Well, have you? Swan Upping is the traditional census-taking of Mute Swans on the River Thames, wherein swans are rounded up, checked for bands or banded, and released. The king or queen of England, by ancient law and custom dating … Continue reading
I am an avid collector–and reader–of nineteenth century media. Give me an 1816 La Belle Assemblée or an 1810 Ackermann’s Repository of the Arts and Sciences, and I’ll be happy for hours: though the serialized fiction featured in them can be … Continue reading
One of the joys of leafing through the 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, a marvelous compendium of early 19th century British slang, is running across expressions and figures of speech still in use today that you would never guess were … Continue reading
So here we all still are, still largely in we-ain’t-going-anywhere-just-yet mode (aside from the guys who apparently think that wielding an assault rifle on the steps of their state’s Capitol will somehow get them a haircut by a disposable barber … Continue reading
One of the joys of writing historical fantasy is mining the past for tidbits and obscure events on which to hang a story…and one of the best places to do that is the wealth of magazines and other periodicals that … Continue reading
Tomorrow is November 5. This is one of those statements that look simple but contain multiplicities of meaning. I asked friends on Facebook what they thought of the date and I was fascinated by how many ways there were of … Continue reading
I’ve lived in the Mid-Atlantic region all my life, and somehow have never done anything in Richmond but pass through it on my way to somewhere else. But I knew I ought to visit. The city was the capital of … Continue reading
I simply cannot resist a grim Victorian prison. And fortunately I was able to score tickets to tour Kilmainham Gaol Museum in Dublin. This grim stone pile was built in 1796 and extensively refurbished to the latest fashions in Victorian … Continue reading
I just got back from a business trip to Washington DC, making use of the usual travel options of planes, trains and automobiles. During this trip—one of many occuring annually in May—I did not avail myself of the subway train, … Continue reading
This conversation originally appeared earlier this year on the History Girls, a most informative blog run by writers of historical fiction. Talking history in a writer’s fiction… with the writer Brenda Clough, by Gillian Polack Because so many readers enjoyed … Continue reading
