This week for our How I Write series, my accountability group is talking about where we write. And I’m sure that the others are going to talk more about physical spaces and where they take their laptops and notebooks for field trips.
I’m going to tackle this topic from a slightly different angle. I haven’t found that going out in the world to a coffee shop, bookstore, library or other place really helps to shake things loose in my head, they provide distracting people to watch which are often much more interesting than what I’m writing! Yes, even with headphones. And I didn’t really want to show off messy pictures of my desk or some of the other spots around the house that I’ll settle into to write. Because for me, it’s not so much about the location, as if I have the right tools with me.
For brainstorming and very early exploration work on a project, I take pen and paper and usually end up spread out on the bed, scribbling madly. Once that’s done, I used to take it and try to make sense of it by organizing it into a spreadsheet in Excel or an outline in Word.
After that, I used to use Dropbox to keep the files on my desktop and my laptop synched up. But my process has changed slightly since I inherited my iPad 1 from DH who got the newest one this spring. It’s much lighter and more compact even than my Macbook Air and with Dropbox available on it, that took care of the synching issue.
Scrivener allows me to SEE the structure and rearrange easily if needed. Love the Project target window as well.
That left me with the question of what app I was going to use to do the actual writing. I’d played a bit with Notes on my phone. Ick. But, I’d recently converted to using Scrivener on my desktop and LOVE IT! The only problem is that there isn’t a version for iOS, yet.
Virtual Index Cards: Don’t Leave Home Without Them!In the meantime, I found a workaround using IndexCard which is an iPad app mostly used for screenwriting and has some of the same fundamental features. It’s holding me until Scrivener completes their app.
But what this really means is that I’m no longer tied to my desktop or laptop. I am much less reluctant to drag my iPad along with me where ever we go — out to eat (IHOP, Red Robin, Applebees, TGIFriday’s), on appointments (various doctor’s offices, the eye doctor’s), etc have all become my writing spaces as well as many more locations around the house. Somehow, the iPad isn’t as isolating to use as my laptop when we sit around the TV in the evenings and I’m not captured by the show. I can also quickly drop in and out of the current “card” and not have to worry about screwing up the pristine copy.
I just have to make sure the synching is correct. You do have to do a bit more manual synching with IndexCard, but the freedom is worth it right now.
So… for me it’s not just WHERE DO I WRITE, but more HOW I WRITE when I’m there that’s important to keeping the words flowing and the creativity bubbling.
YOUR TURN: Does a change of scenery help your creative pursuits? Where are your favorite places to work? What helps you focus and keeps you motivated to finish a project?
And if you’d like to read what the rest of my accountability group thinks about mixing up their writing venues, you can find their blogs here:
This week for our How I Write series, my accountability group is sharing shout outs for the people and sites who make our lives so much easier in the research department. If you’re looking for fabulous resources for Regency research, check out the sites and people listed below. THANK YOU! For bringing a bright spot to my day and making research fun, interesting and easier!
I’m not sure if everyone mentioned will see this post, but THANK YOU for your interest, your time and love of the Regency Era. You have definitely inspired me on many levels and I can only hope my own blog and pages here are as useful to others as yours have been to me. Again, thank you for all you do.
David W Wilkin has a great blog over at The Things That Catch My Eye where he’s been doing a lot of Regency timelines, notable personalities and lexicon entries. You can also follow him on twitter at @DWWilkin.
I also have more links saved in my Regency Resources page (which looks like I need to update it again with some these!) so feel free to browse over there and see if you find anything interesting.
YOUR TURN: What are some of YOUR favorite places to do do research? Hint: it doesn’t have to be Regency or Writing related at all! I’m curious about all sorts of things.
And if you’d like to read about who the rest of my accountability group are highlighting, you can find their blogs here:
Last week we talked about our Summer Writing Plans and it pains me to say that I haven’t yet managed to get started. Today was the closest I’ve come to feeling like I was on track. Our son promoted from middle school to high school yesterday, our daughter had finals, my car got clipped by another parent waiting to pick up the kids on Monday, and my husband had his wisdom teeth removed last Friday. It’s been a busy week! This week for our How I Write series, my accountability group is talking about Fictional Foodie Favorites. We were asked, “What would your main characters (hero and heroine) say are there favorite dish and why? Bonus if you share a recipe for the dish or if you have made it share a picture.”
