tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post1601920937664389142..comments2024-03-12T21:24:23.240-04:00Comments on Emily Bryan Romance: The Makings of a Wall-BangerEmilyBryanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03542349086762747179noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-50610404730034658302010-09-21T18:48:33.268-04:002010-09-21T18:48:33.268-04:00Anonymous--Yes! You're right. There have been ...Anonymous--Yes! You're right. There have been rare instances when a title can pass to a daughter. If fact, I use that in my upcoming Mia Marlowe novella in IMPROPER GENTLEMEN. My hero's mother was a baroness in her own right. <br /><br />But there was no legal adoption until the mid 20th century in the UK.EmilyBryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03542349086762747179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-51613401938191487622010-09-21T16:12:54.075-04:002010-09-21T16:12:54.075-04:00I got to this article through a link on a link of ...I got to this article through a link on a link of a blog I follow, got here late, but found it interesting just the same. I just want to point out a few things. <br /><br />There is getting history wrong in things which physically would not be possible (potatoes in medieval Europe) and then there are things which do not seem likely but might have if you look deep enough ( corn in old world antiquity, if you look at what the word meant) . Sometimes things which can have an educated reader snort ( famous example, Heyer´s heroine called Tiffany for example) can actually be historically correct.<br /><br />I won´t address the adoption and name change, except to say I am less sure than you that it would have been impossible, I can think for example stepdaughters getting their name changed to stepfather´s has happened, and husband´s names changing to their wives names ( when money and titles and status are involved of course) but about the comments above about titles not being able to go through the female line, well, that is not an impossibility. You can not dismiss it as historical inaccuracy on its own because it MIGHT: Scottish, or very old titles, or titles with special conditions attached to them or even just randomly for sufficiently popular people. I think the first duke of Marlborough´s title went through his daughter? And in Pride and Prejudice, Mr Collins´ entailment, which does not make sense if one generalizes the "only through the male line".Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-66702555714705790802010-09-13T09:08:05.575-04:002010-09-13T09:08:05.575-04:00Lynne--I love your passion for historicity!Lynne--I love your passion for historicity!EmilyBryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03542349086762747179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-2319327690197705242010-09-13T08:51:57.119-04:002010-09-13T08:51:57.119-04:00I worship this post. You are so right, Emily!
You ...I worship this post. You are so right, Emily!<br />You don't have to notice the inaccuracies, or even know anything about the period to be dissatisfied with a book that contains them.<br />I've seen complaints about shallow characters, and things that don't "feel" right. If characters don't behave true to the period, then they just float in space, and they don't have the depth and vitality that comes from a complete understanding of the times, or as complete as the author can make it.<br />I've never completely understood an author who wants to write a historical, but hates doing research. For many historical novelists, the research comes first. They wrote the books because they discovered something intriguing about the period, something they wanted to explore. unless it was (God forbid!) for the money.lynneconnollyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10687025766573756077noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-51347399414718178412010-09-09T20:59:46.147-04:002010-09-09T20:59:46.147-04:00Kate--So I'm assuming you understand Jo Beverl...Kate--So I'm assuming you understand Jo Beverley's hero demanding the other man's shoes. Definitely a class thing. <br /><br />But that's part of why I love historicals. It's a chance to see how people lived and thought and interacted in another age and society. If an author wants to make up the details, I'd suggest writing fantasy.EmilyBryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03542349086762747179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-38538166270390800012010-09-09T20:56:55.484-04:002010-09-09T20:56:55.484-04:00Yikes, Nynke! I guess I need a keeper. I'm pla...Yikes, Nynke! I guess I need a keeper. I'm plagued with typos today.EmilyBryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03542349086762747179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-40960546715168292502010-09-09T12:24:24.569-04:002010-09-09T12:24:24.569-04:00I'm originally from the UK and I have a master...I'm originally from the UK and I have a masters in history and sometimes I get fed up when authors say 'but I want it to be that way so I'm writing like that'-regardless of the time period, the social morals etc etc. <br />I'd quite like the British to have won the War of Independence, but I'm not going to write it that way because, well, it would be wrong (I'm joking here)<br /><br />Class, particularly is very hard for people who live in a less class-ridden society to understand.<br /><br />If something pulls me right out of the story I do find it very hard to trust the author again.Kate Pearcehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16093325179155794600noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-62622354969103909932010-09-09T11:59:21.134-04:002010-09-09T11:59:21.134-04:00Historical inaccuracies do glare, and they can pul...Historical inaccuracies do glare, and they can pull me out of my suspension of disbelief for a while, but if the story is otherwise good, I usually let myself be pulled back in.