Thoughts on historical fiction: Girl on the Golden Coin

I can't imagine how difficult it must be to write historical fiction. In my own preferred genres--SF&F--while there are tropes to understand (and use or subvert) and some amount of research needed to make the imagined worlds feel fully immersive, by and large, I have carte blanche to make things up.  The degree of careful research and accuracy needed for historical fiction makes me want to hide under my bed.

And then there are writers like my fellow #SFWG partner, Marci Jefferson, whose playground is the very real and well-documented world of the Stuarts and who revels in that sort of research and authenticity. And after she's gotten the details right, she still has to weave an imaginary tale in and around the history-that-was. Just thinking about it gives me a migraine!

So it is my great pleasure to show off the lush cover and tell you about Marci's debut novel, THE GIRL ON THE GOLDEN COIN.

GIRL ON THE GOLDEN COIN: A NOVEL OF FRANCES STUART
Marci Jefferson’s first novel is about Frances Stuart, who rejected three kings and graced England’s coins for generations as the model for Britannia. The book will release February 11, 2014 from Thomas Dunne Books / St. Martin’s Press. But pre-order this week and comment on Marci’s blog  for a chance to win a pair of sterling-silver pearl-drop earrings like the ones Frances wears on this elegant cover (be prepared to present your receipt).

MORE ABOUT THE BOOK
Impoverished and exiled to the French countryside after the overthrow of the English Crown, Frances Stuart survives merely by her blood-relation to the Stuart Royals. But in 1660, the Restoration of Stuart Monarchy in England returns her family to favor. Frances discards threadbare gowns and springs to gilded Fontainebleau Palace, where she soon catches King Louis XIV’s eye. But Frances is no ordinary court beauty, she has Stuart secrets to keep and people to protect. The king turns vengeful when she rejects his offer to become his Official Mistress. He banishes her to England with orders to seduce King Charles II and stop a war.

Armed in pearls and silk, Frances maneuvers through the political turbulence of Whitehall Palace, but still can’t afford to stir a scandal. Her tactic to inspire King Charles to greatness captivates him. He believes her love can make him an honest man and even chooses Frances to pose as Britannia for England’s coins. Frances survives the Great Fire, the Great Plague, and the debauchery of the Restoration Court, yet loses her heart to the very king she must control. Until she is forced to choose between love or war.

On the eve of England’s Glorious Revolution, James II forces Frances to decide whether to remain loyal to her Stuart heritage or, like England, make her stand for Liberty. Her portrait as Britannia is minted on every copper coin. There she remains for generations, an enduring symbol of Britain’s independent spirit and her own struggle for freedom.

ADVANCE PRAISE
"In her wonderfully evocative debut, Girl on the Golden Coin, Marci Jefferson recreates the fascinating story of Frances Stuart, whose influence over England's Charles II became the talk of a nation. As vibrant and delightful as the woman it's based on, Girl on the Golden Coin is a jewel of a novel!"
—Michelle Moran, New York Times bestselling author of THE SECOND EMPRESS and MADAME TUSSAUD

"Beauty is not always a blessing, as young Frances Stuart finds out when her lovely face pits her between the desires and politics of rival kings Louis XIV and Charles II. Frances makes an appealing heroine, by turns wary and passionate, sophisticated and innocent, as she matures from destitute young pawn to the majestic duchess whose figure would grace Britain's coins for centuries. Her struggles to support her loved ones, uncover her family secrets, and somehow find a life of her own amid the snake-pit courts of the Sun King and the Merry Monarch make for lively, entertaining reading in this lush Restoration novel by debut author Marci Jefferson."
—Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of MISTRESS OF ROME

"Girl on the Golden Coin is a fantastic novel. I couldn’t put it down. The plot is fast-paced and compelling, with intriguing characters, lush settings and captivating narrative voice. Jefferson’s debut paints an intriguing portrait of Frances Stuart, a novel worthy of the determined, golden spirit of the woman whose face became the model for Britannia herself."
—Susan Spann, author of CLAWS OF THE CAT

“Girl on the Golden Coin is a sexy, exciting tale featuring vivid characters, rich historical detail, scintillating court intrigue, and a complexly rendered heroine in Frances Stuart, Maid of Honor to the Queen of England, who will capture the reader’s heart -- as will the man she loves, that rascal King Charles II.”
-- Sherry Jones, author, FOUR SISTERS, ALL QUEENS

FIND IT HERE:
Barnes & Noble    
IndieBound
Amazon

Claws of the Cat: A Debut Novel

It is my great pleasure to be part of my friend and crit partner Susan Spann's incredible historical mystery debut, "Claws of the Cat".

