Happy Saturday, everyone! First, a few tidbits: As Megan said yesterday, she and I are on Twitter (thanks to Keira’s urging, and my own never-ending quest to find ways to waste time online). Come and “follow” us, though most of my updates consist of “drinking tea and looking at stuff on Etsy while meant to be working.”

For the last, er, year or more, I have done no updates to my own blog, but am going to start doing at least a few, if only to keep myself up-to-date on what’s going on in my book world! Book releases, vacations, maybe what I’m reading that day. Visit me here!

MAC cosmetics is coming out with a genius new line of Hello Kitty goodies! I have a pink lipgloss called “Nice Kitty” on order…

And, most important, I have a new alter ego! Her name is Laurel McKee (Laurel being my middle name, McKee a random Irish name I liked), and she will be writing my “Daughters of Ireland” series with Grand Central Publishing! She’s hoping to have her new website unveiled St. Patrick’s Day, with the first book out February 2010. It’s going to be fun having a split personality!

And author Ann Radcliffe died on this date in 1823. She could be called “Queen of the Gothic novel,” as many of the standard elements of her plots can still be found in novels today, such as innocent heroines, dark, mysterious heroes, dramatic settings, and wicked villains. (And she was the most popular writer of her own day, influencing Keats and Scott among others, and forming the centerpiece of Catherine Morland’s literary obsessions in Northanger Abbey).

She was born in London in 1764, the only child of William and Anna Ward, and married William Radcliffe at age 22. (Radcliffe was a lawyer, and later editor and owner of The English Chronicle). Ann was said to be shy and reclusive, so not much was known about her private life, which gave rise to many rumors. (She had gone mad as a result of her terrible imagination and been sent to an asylum! She had been captured as a spy in Paris! She ate rare pork chops before bed to stimulate nightmares for her novels!)

J.M.S. Tompkins writes that in all Radcliffe’s novels “a beautiful and solitary girl is persecuted in picturesque surroundings, and, after many fluctuations of fortune, during which she seems again and again on the point of reaching safety, only to be thrust back again into the midst of perils, is restored to her friends and marries the man of her choice.” Sounds like the Victoria Holt stories I was addicted to as a teenager!

Her best known works include A Sicilian Romance (1790), The Romance of the Forest (1791), The Italian (1796), and of course The Mysteries of Udolpho. She also wrote a travelogue, A Journey Through Holland and the Western Frontier of Germany (1795) and various poems, which were published by her husband after her death along with the historical romance Gaston de Blondville.

More information can be found (mostly on the books, since the details of her life are still obscure–though I doubt the pork thing) in Deborah Rogers’ Ann Radcliffe: A Biography-Bibliography (1996).Have you ever read any of Radcliffe’s works? Have any favorite modern Gothic authors?? I’m thinking a Mysteries of Udolpho-theme Halloween party would be lots of fun…

Have you ever read any of Radcliffe’s books? Have any favorite modern Gothic authors? And what might you wear to my Halloween party???

Today, of course, is February 14, Valentine’s Day! The Big V-Day. The day of pink and red, of flowers and chocolates. The day of over-priced “special menus” in restaurants, served by surly waiters who definitely don’t want to be there helping you make the day Very Special. But the flowers and chocolates (and champagne!) make that okay…

Speaking of flowers, I have a very cute old book that belonged to my grandmother about the “language of flowers.” Floriography (a means of communication in which various flowers and floral arrangements were used to send coded messages) was especially popular with the Victorians, who loved all things sentimental. But this idea goes back to antiquity, and was well-known in Medieval and Renaissance art (all those saints with their symbolic blossoms). So, I took out this book and tried to put together bouquets for various romantic couples. Here’s what I came up with…

Emma and Mr. Knightley Arbor vitae (everlasting friendship); Daffodil (chivalry, respect, uncertainty); Gorse (love in all seasons); Heliotrope (devotion); Honeysuckle (devoted affection); Lavender-colored roses (love at first sight–literally in their case); Lavender (devotion)

