Welcome to the Scroll!
Have some fun in Women’s History Month
I’ve made a short personality quiz — find out who you might have been in another life!
Not that I believe in reincarnation. But I do think the women of history had personalities we can relate to, despite the differences of time. I’ve picked six fascinating lives for you to uncover…
Try the quiz here. (I have to send you out into cyberworld to make this work.)
The quiz is exclusive to email subscribers so it will ask you to sign up. It takes about five minutes. If you are a bloke, apologies! You can try it anyway, to see if you relate to these famous figures.
Let me know how you go. Are you surprised? Pleased? Who do you think you are like? Who would you like to have been?
I first got pulled in to personality quizzes by Dolly magazine in my teens. Remember those, anybody — sharing the one copy round a group of girls at lunchtime in high school?
The quiz answers were rarely an exact fit, of course. Wonderfully, we are all unique and complex individuals. My quiz is a lot less boy-obsessed than Dolly’s, but it’s still anything but scientific. Nevertheless, sometimes the answers show us something about ourselves we’ve overlooked. Or we find something surprising in common with others, and so feel part of a shared humanity. Not as silly as it might first seem.
What happened when I wrote to a writer…
I do like it when readers reply to newsletter emails. I aim to at least acknowledge your comments.
I sometimes write back to other authors’ newsletters too. Recently, I responded to historical fiction author Jane Steen. I can tell from her writing that she loves flowers and her garden, so I told her what was blooming here on the other side of the world. And guess what? She told me she was coming down under for a visit! So we met up, and went for a walk through Melbourne’s botanic gardens. We had a great afternoon talking books, history, writing and plants.
Jane Steen writes Victorian era historical fiction with a blend of family saga, mystery and romance. I enjoy her genre mix, and her empathy for characters from all kinds of backgrounds, including those with physical or mental challenges like Downs syndrome or dementia.
She’s got a new book coming out this week. (I don’t know how she’s managed that, after travelling round the world the month before - congratulations to her!) In this book, when tragedy strikes, Lady Helena investigates to save a nephew she doesn’t like, for her sister’s sake. You can get Lady Ambition’s Dilemma here. And you can start with the first book in the series, Lady Helena Investigates, for FREE here.
A Taste of Victorian Slang
Mouth pie: strong words, served up by a woman
Tea-talker: a gossiping woman
Coffee sisters: women who like a good, long chat together
Historical Fiction Freebies
Speaking of historical matches, here are more novellas and short stories offered for free. Take your pick. (My picks for interesting reads below. I’m not endorsing the quality of others on the promo page but of course you’re welcome to help yourself.) The offer ends March 31st, so get them now if you’re interested.
That’s it for this newsletter. I’m planning an Easter extra, so keep an eye out for more in a couple of weeks. Until then, blessings and best wishes.