Christopher W Gortner's Blog
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Feb.24.2010
How did the idea for THE CONFESSIONS OF CATHERINE DE MEDICI originate?
Anyone with an interest in famous women of history will have heard of Catherine de Medici: she's that evil queen who allegedly poisoned her enemies and orchestrated a massacre. Or so the legend says. Initially, I was attracted...
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Jul.29.2009
Given the continuing surge in historical fiction’s popularity, backlash was inevitable. First, it was an article in the UK Guardian, in which certain historians bemoaned the success of historical novelists, which in turn has lowered historical nonfiction’s profile and their own advances, and even...
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Feb.12.2009
The online book world has opened an entirely new universe of opportunities, particularly for debut novelists who otherwise must struggle to get noticed in the overpopulated physical world, where chain store co-op runs out after two weeks and newspaper reviews are dwindling. Online, there are now...
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Nov.14.2008
If you’ve been following the news lately, no doubt you’ve heard about the terrible downturn in the economy. People are losing jobs; previously solid companies are crumbling; the stock market is creaking and plunging like an old ship; and fear runs rampant.
The publishing industry has been hit...
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Oct.08.2008
Yesterday, there was an article in PW Daily about a bookseller's passionate outburst to rally independent booksellers and the need to educate authors about disabling the Amazon.com links on their websites. She said it was a case of "survival."
http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/...
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Oct.05.2008
One thing that I’ve discovered as a long-time San Franciscan is that most of us secretly think our city is better than Los Angeles. We’re prettier, we’re more refined, we’re certainly less preoccupied with image, and . . . well, the list can go on and on, depending on whom you’re talking to. For...
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Sep.07.2008
Writer's empty nest syndrome has been replaced by writer's outrage.
Ever since the GOP nominated Sarah Palin for VP, I've been like a caged animal, pacing the confines of my online persona. I've wanted to blog about my fury and disbelief. How can someone so rabidly anti-choice, anti-gay rights,...
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Sep.02.2008
For the last week or so, I've been in an odd mood and I couldn't figure out what was the matter. Life is basically good: the book has sold well enough to warrant another print run; I've turned in my next manuscript; and now I have that much-anticipated free time I've been craving to catch up on my...
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Aug.11.2008
THE LAST QUEEN is the story of Juana of Castile, the last queen of Spanish blood to inherit the throne, and of her tumultuous relationships with her parents Isabella and Ferdinand, and fight for her throne against her husband Philip of Hapsburg. Juana is a legend in Spain, known as Juana la Loca—...
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Aug.06.2008
When I woke up on July 29 - always a good thing! - and discovered there were no scribes serenading me at my window and I still had insufficient follicular coverage, it looked as though launch day would indeed be just another day. I tried to maintain my equanimity as I proceeded to do all the things...
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Jul.28.2008
So, tomorrow is the Big Launch Day, and I've been warned by my fellow writers not to take it too much to heart if the Day ends up being . . . well, pretty much like any other. The book will be officially released, yes, but pre-orders are by and large already being fulfilled and it's not as if...
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May.29.2008
“Why aren’t you going to BEA? “
If I hear the question one more time, I’m going to channel my Carrie Bradshaw and buy those really expensive pair of Ghost boots I’ve been eyeing, just so I can feel better about the fact that no, my publisher is not sending me to BEA.
It goes something like this:
“...
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May.13.2008
As I watch the Democratic presidential campaign and realize with increasing dismay that it appears America will not get to cast its votes for or against the first female nominee, I’ve been thinking of how we as a culture, and history by and large, has engaged in a subtle, and, at times, not so...
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Apr.29.2008
I had an epiphany the other day. I was standing in the sandwich line at a deli close at lunchtime when I heard an overly effusive voice cry out: "Christopher! Christopher, hi! It's me, Sue!" I turned around, startled. I didn't recall knowing any Sues. Nevertheless, a small, determined...
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Apr.26.2008
It's not easy to take on a well-known historical figure. Some are so familiar to readers - and often so over-written - it would seem there's nothing new anyone can say about them. In some cases, new books about such figures rely on subtle - and not so subtle! - shifts in the telling or reinterpret...
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About Christopher
C. W. Gortner is the critically acclaimed author of The Last Queen, a novel of Juana la Loca. His next novel, The Confessions of Catherine de Medici, will be published by Ballantine Books in 2009. St Martin's Press recently acquired the first three novels in...
Causes Christopher Gortner Supports
Defenders of Wildlife, World Wildlife Fund, Humane Society of the United States,...