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Filed in: Announcements | blog | giveaway | promotion Tags: giveaways | launch celebration | the dragon and the pearl
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First, I must apologize for being so late posting the winners. I didn’t realize my ability to multi-task would be seriously impacted this year and between my online workshop, my workshop in San Diego, and my BFF’s wedding, I fell behind on blog duties.
Round 1 Launch Celebration Winners
Thank you for spreading the word about The Dragon and the Pearl on Facebook, blogs and Twitter! The winners were randomly chosen by random.org.
THE LADY’S SCANDALOUS NIGHT: digital download goes to:
Desere
The international version of RED CLIFF goes to:
PRationality
The hardcover copy of FURY OF THE PHOENIX goes to:
hafelina
AND the newsletter winner for an autographed copy of THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL is:
Michelle Wilson
Congratulations and thank you everyone! I have moved the deadline for Round 2 of the Launch Celebration to Oct. 15 as I haven’t had any time to promote the celebration. So for an opportunity for the GRAND PRIZES (Two book set of Stephanie Dray’s LILY OF THE NILE and SONG OF THE NILE or a wooden customized dragon chop or an annotated copy of THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL) , spread the word about THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL which is in bookstores for the month of October.
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Filed in: blog | cool finds Tags: rt magazine | the dragon and the pearl
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I thought this blog was so adorable, I had to post it here. Morgan from RT Magazine blogged about her favorite Far East items inspired by quotes from The Dragon and the Pearl.
Get the Look: Jeannie Lin’s The Dragon and the Pearl
I thought it looked like a spot in Cosmo. Supercool!
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Filed in: Announcements | blog | guest blogs | history Tags: imperial courtesans | release day | the dragon and the pearl
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Today is the official release day of my second book: THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL.
Champagne for everyone! Well, sparkling apple cider for me.
Come over and celebrate with a geeky history blog about Tang Dynasty Courtesans and their sexual and societal role in imperial China. There’s also a book giveaway if you’re feeling lucky.
Tang Dynasty courtesans: High class prostitutes?
Do I know how to party or what? As you may have guessed it, at any given party I’m the one in the corner munching on cheese and crackers and hanging with the other nerds.
The Most Beautiful Courtesan of Them All…
Former Emperor’s consort Ling Suyin is renowned for her beauty; the ultimate seductress. Now she lives quietly alone–until the most ruthless warlord in the region comes and steals her away…
Li Tao lives life by the sword, and is trapped in the treacherous, lethal world of politics. The alluring Ling Suyin is at the center of the web. He must uncover her mystery without falling under her spell–yet her innocence calls out to him. How cruel if she, of all women, can entrance the man behind the legend…
For more book information and excerpt, Click here.
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Filed in: blog Tags: chinese tattoos | the dragon and the pearl
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I was remarking on Twitter how my mum seemed to disapprove of the girl with the dragon tattoo (snicker…okay, that title was taken obviously) on my cover. I’ve read comments on Asian blogs on how it’s disconcerting or even seen as disrespectful that so many Westerners are using Asian motifs and Chinese characters for tattoos because it seems like a cool thing. Not all Asians feel this way, but I did feel I should make a cultural note of it.
In many Asian cultures — Japanese, Chinese, Vietnamese, and others I’m not aware of — tattoos are historically associated with a criminal element. This is not unique to Asian culture as in Western culture, tattoos are also tied to a sub-culture of subversiveness. However, I think it can be safe to say that in American culture, that taboo has been diluted almost completely and there are only faint echoes of it. People with tattoos are for the most part accepted in Western society and with temporary tattoos and tramp stamps and cute little Tweety bird tattoos all over, tattoos have been somewhat normed.
To give an example of the flip side of things, my friend from Texas has a tattoo of an American eagle and the flag on his upper arm. In Japan, they wouldn’t allow him into any public baths or spas. If he were to show that tattoo in a business setting, they would lose respect for him despite the fact that he’s obviously not yakuza. He’s a big Texan who’s proud of the American flag. Though I can think of certain situations here in the U.S. where it may cause raised eyebrows to expose a tattoo, I don’t think it carries the same stigma and repercussions.
From the romance front, tattoos are all over paranormal romance and urban fantasy on men and women as we can see the number of covers that sport a tattoo. 
I do want to remark that I considered the use of tattoos in my historical romance very carefully and tried to retain the cultural taboos around them in THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL. Tattoos are the mark of criminals and outlaws. They’re a signal of dishonor. I was surprised to see the tattoo appear on my heroine on the cover and can’t deny that it does look pretty cool. The intent in the story was for the marking to be recognized as a symbol of something dark and criminal and not to be taken lightly, but I can’t get away from the fact that the story may exploit the “cool” of it in Western culture though it was not my goal to do so. Any disrespect was unanticipated and unintended.
