Anyone got questions for Richard?>>>> -- Ladies of Lallybroch Literary Forum

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Date Posted: 07:07:27 10/06/10 Wed
Author: Fi
Subject: Anyone got questions for Richard?>>>>
In reply to: Page2 's message, "Interview with a character>>>>" on 18:19:15 10/04/10 Mon

I enjoyed interviewing Emma and Seren, and I thought it might be fun to do the same with other people's characters. So I'd like to open the floor.

Richard Joyce is the main character in my historical novel. You can read about him under the Character Assessment assignment, and he's also appeared in some of the extracts I've posted. So, does anyone have any questions for him?

Warning: he can be a bit vague sometimes. Or flippant, depending on his mood. Or politically incorrect.

Or maybe you'd like to interview one of my other characters? Rose? Kate? Mrs. Joyce?

Would anyone like me (or the other writers) to interview their characters? I know a few I'd like to talk to :)

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[> [> Couple of questions for Richard... -- Page2, 18:32:01 10/06/10 Wed

>Richard Joyce is the main character in my historical
>novel. You can read about him under the Character
>Assessment assignment, and he's also appeared in some
>of the extracts I've posted. So, does anyone have any
>questions for him?
>
>Warning: he can be a bit vague sometimes. Or flippant,
>depending on his mood. Or politically incorrect.
>
>Or maybe you'd like to interview one of my other
>characters? Rose? Kate? Mrs. Joyce?

Hi Richard:

Since I haven't had the luxury of reading any of Fi's excerpts about your story, can you give me a quick summary, or tell me why you want your story told?

I think its interesting that you have superstitions. Can you tell me about some others, that either you or the other characters have?

If you could travel anywhere in the world - where would you go and why?

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[> [> [> Re: Couple of questions for Richard... -- Fi, 11:14:33 10/08/10 Fri

>Hi Richard:
Hi Steph,
A pleasure to meet you [bends to kiss Steph's hand and smiles charmingly]. Those are good questions you ask.

>Since I haven't had the luxury of reading any of Fi's
>excerpts about your story, can you give me a quick
>summary, or tell me why you want your story told?

Why do I want my story told? Hmmm... Maybe it's because I've always felt like an outsider, never able to fully fit in with either my Dad's or my Ma's people. Maybe that's part of what attracted me to Rose, she's a bit of an outsider too. Her father is an Englishman (ex-soldier) and her mother and Irishwoman, so she has a "foot in both camps" so to speak. She's not silly like a lot of other women (present company excepted); she's sharp-
witted and never turns down a challenge (she can play cards better than a lot of men). Also, she's gorgeous. She wouldn't say so, but don't listen to her.

However, I can't marry her without having some money behind me. My Dad's business is in trouble (one of his biggest ships sank, and the trade laws are getting more and more punitive as the English try to make sure the Irish don't get too cocky) and he's trying to expand, so he's sent me off as his representative to Montserrat in the West Indies. A bit ironic, really; I always wanted to travel, but when I get the opportunity to do so, I'm reluctant to go because I'm leaving a wonderful woman behind. But I'll return to her. Eventually.

>I think its interesting that you have superstitions.
>Can you tell me about some others, that either you or
>the other characters have?

I spent my first few years in a fishing village, and fishermen tend to be supersititious. The sea is large and fickle, and a lot of the time you're depending on God and the fates to get you a good catch and bring you back alive. For example, you never throw a stone into the sea, because that's bound to cause a storm or other trouble.

There are also a lot of superstitions regarding birth and death. If a woman is giving birth, you put a knife at the doorway to protect her and the baby. When the child is born, the midwife spits on it for luck. When someone dies, you cover all mirrors (so the soul doesn't scare itself) and open the doors (to let the soul free). A funeral often attracts people with ailments, because the touch of a dead person's hand has curing properties.

>If you could travel anywhere in the world - where
>would you go and why?

I always wanted to go to the New World. The Indies or the American colonies. It's a long way away and takes months to get there, but it's all so new and exotic. Rose loaned me a book by a traveller to Virginia, with illustrations of strange wildlife and accounts of savage Indians, and it seemed to promise so much adventure.

Although now that I'm on board a ship heading westwards, it's not quite what I expected. I'm spending far too much time with seadogs and I'm starting to curse more than is good for me. The bosun Gogarty has taken an unwarranted dislike to me. Thank God that storm has passed; I thought we'd all end up at the bottom of the ocean, where our dinners had preceded us (ship's biscuits taste almost as bad on the way back as they did on the way down). And now that other ship is unfurling a very ominous flag... I'm starting to think that you can have too much adventure in your life.

Thank you again for listening. Sincerely yours,

Richard

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