Gothic Goodies: Cross Bones Graveyard

I love cemeteries. Always have. In college, we had a particularly old one in the historic Texas town where I grew up. Sam Houston, once president of Texas, is buried there among the ancient tombstones and moss-covered monuments. Two of the most popular statues therein are those college students referred to as the Black Jesus, a bronze statue of Christ, and the Angel of Death, a quite beautiful statue of an angel whose crevices are stained with mildew. One, by the way, I would view quite differently now after BLINK (as Whovians would understand). We’d go there in the middle of the night, tripping on whatever psychedelic we had taken that night in the early 90s, and talk, dream, philosophize, etc. After reading Anne Rice my freshman year, my Gothic nature was both defined and solidified.

My fiction leans more toward the Gothic fantasy side of Steampunk than the highly technological science fiction side of Steampunk’s beginnings. Sure, my work has sprinklings of fantastic Steampunk technology, but the dark themes of my work almost always deal with death and loss in one way or another. From my Gothic short stories, like the erotic, Steampunk Chronicle’s Readers’ Choice Award-winning “A Kiss in the Rain” to my novels Avalon Revisited and The Zombies of Mesmer, when it comes to my taste in fiction, reading or writing it: the darker, the better.

Imagine my delight when I discovered the Cross Bones Graveyard in my research, home of “The Outcast Dead.” Stretching back to medieval times, the graveyard became home to the unwanted, the poor, and the working girls between the 16th to 19th centuries. Those too poor to be buried properly in hallowed ground at the nearby Southwark Cathedral, then known as St. Saviour’s, found their final resting place at Cross Bones. Many a prostitute throughout that time, including the infamous “Winchester Geese,” prostitues licensed to work by the Bishop of Winchester, from the 18th century, are among the hundreds buried in this tiny plot of land. In 1853, the graveyard was closed “on the grounds that it was ‘completely overcharged with dead’ and that ‘further burials’ would be ‘inconsistent with a due regard for the public health and public decency’.”

In 1990, a partial excavation was done at the site, removing some 148 skeletons. It’s estimated that’s less that 1% of all the 15,000 buried on those tiny grounds.

Situated on Redcross Way, it’s iron gates have become a colorful shrine to the forgotten dead as well as others lost by visitors. Glorious colorful ribbons and roses cover the entrance to this once-shamed place, telling its inhabitants and the world that every decent person is worthy of respect and remembrance, despite their livelihood or economic status.

The amazing Julie Mollins, the same reporter who wrote an article on me for Reuters in 2011, reported on Cross Bones and John Constable, the man who breathed life back into the graveyard with The Southwark Mysterys plays and monthly ritual honoring the forgotten dead.

Next month, I’ll be traveling to London in part to plan an O. M. Grey Tour of London for 2014, where I will personally take readers to the places found in my novels and short stories. On that tour that will take us all from Bedlam to Gray’s Inn Road to Hyde Park and beyond, the Cross Bones Graveyard will be one of the many stops in the Gothic borough of Southwark.

The Cross Bones Graveyard appears in my forthcoming novel The Ghosts of Southwark, the sequel to The Zombies of Mesmer: A Nickie Nick Vampire Hunter Novel which is available on Amazon, Kindle, and serialized on my blog for free, either in print or via podcast.

-_Q

Olivia M. Grey lives in the cobwebbed corners of her mind writing paranormal romance with a Steampunk twist, like the Amazon Gothic Romance bestseller Avalon Revisited. Her short stories and poetry have been published in various magazines and anthologies, like SNM Horror Magazine and How the West Was Wicked. Ms. Grey also blogs and podcasts relationship essays covering such topics as alternative lifestyles, deepening intimacy, ending a relationship with love and respect, and other deliciously dark and decadent matters of the heart and soul.