My characters LOVE to go to Gunter’s for ices. It’s like heading over to Dairy Queen, Coldstone or a Ben & Jerry’s shop today. Something to cool you off and a social place to hang out while the weather’s warm. Marcia and Barrington end up there in Revealed. Hubert and Camilla meet there in Sweet Temptation. I’m sure others will probably drop in at some point since the ton had decided it was a place where a gentleman could take a lady unchaperoned and not risk censure.
Over at Historic Food, British food historian Ivan Day has a comprehensive article on Georgian Ices that includes lots of pictures, drawings and several receipts (an old fashioned way to say recipes). Definitely worth a look!
We’ve become very bland in what we think of as acceptable ice cream and sorbet flavors these days. In the Georgian and Regency Eras, ices could be sweet or savory. Parmesan Ice? You betcha! Elderflower, muscadine, currant were just a few of the other varieties that sound so exotic to our modern ears.
It’s funny that my heroine’s are much less food conscious than the men in my stories. Although, I have it on good authority that Tabitha (Beneath His Touch) prefers her toast with a hearty dollop of jam. Marcia’s favorite has to be the muscadine ice, a sweeter white currant ice scented with elderflowers. She might not be very experienced with men, but she’s no stranger to sensuality.
The scent of spring rose from the bowl. She dipped into the ice and scraped off a dainty portion. Raising the spoon to her lips, she reminded herself to savor the first spoonful as long as possible. Subsequent ones never satisfied the same way. Cool, tangy crystals burst in her mouth releasing the delicate, subtle taste of summer. Marcia closed her eyes and leaned against the squabs while the world around her melted away like the ice on her tongue.
On the other hand, the men like Barrington and Hubert and even Ambrose in Beneath His Touch are something of foodies. Barrington doesn’t always know the proper terms, but he knows what he likes. Ambrose, well, lets just say no one would ever accuse him of skipping a meal and he appreciates the finer fare. But Hubert, he has a definite sweet tooth and very strong memories tied to food.
Hubert Langham, Lord Dendridge, strolled along Berkeley Square, his nose lifting to catch the tantalizing scents wafting on the easterly breeze. Gunter’s iconic golden pineapple beckoned him closer to the teashop. Soon individual aromas emanating from the confectionery were distinguishable: vanilla, caramelized sugar, fresh fruit. But the floodgates of his memories erupted with the rich, luxurious scent of chocolate. His mother had brought him here prior to his being sent away to school at a tender age.
YOUR TURN: What are some of your best food associated memories? What foods set your mouth to watering just thinking about them?
And if you’d like to read about how the rest of my accountability group answered, you can find their blogs here:
Will you make a splash this summer?This week for our How I Write series, my accountability group’s topic is Summer Writing Plan. We were asked, “What adjustments will you make to get through the lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer?”
We have 4 more days of school this year. Our son will be moving up from middle school to high school. It doesn’t seem possible we’ll have two in high school next year. But that also means for the next 9 weeks or so, I’ll have them underfoot for more of the day than I’m currently used to. They LOVE to sleep in. And by that I mean until noon or so. Then they wake up ravening beasts who want fed and entertained (which now usually means driven around to either be dropped off at a friends or to pick up said friends who are likewise transportationally challenged.
Luckily our schedules shouldn’t change too much except to open up more free time for everyone, both over the summer and next school year as I’ll only have 1 drop-off/pick-up time instead of two.
Writing Plan: My Big To Dos
June
Add 8,210 words to BHT to bring it up to 90k by July 1 — 328 words/day
Halfway point for Jack of Hearts (Stop laughing! it’s only ~2,300 words per day to get to 35k by mid June.)
Outline JoH using 9 sentences for structure and fine tuning.
Pitch Workshop, online
Get business cards reprinted with current info
July
Continue working on JoH
Attend National RWA Conference in Anaheim toward the end of the month
Take lessons learned from pitch class & combine with story bones for sequels to BHT
August
Continue working on JoH — need 70-75k by end of Sept
Analyze scenes for Revealed, Sweet Temptation and Flower Queen’s Daughter to see where to improve or rewrite
Writing Plan: My Big How Tos
Get Up Early and get working by 7am to take advantage of a quiet house
Focus on priority goals first: BHT & JoH before everything else
Track time spent writing in spreadsheet
Take advantage of other writers doing sprints via twitter or chat rooms
Limit Facebook Games until after lunch
YOUR TURN:How does summer affect your creative schedule? Does it enhance or impede it?