Some trivia — I’ve read that the craze for Asian tattoos may be tied to the influence of Water Margin/ The Outlaws of the Marsh. The classic novel is set in the Song Dynasty features an outlaw with mult-colored tattoos of nine dragons on his back.
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Filed in: blog | guest blogs Tags: blog tour | fresh fiction | giveaway | the dragon and the pearl
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I’m over at Fresh Fiction today with a fun post about fashion and clothing during the Tang Dynasty and how it played into characterization in THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL. I’m giving away a signed copy of the book (get one before all of your friends!) to one random commenter.
Stop by and you get to see my in my Tang Dynasty best as well.
She’s Got the Look – Costuming Your Characters
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Filed in: blog | events | giveaway | guest blogs | new releases Tags: release | the dragon and the pearl | workshops
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It’s deja vu all over again. The lead up to the launch of THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL is well underway, starting with the official start of the blog tour. Come visit me over at The Romance Dish and learn about the symbolism of the dragon and the pearl in Chinese mythology. You can also win an autographed copy of BUTTERFLY SWORDS to get you ready for DRAGON.
The other tour stops so far are below:
9/13-The Romance Dish–blog and giveaway: The Dragon and the Pearl in Chinese Mythology
9/14-Fresh Fiction–blog and giveaway: She’s got the look–Costuming your characters
9/19-Historical Hearts-interview and giveaway
9/20-Limecello’s blog-blog and giveaway: Tang Dynasty courtesans–High class prostitutes?
9/21-Jo Bourne’s blog-interview and giveaway
10/12-Romancing the Book-Interview and giveaway
10/17-Reader, I Created Him – Interview and giveaway
***
I’m heading out to San Diego this Friday for a workshop on “Keeping Them Hooked” Saturday morning with the San Diego RWA chapter. This will be my first book signing for THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL and I’m doubly excited because I’ll be the opening act for Barbara Vey from Publishers Weekly who’s the afternoon speaker.
This also brings me back to Southern California for a visit to my family and then my BFF’s wedding the next week. I’ll be in the wedding party as a very round bridesmaid as the twins are growing inside me.
***
Oh me garshk! Is it that time already. I’ll be drawing for the winners for the first round of the Launch Celebration this Thursday. So far there’s a handful of supporters joining in on Facebook, blogs and Twitter. *blows kisses* Thank you!!
Spread the word for a chance to win books and other cool goodies.
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Filed in: Announcements | blog | events | giveaway | new releases Tags: launch celebration | prizes | the dragon and the pearl
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THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL releases on September 20, 2011 and I’m still a fresh-faced newbie author where every new launch is exciting. *bounces*
And of course there will be party favors and prizes like last time. I’m even contemplating how difficult it would be to make Dragon sugar cookies for my local booksigning. Butterfly cookies weren’t so hard, but Dragon cookies seem like an intricate affair. I might have to rethink that. Now Pearl cookies would be much easier LOL.
So join in for my launch celebration for THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL and its linked Undone story, THE LADY’S SCANDALOUS NIGHT (release date September 1, 2011), and be entered to win some lovely goodies. All you have to do is spread the word by blogging, tweeting, facebooking about the books. I’ve provided the HTML for the celebration badge the end of the post that you can feel free to link or copy. Remember to come back and comment here about where you posted so I can count you in. On Twitter, use the tag #dragonandpearl so I can find you. The celebration is open to US and international readers.
The Goodies
The celebration is really a way to give back to all the readers who have been so supportive of me from the beginning. Plus I love to throw parties and with a virtual launch celebration, I don’t have to clean up my living room. I hope you enjoy the goodies this time around. A lot of thought is put into creating just the right mood.
The first round!
On September 15st, we’ll have a drawing for the first set of prizes. Three random names will be drawn to receive one of three prizes.
First up, a digital download of THE LADY’S SCANDALOUS NIGHT for your reading pleasure. This linked story takes place concurrently with THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL and will hopefully whet your appetite for the longer novel.
Second, a DVD set with the international release of Red Cliff. Warlords, intrigue, Tony Leung and Takeshi Kaneshiro. The battle of Red Cliff featured in Romance of the Three Kingdoms takes place in the Han Dynasty rather than the Tang, but it’ll put you in the right frame of mind for the power struggle in THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL. (Alas, Tony and Takeshi didn’t answer my casting call for my book trailer.)
Third, a hardcopy of Cindy Pon‘s THE FURY AND THE PHOENIX, sequel to her debut book, SILVER PHOENIX. You’ll also receive autographed postcards with character art that Cindy commissioned herself. This Asian fantasy adventure takes place in the imaginary kingdom of Xia and features a love affair between a courtesan and a eunuch. What, a eunuch you say?!? Actually, those palace eunuchs were the only men allowed in the Emperor’s harem. Historically they had all sorts of affairs with concubines. They also wielded an inordinate amount of power. Scandalous, no?
