by Roseanna White | Jul 25, 2016 | Word of the Week
Yes, that’s right, today’s word of the week is German. 😉
In my edits for A Name Unknown, my editor had asked me to check the history of the phrase “culture war,” as it felt modern. I’d used this phrase to describe events in Germany at the end of the 19th century, because, well, that’s what my history book had called it, LOL. But history books do tend to use language from the time they’re writing in rather than the time they’re writing about, ahem. So I took the advice and looked it up.
What I found was that the German word for culture war, kulturkampf, was actually coined at the time specifically to describe these events. The German chancellor Von Bismark (described by other politicians of his day as “a demon”) launched this war in Germany against the Catholic church specifically, but most other Christian churches took it as a sign to beware as well. For perhaps the first time in centuries, since the Church had fractured, Protestants and Catholics joined together to fight political forces that would wipe them out.
Of course, learning that this word would have been in legitimate use at the time doesn’t make it sound less out of place in my manuscript. 😉 So my challenge was trying to figure out how to use it well. And my answer was to start with the German word.
Hope everyone has a great week! I had a fabulous time at Montrose Christian Writers Conference and am now looking forwarding to getting back into my writing groove after being in teacher/editor mode all week. =)
by Roseanna White | Jul 18, 2016 | Announcements, Book News
While I’m at the Montrose Christian Writers Conference this week and away from normal blogging, I thought it would be the perfect time to let the blog do some work on its own. 😉
And so, it’s time to build the Launch Team for Giver of Wonders!
Giver of Wonders is a couple things–it’s my first Christmas story. It’s a biblical novel. It involved the same Visibullis family readers have come to love through A Stray Drop of Blood and A Soft Breath of Wind, but 150 years later–so none of the same characters, no related plots. Instead, we see what one branch of the family has turned into as Christianity has spread throughout the Roman Empire. Cyprus and her sisters end up in Patara, Lycia (present-day Turkey) when a Wonder Worker lives there . . . a Wonder Worker the world now knows as St. Nicholas.
Official blurb:
A miracle once saved her life ~ will another give her a future?
Cyprus was little more than a child when a fall left her paralyzed…and
when the boy known as the Wonder Worker healed her. Ever since, she has
wondered why the Lord spared her, what he has in store for her. But her
pagan father thinks she was spared solely so she could be introduced to
the wealthy Wonder Worker, Nikolaos.
Nikolaos has never
questioned that his call in life is to dedicate himself to the church
and to God. Never, that is, until he and his cousin Petros meet the
compelling Cyprus Visibullis. For years he struggles with the feelings
she inspires…and with the sure knowledge that Petros loves her too.
Petros knows he will never be good enough for Cyprus’s father to
consider him as a match for his favorite daughter ~ not as long as
Nikolaos is there. But when tragedy strikes the Visibullis family, he
will do anything to save his beloved. Unfortunately, his beloved is
determined to do anything to save her sisters ~ even at the cost of
herself.
As the festival of lights bathes their Greek city in
beauty, Cyprus, Petros, and Nikolaos celebrate the miracle of their
Savior s birth together one last time. And in remembrance of their
Lord’s greatest gift, one of them will make the ultimate sacrifice for
the others…and a centuries-long tradition will be born.
L A U N C H T E A M B A S I C S
For those who have been on previous launch teams, you probably already have an idea of how this will work. I will:
- Create a private Facebook group for all launch team members to join
- Send you complimentary copies of the book prior to its release
- Have a special giveaway for you guys only
- Share lots of behind-the-scenes info and come to you first for opinions and with ideas
Members of the team will:
- Write reviews to post to social media/online retailers
- Consider asking local libraries/bookstores to stock the book
- Share ideas with each other on ways to promote
- Promise to help spread the word through word of mouth, online postings, etc.
There will be two different options you’ll be able to sign up for. These are:
Thank you all SO MUCH for you interest in helping me spread the word about Giver of Wonders! I couldn’t do it without you amazing readers!!!
(You can also fill out the form here.)
by Roseanna White | Jul 14, 2016 | Announcements, Book News
Thank you for your interest in helping me promote A Lady Unrivaled! I’m so excited for this book to release, and so blessed to have readers like you who want to help me spread the word. =)
At this time I only have 15-20 slots open for paperback reviewers, so I’ll have to make a decision based on who I feel will best help with the promotion efforts. How you plan to help will play a role in deciding this, so get creative. 😉
For those who prefer digital copies, or if you don’t have a U.S. address, you can sign up to receive a digital ARC (advance reader’s copy) via Netgalley; my publisher will send you a widget. Fill out this form instead.
And don’t forget that I’ll be building my influencer team for Giver of Wonders next week!
Ready? Set . . . Fill!
by Roseanna White | Jul 13, 2016 | 17th-19th Centuries, Remember When Wednesdays
Sometimes the questions a novelist asks leads to answers a novelist didn’t anticipate.
Today, I had the thought that a character should be flipping a coin into the air. So I headed to Google to determine with British coin my character should be flip in 1914. And ended up with an interesting lesson in coinage.
Being not British, I didn’t realize that there was a fairly huge change to the currency in 1968. These days, they use “decimalization” much like we Americans do, with 100 pence to the pound. But prior to that–so certainly in 1914–there were actually 240 pence to the pound. Twelve pence to a shilling, and 20 shilling to a pound.
I’m not sure how I’ve managed to write so many book with English or British characters and settings without looking this up before! Sheesh!
These are the current coins, of which I imagine I’ll collect a few while in England this fall to add to my foreign currency collection (by which I mean the bowl we’ve tossed Euros, Pesos, Canadian coins, and Bulgarian coins into).
These are not, of course, what my mysterious villain would have been tossing into the air in 1914. No, I think he’d be tossing up a George V florin, worth 2 shillings and nearly an inch in diameter.
Interesting note for Americans who are as ignorant of all this as I was, LOL–each monarch had the coins redesigned with their profile upon ascension. So while Victorian coins would all have had the Queen upon them, all new coins during King George V’s reign, for instance, would have had him. A bit different from our Jefferson nickles and Washington quarters and Lincoln pennies that never change. =)
That concludes your very short lesson in historical British coinage. Now back to the man flipping a florin… 😉
by Roseanna White | Jul 11, 2016 | Announcements, Book News
It’s that time again! I’m filling out my influencer list for A Lady Unrivaled! I will be posting a public link to the sign-up form on THURSDAY, 14 July at 2 p.m. EDT. There will only be 15-20 slots available for paperbacks, so in the interest of giving everyone a fair shot at them, you’re getting advance warning. 😉
I’ll also be doing a Celebrate Lit tour for this book, so if you’re part of that blog team, you don’t need to try to get a copy via this list. =)
ALSO…
Next week, I’ll also have a sign-up form for my very first Christmas story, Giver of Wonders, launch team! I’ll only have 15-20 paperbacks available for this one too, but will have various digital options for interested readers, including beta readers who will get to read the book in August or September instead of November. Stay tuned!
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. Having successfully launched two homeschool grads, she now spends her time writing fiction, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years, as well as a fantasy series and contemporary mysteries and romances. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary.