• “The smartest historical sci-fi adventure-romance story ever written by a science Ph.D. with a background in scripting 'Scrooge McDuck' comics.”—Salon.com
  • A time-hopping, continent-spanning salmagundi of genres.”
    —ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
  • “These books have to be word-of-mouth books because they're too weird to describe to anybody.”
    —Jackie Cantor, Diana's first editor

Language, Language….(Part I)

It doesn’t happen often, but I do occasionally get email from people asking—always very politely (well, almost always very politely)—whether I have ever considered producing a bowdlerized edition of my books.

Mind, none of them uses the word “bowdlerized”; I doubt most people under the age of forty have ever heard it. It comes from:

Thomas Bowdler (pronounced /ˈbaʊdlər/) (11 July 1754 – 24 February 1825), who was an English physician who published an expurgated edition of William Shakespeare’s work, edited by his sister Harriet, intended to be more appropriate for 19th century women and children than the original.

He similarly published an edited version of Edward Gibbon’s Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. His edition was the subject of some criticism and ridicule and, through the eponym bowdlerise (or bowdlerize),[1] his name is now associated with censorship of literature, motion pictures and television programmes.

[Source: Wikipedia]

Now, what these readers would like me to expurgate from my own work, in order to accommodate their desires and sensibilities, ranges from sex-scenes (one very nice woman wrote to ask if I could produce an edition of OUTLANDER from which all the sex scenes were removed, because she was very eager to be able to discuss the book with her fifteen-year-old daughter, but didn’t think her girl was quite ready for the original. By biting my thumb rather hard (she was very nice, and meant well), I was able to refrain from writing back and asking her whether it might not be a trifle simpler just to wait a year or two for her daughter to be ready for the notion that married people have sex, than for me edit and republish a 700-page book–always assuming that I could convince any publisher that there was a market for such a thing? (My guess is that unless her daughter has been living under a rock for the last five years, she knows a lot more than I’ve ever thought of putting in a book, but possibly her mother doesn’t let her watch television)) to Bad Words in general (“I notice people say “Fuck” a lot in your more recent books,” one reader wrote, rather censoriously. “Jamie doesn’t even know what that word means in OUTLANDER!” Well…he’s probably picked up a few expressions from Claire over the last twenty years. But Jamie’s not usually the one saying that word, even in the later books. It would be pretty common to Roger, though, as well as to some of the coarse folk who live in the backwoods), to—very specifically—the use of the Lord’s name (only “Jesus” or “Christ,” evidently. “God” doesn’t appear to bother these particular readers in this context, let alone local variants like “the Holy Spirit”.).

OK. Approaching these concerns from last to first:

I have every sympathy for someone whose religious sensibilities make them uncomfortable with blasphemy, whether casual or heart-felt. I personally am very disturbed by people who curse or use profanity and crude language in restaurants, and a terrible lot of people do these days. (I don’t think it’s just the places I eat in…)

On the other hand, I’m kind of bemused that not one of the people who take the Third Commandment so much to heart that they are horrified at seeing it broken in print are evidently bothered in the slightest by the shattering of the other nine commandments that goes on in these novels. Graven images, skipping church on Sunday, dishonoring one’s parents, bearing false witness, coveting oxen, asses, wives…theft, murder, fornication, adultery–yeah, we don’t mind seeing any of that. The J-word, though….

(Let me pause for a moment of didacticism here, in which I will attempt to explain the subtleties of the terms blasphemy, profanity, and obscenity. To wit:

blas•phe•my

Show Spelled[blas-fuh-mee] Show IPA
–noun, plural -mies.

  1. impious utterance or action concerning god or sacred things.

  2. Judaism .
    a. an act of cursing or reviling God.
    b. pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton (YHVH) in the original, now forbidden manner instead of using a substitute pronunciation such as Adonai.

  3. Theology . the crime of assuming to oneself the rights or qualities of God.

  4. irreverent behavior toward anything held sacred, priceless, etc.: He uttered blasphemies against life itself.

pro•fan•i•ty
Show Spelled[pruh-fan-i-tee, proh-] Show IPA
–noun, plural -ties for 2.

  1. the quality of being profane; irreverence.

  2. profane conduct or language; a profane act or utterance.

  3. obscenity ( defs. 2, 3 ) .

Profane
–adjective

  1. characterized by irreverence or contempt for god or sacred principles or things; irreligious.

