Astronomy has always interested me.
When I was a kid, I would take my little Golden Guide to the Stars and my flashlight to the back yard and gaze up at the constellations. On most clear nights, winter or summer, and winter inNew England is pretty cold, I would go outside and look at the stars. Back then, I didn’t have a telescope or even binoculars. When I was in college I received a small telescope as a gift. I still have it buried in the basement, but I haven't used it in years.
When I was a kid, I would take my little Golden Guide to the Stars and my flashlight to the back yard and gaze up at the constellations. On most clear nights, winter or summer, and winter in
Maybe my childhood interest in the stars had something to do with the astronomy theme in Lady of the Stars, my Regency time travel. I'm still not 
sure how the idea came about. Anyway, the telescope the hero, Richard, owns is a real one. I looked up antique telescopes on the web and found this Pallant.
sure how the idea came about. Anyway, the telescope the hero, Richard, owns is a real one. I looked up antique telescopes on the web and found this Pallant.
This telescope is ideal for my story. It's a real, 19th century English telescope, perfect for Richard to own. The telescope is also small, less than a foot long, so Richard or Caroline, the heroine, could easily carry it to an observation position. It figures in Caroline’s and Richard’s courtship, as well as providing a link between past and present.
I rarely look at the stars now. Too many lights and too many trees obscure my view. I still remember most of the constellations’ names, and I always stay up and watch any lunar eclipses that are visible in my area. But, as Lady of the Stars shows, I haven’t completely forgotten my childhood interest. Maybe art does imitate life.
LADY OF THE STARS, Regency time travel
Buy links: http://books2read.com/u/4EWxLO
Thank you, all,
Linda
4 comments:
I think your childhood interest was always there and came out in your story! I too love the idea of telescopes and stargazing. I said the idea... I suppose any one interested in sci-fi would be that way. Good post, Linda.
Hi Kaye and thanks.
You can have an interest in astronomy without going outside. Just because I froze on those winter nights looking at the stars doesn't mean anyone else has to. *grins*
We've got to drive about 50 miles to get away from the reflected lights of Tyneside. Deep in Keilder Forest in the English Border county of Northumberland there's an observatory. I keep intending to go there but somehow it always seems to cold or too wet or too windy. I'm just a coward!
Jen
Go, go go! to that observatory in Northumberland. You'll have a fantastic view of the stars. I would love to visit a real observatory. The closest I've gotten to one is the planetarium in the Boston Museum of Science.
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