Oookay, then!
Sorry to be so late in getting this post up; I’ve been in New Mexico for the last week, and the internet connection there was Just Abysmal; could barely keep it open long enough to tweet, let alone upload anything longer.
First things first: Upcoming appearances.
I’m flying to New York on Monday, and will be appearing (briefly) at the RWA convention, held at the Marriott Marquis. Appearances will be:
The Literacy Signing, where most of the published authors taking part will be available to sell/sign books—this is from 5:30-7:30 on June 28th, at the Marriott Marquis. This event _is_ open to the public, and I _believe_ that you’re allowed to bring in up to three of your own books from home to be signed, if you like.
The opening panel of the convention, where I’ll be taking part in a discussion with two other Random House authors, Steve Berry and Tess Gerritsen. This is part of the convention and open only to convention attendees. It’ll be from 8:30-10:00 AM on June 29th.
Then on July 5th—publication date for the cool new 20th-anniversary OUTLANDER edition!—I fly to Laramie Wyoming, where I’ll be doing the keynote speech for the Sir Walter Scott conference at the University of Wyoming. The conference program is here http://www.uwyo.edu/scottconf2011/program.html , but I don’t yet have a detailed personal schedule. I _will_ be doing at least one public book-signing, though; will post time and place as soon as I get them.
On July 8th, I fly _back_ to New York, for ThrillerFest, at the Hyatt. There, I’ll be doing a Livestream event with James Rollins (Powell’s Books is supplying books to be sold during this event—and I certainly _hope_ they’ll have the 20th-anniversary edition!) from 2-4:00 PM on July 8th.
On the evening of July 8th, I’ll be doing a joint signing with several other authors for a collaborative mystery novel called NO REST FOR THE DEAD. (This is one of those for-charity efforts—proceeds for this one go to cancer research—where a number of well-known authors take turns writing chapters, and the editor then goes through and kind of smooths things out so the story is coherent. Or so we hope, anyway.)
The signing will be held at 7:00 PM at the Center for Fiction, (17 East 47th Street, New York, NY 10017), and authors attending will include Peter James, Marcia Talley, John Lescroart, RL Stine, Diana Gabaldon,Jeffery Deaver, Gayle Lynds and Andrew Gulli. (Just for my own part, I’m fine with people bringing their own books to be signed, too.) This is open to the public.
Aaaand, on July 9th, I’ll do a Spotlight Interview (at the Hyatt) for ThrillerFest, Kathleen Antrim being the interviewer. That’s from 1:00-1:50 PM. And then I’ll do a book-signing for the convention (open only to convention attendees) from 5:00-6:00 PM at the convention bookstore in the hotel.
Then I rush home on the 10th {g}, and do the Official Launch Party for the 20th-anniversary OUTLANDER on July 11th, at The Poisoned Pen bookstore in Scottsdale. 7:00 PM!
Righto. Now, I had promised to show you the two openings I have for SCOTTISH PRISONER. As it stands, I’m opening the book with Jamie’s point of view—but I _could_ open with Lord John’s first chapter instead, and do Jamie’s second. I did it this way because I’d like people to realize right away that this is Jamie’s book, as much as Lord John’s—but it _is_ a Rather Unusual {cough} way to open a book.
So—those of you who don’t read excerpts should stop Right Here.
Those of you who _do_…here you go, and hope you enjoy them! Let me know what you think: Jamie first, or Lord John?
THE SCOTTISH PRISONER
(Copyright 2011 Diana Gabaldon)
Chapter 1:
Helwater, the Lake District
April 1, 1760
It was so cold out, he thought his cock might break off in his hand. If he could find it. The thought passed through his sleep-mazed mind like one of the small, icy drafts that darted through the loft, making him open his eyes.
He could find it now; had waked with his fist wrapped round it and desire shuddering and twitching over his skin like a cloud of midges. The dream was wrapped just as tightly round his mind, but he knew it would fray in seconds, shredded by the snores and farts of the other grooms. He needed her, needed to spill himself with the feel of her touch still on him.
Hanks stirred in his sleep, chuckled loudly, said something incoherent, and fell back into the void, murmuring, “Bugger, bugger, bugger…”
Jamie said something similar under his breath in the Gaelic, and flung back his blanket. Damn the cold.
He made his way down the ladder into the half-warm, horse-smelling fug of the barn, nearly falling in his haste, ignoring a splinter in his bare foot. He hesitated in the dark, still urgent. The horses wouldn’t care, but if they noticed him, they’d make enough noise, perhaps, to wake the others.
Wind struck the barn and went booming round the roof. A strong chilly draft with a scent of snow stirred the somnolence, and two or three of the horses shifted, grunting and whickering. Overhead, a murmured “‘ugger” drifted down, accompanied by the sound of someone turning over and pulling the blanket up round his ears, defying reality.