And if you’d like to read about how the rest of my accountability group answered, you can find their blogs here:
This week for our How I Write series, my accountability group asked, “How do you develop your characters? Do you have a favourite kind/archetype?”
We covered part of the idea of character development before and my general method is in the post, Building Characters where I likened it to my daughter’s cosplay outfits. I skimmed the highlights, but that post has more info.
The BASICS Deb Dixon‘s GMC — WANTS, NEEDS, CONFLICTS, OBSTACLES Michael Hauge‘s Establishing Connections – likeability, skill.expertise, sympathetic, funny, jeopardy
Strengths/Weaknesses —
At Least 5 Whys —
Biggest Fear & how you will make them face it Jodi Henley‘s idea of a Core Event
That all still holds true. Now, moving on to the section where I listed What I didn’t use.
Character Sheets — You’ve seen the ones: star sign, height, weight, occupation, model of car driven, all full of useless trivia that probably won’t make a difference in how your character will react to the things you need them to. Oh, and I always read them with much amusement considering I write historical fiction. I don’t think I’d find them very useful even if I wrote contemporaries.
Stereotypes/Archetypes — Ok, I TRY not to use stereotypes and I was re-introduced to the notion of using archetypes again this summer, but I’m not sure that I’ll ever dig too deeply in that direction as something to build a foundation on. Some people may find them useful, but I also think the temptation to slide back into stereotype is too strong for me.
Character sheets filled with useless trivia are still a no go for me. Most of it just isn’t relevant for the historical setting and I don’t feel like making one. I have been using Scrivener, which has character templates that are more flexible and include general information.
Role in Story: Hero Occupation: Card Sharp Physical Description: Personality: Jack is a bad boy, appearing unreliable and capricious at first impression. Habits/Mannerisms: Background: Jack is a card sharp with the longest running winning streak at the game of Whist at the Stratford Club in London. He wants to make a name for himself. Internal Conflicts: Jack is motivated by resentment and rebellion which keeps him from finding love and keeping it. He’s a bachelor who refuses to marry and keeps being left by his mistresses. External Conflicts: Jack is driven by the thrill of winning and beating the odds. He wants to win back his brother’s losing for the week and keep his reputation because Amanda’s protector has accused him of cheating and offers a stacked deck. Notes: Jack is used to playing Whist with his brother as his partner. He’s also distracted by the heroine’s beauty. He may lose his reputation and the girl. Jack realizes he’s always help part of himself back. He puts that on the table with Amanda as well, hoping to win her love.
And in looking back at my stories after taking Tami Cowden’s workshop on archetypes for writers, I realized I do use them as a very rough base for personality and building conflicts, but it hadn’t been a conscious part of my character development process.
I think if I had to name a favorite hero archetype, it’d be the bad boy — or maybe the nice guy who’s been pushed to live up to his bad boy reputation. My heroine’s have also been stronger than they appear or are assumed to be by others, but other than that, they seem to be all over the map in terms of which archetype you’d label them as.
Another thing I’ve realized through photography and pushing my comfort zone there, is character matters so much when photographing people. Capturing it and using it to tell a story was a big part of what I was missing when I took pictures of people. For some reason, this seems easier with people I don’t know. Maybe because I’m freer to make things up? Anyway… this kid with the frisbee has a ton of character, doesn’t he?
YOUR TURN:How do you go about building the foundation of your creative projects?
And if you’d like to read about how the rest of my accountability group answered, you can find their blogs here:
Tabitha Gifford (Center)This week for our How I Write series, my accountability group asked, “Could you be best friends with any of the heroines you’ve written. Is she/Are they someone you would hang out with? Why or why not?”
I don’t know about BFFs, but my heroines are definitely the kind of people I’d hang out with. In my head they’re all strong women who know what they want and don’t suffer fools lightly. On my current pages, they’re not quite there and a couple times I’ve needed smacked upside and asked “What were you thinking?”, but hey, we’ve all got friends like that, right? We love them despite their occasional bone-headed decisions or statements.
They definitely share some of my interests: gardening, music, solving puzzles, playing games, reading, horses. One thing we all seem to have in common is a liking for handsome blokes wearing cravats. Completely understandable, I think.
