Man Candy Monday: Jed Hill

Happy Monday ;)

Politics in Art

"All art is political, otherwise it would just be decoration.

And all artists have something to say, otherwise they'd make shoes..."

--Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford in Anonymous

While watching Anonymous with my parents the other night, this quote really stuck out to me. If you haven't seen the movie, it's all about the theory that Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford wrote Shakespeare's plays. He hires a relatively unknown playwright Ben Jonson (who would later become famous in his own right), to claim the plays as his own. However, through a series of unfortunate events, an illiterate actor named William Shakespeare takes credit for the work and begins to blackmail Edward De Vere.

Now, the majority of the plot focuses on Edward's desire to inspire people with his words, especially in a political sense. At the time, Queen Elizabeth I was dying without an heir, leaving England, Wales, and Ireland without a monarch. The most obvious choice was King James VI of Scotland, a protestant. However, in the movie, they claim that Elizabeth had numerous bastards and that one of them should become the next ruler, not some backward Scottish king.

With this aim in mind, Edward attempts to sway the populace with his words, trying to prove once and for all that the pen is mightier than the sword.  

I won’t ruin the ending for all of you, so I’ll stop there. However, it really made me think about how powerful words are. As a medieval romance writer, very little of what I write is about modern politics. And yet, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I am trying to send a message to my readers. Aside from the typical meaning of love and romance, I suppose I’m also trying to prove that the romance genre is a real form of literature. For the most part, it isn’t trash.  I’ve known college graduates who majored in history and English who struggled to read a romance novel due to the large, unfamiliar vocabulary.

As well, a lot of the historical novels require a lot of research to make sure they are accurate. Off the top of my head, Monica McCarty and Gaelen Foley have some of the most in depth historical romance books I have ever read. Each detail is meticulously researched before it is included in the story. Although the reader is simply reading the book and enjoying the romance, they are also learning European history in a way that is not taught in the classroom.

Having minored in history myself, I can tell you that professors do not teach you about the little things that really make a book successful. They don’t tell you who or what the ton is, nor do they generally mention the Regency era at all! In school, the lifestyle of the upper class throughout history is rarely discussed accurately, except to say that women were oppressed and white men controlled everything.  Unless you are in a very specific Scottish history class, they don’t teach you what a cotun is, or what a claymore is. They don’t discuss who or what a laird is, or what clan life was really like.

And yet, in the romance genre, each of these terms or concepts is seen as quite basic. Most romance readers would be able to define or discuss any of the above with little to no thought beforehand.

To be fair, many romance books have also contained historical inaccuracies. If one author makes a mistake and claims something was one way, it can sometimes be passed on through that subgenre as other writers copy the supposed “fact” and put it in their own books.  Nowadays, however, this is less and less likely to occur as research has become much easier and the publishing industry demands strict adherence to historical facts.

Either way, I write romance because I love it. I adore the dashing heroes and the fascinating women who capture their hearts. It might not be a literary genre that is respected or studied in university, but it is a powerful genre nonetheless.  As Edward De Vere put it, all art is political; it is up to you as the artist to decide what you wish to convey in your work.

*Side note: Anonymous is an amazing movie. If you love the Elizabethan era, you should definitely check it out!*

Man Candy Monday: Chris Pine

Look at those blue eyes! Gah, lovely!

Happy Monday!

Inspirational Music

Jane Seymour's Theme on

The Tudors Season Three Soundtrack

I often listen to music while I write, and the four Tudors soundtracks are some of my favourites. This song is quite lovely, so I thought I'd share it with you =)

Man Candy Monday: Paul Marron

Okay, so this Man Candy Monday is a little bit special. Instead of finding the hottest actor out there, I decided to give a treat to every romance writer out there who knows her cover models ;)  A few years ago, Nathan Kamp was the "it" guy, but he's gotten a little too old to be gracing the covers of hot romance. However, there's new blood now--boy is there ever. For those who have never "met" him before, here is Paul Marron! Of all the romance models out there, I believe Paul is my absolute favourite.

He has been on dozens of romance covers-- and those are just the ones I can name off the top of my head! I could only include so many pictures, so if you're curious, just google him.  He is, of course, the lovely man playing Lothaire for Kresley Cole's newest Immortals After Dark book, Lothaire.  Enjoy!

Happy Monday ;)

New Facebook

Okay, so after my post on Friday, I decided to switch over my profile to a public one! I'm still in the process of moving everyone over (Facebook only lets me do a few at a time), but I will eventually get everyone moved. However, if I haven't added you yet and you're getting antsy that you might be forgotten, you can add me here or you can click on the Facebook button in my sidebar =)

Thank you to everyone who chimed in on Friday!

Facebook Page or Facebook Profile?

Okay, so for the past few weeks, I've been contemplating making the jump from a public profile to a private one. Although I still have the usual security settings so someone can't just stalk me, I generally accept most friend requests from writers or other publishing professionals. However, as my wedding draws nearer, I've come to the realization that I don't want all of my personal pictures plastered for all and sundry to see. While they are never inappropriate, I just don't want everyone to see them. I'd like to be able to pick and choose which pictures the public can access.

Which brings me to the point of today's post.  After doing a bit of research, I found out that it is against Facebook policy to have two accounts--regardless if one is under a pseudonym and the other is your real name. Therefore, that reduces the number of options I have. I can keep my profile the way it is and just not post pictures, or I can make it private and lose the Facebook connection with writers.

However, there is one other option. I could always create a Facebook page. It's not as interactive, in my opinion, but it would still give me the web presence I want.  Now, my question for you is... Do you think a pre-published writer should have a Facebook page? I've heard on a few forums that it's arrogant and "jumping the gun," but I'm not sure I agree. So I want your opinion on the matter!

Do you think it's okay for a pre-published writer to have a Facebook page instead of a Facebook profile? Why or why not?  Do you have any other suggestions for me that could help me with this predicament?