tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post2700952042798583315..comments2024-03-28T21:31:13.672-04:00Comments on Jungle Red Writers: The Way It WasJungle Red Writershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16646429819267618412noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-4807163706967011882017-03-14T11:36:13.244-04:002017-03-14T11:36:13.244-04:00Rhys, I always enjoyed reading your historical fic...Rhys, I always enjoyed reading your historical fiction novels. I feel as if I stepped into a time machine and travelled back to that place in history when I read your books. If there are historical mistakes, then I wonder if it is the author's way of using poetic license for the stake of the story?<br /><br />Interesting about comments about train timetables. I used to be a nitpicker about facts like the birthdate of Princess Margaret Rose in one of the novels. I decided to forget about the "facts" and enjoy the book. <br /><br />When I had to read "dry" history books for my University history classes, I also read historical fiction by Jean Plaidy. That was how I found out about Margaret Tudor, who married the King of Scotland then Charles Brandon. <br /><br />bib-li-o-philehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00622118991020988370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-77311487548538926742017-03-14T11:29:19.673-04:002017-03-14T11:29:19.673-04:00Coralee, I am a former nit-picker too. There was ...Coralee, I am a former nit-picker too. There was a historical fiction that mentioned that Princess Margaret Rose was born in 1932, when I knew that she was born in 1930. Other than that, the book was great. So I was willing to overlook that little fact.<br /><br />Jungle Red Writers - the author's note is much appreciated!bib-li-o-philehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00622118991020988370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-70177865498215253272017-03-14T11:25:31.418-04:002017-03-14T11:25:31.418-04:00I feel as if I was in a time machine, travelling b...I feel as if I was in a time machine, travelling back to that time in history whenever I read a historical fiction by the author.bib-li-o-philehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00622118991020988370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-52397403232591709862017-03-14T11:24:24.840-04:002017-03-14T11:24:24.840-04:00So fun to learn how research work is.So fun to learn how research work is.bib-li-o-philehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00622118991020988370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-8032967965649605452017-03-14T11:22:41.773-04:002017-03-14T11:22:41.773-04:00Grace, you would love Farleigh Field. I loved it!...Grace, you would love Farleigh Field. I loved it!bib-li-o-philehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00622118991020988370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-40546385003603871302017-03-14T11:22:04.841-04:002017-03-14T11:22:04.841-04:00Lucy, that must have been fun playing with LPGA go...Lucy, that must have been fun playing with LPGA golfers!bib-li-o-philehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00622118991020988370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-18139317962015730542017-03-14T11:21:17.003-04:002017-03-14T11:21:17.003-04:00Edith, I was impressed by the Quaker Midwife book....Edith, I was impressed by the Quaker Midwife book. I knew very little about the Quakers. <br /><br /> My 3x great grandfather's sister married a Quaker in Indiana. Her husband was excommiunicated (sp?) by the Quakers for marrying someone who was NOT a Quaker. I was surprised to learn that because I thought the Quakers saw everyone as equals? bib-li-o-philehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00622118991020988370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-53223623900917578762017-03-14T11:18:32.713-04:002017-03-14T11:18:32.713-04:00true.true.bib-li-o-philehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00622118991020988370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-49854016415798568522017-03-12T21:42:12.372-04:002017-03-12T21:42:12.372-04:00I do, however, seem to recall weeks of agony over ...I do, however, seem to recall weeks of agony over research into when they put the lights on one of the bridges in London. You wanted to get it just right, and you did. You are a demon researcher when working on your own books--willing to take to the Thames in a racing shell with some guy you met in a bar--if necessary to get the sound, smell, and feel of rowing at dawn. It's part of what makes them special.Gigi Norwoodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00495357787099352860noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-56198104851892636262017-03-12T15:42:01.612-04:002017-03-12T15:42:01.612-04:00Some of the little details makes the story more re...Some of the little details makes the story more real. I think if the author knows certain flowers are blooming at this time and place, or that certain things are unavailable at the markets due to the season or to shortages, then I can trust he/she has done her research. Sounds and scents reported make me believe that the place is not unknown to the author, that he/she has visited to get the feel of a place. Pat Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12732230586783432052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-25054923875910756972017-03-12T15:33:28.353-04:002017-03-12T15:33:28.353-04:00Coralee, I think there is no ecuse for getting any...Coralee, I think there is no ecuse for getting anything wrong that can be looked up on the Internet. Occasionally the author has no way of knowing she doesn't know something. Street names in Paris change so often that it was hard to find out what St street was called in 1905. But the wrong station in London, the wrong form of address.. I'll put down the bookJungle Red Writershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16646429819267618412noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-39724643589590886482017-03-12T15:17:48.668-04:002017-03-12T15:17:48.668-04:00Looking forward to reading the book, so I enjoyed ...Looking forward to reading the book, so I enjoyed reading about the research behind it.