Literary Links September/October 2006

Literary Links

September/October 2006

Good News and Announcements

Available Now!--On shelves now from Pat White, is Silent Memories, her first Harlequin Intrigue.

Coming Soon!--Catch up with William and Katherine Merritt from Victoria Bylin's Of Men and Angels in "A Son is Given," a story meant just for Christmas. It is part of the Stay for Christmas anthology from Harlequin Historicals scheduled for release in October 2006. Also coming out in October is Death Angel, a new suspense by Martha Powers. Then, it's the book you've been waiting for. Pat White's third book in her wrestling romance line, Love on the Ropes, will be out in November 2006. Also coming out in November is Here with Me by Beverly Long, another time-travel romance.

News--Victoria Bylin is blogging! Read the latest about Victoria at her blog--Books, God and Romance. Also, join her and other Harlequin Historical authors at the Harlequin blog page.

Services Available--Need to get your writing organized? How about research for your new book? Michelle Prima, President of Literary Liaisons, is now offering organizing, research and errand services through her company, Prima By Design, Inc., a Professional Organizing business for residential customers. She currently works in the Chicago area only, but will provide research services on-line for others. Contact Michelle for more information.

New On Literary Liaisons

There are many new additions to Literary Liaisons. After reading about them below, check them out on the web site.

Bookstore:

Fiction

Silent Memories by Pat White

Death Angel by Martha Powers

Here with Me by Beverly Long

"A Son is Given" in Stay for Christmas anthology by Victoria Bylin

Non-fiction:

The Heart of England by Robin Whiteman and Rob Taylor

Home Office Life by Lisa Kanarek

How I Write by Janet Evanovich

Reading Like a Writer by Francine Prose

A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft

Feature Title:

How to Write a Damn Good Novel by James N. Frey

The Video Library

"The Libertine"

Researching the Romance

The Heart of England by Robin Whiteman and Rob Taylor

Home Office Life by Lisa Kanarek

How I Write by Janet Evanovich

Reading Like a Writer by Francine Prose

A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft

Writers' Resources Online

The Fiction Factor

Piers Anthony's Internet Publishing

British Sensation Literature

Sewing a Century Ago

Victorian Tiles

Feature Article

Why Routine is Important

by Pat White

Working from home can be, in a word, challenging. Between the dogs barking at the dust balls floating across the floor, the cats sending faxes to China, the teenagers inviting the neighborhood kids in for Hot Pockets and Doritos, things aren’t exactly quiet at my house.

Which is why a regular routine is essential.

When developing a routine, start by doing a personal inventory of your writing habits. Are you most productive first thing in the morning, late at night, or during the afternoon? I’m referring to the first draft writing aspect of the process because for me, revising can be done anytime.

I’ve resigned myself to the fact that, for me, writing in the morning is about effective as skating on quicksand. It just ain’t happening. Keep track of when you get the most pages written, the time of day you’re really in the zone, and see if there’s a pattern. Capitalize on your physiology’s natural routine; don’t fight it. Yes, that means if you’re most productive between three and seven in the afternoon the kids are going to have to make their own dinner.

Once you’ve figured out when you get your best work done, carve out that piece of your day, every day, to write.

Let’s say you’re a morning writer (I envy you). Set your alarm and get up and write your pages for whatever hours you’ve designated. Have lunch about the same time every day, take your afternoon walk at the same time, etc. Developing a routine stimulates the habit of writing.

What can you do to respect your natural routine? I’ll suggest paying attention to the food you eat. Honestly, I’ve noticed I need a nap shortly after ingesting simple carbs (sugars, white flour, etc). Do certain foods affect you in different ways? I find that protein, veggies and fruits are brain food for me.

Also, pay attention to what triggers your muse. A few things that come to mind: listening to music, taking a daily walk, reading poetry and…vacuuming (I’m not kidding.) Somehow the mindless motion of sucking up tumbleweeds of dog and cat hair seems to stimulate my brain. (Sorry, I’m not coming to your house). Don’t dismiss mindless activity. Think of it as a tool to detach your creative mind from the ever-present critic that lives just beneath the surface, the one that intimidates you into NOT writing your pages.

