Turning tragedy into timeless romance.
About two years ago I wrote up a blog post on weird Victorian Christmas traditions. One tradition was odd Christmas cards, which has interested me so much, I’m writing another blog post exclusively on this one tradition. It’s also a really great excuse to display more really strange cards, such as children riding critters, dead birds, and toads fencing. Take a look at these 25 weird Victorian Christmas cards.
Born in 1788 in Chatham, Kent, William Cuffay was the son of an English woman, Juliana Fox, and a formerly enslaved father of African descent, Chatham Cuffay. William was a traveling tailor of a short height. He stood at 4 feet 11 inches. However, in that small body was a powerful activist.
What images come to mind for the Victorian era? Maybe corsets, tea, and large country homes come to mind. Maybe the values of the time: wealth, family, morality, and strict gender roles (like divorce as a rare occurrence and society's obsession with virginity). The last thing you might think of is a crazy sex cult... Continue Reading →
Brooks Kohler, founder of Laptiast.com, was kind enough to write an article featuring my writing. As an author, it's always touching when someone finds your work praiseworthy. Especially with lines like this: "With an ability to craft a story in such a way it not only proves a pleasure to read but also forms a... Continue Reading →
The Victorians gobbled down some strange foods, from jellied eels to boiled calf's head. Times really have changed. We might cringe at the thought of eating some of the foods on this list, but more than a century ago, many of these dishes were considered treats and delicacies. a 1) Jellied Eels - Yep! You heard it.... Continue Reading →
A dead lover returns to his still-alive fiance in the form of an apparition. He asks her to free him of their engagement or he's bound for hell (dramatic much?). That's essentially the gist of this English Ballad, which has many lyrical and musical variations. Of course, there's a push and pull between the ghost... Continue Reading →
On the night of November 13, 1885, a buggy rolled up to the Chatham Hill Gaol under the cover of darkness. Out leaped 18 year-old Mollie Downes, her brother, and a minister. What was this young woman about to do? Marry a prisoner, of course. a a Her beloved, James Fauntleroy, was in the Virginian... Continue Reading →
With Halloween upon us, it is fitting to focus on spiritualism and the occult for this blog post. This week, I'll be focusing on the Fox Sisters, who are the epitome of the saying, "Trick or Treat." These three girls, Leah, Margaret, and Catherine Fox, helped to found spiritualism, which is the belief that spirits... Continue Reading →
Many theories exist about the identity of Jack the Ripper. The most plausible theories name ordinary civilians as possible suspects, such as Joseph Barnett, a fish porter, and George Hutchinson, an unemployed laborer. Other theories are bit more far-fetched in their range of possible subjects, such as Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice’s Adventures in... Continue Reading →
This week's writing adventures have been limited as I prepare for my graduation. I started to work on a new short story, inspired by Madeleine Smith and her poisoning her lover with arsenic laced cocoa. I have written two thousand words in the story, but I am uncertain about the tone and direction. I was... Continue Reading →