Of course we all know about the Ides of March, forever popularized by Shakespeare in his play, Julius Caesar, but there’s much more to think about for us mere mortal writers!
3 Striking Events Which Occurred on this date:
The Ides of March was Caesar’s death day and as such was a turning point in Rome’s history. The Republic was over. Hundreds of years later Shakespeare’s play immortalized both Caesar and “Beware the Ides of March.”
Czar Nicholas II was forced to abdicate his throne in Russia on this date in 1917 bringing about the start of events which led to the Communist takeover in the U.S.S.R.
On this date in 1939, Germany occupied Czechoslovakia as the Second World War began to ramp up.
We could go on and on with examples of bad things which happened on March 15 (check out the link above for a few), but the point is without the wily William Shakespeare, the Ides of March just wouldn’t be a “thing”. We wouldn’t be making lists of happenings on this date because such an antiquated expression would have passed into near oblivion along with Caesar’s language–Latin–and his death date, too.
But a writer over four hundred years ago chose to have his whole play revolve around “Beware the Ides of March”. Because his writing was so erudite yet spoke to the people all those years ago and amazingly still does today we know about the word “Ides” and its place in the Roman calendar in Caesar’s time. Pretty cool.
What a lesson in word choice for us writers! Think about it. If Caesar’s line had been “Beware March 15th!” would it have had the same punch? Would it have pricked our curiosity and made us wonder just what it meant? No. We would have understood immediately and moved from that line to the next.
Instead, our brains stop and notice that expression. Many of us immediately look for its meaning but even those who don’t realize it’s something different. It’s part of the supernatural aura of a soothsayer or person who understands the supernatural who is warning Caesar. We notice.
We writers need to chose our words with the same thoughts about just what difference our choices can make to our stories. Even those who are not writers in the professional sense can make the same magic by picking words not just because they’re easy or because everyone else uses them, but rather because they underline our points, they invoke emotional responses and they stick a notion to our readers’ subconscious mind where it can be nurtured and grow. Oh, words can be so powerful!
As you read through this excerpt from the back cover of The Loyalist Legacy, pick out the words–verbs mostly–that have the most effect in painting the story. I think there are three or four that show the fear and futility of William and Catherine’s uncertain situation.
After the crushing end of the War of 1812, William and Catherine Garner find their allotted two hundred acres in Nissouri Township by following the Thames River into the wild heart of Upper Canada. On their valuable land straddling the river, dense forest, wild beasts, displaced Natives, and pesky neighbors daily challenge them. The political atmosphere laced with greed and corruption threatens to undermine all of the new settlers’ hopes and plans. William knows he cannot take his family back to Niagara but he longs to check on his parents from whom he has heard nothing for two years. Leaving Catherine and their children, he hurries back along the Governor’s Road toward the turn-off to Fort Erie, hoping to return home in time for spring planting.
Here is my list. Did you choose them? Others? crushing, allotted, wild, laced, threatens, longs, hoping.
This isn’t a right or wrong quiz but as writers we must look at each word we use and make sure it has the appropriate connotation for the feelings we are looking to create in our readers. “Fat” has a negative connotation and “plump” is more positive. They both describe the same condition but one is more palatable.
So today as you go about your busy life, think about Shakespeare and his word choice. Worked for him, why not for the rest of us? And beware the Ides of March!
The Loyalist’s Wife, The Loyalist’s Luck, The Loyalist Legacy
With much pleasure, today I welcome to my blog author Wayne Turmel and his new novel, Acre’s Bastard. Wayne has a colorful and interesting background which you can read about here and that culminates in his now writing historical fiction. Acre’s Bastard is his second in the genre. For my Canadian readers, know that Wayne originates from Canada where he was a stand-up comedian in Yuk Yuks back in the eighties and now lives near Chicago. Let’s just jump into Wayne’s writing life!
Elaine Cougler: When we talked about you guesting on my blog as an interviewee with your new book, Acre’s Bastard, you mentioned the disparity in our chosen times and places to write about. You even mentioned a link between the Crusades and my Loyalists created at the time of the American Revolution. What connection do you see?
Wayne Turmel: The thing about historical fiction is that it gives you a chance to tell a story from any “side.” What the Crusades and Revolutionary/Loyalist period have in common are huge audiences who see things from their side, while there are plenty of stories on the other. When I have a couple of pints in me, I love to tell Americans the “real” story of the revolution (godless terrorists driving law abiding, loyal citizens from their homes) while hearing all the time about the godless British oppressing the freedom fighters who claimed their birthright. Who’s right? The Crusades is a similar time. The events seem very different depending on whose material you’re reading. And I suspect most people (like Lucca in my book) aren’t really picking sides so much as trying to live through it for another day.EC: Can you tell us which side in the Crusades you favored in Acre’s Bastard? Why did you pick that side?
WT: Wow, that’s a loaded question because I’m of the belief that in any religious war, both sides are equally irrational. That said, Lucca was raised a Christian in an orphanage by the Knights of the Hospital of St John. He’s not religious at all, but finds himself siding with the Crusaders more by default than intention. He tries to save the Kingdom of Jerusalem, because that’s where his friends are, not out of spiritual conviction. In fact, he finds good and bad, evil and grace on both sides.