In my opinion, a routine helps train your brain to tell your body what’s next on the agenda.

Every day at exactly 6:30 p.m., my golden retriever sits in the middle of the kitchen, waiting for his arthritis pill. It’s his routine. Wouldn’t it be great if at 9 a.m., every day, your brain automatically clicked into writing mode and words spilled out onto the page? It’s possible. You just have to create a routine in sync with your body’s natural physiology.

Good luck!

Pat White struggles to stick to her daily routine and usually wins, especially when she’s on deadline. She writes romantic suspense for Harlequin and romantic comedy for Dorchester. She has two fall releases: SILENT MEMORIES (September, Harlequin Intrigue) and LOVE ON THE ROPES (October, Love Spell). Check her out at www.patwhitebooks.com.

For more of Pat's titles, visit our Fiction Bookstore.

Editor's Note

As I was compiling the list of events for the year 1893 below, I came across an item of historical significance--the opening of Marshall Field & Co. on Chicago's State Street. To most of the world, that doesn't mean much. But I'm Chicago born and raised. I'm still living in the northwest suburbs. As children, we grew up with the tradition of making the excursion to downtown Chicago every holiday season to see the windows of the department stores on State Street decorated with sugar plums and Santa Claus. This item in the list would not have been so significant if it hadn't fallen on the very day Marshall Field & Co. took down its store signs to officially become Macy's. Marshall Field & Co. is no more. How very sad. Not that I don't welcome Macy's. But to me, Macy's means "New York" just as Marshall Field's means "Chicago." Macy's can promise all they want to keep the traditions of Frango Mints, the Christmas tree in the Walnut room and others, but it just won't be the same. At least the Field Museum is still ours.

--Michelle Prima

President, Literary Liaisons, Ltd.

Q&A Column

Q: When parents are divorced and woman living with mother with little contact with father, is it protocol only to ask father for hand in marriage?

Lindsay D..

A: While this is certainly tradition, the world has changed, and wedding etiquette with it. Each situation should be treated individually.

The groom can ask permission from the father alone or with his intended if the groom does not have a close relationship with her father. If the bride does not have a close relationship with her father either, asking for permission would not be necessary, although it would show him respect. Depending on the reasons for the estrangement though, the groom may not want to approach the father at all.

The groom should also keep in mind the bride's family culture and traditions when making this decision. It would be a lovely gesture to ask the mother's permission also, especially if all involved have a close relationship.

Michelle Prima

President, Literary Liaisons, Ltd.

Historical Calendar of Events

1893

Births

Cole Porter--American songwriter

Ernst Toller--German dramatist

Deaths

Hippolyte Taine--French author

Guy de Maupassant

Peter Tchaikovsky--Russian composer

J.M. Charcot--French psychiatrist

Politics

The Independent Labour Party formed at a conference in Bradford, England.

The second Irish Home Rule Bill was passed by the House of Commons but rejected by the House of Lords.

There was a revolt against the British South Africa Company in Matabele, which was crushed by Starr Jameson.

Hawaii was proclaimed a republic, was annexed to the United States in February, but the treaty was withdrawn in March.

Natal was granted self-government.

Congress repealed the 1890 Sherman Silver Purchase Act on October 31, and the United States returned to the gold standard.
Kelly's Industrial Army (unemployed workers from California) marched on Washington, D.C. to demand relief which was not forthcoming from Congress.
New Zealand adopted suffrage for women, the first country to do so.
France established French Guiana in South America and the Ivory Coast in Africa as formal colonies.
Congress made air brakes mandatory on U.S. railroad trains.