  2. not devoted to holy or religious purposes; unconsecrated; secular ( opposed to sacred).

  3. unholy; heathen; pagan: profane rites.

  4. not initiated into religious rites or mysteries, as persons.

  5. common or vulgar—verb (used with object)

  6. to misuse (anything that should be held in reverence or respect); defile; debase; employ basely or unworthily.

  7. to treat (anything sacred) with irreverence or contempt; violate the sanctity of: to profane a shrine.

obscenity – 5 dictionary results ob•scen•i•ty
Show Spelled[uh b-sen-i-tee, -see-ni-] Show IPA
–noun, plural -ties for 2, 3.

  1. the character or quality of being obscene; indecency; lewdness.

  2. something obscene, as a picture or story.

  3. an obscene word or expression, especially when used as an invective.

[Source for all of the above: dictionary.com]

Let me state for the record that no one in any of my books has ever pronounced the Tetragrammaton in the original. Not once.

And Jamie Fraser is on record as stating that he only _felt_ like God (while having sex with his wife); he never said he _was_. So I think we’re clear on those particular charges of blasphemy. I’ll get back to the question of impious utterances in a bit.

Now, if you read further on the dictionary.com site (and others), you’ll find that blasphemy, profanity, and obscenity are often used as synonyms for each other—and they often overlap, depending on usage–but there are differences.

The F-word (I’m sorry, I was raised as a Catholic and I have considerable trouble saying that word out loud. Fortunately most of the people in my books have no such scruples) is often obscene, and quite possibly profane, but not blasphemous. I.e., there’s no mention of God or anything sacred (well, not in the word itself. If you started applying it to sacred concepts—which a good many cultures do, in terms of insult (French-Canadian Catholics, for one)—then that’s different). (Ulster Protestants given to tattooing such sentiments as “F— the Pope” on their foreheads (no, I’m not kidding; some of these people feel strongly about their sectarian sensibilities) are not committing blasphemy _per se_, as while the Pope may be a person of reverence, he isn’t God. “F the P” is therefore mere profanity.)

Profanity can also be blasphemous, if an invocation of God is involved—but if you leave God out of it, profanity is not usually blasphemy. It’s just irreverence, and that’s pretty firmly in the eye of the beholder and the standards of the times. Go to, thou saucy fellow!

As for obscenity…the Supreme Court couldn’t do better than, “we know it when we see it,” and I don’t propose to try to top that.

Anyway, the point here is that it’s only blasphemy (or what is perceived as blasphemy) that concerns the “I do wish you would not take the Lord’s Name in vain” letters. One reader informed me that she had gone through my books with a black marker and obliterated all such usages, so that she could read the books in comfort. I congratulated her on her helpful ingenuity; genius often lies in simplicity.

But let’s look at that. Does any use of the C-word (the six-letter one) or the J-word that is not portrayed as a prayer or a scriptural reference constitute blasphemy?

I don’t think so.

Here we come to the “impious utterances” definition of blasphemy. “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.” Well…what is “in vain”?

When we did catechism class back in the day, we were taught that “in vain” meant that you mustn’t use God’s name to curse somebody, in the “You g_d_ son of a four-legged what-not..!” kind of way. (Catholics, btw, do include “God” (and the Holy Spirit, for that matter) as being “the Lord’s name.”). Using God’s name as a casual interjection—“Jesus, it’s hot,” or “God, I’d kill for a beer,” was crude and thoughtless and a well-brought-up person ought not to do it—but it wasn’t blasphemy, either.

People in my books do in fact use this sort of casual reference fairly often—because men in certain professions (soldiering, for one) and in the exclusive company of other men, very frequently _do_ do that. (You notice that the women in my books don’t do this.)

In my experience (owing to unorthodox career choices, most of my colleagues and close friends were men, up to my early forties), men who do this are customarily calling unconsciously upon God to witness something, asking for casual assistance in a moment of stress, or merely expressing an intensification of emotion (amazement, shock, anger), and do not actually intend offense to their comrades or impiety toward the Almighty.

Now, plainly opinions differ on just what’s an impious utterance and what’s not. That being so, though, we’ve got a few different considerations going here:

  1. The notion that a writer ought to try never to offend anyone’s conception of morality or decency.

  2. Whether a writer should or should not portray offensive behavior (i.e., behavior condemned by a majority of the populace), and if so, under what circumstances?

