This past week I’ve been off work (yay!) and trying to get ready for the holiday. Here’s what I’ve been doing:

1) Reading the new Phillipa Gregory book
2) Working on the “Muses” WIP (122 pages so far!)
3) Researching two future projects. This is confusing the heck out of me, because one is set at the court of Henry VIII and one in eighteenth century France! So, I’ve been switching back and forth from Regency England, 1528 England, and 1780s France.
4) Making Christmas candy. I’m not much of a cook, but there are a couple of things I like to make at this time of year. Maybe it’s that winter “hibernate and pack on pounds” instinct. Maybe childhood memories–I also like to read Eloise at Christmastime, because I remember my mother reading it to me when I was a kid (see the photo!). Boy, was my mom sorry when I took Eloise as my role model. One of my favorite holiday treats are my grandmother’s Christmas bonbons. They’re super-easy to make and very yummy. See the recipe at the end of this post.
5) And, on evenings when no one is having a party, I’ve made popcorn, put on my flannel pajamas, and watched some favorite non-Christmas, romantic movies. Like these:

Amelie–if Eloise grew up French, she might turn out to be a bit like Amelie. I love her schemes, her self-made rocky road to love, the characters she works with at the cafe, and the silly touches like talking photos! Tres French.
Strictly Ballroom–lots of dancing, a hunky hero who (eventually) falls for the plain but spunky heroine, Australian accents, outrageous costumes. This, along with Dancing With the Stars, has inspired me to sign up for a samba class after the holidays. Hopefully I can dance away those bonbons!
The Cutting Edge–one of my top guilty-pleasure movies since high school! Shrewish prima donna ice skater and oafish ex-hockey player forced to team up (as if that would happen!). Arguments (“Toe pick!”), kisses, and Olympic medals. This makes a great double bill with Strictly Ballroom!
Cold Comfort Farm–the romance in this is minimal (it does feature Rufus Sewell, but not as the love interest), but it’s an adorable movie. Kate Beckinsale (before she decided to morph into Posh Spice) sets a passle of grimy relatives to rights. Great costumes, stellar cast, hilarious!
Shakespeare in Love–admittedly, I’ve seen this one so many times I speak the dialogue along with the actors, but I love it every time. Perfect holiday escape. It also makes a great Valentine’s Day film, along with Zeffirelli’s Romeo and Juliet.

Tomorrow, I’m off to my parents’ house for presents (yippee!) and my dad’s “famous” margaritas (double yippee!). However you spend the holiday, I hope it’s great, and that you have a “Risky” New Year! Let us know your best holiday “escapes”…

Christmas Bonbons
1 stick butter
2 pounds powdered sugar, sifted
1 can Eagle Brand milk
1 can Angel Flake coconut
Tsp vanilla Chopped pecans
Chopped maraschino cherries

Mix these up, refrigerate until chilled. Then form into little balls.

1/4 pound paraffin
Large package chocolate chips (I use dark!)

Melt in double broiler, and dip coconut balls in. Let them harden, and you’re done! (The pecans and cherries are optional–you can really use anything that sounds yummy to you)

Today is Jane Austen’s 213th birthday! It’s also the birthday of Ford Madox Ford, Noel Coward, Beethoven, and my mother. And, since I still need to go shopping for her present before her party tonight (my mom, not Jane Austen), I’m going to borrow from the Jane Austen Centre’s newsletter for today’s post. This month’s quiz concerns parties from Austen novels. Test your knowledge (I missed 2!), and the answers are at the end. But no peeking! Let us know how you did, and which Austen party you would most enjoy attending. I think I would be partial to the Netherfield ball.

