Winner, winner…Susan!!!
I interviewed Vicky for Dear Author after she was nominated for all those RITAs last year, and I found her delightful–she truly has a way of making people feel special. Putting together that interview was the first time I used a signature line in my emails–you know, one of those hyperlinked postscripts that let people know I was the author of a soon-to-be-published book.
And Vicky was the first person I didn’t personally know who clicked the link and came back to tell me, “That is a gorgeous cover!” So, as a nod to that bit of kindness, I’d thought I’d talk covers on my visit here.
First, there’s Betsey Dobson, the typewriter girl of the book’s title. Except I didn’t know that she was a typewriter girl at first. I just knew she’d be leaving London to start a new life in a Victorian-era seaside resort. So, how did she get there? Initially, I thought this image answered that question:
It depicts a common practice of the time, that of treating a group of disadvantaged children to a day in the country. Okay, I thought, Betsey can be a chaperone, and I put her in a scene where she distributed sandwiches to the children.
However, the more I wrote, the less this scenario worked. Betsey begins the story living with a man out of wedlock. She curses. There was no way any Victorian charity was going to put her in charge of a bunch of impressionable minds.
The other problem: a woman had to have leisure time in order to take children on a picnic, and working-class Betsey had precious little of that.
Revise, revise, and now Betsey gets the offer to come to Idensea while she’s on the typewriting job in London. By this time, I’d already found a guiding image for Betsey:
I love this woman. Her rolled-up sleeves, the worn boots, that purposeful gaze. Betsey worked in an office, not on a dock, but I knew the strength and grit of the woman in the picture was Betsey’s, too.
Cue the “time passes” music. Book bought, publication process begins to churn. My editor mentions an idea for the cover–Betsey at her desk with her typewriter, looking out the window to the pleasure pier that’s the town’s landmark. I love the idea of depicting Betsey at work and send this photo along to my editor:
There’s no typewriter or pier, but this woman was a manager at a hotel like the one where Betsey goes to work, doing a job many of the time would have considered better suited to a man.
More music. An attachment arrives from my editor. The finished cover:
Gorgeous. Absolutely. I felt lucky, because it was beautiful, and because it said important things about my story, and because if I saw a book with that cover, I would pick it up.
The one thing that mystified me was the girl.
Listen, I didn’t have a lot of illusions regarding the cover, despite being a new author. Most authors have little to no say on that, and book covers have one main job–attract people to the book, not illustrate the story.
But when you compare the image that had lived for so long inside my head with the cover girl…
…you might appreciate how I was thrown off. Betsey works, and this girl is out for a stroll. Betsey wears tweed and military-style jackets, not lace. So while I loved my cover, I didn’t believe I’d ever come to think of Cover Girl as Betsey.
Yet, over time I did. Those pictures side-by-side, I realize it is Cover Betsey who is looking forward. The girl gazing out from under the parasol is someone dreaming, and dreaming is something Betsey learns to do over the course of The Typewriter Girl. At the beginning of the story, she’s not one to permit herself the luxury of an idle stroll or a difficult-to-clean dress, but she learns to cut herself some slack.
Okay, so the difficult-to-clean dress she wears in the story gets ruined beyond rescue within a few hours of putting it on. I still like Cover Betsey. She reminds me that we all have much to look forward to.
Kati and Vicky, a thousand thanks for hosting me today. Readers, why don’t you let me know what you are looking forward to? We’ll choose a winner from the comments, and send you a copy of The Typewriter Girl.
ALL BETSEY DOBSON HAS EVER ASKED IS THE CHANCE TO BE VIEWED ON HER OWN MERITS, BUT IN A MAN’S WORLD, THAT IS THE UNFORGIVABLE SINWhen Betsey disembarks from the London train in the seaside resort of Idensea, all she owns is a small valise and a canary in a cage. After attempting to forge a letter of reference she knew would be denied her, Betsey has been fired from the typing pool of her previous employer. Her vigorous protest left one man wounded, another jilted, and her character permanently besmirched. Now, without money or a reference for her promised job, the future looks even bleaker than the debacle behind her. But her life is about to change . . . because a young Welshman on the railroad quay, waiting for another woman, is the one man willing to believe in her.