  3. The question of how far historic speech might differ from modern speech, and whether an historical novelist should take that into account?

OK, #1 is simple. Putting aside aesthetics and the moral imperatives of art, it’s flat-out physically impossible to write something that won’t offend somebody. Ergo, the notion that a writer should try to do so is ludicrous.

#2 is also pretty simple. People don’t always behave well; the briefest glance at the television news makes that pretty clear. If art (whether novels, photographs, or anything else) is going to serve as a reflection of or a reflection on humanity, it’s going to show people doing stuff that may not be moral by anybody’s compass. The essence of art is conflict. Conflict may be difficult to look at (or utterly fascinating. Sometimes both at once), but you can’t do without it and make art.

#3. Now, historicity. Language evolves, and so does social custom. What is obscene or blasphemous in one time often isn’t, in another. If you called a man a fig-licker today, he would probably merely blink at you, whereas them was duelin’ words in the 18th century.**
A writer dealing with historical settings has a lot of things to consider, and one of these is how much “historical” language or figures of speech to use, and how to portray historical characters in such a way that they seem realistic and empathetic to a modern audience, but still belong plainly to their own time.

Well, one of the ways in which you do this is to use figures of speech that are extremely common, and likely always have been, as well as those particular to a specific age. And calling upon the name of the Almighty in moments of strong emotion and/or casual conversation has probably been part of human speech since people discovered the concept of a deity.

Now, I could go on and on (well…even more on and on {g}) about this business, because I find it fascinating, but I do have work to do. I think the best I can do here may be to quote a bit from THE OUTLANDISH COMPANION. This letter was written as part of an exchange with a courteous gentleman who’d written to object to the F-word, which emerged from one of the audiobooks as he was driving with his four-year-old grand-daughter, and is included in the “Controversy” section of the COMPANION:

“Well, I have children myself (11, 13, and 15 at the moment), and we try not to expose them to “bad language,” either, in spite of the fact that they all know all the words already (there’s still some point to insisting that these are not suitable for civilized conversation, after all).

The thing is, though–my books are definitely written (and carefully written at that) for adults. When I do use bad language in the books (oddly enough, I never use it, personally; never), it’s because it seems to me to be called for, by the circumstances and character. In the case of the F-word in DRUMS (I did use that same word in all the other books, by the way, though sparingly), it’s used by a young man in the grip of angry (and sexually motivated) passion, in the late 1960s. Given this character, this time period, and this set of circumstances, his language seemed entirely appropriate.

Now, one reason for insisting that bad language not be used in everyday discourse is, of course, that it’s low-class and offensive. One other reason–equally important, in my opinion–is that such language does have its own legitimate purpose; that is, to express feeling that is also beyond the limits of normal civilized discourse. To use such words casually deprives them of their impact.

You can see that, in the scene in question in DRUMS. If Roger normally spoke like that, the reader wouldn’t have (what I hope is) the impression of a man driven almost beyond endurance, and holding on to his notions of decent behavior with great effort.

Okay. So, the point is that when I do use strong language, I have a specific reason for doing so. It really doesn’t seem reasonable to me to eradicate such language–chosen and used carefully, to a purpose–on the grounds that someone might someday wish to listen to a taped version of an adult book in the presence of a small child.”

(My correspondent very graciously thanked me for hearing his concern, btw, and agreed with my conclusion.)

Right. Well, moving backward from blasphemy and Rude Speech, we come back to the inclusion of sex in my books. I can honestly say that of a thousand letters I get that mention this, 999 readers think there should be more sex. {g}. But there is the occasional one who thinks that the inclusion of sex lowers the tone, impairs my literary reputation, or should be omitted so as to make the books more…um…acceptable {cough} to younger (or possibly older; you wouldn’t believe how many people think their elderly parents or grandparents would enjoy my books but be put off by the sex*) readers.

Well, I think my literary reputation will have to take care of itself; I can’t do anything but write the best books I can, and history and the readers will make of them what they want to.

I do think that the sex scenes are both necessary and integral to the story, or they wouldn’t be there. These aren’t romance novels, but they are (among other things) the story of a very long and complex marriage. Now, there may possibly be long and successful marriages that don’t include sex, but I don’t personally know of any.