Elizabeth B. and Mr. Darcy Buttercup (riches); Mint (suspicion); Oats (music); Blue poppies (mystery, attaining the impossible); Red tulips (declaration of love); Light pink roses (desire, passion, joy of life); Wheat (wealth and prosperity)

Cathy and Heathcliff Amaranth (immortal love); Bird’s foot trefoil (revenge); Lobelia (malevolence); Mallow (consumed by love); Marigold (pain and grief); Love lies bleeding (hopelessness); Black poppy (death, hatred, farewell); anemone (forsaken, sickness). Wow, they sound like they’d be fun on Valentine’s Day…

Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester Acacia (secret, chaste love); Purple carnations (my heart aches for you); Oak leaf (strength), Oxeye daisy (patience); White poppy (consolation); Eglantine rose (a wound to heal); Elderflower (compassion); Snowdrop (consolation or hope); Blue and white violets (faithfulness/modesty)

Catherine Morland and Mr. Tilney Purple and white lilacs (first love/youthful innocence); Mullein (good nature); Cherry blossom (a good education); Forget-me-not (true love); Red and yellow mixed roses (joy, happiness, excitement)

What are your plans for Valentine’s Day? Any favorite romantic couples you’d like to send flowers to? And hey, what are your own favorite flowers? (I love pink roses and gardenias…)

Happy Saturday, everyone! I am off to our annual Friends of the Library book sale this morning (500,000 books all piled up, just waiting for me! And super-cheap, too). But first, a couple items. I’ve been doing research this week on 18th century fashions, and posted some of the gorgeous images on my own blog. And I’ve finally set up my own Facebook page, so “friend” me, if I haven’t already tracked you down! And I just added a Risky Regencies page yesterday, so while you’re at it come and sign on as a Fan…

And, of course, tomorrow is the Oscars. My predictions–Actress, Winslet (she is way past due!); Actor, Penn (maybe Rourke); Supporting Actress, Cruz, the only really good thing in Vicky Cristina Barcelona, except Barcelona itself (or maybe Davis–she only had one scene in Doubt, but it was an amazing one); Supporting Actor, Ledger; Picture, Slumdog Millionaire (a good movie, IMO, but not a great one, not a Best Picture for the Ages, but still the best of this lackluster line-up). And Costumes, I’m going to guess The Duchess.

Plus Hugh Jackman is the host. I would watch for that if nothing else.

Now on to today’s RR topic! A few weeks ago, Julia Justiss guest-blogged about smugglers. I’ve never written a book featuring smugglers, though I’ve thought about it. But I do love me some anti-authority characters, both as a reader and a writer (and in real-life historical figures, too!). I’m always attracted to characters who follow their own natures and hearts, even when it has the potential to get them into trouble. Who refuse to conform, to compromise their own essential characters.

At the moment, I’m wrestling with this in my WIP. It’s the first book in my “Irish trilogy” (out from Grand Central Publishing in February 2010!), set amidst the 1798 United Irishmen uprising. In this story, it’s my heroine, Eliza, who is anti-authority–despite being a countess (and thus not really “outsider,” as Megan talked about yesterday), she believes fervently in Irish independence, and has been writing “seditious” pamphlets and aiding fugitives. Back into her life comes her girlhood sweetheart, William, the gorgeous man she never forgot. But he is a major in the British Army. He sees the injustices of life in Ireland, but believes they can only be solved from the “inside,” reforming politics–not overthrowing it, as Eliza and her friends think. Neither will budge–which will prevail? (And when will they stop being stubborn and do what I tell them???)

Any which way, the dilemmas of these two strong people have me tied up in writing knots…

Who are some of your favorite anti-authority characters? (Or types–smugglers, pirates, rebels, bluestockings?). Any Oscar predictions or favorites? And now I am off to book-shop, yay! I will let you know if I make any great finds today.