The Arts

Paintings:

"The Cry" by Edvard Munch

"The Voice" by Edvard Munch

"The Boating Party" by Mary Cassatt

"Rouen Cathedral" by Claude Monet

"Hina Maruru" by Paul Gauguin

Fiction:

Maggie: A Girl of the Streets by Stephen Crane

Non-fiction:

Appearance and Reality by F.H. Bradley

If Christ Came to Chicago by W.T.Stead

Music:

"Hamlet and Ophelia" by Edward McDowell

Symphony No. 6 in B minor by Peter Tchaikovsky

Popular Songs:

"Happy Birthday to You" by Mildred Hill

"See Saw Margery Daw" by Arthur West

"Two Little Girls in Blue" by Charles Graham

Opera:

"Hansel und Gretel" by Englebert Humperdinck premiered in Weimar

"Manon Lescaut" by Puccini premiered at Teatro Reggio in Turin

"Falstaff" by Verdi premiered at Teatro alla Acalain Milan

"The Magic Opal" by Isaac Albeniz premiered at the Lyric Theatre in London

Theater:

"A Woman of No Importance" by Oscar Wilde at London's Haymarket Theatre

"The Second Mrs. Tanqueray" by Arthur Wing Pinero at the St. James Theatre, London

"The Triumph of Death" by Gabriele D'Annunzio

Daily Life

The Imperial Institute was founded in South Kensington, London.

The World Expedition was held in Chicago, Illinois.

Salt Lake City's Mormon Temple opened on the site previously ordained by Brigham Young.

A new fountain depicting Eros was erected in London's Piccadilly Circus to honor the late Lord Shaftesbury.

New York's Waldorf Hotel opened March 14 on Fifth Avenue at 33rd Street. The 13-story hotel has 530 rooms and 350 private baths.
Chicago's Congress Hotel opened on Michigan Avenue.

Fridtjof Nansen began his unsuccessful expedition to the North Pole.
The longest recorded boxing fight occurred in New Orleans between Andy Bowen and Jack Burk. It lasted 110 rounds in seven hours and four minutes.

Lady Margaret Scott won the first British golf championship.

The Stanley Cup ice hockey trophy had its beginnings in a silver cup presented to the winner of an amateur Canadian hockey match by the son of the earl of Denby, governor general of Canada. Frederick Arthur, Lord Stanley of Preston, purchased the cup for £10 ($48.67).
Joshua Pim of Ireland won in men's singles at Wimbledon, Lottie Dod in women's singles;

Robert D. Wrenn won in U.S. men's singles, Aline M. Terry in women's singles.
The Chicago Golf Club opened at Wheaton, Ill., where Charles B. MacDonald laid out the first 18-hole golf course in America.
The distance from the pitcher's mound to home plate in baseball was fixed at 60 feet, six inches.
The U.S. racing yacht Vigilant defeated England's Valkyrie to defend the America's Cup.

America's buffalo herd fell to 1,090 as market hunters continued to exterminate the animals.
The Pullman Palace Car Co. reduced wages by one-fourth, obliging workers to labor for almost nothing while charging them full rents in company housing and charging inflated prices at company food stores.

U.S. Rural Free Delivery began with five test postal routes to West Virginia.

McClure's magazine began publication.

The American Newspaper Publishers Association (ANPA) founded in 1886 adopted a resolution agreeing to pay commission in the form of discounts to recognized independent advertising agencies and to give no discounts on space sold directly to advertisers.
Lizzie Borden went on trial at Fall River, Massachusetts. She was charged with having killed her stepmother and then her father on the morning of August 4, 1892.
Wall Street stock prices dropped May 5, and the market collapsed June 27, forcing 600 banks to close their doors. More than 15,000 business firms fail, and 74 railroads go into receivership.
The Bon Marché in Paris recorded sales of 150 million gold francs, making it the world's largest department store.
Marshall Field and Co. opened, occupying nearly an entire city block on Chicago's State Street. The store employed more than 3,000 on 13 acres of floor space.
The Field Museum was founded in Chicago with $1 million contributed by Marshall Field.

