Checking In

It’s been a busy month, and the craziness shows no sign of letting up; exams are just around the corner.  I thought I should check in and let you all know how things are going: I have lots to report!

First, apologies are in order for still not having posted chapter six of Underground, when you read on and find out what else has been happening, I hope you’ll forgive me!  Hopefully I will have this posted before Christmas (though at this rate, who knows?)

Second, On October 31, I received word from the Canada’s IP Writing Challenge that a paper I had submitted last summer took first place in the student category.  “Where to Turn when Copyright Fails: Finding a Home for Folklore,” examines the difficulties inherent in trying to protect an oral culture with a law that demands the creations be “fixed” in some way, and argues that in the end the best solution is simply to let storytellers do what storytellers do best: protect folklore. 

Third, you may recall earlier this year that I posted about two of my short stories, “Your Eyes Only” and “Ancient Roots” appearing in The Lamp, a journal of creative writing for graduate and professional students.  On November 8, the Lamp, volume II, was launched at Queen’s University.  I attended the launch, and read an excerpt from "Your Eyes Only," which was very well-received.  The journal will be available for purchase at www.sgps.ca/thelamp if anyone is interested.  It's $10 Canadian, showcases a variety of work from a diverse group of authors, and would make a great Christmas present ;)

 Fourth, I heard back from the agent I spoke with last year at the Algonkian conference (the one who wanted to meet up and talk about a career in agenting), and I’m trying to arrange to get together over the Christmas holidays.  I’m very excited, and will definitely let you know how it goes.

Fifth, my ISP (individual study project) for my final year of law is well underway, and I’m looking forward to handing in the next section just before Christmas—and then enjoying a break with time to work on my novels—Underground (of course), Pencerdd (a prequel to The Harper’s Word), and The Harper’s Word (which is now in its sixth round of edits and going great)!

Finally, on Friday, I received an email from the Canadian Intellectual Property Review (CIPR), informing me that “Where to Turn when Copyright Fails: Finding a Home for Folklore,” will be appearing in the June 2013 issue of the journal.

That’s it for now J  I’d best get back to studying for exams—they’re coming up fast!  Wish me luck.  I’ll post again soon.

Updates All Around!

Two weeks ago, I had the opportunity to sit down with Craig Pyette, a Senior Editor at Knopf Canada (Randomhouse). Craig reviewed the first twenty pages of my short story collection, Beyond Reason, and provided feedback on it.  He mentioned some things that other editors who have read the book never noticed; for example, Craig suggested that the two main characters in the first story, being soldiers, should be grimmer than they currently are.  He also offered some grammatical suggestions on things I thought I’d fixed.  For example: “’Yes, of course,’ Gideon smiled”—it’s impossible to “smile a sentence.”  Aside from these two points, he questioned my research methods and the facts of the time period (seventeenth century), and was very interested in the information I had managed to unearth and include.  Craig praised my research and said that it made the writing richer and more believable.

 

Unfortunately, though, I’m beginning to feel that these one-on-ones (at least for Beyond Reason) are reaching a point where the only suggestions editors can offer are personal preferences, rather than actual constructive criticism.  I’m hesitant to make changes based on these comments, because agents or other editors might have their own vision of the text that conflicts with those changes.  I think my best bet at this point is to wait and see what the agent who currently has the first story (Sam Hiyate of The Rights Factory, who requested the first story at the Algonkian Conference I attended last year) has to say.  I recently received an email from him apologizing for not yet getting to my work, and encouraging me to keep writing in the meantime. 

 

As if I could stop writing! ;)  Between working for the Canadian Labour and Employment Law Journal, applying for a job as a student news writer, looking for articling positions, and trying to keep up with classwork, I’ve started the fourth round of edits on The Harper’s Word, and begun work on a prequel tentatively titled Pencerdd.  This new book has sent me looking for research material on everything from druidic rituals, to tracks up Mt. Snowdon (Thanks to Colin Antwis for his awesome tactile map of Snowdonia National Park!), to early medieval Iceland.  It promises to be an interesting write and, hopefully, an interesting read as well!

 

I haven’t forgotten Underground.  I spent a bit of time yesterday working on chapter six, and it’s very nearly finished.  I hope to have the first draft done this weekend.  After that, it’ll just be a matter of whether my usual editors have the time to skim through it.  Hopefully you will see “Too Hasty” before too long!  Check back soon for more details!

 

To learn more about any of the stories mentioned in this post, check out www.cmgbooks.com/3.html.

Long Time No Blog: Updates All Round

So, it’s been a while since I posted anything new.  I forgot how hectic the beginning of the school year can be, and this year’s start-up was complicated by the search for articling positions.  

 

An articling position is to law students what a residency is to medical students.  In order to practice law, we must complete 10 months of articling following the completion of our JD or LLB degrees.  These placements aren’t arranged by the school; we have to find them ourselves.  With the economy as it is, articling positions—especially for people like me who want to stay in a small town—aren’t as commonplace as they used to be.  Although I haven’t found a position yet, and will continue to be looking as the school year progresses, I’ve decided not to get too stressed out about it.  The worst thing that can happen is I get a year off to work exclusively on my writing … which actually wouldn’t be all that bad! ;)

 

Speaking of writing: in ten days, I will be meeting one-on-one with Craig Pyette, a senior editor at the Knopf Random Canada Publishing Group.  At this meeting, made possible by the Writers’ Community of Durham Region, Mr. Pyette will go over my query letter, synopsis, and the first twenty pages of Beyond Reason.  I’m very excited to see what he has to say, and will keep you posted.