Neither are any sex-scenes included for the sake of gratuitous titillation (any titillating that happens is purely fortuitous, I assure you), nor are any of them just about sex. They have structural and emotional reasons for being where they are, and the book would not be the same story, nor have the same complexity, without them.

Still, the bottom line here is the Eye of the Beholder. There is no book that will say the same thing to all readers. A good book will say something different each time it’s read, even by the same person. And each reader brings his or her experience, background, prejudices, desires, and perceptions to the reading.

That being true, there’s little point in bowdlerization. What offends one person will be revelation and elevation to the next. That’s why we have a great variety of books.

“If thine eye offend thee, pluck it out,” seems a trifle extreme here as a response—but if there are particular things in my books that annoy or offend a reader as an individual, the ultimate power to control these does lie with the reader, not with me.***

Thank you for reading!

*(I am irresistibly reminded here of a book-signing event in Chicago, where I signed books for a grandmother, her daughter, and grand-daughter (intergenerational—and multi-gender—trios are pretty common at my signings). I was chatting with the grandmother while signing a book for her grand-daughter, and she said, “You know, I was in the middle of VOYAGER and I turned to my grand-daughter and said, ‘I’ve just had the most terrible thought! We’re both lusting after the same man!’”)

**To save you looking it up, the modern equivalent slang would be “muff-diver.” Weirdly enough, I don’t think there’s a female slang version of this epithet, though there is a purely formal descriptive term. But when was the last (or the first, for that matter) time you heard someone called a fellatrix?

*** A good-quality Sharpie costs about $1.79.

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256 Responses »

  1. Ms. Gabaldon, I love your series. You bring your characters to life like no other author that I’ve read. I’ve been an Elementary librarian for twenty years retiring in June. New chapter of my life opening up as I am a “Baby Boomer.” I have always loved history. I fell in love with Philip from the John Jake series and with Ross Poldark from Masterpiece Theater. And now I love Jamie. Oh, that I could find the one man with all of their qualities! As I have had three marriages this is probably a mute point. Please keep writing from your heart because this is what makes you so different. Because you are honest with your character’s soul, life emerges. Can’t wait to read number eight!

  2. I have been reading Diana’s books for years, literally over and over again. I have them all signed through Fiery Cross too. And now I’m am listening to them (p.s. Why in the world is Audio for FIery Cross abridged? Don’t like that).
    I just wanted to stand up for the offending-letter-writers. Obviously I haven’t read the letters they wrote, but from Mrs. G’s comments it did not sound like anyone was offensive, so why are some of you being such? I’m saying that just because a person doesn’t want to read about someone having sex, doesn’t mean that they don’t enjoy a healthy active sex-life themselves. Obviously these are big fans of her work or they would have walked away and not bothered writing in the first place!
    So calm down, we aren’t on the verge of book burning or banning!

  3. Dear Diana,

    Just wanted to finally tell you what a joy your books are to me. The Outlander Series is of course my favorite. I am a single mother of four strapping boys and when the testosterone gets too much in the house I take my cup of tea, a biscuit if I can find one, shut my door and lose myself in one of your wonderful books. It reminds me that if Claire can get it done so can I. I love your books every word and the waiting for the next installment is always an anticipation filled with excitement. I would love to own these novels in hardcover, have they ever been released as a series. I come from a small city in North Queensland Australia so we don’t always have access to everything we want. My mother always said there is a great difference between a good writer and a great author and you Diana are a great Author. Good Luck with all your projects, you have certainly helped me cope at times when I thought nothing could.
    Thanks and God Bless!

    Lisa and Boys ( who by the way know most of the story because I have to always tell them about it.)

  4. Dont change anything about your writing style, love Jamie, love Claire. and all the things about the books. Thank you so very much for making them so very personable. I am going to the Highlands this summer, always a dream and you have been a big push to do it. Also from Phoenix, wont all that green will be a change for me.
    Thanks again

  5. Diana,

    Your books are great, please do not change a thing. I have read and reread all 7 of them and found things the second time that I missed the first time. I’m retired and read a lot and have all of my life. I have to say that your books are the ONLY ones that I’m remotely interested in keeping in my library. I’ve laughed and cried and read some portions to my husband when he asked why I was doing the laughing and crying!!

