As part of FRANCE BOOK TOURS, I had the immense pleasure of interviewing Author, Heather Webb.
1- What prompted you to write about Joséphine?
The
idea for this novel came to me in two parts. I taught a unit about the French
Revolution in my high school French classes for several years, which sparked my
interest in the time period. Yet despite my teaching, I knew little about
Josephine and I “discovered” her later. Ultimately she was a minor player in a
sea of France’s most famous and infamous people during the Revolution—at least
until Robespierre fell and the Directoire took over the government.
When
I began to feel the pull to write a book, I had a dream about Josephine.
Strange, but true. From the very first biography I read, I was hooked. Her vivid
childhood home, her adaptable nature and courageous spirit had me enthralled.
Her rich life story set to the backdrop of the chaotic Revolution and the
opulent Napoleonic Empire cinched the deal.
2- From your research, what have you found most fascinating
about Josephine that maybe not everyone is aware of?
There are so many things I love about
Josephine—she was a patron of the arts, an enthusiastic botanist, a fashion
icon, but the most captivating things about her were her adaptable nature and
courageous spirit, as I mentioned before, and her generosity to everyone she
knew. I also enjoyed reading about her tumultuous love affairs! As for a few fun
facts, Josephine had rotted teeth from chewing on sugarcane as a child. I
didn’t reference it much in the novel because as modern readers, I think we
would have a hard time viewing her as beautiful, charming woman with teeth like
that. Also, Josephine had more jewels than any of France’s queens, as she
possessed all of the royal jewels and a smorgasbord of jewelry garnered from the
spoils of Napoleon’s wars.
3-Which modern woman of today's time would you most compare
to Josephine?
Wow, this is a tough question. I’m not sure I can think of
one…maybe a hybrid of Michelle Obama and Madonna. Ha! Just the thought makes me
laugh. Perhaps someone more like Angelina Jolie who is beautiful and adored and
does a lot of good for people (yet she has a bit of a reputation as a sex
kitten as well).
4- Please describe the kind of research that you did for
your novel.
I researched for about
eight months before I wrote a single word, and then I continued to research in
dribs and drabs throughout the entire writing process. I tried to take a
comprehensive approach—biographies of important characters, histories of the
Revolution as well as those of Martinique, Napoleon’s reprinted letters, primary
sources scanned in Google Books, documentaries. I studied art and literature
movements from this period, china patterns, fashion, weapons. I could go on.
Researchitis is a disease we historical fiction writers suffer from.
5- Do you have any advice for aspiring historical fiction
novelists?
One: If you want to be traditionally published, study the
trends. Walk through a bookstore and see what’s selling. Sometimes the fact
that’s it’s never been done before is a bad thing—it means it won’t sell.
Beware of that. You may want to reevaluate your goals. For the record, I didn’t
do this before I began Becoming Josephine, but I have since.
Two: I read and research widely, which includes travel, but
I am not a historian. I’m a novelist. I grow tired of the constant push and
pull between “he/she’s accurate” or “he/she’s inaccurate”—all of the finger
pointing historical novelists do to each other. My advice to aspiring writers
is to enjoy researching and writing about your topic. Pay attention to detail,
but remember that history is far more fluid than what the “experts” say and
fiction even more so. What you want is to entertain readers, enflame their
imaginations—their hearts! And inspire them to want to read more on a subject.
If you’ve managed to do that, you’ve done your job. Readers can consult the
many nonfiction books on a given topic until their heart’s content, if they so
choose. In other words, don’t get bogged down in every fact and detail. In
fact, you will have people tell you that you’re wrong about a particular point,
even if you taken it straight from a primary source. It’s happened.
6- Please tell us of any future projects you may be working
on.
Unfortunately, I can’t tell you much at this time as it’s
still top secret. What I can say is it’s a novel about art, love, and the line
between obsession and madness set to the backdrop of Belle Époque Paris.
THANK YOU Heather!
And the GIVEAWAY CONTINUES!
To Win a Copy of this Amazing book, please leave your comment and email.
For extra points please be sure to post on your favourite social sites and come back with the link!
GOOD LUCK!
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2 comments:
I have been looking forward to the publication of this novel for some time. Poor Josephine! Rotten teeth, but lots of jewels. . .Please enter me in the giveaway. Thank you, Jacqueline Baird msdotgeneralleeatgmaildotcom.
Enjoyed this author interview. Interesting comparison to Angelina Jolie. I'm eager to read this novel. Josephine was such an interesting personality. Thanks for the giveaway.
lcbrower40(at)gmail(dot)com
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