I live in two worlds. The real world
where I spend my physical days and nights, and then the Regency world that
swims in my head and makes me have to type my stories.
I love both worlds. I often find
story ideas by comparing the day I’ve had and thinking about what my day would
have been like in Regency times.
For instance, I’ve been away at a
conference for several days and I’ve come home to a pretty messy house and loads
of washing. So I’ve spent the morning doing the washing, vacuuming and dusting,
and cleaning bathrooms. It only took me a couple of hours.
But in Regency times it would have taken me all day! For a start I’d have to heat the water as there were no taps I could simply turn on. The washing would have been done by hand and that in its self would have taken me all day and rubbed my skin raw—no rubber gloves.
I would have had to take rugs
outside and beat them thoroughly to get the dirt and dust off and I’m not sure
dusting would really have gotten rid of much dust as there was nothing to shift
it outside. i'd have simply stirred it all around.
If I had been born a ‘Lady’ I would
never have had to lift a hand to clean anything. My servants would have done everything
for me, including washing my hair if I’d wanted.
I suppose I could hire a cleaning lady
in today’s world, if I wanted (not sure I’d want them to dress me or wash my
hair though.)
Rheda Kerrick, my heroine in my new Regency romance, INVITATION TO SCANDAL, released later this month, is a ‘lady’ but she is forced to ‘work’ to save her family home for her younger brother. No house cleaning for her though. Smuggling and horse breeding are on her agenda. It’s such a pity that the extremely handsome, Rufus Knight, Viscount Strathmore, is set on catching a certain smuggler. It’s making Rheda’s life more perilous than she’d wish.
Here is the RT Book Review
RT
Rating 4 Stars
With snappy
dialogue, lively action, a hero that believes in honor above all and a strong
heroine who loves fiercely, Evans’ story will have readers laughing and crying,
savoring every scene.
Rheda
Kerrich has been helping the townspeople and trying to hold on to the family
home for her brother in her own unconventional way, as local smuggler “Dark
Shadow.” She has one last shipment to deal with before retirement, but then
Rheda gets stuck under a barrel of French brandy and is found by Rufus Knight,
Viscount Strathmore.
He is
immediately attracted to Rheda, thinking she is a simple village girl. Rufus is
in Kent to find the smuggler and decides to seduce Rheda, but he will not rest
until he finds the Dark Shadow — the only one who can clear his father of
treason. But the closer he gets to Rheda and the truth, the more dangerous
things become. (BRAVA, May, 320 pp., $15.00)
Reviewed By: Jill Brager
Think about the day you’ve just had.
Compare it to the early 1800’s. How would it have been different for you if you
lived in that time? The best answer wins a copy of INVITATION TO SCANDAL. Open
internationally, in book or eBook format.
4 comments:
Sounds like a great read, Brownen. Well, my day began with bottle feeding a calf, which would have been pressing the calf's mouth into a bucket of milk rather than opening his mouth and putting a rubber nipple in as I did.
What a great! questin, Bron. For one thing I wouldn't have the alarm, I wouldn't have running water and flush toilets much less a toaster. To get done what I did in 10 - 15 minutes tops, would have taken me an hour(?).
The house would be cold (it was in the 30's last night and my furnace comes on and starts warming the house up about 30 minute before the alarm). It was raining and I'd have trudged out to the privy or if wealthy, I could have used a chamber pot that a servant would have emptied.
I drove my granddaughter to school (4 miles one way) and was home in less than 20 minutes. That would have been a huge undertaking in the early 1800's. Even at that distance I'm not sure she would have made the trip each day - and instead may have been in a boarding school.
And, of course, I would not be responding to emails and posting comments on a blog - but I may have been reading the gossip column or maybe even the whole paper.
I've been up about 4.5 hours now and in another time, I'd be bundled up before the fireplace or working for my keep not sitting in an ergonomically comfortable chair in front of a computer in a warm house. I think the only thing even close is that I've had a cup of tea (although with my electric pot, it took no time at all to fix).
Judith - I love how you really thought about your day. You're right about how long everything would have taken.
Great question, Bron!
Like Judith, I would have shivered my way to the outhouse or privy. According to my father-in-law, I would have used dried corn cobs to wipe in old-time America; not sure what people used in Regency England. Maybe you know?
I might have had to drop a bucket in the well to get water to wash and cook. Next I would have built a fire in the kitchen fireplace. Or would I have gone to milk the cow, etc., first? Collected eggs for breakfast?
I'm assuming I would have been a poor farmer's wife like 99% of the women in those days.
By the time I'd eaten breakfast, I would have gotten more physical exercise in than I want to contemplate!
Those people had to be strong in order to survive daily life!
Post a Comment