Pub Date: April 5, 2016
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Genre: young adult fantasy
Status: Book 2 of The Orphan Queen duology
Summary:
Wilhelmina has a hundred enemies.
HER FRIENDS HAVE TURNED. After her identity is revealed during the Inundation, Princess Wilhelmina is kept prisoner by the Indigo Kingdom, with the Ospreys lost somewhere in the devastated city. When the Ospreys’ leader emerges at the worst possible moment, leaving Wil’s biggest ally on his deathbed, she must become Black Knife to set things right.
HER MAGIC IS UNCONTROLLABLE. Wil’s power is to animate, not to give true life, but in the wraithland she commanded a cloud of wraith mist to save herself, and later ordered it solid. Now there is a living boy made of wraith—destructive and deadly, and willing to do anything for her.
HER HEART IS TORN. Though she’s ready for her crown, declaring herself queen means war. Caught between what she wants and what is right, Wilhelmina realizes the throne might not even matter. Everyone thought the wraith was years off, but already it’s destroying Indigo Kingdom villages. If she can’t protect both kingdoms, soon there won’t be a land to rule.
In this stunning conclusion to The Orphan Queen, Jodi Meadows follows Wilhelmina’s breathtaking and brave journey from orphaned criminal on the streets to magic-wielding queen.
When I started thinking about Wilhelmina's hobby of, um, forgery, I wondered what it felt like to use the kind of pen she did.
I looked at several different kinds, going first to fountain pens, then to broad pens, and finally to pointed pens. (Sometimes I think I was inches away from having to find a quill pen. Or maybe a chisel and slab of stone.) Well, fountain pens apparently involve plastic, and I worked with broad-edged pens for a while (like you'd use for Gothic lettering), but it was really Copperplate calligraphy I found myself drawn to -- the kind you'd find on wedding invitations or certain historical documents.
When I was much, much younger, my dad bought my sister and me a calligraphy set. I quickly got frustrated with having to refill the nib. I couldn't understand how other people could make the pen work. I quickly gave up, not returning to calligraphy until The Orphan Queen. Given that history, I was pretty nervous when I started, but I was also determined to learn at least how the nib felt on different kinds of paper. I wanted to form opinions about ink, paper, nibs, letter forms.
And oh did I form opinions.
Mostly because I made a lot of mistakes.
I started with the wrong kind of paper (for me). The wrong kind of nibs (for me). The wrong tools (for me) for learning. I knew what I didn't like by then, and put it away while I finished working on my book. And then I started thinking about making quote cards and other promotional items for the book. Determined to get better, I bought a new book to help teach myself (MASTERING COPPERPLATE CALLIGRAPHY by Eleanor Winters) and several new holders and nibs. And paper. (You can see what I use here: http://www.jodimeadows.com/?p=2815 ) I also found myself inspired by following calligraphers on Instagram.
Thus armed, I started again on my quest to learn Copperplate calligraphy. It was slow and tedious, but I made myself follow the lessons from the book, learning different strokes and practicing them to infinity. And, sure enough, I began to get better.
Now, I wouldn't say that I'm a good -- or even decent -- calligrapher. I don't practice every day. It's not my job to be good at it. But I've definitely learned a lot about calligraphy, enough to have strong opinions and quite the collection of ink, paper, and other fun tools. Calligraphy is something I do for fun now, like knitting or spinning. It's another creative outlet, one I don't do for money, which I've always believed is important for writers to have.
Wilhelmina is much better at calligraphy (and forgery and learning new hands) than I will ever be, but hey, she's fictional. Somehow, between raising orphans and saving kingdoms, she just manages to find the time to be really good at it.
I looked at several different kinds, going first to fountain pens, then to broad pens, and finally to pointed pens. (Sometimes I think I was inches away from having to find a quill pen. Or maybe a chisel and slab of stone.) Well, fountain pens apparently involve plastic, and I worked with broad-edged pens for a while (like you'd use for Gothic lettering), but it was really Copperplate calligraphy I found myself drawn to -- the kind you'd find on wedding invitations or certain historical documents.
When I was much, much younger, my dad bought my sister and me a calligraphy set. I quickly got frustrated with having to refill the nib. I couldn't understand how other people could make the pen work. I quickly gave up, not returning to calligraphy until The Orphan Queen. Given that history, I was pretty nervous when I started, but I was also determined to learn at least how the nib felt on different kinds of paper. I wanted to form opinions about ink, paper, nibs, letter forms.
And oh did I form opinions.
Mostly because I made a lot of mistakes.
I started with the wrong kind of paper (for me). The wrong kind of nibs (for me). The wrong tools (for me) for learning. I knew what I didn't like by then, and put it away while I finished working on my book. And then I started thinking about making quote cards and other promotional items for the book. Determined to get better, I bought a new book to help teach myself (MASTERING COPPERPLATE CALLIGRAPHY by Eleanor Winters) and several new holders and nibs. And paper. (You can see what I use here: http://www.jodimeadows.com/?p=2815 ) I also found myself inspired by following calligraphers on Instagram.
Thus armed, I started again on my quest to learn Copperplate calligraphy. It was slow and tedious, but I made myself follow the lessons from the book, learning different strokes and practicing them to infinity. And, sure enough, I began to get better.
Now, I wouldn't say that I'm a good -- or even decent -- calligrapher. I don't practice every day. It's not my job to be good at it. But I've definitely learned a lot about calligraphy, enough to have strong opinions and quite the collection of ink, paper, and other fun tools. Calligraphy is something I do for fun now, like knitting or spinning. It's another creative outlet, one I don't do for money, which I've always believed is important for writers to have.
Wilhelmina is much better at calligraphy (and forgery and learning new hands) than I will ever be, but hey, she's fictional. Somehow, between raising orphans and saving kingdoms, she just manages to find the time to be really good at it.
Purchase Links:
Tour Schedule:
Be sure to check out all the stops on The Mirror King blog tour to learn more about this amazing series and enter to win copies of The Orphan Queen AND The Mirror King!
March 28: Lady Knight Reads (Q&A)
March 29: Lectora Deliberada (Review)
March 30: Carina's Books (Q&A)
March 31: The Eater of Books (Swoon Thursday)
April 1: Aphonic Sarah (Review)
April 4: Read Write Love 28 (Review)
April 5: Hello Chelly (Featurette)
April 5: Belle of the Literati (Review)
April 6: Love is Not a Triangle (Review)
April 7: Once Upon a Dream Books (Top Masked Vigilantes)
April 8: Being Perry (Q&A)
April 11: Andi's ABCs (ABCs with Wil)
April 12: The YA Book Traveler (Q&A)
April 13: The Whimsical Mama (Review)
April 14: A Backwards Story (Q&A)
April 15: Mary Had a Little Book Blog (Calligraphy Post)
About the Author:
*A Kippy is a cat.
Author Links:
Giveaway:
1 winner will receive a copy of The Orphan Queen and The Mirror King
Open INT to anywhere Book Depository ships!
I want to read this duology because I love epic fantasies! Thanks for the giveaway!
ReplyDeleteIt's so good! Jodi writes awesome fantasies.
DeleteI love fantasy and I have heard a lot of good things about this duology!
ReplyDeleteI definitely recommend it AND Jodi's other fantasy series.
DeleteI took a caligraphy class when I was a kid. I wish I'd have continued--it's so beautiful and a fun creative outlet.
ReplyDeleteI would LOVE to learn calligraphy!
Delete