French Table Wine, Empowerment Through Music, and a Gift from My Publisher

F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zelda Fitzgerald

Dear Readers & Friends:

My latest posting is here! As always, you’ll find info about John Robie’s world, Francie Stevens’ world, the French Riviera, and a recent step in my writing journey.

John Robie’s World

In the original book, John Robie’s home was named Villa des Bijoux (House of Jewels). He was a gentleman farmer, and like many others in that region, I pictured John making table wine from his own vineyard. 

I’m not a wine connoisseur, but I know that wine from France is held to very high standards, specifically regarding the grapes used, their region, and the processes to make it. When winemakers adhere to these standards, their product is labeled ‘quality wine.’ If all those standards are not adhered to, the product becomes table wine. FYI, this distinction is not used in the United States. 

French table wine

So back to France -- if a winemaker wants to blend some grapes, or tweak the process, they lose that quality distinction. But that doesn’t mean table wines are not good. They can be excellent and are often uncomplicated blends. 

I once made wine, and it’s not an easy process. But it’s not too hard, either. Then again, what I made wasn’t very good. But if you had a lot of time on your hands, like former jewel thief John Robie, you could experiment and end up with something nice.

By the way, homemade wine is becoming more popular. For those adventurous types, check out this link, and this one, too.

Francie Stevens’ World

In the early 1950s, a popular song was ‘Come on a My House’, sung by Rosemary Clooney. 

The song is catchy and loaded with double entendres, but it’s also empowering—just the kind of song Francie Stevens would listen to!

Rosemary was an amazing singer; Bing Crosby called her ‘the best in the business.’ She starred with him in the classic holiday film White Christmas, which was fascinating on many levels (see here for 35 surprising facts about that film.). Also, there’s an interesting connection with To Catch a Thief -- the costumes in both films were designed by legendary designer Edith Head. 

The final point I’ll make is that many folks know that Rosemary was an aunt to George Clooney, but many do not know that she was onsite when Robert Kennedy was assassinated. 

White Christmas, one of the all-time classic holiday films

Riviera Life

When researching my book, I discovered the French Riviera had an abundance of fascinating hotels, so why not put different characters in different ones?

The Hotel Belle Rives is one of those places. It’s located in Juan-les-Pins, which is about 20 minutes from Cannes, and its history is impressive.

Hotel Belle Rives, formerly the Villa Saint-Louis

In 1925, before it was made into a hotel, it was called the Villa Saint-Louis and was rented by F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda. He was flush with the success of The Great Gatsby, and while staying there, he wrote Tender is the Night. Dick Diver, the main character in that novel, begins his descent into alcoholism while his wife Nicole struggles with mental health issues. The book clearly mirrored the experiences of F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife, who, at the time, were experiencing identical challenges. Fitzgerald considered Tender is the Night to be his masterpiece. That’s saying something since he wrote The Great Gatsby. 

While staying at the Villa Saint-Louis and not writing, Fitzgerald partied with the likes of Ernest Hemingway, Dorothy Parker, John Dos Passos, and Robert Benchley (whose grandson went on to write Jaws).

Whenever I stumble upon literary history like that, I really try to weave it into my story. 

My World

When a publisher licenses your book, many things happen; after you both execute a contract, an entire process begins.

One of the first steps in that process is the following -- the editor of your book sends you an Editorial Letter detailing what they liked and what needs work, as well as the marked-up manuscript, reflecting questions, concerns, high points, edits, and suggestions. 

I read the Editorial Letter first and was wildly excited. My editor saw exactly what I wanted people to see, and she loved a new character I created (more on that later). 

Then, I read the comments in the manuscript. To say I was embarrassed is an understatement. I thought I was a really good writer, and I realized how much of a beginner I am. 

However, the key issue was that I got feedback, and critique of any kind is a gift. That’s how I’ve always looked at it. But this feedback from my editor was off-the-charts great! She’s incredibly knowledgeable about what works & what doesn’t, and she’s very sharp. Think about how lucky I was to get the gift of improvement from someone like that. I adjusted the manuscript, and the book is much better because of it. 

I also took extensive notes, which are now being incorporated into my second book. That set me back a bit, but my second novel will also benefit. 

I can’t mention the publisher or the editor yet, but I’m grateful to her beyond words.