 

Unfortunately, between prepping Beyond Reason, applying to articling positions, editing for the Canadian Labour and Employment Law Journal, and editing the Harper’s Word for the third time, Underground has been pushed to the back burner.  However, I have a few free days coming up due to class cancellations, and although I have to use some of that time to get caught up on my individual study project, I hope to finish up chapter 6 as well. 

 

Any suggestions on how to effectively split time between writing and work?  Snatching those ten minutes between class is semi-productive, but it isn't enough!  I'd love to hear your tips and tricks.

Poetry, Prose, Song, and Censorship: An Awesome Evening at Words of the Season

Last night, I had the pleasure to read at the Writers’ Community of Durham Region’s “Words of the Season in Poetry, Prose, and Song,” at Trinity Irish Pub and Restaurant in Whitby, Ontario. Despite slow (and expensive) service, and a bit of censorship (according to our MC, the management are puritans), we had a great evening.

I read an excerpt from chapter two of Underground, “A Gentleman’s Education.”  I have to admit, I was a little worried about reading a dissection scene after the management’s request for “no more references to bodily functions.”  Despite the perhaps not-so-supper-friendly subject matter, the piece was very well received.  To read “A Gentleman’s Education,” and other chapters from Underground, visit www.cmgbooks.com/5.html.

Thanks to everyone who turned out to read and be read to, and thanks to the organizers of the event for putting together such an awesome night.

Public Reading

On Wednesday, August 15, I will be reading as part of the Writers’ Community of Durham Region’s “Words of the Season in Poetry, Prose, and Song.”  Beginning at 7 pm, at Trinity Irish Pub and Restaurant (75 Consumers Drive – the AMC centre) in Whitby, Ontario, the event will feature fifteen artists, each performing for five minutes.  

I’m still trying to decide what I’ll read, but I’m leaning toward an excerpt from chapter two of Underground, “A Gentleman’s Education.”  If anyone has any other suggestions or pieces they’d be interested in hearing, leave a comment or follow the links on my webpage, www.cmgbooks.com, to drop me a line.

Hope to see you there!

Underground - Chapter Five Posted!

Chapter five of Underground, “Resurrectionists,” is now available at www.cmgbooks.com/5.html.  Have a read and pop back here to let me know what you think!

Acknowledgments

My gratitude to the staff of the Bracken Health Sciences Library of Queen’s University, for their help and patience in locating some interesting books.

Thanks to everyone who helped pick out a suitably seedy location for this chapter: Aaron, Erin, Jenn, Ron, and Steve.  In the end, it came down to two establishments: the Crown and Anchor and the Cushindall Inn.  I chose the Cushindall, since the Crown and Anchor sounded more like a soldiers’ haunt than a workman’s, and it was generally members of the working class who moonlighted as resurrectionists.

Finally, as always, my thanks to the folks at Effective Editing, for tidying up the final draft for me.

Some Notes on the Chapter

The Cushindall Inn was a tavern owned by Alexander McKillop, located on Johnson Street.  I found it in the Kingston directory of 1865; there was no directory for 1864.  I could find no photographs of the tavern, and the building in which it operated no longer stands, so the description of the inn is entirely fictional.

Resurrectionists or sack-‘em-up-men were workmen who, for a substantial fee, would rob fresh graves to provide bodies for medical students and physicians in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.  Although the Anatomy Act of 1841 was intended to curtail the need for grave robbing, reports of resurrectionists persisted in Canada as late as 1885, when an article in the Glob accused Queen’s medical students of making off with yet another body.

Resources

If you’re interested in the resurrectionists, or in nineteenth-century medical education, I highly recommend any or all of the following:

Ball, James Moores. The Sack-‘em-up-Men: An Account of the Rise and Fall of the Modern Resurrectionists. Edinburgh: Oliver and Boyd, 1928.

Bonner, Thomas Neville. Becoming a Physician. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995.

Frank, Julia Bess. “Body Snatching: A Grave Medical Problem.” Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine, 49:4, 1976, Available online at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2595508/.

MacGillivray, Royce. “Body-Snatching in Ontario,” 1988, available online athttps://tspace.library.utoronto.ca/bitstream/1807/177619/2/body%20snatching%20Ontario%20CBMH.pdf.

Neatby, Hilda. The History of Queen’s University, Vol. 1. Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 1974.

Sappel, Michael. Traffic in Dead Bodies: Anatomy and Embodied Social Identity in Nineteenth-Century America. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 2002.

Don’t Forget!

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Underground On-Site Research: Problems, Solutions, and Thanks

One of the hardest parts of writing historical fiction is getting a sense of what things looked like.  Being blind, I either have to get permission to handle objects (which is sometimes possible), or I have to rely on others’ descriptions of them.  Not surprisingly, smaller objects in common use throughout history are relatively easy to describe or recreate from paper or modelling clay.  Historical architecture is harder to get right. 