Susan is a transactional attorney and former law school professor whose practice focuses on publishing law and business. Claws of the Cat, her debut shinobi mystery featuring ninja detective Hiro Hattori, released on July 16, 2013, from Minotaur Books (for more information visit her author page at Minotaur). Susan has a deep interest in Asian culture and has studied Mandarin and Japanese. Her hobbies include Asian cooking, fencing, traditional archery, martial arts, rock climbing, and horseback riding, and she keeps a marine aquarium where she raises seahorses and rare corals. You can find Susan online at http://www.susanspann.com, or on Twitter @SusanSpann.

Please welcome Susan to Once in a Blue Muse as she talks about the drop-dead-gorgeous cover for "Claws of the Cat."

Cover art can make or break a novel, but for the traditionally published author, this critical facet of the work is often totally out of the author’s control.

Sometimes, that results in a horror story complete with tears and terror. In my case, it resulted in an unexpected gift.

When I signed my contract with Minotaur, I accepted that the cover art was out of my control and I made a decision. Whatever my cover looked like, I would love it.

I told myself so over and over … “you’ll love the cover, you’ll love it, whatever it looks like,” and yet, some fear remained. My editor, Toni Kirkpatrick, “got” the book from the very beginning, which helped my fear a little. An editor who understands your vibe will direct the art department in vital ways.

Still, I didn’t know, and lack of knowledge always leads to fear.

Cover art sells books—and doesn’t sell others—especially now, when online traffic makes up a large percentage of overall sales. A cover needs to look good in a thumbnail size as well as on the front of a physical book.

Good cover art, like good novels, features motion, tension, and intrigue. A reader looking at the cover must want to know more about what’s inside. The issue, of course, is finding art which can draw the reader across all platforms, electronic and mobile as well as physical. Readers who can’t understand or relate to the image in thumbnail often pass on a book they might pick up in a store. That means lost sales—a thing no author, regardless of platform, can ignore.

A second important aspect of covers relates to their place in a series. My debut novel Claws of the Cat, is the first in a mystery series featuring ninja detective Hiro Hattori and his Portuguese Jesuit sidekick, Father Mateo. Series covers usually feature a common style, and if that initial cover “jumps the shark,” the series may soon follow. Subsequent covers might improve, but the first one sets the tone for the ones to follow.

Minotaur bought my book almost a year before I saw the final cover. That’s a long time to wait for important news. And when I finally saw the cover, I actually cried.

I was one of the lucky ones. I loved my cover immediately and completely, and not only because it represented the book so perfectly.

It represented something far more important—and something that neither my editor nor the cover designer knew.

My father died six months before I started writing Claws of the Cat. He knew about my passion for writing, but did not live to see my work in print. He loved mystery novels, and history, and would have adored the bantering friendship that Hiro and Father Mateo share. It’s bittersweet that he couldn’t share my success.

But in addition to books, my father loved orchids--cymbidium orchids, to be exact. And of the cymbidium orchids, the ones my father loved the most were green ones with reddish-brown spots at the center … exactly like the ones which appear on the cover of CLAWS OF THE CAT.

Orchids which didn’t appear in the concept sketch my publisher sent me, and which I had no idea would appear on the final cover. It was those orchids that made me cry. Because, although my father cannot be here to help me celebrate the launch of the book this week, the all-important cover reflects his spirit, giving it an extra, secret meaning just for me.

And now, you know the story too.

I love my cover because it fits the book and draws the eye. I love it because my publisher understood the importance of images that translate into thumbnails. But most of all, I love it because it reminds me that the people we love are always with us to share our joy, even when we cannot see them there.

Lisa again, here: Not only is the cover beautiful,  but so is Susan's writing. You can find "Claws of the Cat" at all the usual places: Amazon, Indiebound, and Barnes & Noble.

Cover Reveal: Heather Webb's Becoming Josephine

In my last post, I talked about the #SFWG, one of my wonderful writing communities.

Well, Heather Webb is the 'fearless leader' of #SFWG and her debut novel will be published in December of 2013. I am absolutely thrilled to help her reveal her amazing cover to the world for her historical novel BECOMING JOSEPHINE.

In addition to being a wonderful and gracious person, Heather is also a skilled and talented writer. If you are a lover of historical fiction, I highly recommend BECOMING JOSEPHINE. 

BECOMING JOSEPHINE is Heather Webb’s debut historical about Napoleon’s empress, a woman in search of eternal love and stability, and ultimately her search for self. It releases December 31, 2013 from Plume/Penguin. Stop by her blog Between the Sheets and leave a comment for a chance to win a $20 gift card to Barnes & Noble or a $20 gift card to Amazon. Pre-order her novel (present a receipt) and win a Josephine hand mirror with a velvet bag.

PRE-ORDER

Barnes & Noble, IndieBound, or Amazon

ABOUT THE BOOK

Rose Tascher sails from her Martinique plantation to Paris to trade her Creole black magic culture for love and adventure. She arrives exultant to follow her dreams of attending Court with Alexandre, her elegant aristocrat and soldier husband. But Alexandre dashes her hopes and abandons her amid the tumult of the French Revolution. 