Read more by O. M. Grey on her blog Caught in the Cogs, http://omgrey.wordpress.com

Read Full Post »

Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon

This weekend I enjoyed my first steampunk picnic. Loads of fun and much good food was had by all.  I love having the opportunity to put on pretty clothes, break out the silver-plate and lace tablecloths, while my spouse, a wonderful cook, had fun poring through Victorian cookbooks to complete our menu. Our contributions included a jellied cucumber salad (gelatin with cucumbers and cream cheese, served with arugula in place of the hard-to-find watercress and tomatoes). We also had a pork and apple pie, Welsh rarebit and cucumber tea sandwiches, petit fours, cheese, crackers, strawberries, and chocolate chip cookie bars. The green bottle on the table is holding homemade fig-infused lemonade which was amazing.

One thing you might note is that of the two gentlemen with me in this photo, only one is in steampunk garb. The other, a dear friend, is in what he determined was comfortable clothing. Something I’ve discovered, to my delight, is that the steampunk community here in Detroit is welcoming, whether you choose to garb all the way, just a little, or not at all. Clothing ranges from jeans to full period uniforms to purely Victorian, to weird west, and anything else one might imagine. No matter how much time or money you have to put into your outfit, you’re still welcome to come along. I like that. It makes me willing to bring along friends who aren’t into costuming and introduce them to other cool nerds. So kudos to all. I’m proud to be part of that. Earlier that week, we’d participated in a silent auction and bake sale, to raise money for one of our community who has large medical bills and no insurance. That entire event made me even prouder to be part of such a caring, generous community.

Following our lovely idyll beside the Detroit River, we strolled through the conservatory on Detroit’s Belle Isle. I was particularly fond of the Lacy Palm, which reminded me very much of tentacles. 🙂 It was hotter than blazes outside, so the conservatory was more than steamy in every sense of the word. Nonetheless, I wanted to share this great shot of me and my husband. Off-kilter, just like us. 🙂

A wonderful kick-off to a steampunk summer. Hope yours is lovely as well.

(My corset is by Ties That Bynde, a marvelous Detroit based artisan. Skirt is by Holy Clothing, an inexpensive source for basic, monochrome pieces. My blouse is from another on-line retailer, Pyramid Company.  Parasol is a thrift store umbrella and the purse is from a booth at the Michigan Renaissance Festival. My watch is a family heirloom, as is my husband’s pocket watch. Glenn’s suit, shirt and tie are from his everyday wardrobe. The waistcoat is from Gentlemen’s Emporium.

 

 

Read Full Post »

In Which I Make an Awkward Video About Innocent Darkness

Since CHARMED VENGEANCE releases 8-8-13, I’ve been trying to make more (awkward) videos. Here’s me talking about INNOCENT DARKNESS.

Also, there are copies of CHARMED VENGEANCE up for grabs on Goodreads. You should enter.

Haven’t read INNOCENT DARKNESS yet, or perhaps you’d like to read it again? Join the INNOCENT DARKNESS read-along! (There are prizes.)

Have a great week, everyone.

—
Suzanne Lazear is the author of the YA Fairytale Series The Aether Chronicles. INNOCENT DARKNESS is out now. CHARMED VENGEANCE releases 8-8-13. Learn more about the series at www.aetherchronicles.com

Read Full Post »

Steampunk Seaside Outings

Ready To Board

Local Houston Steampnk enthusiasts recently gathered for two pleasurable excursions by the sea. We picnicked at the San Jacinto Battlegrounds, where Texans won their independence from Mexico in 1836. Then we leisurely wandered about the grand old Battleship Texas.

Manning The Guns

This amazing ship, launched March 18, 1912, so it’s over 100 years old. At that time she was the most powerful weapon in the world. The battleship Texas was the first to mount anti-aircraft guns, the first to control gunfire with directors and range-keepers and the first U.S. battleship to launch an aircraft. The Battleship Texas proudly played a prominent role in both World War I and World War II.

Looking Out At Sea

Swabbing The Deck

Soon after that excursion we gathered by the sea once more for fun and leisure. Spending a sunny Sunday afternoon at a scenic park in

La Porte Texas for a picnic by the sea.

Steampunk Picnic

We spread our blankets on the soft, green grass and chatted as we nibbled from the bounty of our wicker picnic baskets. We took leisurely strolls down the lengthy fishing pier. The sun was soft and the wind gentle and all together it proved a perfect day for a picnic.