Picture your favourite building.  Now imagine what you would think it looked like if you could only “see” as much of the structure as your hands could reach.  Try finding a detailed print description of the structure online—remember, photos aren’t accessible to people with vision impairments.  How would you describe the building to someone who couldn’t see? 

Jennifer, my good friend and fantastic research assistant, has gotten very good at helping me figure out what old buildings looked like, using everything from words to make-shift models constructed of paper napkins, cardboard boxes, and other random materials.

.  This weekend, Jenn and I visited Kingston, where Underground is set.  We explored the downtown area and the parts of Queen’s University that are relevant to Underground. 

It turns out that Sherwood’s mad dash to class in chapter two would have him entering through the front door—not the back door—of what was then the “New Medical Building” (constructed in 1858 to get the Faculty of Medicine and the “vapours” from their dissections out of Summer Hill, the main university building). This mistake has been fixed on the master copy of Underground and will appear in the final version on the website.  

For those who are interested, the New Medical Building was built behind Summer Hill so the university did not have to spend extra on ornamental architecture.  Now the “New Medical Building” forms part of the Medical Quadrangle.  Thanks to Jenn for helping me figure out what this area looked like in 1864!

The fruits of our downtown investigations will appear in chapter six, which is partially written, and which should be posted before I return to law school in September. 

Check back soon for the next instalment of Underground, or sign up for my free email notifications so you’ll know the very day the instalments are posted!

Underground Update

The last few weeks have been pretty busy, and keeping on top of Underground has been a challenge.  

I’ve been working on this individual study project (ISP) for my law degree—a 45-60-page paper on “click-wrap” agreements (online contracts made when you click “I agree”)—and it’s pretty well overwhelmed me.  I thought I had it all sorted—I even had the outline written and ready to submit to my supervisor—when I read a paper written in 2004 that was pretty much the paper I had intended to write.  That sent me scrambling back to the drawing board.  Now, with a little over a month to go before school starts up again, the outline’s written and approved and I’m frantically trying to get the paper written.

However, the fifth chapter of Underground, “Resurrectionists” is coming very soon.  It’s written, and has been through one set of edits.  I just need to find time to do the final read-through.  After that, it’s a brief and hopefully bloodless battle with the website, and you’ll be able to reacquaint yourselves with the trials and tribulations of medical student Christopher Sherwood.  I’m looking forward to your feedback!

Thanks for your patience!

Underground - Chapter Four Posted!

Chapter 4 of Underground, “Robbed,” is now posted!  You can read it and previous chapters at www.cmgbooks.com/5.html.  Don’t forget to come back and leave your comments! 

Notes on the Chapter:

The Upper Cemetery of Kingston no longer exists.  It has been transformed into McBurney Park, affectionately known by Kingstonians as “Skeleton Park.”  For many years, it was Kingston’s largest multidenominational graveyard.  After the decision to turn it into a park was made in the 1880s, many (though certainly not all) of the bodies were moved to the newer Cataraqui cemetery.  The current dimensions of McBurney Park are not the dimensions of the original cemetery, which was considerably larger than the modern green space.  

Some readers may question the accuracy of Renquest’s description of the post-resurrectionist cemetery, which smacks of a zombie story.  At this time, I can only offer the reassurance that the word (and the idea of) zombies has been in use in western society since 1819, and Renquest’s description is not anachronistic or inaccurate.  I promise all will be explained; check back soon!

Resources:

For more information on Skeleton Park, check out this 2011 article published in the Queen’s Journal: http://queensjournal.ca/story/2011-10-27/features/skeleton-park-earns-its-name/

Readers may also be interested in the Kingston Historical Society’s “Chronology of the History of Kingston,” which has a little information about Ronan’s school as well as the cemetery.  It is available at www.kingstonhistoricalsociety.ca/chronology.html.

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Acknowledgements:

As ever, thanks to Jennifer Dunn for her help in navigating historic Kingston.  Her patience with my cartographical impairment is much appreciated!

My gratitude, also, to the folks at effective editing for their help in ensuring that most of the grammar and plot bugs were ironed out.  

I hope you enjoy the chapter, and look forward to reading your comments and feedback!

I Need Your Help!

I began work on chapter 5 of Underground yesterday, which returns to Christopher Sherwood’s point of view.  In this chapter, Sherwood and fellow medical student, Sam McGregor, go in search of the resurrectionists, who supposedly did business with students in a rather seedy pub somewhere in Kingston’s current downtown core, though the exact name of the establishment is never mentioned, and an internet search of nineteenth-century pubs and taverns in Kingston brings up nothing but a lot of great tourist information.

So, I’m reverting to rule number 1: When in doubt, ask.  Does anyone have any ideas for historically seedy pubs for my characters to visit?  Full credit will be given in the chapter notes to anyone who helps find an answer!

Thanks to those who suggested the Prince George Hotel (too up-scale), and the Grimason House or Royal Tavern (presumably also too up-scale, since Sir John A. MacDonald used it for his campaign headquarters).  You’re help is appreciated!