I’ve also spent about 5 years with Marcia (Revealed) and Tabitha (BHT) in my head. They’re probably my favorite heroines so far, although I like Althea from The Flower Queen’s Daughter (FQD) and Amanda from Jack of Hearts (JoH), but they’re definitely not as fully formed personalities, but I definitely want to get to know them better. I think Henrietta will also be one of my favorites as she really appeals to the tomboy I was growing up. One thing I know, I’d definitely like you all to meet them one day!
Marcia DrummondI’d need a time machine to go hang out with them, but isn’t that exactly what books are? Time Machines, rocket ships, portals to other dimensions, flies on the wall where we can’t normally go? I think it’d infinitely cooler to go hang out with them in their time period than this one. I suspect I’d have a better chance of fitting into Regency times, despite missing many of the modern conveniences like computers, internet, air conditioning and indoor plumbing. I think the social whirl would get to me and I’d gladly sit with Marcia on the sidelines and just watch.
This question was very difficult for me to answer because I have tended to have very few close female friends in real life at any one time. I was always one that hung out with the guys in school and even afterwards, working in the computer games industry, I was definitely in the minority. Barrington and I would have been best buds and Bolster too, just because with one, you get the other in the bargain. Isn’t it odd, that I say that, yet STILL feel Barrington is the one character I know the least about his backstory and motivations?
Cub Scouts and writing changed that balance for me. Cub Scouts gained me several close mom friends who were going through the same things, even though I was just as happy hanging out with some of the dads at events too. Getting more involved with writing and the community around it expanded my virtual and local circles to include some amazing women who are super supportive and even though I haven’t met all of them in person yet, I’m proud to call them all ‘friend’.
YOUR TURN: How do you push through things you don’t like to do and can you turn your weaknesses into strengths?
And if you’d like to read about how the rest of my accountability group answered, you can find their blogs here:
Dialogue: Talking Heads vs Meaningful Conversation
This week for our How I Write series, my accountability group asked, “Dialogue, narrative, exposition, or description? What are your favorite parts of writing and why? Your least favorite and why? What do you do to make your least favorite parts more attractive or easier?”
Deceptively Easy Parts of Writing
When I am able to completely turn off my internal editor, my writing defaults to dialogue. I end up with pages and pages of talking heads with the barest indication of what’s going on around them physically. The other trap I seem to fall into is INTERNAL monologues where the character will go on forever about what they think of a situation or mull over what to do next.
The dialogue runs are fun, because it’s like eavesdropping on a conversation and taking dictation. The trick is tipping the balance from talking heads to meaningful conversation between realistic characters. The introspective runs… they’re usually a good sign I need to stop, figure out where the story is going next and how to get the hero and heroine back on the page together. When I’m stuck, if I can get them in the same place and get them talking, things usually get moving again.
The Hardest Parts of Writing
I think the aspect I’m currently weakest on is using body language to convey emotion and character. Showing character is usually a little easier, but I find myself drifting back to my online roleplaying game days and relying on a small repertoire of actions: smiling, nodding, eyerolling, and various methods of fiddling with hair.
In the first draft, I do a bare minimum of actions. They’re more placeholders to remind me of the mood at the time. I have to go back and layer in emotion and variety. This is often done by adding in thoughts and reactions as well as other physical actions.
Description is another thing I find is either on or off for me. Usually, it’s something I have to go back and add in, unless it’s part of initially setting a scene. Oh, and I suck at describing clothing. I may have researched a fair amount on it, but I’m definitely not a fashionista for either the 21st or 19th century.
Strengthening the Weaknesses
So…how do I take the things I don’t like writing as much or don’t come as naturally and turn it into something that works? I’m apparently still working on that. For me, I need to make several passes and concentrate on one aspect at a time. My current pass is turning wooden, rote actions into something meaningful for the story that paint a better picture of the characters for the reader. Reading aloud helps find the stilted phrases and roleplaying the characters makes this more entertaining for me and often brings pleasant surprises with it.
I’d say the best thing to do is run with what you enjoy and comes easy to get down the story bones, but don’t be afraid to go back and add in more details even if it takes a few passes to flesh out that skeleton. Critical reading (to see how others pull it off) and practice also makes it easier. I don’t know if I’ve been successful at strengthening my weaknesses, but I know my writing process is going to be a work in progress for quite some time.
A Different Lens
I knew I used that phrase a lot in respect to my writing, but it had never really clicked before, why. I’ve been using the phrase long before I got my dSLR camera last year, but I get it now. I’ve mentioned before that photography has always been present in my life between my grandfather and my father. I frequently had a cheap little camera in my hands growing up and got a SLR camera as my high school graduation present. I loved to play with light, natural objects, and rarely took pictures of people or buildings.