Mr. Jones is inept in matters of love, but a genius at things mechanical. In Idensea, he has constructed a glittering pier that astounds the wealthy tourists. And in Betsey, he recognizes the ideal tour manager for the Idensea Pier & Pleasure Building Company. After a lifetime of guarding her secrets and breaking the rules, Betsey becomes a force to be reckoned with. Now she faces a challenge of another sort: not only to outrun her sins, but also to surrender to the reckless tides of love. . . .
Alison Atlee spent her childhood re-enacting “Little Women” and trying to fashion 19th century wardrobes for her Barbie dolls. Happily, these activities turned out to be good preparation for writing historical novels.
Find Alison:
Author Site | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Goodreads
What am I looking forward to? At my age, I’m looking forward to another tomorrow! Seriously though, as an avid read, I’m always looking forward to the next book in my hand. I like the sound of The Typewriter Girl. What a great idea. It’s going on my BTB list. Thanks for the giveaway.
kareninnc at gmail dot com
Don’t worry – the feature goes on all week and many have day jobs. When I left my corporate marketing position, I thought yeehaw, I’ll have so much time to write. True, but I end up writing far longer hours than I ever did at Hewlett Packard. They did send me to some really swanky places like Paris & London.
Karen, I don’t know about all of you, but I sure wish I had more time to read. You wouldn’t believe how many times I’ve fall asleep with my Kindle Fire on my chest LOL.
Cheers!
Vicky
This look great. I’m looking forward to getting a job, as I moved back from Iowa to Georgia almost 5 months ago, staying with a girlfriend and Wanting that job.
Good luck with the job hunt, Sheila. It’s so hard waiting for something like that!
I’m looking forward to spring, lol! It’s freezing here, and I’m so ready for the dreary grey days of winter to be over. On the bright side, the days are slowly getting longer!
Yesterday was the first day I noticed the extra daylight–hang in there, Rebe!
I love the evolution of your cover! You’re right, you have no control, but I love that you took inspiration from every twist and turn and embraced it for your character and yourself! The story sounds wonderful and I can’t wait to read it!!
I’m looking forward to my dreams coming true. And I’m looking forward even more to the journey, even if I never get where I want to go.
Thank you, Renee, that’s sweet! And you’re right, it’s all about the journey.
I’m always looking forward to beginning another book. It’s magic every time!! I also hope that some day I can look forward to being a grandmother but there is nothing in the foreseeable future to make me think that will happen. I should never have waited so long to have children (sigh).
Aw, catslady. I just heard a story on NPR (I think) about women with that exact same regret–it seems to be a trending realization. But I bet your life experience added some depth and patience to your mothering. All best to you!
A lot of young adults are waiting longer to start their families, Catslady. Don’t give up!
This book sounds fascinating, and I can’t wait to read it!!! :>)
I know, Kieran! I loooove the cover!
Vicky
Thank you both! I’ve already mentioned Vicky’s kindness, so I’ll just add that I saw Kieran speak once and thought she had one of the loveliest spirits I’ve ever seen.
Alison, thank you so much for your kind words. Kieran, Kati (our fab assistant) and I try to focus on the positive. Sometimes we blow off steam, but one of us is sure to bring up all the wonderful things we’re grateful for, and if we encounter an issue, we just figure out a solution. I’m lucky to have Kieran and Kati as partners.
Cheers!
Vicky
Alison, you’re so sweet to say that! I’m going to be carrying around a warm feeling all day because of you. Thank you so much.
And I think it was no accident that Vicky and I found each other as street team partners, along with Kati, who’s the glue who keeps our professional lives together and does so much for us in other ways! I love working with them–they are sunshine when I am cloud, LOL!!!
Have a wonderful time with this book. I’m super happy for you!!!
:>)
I am looking forward to my daughter’s next milestone.
Hmm… Curious as to what that might be!
Nice post. Looking forward to new books to read.
Definitely!
Hi Vicky and Alison!
Vicky –
I loved you interview with Alison at Dear Author. Congratulations on being nominated for RITA Best First Book 2012.
