Gallery

Masquerade

“Did you see this, honey?” Rose peered over the newspaper, one eyebrow cocked skyward, telegraphing her interest. “’Costumes for the American Legion’s annual Halloween Dance can be procured at the Armory any time after Saturday noon. Prices reasonable,’” she read. “That would be fun. Art Shook’s old-time orchestra will be there. Can we go?”

“You know I don’t dance.” He hated to disappoint her. But he had a surprise already planned for Saturday. Complete with costumes and everything.

Imagine no Trick-or-Treating. Continue reading →

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Location, Location, Location

florence-mill

You might be wondering why I’ve chosen rural Nebraska just on the outskirts of Omaha as the setting for my story.

Well, apart from my obvious family connection to the area, it has a great bootlegging history, and that history is partially the cause for this WIP in the first place. Long before Rose or Harold insinuated their way into my brain, I was digging around on Omaha history webpages looking for information about one of Dear Husband’s relatives who lived there in the early 1900s. Instead I found a new crime boss in the real life Tom Dennison and his underworld denizens. More than just bootlegging, Dennison owned Omaha in the early 1900s, and nothing happened there without his say so.

What a perfect foil for a poor farmer, down on his luck, needing some quick cash.

Watch out, Harold!

Aside

A Rose by any other name…

rose-sketch

Have you been wondering about the picture that shows when I post new content? It’s a picture of Rose, or more accurately, how I imagine Rose. I found the original picture while looking for 1929 fashion examples.

The image doesn’t look much like a farmer’s wife, and I guess that’s the point. This woman is sophisticated without being haughty, and very much a product of an urban upbringing. I mean, can you imagine trying to keep that hairstyle just-so while slopping the pigs? Or mucking with the laundry?

What kind of things do you think would be a challenge for a city girl on a farm? Give me some ideas in the comments below; maybe I can use one of them for a new scene.

PS: The “sketch”-y version of this picture was made using the SketchGuru app. It’s a lot of fun to play with.

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How to be a farm wife

I’m a city girl. Writing a book set on a farm in 1930. There’s a lot I don’t know. Luckily, the main character, Rose, is a city girl, too.

“You want me to do what?” she asked, as if he expected her to walk on the moon.

“Milk the cows.” A reasonable request of farmer to wife, he thought.

“You’re kidding. I don’t know the first thing about cows,” she answered. So they started the first in their “how to be a farm wife” lessons right then; chapter one: Bovine.

So, Rose and I are learning about farm life together. We hope you join us; it’s going to be fun!

~Taylor

PS: here’s an interesting link about milking cows that Rose and I are studying…