Editing Work for Others is Mutually Beneficial

One of my writers’ group members recently got asked to send the first one hundred pages of her manuscript to a literary agent.  In the past, I had offered to do line edits and substantive edits for group members, providing my school schedule permitted; she asked me to have a look at her work.

So, I took a break from Underground and began editing.  The novel was historical fiction, though set in a time period with which I was unfamiliar—Anglo-Saxon times.  I found myself questioning phrases like “last nail in my coffin,” (did Saxons use coffins?) and historic terms like ceorl, and began to understand why Sam Hiyate (an agent at The Rights Factory) had suggested modernizing some of the Welsh terms in The Harper’s Word.  “Is using this term really necessary?” has become a question I now ask of myself, as much as of other historical fiction writers.  There is a tightrope to walk between historical authenticity, and readability, and editing my friend’s work made me much more aware of that fine line.

In addition, I began asking the question “is this really necessary?” of plot devices: is it necessary to give us the whole back-story now, or can we find out in bits and pieces?  Is it necessary to give a history lesson, or can we infer historic context from the things characters discuss? Is this character important enough to warrant describing him/her?  These questions, among others, I put to my friend, and now ask of myself.  One chapter of The Harper’s Word was edited down from four pages to six, simply by removing unnecessary plot devices and as I begin editing the fourth chapter of Underground, I’ll be asking the same questions all over again.

I have always admitted that cutting my own work is difficult.  Although I don’t think of each sentence in terms of the time it took to construct it (I know some authors who do), it is often easier to spot flaws in others’ work than in my own.  Editing my friend’s work has made me more aware of what is necessary and what isn’t, and has allowed me to bend a more critical eye on my own writing. 

If you have a writing group of your own, try swapping writing with someone, and go through their story with a fine tooth comb.  Be critical, but not cruel.  Ask the questions that aren’t answered.  If you think something is too long, say so.  If something doesn’t make sense, say so.  If something seems inaccurate, point it out and ask if the author did research.  Not only will this help the writer, but it can teach you to recognize problematic passages in your own writing, and it’s better to find them now, than to wait until you’ve been rejected by agents and editors because the manuscript isn’t tightly written.

Thanks to my writers’ group for all the critiquing, and for letting me learn more about editing on their work!

Join CMG Books and Have Posts Delivered Straight to Your Inbox!

Keep up to date with all my literary endeavours—from updates to Underground, to comments on what I learn in one-on-one encounters with literary agents, publishers, and editors—by subscribing to my feed.  The best part is, you’ll know the very day new material is added here; the second-best part is, it’s free! ;)

Type your email address into the box on the right of your screen (for screen reader users, it gets bumped to the bottom of the current list of posts).  Feedburner will send you a confirmation email with a link.  If you don’t click the link, your subscription won’t be processed, so be sure to follow through.  Once you’ve clicked, you’re set!  Each new post submitted to CMG Books will be delivered right to your inbox, so you’ll never miss a thing!

A new chapter of Underground is added at the end of every month, school schedule permitting, and by signing up for the feed, you’ll be the first to know!  The pdf files can be read on your computer, or downloaded to your tablet or e-reader so you can keep up with Ronan, Christopher, and Caroline wherever you go.

Underground Update

Just a quick note to let you all know that the fourth chapter of Underground, “Robbed,” is written and currently in the process of being edited.  Provided the website doesn’t give me any trouble, it will be posted right on schedule.  Thanks to everyone who has sent emails about the previous chapters, and encouragement for the upcoming ones.  I’m looking forward to sharing the next instalment with you!

Underground - Chapter Three Posted!

The third chapter of Underground, “A Proper Crutch,” is now available at www.cmgbooks.com/5.html.  I’m sorry it’s late; some last-minute research turned up some last-minute plot problems.  For instance:Lieutenant Mills was originally posted to Fort George in Niagara; Fort George was abandoned in the 1820s.  You see the problem? ;).  This was then complicated by exams and a major research paper. 

In any event, exams are finished, all the plot bugs are now ironed out (I hope) and the chapter is ready for your enjoyment!

Some Notes on the Chapter:

The Watkins wing of Kingston General Hospital was constructed in 1863 as an isolation ward.  Many of the beds were reserved for charity, but a few on the second floor could be used by patients of a slightly higher class who were able to pay for the medical attention they received.  .

Murney Tower is one of four Martello towers constructed along the shore of Lake Ontario in the mid-nineteenth century to provide additional fortification to Kingston.  Like Fort Henry, Murney Tower never saw action, as the conflict with the United States was concluded by treaty, though it was used by the British army until the 1870s, and by the Canadian forces until the 1890s.

Caroline’s comment on what Lieutenant Mills is wearing is not, perhaps, as out of place as it might seem.  In the nineteenth century, only officers in the British army were allowed to keep their civilian clothes.  Ordinary soldiers’ clothes were taken and burned, so the only coat they owned was their uniform coat; being bright red, this made it very difficult for men to desert. 

Resources:

Angus, Margaret. Kingston General Hospital: A Social and Institutional History. Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 1973.