With photography, my weaknesses are definitely still in architecture and people. I very rarely luck out and get something I love. But then again, deliberate practice on these two subjects is not something I have done very often. I think where I succeed with these is when I’m able to bring in elements of nature or at least let go completely and don’t think about it so much. But deliberate practice to explore what works and what doesn’t has been a huge part of this for me. Somehow, working with strangers is easier than people I know, maybe that’s a self-conscious thing. Although that’s my husband’s brother and sister in the photo at the top.
Sometimes, I just luck out.
YOUR TURN: How do you push through things you don’t like to do and can you turn your weaknesses into strengths?
And if you’d like to read about how the rest of my accountability group answered, you can find their blogs here:
Please welcome author Dara Young to the blog today. We’re celebrating her debut of THE CANCAN DANCER AND THE DUKE from The Wild Rose Press. I hope you all enjoy this story as much as I did!
Since I’m often talking about inspiration and motivation, Dara thought she’d share with us where she gets her inspiration from in general and what inspired her to write about a Cancan dancer and a Duke. Without further ado, here’s Dara!
Where do ideas come from? Well I get mine from all kinds of places. Work, people I know, movies, songs… there’s no one place I get inspiration from. I once sat in a meeting and out of nowhere a mental picture of a woman standing on a terrace of a ballroom under the stars came to me. I instantly wanted to know who she was, why she was there, and what was happening to her. That image turned into a scene that I wrote up and might eventually turn into a story.
Jane Avril, Dancing by Toulouse Lautrec
THE CANCAN DANCER AND THE DUKE (Cancan) was inspired by real life. See, I was a dancer in high school. One of my teachers choreographed a ballet based on the life of Toulouse Lautrec. He is famous for his posters of the French dance hall girls, in particular the ladies of the Moulin Rouge. His posters, and those of other artists like him, were used originally as advertisements for the dance halls. They were posted around Paris to entice spectators to the establishments. In the ballet, I got to dance a very tame version of the cancan… OMG! I had no idea how cardio deficient I was until I started rehearsing that piece. LOL!
I fell in love with Lautrec’s art and of course the idea of the cancan dancers. Later after I started dabbling in writing I was struck by the idea behind Cancan. I love the idea of the headstrong lady trying to carve her own path despite society’s rules. Of course, there are always consequences. 😀
The Cancan Dancer and The Duke
by Dara Young
The Wild Rose Press
Can a lady on the lam and a duke on the make find love at the Moulin Rouge?
Cathedrals and museums are not Lady Charise Colton’s idea of European adventure. Turn-of-the-century Paris beckons, and she wants to grab it while she can…or rather, cancan. Flirting with fate and half of Paris, Charise eludes her chaperones and joins the cancan revue at the Moulin Rouge.
Ethan Greer, Duke of Lofton, is in Paris to settle some estate business. Chafing under his responsibilities, he discovers an enchanting distraction at the Moulin Rouge, a flirtatious dancer who stirs his lust and something more. He must have her—even if it means offering carte blanche.
Terrified of discovery, Charise tries to hold her persistent suitor at bay, though her heart has already surrendered. Will she lose him if he learns the truth, or is love enough to bind the cancan dancer and the duke?
Excerpt:
The singular sound was a soft whisper at first. The audience strained forward to catch even a note of the eerie melody carried on the fetid air of the cafe. As the song picked up, her voice grew stronger, the words more clear. Ethan relaxed into his seat and let the warm rich alto caress him. His body grew warm with the promises carried by the witch’s husky tones.
He remained unaware of anything in the room except the siren walking toward him. Each steady, unhurried step she took further drew him in. His gaze feasted on the curve of her hip, the swell of her breast. Ethan rode the knife’s edge between lust and propriety.
The song described, in lurid detail, two lovers in the throes of passion. Upon reaching him, the dancer propped the toe of her boot onto the edge of his seat—square between his thighs. The luscious creature presented impossibly sheer bloomers which hid everything and yet nothing, causing him to let out the breath he, until now, unknowingly held. His cock grew rigid, the uncomfortable throbbing causing him to shift. The desire to haul her into his arms and demonstrate every action she described with the most sensuous mouth he’d ever seen rode him hard. Her full lower lip begged for his kiss. Ethan wanted to see it slick and glowing pink from his attentions.