EC: In the research for Acre’s Bastard, what kind of surprising details did you come across that were new to you? Did any of them shape the fictional part of your story?
WT: I’ve been a Crusades junkie since I was a kid (blame Ivanhoe if you must) so I didn’t think there was much to learn except details. The story really came together, though, when I learned about the Order of St Lazar. The idea of leper knights, and how Lucca becomes involved with them, made the story jump right out of my brain onto the page.
EC: Was research easy or difficult for this book? Where did you find most of your golden nuggets that made their way into your book?
WT: Good research on this period is hard to come by, and most of what I thought I knew was either tainted by the movies, or came from the same limited number of resources. Reading the Arab accounts (especially Malouf’s “The Crusades Through Arab Eyes,” helped counterbalance some of that. Then I found a couple of experts, like Helena P. Schrader who is not only a fine author (Envoy of Jerusalem) but runs the “Real Crusades History” network. She took me to the woodshed on some of the facts and recent research. Kept me from making some major mistakes.
EC: How did you come to write historical fiction? Was this always your goal?
WT: I’m certainly no scholar, but all my life I’ve preferred fiction that is set in other places and times (sometimes real, sometimes fantastic.) Reading a story usually drives me to learn more about the real time period and people, which drives me to read more and so on down the rabbit hole. One of my mottoes is “swords are cooler than guns”. At least so far, my stories have been set in the past, although my first novel (The Count of the Sahara) was only in the 1920s as opposed to 1187.
EC: Do you think writing is easier or harder for those of us who come to being novelists later in our lives rather than earlier? How did your first jobs and experiences shape you as a writer? And did you always know some day you’d find your way to becoming a novelist?
WT: It’s funny, I’ve written most of my life in one way or the other. I started out as a stand-up comedian. Your Canadian readers who remember Yuk Yuks in the 1980s may have seen me. Then after I moved to the US, I became involved in the training industry, and wrote articles, books and blog posts about business topics for nearly 20 years. When I turned 50, it dawned on me that I’d never be a “real” writer until I did at least one novel. I’m sure all that writing warmed me up, but fiction is a very different animal than cranking out business books about Webinars.
EC: Tell us about your main character, especially about why we as readers will fall in love with this person. Do you follow the rule of always giving your heroes flaws and your antagonists at least one shining characteristic?
WT: Lucca is a ten year old orphan, who is half “Frankish” (European) and half Syrian who runs the streets of Acre. He’s funny, and precocious, but also a bit of a liar and a brat. I mean chapter one starts with him and his friends trying to peak in a brothel window! I think audiences will really dig him. There are two main antagonists… Brother Idoneus is just evil…. Al Sameen is brilliant, if on the “wrong” side of things.
EC: Have you tried writing any of your stories from one point of view and then tried it from another? From whose POV is Acre’s Bastard told?
WT: For some reason I find myself drawn to first person POV a lot. Maybe because it’s easier to write jokes that way, and despite the action and drama there’s plenty of humor in my books. My first novel, The Count of the Sahara, alternates between first person (Count de Prorok’s assistant, Willy) and third person (following the Algerian expedition in flashbacks.) Acre’s Bastard is told entirely from Lucca’s point of view, which I think ramps up the stakes (he’s only 10 for heaven’s sake) and also made it challenging to put the history in, because what do kids know about politics and context? My beta readers seem to think I did okay. They like Lucca a lot, even if one of them told me he needs a good spanking.
EC: What is the best piece of writing advice you were ever given and how did it shape you as the writer you are today?
WT: Hmmmmm, I could be a smart aleck and say Hemingway (write drunk, edit sober) but the truth is more mundane than that. I think Louis L’Amour said “Start writing, no matter what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on.”
EC: What is your best book marketing or author marketing tip?
WT: Be shameless about asking for reviews on Amazon, Goodreads and wherever. People don’t understand how important the NUMBER of reviews is to how our robot overlords promote books inside those websites. I tell everyone who buys my book or tells me how much they enjoy it… “Don’t tell me, tell Amazon.” An online review is like applause for an author.
EC: Talk about something close to your writing career which I haven’t mentioned. Show us why we should care about reading Acre’s Bastard.
WT: I think the biggest thing about what I write, is that the “subject matter” isn’t as important as the story. I have a number of readers, especially women, who say they’d have never read a book about a war, or some obscure real life archaeologist, or about a little boy in the 1100s, but once they started, they really got caught up. That’s what I’m looking to hear. That they loved the story, and maybe learned something by accident. Lord knows it’s the only way I’ve ever learned anything valuable….
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.
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: The London Writers Society Inaugural Authors Day. Six featured local authors will speak about their writing and be available for book signings.
When: Civic Holiday Monday (Aug. 1) from noon to 3:00 p.m.
Where: The Chapters Book Store, 1037 Wellington Road, London, Ontario (519) 685-1008
Who: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: 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?
EC: 
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.