    You’ve taught me history that I did not know about the United States early years and history about Scotland and England that I probably would never have known. You’ve inspired me to look up things on the internet that you wrote about in your books. You have also given me the urge to travel to Scotland around Inverness to see some of these places that you’ve written about.

    My younger sister introduced me to these books in January of 2010 and I then introduced them to my daughter, my nieces, and anyone else who would stand still long enough to listen to me talk about them. I am anxiously awaiting number 8 and can say that I hope there’s just as much sex and appropriate swearing in that one as there was in the previous seven!!!!

  6. I, like so many here, find the Outlander series to be amazing. My boyfriend is from New Zealand and currently living in London (I am in the US) He introduced me to the series when I met up with him in New Zealand last year for vacation and to meet his family. I spent many hours stretched out on the beach getting to know the wonderful characters in these books. I would like to counter all those who want you to change things and say that I wouldn’t want you to change a word. There were things that made me uncomfortable, angry, sad, happy, and every other emotion on the rollercoaster that is this series. The point is that these books made me FEEL! There were times that we each laughed out loud, and I did my share of crying too. My boyfriend and I have such an amazing connection and we both see Jamie and Claire’s love as a sort of a mirror to ours. (Jamie is actually the reason we met in the first place, but that is a whole other story). We both found parts in the books that reflect exactly how we feel about each other. Thank you for writing the story of Jamie and Claire. Brianna and Roger’s story too for that matter. It shows that love, life, and marriage is not all romance and sunshine. There are darker times and it can be in those times that true love can find it’s strength. I am so glad you do not listen to those requests. I am anxiously awaiting the next installment and am happy to know it will be in true Diana Gabaldon style. Thank you again.
    Karen~*~

  7. I am so sorry that people are like that. I absolutely love everything about your books!!! I think you are the most brilliant woman ever! Thank you for the wonderful series. Keep up the good work. Don’t let them critics get you down!

  8. These books are a rare sort of novel that has captured my attention to the fullest. Whilst I normally read informational books to keep my brain occupied, I’ve found so much enjoyment and have learned much throughout the Outlander and Lord John series.
    It’s really very sad that adults have to have someone “baby-proof” everything before they can read or do whatever the book or action. As a firm believer in historical accuracy, it’d be very hard to write a book about someone in the 1700′s who comes up to a friend and says, “Wazzup dawg?” or “Wazzup G (gangster)?” Just as a person this day in age that would say at a dinner party, “Wouldst thou sendeth forth a napkin, my dear fellow?” People these days, need to learn that not everything in life is gentle and made to avoid hurting their poor little feelings. Heaven forbid (unless this phrase is mistaken for blasphemy) somebody gets firm, or worse! sharp with another person. People have all gone “sappy” in all regard and must have numbered lists, and everything set out for them so that they may have life easier.
    In other words, if you don’t care for language, or any other “issue” as Mrs. Gabaldon has mentioned, be a big girl, pull up your big girl panties and find something else to read.

  9. I’m very pleased that you responded to people who take offense to things in your books that don’t think are appropriate. As a writer I would guess that you are suppose to try to keep everyone happy so they continue to buy your books but some people will never be happy.

    There is another word that you could have used in your letter though, that word is “tolerance”. I won’t get carried away with the long definition of the word but basically it means tolerant of views, beliefs, practices, etc of others that differ from one’s own.

    If someone has an opinion on a style of writing that is strong enough that they feel they should send a correspondance to the author maybe before they express that opinion they should think about tolerance and just let it go.

    No one is forcing people to read your books (although how they can resist is beyond me) so just read and enjoy but don’t complain.

    Thank you for your wonderful books, sex and all.

  10. Dear Diana:

    I was reading the blog on another one of your sites and low and behold it shows a video of a show called Outlanders (with Leeham Neison no less) Please Please tell me that this is true and that someone out there is actually filming this wonderful story, and when and where can we see it.

    Another site indicated some time in 2011 ! Oh stop my heart. We thought Pillars Of The Earth was great — this will be off the wall.

    A fan from Canada

  11. I am constantly amazed at what people are offended by. People will nit-pick on the littlest things, like sex and “the F word” , when I’m guessing that rape and torture get relatively fewer complaints. Just guessing. Where I’m from we’d call that gagging ona gnat while swallowing a camel. If you don’t like it, and aren’t evolved enough to look past it, then don’t read it for crying out loud!
    And by the way, both of my grandparents have enjoyed all of your Outlander books and aren’t the least bit bothered by the sex – you’d have to know them.