Alison –
I love the final cover your editor picked The Typewriter Girl! After being a typewriter girl myself from the age of 17 when I was in High School and got a summer job for three attorneys
(Sorry I’m using my husband computer and it hiccups once in a while).
and at the time thought it would be good practice getting my typing speed up for when I went to college I never imagined that it would thought for a minute it would be the “career” I ended up in! Of course now they don’t call you a secretary but instead an Administrative Assistant! Between my initial foray into the typing world I was a Mom and also a Tupperware Lady but when our sons grew and flew off to lives of their own it was back to the typewriter. Am I the only one who wants their old manual typewriter back? You know the type that still works when the power goes out or he internet is gone?
Now I’m looking forward to us selling our home and moving to South Carolina to be near our three grandchildren. I want to bake cookies with them, take them to the park, and be able to go to see them when they have school plays. My husband and I are dreaming about watching them play baseball and having ballet performances and being there just as Gramma and PaPa instead of only being able to see them once a year.
Retirement is still just a dream and with the economy will probably remain one for a while even after we move but hopefully we can work part-time and get away from the 9 – 5 rat race and have more time to enjoy just being together and with the little ones life would be like having a fun great book to read on a warm summer day!
No problem, Jeanne! I give my laptop quite a workout – helps when I close some of the 20 windows – especially iTunes & Spotify.
Cheers!
Vicky
A real typewriter girl!
I was using a manual the other day, and the sinking feeling when you strike the wrong letter–I don’t know if do it after the convenience of the delete key. But I do love the THWACK noise.
Those are some wonderful things to have ahead of you. I’m going to picture you on one of those South Carolina front porches with a good book, some sweet tea, and one eye on the grandkids.
Alison -
I not only typed on a manual typewriter but when I took typing in High School they had all the keys blacked out! Before he threw my old manual typewriter away he showed our young (at the time) sons “how Mommy coujld type while her eyes were covered”!
My boss kids all the “youngsters” in our office how the old lady can type faster than them because she can keep her eyes on what he’s written and not on the letters on the computer!
Thanks, Jeanne. I was so thrilled about the 3 RITA nominations and Alison’s interview. The really cool part is I got to know Stephanie at conference as she, my roomie Nicole, and I got professional makeovers for the RITA Awards Ceremony. It was really fun girly stuff.
Cheers,
Vicky
I’m looking forward to reading as many books as I can get to each and every day. “The Typewriter Girl” is at the top of my Wish List too. Years ago, learning to type was such a plus for women as that was a great way for them to earn a living. I’m including myself here too. Not so much of that anymore these days as everyone has a computer and can type for themselves. Today, the typist is the Admin who totally runs the show.
I’m am also looking forward to a cruise next month with my husband, son, lovely daughter-in-law and two of our grandchildren. We have cruised before but never with our family so this should be lots of fun. I’m very excited!
Congratulations on the release of your successful novel. I can’t wait to read it.
Thank you, Connie. A February cruise sounds perfect on the freezing afternoon. I suppose it’s true in a sense that people can type for themselves, but I’m often surprised to see how many people use the hunt and peck method. A lot of them are younger, and have been at the keyboard from a very young age, so they’ve gotten very proficient using just two fingers, but they’ve never learned touch typing!
I love that cover, and I want that book. Also, in sheer frustration at the problems of printing in our heavy-needs office, I resurrected a vintage Olympia office manual typewriter for the light jobs. Does that make ME a typewriter girl?
I think so! Very resourceful of you, Susan!
P.S. What a great blog you’ve got going at Waterworld Mermaids!
I am looking forward to May. My son and I will be flying into Seattle in order to take a driving / sightweeing tour of the US NW. He and I have been looking forward to this since we toured th South Western States about 15 years ago. What a gorgeous country we live in.
I am also looking forward to reading this book!! How wonderful it would be to win a copy!! Thanks for the opportunity.
That will be a fantastic trip. It’s always so great to have your own transportation and set your own pace and be spontaneous when you want to.
I love the cover. I look forward to reading more books and finding new authors.
Thank you, Missy!
I’m looking forward to my next visit home to California to visit my sister and my friends. I had so much fun on my last trip in July, I’m hoping it will be equally as fun next time.
Sisters, friends, Cali–I don’t see how it can miss.