Second Round – The Grand Prizes!!
On October 20 (this was updated from original date–I didn’t realize I’d be running around and have no time to promote this myself!) , I’ll have a drawing for the Grand Prizes. Three individual names will be drawn.
First, I’m so excited to be giving away a copy of Stephanie Dray‘s LILY OF THE NILE and the sequel, SONG OF THE NILE. I’ve read the first book and am eagerly awaiting the second which releases in October. Stephanie has the same love for ancient history as well as for “bad girls” of the ancient world that I do and her writing is gorgeous. Reading this story of Cleopatra’s daughter Selene made me reminisce about the big Marion Zimmer Bradley epics (Mists of Avalon, Firebrand) I used to love sinking my teeth into.
Second, it was hard to find a giveaway item that could be as exciting as the double swords from last year. My personalized dragon chop is always a conversation starter at signings so I thought I’d give away a customized dragon stamp made of wood. I’ll have it ordered in your name for you so you can have an official chop of your own — a must for signing artwork and doing business in China.
Third, the most popular item from last year was the annotated copy. I’ll be going through and jotting author’s notes in a copy of THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL. Think of this as the DVD commentary, but book style. What were the inspirations for specific characters? What sort of decisions did I have to make. What was I thinking when I did that? The annotated copy of BUTTERFLY SWORDS was sold at the Brenda Novak auction for diabetes research last year for a nice donation. I’m really looking forward to reading through the book again and putting down my notes. It’s a labor of love, truly.
Party favors – Romance Trading Cards
All newsletter subscribers can use the contact link in the newsletter to request THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL trading cards. I must thank www.chineseclothingonline.com for the use of the lovely costume pictures!
Want to subscribe to Jeannie’s newsletter?
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More Info and Events:
Badge
Copy and paste HTML for badge and link below:
Giveaways:
I’ll be giving away copies of THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL and THE LADY’S SCANDALOUS NIGHT on various blog tour stops. In the meantime, the Goodreads giveaway is open until Friday, September 2nd. Get an advance copy before the release date.
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Filed in: Announcements | blog | giveaway | new releases Tags: giveaway | goodreads | the dragon and the pearl
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Win an advance copy of The Dragon and the Pearl before the release date. Goodreads will randomly select the recipients and I believe I’ve opened it up to any country where I’ve had reader contact or newsletter subscriber so no one is left out.
Goodreads does ask that if you win, you leave an honest review after reading the book. I’d certainly appreciate it as well.
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Filed in: blog Tags: library journal | reviews | the dragon and the pearl
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And check out the lovely cover at the top of the article. Happiness!
“VERDICT: Beautifully written, deliciously sensual, and rich with Tang Dynasty historical and political detail, this exquisitely crafted, danger-filled, and intriguing story redeems the ruthless villain from Lin’s Butterfly Swords (a remarkable feat in itself), pairs him with a smart, resourceful heroine, and lets them play cat and mouse for much of the book before joining forces for a well-deserved romantic ending. Exceptional.”
Read entire review here
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Filed in: blog | history | research Tags: alternative history | butterfly swords | Tang dynasty | the dragon and the pearl
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I loved reading about the alternative history behind Meljean Brook’s Iron Seas series on her website where she describes the real history of the Mongolian khagans or khans and their contact with the West via Marco Polo and then ties that in to the alternative history she created about the Golden Horde. So I thought it would be good to write up the alternative history of BUTTERFLY SWORDS and THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL.
My world isn’t as imagineered as a full on fantasy novel. In fact I was adamant in the fact that they are set in Tang Dynasty China. Not a fantasy world based on the Oriental trappings of China. I strive to try to be as authentic as possible in terms of culture, social climate, and political structure. I didn’t want to make up place names and customs and hide behind the fact that I made things up if something reads inauthentic. If it didn’t work, it’s because I didn’t sell it–not because it was meant to be fabricated anyway.
Of course wuxia, and really all similar chivalric tales, take place within a bit of a fantasy world. For the western equivalents, consider the Tales of Robin Hood or King Arthur. They’re a bit of historical fantasy. Historical romances are also really historical fantasies in the way authors have freedom to make up Dukes and Princes and Princesses. One of the reasons I feel so strongly that I’m truly in the right genre.
But one of the big leaps that I made that is not done too often in traditional historical romance is I altered the macro-history of my setting. Often authors will create imaginary kingdoms to satisfy the need to create wars and political conflict, but I had already decided this would not be a made up kingdom. So here’s the real history and my alternate history juxtaposed.
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE REAL TANG DYNASTY AND JEANNIE LIN’S TANG DYNASTY?