<br /><br />janetAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-28942297268285160522017-03-12T15:07:13.248-04:002017-03-12T15:07:13.248-04:00I think it's a balance. Writing fiction should...I think it's a balance. Writing fiction should give some poetic license but then again you have to get the details right. I am really good at suspending my disbelief so I'm definitely not a stickler but if I hear a contemporary voice come out of a character in a story set in the past, well, they'd better be time traveling! Rhys, I love hearing about how you research your work - fascinating! Jenn McKinlayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03214926031147370862noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-67564685318375751732017-03-12T14:10:43.876-04:002017-03-12T14:10:43.876-04:00Rhys, you are always brilliant at creating an auth...Rhys, you are always brilliant at creating an authentic sense of time and place. I particularly loved the account of the earthquake and fire in San Francisco in A Time of Fog and Fire. It made it so real for me that even when I was there a few weeks ago, I kept thinking about the scenes from the book!<br /><br />I agree that details, whether writing historical fiction or contemporary fiction, are so important. I want to know how things sounded, and smelled, and how a piece of clothing felt. I only discovered that I loved history when I started reading historical novels:-)<br /><br />I am not, however, a stickler for things like the getting the train time right, unless it matters to the plot!Deborah Crombiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16988750789088153601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-57353732033125189422017-03-12T13:37:45.426-04:002017-03-12T13:37:45.426-04:00Rhys, one of the aspects that I so enjoyed about I...Rhys, one of the aspects that I so enjoyed about In Farleigh Field was the differences in the well-connected, upper class and the average citizen in their deprivations and their attitudes toward those deprivations. You did such a great job of taking us back to that time and place. I felt it.<br /><br />I'm not a stickler, where an occasional mistake will ruin my reading of historical fiction, but I like learning history through fictional tales, so I prefer and appreciate accuracy in the truly important details. When an author like you, Rhys, does the work, the reading and on-site research, it is much appreciated, and it shows in the writing. Kathy Reelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17004247271452356577noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-37616230839668765982017-03-12T12:51:12.398-04:002017-03-12T12:51:12.398-04:00Having lived in the Washington, DC area for forty ...Having lived in the Washington, DC area for forty years, I am very conscious of geographic errors in novels and movies -- but I wouldn't criticize an author or director for something like that. What makes the written word feel real is the atmosphere and the descriptions of food, clothing, furniture, etc. I love that you do this research and every bit contributes to your writing, whether or not you use a specific "fact." I can tell if there is depth to a writer's recreation time and place.<br /><br />This sounds like a great book. Denise Annhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02790883493798517829noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-11431902038949214822017-03-12T12:12:39.466-04:002017-03-12T12:12:39.466-04:00I plead guilty to being a former 'nit-picker&#...I plead guilty to being a former 'nit-picker' reader. I found it jarring especially when characters would travel from point to point without taking time zones, or travel time into account; taking 5 hours to go from Paris to Brisbane. I wondered if this is sloppy research, or sloppy editing; it got in the way of the reading experience.<br /><br />Once I gave up on assigning perfectionism to the reading experience, it became much more pleasant. Better to find enjoyment than fault.