Endings and Revivals in the Blog Department

December 16, 2018 Loretta Chase

Harry Willson Watrous, Just a Couple of Girls circa 1915, — Harry Willson Watrous, **Just a Couple of Girls** circa 1915,

As many of you are now aware, Susan Holloway Scott and I have decided to write “The End” on the Two Nerdy History Girls blog. The blog brought us many delights and benefits. Among other things, we got to meet virtually and in person a great many more history lovers than we ever dreamt was possible, made contact with historians and historical bloggers worldwide—many of whom welcomed us into their libraries, museums, and historic houses—and, of course, discovered tidbits we put to work in our books. But the blog also took time, and as the years passed, the demands of our main job—our novels—were increasing. Clearly, something had to give, if we wanted to give proper attention to our writing careers.

It feels good to get the time back, yet it’s sad, too, to say goodbye to a project that was so much fun for both of us, and whose support from readers was beyond what we’d ever imagined.

The good news is, you will get to see interesting and amusing, (I hope) historical nerdiness here, direct from my website, and more posts in general, though never enough to flood your inbox. As one who spends far too much time hitting the email Delete button, I am sensitive to this.

But while you may get Loretta Chase blog posts a little more often than before, I shall aim to offer more amusement as well as more substance. Along with new stuff, you can expect some enhanced editions of blogs from the 2NHG archives. I’ve done this occasionally in the past, and it gives me a chance to offer more pictures, among other things.

But mainly, one hopes, saying Goodbye to 2NHG means saying Hello to shorter times between my books.

Me & William Smith, the man whose map changed the world. His work was one of the inspirations for Miss Wonderful. — Me & William Smith, the man whose map changed the world. His work was one of the inspirations for *Miss Wonderful*.

Oh, and one more thing: Please consider this a fresh opportunity to ask some of those questions that arise when you’re reading my books. Like, What’s a ticket porter? How could an English couple get married in somebody’s house instead of in church? What on earth is a pelerine and why would anybody want to wear one? Why the lurcher? If your enquiring mind wants to know, please use the email form and send me your question.

Difficult Dukes #2 is Recovering from Its Sulks

November 26, 2018 Loretta Chase

Willems, Florent Joseph Marie, The Important Response 19th C.jpg

A few readers have contacted me recently, to ask about the second Difficult Dukes book. Those who subscribe to this blog may remember a plaintive post last spring, wherein I lamented the book’s refusal to cooperate with its author.

Matters did not improve.The Duke of Ashmont’s story did not proceed smoothly during the summer and early fall. Oh, I managed to write the first quarter of the book, and there were some good scenes, but something was off. I had no idea what it was, only that every new scene, instead of bubbling up naturally as a result of the scene before, had to be dug out in bits and pieces. And then it still looked ... off.

Here is the thing you learn after 30+ years’ writing professionally: When this kind of creative slowdown goes on for so long, something essential is wrong.

In my case, since what’s essential in my stories is character, it’s always the protagonists who are displeased with my take on their behavior. Unfortunately, they do not offer helpful suggestions or even clues. Instead, they sulk like the immature things they are (thanks to me) until I figure them out.

If I’d written them correctly in the first place, they would be mature and therefore would not sulk and everything would move along at a reasonable speed, always allowing for the periodic, “OK, what happens now?” And as to that, I do have a story arc in mind, but each scene needs to evolve naturally from what went on before. This means the specifics aren’t clear until I get there. And scenes don’t ring true if I don’t truly understand the characters, because the lack of understanding causes them to behave in ways that are not true to them.

Finally, after a series of consultations with my professional team—no, we couldn’t pinpoint the problem immediately; it took some work—we narrowed things down to the heroine. It finally became clear that she had two different personalities going at the same time, and one was wrong. No wonder she was furious with me.

I gave myself a dope slap, went back and revised all the scenes (yes, from page one) ... and lo and behold, the story came alive. At last. At any rate, the hero and heroine seem to have stopped hating me.

Behold me now, chastened, but with confidence restored. I shall do my very best to get this book finished in time for a 2019 publication date. Can’t promise that will happen, but it won’t be for lack of trying.

International Editions from Japan and Romania

October 3, 2018 Loretta Chase

One or two of my publishers abroad use the same covers as my U.S. editions. For the most part, however, the various publishers go their own way. Titles change, and the cover art shows a wide variety of aesthetics. Some covers are steamier than others. Some look more modern, some go for a period look, in an array of time periods. Though all my recent books have been set in the 1830s, cover heroes and heroines have been dressed in clothing from the 1700s to the present day. This is the case for my U.S. covers as well, where the clothing is more modern.

I provide as historically accurate a story as I can inside, but the cover needs to appeal to the majority of readers. Many people would not find the actual clothing of my chosen historical period even slightly attractive, let alone sexy. You probably have to be a major fashion history nerd to love it and what it tells us about people of the time. And not all fashion history nerds are crazy about it, either.

But that’s history nerds and the inside of the books. Publishers everywhere are out there to sell books, and international publishers see their job the same way my U.S. publishers do: What’s going to appeal to their readers?

Here we have the Japanese edition of Dukes Prefer Blondes, and the Romanian edition of Don’t Tempt Me.* For comparison, below are other international editions of these books.

*Special thanks to Cristina Radu, for sending the cover art for the Romanian edition of Don’t Tempt Me. Ms. Radu has translated this book as well as Not Quite a Lady and Scandal Wears Satin into Romanian.