It will be no surprise to anyone who reads this blog that I subscribe to way more fashion magazines than are good for me. This year, I have resolved to save money and cut back to just 2 or 3. But which ones? I really ought to cut Vogue. They often have, er, questionable cover model choices (Blake Lively? Really? Don’t they know those Gossip Girl clothes are chosen by a wardrobe team???), condescending articles about The Wonders of Shopping at Target (who knew?), and too many socialites no one has ever heard of, yet who Vogue seems to think we should really, really care about. And yet, Vogue, I just can’t quit you. Because once in a while you come with a fabulous issue like the new March ’09.

I squealed when I opened my mailbox and saw this gorgeous Michelle Obama cover. It makes up for Blake Lively last month. Plus articles about Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, Queen Rania of Jordan, and one about English country estates incorporating contemporary art into their gardens (like Sudeley, Lismore, and Houghton Hall. I’m not sure what I think about this, really, after seeing that ridiculous Koons exhibit at Versailles last fall, but the houses look gorgeous…)

The Obama article actually deals very little with fashion, aside from a couple paragraphs and some speculation as to what influence she will have on American style. Obama says, “I love clothes. First and foremost, I wear what I love. That’s what women have to focus on: what makes them feel comfortable and beautiful. If I can have any impact, I want women to feel good about themselves and have fun with fashion.”

Fashion ‘leaders’ are nothing new, of course. There was Cleopatra, Helen of Troy, etc. And Marie Antoinette became Queen of France at a very young age, after a long line of dowdy, dusty queens (it was seen as a mistress’s job to be fashionable, not a queen’s). Caroline Weber, in her great book Marie Antoinette: Queen of Fashion says, “From her earliest days at Versailles, Marie Antoinette staged a revolt against entrenched court etiquette by turning her clothes into defiant expressions of autonomy and prestige.” And others followed her lead, even as she shocked with her rebellious innovations. Felix de Montjoie, in his 1797 biography of the queen, said, “By one of those contradictions that are more common in France than anywhere else, even as the people were criticizing the Queen for her outfits, they continued frenetically to imitate her.”

She introduced the “pouf” hairstyle, the idea of a ‘trendy’ color (such as the vividly named ‘caca dauphin’ when her first son was born), and the frilly muslin ‘gaulle’ dress and straw hat (“the unofficial uniform of the Petit Trianon,” says Weber). She also liked polonaise-style gown, the masculine-tailored redingote and tricorn hat for riding, and shorter trains and smaller panniers even for court life.

In England, queens were also not traditionally looked to for fashion trends. (Not since Elizabeth I, maybe, with her ruffs and white makeup. No one asked Queen Charlotte for style advice, I’m sure!). That was up to ton ladies, especially dashing, charismatic ones like Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire. Her every outfit, every accessory, was observed and avidly copied (towering plumes, picture hats, colors like “Devonshire brown”). The gaulle caught on in England when Marie Antoinette made a present of one to Georgiana (which she then wore to a ball given by the Prince of Wales, setting off a furor). The Lady’s Magazine wrote, “all the Fair Sex now, from 15 to 50 and upwards…appear in their white muslin frocks with broad sashes.”

In 1785, a purveyor of perfumes and toiletries advertised he had ‘just imported a quantity of curious, beautiful, and sweet Powder a la Duchesse, or Devonshire Powder.’ In 1786, a scandal ensued when one of her dressmakers sold drawings to several ladies, supposedly of Georgiana’s latest gowns. Imagine the horror when they all showed up at a ball in the same gown–and Georgiana in something else entirely!

She was, like Marie Antoinette, not shy about using fashion in the service of politics. She often wore the Foxite “blue and buff”, especially when on the campaign trail. During the first Regency crisis, she and her friends donned a ‘Regency cap’ designed after the Prince of Wales crest with three feathers.

There could, of course, be a post days long on the crazy fashions of Marie Antoinette and Georgiana! I’m only grateful now that Michelle Obama tends toward sleeveless dresses as a trend and not poufs. But what do you think? Who are some of your favorite Fashion Icons? (I like Audrey Hepburn and Coco Chanel).

And be sure and check out my Oscar picks here, and don’t forget to become a ‘fan’ of Risky Regencies on Facebook! Happy weekend, everyone…