The Pier

We had as much fun as any Victorians, including Queen Victoria herself, when indulging in the popular pastime of picnicking during that era. Here is a fun description of a picnic from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, published in 1868.

“The commander in chief and his aides soon spread the tablecloth with an inviting array of eatables and drinkables, prettily decorated with green leaves.

Picnic By The Sea

Jo announced that the coffee was ready, and everyone settled themselves to a hearty meal, for youth is seldom dyspeptic, and exercise develops wholesome appetites. A very merry lunch it was, for everything seemed fresh and funny, and frequent peals of laughter startled a venerable horse who fed nearby. There was a pleasing inequality in the table, which produced many mishaps to cups and plates, acorns dropped in the milk, little black ants partook of the refreshments without being invited, and fuzzy caterpillars swung down from the tree to see what was going on. Three white-headed children peeped over the fence, and an objectionable dog barked at them from the other side of the river with all his might and main.” http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/514

I hope your friends, family and local Steampunk groups gather for wonderful picnics this summer and that you have as much fun as Jo, Meg, Amy and Beth.

Maeve Alpin is the author of four Steampunk/Romances: To Love A London Ghost, Conquistadors In Outer Space, As Timeless As Stone, and As Timeless As Magic.

Read Full Post »

In Which I Try to Explain Steampunk

I get asked to explain Steampunk all the time. So, I finally made a video. An awkward video. Because I am technologically awkward.

—
Suzanne Lazear is the author of the Aether Chronicles Series. INNOCENT DARKNESS is out now. CHARMED VENGEANCE releases 8-8-13. For more information visit www.aetherchronicles.com

Read Full Post »

Steampunk Technology: The Air Loom

The lovely Lolitas of STEAMED! have asked me to contribute twice a month, and I am quite honored to do so. Initially, at least, my articles will revolve around the interesting historical tidbits of the Victorian Era that appear in my novels and stories.

One my favorite things about writing Steampunk is the research. It’s fascinating, really. So often in my fiction, I incorporate historical people or events or places or even technology. My imagination for technology is rather limited, I’m afraid, as my strengths as a writer are characterization, emotional depth, and dialogue. Technology and world-building are far down the list, so I work with what’s already there, although much of what I incorporate into my work has been all but lost to history. These little-known facts and events and gadgets find new life in my work. With that splendid thing known as creative license, I embellish and bend historical events and 19th century technology to fit the needs of my story.

Today, I’ll focus on The Air Loom: The Human Influencing Machine, something devised in 1810, even before the Victoria’s Reign began in 1837. While doing research on the notorious Bedlam (Bethlehem Hospital, aka Bethlem) Asylum for a guest post called “Lunatics in London” for Bitten by Books during a blog tour, I watched a fascinating documentary on the infamous hospital. Within, they introduced one James Tilly Matthews, the first documented paranoid schizophrenic. I was immediately fascinated by this person and his concept of The Air Loom, so I vowed to work it into my next novel.

In my Steampunk teen romance The Zombies of Mesmer, we visit the horrible Bethlehem Asylum. Although set in 1880, my Bedlam’s halls contain the misery and pain seen in the hospital in Matthews’ time there. After being released from a three-year stint in a French prison for suspicion of being a double agent, Matthews returned to London and proceeded to accuse the Home Secretary of treason in a rather dramatic and publicly disruptive way. Matthews was committed to Bethlem Asylum in 1797 as a lunatic. Fortunately for Matthews, a resident of the hospital for over a decade, he had a relatively cushy room there and ended up drawing plans for the renovation of Bethlem Hospital among many other helpful things. In 1810, he wrote a book called Illustrations of Madness in which he illustrated the influencing machine in great detail both in design and description of purpose. Matthews believed that scientist spies, experts in “pneumatic chemistry,” had set up near Bedlam and was tormenting him by means of rays emitted from The Air Loom.

