At Watford Writers there are many authors and poets of great talent, so let this blog post introduce you to Rosemary Morris who writes historical romance novels.
There is a
gigantic canvas for a historical novelist to choose from. So far Rosemary Morris has chosen to set her published novels in the reign of Queen Anne Stuart
1702 – 1714 and the ever popular Regency era 1811 - 1820. She is now writing
Tuesday’s Child a Regency novel and revising Proud Norman Nest set in the reign
of Edward II.
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| Rosemary Morris - Historical Romance Author |
She chose those three periods
because each of them affected the course of history. If the Duke of Marlborough
had not won The War of Spanish Succession and The Duke of Wellington had not
defeated Napoleon at The Battle of Waterloo the history of Britain and that of
Europe would have been very different. Defeat would also have had far-reaching
consequences for the rest of the world. If Edward II had won the Battle of
Bannockburn, Robert the Bruce would have probably been killed. It is feasible
that King Edward II would have conquered Scotland and, perhaps, as it is
claimed, he would not have been murdered.
The more Rosemary
reads about her chosen eras the more fascinated she becomes and the more aware
of the gulf between those periods of history and her own. She believes people who lived in the past
shared the same emotions as we do but their attitudes and way of life were in
many ways quite different to ours. One of the most striking examples is the
position of women and children in society during bygone ages.
Rosemary presents men
and women who are of their time, not those dressed in costume who behave like
21st century people. Of course, it is almost impossible to completely
understand our ancestors. However, through extensive research Rosemary ensures
her characters observe the social etiquette of their lives and times. If they
didn’t, they would be outcasts from society.
Research of
Rosemary’s chosen eras sparks her imagination. The seeds of her novels are
sown. From them sprout the characters and events which will shape their lives.
Rosemary Morris
was born in in Sidcup Kent. As a child, when she was not making up stories, her
head was ‘always in a book’; and she has always loved learning about history,
reading historical fiction and non-fiction. In her mind’s eye she visualises
many people who lived in past times. Eyes closed she can visualise Princess
Elizabeth sitting on the steps outside the Tower of London afraid that like her
mother, Anne Boleyn, she would be beheaded. To name a few more, there she
imagines Alfred burning the legendary cakes, the smoke from the fire stinging
his eyes, tragic but foolish Charles I, grim faced Oliver Cromwell and The
Merry Monarch, Charles II
She can’t remember
a time when she wasn’t engaged in creative writing – particularly historical
fiction. To research, Rosemary has read dozens of non-fiction books and visited
places of interest. On a visit with a friend to Hatfield House, where Princess
Elizabeth received the news that she was Queen Elizabeth the First, they saw
Queen Anne Stuart’s Coronation chair. While they looked out over the
knot-garden, Rosemary shared anecdotes about the queen. When she and her friend
turned around a group of American tourists had gathered to listen. ‘Pass the hat
around,’ her friend joked.
While working in a
travel agency, Rosemary met her Hindu husband, who was reading law at Middle
Temple. He encouraged her to continue her education at Westminster College. In 1961, Rosemary and her husband, now a
barrister, moved to his birthplace, Kenya, where she lived from 1961 until
1982. In Africa she was privileged to see herds of elephants. She also saw
rhinos and lions besides many other animals. Besides visits to the game parks
she enjoyed the white sands and warm seas at the coast.
After an attempted
coup d’état, she and four of her five children lived in an ashram in France. Rosemary
and her children enjoyed the alternative way of life and studied Sanscrit
literature. Rosemary has read and re-read the Bhagavadgita As It Is by
A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada and the great epics The Mahabharat and The
Ramayan, which rival the Greek classics, and The Srimad Bhagavatam.
Back in England,
Rosemary wrote historical fiction and joined the Romantic Novelists’
Association, Historical Novel Society and Watford Writers.
As well as writing
historical fiction, Rosemary enjoys reading, visiting places of historical
interest, vegetarian cooking, growing organic fruit, herbs and vegetables and
creative crafts.
Time spent with
her five children and their families most of whom live near her is precious.
Titles of
Rosemary’s Books:-
Sunday’s Child,
False Pretences, Tangled Love, Far Beyond Rubies, The Captain and The Countess.
The
novels are available as e books from MuseItUpPublishing, amazon.co.uk, Nook,
Omlit, Bookstrand Mainstream, Kobo and elsewhere. Far Beyond Rubies is also
available as paper back.
You
can read the first three chapters of the novels and view the book trailers on
Rosemary’s website www.rosemarymorris.co.uk.
Rosemary
would like to hear from you and receive your comments and reviews. She can be
contacted at: rosemarymorris@hotmail.co.uk.
