Why I Won’t Publish Nellie Bly’s Racist Novel
When I found the treasure trove of novels by Nellie Bly hidden in the pages of the London Story Paper, I did not start transcribing them in their chronological order. Instead I farmed out the most legible ones to friends while reserving the hardest to discern to myself, postponing the transcribing of the middle-ground ones, neither illegible or perfectly clear.
This was fortunate, because it left her seventh novel, for the end of the queue.
I had finished nine of her novels when I started transcribing and editing Dolly. Instantly, I knew I had a problem on my hands.
Why Superhero Movies Matter
I think I'm a bad party guest. Last night I attended my first post-vaccinated dinner party. It was the birthday of one of my wife's high school friends, so it was mostly people I'd never met. Like you do, conversation seeks common ground, and at one point we start...
“Iron-Nerved Young Women” – Nellie Bly Visits Female Medical Students
Phew! But it was horrible. I mean that it was horrible to see pretty, bright-eyed, rosy-cheeked young women busily engaged in dissecting. I saw some of these young medical students at work the other day picking, picking, picking, and so learning the beginning, the end and the object of the veins, arteries, nerves and muscles, and I haven’t had much liking for my dinner since.
It came about this way. I had been told that a dissecting-room was connected with the Woman’s Medical College, at 128 Second avenue. This naturally gave me a desire to see the creatures, whom men claim faint at the sight of a mouse, engaged in dissecting. Of course I thought it over for some time, and I wondered if the students ever fainted at the sight of the work before them. More than all I wondered if I could view them at their work unmoved.
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Interrogation Scene
There was originally quite a bit to the interrogation of the Count in the later chapters, while Cesco and Pietro are sitting in the cave. Most of it had to do with verbal sparring between Vinciguerra and Katerina. This is one of those exchanges: “What about the...
Armchair Review
Yesterday when I listed the upcoming reviews and interviews, I didn't include the Armchair Reviews - because I didn't know it was coming! These are folks who only review a book if they like it, so having a review pop up is lovely. Clearly the reviewer had difficulty...
The Doctor
Morsicato is a character of my own invention. With the Moor he plays a larger role than I had originally intended - he's part of a regular cast of characters that will continue through the series. On page 400 we gain a little backstory to the doctor. Originally...
Embarassing Pretensions
Okay, this is one cut scene that I'm not at all proud of - but it's an excellent example of a trap that writers can fall into. Even Dorothy Dunnet, the writer I esteem above all others, waded knee-deep into this mire before beating a wise and hasty retreat. It is -...
Enduring Romance Review, and links, links, links
Kimberley over at Enduring Romance has just posted a lovely review to THE MASTER OF VERONA. Despite a terrible cold, she has a very conversational style that brings up a lot of things often glossed over in reviews. It strikes me that there are a lot of...
Wine and Song
Yet another cut snippet, this one from page 244, after Morsicato touts his excellent taste in wine: “What about the wine, oh Culinary Maestro?” demanded his goad. Morsicato composed his face into a sneer that was purely French. In his best Paris dialect he replied,...
Pietro’s First Trip to Venice
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I Couldn’t Wait…
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Snippet from a Lost Dinner Party
As I pour through the cut material from THE MASTER OF VERONA, looking for pieces to resurrect for the shorts I'm putting together (rather like Frankenstien's monster), I keep coming across bits of dialogue that I like that were lost. Here's an example. This would be...
Short Stories
Okay, the first of the short stories is done. Of course, now that I've started coming up with ideas for short stories, I'm buried in them. The first short is actually the backstory of the Count of San Bonifacio. The second takes place in 1315, at the very top of part...