The Air Loom was a piece of advanced technology, but in the early part of the industrial age advanced technology often meant enormous machinery, rather than the increasing minutarisation that characterise the 21st century. The Air Loom was enormous. The mechanism stood seven metres tall and occupied a footprint of nine square metres, and it was constructed from oak with machined brass fittings.

It was surrounded by barrels that fed noxious gases through oiled leather pipes into the main body of the machine. The gases were derived from substances including ‘gas from the horse’s anus’, ‘seminal fluid’, ‘putrid human breath’ and ‘effluvia of dogs’. (Source)

The machine’s rays exacted such horrendous tortures onto Matthews’ mind like “kiteing,” where ideas were forced into his brain; “thought-making,” where thoughts were removed and replaced by others of the scientist’s choosing; and Lobster Cracking, where “the external pressure of the magnetic atmosphere surrounding the person assailed was increased, ‘so as to stagnate his circulation, impede his vital motions, and produce instant death’.” Other torments included “lengthening of the brain,” “thigh talking,” “fluid locking,” and “bomb bursting.”

Read more about this fascinating machine and see images of The Air Loom, built by artist Rod Dickinson using Matthews’ illustrations at http://www.theairloom.org.

An altered version of The Air Loom appears in my forthcoming novel The Ghosts of Southwark, the sequel to The Zombies of Mesmer: A Nickie Nick Vampire Hunter Novel which is available on Amazon, Kindle, and serialized on my blog for free, either in print or via podcast.

-_Q

Olivia M. Grey lives in the cobwebbed corners of her mind writing paranormal romance with a Steampunk twist, like the Amazon Gothic Romance bestseller Avalon Revisited. Her short stories and poetry have been published in various magazines and anthologies, like SNM Horror Magazine and How the West Was Wicked. Ms. Grey also blogs and podcasts relationship essays covering such topics as alternative lifestyles, deepening intimacy, ending a relationship with love and respect, and other deliciously dark and decadent matters of the heart and soul.

Read more by O. M. Grey on her blog Caught in the Cogs, http://omgrey.wordpress.com

Read Full Post »

My Steampunk News or Why I owe Suzanne Lazear a cupcake by Jeannie Lin

Today we welcome Jeannie Lin, who has awesome news to share with us. ~launches cupcake cannon~

JEANNIE LIN writes historical romances set in Tang Dynasty China. Her current release is The Sword Dancer, the first in a new series of romantic adventures involving the salt trade, corruption, and law and order in the 9^th century. Her September release, The Lotus Palace, is a romance with a murder mystery set in the infamous Tang Dynasty pleasure quarter. She looks forward to moving a thousand years into the future with the Gunpowder Chronicles to create new worlds and new adventures.  

 

My Steampunk News or “Why I owe Suzanne Lazear a cupcake”

by Jeannie Lin

I thought it only fitting that I make this official announcement on “Steamed” as pretty much it’s Suzanne’s fault.

Flashback to the Romantic Times convention 2011:

I was in the lounge, sipping a cocktail and hanging out with several authors. One of them was Suzanne, wearing a lovely steampunk outfit which I envied.

“We were talking about how there needs to be more multicultural steampunk,” she told me. “And we’ve decided you should write it.”

In case you don’t know her, Suzanne is really shy. She’s also very subtle.

“I wish I could,” I told her, laughing it off. “I just don’t think that way. I can’t even come up with a steampunk plot.”

Because I actually love reading steampunk. I love the worldbuilding and the aesthetic and the whole philosophy of it. I love how open and experimental the genre is. I just have a real hard time coming up with new story ideas. I think I may be the only writer I know who has this issue.

Later in my hotel room, I Googled the Victorian era, where the traditional steampunks tend to take place, and crossed-referenced it with what was happening in China at the time.

And suddenly I wasn’t laughing anymore.

The Victorian era and the age of colonialism coincide with a dark period in Chinese history. It parallels the Opium Wars, a time when European powers threatened China from the outside and rebellions threatened the empire from within. This period is hailed as the “beginning of modern China”, but also the fall of the imperial government.

It was the time when the Western world rediscovered China and became fascinated with Asian culture and art, creating their own interpretations and misinterpretations of it. The icons of that time are what people think of when they think of historical China: footbinding, mandarin collars, opium pipes and rickshaws.

