The Regency Era: A Love Affair

 When it comes to romance novels the Regency era is a fan-favorite sub-genre. This short period spans from 1811-1820 during what historians call the Long Eighteenth Century. This epoch is characterized by many notable events that change every part of the world. 

Britain is at war with Napoleon and America. Slave ships sailed from the African coast to the Americas with human cargo. People in the Western world believed themselves enlightened, embracing Ancient Greek ideals which were reflected in various areas of society including fashion. This was the era of Jane Austen, Lord Byron, and Mary Shelley. It was also a time when the divide between the haves and have-nots that is not unlike our own time. 

So, why is the Regency era so popular with romance readers? 

One reason is that the time was one of decadence, and joviality before the moral Victorian age unfurled. It was a wild time.  A time period that we could see ourselves, the reader, being able to navigate yet the sub-genre still allows us to escape. 

Another reason for it popularity is that it was a time of opposing traits. The “world” (by world I mean Europe) is at war yet people are twisting every drop of joy from life. People are enlightened yet still harbor elitist, racist, sexist, and religious ideologies. Though those beliefs haven’t been eradicated from this world, most of them are not believed by a majority of people.  

Much like other books, the Regency sub-genre can entertain while opening our minds to the modern problems we face. 

Now if we could all get our own Happily Ever After in real life, all would be perfect. 

The Thing You do.

I must admit that I am a little obsessed with authors writing routines. Like Julia Quinn edits each scene before moving on to writing the next scene. Sarah MacLean takes four to six months to write a hundred pages. 

At the beginning of my writing career, I had this obsession because I was searching for my writing process. But that wasn’t my only reason, I wanted to feel that I was a true author (whatever that means? I still haven't figured it out) and not someone with a foolish dream, so I sought out confirmation that I was doing “it” right. 

Then one day, I reminded myself that I had never followed the crowd. Not that I’m so very odd or different but I just wanted to be me. So, why does my obsession continue? 

I’m looking for growth. Isn’t that what we all seek out? Whether you are an author or reader, we look to explore deeper, to expand. I believe that we are all ambitious. I don’t mean that we all want to be CEOs, but we all want those dreams for our lives to become our realities. 

So, how does this relate to my obsession? Because all of that is about doing the work. That work will be different for each of us and most likely, we will share the ways in which we accomplish it. 

So, I decided to do it my way (or Frank Sinatra style). Which in case, you are wondering. I create my characters including everything about them but with enough room to grow as I write. Then I outline major plot points then outline individual scenes to the point I get stuck. So, I write and that leads me to where I need to go to get to the ending. Then revisions. Revisions. Revisions. But that’s another tale. 

It's The Most Comfortable Time of the Year

 

New’s Year is over. The resolutions have probably been broken. Valentine’s Day is some weeks away  (that’s if you have someone to celebrate the holiday with), and winter has fallen over the Northern hemisphere so there is nothing else to do but settle at the home and find some comfort. 

A natural association with comfort is comfort foods. Though hot chocolate or mac and cheese may be the thoughts that come to mind, I speaking about comfort books and TV shows. 

For me, I love reading those romance novels that still warm my heart, entertain me with a laugh, and romance. Lately, I have been re-reading Julie Garwood and Julia Quinn (thanks to the Bridgerton series on Netflix that reminded me how much I love the series and the author). As for TV, I’m watching my favorites The Big Bang Theory and Family Guy. 

These favorites of mine just seem to make me melt into my favorite chair or into my mattress and burrow under the blanket. All the stress slips away and my thoughts stop. We all need some comfort especially after the times we have experienced. This is the perfect time of year to seek out that comfort even if it’s fifteen minutes. The mind and body need to recharge so we can face the tasks of daily life. 

Some might call it self-care. That might put some people off so I call it comfort. So, what are your comforts? Is it reading your favorite books? Seeing your favorite TV shows or movies? Or something entirely different? Where do you find your comfort?