How sad is it that I went to title this post, only to discover that I had already titled a post “Aagh!”

But here it is.

I am way behind on my freelance work, sprinting to catch up, which reminds me of the running classes I’ve just started taking. And, to get faster, we do sprints–we run all out for 100 meters, do 12 of them with short intervals inbetween, and try to keep the time consistent.

I am consistent, but today I am sprinting. Hence the disjointed and short post.

But I am doing short bursts of writing–and reading, thanks to various subway rides–and know that I will get to the end, eventually. And maybe be a little faster because of the work I’ve put in on the way.

So–forgive my sprinting past today, and know it is all for the greater good. Plus, I’m putting in some fun pix to distract you.

Megan, off to run again

PS: Anyone seeing Duplicity this weekend? Report back, please!

This morning, I gotta warn you, I am MEGA-CRABBY. There are many legitimate reasons for this, not just pantomime ones, including not sleeping enough because the husband was away last night, and while I like it when he goes away (MI-5! Jammies by 9! Brussels sprouts for dinner!), I find it hard to get to sleep. So last night I had a whiskey at 12:30, which helped, but then I felt lame I had to use a crutch. And woke up headachey and sleep-deprived.

And I am aggrieved by a few online situations, which led me to think about how the internet–that is, the corner of it inhabited by romance authors and readers–is similar to the world of the ton, as described in our books:

*Claustrophobic. You can’t get away from it, unless you check out of Society/the Internet entirely.

*Gossipy. Everybody knows everybody else’s business.

*Reputations are made, and destroyed, with a few quick strokes.

*You can get, and give, the cut direct: Not responding to email, declining to follow someone on Twitter or friend them on Facebook.

*You can also make friends quickly, based on a few common interests: Finding a husband, not finding a husband, what you like to read, whether you’re interested in knitting, or reading, or vampires.

*Certain sites or group of sites seem to have their own Almack’s style patronesses: Either you’re in or you’re out.

Do you think these general guidelines are true for any social group? What do you like best about the Internet ton? What do you like the least? And thanks for joining the Riskies group today!

Megan

It’s a perpetual problem for me, and I suspect for most of us, staying motivated. Especially since I have no deadline except for a self-imposed one. Which is a roundabout way of saying I know I’ve blogged about this before, but it is something that surfaces often:

How can I maintain a writing schedule and discipline, especially when things–MI-5, the recession, my son’s homework, ironing the Dandy Spouse‘s shirts, going to the gym, etc.–all serve to distract me from writing?

Right now, I am sitting in my friend Liz Maverick‘s apartment, having made a Writing Date with her. That is one way for me to write, if I schedule it in; another way is to remind myself that while I am not published now, the only way for me to have that possibility is to generate new writing (my agent, btw, is still out with my Regency-set historical, but things are moving slowly, so it’s not completely a dead ms. Whew for me).

Another way to motivate myself is through rewards: If I write this chapter, I can justify spending money and time on novels. If I don’t keep writing, I’ll just be wasting my time and money on a passion I can ill afford.

Plus Spring always makes me cheery, and today is a particularly beautiful day in New York City.

So now? I am going back to writing. Let me know how you stay motivated for whatever you do.

Megan

Is everybody in the world sick with the flu? Or does it only seem like that?

Anyhoo, when our house hasn’t been running through tissues like a bunch of softies watching Terms of Endearment, I’ve been revising my super-racy, not-quite-erotic novella. It takes place in Paris in 1831, and its hero is a Free Person of Color.

The first inspiration for him was Barbara Hambly‘s Benjamin January, a free man of color in New Orleans around the same era. January spent many years in Paris, enjoying freedoms unknown to persons of color in America. But in figuring out how my guy ended up in France, I had to research how persons of color became freed in the slave era. Like January, Fortune–my hero–had been freed by his owner. Unlike January, however, he was freed only at his owner’s death, a former placee [a woman of color who entered into a legal contract with a white man to be his official mistress] who had a sizeable fortune and owned property in New Orleans.

[I originally wanted my hero’s former owner to be Haitian, but it was a more direct route from New Orleans to Paris; but do check out the history of the first successful slave revolt in Haiti here. Really cool.]

There are a few examples of such a woman, including Eulalie de Mandeville, whose white lover married her at his deathbed and left her his entire fortune, which was upheld even though his white relatives contested the will. Another such example is Rosette Rochon, who took what her various white lovers bestowed upon her and speculated in real estate, entered in money-lending and bought and sold mortgages, among other things. She died at age 96, still illiterate, with a fortune valued at about a million dollars in current valuation.

It’s been interesting, as a white twentieth century woman, to navigate the delicate balance of race relations in France in the nineteenth century. I have to admit, moreover, that my first draft didn’t take that into account, so I am revising with an eye to that.

Hambly describes January’s constant concern that he be taken and sold as a slave, despite being freed. He carries one set of papers at all times showing his status, but keeps another set in a secure spot in case the first set doesn’t suffice. My hero is equally uncertain as to how he will be treated, and he carries that awareness of race with him, no matter how much money is in his pocket.

One of my favorite themes, both in reading and in writing, is the outsider, and Fortune is the epitome of that: An educated, dark person of color living in a white world with resources but without ever quite belonging.

Do you like reading outsider stories? Do you have favorite outsider heroes or heroines? And would you think this kind of story too risky for a romance?

We are featuring an interview with Carolyn Jewel soon, but due to some technical difficulties [curse you, Yahoo!], we won’t be posting the interview today.

[Edited to add: Look for the interview NEXT Friday]

So, sorry for the no-post post, but let’s just start some chatter, shall we?

Do you Twitter? Amanda and I do. If you do, come find us!

Do you think Clive Owen will be plausible in a romantic comedy (as it seems to be advertised) with Julia Roberts? Last time they were together, it was in Closer, where he had some pretty harsh words for her. Not a romantic comedy (as you can tell, I am skeptical).

I am about to start watching Cranford; is it awesome, or not so much?

Are you watching the Grammys this Sunday? If so, keep an eye out for my gal Adele, who’s nominated, and who’ll be performing.

Anything else on your mind this frigid (in New York, at least) Friday?