TBM Forum:   Working on the Web Round-Up

In the Working on the Web section of the Beau Monde forum this month an article was posted which offers historical authors suggestions on how they might be able to get access to The Oxford English Dictionary, a crucial tool for writers of historical fiction. Using the OED, an author can quickly determine if any word or compound word they are using in their manuscript is accurate to the period in which their story is set. No one who writes historical fiction will want to be without this valuable resource and this month’s article will provide options on how an author might be able to get access to The Oxford English Dictionary.

The purpose, value and correct use of blog tags will be the subject of next month’s Working on the Web article. If you are a blogger, or planning to become one, you will want to learn how you can use blog tags to your advantage.

If you are not yet a Beau Monde member, and would like to join us, please visit our Membership page for details.

Good Ton Is BACK!

Many of you may remember the Good Ton web site, though some of you may have known it as The Nonesuch. This site was a rich resource offering details on hundreds of traditional Regencies, including blurbs and reviews. It also offered an extensive Regency lexicon in both dictionary and thesaurus formats, as well as a number of links for further information on the Regency. Sadly, just over a year ago, the Good Ton winked out and disappeared from the web. There were many who were very sorry to see it go.

Recently, I learned that a gentleman who highly values the extensive resources which were available at the Good Ton web site has restored it to the Internet and it is once again available to all who found it so useful. In addition to maintaining the site, he is also planning to continue to add new traditional Regency titles to the listings. This is very good news for all of us who love traditional Regencies. If you have any suggestions for Chris, the new proprietor of the Good Ton web site, you can find his email address at the bottom of the home page.

For those of you who many not be familiar with the many facets of the Good Ton web site, a couple of years ago, I posted a review of it at my blog. I am re-posting it here for your edification.

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TBM Forum:   Working on the Web Round-Up

This month’s article in the Working on the Web section of the Beau Monde forum explains the advantages of offering a blogroll at your blog. Though you may hesitate to include links to other blogs at yours, once you read this article you will understand how a blogroll can benefit both you and your readers. If you already have a blog or are thinking of starting one, this article will provide you with important information on why you will want to include a blogroll.

Would you like to have access to the online edition of the Oxford English Dictionary? The OED is a valuable tool for any writer of historical fiction because it allows them to verify whether a word in their manuscript was actually in use during the time in which their story is set. The print version has been discontinued and now all additions and updates go only into the online version. Though an annual subscription to the online OED can be beyond the budget of many writers, there are options for writers to get access. Next month’s Working on the Web article will explain how that can be accomplished.

If you are not yet a Beau Monde member, and would like to join us, please visit our Membership page for details.

Organizing My Home Office by Cheryl Bolen

Do you have a home office where you do most of your writing? Do you sometimes wonder how other authors set up their home offices? Then, today, you are in luck. Cheryl Bolen, award-winning Regency romance author, tells us how she has set up her home office. Those of you who are not committed technophiles will find some very clever, but functional, low-tech solutions in Cheryl’s article.

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TBM Forum:   Working on the Web Round-Up

The Working on the Web section of the Beau Monde forum this month features an article which will be of special interest to Regency authors, in particular, those who want to know the value of something during the Regency. This article provides an overview of a very powerful online currency conversion calculator which has been developed by a team of economists. This conversion calculator makes it possible to determine the purchasing power of the British pound, and a few other currencies, from the early thirteenth century right up to the present day.

Those who are currently blogging, or are planning to start a blog, will be especially interested in next month’s Working on the web article. It will cover the reasons why including a blog roll on your blog is valuable both for you and for your blog readers.

If you are not yet a Beau Monde member, and would like to join us, please visit our Membership page for details.

Writing in Restaurants by Susanna Ives

Do you ever spend time with your WIP in a restaurant, or perhaps a coffee shop? Today, Susanna Ives, author of Rakes and Radishes, contemplates that very activity. She not only shares what the experience means to her, but also a photo of a lovely and restful French painting in which a young Victorian lady is reading in a cafe while awaiting the arrival of her meal.

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TBM Forum:   Working on the Web Round-Up

An additional recommended firm which builds web sites for authors was added to the Working on the Web section of the Beau Monde forum this month. This new design firm was added to the list of Beau Monde member recommended web designers which was originally posted in May. If you are in need of a new web site, or just a new look for you site, log in to the Working on the Web forum to learn more about the web design firms recommended by our members.