The name Sears, Roebuck & Co. was used for the first time as the Chicago mail-order firm racked up sales of $338,000. By 1894 its catalog will have more than 500 pages.
Brooklyn's Abraham & Straus was founded when Joseph Wechsler of Wechsler & Abraham sells his interest to Macy's Isodor and Nathan Straus and their partner Charles B. Webster (see 1888). Abraham brought his sons-in-law into the store to counter control by the Macy interests. By the turn of the century A&S has entrances on four sides of the block it largely occupies.
A survey of Brooklyn, N.Y., schools revealed that 18 classes have 90 to 100 students each, while one classroom is jammed with 158.
Paris students witnessed the world's first striptease at the Bal des Quatre Arts when the artist's model disrobed for the art students. A court fined her 100 francs, the ruling provoking a riot in the Latin Quarter.
Fels-Naphtha soap was introduced by Philadelphia soap maker Joseph Fels of Fels & Co..
Juicy Fruit chewing gum was introduced by William Wrigley, Jr., who had been selling Lotta Gum and Vassar. Wrigley's Spearmint chewing gum was introduced in the fall and will be the nation's leading brand by 1910.
English naturalist Mary Kingsley, niece of the late novelist-poet Charles Kingsley, explored West Africa, finding beetles never before cataloged.
A section of northern Oklahoma Territory opened to settlers September 16. Thousands of "Boomers" rushed in to stake and claim quarter-section farms, but found that "Sooners" sneaked across the line earlier by cover of night and started building houses on the 165- by 58-mile Cherokee Strip.
Aunt Jemima pancake mix was promoted at the Chicago fair by St. Joseph, Missouri miller R. T. Davis, who acquired Chris Rutt's mix of 1889 and improved it by adding rice flour, corn sugar, and powdered milk so that it can be prepared by adding only water.
C. W. Post developed Postum to replace coffee with a nutritious beverage of wheat, molasses, and wheat bran.
Thomas Lipton registered a new trademark for the tea he has been selling since 1890 and which is sold only in packages. Over the signature "Thomas J. Lipton, Tea Planter, Ceylon," Lipton printed the words "Nongenuine without this signature".
Caramel maker Milton Hershey visited the Chicago fair, saw chocolate-making machinery exhibited by a Dresden firm, had it shipped to his Lancaster plant to begin experiments with it.
The American Railway Union was founded by Eugene Victor Debs.
The Johns Hopkins Medical School and Hospital were founded at the 17-year-old Baltimore university.
Florenz Ziegfeld began a 39-year show business career by engaging orchestras and musical attractions for the Columbian Exposition.
The New York, New Haven and Hartford completed its Shore Line route between New York and Boston by leasing part of the Old Colony Railroad.

Technology

Karl Benz constructed his four-wheel car.

Henry Ford built his first car.

German engineer William Maybach developsed a float-feed carburetor for gasoline engines. He is an associate of Gottlieb Daimler.
The Manchester Ship Canal was completed.

The Corinth Canal of Greece was opened.

The world's first Ferris wheel went up at the Chicago World's fair. Designed by U.S. engineer Washington Gale Ferris, the Midway amusement ride is a giant $300,000 vertical power-driven steel wheel, 250 feet in diameter, with 36 passenger cars, each seating 40 people.
The Klondike oil well geysers up in a marshy field on East Toledo's Millard Avenue, began a rush to drill wells.
The "Clasp Locker or Unlocker for Shoes" exhibited at the Chicago fair was the world's first slide fastener. U.S. inventor Whitcomb L. Judson patented the device and a machine to manufacture it.

Joseph Pulitzer installed a four-color rotary press in hopes of reproducing great works of art in the Sunday supplement of his New York World.
Japanese entrepreneur Kokichi Mikimoto pioneered cultured pearls.
Chicago surgeon Daniel Hale Williams performed the world's first open-heart surgery, saving the life of a street fighter with a knife wound in an artery near his heart.
German physiologist Adolf Magnus-Levy devised the basal metabolism test that will be used for years to measure human metabolic rates until its results are found to be unreliable.

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