Dispatches

what I've been working on and some useful sources

Hola, fellow denizens of the rabbit hole. I’m still here, though I’ve been wandering in subterranean byways doing research for my next novel. But it is time to come up for air and tell you a bit about where I’ve been roaming.

Once again I am bucking the market to set a novel in 14^th-century England. I gave Progressive Era Seattle a shot, and have pushed around a number of interesting ideas for characters and plots, done LOTS of research at MOHAI (Seattle’s Museum of History and Industry), the Washington State Historical Society, and in the Special Collection on the Pacific Northwest at the University of Washington. My fellow Substackian Maya Rodale had been unfailingly supportive and generous in sharing references. (Check her out!) But, alas, nothing reached out and grabbed me by the throat. I’ll come back eventually, but for now, those gutsy medieval women have my attention.

In addition to what I learned working on my first novel about women brewers and village patriarchies, I have been inspired and informed by the stories of strong women pushing back shared by The 15^th Century Feminist here on Substack. Give her ‘Stack a look and you may find yourself as fascinated as I.

The new novel is based on a real case I read about on the Medieval Murder Maps site, which I’ve written about before. There you can find translations of the coroner’s records for York, London, and Oxford in the 14^th century, as well as inspiration. For understanding the tumultuous political context of the first quarter of the 1300s, I’ve been poring over biographies of the major players, including Alison Weir’s study of Isabella of France, Ian Mortimer’s history of Roger Mortimer, and Kathryn Warner’s recent biography of Edward II. Access to the stacks and electronic journals housed at the University of Washington has made my job easier, as has the internet, bless it. Nothing like coming up with a job for my main character that is historically accurate and would give her access to the nobility, doing a web search, and finding that it existed! There was even a guild with men and women members. Who knew?

Finally, a bit of news on the writing front. My first novel has garnered some interest from potential publishers, which has boosted my spirits, as has coming in second in the Pacific Northwest Writers’ Association upublished manuscript contest in September. My short story, Fire Season, came out at Stone’s Throw Magazine, and Anniversary Gifts won second place and a bit of cash in the fiction category of Write On The Sound’s short story contest. A busy time!

That’s it for now. I hope to post some interesting information gleaned in my subterranian searches soon. Watch this space! If you are a subscriber, thank you! If not, there’s a button around her somewhere…