Two Nerdy History Girls Return Engagement No. 6

Author Susan Holloway Scott and I have been invited back to chat about social history with Super Librarian Meena Jain of the Ashland Public Library, Ashland Massachusetts, and an audience from, apparently, all over the place. It seems there are enough nerdy history people out there to keep us coming back. Certainly there’s enough social history to keep discussions going for as long as anybody wants to listen.

There’s no telling what topics will come up, but right now, I’m thinking breeches might be on the list (a) because nobody but historical interpreters, actors, and re-enactors wear them anymore, which makes them mystery items, and (b) because men’s clothing doesn’t get as much attention as women’s. But that’s just my guess. Our audience may have entirely different questions, which we will try to answer. Susan and I have a little more wisdom in some subjects than in others, but we’re always game to investigate.

Thomas Rowlandson, "New Invented Elastic Breeches" 1784 (or later)

© The Trustees of the British Museum

The event is virtual, so wear whatever you like, including breeches.

7 PM Monday 15 July 2024

You can register online by following this link or by cutting and pasting this address into your browser: https://tinyurl.com/apl-nerdygirl6

We hope you’ll join us for this next round. Our sixth!



Difficult Dukes #3 News—or, What's Happening With the Blackwoods? Also, Other News

As reported elsewhere, the third Difficult Dukes book, the Blackwoods’ story, is in production.

It doesn’t yet have a cover, but that is in process. It does have a title and a release date, which I feel pretty safe in reporting, now that it appears on major online bookseller pages:

My Inconvenient Duke 21 January 2025

Meanwhile, because the writing happens ages before the publishing (in my case, something resembling eternity occurs between these two phases), I am working on the next book, which currently seems to be a spinoff. But things change. It may turn out to be something completely different.

Previous Occurrences

In May, the Ashland Public Library, in Ashland Massachusetts, was the site of yet another great RomCon last month. In fact, my assistant Jessica and I were so busy that we never got to take photos, so I had to steal them from the library. Thank you, readers, for enduring yet another wet New England day, and for making us feel so welcome and loved.

Top Row: The authors; Historical Romance Panel-Carla Kelly, Caroline Linden, Loretta Chase, Evelyn Richardson; Moi with crocheted Jane Austen figure. Bottom Row: Meena Jain & her Minions aka Meenions—an incredible team, who kept everything running smoothly.

Coming Attractions:

July will see a return of the Two Nerdy History Girls, courtesy our most excellent host, Meena Jain, and the Ashland Public Library. You can register for the event if you follow this link. I will report in more detail as we get nearer the date.

Historical Romance Panel Now on YouTube

Recently, historical romance author Elizabeth Everett and Liz Donatelli of the Reader Seeks Romance Channel invited me to join a panel for an episode of Unchaperoned, "The Evolution & Future of Historical Romance." Author Eloisa James, Sarah Fickeromance fiction historian and English professor at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill— and I had a lively discussion with our hosts.

We debated “Old School" & "New School" styles of historical romance storytelling, changes in covers, strange occurrences and/or ideas in historical romance marketing, writing historical romance for modern audiences, and the tremendous popularity of Bridgerton. We discussed our influences and aims and the evolution of the genre.

Heady stuff, yes—and our panel was Part One, with Part Deux coming soon.

The program lasts about an hour, but that hour went quickly for us, as I hope it will do for you, and offer some food for thought. The link is below.

The Evolution & Future of Historical Romance PART 1

In other news: A quick reminder that I’ll be at the Ashland Public Library in Ashland, Massachusetts for a RomCon on 18 May. You can find details here.

And the third Difficult Dukes book is in production. As soon I learn the release date, I’ll post it here.