Peace and Joy

I wish everyone peace and joy for the upcoming year.

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Off to the Publisher!

I finally got my book off to the Publisher.

Elephant's Breath and London Smoke:

Historical Color Names, Definitions, and Uses

It is a Dictionary of Colors - in the words of writers from each era, from Chaucer up to around 1920. It is mostly geared toward color in fashion and in dyeing and painting, but it takes definitions of colors from any source. I even have listings that define what that color means in an aura.

Plus I've added sections on: Advice for what colors to wear, Mourning colors, Horses' colors, and comments on colors, including the restrictions on colors in the Statutes in the 1550's.

I also made a list of the Elizabethan colours I found in wills and inventories that weren't on the approved lists.

I wrote the introduction, but almost everything else is from original sources or Victorian transcriptions (and interpretations) with each source noted after the listing. This is a serious resource for historians, costumers, and everyone who enjoys color!

See my website for more information,
http://www.mantua-maker.com/
or go to http://www.5rivers.org/.

Advance Order Discount on Two New Books

The publisher of my book, Elephant’s Breath & London Smoke: Historical Colour Names, Definitions & Uses, is offering a 25% advance order discount on two new books in her stable. The other book is How to Write a Non-fiction Book in 60 Days, by Paul Lima. 60 Days will be available early in the new year; Elephant’s Breath will be available in the spring of ‘09. While you can buy 60 Days now through Paul's web site and print on demand company, if you can wait until the new year and want the discount, put in your advance order through Five Rivers Chapmanry.

How to Write a Non-fiction Book in 60 Days, by Paul Lima. $14.95 (order before Christmas to receive a 25% discount). ISBN 978-0-9739278-4-9. 6 x 9 Trade Paperback. Release date: January 1, 2009

In the New Year, How to Write a Non-fiction Book in 60 Days will be available through online booksellers internationally, as well as select bookstores in Ontario.The title says it all. The book will show you how to create a detailed, chapter-by-chapter outline and how to write each chapter from point to point. In addition, the book includes two bonus chapters: one on self-publishing and one on constructing effective sentences and paragraphs.

Coming in Spring of 2009!

Have you ever read about a Victorian dress, and wondered:

“What color, exactly, is heliotrope?”

Did you ever read an Elizabethan novel and say:

“Did anyone really wear Puke?”

When Chaucer wrote: “his eyen bright citrin” –

did you wonder about what color is citrin?

Have you wondered when aniline dyes were invented,

how indigo was used, or how black fabric was dyed?

Perhaps you have wondered when the color London Smoke was used,

or when Eiffel red was invented.

Here is the book to tell you!

Elephant’s Breath

and

London Smoke

Historical Color Names,

Definitions, and Uses

This book will tell you about color in history – the names of colors, when they were used, how they were used, what they looked like, and where they came from. There are dye recipes, paint ingredients, poetic language and general commentary – all in the words of period writers.

You will learn about mourning colors, the effects of artificial light on color, advice on what colors to wear, the colors found in cosmetics and theatrical make-up, and the names of the colors of horses. You can read about symbolism in colors, heraldic colors, and complaints about the names of colors.

I have perused fashion magazines, books of dye recipes, art books, painter’s manuals, mineralogy guides, tomes on color theory, metaphysical texts, poetry and fiction, but especially period dictionaries and encyclopedias. Any resource that might give a hint on what a color looked like or how it may have been used was fair game, from Chaucer to Chemistry Journals.

Most of the entries were printed in English, American, Canadian and Australian publications from around 1380 to 1922. Because, French was the language of fashion, many of the English terms are French words. I have tried to explain those colors, too.

This dictionary endeavors to define color names in the words of the English speaking people who used those colors. It is especially aimed at women’s fashion, but artists will also find it useful.

If you are curious about color, you will want this book!

Available in the spring of 2009

The Recipe for Puke!

I am so thrilled! I found the recipe for Puke!

Oh, you think I am insane? Well, only a little. You see, Puke was a color used during Elizabethan times. The first Elizabeth, mind you.

Now I've been hunting and hunting for a good, period definition of Puke. It is *not* Puce - that term was invented around 1775. Puke seems to have been a dark, russet black or gray. I haven't found a clear description, but I did find a dye recipe, and I am elated!

The reason I've been hunting for Puke and Puce, Musk and Murrey, and many other colors, is that I am in the final stages of compiling a dictionary of colors in history, called:

Elephant's Breath and London Smoke:

Historical Color Names, Definitions, and Uses.

It will be published by Five Rivers in the spring, so I'd best get back to work and get it finished!

Interview with Lorina Stephens

Last week our four-week virtual book tour made a stop at Ferret Fabricates, the internet home of Ferret, a remarkably talented textile artist who continually pushes the boundaries of quilting and quilt-design. Week two was hosted by David Robertson, who not only has a presence at e-webincome, but at his artisan blacksmithing site, which is very much worth a visit. The tour launched at Paul Lima’s blog August 3, 2008.

