BIG NEWS!

I am in shock.   I just heard from my publisher, MUSE IT UP! that The Book of Helen will be out in paperback this September. 

For those who don’t know, I wrote a historical fiction about Helen of Troy at the age of sixty-five starting over.  I tried to weave the myriad of contradictory myths about the most beautiful woman in the world (with the face that launched 1000 ships) into a plausible narrative.  In so doing, I sought to answer a few questions that get explained away by the gods interference in most cases in the original epic poems and plays.    

1) Why did Helen leave Sparta?  Those who know the story of the golden apple, know the goddess Eris (strife), was not invited to the wedding of Thetis and Peleus.  She left a wedding gift anyway, with the note, “To the fairest goddess.”  Paris, the son of Priam and Hecuba, prince of Troy was chosen to make the decision as to who should receive the apple, Hera, Athena or Aphrodite.  

Each of the goddesses offered gifts, Hera offered the power to rule of all of Europe and Asia, Athena offered wisdom and the capacity to be the greatest warrior that ever lived.  Aphrodite offered the hand and heart of the most beautiful woman in the world; Helen of Troy.  

Paris chose beauty, Paris chose Aphrodite’s gift of Helen.

Married already, Aphrodite instructed her son to shoot an arrow into Helen’s heart so she would leave with Paris.  

However this version of the story renders Helen a pawn with no free will of her own.  So I tried to craft a plausible reason for the woman with the true power of the throne (it was through Helen, not Menelaus that the kingship came), to leave a place where she ruled, had a daughter, and knew if she left, there would be consequences for all of Greece, but went anyway.   What would make her leave everyone she ever knew and loved? 

2) Helen arrives with Paris in Troy, but in addition to the treasures/dowry she brings a lot of baggage; like 1000 ships stocked with armed to the teeth Greeks from all over the Mediterranean.   I could see the Trojans waiting it out at first, but eventually as the Greeks tore up the beaches and countryside, raiding local farms and hunting grounds, I can’t help but think the Trojans would say, “You know, you’re really pretty but this many in-laws is way too much.  Thanks, go home.”

I could get Paris wanting to keep her, I could understand Priam wanting to out of honor, keep her around, but the rest of Troy would have been soured as things got harder.   So the second question is why did the Trojans let her stay?  

3) Troy is burned to the ground. (Sorry to any who haven’t read the Iliad, Odyssey and accompanying Greek literature for the spoilers).   It’s been over ten years.  Countless lives have been lost.  If you just use the count from the Iliad text alone, 272 men are killed (where we know their names), not to mention the gutting of the kingdom.   Yet if you read the Odyssey, Helen and Menelaus are reconciled, everything is peaceful and she’s returned to rule the land she left.  
What made her people, or for that matter, her husband, take her back?  

Whatever she had, it had to be more than skin deep.

If you can’t wait until September, it’s available as an e-book at Muse it up Publishing!   I’ll even electronically sign it for you if you click the authorgraph site on my blog.   J

Small Success Thursday

Weeks roll fast. It's hard to believe today is Holy Thursday.

Have a blessed Easter everyone. It is a beautiful thing to be able to celebrate this sacred time, both with our families and with our friends, both in the actual and virtual world. God bless all of you.

This past week, we had a couple of good, one wow and one scary thing happen. I hope your week had lots of goods and wows and no scary.

Good:
This weekend we managed two birthday parties including a rock climbing party where my 6 year old daughter and 8 year old son proved they are part spider or monkey. I was amazed at how quickly they could scale 25 feet. There should be an open bar provided for parents who sign the waiver. Or a tranquilizer, something because it's unnerving to see them just up up up they go. But it was also cool to see their smiles of triumph.

More Good:
Took my 10 year old shopping. The first store didn't have things in her size. The second store, the assistant store manager took us on a s a special project and made her feel like a superstar. She bloomed like a sunflower when she had all those beautiful outfits. It was fun and lovely and so affirming. It made my day.

Good:
Booked a birthday party for the 10 year old, 8 year old and not yet 5 year old at the same place. They will enjoy a Gymnastics party at a place that I took the almost 5 and my 3 year old and they thought they'd died and gone to kid heaven. (It is where Dominique Dawns trained so it can handle the 10 year old too).

More Good:
Said almost a full rosary. Still have to power through the last decade and a half tonight, but I had reason.

Scary:
Suffered from shortness of breath Tuesday night, spent the evening at the ER and then in the hospital such that I now am nursing a coctail of steroids in my bloodstream that would disqualify me from the next two rounds of Olympics. On the plus side, I'm breathing much better and found a specialist who doesn't freak out at my airway and he's decided I'm his patient and so things worked out fine. But I had lots of time to myself so I used it to almost finish a full rosary.

Wow:
Yes I saved it for last. I made a pitch for Helen on Thursday night at the Catholic Writer's Online Conference. I'd never made a pitch before. They said yes. They want the full manuscript. I'm now editing like crazy and honestly feel like the dog that caught the car.

Final note:
Blogging will return to regularly scheduled Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday posts but not until April 16. This is not because the tax man cometh, but because we have a wedding to attend and I will not be near the computer that weekend or the two days prior to that weekend. Small Success Thursday will still run as I can schedule a post.

Now it's your turn: