First of all, the setting for this scene is the sleepy mountain town of Catawissa, PA in 1867. So those of you who guessed it was historical were correct! Lenny’s first comment comes very close to describing the correct clothing for Verity. (Yay, Lenny!)
When I close my eyes and see Verity running cross that graveyard, I see she’s dressed in a long fluffy skirt and old fashion lace up shoes and a long sleeve low neck shirt.
Most people guessed that Verity was a brunette, but she’s actually blonde. (Yay, Brenda and Lorna!) Lindsay, Diane, and Jen guessed the right eye color, which is green. She’s 17 years old and engaged to marry this young man she barely knows.
Only Francine gave a description of Nate, and she fairly well pegged him!
Nate, I’m seeing as all man, shy, tending reserve in nature, brooding looks with dark brown eyes, and Verity his first real love interest.
I spent a lot of time looking for pictures that matched my characters. For Verity Boone, I could have cheated and just given you a picture of Kate Winslet in period dress.
BUT it’s at least 50 years off from the correct period – and Kate doesn’t quite work for me. I really wanted to find a historical photo – a daguerreotype, actually – that matched my golden-haired, green-eyed Verity Boone. Of course, I had to deal in black and white pictures, and it seemed that most of the girls wearing their hair in the curls I wanted were brunettes. After much searching, I chose this picture as my best option.
What attracted me to this picture is the girl’s direct, confident gaze. There’s a complacency about her that suggests she can be sweet when she wants to be, but cross her at your peril! And she might have honey-colored hair. It’s possible.
Nate McClure was actually easier. When he was courting Verity Boone by letter, he sent her a photograph in which he was stuffed into a suit, with his dark hair severely combed down. His dark eyes were rather stern, and she thought he was “nearly handsome – and might be more so when he smiled.” I thought this photograph almost perfectly matched Nate (except for the sideburns), although he was a little more disheveled when chasing Verity through the cemetery.
For those of you who wanted to know more about these caged graves, I wrote a post back in January describing my encounter with the real life graves that inspired this story.
Thanks, Jen, for hosting this blogfest! It was so much fun! I can’t wait to go visit all the other blogs and see how close (far) I was in my guesses!
Historical photos from Library of Congress.
Dang, missed again. I think I better get used to the feeling of being wrong. LOL
I think I was off. Great job! I will visit you tomorrow!:)
Ha ha I laughed when I saw my name!!! It’s my first win… okay half win, but still getting the eye color is worth something!!!
I really enjoyed the historical photos you found for us, and I’m always a fan of Kate… even if it wasn’t exactly what you were looking for!!
Thank you so much for joining in on the fun! I had such a blast and guessing all of these wonderful characters was more fun than I could have ever imagined!
Wow. I was way off.
Hi,
OMG, the pic of Nate is pretty much as I imagined: miserable looking blighter, ain’t he!?
best
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I love old pictures. I agree that confident gaze does match your female MC. well done.
wrong again! sheesh! i’m bad at this! those old photos are super nifty!
Sorry Dianne, apparently I missed this blogfest. This is the fourth revealing character’s blog I’ve visited this morning. Great job.
I didn’t even venture a guess, which is just as well, because I’m afraid I would have been way off. Fun, though!
Wow, you came up with some terrific photos! I love her confident gaze, too.
That second shot of her is haunting–which so fits the piece you shared with us!
Great photos and great characters. I still can’t get the cages out of my mind.
Well, I said Old West. So, I got the old, right:)I’ve been rationalizing my bad guesses all over the place today.
Love the characters and the premise of your story. The cages are creepy and it gives me a feeling that your story might be as well. Love it! 😀
Wow, Dianne, these are GORGEOUS photos! LOL, I was waaay off I was. Ugh. Yes, I am curious about those caged gravesites and isn’t it wonderful to have a glimpse of something that inspires an entire novel? 😉
Thanks for the great guess on mine! 🙂
Wonderful pics. The premise of your story sounds incredibly cool.
So very appropriate to go back in time to find the pics. Think about it. It’s the picture of someone living and thinking during the past. That effects ones look. We can re-enact the past but it will not be the same. Great idea and prose.
Thanks, Dianne, for such a great comment on my reveal.
Like the others, I am impressed with your photographs — especially after the research I did, getting the perfect Aztec carving for my reveal.
Once again, hurray for Lenny. Don’t be a stranger on my blog, all right?
Tomorrow I have the ghost of William Faulkner stepping in for me to teach a bit on how to write better. Sunday, Anita Loos’ ghost (GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES) gives a dieting tip and a writing one, too.
Great photos. This blogfest has been so much fun…I’ve loved meeting all thes new characters. 🙂
Wonderful pictures! Verity has a lovely face and I can definitely see her blonde hair! 😉
Thanks, everyone who visited my blog in the past 2 days and made your guesses about Verity! The historical photo above didn’t satisfy me when I first found it, but I it’s growing on me! My mental image is already changing …
I loved visiting your blogs and reading about your characters. But most of all, I enjoyed meeting new bloggers and making some new friends! Another round of applause for Jen!
What gorgeous photos! This character sounds fantastic! I loved reading your entry. Well done!
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Very nice descriptions, Dianne. I love the photos.
Nope, I was off too. Love the authentic old photos you managed to dig up though!