It was the ultimate era of East meets West.

It was a time when steam technology allowed the British to crush the Chinese navy, which had dominated the seas for centuries.

I began to re-imagine this time through steampunk goggles and it didn’t seem so far-fetched. Technology, societal upheaval , dystopia – it was ALL already there.

Image and fashion were an important component of the emerging identity as cities like Shanghai and Canton struggled with being at once Chinese and foreign, ancient and modern.  The look that emerged was a dramatic one. My imagination ran wild.

Then I began to research technology. (In addition to being a history geek, I’m actually a big science and technology nerd.) How did a culture that was hailed as technologically superior a thousand years earlier get so blind-sided? And what did China and Japan do in response to this period to try to compete? Some believed that they needed to adopt Western technology. Others shunned it.

I could create a steampunk technology based on native Chinese developments.

I could challenge all the elements I had always found difficult about this period; the colonial oppression, the footbinding, an empire addicted to opium.

I had gone from thinking that there could be a story there…

To thinking this is something I might be able to do…

To “OMG, I HAVE TO WRITE THIS STORY, IT WAS MADE FOR ME!”

History. Science. Rebellion. Empire. Made for me.

I wrote the first couple of chapters and shipped them off to my agent, who was ecstatic about the story. She pitched it to her top choice for this project who also happened to be my dream editor for the story.

And now I can announce that the Gunpowder Chronicles (working title) have sold in a two book deal to Cindy Hwang at Berkley and is slated for their Intermix digital first imprint.

So thank you for planting the seed, Suzanne. I owe you a cupcake.

~Jeannie

http://www.jeannielin.com

Read Full Post »

Up in the Aether–The Convention

This Memorial Day weekend, I was Up in the Aether–at the brand new convention in Dearborn, Michigan. Although there were holdover staff and guests from World Steam Expo, which folded, this was an all-new con with all new staff. It wasn’t perfect. We had plenty of growing pains, some visible to attendees, more that weren’t. You know what, though? I had a blast. My favorite place was the vendor’s room, of course, which was chock full of goodies ranging from $5 to thousands. Of course I picked up a few goodies to augment my wardrobe–I’m only human.

Other activities abounded, though. There was an airship combat room. An airship-to-airship combat video game to test out. There were more bands than I can remember. There was a Mr./Ms. Steampunk pageant. And of course, there were lots of panels–history, costuming, food, DIY, and, of course, steampunk fiction. That’s where I came in. Yep, I was in charge of wrangling the authors (and, incidentally, one film crew.) Yes, that can be an awful lot like herding wet ferrets. In this case, though, everyone played together pretty well. Guests of honor included Pip Ballantyne and Tee Morris, Scott Lynch, Elizabeth Bear, and Steven Harper. Other panelists were me, David Erik Nelson, Christian Klaver, and Colleen Gleason, plus the makers of the steampunk movie, “Wars of Other Men.” We had lots of great panels and even a few attendees showed up.

Yep. A few. Here’s where my learning curve on steampunk conventions kicks in. Science fiction conventions are about the product: the books, the movies, the games, and by extension, the creators of the above. Romance cons are even more so. But steampunk conventions are not about fiction. They’re about being steampunk. Make your costume, make your food, learn your history and dance to the music. Only a rather small percentage of the con-goers give a rat’s butt about the books. This strikes the average author as very odd, but the solid truth is that a lot of folks who identify as steampunk Don’t Even Read. (gasp) No, I don’t mean they’re illiterate. I just mean that fiction isn’t their recreation of choice.