An article on using Google’s Advanced Search page was also posted in the Working on the Web section of the forum this month. There, you can learn how to save time when searching the web by refining your searches to deliver more targeted and relevant search results each time you search.

Next month, the Working on the Web forum will include an article on a very powerful online currency conversion calculator for the British pound which enables you to determine its purchasing power from the Middle Ages to the present. A handy tool for the authors of Regencies, and other historical romance novels.

If you are not yet a Beau Monde member, and would like to join us, please visit our Membership page for details.

Madmen of Letters

A cross-post from The Regency Redingote:

Or perhaps more precisely, Madmen of Words. If you like to read, you probably like words. I love words, all kinds of words. But I care very much that they are used correctly. When one is writing, the best way to ensure one is using any word correctly is to refer to a reference book for words, such as a dictionary or thesaurus.

In these days of computers and databases, we all take reference materials like dictionaries and thesauri for granted, assuming they are easy to compile and publish. They are, after all, just lists of words, right? However, even in these days of powerful data management technology, the compilation and maintenance of word reference materials is quite demanding and labor-intensive. How much more so was it in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, when all of the work must be done by hand, much of it by candle light. And yet, for three of the major monuments of word reference in the English language, we are indebted to the tenacious efforts of three men who suffered psychological problems, one of them so severe he was actually confined in a mental institution for much of his life. But in spite of their handicaps, they all persevered to produce word references essential to anyone who writes, to this very day.

Just who were these "Madmen of Words?"

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TBM Forum:   Working on the Web Round-Up

This month, in the Working on the Web section of the Beau Monde forum, just in time for those authors preparing for the RWA Conference later this summer, members have shared additional sources for promotional materials. These new sources specialize in providing a host of promotional materials for authors and their books, for conferences, book signings and other opportunities for promoting your books. Log in to the Working on the Web forum area to learn more about these recommended promotional vendors.

Another article in the Working on the Web forum explains how to set your personal search preferences when using the Google search engine. In this article, you will learn how you can filter adult content from your search results, if you wish. You will also learn how to manage Google’s search predictions and how to control how many search results are delivered to you on each results page, among other search preferences.

Next month, the Working on the Web forum will include an article on how take advantage of the advanced search features which are offered by Google. With advanced search, you can refine your search to ensure you get the most relevant results possible.

If you are not yet a Beau Monde member, and would like to join us, please visit our Membership page for details.

Article 8:   Ask The Author By Gaelen Foley

In this month’s article, Gaelen Foley, best-selling romance author, concludes her series on the various aspects of writing historical romance novels. In this final article, she responds to a number of questions from aspiring authors at different stages in their career, as well as some of her loyal readers. There is much food for thought here, for first-time authors just planning their first novel to authors with a substantial backlist. As you read Gaelen’s answers to these questions, certainly consider the sagacity of her responses, but also think about how you might answer these same questions yourself.

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TBM Forum:   Working on the Web Round-Up

As promised, the Working on the Web section of the Beau Monde forum offers an article which reviews a selection of web site builder services for authors. The web site services reviewed range from one which is completely free to one which is full service and offers a wide range of marketing services beyond web site building. All of these web site services have been successfully employed by a number of authors, and all of them have been recommended by Beau Monde members. If you are a new author needing a web site, or if you want to refurbish your current web site, you will want to have a look at this new article.

Next month, the Working on the Web forum will offer another review of another anti-virus/firewall software program to help members find the best application to keep them safe while working on the web. In addition, there will be an article on how use the advanced settings in Google.

If you are not yet a Beau Monde member, and would like to join us, please visit our Membership page for details.

Article 7:   On Revision by Gaelen Foley

Last month, Gaelen Foley, best-selling romance author, shared her secrets for getting that first draft of your novel down on paper without driving yourself around the bend. This month, she tackles the other component of her writing technique, revising that first draft. It is during this phase that she describes how you can add layers of richness to your story that would not have been possible the first time through. And for those who are planning to write another novel after this WIP, she shares the secret of why the ending of this book is so important to that next book.