Claire was still with him, vivid in his mind, solid in his hands. He could imagine that he smelled her hair in the scent of fresh hay. The memory of her mouth, those sharp white teeth …he rubbed his nipple, hard and itching beneath his shirt, and swallowed.
His eyes were long accustomed to the dark; he found the vacant loose-box at the end of the row and leaned against its boards, cock already in his fist, body and mind yearning for his wife.
He’d have made it last if he could, but he was fearful lest the dream go altogether and he surged into the memory, groaning. His knees gave way in the aftermath and he slid slowly down the boards of the box into the loose piled hay, shirt rucked round his thighs and his heart pounding like a kettle drum.
[end section]
(more stuff in this chapter, of course)
Chapter 2: The Fate of Fuses
London
Argus House
Lord John Grey eyed the ribbon-tied packet on his knee as though it were a bomb. In fact, it couldn’t have been more explosive had it been filled with black powder and equipped with a fuse.
His attitude as he handed it to his brother must have reflected this knowledge, for Hal fixed him with a gimlet eye and raised one brow. He said nothing, though, flicking loose both ribbon and wrapping with an impatient gesture and bending his head at once over the thick sheaf of densely-written sheets that emerged.
Grey couldn’t stand to watch him read through Charles Carruthers’s post-mortem denunciation, recalling each damning page as Hal read it. He stood up and went to the window of the study that looked out into the back garden of Argus House, ignoring the swish of turning pages and the occasional blasphemous mutterings behind him.
Hal’s three boys were playing a game of tigers and hunters, leaping out at each other from behind the shrubbery with shrill roars, followed by shrieks of delight and yells of “Bang! Take that, you striped son of a bitch!”
The nurse seated on the edge of the fish-pool, keeping a tight grip on baby Dottie’s gown, looked up at this, but merely rolled her eyes with a martyred expression. Flesh and blood has its limits, her expression said clearly, and she resumed paddling a hand in the water, luring one of the big goldfish close so that Dottie could drop bits of bread to it.
John longed to be down there with them. It was a rare day for early April, and he felt the pulse of it in his blood, urging him to be outside, running bare-foot through young grass. Running naked down into the water… The sun was high, flooding warm through the glass of the French windows, and he closed his eyes and turned his face up to it.
Siverly. The name floated in the darkness behind his eyes, pasted across the blank face of an imagined cartoon major, drawn in uniform, an outsized sword brandished in his hand, and bags of money stuffed into the back of his breeches, obscene bulges under the skirt of his coat. One or two had fallen to the ground, bursting open so that you could see the contents–coin in one, the other filled with what looked like poppets, small wooden doll-like things. Each one with a tiny knife through its heart.
Hal swore in German behind him. He must have reached the part about the rifles; German oaths were reserved for the most stringent occasions, French being used for minor things like a burnt dinner, and Latin for formal insults committed to paper. Minnie wouldn’t let either Hal or John swear in English in the house, not wanting the boys to acquire low habits. John could have told her it was too late for such caution, but didn’t.
He turned round to see Hal on his feet, pale with rage, a sheet of paper crumpled in one hand.
“How dare he? How dare he?”
A small knot he hadn’t known was there dissolved under John’s ribs.
“You believe Carruthers, then?”
Hal glared at him.
“Don’t you? You knew the man.”
He had known Charles Carruthers–in more than one sense.
“Yes, I believed him when he told me about Siverly in Canada–and that–” he nodded at the papers, thrown in a sprawl across Hal’s desk, “–is even more convincing. You’d think he’d been a lawyer.”
He could still see Carruthers’s face, pale in the dimness of his attic room in [town], drawn with ill-health but set with grim determination to live long enough to see justice done. Charlie hadn’t lived that long, but long enough to write down every detail of the case against Major Gerald Siverly, and to entrust it to him.
He was the fuse that would detonate this particular bomb. And he was all too familiar with what happened to fuses, once lit.
[end section]
Please start with Jamie. I love his passion for both life and Claire.
Um..I have to go with Jamie…BUT! I’m completely STOKED you’re using my last name!!!!! Very curious about Charles Carruthers! I love my name….got it from my Scottish husband, literally, he was born in Lanark, grew up in Carluke
Jamie……..all the way!!!! I do love Lord John, but I do read the books for Jamie. It reminds of the
begining of Voyager (?) when Jamie wakes up assuming he’s dead.
While both sound very interesting there is no doubt it must start with Jaime. The love that he has for Claire to still be wanting and needing her after all those years tells how deep it is.
Against my initial thoughts, I would have to say opening with Lord John’s chapter seems a better intro. It has all the makings of sex, betrayal, intrigue, what better to open with? I love Jamie and his undying love for Claire and his chater probably has some real heart stoppers, tear jerkers and betrayal of it’s own but, I get more of a sense of “this story is going to pull me in” from Lord John’s opening chapter. JMHO
Why is my respeonse still awaiting Moderation? In a nutshell, I thik Lord Joh should open.