Huh.   Well, having come into steampunk via fiction, that just bloody well hadn’t occurred to me. So what to do next year to keep fiction as a viable part of the convention, and draw in more bodies to the literary panels. I have ideas, but not enough. More suggestions would be more than welcome. One thought is to run the writing panels as DIY models–where there are hands-on exercises and the attendees come out with some kind of product. One is to have fewer panels, so the audience isn’t diluted by too many options. More advance promo of the authors would also be a plus. Maybe integrate some of that into the main programming of the con itself. Mostly, though, I’m just going to have to work my butt off to come up with something. I have confidence in the steampunk community that we’ll pull something off. After all–we build worlds. Surely we can build an audience. 🙂

In these photos, you’ll see me, my spouse, and my younger offspring. The grand-spawn was also in attendance, which was fun. Thanks to the captain and first mate of the Airship Valkyrie for the props: deck gun, tentacle, and the Aerodrome Authority chalkboard. All three black top hats are from Blonde Swan, leather skirt, kilt and suspenders are from Shoptroll, and red men’s corset and my green silk outfit are from Ties that Bynde.

 

 

Read Full Post »

Sneak Peek of CHARMED VENGEANCE!

Two months until CHARMED VENGEANCE (book two in my YA fairytale steampunk series THE AETHER CHRONICLES) releases! ~launches cupcake cannon~

Have you pre-ordered your copy yet? Seriously, I love this book even more than INNOCENT DARKNESS and I hope you love this book too. There are some new characters who I just adore. We also meet Noli’s brother, Jeff, the air pirate.

Unlike book 1, which takes place mostly in the Otherworld (faerie), book 2 takes place mostly in the mortal realm. This means MOAR STEAMPUNK. There are airships, air pirates, explosions, and cake. (No cake was harmed in the making of this book.)

Anyway, I made a short video with me reading an excerpt from Chapter One of CHARMED VENGEANCE. I hope you like it! (I’m pretty technologically awkward, so the video’s not fancy.)

I have all sorts of fun things in the works for Book 2’s release–giveaways, twitter chats, signings, a blog tour. There will even be a read-along of INNOCENT DARKNESS in July to get everyone ready for CV! I’ll keep you updated. (The AC facebook page or my author page are always good places for updates.) In the meanwhile, I have to get back to my book 3 edits…

~S

—
Suzanne Lazear is the author of the YA Fairytale Steampunk Series The Aether Chronicles. INNOCENT DARKNESS is out now, CHARMED VENGEANCE releases 8-8-13. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, daughter, and a menagerie of pillow-pets.

Read Full Post »

Fairy Tales and Steampunk: The Perfect Combination? By Ella Grey

Ella Grey has always loved to write. As much as she loves being a mum and eating strawberry ice cream. She can’t picture her life without it. ‘Wings’ is her first story in the Steampunk genre and it isn’t going to be her last. Ella has tackled a lot of different genres and doesn’t plan on settling on any particular one. It makes life interesting and keeps it varied. The next project is still being decided but she’s leaning toward a YA trilogy that’s been bugging her to be written. Her family are used to seeing her bent over a computer and muttering conversations with the people in her head. It’s okay, since she’s perfectly happily with not being normal.

Fairy Tales and Steampunk: The Perfect Combination?

By Ella Grey

I’ve always owned several fairy tale books as I was growing up. I still have a few on my bookshelf, both of them classics in their own way. The first in a collection by the Brothers Grimm, which has several brilliantly, told stories in it. The other is a collection by Angela Carter. I’ve always loved her collection of stories but neither collection is suitable to read to my son, he prefers dinosaur books anyway.

I started reading fairy tales from a young age and I even took a class in them during my short stay at University. It was my favourite class, showing the darker origins of fairy tales, originally used as morality tales to keep children in line.

Steampunk is a different story. I’ve always had some idea of it, H.G Wells and Jules Verne being the founding fathers so to speak but I’d never read it. I’m not sure why, I guess it had something to do with it being based in, some cases Victorian England, and I got flashbacks of trying to understand Charles Dickens. My first real introduction was a few years ago, right about the same time I got my first contract with Echelon. A friend of mine, Sean Hayden, wrote an eshort called Lady Dorn and after that first story I was hooked. From that moment I knew that I wanted to write a Steampunk story myself but what?

Last year I answered a submissions call from Echelon Press, after finding success with their pervious Steampunk anthology, a collection I loved, they wanted to do another one. This time Steampunk retellings of classic fairy tales. My brain nearly exploded with all the possible ideas I could use, thankfully my brain didn’t actually explode because that would have cut my writing career brutally short and brain matter probably isn’t that easy to clean up.