<br /><br /><br /><br /> <br /> Coralee Hickshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06691335135691119400noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-25717034593890806062017-03-12T12:00:03.663-04:002017-03-12T12:00:03.663-04:00Ingrid, one piece of annoying research was that I ...Ingrid, one piece of annoying research was that I wanted the German soy to be given away by a different aspect of his uniform. Alas that wasn't true so I had to improvise. Jungle Red Writershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16646429819267618412noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-23409012804865757392017-03-12T11:48:28.752-04:002017-03-12T11:48:28.752-04:00Rhys, how much did the research change the specifi...Rhys, how much did the research change the specifics of the plot? Did it give you a completely different direction to go in? Or did it torpedo something you had in mind?Ingrid Thofthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04063912686011336076noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-64117412440158908602017-03-12T11:33:19.004-04:002017-03-12T11:33:19.004-04:00DebRo, I would recognize them too! And Rhys, I th...DebRo, I would recognize them too! And Rhys, I think, has this serendipitously brilliant combination of real life experience with devoted research. There is such a moment between having read about something, and knowing something. And that's what is evident in a truly transporting book. <br /> I think the rhythm of the language is also important, not just the facts, it all has to be so seamless. It has to be sales, as well, and contemporary novels, you know? Depending on where you are and who was talking. And even a few years difference in the year makes a huge difference, for instance, whether someone is using a fax machine, or a Betamax! <br /> So when people say to me "how do you bang out a book a year?" I barely know how to answer… <br /> So Rhys, you have hit it out of the ballpark. Oops, I mean, what-- batted it out of the cricket…lawn ? Or wait, would that be a good thing? Hank Phillippi Ryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17420701704169428286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-79344498179368256682017-03-12T11:21:50.267-04:002017-03-12T11:21:50.267-04:00On year we took out daughter on a Disney Cruise fo...On year we took out daughter on a Disney Cruise for spring break. It was exceptionally hot in the Bahamas with the temperature reaching 100F at 10am. I had brought several books to read while my husband and daughter took a sightseeing boat ride (sadly, my daughter turned out to have the same kind of seasickness I do so neither enjoyed it much). I settled into the sand under a palm tree and umbrella with the sweating drink the Disney cast member had brought me and promptly cracked open Deanna Raybourn's Silent on the Moor. And there I proceeded to experience a cognitive dissonance so severe I had to put the book away. The contrast between the damp, windswept weather seeping into the clothing of the characters, the icy wind slapping into their faces and the sweat rolling down my back was too great.<br /><br />That's the kind of detail that you have to have been there to get right - just how the wind can bite into your skin - so the reader can take the trip too. Aimee Hixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06045158961269334826noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-69033422674322641322017-03-12T10:56:46.028-04:002017-03-12T10:56:46.028-04:00I always think the story will tell you what you ne...I always think the story will tell you what you need. You've done your research, you have lots of information at your fingertips, and you start writing. Then you 'reach' for a detail to put here, then one there, because the scene you are writing 'needs' that bit of detail. That kind of seamlessness is what sucks me into a book. I really hate it when the research is obvious. When the author is so proud of their work (and I know it's hard work!) that they assume the reader doesn't know anything or else they feel it necessary to mention that the 'x' was just invented and how much more convenient 'x' is than the old way of doing something. Very jarring. Then I put the book down, usually. And honestly, I think that kind of research and attention to detail is used in most good writing--even if you're writing about a place that is utterly familiar to you--you need to pay attention to details to create the atmosphere and setting you want.Flora Churchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13289148096894506235noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-40971644028077134512017-03-12T10:18:03.033-04:002017-03-12T10:18:03.033-04:00When I'm reading, and I look up, shocked to fi...When I'm reading, and I look up, shocked to find I'm in my living room or in the lunch room at work, I know the author has done an excellent job of transporting me to the era/location.<br /><br />I'm about halfway through In Farleigh Field. I have a clear picture in my head of the places, and am convinced I would recognize photos of them. Thank you, Rhys!<br /><br />Deb Romano Deb Romanohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01650858888197217258noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-30264231874885351922017-03-12T09:18:17.298-04:002017-03-12T09:18:17.298-04:00Rhys, I love to be transported and feel like I am ...Rhys, I love to be transported and feel like I am experiencing life as it was while reading in historical books. I understand it's a fine balance between doing enough research to get the setting and key details right (i.e. no horrendous bloopers for readers to find) and not overdoing it. Looking forward to reading Farleigh Field!Grace Koshidahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05934603958949938617noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1001156153899984046.post-1143651987322306492017-03-12T08:53:52.390-04:002017-03-12T08:53:52.390-04:00Wow. So great to hear how you do your background w...Wow. So great to hear how you do your background work. Now I *really* can't wait to read this book! Thank you. Amanda Le Rougetelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17975933690463168906noreply@blogger.com