1) At the Phillips’ card party what sort of card game does Mr. Collins play?
a) Whist
b) Speculation
c) Loo

2) On what date is the Netherfield ball held?
a) 1st of November
b) 15th of November
c) 26th of November

3) When Fanny is invited to her first dinner at the parsonage with the Grants, what is the main course?
a) Mutton
b) Venison
c) Turkey

4) Fanny receives what from Miss Crawford to wear to the ball at Mansfield?
a) A chain
b) A necklace
c) A cross

5) The party at the Westons’ when Mr. Elton proposes is what sort of party?
a) A ball
b) A birthday party
c) A Christmas party

6) Mrs. Elton is shocked at the lack of what at Highbury card parties?
a) Ice
b) Wine
c) Music

7) Anne talks with Captain Wentworth and thinks he might still love her at what event?
a) A play
b) A concert
c) An opera

8) The Elliotts have what kind of party in Bath?
a) An evening party
b) A dinner party
c) An engagement party

9) Mary Musgrove complains about their going out to dinner at the Pooles’ for what reason?
a) The food was not elegant enough
b) The children were present
c) She was squashed in the carriage

10) In Northanger Abbey, where does Catherine meet Henry Tilney?
a) A play at the theatre
b) A ball in the Lower Rooms
c) A concert in the concert hall

A
N
S
W
E
R
S

1) a
2) c
3) c
4) b
5) c
6) a
7) b
8) a
9) c
10) b

Like Megan, I’m just not sure what to post about today! In the month of December it’s like my brain takes off for a vacation (skiing in Taos, or something) while my body is forced to stay home and work and get ready for the holidays. I’ve also started working on book #2 for this new Harlequin contract (up to page 75!) and it’s preoccupying me quite a bit. So, I’ll just talk about it. Or rather, one small historical aspect of it.

The new story is Regency-set, and hopefully kicks off a new series called The Muses of Mayfair. You see, there’s this scholar and antiquarian who has a bunch of daughters, all named after the Muses. Book One (or WIP), The Alabaster Goddess, is the story of the eldest Muse, Calliope, a half-Greek earl, and the shenanigans surrounding a stolen ancient statue of the goddess Artemis. I just finished writing a scene where the characters go to view the Elgin Marbles (where the villain is introduced, the hero and heroine argue, and…But that’s for later!)

On the Splendors of the Regency tour Diane and I went on, we were lucky enough to have a free afternoon to tour the British Museum and see the Marbles for ourselves (that’s Diane and our friend Julie Halperson in one of the pics. I don’t know who the other people are–they just wouldn’t get out of the way for me to take the photo!).

My main source for the scene in my own story was a volume I picked up in the Museum shop, The Elgin Marbles by B.F. Cook (British Museum Press, 1997). It’s slim, less than 100 pages, but full of great illustrations and lots of info about the Parthenon, the sculptures, and how they came to be acquired by the British Museum. Long story made very short–around 1799 the Earl of Elgin (Thomas Bruce) was appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of His Britannic Majesty to the Sublime Porte of Selem III Sultan of Turkey. A group of artists and architects sort of tagged along to Athens (then a small, seedy town, where the grand Acropolis was being used a Turkish fortress) to work on documenting and, if possible, restoring the Parthenon. The condition of these treasures was not good; much had been damaged or destroyed in an explosion, or carried off to be used as building materials elsewhere. By 1802, the first of the sculptures, from the metope section or excavated from the ground, were on their way to England. On April 22, 1811, after many (mis)adventures, the last of them left Athens on the ship Hydra, accompanied by Lord Byron.

After residing in various locations, including Elgin’s home on Park Lane (in a shed!), the Duchess of Portland’s, the Duke of Richmond’s, and the Duke of Devonshire’s Burlington House, the sculptures were finally bought by the Nation and vested in the Trustees of the British Museum in 1816, for 35,000 pounds. (The earl, who was in dire financial straits by then, having lost his rich wife, was hoping for at least 70,000). The ‘Temporary Elgin Room’ (where my characters view them!) was opened in 1817 and remained in use for 14 years.

So that’s my “history lesson for the day”! 🙂 What are some things you’ve seen on travels, or read about in books, that inspired you? Any favorite travels spots (I need to live vicariously since my brain is off skiing and I’m slaving away over the Hello Kitty notebooks!)?

p.s. Another good read is Susan Nagel’s Mistress of the Elgin Marbles: A Biography of Mary Nisbet, Countess of Elgin. It has been a while since I read it (it came out in 2005), but as I recall it dealt more with her scandalous divorce than the events surrounding the Marbles, but was a fascinating story.