For information about nineteenth century Kingston, including a basic chronology and details about Murney Tower, check out the Kingston Historical Society at www.kingstonhistoricalsociety.ca.  I should note here that Murney Tower contains a museum of nineteenth-century military artefacts that is open during the summer months (more information on the website above).

Both Fort Henry and Fort Wellington are still standing, and are open to the public from May until October.  You can visit their respective websites at

www.forthenry.com and www.pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/on/wellington/index.aspx

Enjoy “A Proper Crutch,” and check back soon for chapter four!

First Writing Retreat: A Total Success!

There’s something about fresh air, a fantastic view over busily writing writers that gets the muse to work.

This weekend, I joined the other ladies in my writing circle at a cottage, where we all found space to write and reflect.  With seven of us chipping in, the cottage was more than affordable for the weekend; it also helped that it isn’t yet peak season.  We each made one meal or large snack to bring up, and one of our members (a yoga teacher) led a short yoga session Saturday morning that got everyone jazzed up and ready to write.

I can’t believe the industriousness I saw this weekend, or the way in which being away from home succeeded in severing my brain from “exam mode,” and planting it firmly in “novel land.”  Chapter Four of Underground was half finished, and I got to chapter 5 of the sequel to The Harper's Word.  In total, I wrote more than 10,000 words, edited 20 pages (chapters one and two of The Harper’s Word and chapter three of Underground), and I’m excited to keep going tomorrow!

You should find Underground, “Chapter Three: A Proper Crutch,” on the website tomorrow evening.  I’ll post as soon as it’s up.

Too Much Explanation? Watching How Much you Share about your Characters' Motivations

Unfortunately, although the third chapter of Underground is just about finished, it has been moved to the backseat while I focus on exams and a final paper for my second-year law classes.  Somehow, though, I find even my legal studies bringing me back to telling stories.

I was allowed to choose the topic for my final paper in Intellectual Property Law (a good thing, since I have to write 25-7 pages on the subject!), and decided to look at how a traditional art—storytelling—can help preserve folklore in a way that current copyright and intellectual property laws have not.  I’ll inevitably wind up arguing that the only way to protect oral culture is not to protect it at all, since a key aspect of oral stories is the way they change and grow with each new telling, but before I get to that point, I have to demonstrate the social utility of storytelling as a profession.  My research led me to an article by Walter Benjamin, “The Storyteller: Reflecting on the Works of Nikolai Leskov,” and a quotation that spoke to the writer in me:

"The most extraordinary things, marvelous things, are related with the greatest accuracy, but the psychological connection of the events is not forced on the reader. It is left up to him to interpret things the way he understands them, and thus the narrative achieves an amplitude that information lacks."

My writers’ group discussed this very concept only a week ago, when one of us received comments from another writer suggesting she explain why her character did what he did.  This brings us back to one of the primary rules of writing: show, don’t tell.  A reader should be able to understand why your character behaves the way he does without in-depth explanation.  Leaving understanding to the reader not only creates a smoother, less-intrusive style of writing, but acknowledges your readers’ intelligence and draws them deeper into the story by letting them engage with the characters in a way that is meaningful to them.  Too much explaining, Benjamin argues, is one of the reasons storytelling as an art is dying.

Consider your favourite books; does the author tell you everything, or let you figure it out for yourself?  Are you told how you should feel, or simply allowed to experience the plot in your own way?  Can you think of any authors who do this well?  Poorly?  I’d love to know your thoughts!

If you’re a writer, keep this in mind when you write or edit your next chapter.  I know I’ll be checking for “whys” when I go through chapter three of Underground again! 

Underground Update: Chapter Three is Coming Soon!

Just a quick note to keep you all up to date:

The third chapter of Underground, “A Proper Crutch,” is entirely written, and should be edited and posted by the end of the month (provided I can keep on top of researching and writing a 25-page paper on the rights and responsibilities of storytellers with respect to copyright law).  

Previous chapters can be read at www.cmgbooks.com/5.html.  

Check back soon!

First Draft of The Harper's Word Complete!

The Harper’s Word is finished!  Well, at least draft 1 is finished … who knows how many more drafts I’ll go through before it’s polished enough to start sending out properly.  The book weighed in at a whopping 399 manuscript pages (that’s 113,670 words, for those of you who prefer word count).  Needless to say, there’s a fair bit of editing to do—and a fair bit of additional research, too, but I’m looking forward to it—and to the sequel!  

Thanks to my writers’ groups and to the other folks who have read this work in its roughest form and offered up constructive criticism.  Your help can only make the next draft better.

To learn more about The Harper’s Word visit www.cmgbooks.com/3.html

Underground Chapter Two Posted!

At last! The second chapter of Underground, “A Gentleman’s Education,” is finished and posted on the website.  You can read this chapter and others at www.cmgbooks.com/5.html.  I look forward to reading your comments. :)

Acknowledgments:

Thanks to the staff of the Bracken Health Sciences Library, for helping me find the information I needed for this chapter; to Zoe, who pointed me in the right direction; and to the folks of effective editing, for helping to iron out the grammatical issues in the chapter.

