Turning tragedy into timeless romance.
Coined by Richard Lassels (1603-1668), a Catholic priest and travel writer, the term “Grand Tour” was applied to sons from wealthy English families that embarked on travels abroad to Europe. The height of the Grand Tour’s popularity was in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Lord Byron is considered one of the greatest English poets. He established his popularity and legacy with long narrative works like Don Juan and Childe Harold's Pilgrimage. Several of his shorter more melodic poems also remain loved, such as “She Walks in Beauty,” “My Soul is Dark,” and “The Eve of Waterloo.” Considering his genius and wildly interesting life, it’s no wonder he’s left behind so many witticisms and profound quotes. Here is a selected forty for your pleasure. Read on for 40 quotes from Lord Byron.
Before 1839, women had no rights to their children if their marriage failed and led to separation or divorce, nor could a wife own property or keep independent wages. Then came Caroline Norton, poet, author, and early women's rights advocate.
Many of our treasured traditions, Christmas cards, Christmas trees, hanging stockings, and caroling, didn’t appear until the 1840s. This makes much of Christmas a Victorian invention., and like anything from the Victorian era, many of these beloved traditions have weird, wacky, and even sinister roots. Here's 7 weird Victorian Christmas traditions.
Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Robert Browning were the literary power couple of the Victorian era, and their love story was just as entertaining as their poetry.
Drury Lane Theatre is home to a host of ghosts. There's so many lurking within the theatre's walls that its considered good luck for a play if an apparition is spotted before a production. But what sort of ghosts haunt Drury Lane?
“The slide from Summer into Fall can sneak up on you, like footsteps keeping pace until they speed up and overtake you. We invited fellow writers and poets to create original pieces that would sweep us up in stories and poems about the other, moodier season of change. We received a cornucopia of work that skews... Continue Reading →
Looking for a book to get you in the Halloween spirit? Check out Autumn Noir: An Unsettling Reads Anthology, its pages packed with horror, thrillers, and mysteries by over 20 brilliant authors. My first attempt at something other than historical fiction will be included in this anthology in a contemporary suspense short called "Perdita's Shoes."... Continue Reading →
In 1723, England introduced a criminal system that is called “The Bloody Code” by today’s historians. Although the name is not contemporary to the time, it captures the severity of the list of 220 offenses attached to capital punishment in Georgian & Regency England.
I'm beyond pleased to be the featured fiction contributor in New Reader Magazine's latest issue. I discuss my creative process and making historical fiction appealing to a modern day audience in my interview on pg. 20, and my latest short story, To Own Her Body, is on pg. 36.
Kat Devitt 