I absolutely agree, and thats what makes me think of John more. You are slowly lured into the story and pulled into his head– it is intriguing. I think that the Jamie chapter is a bit too abrupt for new readers.
I like both excerpts very much, but, you will want to start with Jamie.
jamie!!!
Although my heart belongs to Jamie, I think that John’s chapter has more of a delineated jumping off point. can’t wait either way!
Oh, God, yes–start with Jamie! Please!
Jamie for sure!
Jamie, please!!
Ahh, tough decision, but I think that it should start with Lord John. It seems to be a better intro. We all love Jamie and know him well, Lord John, not so much. Leading with him is a better hook. AND I know that I’m in the vast minority here.
I totally agree. While the scene with Jamie is a good one, I think the book should start with Lord John. Starting with such an explicit scene makes it seem as if the author’s intentionally trying to shock the audience right away, whereas opening with Lord John and Hal gets us back into the setting first and eases us into the scene with Jamie. Not to mention, the series is about Lord John, so it should probably lead with him, and the scene has a great hook!
I agree entirely with the Lord John votes.
Please, please start with Jamie… he’s been in our hearts forever and I for one can’t wait ’til we “meet” again… please write faster… lol
Start with Jamie! I am dying to read his reaction to John’s announcement about having “carnal knowledge” of Claire. I’m currious if John will live that confession and if it will change Jamie’s relationship with Claire.
Dear Linda–
SCOTTISH PRISONER doesn’t follow ECHO–it’s from 1760, during Jamie’s stay at Helwater.
–Diana
I’m so intrigued about the aftermath of John’s confession to Jamie as written in the second excerpt, I’m writing my own fan fiction version of what I would like to see happen. Even though I’m an established writer on FanFiction.net, I won’t be posting it anywhere on the internet when it’s completed out of respect for Diana’s policy regarding fan fiction. But it’s a piece of storytelling I just have to create. It’s a long wait until sometime in 2012 when book eight will be published and we do find out what happens to John, Jamie, Claire, and William, of course.
The waiting is part of it all-let Diana write it. It is, afterall, HER story!
Jamie – all the way Jamie!!!
Lord John please!!!!
I lean towards the John opening because it seems to set up the plot more. The Jamie scene just makes my heart hurt for him.
I think that the Jamie opening sounds more like a prologue, whereas the Lord John opening feels like it is setting up the book; Opening the book with John would be more of a continuation of the previous two books, where Lord John’s story is heard first. Plus, getting to Jamie second makes me want to scream with anticipation, so I think giving John the opening would be kind of “the calm before the storm”. Because, face it, we’re all head-over-heels in love with Jamie… Who better to roll out the red carpet than John?
I agree with Courtney. Couldn’t have said it better, so I won’t! I will buy it and read it regardless.
Many thanks for the glimpse!
I agree with you, Courtney, on all points.
Well said, Courtney…… I agree.
Here, Here Beautifully said!! I agree most whole heartedly!!
Well said, Ms. McCall, I am all for carpet-rolling! Just can’t wait to read what’s next!!!
Courtney has the right of it. Lord John first.
I agree! Beautifully stated Ms McCall.
Jamie’s perspective is definitely eye catching and heart wrenching, but I agree with Elaine – Lord John’s view 1st.
I vote for Jamie. For one thing, for people like me who don’t “love” John, this may help bring them into the series a little easier. And for those who open a book and read a few paragraphs before buying, it will give them something to gain their interest. I certainly more interested now!
Nic
I agree – Jamie’s opener will garner more immediate attention and John’s will set up the plot in due course. Any salesman knows you need the customer’s interest before you can sell the goods.
C.
“it will give them something to gain their interest”… Except for people like me who go, c**p, not sex again! Don’t get me wrong, I love the stuff, but it reading about it gets tiresome. What I’m always more interested in knowing is “What happens next?”, and think the LJ opening is more intriguing.
I agree (although I don’t generally say “not sex again!”). The Jamie scene is a bit to hard core to start with, and the Lord John scene draws us into the story wanting more explanation/understanding.
I like the Lord John opening because it tells more of a story whereas Jamie is just longing for Claire. Jamie’s opening might get people’s attention but not neccesarily for the story. (ahem) I also just finished your short story in “Warriors” which leans me more towards the Carruther’s story since it is fresh in my mind.
That said I do love both of the excerpts so either way I will be buying Scottish Prisoner.
I agree
Me too! But then again, I would buy anything she writes!
I agree, I think the John opening takes care of a lot of necessary exposition in a comprehensible way. I always feel better when I can get a handle on facts at the start of a book, I don’t feel as though I’m playing mental ‘catch up’ all the way through.