I believe that fairy tales are perfect for Steampunk retellings. The classics are constantly being retold in different genres, why not Steampunk? Fairy tales and Steampunk both have a fantasy element to them, in Steampunk it is the classic what if? So I believe that these two genres are a perfect fit and I definitely want to write more.

My story in the Once Upon a Clockwork Tale Anthology is based on The Wild Swans. I got the most vivid image of clockwork wings when I planned my story.

~Ella

http://www.ellagrey.wordpress.com

Once Upon a Clockwork Tale (Steampunk Anthology)

Wings by Ella Grey: Born into a world where the fairer sex hides coyly behind fans, Winifred is nowhere near the stereotype. She is fearless and passionate about her father’s scientific work. When the King summons him, Winifred is worried. The arrival of her six brothers and the mysterious Amelia and her silent brother offers distraction, but Winifred’s entire world is about to change beyond recognition and it’s up to her to save everyone she loves.

Hands and Grater by Robin Wyatt Dunn: Hands and Grater don’t understand their mother’s unique love for them. For how much love can a machine truly give? As Grimm originally intended, this is a bildungsroman, a tale of two young people coming of age in a time and place filled with danger and joy. The time has come for brother and sister to leave the nest, and learn their true nature, and the nature of their mother.

Bitter Cold by Katina French: Childhood friends, Kit and Greta, live in an extraordinary place powered by alchemical magic and mechanical wonders. Just when life might offer him favors, Kit is captured by the Snow Queen, a ruthless industrialist, bent on developing her Eternity Engine. Greta must risk everything to save Kit. Can a stubborn young lady best the most powerful woman in the world, with a little alchemy, a lot of luck, and a clockwork reindeer?

The Enchanted Bean by Matt Mitrovich: How do you reach a fabled land of giants without any magic beans? Build an airship, of course. A British adventurer takes to the skies seeking wealth and glory, instead he finds ancient gods ruling an oppressive flying kingdom. With the help of their allies, these former masters of men want to replant the World Tree and rebuild their war machines. To stop the sky from falling, our hero will have to do more than chop down a beanstalk.

 

 

Read Full Post »

Steampunk Fashion at Comicpalooza

Women With Weapons – Comicpalooza 2013

Whether your costume or your characters attire is a Steampunk ghost, pirate, vampire, mechanic, world explorer, airship crew member, a proper Victorian lady or something altogether different, I wanted to share helpful pointers from panels at Comicpalooza, this past Memorial weekend.

Since I’m a Lolita at Steamed, let’s start with Lolita fashion.

Steam Lolitas – The Cupcake Girls – Comicpalooza 2013

When developing a steampunk persona and the costuming for it, you may find yourself building a lot of drama and hardship to your characterization. However, Lolita personas are lighter, let’s just have fun, let’s  have a tea party. For that reason many women are attracted to Steampunk/Lolita fashion crossovers.  For a good start to Lolita fashion, take a nice white blouse, add a frilly petticoat and a skirt trimmed in lace.  Goodwill, Salvation army, and local thrift stores are excellent places to get accessories and props to build a costume.

A Cup Cake girl with the Steam Lolita panel

Whether you’re a Lolita blending steampunk into your costume, a steampunk persona mixing Lolita concepts into your outfit or working with a straight stempunk characterization for your attire, one thing to keep in mind is well fitted garments flatter any figure. Garments that are too large are as bad as clothing that’s too small. Regarding corsets, use those with steel bones, avoid the plastic ones as they bend when it’s hot, and become lumpy. Queen size women should ensure their corsets fall a bit longer in  front. Corsets should close to about 4″ all the way for a comfortable, even fit. It’s less expensive to invest in a custom fitted corset, than buying a dozen inexpensive ones that don’t look or feel quite right.

Lady Blue – Comicpalooza 2013

Don’t foreget bustles, they add a lot to an outfit. They don’t make your butt look big; they make your skirt look full. Certain silhouettes require a bustle to fill out your skirt and add a polished, proportional look to your dress.