Q: Last fall you released Shadow Song, a historical fantasy set in Upper Canada during the 1830s. How has it been received?

A: I’m pleased with how it’s been received. It’s out-selling Recipes of a Dumb Housewife, and has received some good reviews, in particular from Dan Pelton at the Orangeville Citizen and from Meg Mathur, Online Merchandising Manager at Indigo Books. People seem to be interested in the fact it’s based in part on an actual tragedy that occurred in the village of Hornings Mills, and also seem to be interested in the fact it’s written by a Canadian about Canada.

Q: I understand you’re about to release a new book. Can you tell us about it?

A: In September I’ll launch an anthology of speculative short fiction, entitled And the Angels Sang. There are 17 stories, from dystopia to utopia, written over the past 25 years. Some stories have appeared previously in publications such as On Spec and Sword & Sorceress X, while some make their debut. I chose to divide the anthology into two sections to easily separate the more fantastical from the speculative.

Q: Do you have any personal favourites?

A: I do indeed. The cover story, of course, which is a speculative piece that examines what the last moments of Father Jean de Brébeuf’s life might have been like. I wanted very much to create a stream-of-consciousness feeling, a surreal quality, combined with what was clearly Brebeuf’s own devotion to not only his God, but the people he came to serve.

On a lighter side I’ve always loved For a Cup of Tea, which appeared in On Spec, the winter issue of 1995. That was such a fun piece to write. It’s a fantastical alternative history of the famed race between Cutty Sark and Thermopylae, two of the great clippers of the 19th century. I love the romance of the age of sail, the danger and skill that surrounded the men who rode the sea for profit and country.

The other story I like, which perhaps shows my twisted sense of humour, is Dragonslayer. It’s an irreverent romp and complete spoof. The anthology for which the story was targeted was an examination of what happened to all the fantasy heroes after the wars were over. I’m afraid I didn’t approach the subject with sufficient seriousness, because the story was not only rejected, but received incendiary comment regarding its chauvinistic, sexist, degrading tone. All I could envision was some swaggering archetype reduced to selling life insurance (no offence to insurance salespeople). It just seemed the ultimate irony. But plainly not that editor’s vision.

Q: Where will you launch And the Angels Sang?

A: The staff at Coles, Orangeville Mall has been kind enough to invite me back, although whether the book launch will take place Saturday, September 27, or October 25 is unclear at this point. More information will soon be available at my blog. You can still take advantage of the pre-order sale I have available.

You’ll also be able to purchase copies in select stores, as well as online from Chapters and other major online retailers worldwide like Amazon and W.H. Smith. You can also purchase directly from me through my website if you wish a signed copy.

After the launch in Orangeville I’ll be appearing at other book stores in the Indigo/Chapters chain throughout southern Ontario.

Q: Nothing in December or the winter?

A: I don’t usually travel during the heavy winter months. Living where we do the weather is a bit unpredictable. My touring season usually starts in March. But it you ‘d like to arrange a speaking engagement, lecture or book signing, by all means contact me and we’ll see what we can arrange.

Q: What’s next on the agenda for you?

A: I’m currently working on a new fantasy novel, From Mountains of Ice. It has a definite Italian milieu; I suppose harking back to my own roots. And there is a definite overtone of reverence toward ancestors and preoccupation with death and mourning rituals, although I wouldn’t say the novel is morbid. In fact, the novel deals primarily with a man’s loss of honour and his attempt to regain that honour, while examining what honour is, exactly.

Hopefully I’ll have the first draft finished by the close of the year or shortly thereafter, and then set to the tedious but exacting task of revision and editing. If Mr. Murphy refrains from taking tea, I may have the novel ready for release in the fall of 2009. If not then for sure the following spring or fall.

This concludes our four week Virtual Book Tour. Thank you for being part of it. To stay up to date with Lorina’s activities, visit her at her website or blog.

New Victorian Overskirt Pattern

I finally managed to take picures of my new overskirt (we are replastering the inside of my house, but that is another story).

This skirt is named after my mom, Dona. In Spanish, Doña means lady or noblewoman, and Madre means mother, so I thought it was very appropriate.

1870 – 1890

Doña Madre

Overskirt

#1880-17

Ideal as a dressy overskirt for

any occasion.
Based on patterns from period sources.
Includes the full text of the original instructions.
Directions for many different styles of draperies.
This pattern has adaptations for the 1883 - 1887 aggressive bustle.
Variations and decoration ideas are included.
Foundation skirt is not included.

All sizes Petite - Full are included.
Price $12

Please have a look at more photos at

http://www.mantua-maker.com/new_victorian_patterns.html