John.
Hi Diana,
How fun to have an opinion!
I prefer the Jamie opening!
Based on the premise that I’m new to this series: The LJG opening is definitely full of intrigue; and questions – but if I’d never read your books before – that alone (probably) wouldn’t entice me to read more. The Jamie opening _does_ grab me! I’d be wanting to know more about this man… and why he wasn’t with his wife who he, obviously, must love.
But, in as much as I have read the series many times – I still prefer the Jamie opening: I think it is because we are immediately pulled into the intense drama of Claire’s loss that Jamie keeps well hidden from the other characters in the series. We the readers, can identify with Jamie’s pain.
Well, that’s my 2 cents!
I hope the FF of Prisoner continues to go well! I’m looking forward to the 20th Anniversary copy (enroute from Poison Pen) arriving in my mailbox!
Cornish cousin Leslie
I vote for Lord John’s opening. I think since it’s a ‘LORD JOHN AND THE…” book, John should open it. And then the fact that Jamie is in it (for those still living under a rock and haven’t heard yet) will just be that much more glorious when he shows up. Also, we know that LJ books run a bit differently than Jamie books, so it’d be nice to set we readers up in the proper milieu.
I adore them both, and cannot wait to read Scottish Prisoner, so I will really vote for whichever will get it in my hot little hands the fastest!!
It is not Lord John and the… It is however Scottish Prisoner. Everyone, get with the program.
Nicole,
Actually, Ms. Gabaldon herself has stated that Scottish Prisoner is the third of the Lord John books. So, it is not inappropriate to reference Scottish Prisoner as a Lord John book.
Actually, if you read the list of books on this very website, it is titled ‘Lord John and the Scottish Prisoner.’
Dear Danelle–
That _was_ the original/working title–but the US publisher has decided to call it just THE SCOTTISH PRISONER (A Lord John Novel), because the book is at least half Jamie’s story.
–Diana
Jaime’s bit is a real grabber, ahem. It definitely leaves an impression.
I’ll put in my two cents and vote for the Lord John chapter first. I think that the Jamie chapter is wonderful (if not terribly heartbreaking), but I think that it makes more sense to open with Lord John since this is “A Lord John Novel”. Though, quite frankly, I’ll take it either way. Your good judgement hasn’t let me down yet!
I think both would work great but I can’t really decide which one would be better. If you want more of an eye catcher than you should use Jamie’s chapter first but John’s would be great too because it is more his book than Jamie’s.
I think Jamie as he and Claire are the reason we continue to read the books, even though I love Lord Johns englishness, we have met him through the Fraser’s.
Either way it will be a fantastic read jusdt like the rest.
When does the Australian launch begin?
As much as I adore the Jamie scene, and think it would bea fantastic first scenen for a book, I think John’s scene should be first, both as the natural continuation of Custom of the Army, and to set the stage for the rest of the book. I can’t wait to read it. Thank you so much for all your writing. Pat
I am a Jamie AND LJG fan, so…I can’t even pretend to prefer one opening over the other. But I like that you ask!
Thanks for sharing…
I completely agree with Bethany. I love both Jamie and Lord John and it’s difficult to choose. Since all of your books are completely perfect in every way, I think that anything you choose to do will be best. Thanks for asking our opinion and sharing these first chapters. I can’t wait to read the whole thing!
I believe I am in agreement with Bethany & Lara & half of the other responses, I love both! Jamie’s grabs you immediately & LJG’s brings you back in a little slower, but I will devour it either way. Thanks for sharing
I say absolutely – start with the Lord John chapter.
Lord John for me. It creates interest and a sense of what next. The book will have no trouble selling with just its title which is all Jamie. I have missed both men and cannot wait for this to come out
Hmm… much as the Jamie opening is a helluvan eye (and heart!) catcher, I lean more toward the John opening, as means of setting up the story.
Pat
If it is part of the LJG series then his chapter setting up the plot makes sense. Opening with Jamie certainly makes a stronger connection between the two series and is heart-wrenching for those of us who know his backstory and pine for more of the Outlander story . In the end, I’m with Bethany and appreciate you sharing this dilemma with us, certain that I will be haapy no matter what your final choice.
I vote John. I like the flow and who doesn’t like a “bombshell” on the first page!
Leaning toward Lord John; although I am longing for news of Jamie, I think it makes more sense to start with John, knowing that the “Scottish Prisoner” portion will soon follow, and I add my thanks for asking.
Jamie, first. He _is_, after all, The Scottish Prisoner. I’d imagine it as picking up the thread of Jamie, familiar and beloved, and weaving in the next chapter with Lord John, back and forth, until the whole cloth of the story is revealed. Brilliant writing, Diana!