  12. “God’s blood!” she exclaimed. “W.T.F. are people thinking????”

    Well said as always.
    Your Hawaii fan
    Toby

  13. Alot of this post made me laugh as my Mother gave me these books when I was about fifteen years old. I remember taking them to school and reading them whenever I could find a spare minute. Luckily I was very good at finishing class work early and my teachers didn’t seem to mind me pulling out a book while everyone else finished. I had one teacher stop to confirm I had in fact finished my classwork and then he nodded, said “ok” and walked away. It never occured to me that an adult might find my taste in books a little… innapropriate until I saw a copy of The Fiery Cross on the kitchen table of a woman I babysat for. I immediately smiled and told her how much I loved the Outlander books. Her mouth dropped open a little and she asked, “Donna, does your mother know you read those books?” The look on her face when I told her who gave them to me in the first place stil makes me laugh.

  14. Never change!!!!!!

  15. Hi Diana,

    I wrote you a fan letter via email a couple of weeks ago, and trust me, I have become a fan this winter of all your books. I am nearly finished with Echo in the Bone and will be sad to have completed the wild ride of reading all your books in quick succession.

    Rather than respond to your post post, may I comment on your Twitter comment? You refer to Hasidim which is a plural noun, as a something which might be a humorous conversion on someone’s part (without tracking down your twitter recipients for context). I have noticed that in Echo in the Bone, Bree also speaks of a conversion to Judaism which implies a farfetched incursion into another religion as a threat to Roger. Is it so beyond normal bounds to be of the Jewish faith?

    The Outlander series has definite Christian overtones, and I have found them heartwarming and charming. Jewish people are well aware of their minority status and of the necessity for absorbing parts of our national culture. However, some of the mentioning in your books of who is Jewish and what their traits might be has given my pause while reading, to wonder what is implied.

    I hope that you do not think that this a typically overly sensitive reaction on my part. It is true that Jews must have their radar up, but also that we would like to live peaceably among everyone.

    Thanks.
    -Mindy

  16. Please don’t change a thing about your writing! If I could ask or want something from you, is more reading material, the next in the series, and for you to just keep on writing and getting published as fast as you can.

  17. OK. So, different subject!

    I just finished reading A Leaf on the Wind of All Hallows, from the Songs of Love and Death collection. May I just say….AWESOME!! What a beautiful little story about Rogers parents. Left me wanting more. But, also so satisfied at the outcome….don’t want to say more because I don’t want to spoil it for those of you who have not yet read the story. But, it made me very happy and gave me some peace for Roger.

    Once again, thanks, Diana for another great piece of the story!!

  18. This is slightly irrelavant to the conversation.
    I have read your books and love them. They are so fantastic that now when I read other books they just don’t compare. Your stories have it all and I needed to let you know that I am awed. I am sure I will suffer withdrawls while I wait for the next book to come out.

  19. I absolutely love these books. I will be reading and re-reading them as long as I can read. I have read them all through 4 times so far. I read them all in hardback, then I got a Kindle from my children. I have them all in it to reread whenever I want. I can’t wait for #8 to be published but I really cannot see how you can tie up all the loose ends in your wonderful writing style in just one more book. I, for one, would love for there to be a #9. Always something to look forward to!

    I will be reiring in about 2 months and I will have even more time to read. Keep up the great work and don’t even bother with any criticism. There are always one or two in every crown who do not grasp the idea of freedom of speech and try to impose their idea of it on other people.

    Thanks again, Diana.

    • If you want to continue enjoying the story, you should listen to them on audio books. They are absolutely wonderful. They bring Jamie and Claire to life! I laughed and cried when I read the books. But, hearing it all makes it so very real. It’s just amazing.

      One recommendation, be sure to get the unabridged versions, narrated by Davina Porter. She’s great. Even though it’s just one woman reading it all, she gives each character a distinct voice. It’s just awesome!!

  20. Diana: I have read all your books. I love historical fiction and think that your books are the greatest. It’s beyond me why some people actually think they can tell you–”suggest” –how to change your books or how to “improve” on your ideas! My suggestion is that those asking for changes should try writing a 5 page story–so that we can critique it!! I bet they won’t get past the first paragraph!!

    Keep up the great work…I can hardly wait for your new book~ BJ

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