Heather Story mentioned Ede and Ravenscroft, the oldest Tailor in London est 1689. And then Jackie Malecki added a link to Ede & Ravenscroft and there I found the original Tailor, William Shudall. And he’s who I chose, a combination of true and artistic license.
There were so many great ideas from Maureen Woeller, Julie Stephens, Jenni Branchaw, Sharon-Nick Palmer, Gloria Michaels-Brown, Margie Klink, Sara Denison, Cristin Follett Gillis, Elizabeth Rains Johnson, Carmen Basanta Sánchez, Diana Toles, Kathryn Horton, Georgene K Jacobs, Zoie Scurfield, Madeline Anna Plitz, Amy MacNeill, Lindsay Holden-Shannon, Cathy Serpe Cannizzaro, Susan Nelson, Carol Distelhurst, Kim Stevens, Dianna Schmidt, Mary Moeykens, Michelle Lambert Poppell,Rachael Temaat, Mindy Anspaugh, Courtney Brennan, Angelique Mahfood, and Jenni Branchaw, thank you for sharing them with me.
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And I asked, Say there are men or women from the 15th -18th century Scotland and they see something that they don't understand, something modern for example — they might use the term 'monster'. But would there be better terms, maybe something from Scottish Mythology or Gaelic or...?
What if they saw a futuristic person with a lot of gear on?
What if they saw an alligator?
What if they saw a manatee?
What if they saw a drone?
Or an ATV kind of vehicle?
Thank you to Kim Bonser Houlden (Demon, devil’s beast), Judy Wallenfelt (Demons?) Rachael Temaat (...something demonic would work better like the Gaelic word for Demon or witchcraftery?), Stephanie Knight-Magnuson (Beast), Tara Luffy Moore (Beast. Demon.) and Amy MacNeill (…Gaelic for Demon…) I ended up calling most of the monsters beasts, and Fraoch uses the Gaelic word for demon: deamhan uilebheist
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Thank you to Kevin Dowdee for being my support, my guidance, and my inspiration for these stories. I appreciate you so much. And thank you for helping me research the effects of scurvy and making me laugh by drinking two vitamin C packets right after.
Thank you to my kids, Ean, Gwynnie, Fiona, and Isobel, for listening to me go on and on about these characters, advising me whenever you can, and accepting them as real parts of our lives. I love you.
About me, Diana Knightley
I live in Los Angeles where we have a lot of apocalyptic tendencies that we overcome by wishful thinking. Also great beaches. I maintain a lot of people in a small house, too many pets, and a to-do list that is longer than it should be, because my main rule is: Art, play, fun, before housework. My kids say I am a cool mom because I try to be kind. I’m married to a guy who is like a water god: he surfs, he paddle boards, he built a boat. I’m a huge fan.
I write about heroes and tragedies and magical whisperings and always forever happily ever afters. I love that scene where the two are desperate to be together but can’t because of war or apocalyptic-stuff or (scientifically sound!) time-jumping and he is begging the universe with a plead in his heart and she is distraught (yet still strong) and somehow, through kisses and steamy more and hope and heaps and piles of true love, they manage to come out on the other side.
I like a man in a kilt, especially if he looks like a Hemsworth, doesn’t matter, Liam or Chris.
My couples so far include Beckett and Luna (from the trilogy, Luna’s Story) who battle their fear to find each other during an apocalypse of rising waters. And Magnus and Kaitlyn (from the series Kaitlyn and the Highlander). Who find themselves traveling through time to be together.
I write under two pen names, this one here, Diana Knightley, and another one, H. D. Knightley, where I write books for Young Adults (They are still romantic and fun and sometimes steamy though, because love is grand at any age.)
DianaKnightley.com
[email protected]
Also by H. D. Knightley (My YA pen name)
Bright (Book One of The Estelle Series)
Beyond (Book Two of The Estelle Series)
Belief (Book Three of The Estelle Series)
Fly; The Light Princess Retold
Violet’s Mountain
Sid and Teddy
Under the Same Sky Page 25