Today, Deborah Harkness appeared with Victoria Schwab and Sarah Pinborough at Waterstones Piccadilly’s ‘Imagined London’ event. What follows is what we’ve been able to collect from information live tweeted during the event.
Tonight we've @DebHarkness @veschwab & @SarahPinborough at @WaterstonesPicc for a fab event @Bookywookydooda @TitanBooks #ImaginedLondons
— Ella Bowman (@EllaMatildaB) April 14, 2015
Time for @DebHarkness @veschwab and @SarahPinborough @WaterstonesPicc yay! pic.twitter.com/SjthsKukWl
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
#ImaginedLondons @DebHarkness pic.twitter.com/iiXLmzzV3r
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
I need a map of LA but I don't need a map of London! @DebHarkness
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
Professor Harkness discusses her research behind the character of Matthew Clairmont.
'Matthew Clairmont was based on Matthew Roydon (sp?), a poet and a spy for the Queen in 1590' @DebHarkness #ImaginedLondons
— Ella Bowman (@EllaMatildaB) April 14, 2015
She also had to look up some pretty specific information for her novels.
I had to find out about coin size and horse speed for my books! @DebHarkness #ImaginedLondons
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
Talking (magical) realism, @DebHarkness 'they don't teach you in grad school how long it takes to travel by horse and cart' #ImaginedLondons
— Ella Bowman (@EllaMatildaB) April 14, 2015
Endurance riders and maths came into play for @DebHarkness to figure her way through this horse & cart conundrum #ImaginedLondons
— Ella Bowman (@EllaMatildaB) April 14, 2015
Christopher Marlowe makes such a great daemon! @DebHarkness #ImaginedLondons
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
Prof. Harkness on beauties and colleagues:
In ordinary life @DebHarkness assumes that unbelievable beauties are vampires, and that difficult colleagues are daemons #ImaginedLondons
— Ella Bowman (@EllaMatildaB) April 14, 2015
On the commingling of science and magic in her 16th-century London:
The magical and scientific worlds coexist in my sixteenth century @DebHarkness #ImaginedLondons
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
In @DebHarkness world only humans are dense enough to not realise magic exists! #ImaginedLondon
— Caitlin (@CaitLomas) April 14, 2015
On the importance of libraries:
'Libraries are really important to me me' @DebHarkness #imaginedlondons
— The Tattooed Book (@TheTattooedBook) April 14, 2015
Really fun to put loads of historical fact in a novel! @DebHarkness #ImaginedLondons
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
Really fun to put loads of historical fact in a novel! @DebHarkness #ImaginedLondons
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
When entering a relationship with a vampire, take heed!
A relationship with a vampire will always go slowly which can be frustrating! #ImaginedLondons @DebHarkness
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
. @DebHarkness real academics not odd&charmingly quirky. She had to create characters who would survive in modern academia #ImaginedLondon
— Caitlin (@CaitLomas) April 14, 2015
On Matthew’s temperament:
Matthew can't be warm and cuddly. It just wouldn't work @DebHarkness #imaginedlondons
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
What is sex with a vampire like, exactly?
'Sex with a vampire won't be quick' @DebHarkness on relationships and living for hundreds of years in her All Souls Trilogy #imaginedlondons
— The Tattooed Book (@TheTattooedBook) April 14, 2015
On her inspiration to switch from non-fiction to fantasy:
An airport fantasy book display in Mexico inspired @DebHarkness to move from non-fiction to fantasy #ImaginedLondons
— Ella Bowman (@EllaMatildaB) April 14, 2015
Ms. Harkness bypassed the Twilight Saga.
My vampires were by Anne Rice. I didn't know about Twilight.#ImaginedLondon @DebHarkness
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
Modern books seemed to be full of glamorous witches who wanted to be witches #badcareerpathinhistory #ImaginedLondon @DebHarkness
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
On the path she took on her “midlife crisis”:
Other people have affairs, I wrote a novel! #midlifecrisis @DebHarkness #ImaginedLondons
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
'I had no idea what I was doing and didn't tell anyone…other people have affairs, I wrote a novel' @DebHarkness #imaginedlondons
— The Tattooed Book (@TheTattooedBook) April 14, 2015
How should one approach writing, and how to handle writer’s block?
Set small goals. Writer's block? Forbid yourself to write for 7 days, and you'll see how after, you're fine @DebHarkness #imaginedlondons
— Ella Bowman (@EllaMatildaB) April 14, 2015
What the character of Matthew is based on:
Matthew is a hero based on a classical template! #ImaginedLondons @DebHarkness
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
. @DebHarkness saw advert for ADSOM in London & called publisher to ask for it – 1st time she's ever done that! @veschwab #ImaginedLondon
— Caitlin (@CaitLomas) April 14, 2015
Team #imaginedlondons @DebHarkness @veschwab pic.twitter.com/iFwHHPZfQc
— Caitlin Raynor (@Bookywookydooda) April 14, 2015
Our thanks to Caitlin Raynor, Ella Bowman, Cait Lomas, and Cara Fielder for live tweeting the event!