The wanton dancer continued to taunt him, but his good breeding won out. Forcing himself to stay seated, his fists balled and his jaw grew rigid with frustration, but his raging lusts remained leashed. The song ended, sending her into the nether regions of the cafe in a swirl of skirts.
Your Turn: We’re curious about what inspires you, be it books, people, music, whatever. What inspires you to be creative or just to get out of bed in the morning?
Thanks for stopping by to celebrate with Dara and remember to comment on each post during her blog tour for more chances to win! (Not sure what I’m talking about? Click here for more details.)
If you’ve ever come across the phrase “She was at sixes and sevens” in a historical novel and wondered what it meant, you may be surprised to learn it originated from the game of Hazard and generally is used to mean in a state of chaos or agitation. This popular dicing game has been around since the 14th century and the phrase “Set upon six and seven” first appeared in Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales and referred to betting one’s entire fortune on a single throw of the dice. We also get the modern meanings of “risk” and “danger” associated with the word “hazard” from this notion as well.
History of The Game of Hazard
“Kick-up at the Hazard Table” by Thomas RowlandsonHazard is an old English game played with two dice. One of the more popular places to play Hazard in the late 18th and early 19th century was Crockford’s Club in London. The name is commonly thought to be Old French, but likely derived from the Spanish “azar”, which is “an unfortunate card or dice roll”. There’s some speculation the game was allegedly first played by the crusaders laying siege to a castle, called Hazart or Asart, in the 12th century or that the name came from the Arabic word “az-zahr”, meaning “dice” but little evidence can be found in classic Arabic dictionaries. The modern game of Craps evolved from Hazard, which is basically a variation, where throws of 7 or 11 always win.
Despite its complicated rules, Hazard was very popular during the 17th and 18th centuries and well into the 19th where gambling of the nobility was a favorite past time to chase away the boredom and make some extra money.
The Basic Rules of Hazard
In each of the many rounds the caster picks out a number between 5 and 9, inclusive. This is called the “main”, then the caster throws two dice.
If the caster rolls the main numbers, you win, which is called “throws in” or “nicks”. If you roll a 2 or 3 you will lose, or “throws out”.
If the caster rolls a 11 or 12, the result of that throw depends on the “main”:
a main of 5 or 9, the caster “throws out” with both an 11 and 12.
a main of 6 or 8, the caster “throws out” with an 11 but “nicks” with a 12.
a main of 7, the caster “nicks” an 11 but “throws out” with a 12.
if the caster doesn’t “nick” or “throw out”, that number is called the “chance”, then you throw the dice again.
if the caster rolls “the main” on a “chance” you will lose, unlike when you first threw.
if the caster rolls neither of them, they keep throwing the dice until one or other is rolled, either winning with “chance” or losing with the “main”.
Ivory or bone dice and wooden cup, 19th c.
As long as the caster keeps winning, he keeps on playing. If the caster loses three times in a row, the dice pass to the player on his left.
Bets on this game are usually between the caster and the bank, or “setter”. The remaining players may act in this role as well.
A nick on the first throw wins the caster an amount equal to his stake or wager. The setter or bank gives odds if the setter throws a “chance”.
You can even hone your skills for free by playing Hazard in a flash game at DeviantArt by Drakonlady.
More information regarding a variety of other Regency-themed topics including how to play Whist can be found on my Regency Resource page. If you’d like more information on a specific place or topic, please let me know in the comments section below.
Many historical romance novels feature card rooms at balls, clubs or dinner parties and gaming hells where rakes wager over the turn of a card or toss of a dice. Many games that are no longer familiar to us are rattled off: hazard, piquet, faro, and whist. Often, the games chosen have meaning for the characters playing. A man who plays hazard is a great risk taker, where someone who knows how to play whist is a serious strategist and likely has a good memory for counting cards.
Today, we’re going to take a closer look at the game of whist. One of my projects involves a decisive game of whist, so last summer I decided I needed to learn how to play. Luckily, there’s lots of documentation available on the basic rules and strategies for play as well as some online game venues which allow for free play (link at the end!). So now you can experience the game for yourself and know what they’re talking about the next time you read about it in the context of a Regency romance novel. The Jack of Hearts. Early 19th c. playing card from Hall & Sons. Notice the face card has a single head and centered eyes compared to modern cards. The backs also would have been plain white.
