Like most novels, The First Lady and the Rebel underwent revisions on its path to publication (look for it on October 1!). This is the epilogue in the first draft. It was replaced by one that I felt was more in keeping with the focus of the novel: the relationship between the two Todd sisters …
Recently, I added this nifty carte-de-visite to my modest collection of Lincoln memorabilia–a memorial photograph that’s a composite of photos taken during his presidency. Aside from what’s new in my collection, what’s new in my writing? While awaiting publication of The First Lady and the Rebel (coming in October!) I’ve been busy working on another …
During the editing of The First Lady and the Rebel, some sacrifices had to be made, and the following is one of them: a deleted scene where the Lincolns play host to Charles and Lavinia Stratton, better known as Mr. and Mrs. Tom Thumb. So here it is! “You should wear pink more often, Molly,” …
With apologies for not being here much lately, I do have some pleasing news: my seventh novel, The First Lady and the Rebel, about Mary Lincoln and her younger sister Emily Todd Helm, will be out in the fall of 2019! Stay tuned for ordering information. In the meantime, here’s the cover, which I hope …
I’ve been tinkering a bit with my website. For my forthcoming novel (for which I hope to be able to post cover art soon), I’ve added a list of further reading as well as a PDF article about my research on Nora Fitzpatrick, much of which concerned Nora’s later life and thus didn’t make it into …
Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year! I’ve been busy revising my forthcoming novel, Hanging Mary, for the publisher. Here’s a seasonal excerpt for you, set at Mary Surratt’s boardinghouse 150 years ago on Christmas Eve, 1864: The men had gone out the previous night, Mr. Weichmann to buy some presents for his sisters and …
Last night, after a great deal of cutting and pasting of HTML, I managed to create a spot on my website’s menu bar for Hanging Mary–along with excerpts! Check them out here. I’ll be adding a “Further Reading” link for the book soon as well. You may notice that I’ve taken some pages off my …
I just hit “send” on the completed manuscript of my Mary Surratt novel, Hanging Mary. There will be a few tweaks to come, no doubt, but I’m pleased with how it turned out. (The characters would not echo my sentiments.) Since I finished this up on Election Day in the United States, I’d thought I’d …
Yes, things have been mighty quiet here, but for a very good reason: I am almost finished with my new novel, Hanging Mary (the official title). It’s the story of Mary Surratt, the first woman hanged by the United States government, and her young boarder, Nora Fitzpatrick. Once Mary is duly hanged, l’ll be posting …
Happy New Year! As promised, it’s time for this blog’s first (and perhaps only) cat-naming contest! Here’s the background: one of my heroines in my novel in progress, Nora, is known to have had a cat. We don’t know anything else about the cat, including its name. So I thought for a little fun, I …