Steampunk Sweethearts – Comicpalooza 2013

Other than a corset, the most expensive part of your costume may well be your shoes. Granny boots are always popular for steampnk. Consider investing in a good pair of Doc Martins that appeal to your steampunk self. For dancing at a a Steampunkb all you will need something more feminine. Cherries Jubilee is a great source for source for Steampunk shoes, her emeblishmens are amazing.

Regarding menswear, a man’s waistcoat or vest  needs to be long, such as one purchased from a big and tall store,

Shiny As A Copper Penney

so it covers the shirt to the top of the trousers. That prevent the tummy from bulging under the vest. Pants should be worn at the waistline, around the belly button, not beneath it. Most men will find suspenders work best. Men should keep spats in mind, to add a touch of completion and pizazz to their outfit.

Steampunk Poision Ivy

For both men and women, stemapunk costumes should look complete, from head to toe, for example don’t wear tennis shoes with a period dress. Also, though accessories are key to a Steampunk look, don’t’ go overboard, keep to the less is more fashion philosophy.

Lolita Alice and the Mad Hatter

For examples and ideas, I’ve included a few photos I snapped at Comicpalooza in Houston Texas. So have fun and enjoy creating your or your characters’ Steampunk costumes.

Maeve Alpin is the author of four Steampunk/Romances: To Love A London Ghost, Conquistadors In Outer Space, As Timeless As Stone, and As Timeless As Magic.

Read Full Post »

Women, Write On!

I’ve always been a reader, devouring anything and everything I could get my hands on. If my mom couldn’t find me, odds were, I had my nose in a book. For most of my life I’ve read books written by women with female protagonists, both by conscious choice and just being drawn to it naturally.  I read about Meg and Jo, started my own baby-sitter’s club, and tried to make my own butter like Laura and Mary.

Along the way I discovered Fantasy and SciFi. I vividly remember reading Susan Fletcheer’s Dragon’s Milk, Robin McKinley’s The Blue Sword, and Patricia Wrede’s Dealing with Dragons in Junior High, which led into the Menolly books, then all Anne McCaffrey’s books. Then I found Elizabeth Moon, Marion Zimmer Bradley, and Mercedes Lackey and others. (I have to admit, I didn’t discover Tamora Pierce until college.) I spent a lot of time in both the school library and my favorite indie bookstore.

By sophomore year of high school, I was only reading Fantasy and Sci-Fi (which is a story in itself).  Where I read a few male authors, like Piers Anthony, (Michael Swanwick’s The Iron Dragon’s Daughter was a huge influence) mostly I sought out book by women, with female leads. I chose the books I did because as a teen and a college student books by women about really awesome women and girls called to me.

These stories taught me that smart, strong women were awesome in a time where I was being told the power was in the pretty. They also showed me that I could do whatever I wanted, even when people said I couldn’t. Especially when people said I couldn’t. That even if I didn’t have psychic powers or a spaceship or a dragon, that I had my own magic inside me. I was mistress of my own fate. As an impressionable young woman, I really needed that.

Naturally, the first stories I wrote when I seriously started writing were high fantasies about sassy women with swords and space tales about more sassy women who chased space pirates.

Never, once, in all those years of reading did I choose a book  by a women because it was easy. Never did I ever think a book written by a women was lesser. In fact, they were more awesome than books by men and I went to great lengths to find new female authors.

Even now, I still read mostly female authors, from a variety of genres. They inspire me. They are my people. They are why I write what I do. They helped me become who I am. 

These books helped through times that were good and times that were not so good. Without the magnificent worlds these who knows where I might be. Probably not getting ready for my second book to come out in two months.

Women writers, write on, no matter what you write. You’re doing a very important thing–inspiring the women of tomorrow.

—

Suzanne Lazear is the author if the YA fairytale steampunk series the Aether Chronicles. INNOCENT DARKNESS is out now. CHARMED VENGEANCE releases 8-8-13. She builds fairy houses and makes rayguns to match her ballgowns.

 

Read Full Post »