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TBM Forum:   Working on the Web Round-Up

This month, the Working on the Web section of the Beau Monde forum offers another article which reviews one of the better firewall/anti-virus software applications for computers running the Windows® operating systems, including XP, Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8. And, even better, all this protection is available for free. Any computer connected to the Internet without both firewall and anti-virus software is a gift to those who would subjugate your machine to their own purposes. Learn how to protect your computer so that you retain control and keep the bad guys out.

Due to circumstances beyond human control, the article on options for authors setting up their own web sites has had to be postponed yet again. Let us hope the third time will be the charm on this one.

If you are not yet a Beau Monde member, and would like to join us, please visit our Membership page for details.

Article 6:   Writing the First Draft, Or "The Ugly Duckling" By Gaelen Foley

Do you struggle with the first draft of your manuscript, your writing schedule and unending revisions, to the point that it makes you physically ill? That did happen to Gaelen Foley, best-selling romance author, once upon a time, until she found a better way. In this month’s article on writing, she shares her early pain and the secret to how she overcame those obstacles so that writing is once again a joy and she can meet her deadlines without endangering her health. Read on to learn how you can write an ugly duckling, then turn it into a swan, without turning yourself inside out.

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TBM Forum:   Working on the Web Round-Up

Due to a serious hack endured by one of our members earlier this month, the Working on the Web section of the Beau Monde forum has devoted its attention to the topic of Safe Surfing in March. The articles cover information on how to protect computers while they are online, and how to get free software for both firewalls and anti-virus protection.

Next month, the Working on the Web section of the forum will feature the article for those who are interested in setting up their own web site which had been intended for this month.

If you are not yet a Beau Monde member, and would like to join us, please visit our Membership page for details.

I Love Readerware!

A cross-post from The Regency Redingote:

Readerware has nothing to do with the Regency, but it has a great deal to do with books. So, if you have a lot of books, especially if you sometimes buy second or even third copies of books you already have, you might find you will love Readerware, too.

I have more than a thousand historical romance novels in my library, and more than twice as many research books. Not to mention my large collection of needlework books. So many that I simply cannot keep track of them in my head. And then, last spring I found Readerware. I have never been more pleased with a software purchase.

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Web Site Do’s and Don’ts   By Cheryl Bolen

When Jane Austen wrote her novels, she used a quill pen and a bottle of ink to make a fair copy of her manuscript on hand-made paper. She sent it off to her publisher, who had it type-set by hand, printed and distributed to book-sellers and circulating libraries. Her publisher might have taken out an ad in some of the more widely circulated newspapers. That was the extent of book promotion during the Regency. But for those who write Regency novels today, technology has made it possible to promote those books in a number of different ways. In today’s article, Cheryl Bolen shares some tips from a web mistress who has designed web sites for a number of prominent authors. Whether you have had a web site for years or have just published your first novel and are ready to set up your web site, you will find sage advice from a professional in Cheryl’s article.

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Article 5:   Prep That Book!   By Gaelen Foley

Best-selling author, Gaelen Foley, explains how she prepares to begin writing a novel in her fifth article on the business of writing. Her novel preparation method enables her to have all of the pertinent historical facts at her fingertips, as well as in-depth biographical studies of her principal characters. With this information at hand, her writing can proceed without significant interruptions to gather more information. Will her preparation methods help you with your next novel?

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TBM Forum:   Working on the Web Round-Up

In February, the Working on the Web section of the Beau Monde forum features an article specifically for our members who are published authors. This article outlines an opportunity for these Beau Monde authors to promote their work on one of the largest and most highly trafficked web sites on the Internet. With the added bonus that they will also provide a service to their readers.

Next month, the Working on the Web section of the forum will feature an article for those who are interested in setting up their own web site.

If you are not yet a Beau Monde member, and would like to join us, please visit our Membership page for details.

Article 4:   Designing Your Novel’s Premise   By Gaelen Foley

In article four on the business of writing, Gaelen Foley, best-selling romance author, shares how she builds the foundational premise for each of her novels. They do not spring magically from the ether, she has an organized and reliable system by which she develops the premise of her next novel while she is busy writing her current book. By integrating these activities, not only is no time is lost on the writing of the current manuscript, but she has enough lead time to allow her new premise to fully mature. Perhaps you will find some useful tips here which will help you to refine your own premise-building efforts.

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