<br /><br />Novels that I put down never to pick them up again usually have wooden characters and/or ditto dialogue, and plots that are so generic they can't compensate for that. Basically, I'm with Mary Anne and Louisa there.<br /><br />When there's a factual error, I often try to come up with valid explanations for them - in the case of Saranna's 'conversate' example, I'd say it's the kind of mistake that people in real life will make every now and then, and that was probably true in the 19th century, too. Of course, that's not a *really* good way of suspending my disbelief, and I didn't even have strong associations with the word to begin with!<br /><br />And there's another typo in your blog, Emily - 'Ms. NTTimes' caused me some puzzlement when I was scrolling through the text from bottom to top! Maybe using a spellchecker could help? (That said, I hope there's no typos in this comment - I did reread everything at least once!)Nynkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08810044360681034104noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-42464705903492271482010-09-09T06:33:23.556-04:002010-09-09T06:33:23.556-04:00Saranna--Well, that explains it. If "conversa...Saranna--Well, that explains it. If "conversate" comes from popular culture it's no wonder I'm ignorant of it. I'm pretty stupid when it comes to things post-1900.EmilyBryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03542349086762747179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-36918524223740603322010-09-09T06:30:31.914-04:002010-09-09T06:30:31.914-04:00Louisa--Agreed on the "give me a new twist&qu...Louisa--Agreed on the "give me a new twist" demand. Depending on who you ask there are only 7 or 20 or 31 stories in the world. The trick for authors is to scramble up these elements in a fresh way. How many times has Cinderella been retold with brilliant success? And plodding failure.EmilyBryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03542349086762747179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-31197102568039264902010-09-09T01:07:42.080-04:002010-09-09T01:07:42.080-04:00"Sometimes we pick things up without knowing ..."Sometimes we pick things up without knowing where they've been."<br /><br />Hehehee. Too true.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17774647553760700746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-6605069481441825792010-09-09T01:05:41.201-04:002010-09-09T01:05:41.201-04:00"Conversate" is a word that's kind o..."Conversate" is a word that's kind of like "anyways". <br /><br />Merriam Webster Online has added it, but it is not correct. It doesn't mean anything bad, but it's not something you can do because you may converse or you may have a conversation, but you may not conversate. <br /><br />It made its appearance in the language in the 70's, but more recently it has gained popularity through rap and MTV culture.<br /><br />Example:<br /><br />"Hey hooker, lemme conversate which you."<br /><br />Or<br /><br />"Sarge, I got to conversate at you for a minute."Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17774647553760700746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-60561106642377284202010-09-08T21:06:06.876-04:002010-09-08T21:06:06.876-04:00I do tend to have expectations of my favorite auth...I do tend to have expectations of my favorite authors when it comes to historical accuracy and errors in that area can definitely pull me out of the story. <br /><br />But for me, heroes or heroines who are cookie cutters or who do things that are a complete anathema either to their times or the character an author has established for them will make me close the book. <br /><br />I am smart enough to know that there are not endless scenarios from which to choose for historical romances. So if an author chooses something that has been done before I don't condemn them out of hand. However, I DO expect a unique twist or treatment of said scenario to keep me reading. <br /><br />And using the same device over and over again in the same story WILL make me scare my dogs by throwing the book against the wall.Louisa Cornellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12971924594129471055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-79896005536720428012010-09-08T19:14:26.415-04:002010-09-08T19:14:26.415-04:00Saranna--I've never heard of conversate before...Saranna--I've never heard of conversate before. Does it mean something bad? <br /><br />I wonder if the author knew of its prison roots. Sometimes we pick things up without knowing where they've been.EmilyBryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03542349086762747179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-66275994391960589712010-09-08T16:10:57.194-04:002010-09-08T16:10:57.194-04:00All of Nicholas Sparks books are wall bangers for ...All of Nicholas Sparks books are wall bangers for me because of what he said about "not writing trashy romance like Shakespeare" and how he had no peers. *snort* Anyway...<br /><br />There are two books in which I've chucked at the wall and stomped on. One, I was even tempted to light on fire, but I restrained myself.<br /><br />The first one was when an author killed of the hero of a previous book in the series. I didn't read anything else by her for ten years. Ten! <br /><br />The second time was more recent and the lighting on fire urge was because I'd been so heavily invested in her series. I loved all of her characters, it was a rich world with beautiful language until the hero said to the heroine he wanted to "conversate".