(The photo with today’s post is one I found of Diane and me at our evening in Bath at the Assembly Rooms! I will try to find more for next week)

My Writing Process

1) Find an Idea
The question most non-writers ask writers seems to be “How do you get your ideas?” I always have to answer “I have no clue.” Maybe it comes from a painting or a movie, or something I read in a non-fiction book. All I know is I seem to have a lot of them–ideas, that is. They all go into an “idea notebook” to be brought out and expanded on later. Also, I seem to start with characters who need a plot rather than a plot that needs characters.

2) Okay, I have my idea! Now, I have to buy research books–a total neccessity, of course. 🙂 And I have to track down research books I already own, because they could be anywhere in the house. Or the garage. I find lots of books I forgot I had, which means I have to sit down on the floor and read through them, dust them, look at pictures, and jot down new ideas I find from them. Eventually, though, I do get to step 3…

3) I write a short synopsis of the story. I’m not much of a “plotter”–I have a writer friend who starts out by writing a detailed, chapter-by-chapter outline, but I can’t do this. I have no idea what will be happening in chapter twenty at this point. But publishers do like to see what the story will be about, so the short synopsis gets written. I organize my research notes and start the rough draft.

4) I write my rough drafts in longhand in Hello Kitty notebooks I buy at Target. This means a trip to Target, of course. Once the vital notebooks are procured, I may go over to look at shoes. And makeup. And purses. And the pet supply aisle. Then I buy some Choxie Coffee Toffee bars to sustain me through the writing to come. And maybe a copy of Vogue. For breaks, you know.

5) Now I get to work (really!). I usually write sitting on my bed, surrounded by those research books, cats, and empty Choxie boxes. Like Diane, I give myself about 4-5 months per book. But I have my “day job,” and thus have to make the most out of all my writing time. This means no email, Go Fug Yourself, or Orlandobloom.com. Usually. Well, not more than once an hour.

6) It takes me about 100 pages to really get to know the characters and their story, to see where it’s going. Then I start typing the chapters to send to my critique partners. I may do a little revising at this point, but usually I just print up their comments and jot down notes for any changes I notice are needed, and then I press ahead. The whole longhand-to-computer thing helps me see where I’ve been repetitive or lost some continuity. The problem is that sometimes I can’t read my own handwriting! (Oh, and I write the story in linear fashion. No doing up scenes and connecting then later, as I’ve heard Gabaldon does. My mind just doesn’t work that way!)

7) End of rough draft! I type The End, send to the cp’s, and put it out of my mind for a few days. By this time, I have a pretty dire case of ‘writer’s butt’ from all that Choxie (I have to have something to soothe me after dealing with stubborn characters who do NOT want to do what they’re told!). I go to more yoga classes and run on the treadmill a lot, thinking back over the story in my mind. This helps me see where some of the problems are, and also helps me fit back into my jeans.

8) I get the manuscript out and polish, revise, and send it off. I worry about it, and then try to get onto the next story! The Lure of the Other is always strong by this point, and I’m eager to start a new book. The next story is still shiny and new, full of hope, unlike the tattered, battered one that has just ended. I head to the bookstore for more research books, and then back to Target…

Congratulations to the winners of our Mistletoe Kisses Contest:
Susan Flanders
Keira Soleore
JaneFan

Email Diane (dgastonmail@aol.com) your mailing address, and your autographed copy of Mistletoe Kisses will be on its way to you.

Thank you to everyone who participated in our early Holiday week and our little celebration of Diane, Pam, and Deborah’s Regency Christmas anthology, Mistletoe Kisses . We’ve had a wonderful time and have enjoyed this chance to get to know you all better.

We hope this past week has helped put you in a holiday mood, because–brace yourselves!–it is descending on us fast.

Happy Holidays to all,
The Riskies