-book items. Of course those are useful to keep the would-be purchaser occupied while waiting in the inevitable lineup. Do you think stores do this on purpose?
The contrast between the bookstore shown above and my latest experience here in Canada is vast and while my sympathy is with bookstore owners’ need to make money, I wonder if there is a way to make the store itself the magnet. I do realize that this topic is far broader than my small blog’s scope but I’ll keep longing to visit those fabulous bookstores of the world and buying as many good books as I can. I’d like others to experience the quick rush of tears I felt a few years ago in Dublin’s Trinity College library as I beheld the very old Book of Kells, surrounded by floors of beautiful shelves of books. Fabulous.
The Book of Kells (Irish: Leabhar Cheanannais) (Dublin, Trinity College Library, MS A. I. (58), sometimes known as the Book of Columba) is an illuminated manuscript Gospel book in Latin, containing the four Gospels of the New Testament together with various prefatory texts and tables. It was created by Celtic monks ca. 800 or slightly earlier. I had just finished reading Edward Rutherford’s The Princes of Ireland which talked about the monk, Kevin, working on this book when I visited Trinity College library and beheld the Book of Kells. Fabulous experience.
This morning I’m writing my weekly blog post while on a bit of a car trip with my husband. We are driving down highway 401to Windsor early this warm and humid day in southern Ontario in connection with hubby’s STEM Camp duties.
All along the flat lands surrounding Chatham and Tilbury and beyond, rows of hydro-producing wind turbines stretch farther than I can see. Part of me loves this new technology for producing electricity but another part abhors the blight on the farming landscape.
It is mesmerizing. Slowly the giant tri-armed monsters rotate at the same pace, but not in sync. Always the author, I think in metaphors. I think of writing and the slow journey each of my books has been. And the way each day is just a few more pages written or facts found or ideas hatched, and sometimes all three at once. And when I’ve completed enough of these days, the books are done.
The wind turbines, costing millions of taxpayer dollars, diligently turn, turn, turn, and in the homes and businesses across Ontario lights burn, factories churn, and we all spurn the days gone by when two hands and a strong back took the place of all this power. But there is no completing the task for these giants. Our hunger for more and more power just grows.
These days the debate rages about reading itself and about paper versus electronic books with the camps on either side of the debate, sure their viewpoint is correct. I like both. Just now I’m delighted to be sitting in a Tim Horton’s with my water and my iPad writing this post. Traveling is my favorite time to read electronically.
I’m usually old school when it comes to reading. I love to touch the pages, to see physically how far I’ve read, and to organize my favorite books on my shelves, by author and/or subject. Before we downsized I treasured over 1500 books in my very own library, part of which I’ve kept.
I see no reason why we readers can’t enjoy both ways of reading, according to our tastes and circumstances. And I haven’t even mentioned audio books! Just now we’re putting the finishing touches on the audio version of The Loyalist’s Wife. More on that in the weeks to come.
How many of you are like the wind turbines, bit by bit fueling your own valuable creations? And what do you think of running our lives through this type of electricity creation?
November is launch month for The Loyalist Legacy, the third in my Loyalist Trilogy and what a month it has turned out to be. Our thoughts are on our American neighbors to the south and the most vitriolic and divisive election any of us can ever remember. No matter whose side you’re on, this was a dirty fight and it was hard to see dignity and even honesty go out the window.