<br /><br />Oh, I cussed and I spit and threw things. Not only because I hate that word more than an ingrown toenail, but because it killed any good thoughts I had about the hero. "Conversate" is prison slang, therefore in my head, the hero became an inmate. I finished the book, but I was all startled and kept waiting for the next bomb. Also, I lost all sympathy I had for the hero and then when he exhibited other inmate behaviors like drug use... I found I didn't care anything about him or his story. A sad culmination to the years I'd invested with this author.<br /><br />And over one word. I know it might be kind of silly, but that's how my brain works.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17774647553760700746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-36373449293057827542010-09-08T13:05:32.949-04:002010-09-08T13:05:32.949-04:00Karen--I don't pretend to know everything abou...Karen--I don't pretend to know everything about succession, but I do know that very rarely a woman may hold a title in her own right. In which case, it should pass to her direct descendant, not her nephew. But in the case you describe, if the viscount had no brothers, I believe the title would go back a generation and then down the nearest male line.<br /><br />I think you're like me. You're looking for the next mole now.EmilyBryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03542349086762747179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-28180727434241022082010-09-08T13:00:39.457-04:002010-09-08T13:00:39.457-04:00Mary Ann--And one could even say it was an author&...Mary Ann--And one could even say it was an author's duty to help provide a job for a copy editor, couldn't one?EmilyBryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03542349086762747179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-83778765329268920692010-09-08T12:51:10.703-04:002010-09-08T12:51:10.703-04:00I do get annoyed with historical inaccuracies, but...I do get annoyed with historical inaccuracies, but some bother me more than others. At the moment, the one that has annoyed me is in a historical mystery. It's set in the 1880s but it's inaccuracy is one that drives me nuts. The main character is a lady whose husband, a viscount, dies. The author has the title passing to the husband's nephew--through the viscount's sister. All but impossible. Except in rare circumstances, titles don't pass through the female line. The funny thing is, this isn't a plot point at all, it's just an aside. But the inaccuracy grates on me and makes me wonder what other research the author got wrong.Karennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-75064605507303250302010-09-08T12:44:07.404-04:002010-09-08T12:44:07.404-04:00PS: As for cataching typos and bad grammar---well...PS: As for cataching typos and bad grammar---well, isn't that what copy editors are for?Mary Anne Landershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01846610621610508819noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-68036758775902591522010-09-08T12:44:02.018-04:002010-09-08T12:44:02.018-04:00Mary Ann--The characters, situation and story are ...Mary Ann--The characters, situation and story are why I continued to read Ms. NYTimes' book. I just expected a bit more from her. <br /><br />But expectations are everything. I guess that's why we don't all like the same thing. <br /><br />Good thing, too. Otherwise you'd all be after my DH! ;-)EmilyBryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03542349086762747179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-27189467804531599282010-09-08T12:39:53.665-04:002010-09-08T12:39:53.665-04:00Thanks for your post, Emily. I dig the new look o...Thanks for your post, Emily. I dig the new look on your website, especially the chick in the mask.<br /><br />To me, historical inaccuracies are only a minor annoyance. Perhaps that has to do with my expectations. I don't read historical fiction expecting to find a 100% accurate picture of the past. I expect interesting characters, intriguing situations, and a gripping story.<br /><br />What makes me want to throw a book against the wall? When it lacks one of the aforementioned three elements. And when it lacks one, it almost always lacks all of them.<br /><br />Keep up the good work!Mary Anne Landershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01846610621610508819noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-74035887755774446072010-09-08T12:37:00.483-04:002010-09-08T12:37:00.483-04:00Point taken, Anonymous. I found two bad little apo...Point taken, Anonymous. I found two bad little apostrophes in my original post and fixed them. There may well be more. <br /><br />When I'm writing, the words come fast and furious and sometimes, I need a bit of distance to catch grammatical and spelling errors. I know what I meant to say, so my eye sees that. When I have a manuscript to turn in, I try to give it at least a week's rest, so the words are fresh enough for me to read them as new. There's never enough time before a blog post! ;-)EmilyBryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03542349086762747179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3217012316587200736.post-62331946084209782282010-09-08T11:15:43.399-04:002010-09-08T11:15:43.399-04:00I agree that historical inaccuracies are extremely...I agree that historical inaccuracies are extremely annoying, and many NYT writers have obvious howlers in their books.<br /><br />That said, you may want to fix the typos in your post. A hint: watch your apostrophes. :-)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com