Some notes on the chapter:

Firstly, The inept Professor Robert Bell was indeed a professor at Queen’s during the 1864 school year.  Over-paid and under-qualified, he was severely disliked by his students.  There are reports of students prying chunks of wood off their desks to throw at him, pummelling him with crumpled paper, and even bringing snowballs to class to throw at him while his back was turned.  Michael Sullivan was also a professor, as well as a graduate of the medical program.  He seems to have been better-liked than Bell.  Although these people actually existed, I have used them fictitiously in this chapter.

Secondly,  late in the 1850s, Queen’s University had a building constructed to house the rapidly expanding faculty of medicine, which had formerly been lodged in the east wing of Summerhill.  As A.A. Travaill states in his book, Queen’s University Faculty of Medicine, 1854-1920, the original plans were lost, and the building has undergone so many alterations over the years that it is now impossible to recognize the original interior.  Even Travaill was unsure where the dissection theatre was located.  For the purposes of Underground, I have decided to merge the old medical facilities of Summerhill, with the new, hence the basement room with limestone slab tables. 

Finally, this chapter is meant to occur the day after the first.  You may notice that the dates at the top of the first page of chapter one and two are a month apart.  This is my mistake.  In researching nineteenth century medical education, I found out that classes ran from October through May, rather than from September through April.

Resources:

For those who are interested in learning more about the history of medical education or the history of the faculty of medicine of Queen’s University, I recommend the following:

Bonner, Thomas Neville. Becoming a Physician. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995.

Neatby, Hilda. Queen's University Volume I. Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, 1974.

Queen’s University. Faculty of Medicine, 1854-1979 : One Hundred and Twenty Five Years Dedicated to Education and Service. Kingston: Queen’s University Press, 1979.

Travaill, A.A. Medicine at Queen’s 1854-1920: A Peculiarly Happy Relationship. Kingston: The Hannah Institute for the History of Medicine, 1988.

You might also visit the website of the museum of health care at Queen’s University, at http://www.museumofhealthcare.ca/

And now you understand why, with law on top of this, it took so long to get this chapter finished!  I hope you enjoy it, and look forward to reading your comments here.

Recollections of Inspiration: A Tribute to Tony Blackman

We all have people who have been influential in the way we’ve developed.  This is especially true of writers—or perhaps it’s just more obvious.  A budding writer who grows up reading a particular author will generally attempt to imitate their idol’s style, at least in the beginning.  This post is a tribute to a man who was a great influence on my life and my writing.  His name was Tony Blackman, and he was an archaeologist from Cornwall in the UK, whom I met when I was thirteen years of age …

In July 2000, my family travelled to the UK to visit my Dad’s parents and brother in Wales, and his sister in Cornwall.  While looking for things to keep my brother, my sister, and me entertained, my parents happened to notice an advert for a hands-on history day at a farm on the Bodmin moor.  So, they packed me and my two younger siblings into our rental car, and off we went. 

The dirt road was so rutted that all three of us kids soon became horribly car sick, and Mom and Dad repeatedly checked the map against the directions in the advert.  We were close to giving up and turning around when, at last, we came over a rise, and there it was: a recreated Bronze Age village, consisting of two thatched round houses, a loom, a flint-napping area and a potter’s stone. 

Seeing my white cane, the organizer of the event (Tony) hurried over.  He said “I’ve got a group of blind Germans coming on Wednesday; can I practice with your daughter?” and that was that.  I was allowed to touch the thatch, clay pottery, a deerskin tunic with bone toggles, and a 2000 year old arrow head.  I was taught to make pinch-pots, crouching on a cold stone slab (I still have the resulting pot tucked away in a cupboard, safely wrapped in tissue paper), and sat for a while watching the flint knapper make arrow heads (I still have the two he gave me).  Finally, just before we left, Tony took me aside and sat down with me on the remains of an original round house.  All that was left was a foot-high stone wall, with a gap where the door would have been. 

There, he spoke of the family that had lived in that place—of the mother who had worn her hip and shoulder bones smooth with years of grinding grain, of the children, helping gather food and tend animals, and the father, going out to hunt.  They led a normal life; there was nothing special about them, but the way in which Tony spoke brought me nearly to tears.  We exchanged email addresses and have been in touch ever since. 

I returned to the UK in my early twenties with my dad, and we arranged to meet up with Tony.  He met us in town and drove up onto the moor with Dad riding shotgun and me in the backseat with his bearded collie, Harry.  While Dad played fetch with the dog, Tony showed me a number of interesting sites.  Usually, he began with “hop up on this mound,” or “Let’s walk the length of this ridge.”  Those remarks would usually be followed by, “That’s a Bronze Age burial mound.” or “That’s a stone-age long barrow.”  From there, we returned to the site of the recreated village, where he taught me to use a Bronze Age quern (a device used for grinding grain) and to mint coins in the Celtic style.  He gave me a number of reproductions that his friend had made, which are now on display beside the arrowheads.  We climbed to King Arthur’s bed—a man-shaped depression in a stone at the top of a pile of rocks—and looked out toward Fox Tor, seven miles away.  There, we sat, and he told me the story of a great battle fought in the fog.  Wounded and frightened, King Arthur fled, following a fox to a safe place high up on a pile of rocks.  There, exhausted, he slept until morning.  When he woke, the fog was gone, and the fox with it.  Arthur had sunk into the stone, which had hidden him from his enemies, and Merlin sat by, waiting for his king to arise.  Together they continued safely on their way. 