History of Whist
“That’s not according to Hoyle!” and “According to Hoyle,…” were popular phrases in my grandparents’ house. Edmond Hoyle was considered quite the expert on cards and other games in the 18th century. He wrote many pamphlets or treatises on various games such as Whist, Quadrille, Piquet, Backgammon as well as a books on probability theory and chess. In 1748, his pamphlets were collected and sold under the title of Mr. Hoyle’s Treatises of Whist, Quadrille, Piquet, Chess and Back-Gammon.
The rules of whist as published in A Short Treatise on the Game of Whist in 1742 were considered authoritative until 1864, when they were supplanted by John Loraine Baldwin’s new rules which were adopted by the Arlington and Portland clubs.
Whist remained popular through the late 19th century and acquired a rigid set of rules, etiquette and techniques that required a large amount of study to become a successful player. In the early 20th century, Bridge replaced Whist in popularity, especially in the United States, although Whist is still played in Britain at local tournaments called “Whist Drives”.
How to Play Whist
Preparation
What we think of now as a standard 52-card deck or during the Regency what was known as a French deck, is used. Cards are ranked in order from highest to lowest: Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, down to the deuce (or two).
Four players form two pairs and the partners sit opposite each other at the table. Pairs may be chosen by drawing cards: two highest against the two lowest. Players may not comment on the cards they are dealt in any way or signal their partners.
Shuffling & Dealing
Typically, two decks of cards are used to allow the dealer’s partner to shuffle one deck to have it ready for the dealer of the next hand while the dealer deals. Cards are shuffled by the player to the left of the dealer and cut by the player on his right.
All cards are dealt out face down until each player has 13 cards in their hand. The last card to be dealt, belonging to the dealer, is placed face up to indicate the trump suit. This card remains face up until the dealer plays the first “trick”. After all thirteen tricks are played, the dealer advances clockwise.
Taking Tricks
The first trick is lead by the player on the dealer’s left. He may play any card in his hand. Play continues clockwise with players following the leading suit if they if have any in their hand. If a player doesn’t possess cards in the suit lead in the trick, they may either discard any card or trump by playing a card of the trump suit. A trick is won by the highest card in the lead suit, unless a trump card was played. If multiple trumps were played the highest takes the trick.
The winner of the trick collects the 4 cards played and places them face down in a stack near him. He then leads the next trick. Only cards from the previous trick may be reviewed before the lead card of the next is played, otherwise players are expected to remember what has been played. Play continues until all 13 tricks are played and then the score is recorded.
A whist counter dating from around 1820.
Scoring Hands & Determining the Winners
Once all 13 tricks have been played, the pair collecting the most tricks scores 1 point for each trick taken in excess of six (called ‘making book’). A game is over when a team reaches 5 points. Variations include playing to 7 or 9 points.
It was often popular to play a “rubber of whist” which meant that the winners were determined by the best of three games.
Whist Counters or Markers
Whist tokens and storage tin. Four tokens could be used to score 9 point games.
Tokens or chips were originally used to record the score, but later in the 19th century dial counters and hinged pegs (or turnups) that snapped up to keep track of the score. Cheaper versions included cardboard and leather dial types and the more elaborate more expensive varieties might include exotic woods, ivory, mother of pearl. Two of the well-known producers of whist counters or whist markerswere Goodall & Sons and De La Rue.
Basic Whist Glossary
Trump
The suit of the last card dealt in a hand that beats all others regardless of rank, cards within the trump suit rank normally against each other.
Lead
The first card played in a trick.
Trick
The 4 cards played by each participant
Hand
13 tricks, once through the deck.
Small Slam
When 12 of thirteen tricks are taken by one team.
Grand Slam
When all 13 tricks are taken by one team.
Book
The first 6 tricks taken by a pair. Points for additional tricks taken are scored only after they ‘make book’.
Game
Played to an agreed upon point total, usually 5, 7 or 9.
Rubber
The winning pair is the best of three games.
You can even hone your skills for free by playing Whist Online at Games.com. If you’re just learning, I recommend choosing single player mode, which partners you with a computer player against two other computer controlled players. To view a wide variety of different styles of whist markers, visit Laurent Gimet’s collection at The Whist Markers Museum.
More information regarding a variety of other Regency-themed topics including how to play Hazard can be found on my Regency Resource page. If you’d like more information on a specific place or topic, please let me know in the comments section below.
