The idea of climbing a mast appeals to me, though I probably wouldn't make it past the maintop...
Probably better that my character is the one doing this, not me. Heights! Eek!
Hat tip to gCaptain.
I love perusing other people's bookshelves. Don't you?
As a historical fiction writer, I spend much of my time doing research. Below is a sampling of the books currently sitting on my bookshelf. Have fun browsing!
Bulfinch's Boston, 1787-1817
by Harold and James Kirker
Oxford University Press, 1964
This book provides a charming, if somewhat biased, view into Federalist Boston through the lens of Charles Bulfinch, the famous Boston architect. Reading it, I feel as if I am walking the same streets as the characters of my story.
The Reshaping of Everyday Life, 1790-1840
(Everyday Life in America series)
by Jack Larkin
Harper & Row, 1988
Larkin covers nearly every aspect of early American daily life in this comprehensive social history.
The American Heritage History of the Making of the Nation, 1783-1860
Ralph K. Andrist, series editor
American Heritage/Bonanza Books, 1968
Coffee table books have their uses! A helpful historical survey.
Fashion: A History from the 18th to the 20th Century
The Collection of the Kyoto Costume Institute
Taschen
Another coffee table book, and gorgeous, too! The Kyoto collection is online, but nothing beats seeing large, glossy spreads and close-ups of historical fashions. All the details!
The American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Dressmaking
by Lauren Stowell and Abby Cox
Page Street Publishing, 2017
My main character is a mantua-maker (dressmaker). I am not. My story could not have been written without this book. I reference it constantly.
America and the Sea: A Maritime History
by Benjamin W. Labaree, et al
Mystic Seaport Museum
And my other main character is a merchant seaman. Another book I couldn't do without!
For the past several months I have clung to the idea that blogging is dead and that I have moved on. In an effort a few years ago to simplify and maintain privacy, I shut down my personal blog. And six months ago I laid my last blog, Real Housekeeping, to rest: twenty hours of work a week and a team of women promoting it couldn't save Real Housekeeping from stagnation.
People have moved on, I thought. There's no point to any of this anymore. Who wants to read one more thing from one more random website?
Then I read this and my perspective shifted. It's one of those posts: that which must be written because the story is a gift to the world.
This is why bloggers blog. I knew it as soon as I read the post.
Laura's many years of faithful writing laid the foundation for sharing a message of hope. She could not have anticipated what she would one day write, but when the day presented itself, the blog was there, waiting for her.
So who am I to say that blogging is dead?
All this to say, I'm back.