The day was nearly over, but there was still so much to see.  Tony remarked that you always have to leave something undone, because it gives you a reason to come back.




CMG, Tony, and dogs at St Neot

 

I did go back, during the Easter break of 2010.  In the UK, where I was studying, Easter holidays are three weeks long.  I spent one day with Tony and his wife, and our dogs (his, Harry, and mine, Andy).  We visited stone crosses, a quoit, the holy well at St. Neot’s, and a nearby castle.  We also stopped in at the Church of St. Neot, where medieval stained glass still adorns the windows.  Tony insisted I had to touch it, since I wasn’t able to see it, and removed the rope barrier with a reassuring “I know the pastor …”  It was a wonderful day, and the last I spent with him.

On Friday, 17 February, 2012, Tony Blackman passed away peacefully at home. 



When I was thirteen, he inspired in me a love of the past—of the people who lived and died and the details of their existence.  As an adult, he fostered my love of learning.  He has been behind me in every literary and scholarly step I took, and I want to thank him for that, and let his family know just how much he means to me.  “Ancient Roots,” a short story that is pending publication in The Lamp is dedicated to his memory, since he was the inspiration for the character of Gwydion. 



Inspiration comes from many places, but I often wonder if I would have become interested in storytelling or in history if it was not for Tony.  It is people like him who make the present a past that’s worth remembering.

 

CMG and Tony at Trethevy Quoit



Underground Update

I honestly haven’t forgotten that chapter two was promised nearly four months ago … okay, actually, more than four months ago, now.  I’d say I don’t have a good excuse, but I think—maybe?—law school is a pretty good one ;)  In a recent email rant to a friend, I think I listed sixteen major projects to complete in the next six weeks, not including exams.  I'll be glad when April's over and I can devote more time to writing again.

In any event, chapter two is now finished, and I hope to have it edited and posted by the end of this week.  Watch for Underground, “Chapter Two: A Gentleman’s Education,” coming soon at www.cmgbooks.com/5.html!

P.S. For anyone who's Welsh: Happy St. David's Day!

Notice of Publication

I am pleased to announce that two of my short stories—“Your Eyes Only” and “Ancient Roots” —will be appearing in the 2012 edition of The Lamp.  Since both pieces are historical fiction, you will find them published under the pseudonym G.L. Morgan.

“Your Eyes Only” tells the tale of the fall of Fort York in 1813 through the eyes of Annie Foster, a young girl who risked everything to save the militia’s regimental colours from the hands of the Americans.

“Ancient Roots” is a retelling of the Welsh folk story “The Battle of the Trees,” first recounted in the Llyfr Taliesin (Book of Taliesin).  Gwydion ap Don, Chief Bard of Wales knows that traditional knowledge has a way of getting exaggerated—a simple trick becomes magic; a ruthless leader becomes king of the dead.  But in every tale, buried deep, is a colonel of truth.  That colonel is what Gwydion must find in order to save his homeland from the invading Irish, and his niece from a political match with the king of the underworld.  This is a short sequel to The Harper’s Word that is easily read without reference to the larger work (a very good thing, since Harper isn’t finished yet!).

For more information about The Harper’s Word visit www.cmgbooks.com/3.html  

To learn more about The Lamp, visit www.sgps.ca/thelamp.  Copies of the journal will be available for purchase when printing is concluded.  I’ll keep you up to date!

One-on-One with a Literary Agent: What Canadian Agents are Looking For

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to sit down for an hour with a literary agent to discuss the query package for The Harper’s Word.  This was an excellent experience, as it gave me some idea of what Canadian agents (in search of commercial fiction) are looking for.

(To read more about The Harper’s Word check out www.cmgbooks.com/3.html)

I had met the agent before, at the Algonkian conference I attended in October, and was pleasantly surprised to find he remembered me.  As we settled in the office with my query letter, synopsis, and the first twenty pages of my manuscript, he dove at once into an analysis of the text itself.  Harper is told in the first person, but the agent indicated that he felt detached from the character.  I was, at first, surprised by this, but soon realized the reason.  Gwydion, the harper of the title, is a musician, and as such often detaches himself from social situations to play.  If the character is detached, it makes it difficult to the reader to attach herself to him.  This doesn’t mean, of course, that a detached character can’t be sympathetic, and the agent suggested a number of ways to make him more likeable.  Firstly, he suggested that I establish what Gwydion has to lose sooner in the book.  Secondly, while he praised my clean style, sense of dialogue, and ability to move well from scene description to narrative summary, he indicated that internal monologues were missing—and were important, because the text was first person.

The other suggestion the agent made for the text was to consider changing and/or shortening some of the names.  Since Harper is a retelling of Welsh myth, many of the characters have long and sometimes unpronounceable names.  Gwydion’s brother, Gilfaethwy, for example.  The agent thought the reader would find it easier if his name was shortened to Gil.  I understand that Gilfaethwy is not a particularly easy name to say aloud—or in your head, for that matter—but I’m hesitant to make that change.  My concern is that shortening the character’s name to a more modern “buddy-buddy” nickname might detract from the historic accuracy of the text.  I’d be interested in anyone’s input on this.

