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After a number of requests, I have finally taken the plunge and figured out how to turn my story into an EPub Book and publish it in ZBookStore. If anyone is interested in purchasing the total book, it's there. I will not be taking the StoriesOnLine version down or hiding it behind the paywall, so the choice is yours.
It was quite a little adventure, learning how to make the cover art, and compiling the story into a file so that the headings were recognised in the EPub version. I'm sure that some of you will now ask me to do the same for some of my other stories, so I will be looking at doing that, starting with Bec, over the next few weeks.
Cheers
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My latest story, Jacinta Takes a Walk, has now been fully posted. Those of you who hold off reading a story while it is incomplete can now have at it. Thanks to those of you who supported me by reading it chapter by chapter as I posted it.
I have several other writing projects at different stages that I am working on, so now I can get back to those.
Congratulations to all the winners of the 2020 Clitorides awards. I was very chuffed to have Bec placed 3rd in the Classic Clitorides behind two such outstanding stories as Rebecca Danced and Living Next Door to Heaven. Both stories well worth a read (or a re-read).
Happy reading everyone.
One person asked so that means others probably thought about this.
In The Dilemma, Jen has been driving around since the start of the story on a Provisional (P1) licence. She has just progressed to a Provisional (P2) licence.
In Australia there are differences in requirements between the states. In New South Wales, a person can get their Learner's Licence when they are 16 or older.
While they are on their Learner's they must
* only drive when there is an adult with a full driver's licence (not provisional) sitting in the front passenger seat
* display L plates front and rear
* have 0% alcohol reading and not be under the influence of other drugs
* they may carry additional passengers.
* plus some other rules
After a minimum of 10 months, when they are 17 or older, and they have logged 120 hours of driving experience they may test to progress to a Provisional P1 licence.
While they are on P1 licence they must
* display P plates front and rear
* have 0% alcohol reading and not be under the influence of other drugs
* they may carry additional passengers
* plus some other rules
* if under 25 and on P1 licence, may not drive with more than one passenger under 21 between 11pm and 5am.
There is no requirement to be accompanied by a licenced adult.
Once they have held their P1 licence for 12 months, (ie 18 or older) they may apply to progress to a Provisional P2 licence. They are on the P2 licence for a minimum of 2 years before they can progress to a Full licence (ie 20 or older). The rules for P2 licence are similar to P1 but have a little more flexibility.
From the start of the story, Jen has been on a P1 licence so was not required to have an adult supervisor. She has now progressed to a P2 licence.
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I tried whenever I could to be historically accurate within the story. There are a few places where I knowingly diverged.
One is in names. The naming convention I have used is Virtue names for women and Biblical names for men. In fact, the Puritans used Virtue names for both men and women, but this gave me a more instant way for the reader to differentiate between male and female characters.
Also with names, the Puritans used first name/surname like we do currently in western countries. I liked the Ezekiel son of Samuel format because it gave more of an olde worlde feeling.
The obligations lists at the start of each chapter is all me, but it is based on Biblical tradition so it reflects the type of attitude the Puritans had.
The Puritan men also wore hats which I don't mention at all. The women covering their heads with bonnets is real.
The Puritans most often wore browns and indigos, as those dyes were cheap and readily available. They mostly wore wool or cotton clothing, but they also wore leather and furs.
I have described the villages as mostly farming communities but most of the Puritans in the 1660s relied as much on fishing and hunting for food as they did on farming. The climate in Massachusetts did not support complete reliance on farming. Potatoes weren't widespread until later.
The Puritans were monogamous and the men held all the power. The only way a woman could own anything in her own name was by becoming a widow. I don't think the Puritans practiced the approach of a brother or father taking in the widow of a dead kin as a second wife. That practice is described in the Bible and I have adopted it for the purpose of the story.
The houses out in the country were mostly how I described them.
The Puritans were highly literate. They were all taught to read so that they could read the Bible and try to live by its tenets.
Despite their reputation, the Puritans weren't completely austere. They enjoyed singing and dancing (though men and women wouldn't dance together) and drinking wine during celebrations. An active sex life was required between a married couple. There are examples of divorces being granted and men vilified for not being a 'proper' husband by having regular sex with his wife.
Hope you find all this interesting.
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