In the real Tang Dynasty:
The rule of Emperor Xuanzong, named Li Longji, (712-756 A.D.) is often considered the pinnacle of the Tang Dynasty. Near the end of his reign however, the empire began to decline through many different factors including famine and several devastating military losses, costing Xuanzong several of the empire’s tributary nations. Throughout the dynasty, military warlords called jiedushi who were tasked with leading campaigns against neighboring kingdoms and maintaining order at the frontier had gained in power and influence. The jiedushi took over the military rule of their provinces, forming armies that were independent from the central imperial army. It was the combination of this military decentralization and the financial weakening of the central government that allowed the first strike in the beginning of the fall of the Golden Age.
The most popular telling has Emperor Xuanzong declining into decadence and extravagance in his elder years. He became smitten by one of his concubines, Lady Yang Yuhuan, who is more commonly known as Yang Guifei (Precious Consort Yang). Under her thrall, he ignored matters of state, appointed her relatives and other corrupt men to important governmental positions, and spent his days throwing lavish banquets for his consort. One of the men who gained the favor of the corrupt court was a warlord by the name of An Lushan, who was of Sogdian (ancient Persian empire) descent rather than pure “Chinese”. (During the Tang Dynasty, the population of the empire was a mix of ethnicities, much like the Roman Empire during its height.) An Lushan had gained prominence defending the northeastern border against the Khitans and between he and his sons, controlled several military districts and a sizeable army. One of the downfalls of the military system was that too many men were elevated to governorships from lowly field positions. As a result, the imperial government had to contend with and try to balance the demands of many powerful factions within its own borders.
In 755, An Lushan led the Anshi Rebellion against Xuanzong, forcing the Emperor to flee from the capital. During the tragic flight, the Emperor’s army refused to continue unless he executed his beloved Yang Guifei, blaming her and her inept cousin, Chancellor Yang Guozhong, for the downfall of the imperial government. The Emperor had Yang Guifei strangled and her body was buried by the roadside while the escort continued on to Chengdu in the South.
An Lushan took over control of the dual capitals of Chang’an and Luoyang and declared himself Emperor. Meanwhile, Xuanzong set up a separate court in the south, but he was a broken man. He recognized his son, Li Heng’s, ascension to the throne and took on the title of retired Emperor. The son mounted a campaign against An Lushan to try to recapture the capital and destroy the warlord’s forces, though it would take the reign of three Tang Emperors before the rebellion was crushed in 763 A.D.
The Tang Dynasty continues for over another century, finally ending in 907 A.D. though it never reaches the height of Xuanzong’s rule again.
In Jeannie Lin’s Tang Dynasty:
BUTTERFLY SWORDS and THE DRAGON AND THE PEARL take place during the period of the Anshi rebellion, though the alternative history changes the circumstances of the temporary fall of the Tang Emperors. Emperor Xuanzong is replaced by a fictional Emperor Li Ming, known as the August Emperor, who has died without leaving behind any direct male descendants.
Instead of An Lushan, a warlord named Shen An Liu has taken control during the unrest and Li Ming’s only daughter Miya has abdicated the throne and lives in exile. Emperor Shen and his sons control the largest military force in the empire, allowing them to maintain control of the central part of the kingdom, but his rule is constantly challenged by the other warlords, many who want to restore a Tang ruler to the throne.
The tragic figure of Yang Yuhuan was replaced by Precious Consort Ling Suyin, who survives the fall of Tang regime. Li Tao is a commoner who was given military command as jiedushi by the August Emperor.
In this timeline, Emperor Shen is seen as a usurper of low birth and mixed blood, though he does rule over the central government. A clear opposition government has yet to be established and the jiedushi are left to fight it out about who will control the empire.
It was a difficult decision to alter such pivotal events in the Tang Dynasty history to create this world. The intention was to be able to use pivotal figures such as Emperors and warlords and consorts and set their interactions during the tumultuous time that inspired me. I hope readers will realize that these stories are historical fantasy and not meant to be a historical reference.
For the upcoming tales that do not reference this alternative timeline, I’ve set the time period to the later part of the Tang Dynasty after 800 A.D. to differentiate them from these earlier tales.
As I’ve heard from readers that these stories have been the first taste they got of the Tang Dynasty, I encourage any history geeks to seek out the true events. The following resources were the basis for much for much of my research:
- Benn, Charles (2002), China’s Golden Age: Everyday Life in the Tang Dynasty, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-517665-0
- Hucker, Charles O. (1995), China’s Imperial Past: An Introduction to Chinese History and Culture, Stanford University Press, ISBN 0804723532
- Lewis, Mark Edward (2009), China’s Cosmopolitan Empire: The Tang Dynasty, Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, ISBN 067403306X
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