Our discussion of the text complete, the agent moved on to my query letter.  He indicated that a query should contain three things:

1. A short synopsis of the book (between 150 and 200 words).
2.   A positioning paragraph, where you describe how your book fits into the wider world of pop culture.  You can use books, movies, television shows, etc.
3. A brief biography, including previous publications and any qualifications you have regarding the subject matter of your book.  For example, I own and play a medieval-style bray harp, not unlike the one Gwydion plays.

My query contained 1 and 3, but was missing 2.  Together, we managed to find a comparison and a point in the query where the comparison sentence would fit nicely.  Then, our time was up.

This opportunity was made possible by the Writers’ Community of Durham Region.  Local writers’ communities often engage agents and editors for workshops like this, and being a member of such a community gives you the chance to participate.  That’s not to say that non-members weren’t allowed, simply that the events are publicized to members, who therefore have a better chance of getting into the workshop.  If you aren’t a member of a writers’ community, I certainly suggest joining one.  This experience was one I would certainly repeat in future.

A Comment on Copyright

One week back at school, and I haven’t so much as opened a novel file; it’s disheartening. Next week, though, I have the perfect excuse for working on writing: through my association with the Writers’ Community of Durham Region, I have the opportunity to meet one-on-one with an agent, who will go over my query letter and the first twenty pages of The Harper’s Word.  This means completely overhauling the first twenty pages (my opening chapters of a novel are always rough and full of exposition)

I have to manage this overhaul without neglecting class work, which I’m really enjoying this term.  Readings for intellectual property (IP) and copyright are of particular interest to me, since I want to end up working as a literary agent or entertainment lawyer.  Some of the material is, besides interesting, actually quite entertaining.  In illustration, here’s a quote from a judgment by Lady Justice Arden, which was re-printed in an article by David Vaver, entitled “Does the Public Understand Intellectual property, do lawyers?” from the Meredith Lecture Series Intellectual Property at the Edge: New Approaches to IP in a Transsystemic World:

“I … was surprised that copyright attached to solicitors’ correspondence (though, one knows, having read bundles of solicitors’ correspondence, that they might sometimes justify being called literary works of fiction.”

I, too, was interested to learn that basic correspondence could be considered both “literature” and therefore copyright.  The paper goes on to examine the definitions of the key clause in the Canadian Copyright Act: “original works of literature,” explain that “’literary’ doesn’t mean ‘literary,’ at least not in the sense of Dickens or Atwood, or Dan Brown (Barely).”  “Original,” simply means “not copied” for the purposes of the act.  Vaver suggests then, that two pieces, even if identical, would not be in violation of copyright if they were created separately and without knowledge of the other—a complicated, but intriguing notion.  I’m curious to see how this pans out in case law (case law being the written judgments of judges that affect the way in which statutes like the Copyright Act are interpreted in future). 

My copyright law professor indicated in class that copyright occurs the moment something is “fixed” (i.e. set down on paper), and therefore no registration is required.  This explains how two pieces could be identical and both protected under the act, as well as why correspondence are copyright.  An agent from the United States told me that the best, and cheapest, way to ensure your work was copyright was to mail it to a lawyer and have the lawyer date stamp it and keep it for you.  Perhaps copyright is not concurrent with writing in the US?  Reading through the US version of the Copyright Act would probably clear this up, but I haven’t time for that at the moment.  Despite what my professor told us, I’ve heard Canadian writers say to mail a copy of your work to yourself and not open the envelope, and that will suffice to prove copyright in future.  Personally, I’ll take the word of my professor, but I’m curious to hear anyone else’s view on this.

Holiday Writing Challenge - Day 7 Word Count

It was 11 pm this evening before I managed to start writing, though I did manage to get some research done earlier in the day.  I had intended to start writing just after supper, but I got caught up watching a program on troubled teens being recruited to sing in the premiere of an opera at one of the top opera houses in the UK.  It was a thoroughly interesting show, and I wouldn’t mind seeing the opera—Knight Crew—if it ever came to Toronto.  

When I finally sat down and wrote, though, it was very productive.  1 hour and 20 minutes later, and I’ve got 2771 words to show for it.  Not bad for the last night of the holiday writing challenge.  

Tomorrow I’ll be preparing to head back to school; classes begin on Tuesday.  I’m hoping I can keep up with class work (I’ve got one more class this term than I had last) and still find time for writing.  Chapter Two of Underground still needs some work, unfortunately.  I promise it’s coming soon!

Holiday Writing Challenge - Day 6 Word Count

Today’s writing definitely made up for my big fat zero of yesterday.  My word count: 2059.  The reason I stopped: I’ve hit a point where I need to do more research.  Celtic medical practices of the fifth century should be an interesting topic to study, but I think it’s best left for tomorrow ...  

One last day for the holiday writing challenge!  

Happy New Year everyone, and good luck with your writing resolutions for 2012!