My Favorite Character(s) in Literature By Connie Vines #Round Robin, #Favorite Literature #Dracula #Bram Stoker

Thank you, Skye, for another great topic! 

"My Favorite Character in Literature".

Naturally, my choice of a favorite literary character has changed over the years.

As a pre-teen, my favorite literary character was Nancy Drew. Prior to that time, I was primarily interested in horses and dogs.

As far as classical literature, Bram Stoker's "Dracula" is my favorite.

Although the story is told in the form of letters, diary entries, and news bits, from Jonathan Harker's point of view, the intensity of emotion allows the reader to become fully immersed in the story.

Dracula chronicles the vampire's journey from his castle in Transylvania to the streets of London.

Excerpts:

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I read that every known superstition in the world is gathered into the horseshoe of the Capathians, as if it were the centre of some sort of imaginative whirlpool. (page 6)

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When the Count saw my face, his eyes blazed with a sort of demonic fury, and he suddenly made a grab at my throat. I drew away, and his hand touched the string of beads which held the crucifix. It made a change in him, for the fury passed so quickly that I could hardly believe that it was ever there. (page 31).

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All was dark and silent, the black shadows thrown from the moonlight seeming full of silent mystery of their own. (page 270).

Why do I re-read this classic novel by Bram Stoker?

There are other classic Gothic novels: 

Frankenstein, Wuthering Heights, Rebecca, Jane Eyre, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. All of which I have read. 

This is the story that calls to me.

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And to be completely truthful, reading "Frankenstein" caused me to have nightmares. 

It is also why my paranormal stories tend to be of the RomCom variety.

Happy Reading, everyone!

Visit the other talented participants in this month's Round Robin: 

Anne Stenhouse http://annestenhousenovelist.wordpress.com

Connie Vines http://mizging.blogspot.com/  (you are here)

Victoria Chatham http://www.victoriachatham.com

Sally Odgers https://behindsallysbooksmark2.blogspot.com

Bob https://wp.me/p3Xihg-3vC

Skye Taylor http://www.skye-writer.com/

Anne Stenhouse http://annestenhousenovelist.wordpress.com

Connie Vines http://mizging.blogspot.com/  (you are here)

Victoria Chatham http://www.victoriachatham.com

Sally Odgers https://behindsallysbooksmark2.blogspot.com

Bob https://wp.me/p3Xihg-3vC

Skye Taylor http://www.skye-writer.com/

Welcome Anita Davison

Note from Ginger: I'm doubly thrilled to have one of my very favorite authors on board this month.  This wonderful lady has opened my eyes to English history and all the fascinations.  I'm happy to host her as I've read her work with enthusiasm and great interest.

Trencarrow Secret by Anita Davison

Victorian Gothic Romance

I was born in London, a city which has a unique atmosphere; a sense of time passed that I connected with, even when I was young. When the other children on the school trip coach were throwing the contents of their lunch boxes at each other, I was staring out of the window at the ancient buildings, imagining men in wigs and heeled shoes coming out of coffee houses and climbing into sedan chairs on the cobbles outside St Pauls Cathedral.

Strangely it was walking through Paternoster Row with a dear friend, discussing books of course, when the idea for the story of Trencarrow Secret came to me. One requirement of modern writing, is you cannot simply write a story, it has to be categorised, put into a box so it is instantly recognised. My critique group, and my agent, say time and again that romances are the largest market in the fiction genre. In an attempt to break into the world of traditionally published authors, I chose to step outside the world of Restoration London and into the heads of characters of another era. I haven’t managed it yet, as Trencarrow Secret is published by a small company, but I still have some stories to tell which may make it.

Isabel Hart evolved, beginning as a Jacobean character, she turned into a Regency one, eventually finding her own time in late Victorian England. Her reserved character belonged in the rigid, uncompromising days of the British Empire, and I gave her strong reasons for seeing life as many of us do when we are young; in black and white, where right and wrong are clearly defined and there is no blurring of the two. Trencarrow Secret is a love story, and during one fateful summer, Isabel discovers that marriage is no fairytale, but an enigmatic and unique bonding of a couple which may appear unsatisfactory to outsiders, but each comes with its own chance of success.

Isabel’s romantic illusions are dispelled and she comes to realise that people, even those closest to her, are flawed and make mistakes. She has to find the capacity to forgive and move on – and to continue to love them anyway because that’s what families do. Through her unique relationship with her brother, David, Isabel struggles through revelations, self doubt and danger before she finds her soulmate.

The Hart's summer home in Cornwall is a house I have visited often -  also the village of Marazion and St Michael's Mount have not changed much since the late 19th Century, which made them easy to portray realistically. I tend to write about places I know so I can portray them with a level of credibility.

Writing historical fiction is complicated and challenging, but my spirit lives in the past and I cannot imagine myself writing anything else.

Trencarrow Secret is scheduled for release on 10^th June 2011

Available here: https://museituppublishing.com/bookstore2/

Trencarrow Secret Blog:  http://trencarrowsecret.blogspot.com

Anita’s Blog: http://thedisorganisedauthor.blogspot.com

Culloden Spirit coming September 2011 from MuseItUp Publishing
Blog: http://cullodenspirit.blogspot.com