Monthly Archives: March 2010

Where Are the Older Heroines?

Posted on March 31, 2010 by Victoria Janssen

Where are the older heroines in romance novels? Not there. Not often. Not that I’ve seen. And by older I only mean, like, getting close to forty. It seems to be okay for romance heroes to be forty or above … Continue reading →

Posted in genre, romance novels | 21 Comments

Underclothes in World War One

Posted on March 30, 2010 by Victoria Janssen

Cunningham, C. Willett and Phillis. The History of Underclothes. London: Faber & Faber Ltd., revised ed. 1981. p. 141 by the end of WWI, women’s lingerie was called “undies.” p. 142 for men: united garments cover to the wrists and … Continue reading →

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Dissonant Details

Posted on March 29, 2010 by Victoria Janssen

The ultimate goal of sharing one’s writing is for the reader to “get” what you’ve written. Seen from that point of view, what you’ve written is less important than how the reader interprets it. So it’s important to try and … Continue reading →

Posted in writing craft | 5 Comments

Three Tommies

Posted on March 28, 2010 by Victoria Janssen

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Ivor Gurney, "The Bohemians"

Posted on March 27, 2010 by Victoria Janssen

The Bohemians Certain people would not clean their buttons,Nor polish buckles after latest fashions,Preferred their hair long, putties comfortable,Barely escaping hanging, indeed hardly able;In Bridge and smoking without army cautionsSpending hours that sped like evil for quickness,(While others burnished brasses, … Continue reading →

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American Memory Film Collection

Posted on March 26, 2010 by Victoria Janssen

American Memory Film Collection at the Library of Congress.Click on the title of the topic that interests you, then click on “List the Film Titles” for the individual film. That link will give you a choice of mpeg, rm, or … Continue reading →

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A Weird Dislike

Posted on March 25, 2010 by Victoria Janssen

It’s very weird and pointless, I know, but I have an aversion to the phrase multi-published. I understand what it means. It means you sold more than one story, or one book, and had it published. It’s usually used to … Continue reading →

Posted in writing | 9 Comments

Musings on Discovering/Implementing Theme in The Moonlight Mistress

Posted on March 24, 2010 by Victoria Janssen

Someone asked me fairly recently about how I use theme. For me, I might think about theme ahead of time, but it doesn’t really start to manifest until I’ve written a certain amount of the manuscript. Then I start realizing … Continue reading →

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Safer Sex in Erotica

Posted on March 23, 2010 by Victoria Janssen

Lisabet Sarai blogged on safer sex and erotic romance. For me, it depends on the story’s sub-genre. In a fantastical setting, I don’t usually mind if safer sex is not mentioned, because in science fiction or fantasy the issue can … Continue reading →

Posted in erotica | 12 Comments

Backwards Outlining

Posted on March 22, 2010 by Victoria Janssen

I did not come up with this on my own; I got it from Sarah Monette back in 2003. Backwards or reverse outlining is, essentially, seeing what you’ve already done. It’s an aid to structure, and it’s helped me more … Continue reading →

Posted in writing craft | 1 Comment