Through her savoir faire, Rose secures her footing in high society, reveling in handsome men and glitzy balls—until the heads of her friends begin to roll. 

After narrowly escaping death in the blood-drenched cells of Les Carmes prison, she reinvents herself as Josephine, a socialite of status and power. Yet her youth is fading, and Josephine must choose between a precarious independence and the love of an awkward suitor. Little does she know, he would become the most powerful man of his century—Napoleon Bonaparte. 

BECOMING JOSEPHINE is a novel of one woman’s journey to find eternal love and stability, and ultimately to find herself.

ADVANCE PRAISE

Becoming Josephine has already been featured in a Wall Street Journal piece on the popularity

of historical fiction featuring the wives of famous men.

“Heather Webb’s epic novel captivates from its opening in a turbulent plantation society in the Caribbean, to the dramatic rise of one of France’s most fascinating women: Josephine Bonaparte. Perfectly balancing history and story, character and setting, detail and pathos, Becoming Josephine marks a debut as bewitching as its protagonist." —Erika Robuck, author of HEMINGWAY'S GIRL

“With vivid characters and rich historical detail, Heather Webb has portrayed in Josephine a true heroine of great heart, admirable strength, and inspiring courage whose quest is that of women everywhere: to find, and claim, oneself.” —Sherry Jones, bestselling author of THE JEWEL OF THE MEDINA

“Josephine's warmth and complexity comes to vibrant life in this fascinating novel rich with vivid historical detail."—Teresa Grant, Author of THE PARIS AFFAIR

"Vivid and passionate, Becoming Josephine captures the fiery spirit of the woman who stole Napoleon’s heart and enchanted an empire. —Susan Spann, author of THE SHINOBI MYSTERIES

“A fast-paced, riveting journey, Becoming Josephine captures the volatile mood of one of the most intense periods of history—libertine France, Caribbean slave revolts, the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars—from the point of a view of one of its key witnesses, Josephine Bonaparte.” —Dana Gynther, author of CROSSING ON THE PARIS

“Spellbinding . . . Heather Webb’s novel takes us behind the mask of the Josephine we thought we knew.” —Christy English, author of HOW TO TAME A WILLFUL WIFE and TO BE QUEEN

“Enchanting prose takes the reader on an unforgettable journey . . . Captivating young Rose springs from the lush beauty of her family's sugar plantation in Martinique to shine in the eighteenth century elegance of Parisian salon society. When France is torn by revolution, not even the blood-bathed terror of imprisonment can break her spirit.” —Marci Jefferson, author of GIRL ON THE GOLDEN COIN, Thomas Dunne Books, 2014

Community Ties

This morning, I completed a whole novel critique for one of the members of a small writing/support group I belong to on Facebook (shoutout to the lovely ladies of the #SFWG!) and it occurred to me what a wonderful opportunity the internet has given me.

I'm currently part of several writing communities, some virtual, some physical, and all important to my development as a writer.

For many, many years, I was an active moderator at Wild Poetry Forum. I found WPF when I was the young mother of 2, working full time, and trying to write something--anything--in the margins of my life. I had no flexibility to look for a local writing group and having access to a community of poets from across the globe and a place to post work for review meant I could participate in the time I could carve from my crazy life.

When I started to work on novel-length fiction, I stumbled into Forward Motion for Writers and quickly found a critique group there. It lasted for several years and I am still in contact with many of the members of the group. In fact, the artist (Jade Zivanovic) who designed and created the cover for THE BETWEEN was originally a member of that writing group. She is from Australia. I live in the US. Without FMWriters, I would never have had the great good fortune to work with her.

Another one of my communities emerged from a local workshop I took about 6 years ago. The Ultimate Science Fiction Writing Workshop introduced me to a group of local writers and after the formal workshop was over, we've stayed in touch using a combination of real-life meetups and an internet message board. In fact, it is from that group that the PEN-ULTIMATE anthology emerged from.

The #SFWG is a small community of writers--most of whom write historical fiction, though they let me play in their sandbox. :) #SFWG (and what it stands for is a secret!) is as much a private space to gripe, a place to share sorrows and triumphs, as it is a critique group. The wonderful ladies who make up this group know how much I appreciate their support this past year.

Another kind of community is what I call my 'water cooler': Google Plus. Over the past 2 years, I have grown to really appreciate the ability to hang out and talk 'shop' with a community of writers and artists there. When you work from home, alone, but for the company of two shelter dogs, it becomes crucial to have other folks to talk to.

I feel extremely fortunate to very literally have the world at my fingertips. Writing can be a very lonely endeavor. My myriad communities make my life so much more vibrant.

Today's blogpost is part of FMWriter's Merry-Go-Round Blog tour. To see what dozens of other writers from one of my communities have to say about their communities, this month's topic, check out the blog tour hub.