Each one of us
has a story to tell and everyone we meet is fighting a battle we know nothing
about. This section “The
Q & A Interview with inspiring people” is dedicated to
exceptional personalities, who either have something to educate us or to
inspire us.
Today
I want you to meet the inspirational and wonderful British Author Annelisa Christensen. Annelisa is a mother of four kids, a passionate reader, writer, blogger
and photograph from
the heart of the Sussex countryside
to the village of Ticehurst.
Annelisa’s fascinating and historical debut novel The Popish Midwife is to be launched end June
2016.
"If we believe something, if we want to make a difference, there are always others out there
who believe the same. "
Annelisa Christensen
Annelisa I must say this “Q&A
Interview” with you about your upcoming book “The popish midwife – A tale of
high treason, prejudice, and betrayal” is one of the most exciting ones I have
done.
I’m very anxious to hear your answers. I love the fact that you have
decided to write a book based on a real story about a woman that you describe
as a woman 'ahead of her time'. If you had to describe the character of your
Protagonist Elizabeth Cellier in only three words what would it be? Also, what
do you two have in common?
Hello, Lily, and thank you for inviting
me to talk with you. Three words I would use to describe Elizabeth Cellier? The
first must be
‘bold’:
As a woman, she often spoke out when others might have stayed silent, whether
it was speaking out for those unable to or herself. She was not to be silenced.
And that leads me to the second word, which has to be
‘brave’:
Elizabeth dared to involve herself in political and social activities when
others cowered and hid. She knew the risks, yet acted against forces stronger
than herself (and was labelled a ‘busie-body’
for it) even when she knew her life could be forfeit.
‘Industrious’:
Lizzy, as I think of Elizabeth, was hard working and, as well as her usual job
of midwifery, also took time to go regularly to the Newgate Prison with alms
for the unjustly imprisoned Catholics. On top of this, she kept records of
torture in the prison as well as records of births and deaths of babies and
their mothers all over London. And she wrote books.
I wish I was as brave as Elizabeth, but,
I’m sorry to say, I can’t count that as something in common. I don’t know that
I could put my life on the line for what I believe in, though I hope I would
(but also hope it will never be tested). One thing we do have in common, however, is speaking up against injustice. Like
Elizabeth, if I see something that’s obviously wrong in my day to day life, or
in the wider world, I’ll speak out. I try to involve myself in charities that
try to change the things I believe are wrong (which is a lot). Another thing I
have in common, which may or may not be seen as a positive, is an inability to
stay quiet if there’s something to say. If someone tells me to stay silent
because it’s better for me, if I have to speak I have to speak. I simply can’t
stop it popping out. I think that was one of the things that most attracted me
to Elizabeth Cellier when I read the court transcripts…she was told to be
quiet, but she kept going until she got her answers and said what she wanted to
say! :-D
I love your enthusiasm for books
and history. As a passionate writer and reader you know probably more about
books than any other person I have interviewed so far. If you could turn back
the time and live in another century when would it be and why? Also, if you
could choose to be a Protagonist of one of your favourite books (Fiction and
non-fiction) who would you like to be and why?
Oh my goodness, good question, but I’m afraid I’m
going to disappoint you on the answer. If I could be in any time in history,
I’d live now! For my whole life, I’ve been so thankful to have been born in
this age. Even as a child, when I was a huge science fiction book and film fan,
I adored the idea that I lived in an age where someone had gone to the moon, and
our atmosphere no longer tied us to the ground. I adored the idea of robots and
technology, and used to keep a scrapbook of any technological advances. In
fact, my first ambition was to be an astronaut…and even studied space
psychology at university…but, as an extreme sufferer of travel sickness, I was
quickly put off by the thought of space sickness – feeling ill for days at the
time. However, I never stopped loving being in this age – with the advances in
technology, and the ability to connect with people all over our planet!
Ok, so, before leaving that part of the question
behind, if I didn’t love being here and now so much, when would I choose? Maybe
to the 1800s…when there was at least some sanitation, but there were also many
new developments in the world of science and technology, and getting around the
countryside was not always on foot. In one way, contradictory to what I
previously said, I would also have loved the peace that used to exist before
being constantly connected, where you could spend hours reading a book without
feeling like you should really go online and check your emails and social
media, and nobody could contact you directly except by letter or calling on
you. There is a certain appeal…
As for the second question, anyone who knows me knows my
favourite (two) series of books is The
Mallorean and The Bellgariad by
David Eddings. Now, I absolutely love this series for the characterisations and
the wonderful quest of Garion. But it isn’t him I would love to be. It’s
Belgarath (who does, in fact, have a whole book where he’s the protagonist) –
the wizard. I love the idea of magic, and would equally love to wield it as
either Merlin, Gandalf, or Dumbledore!
Elizabeth Cellier,
who is the Protagonist in “The popish midwife”
fascinates you in a way that gives me goosebumps. In my opinion, everything in
life happens for a reason and everything we do (consciously and unconsciously)
and everyone we meet has a deeper purpose and effect on us. What I’m trying to
say is: The fact that this woman’s fate has
captured you so deeply - from all the books and destinies in the world - makes
me wonder, if there is actually a deeper connection there than just your
admiration for her courage? What do
you think?
Actually, I do also think we meet people
for a reason, and things happen in such a way that I sometimes have a
culminating moment of ‘Hey - all the pieces of the puzzle suddenly fit’. And in
that ‘I can see clearly’ moment, I
see all of the events that have led that point laid out before me and say, ‘Ah,
it all makes sense now’.
How
I came across the transcripts for her trial, and that it was those of
Elizabeth Cellier I bid for on Ebay, and not one of the many others, that was
the first piece of the puzzle. Another piece to slot in was how a friend, who
liked the first novel I wrote, asked if I could write in the first PoV? I
didn’t want to change the Pov of that, so I started another book (hidden away
on my laptop somewhere), but while writing that story, something reminded me of
Elizabeth Cellier, I forget what, and I took the old manuscript out of my fire
safe (everyone owning 300 year old manuscripts should have a fire-safe ;-) )
and looked her up online, not expecting to find anything.
As I said elsewhere, I didn’t expect to
find much, but what I found was three disjointed lines of research – midwifery,
literature and The Popish Plot (a treason plot against King Charles II).
Putting those pieces together gave me the excitement about this woman’s story.
I love how she spoke, in a time when women were expected not to have opinions.
I love she wrote – what a wit she had – and I love that she acted on her
morals, didn’t just talk about it. Yes, it felt like Elizbeth Cellier reached
through the 300 years as though they were nothing, and grabbed me hard. It was
sometimes as if she wanted so badly for me to tell her story. Most copies of
her book of her experiences, Malice
Defeated, were deliberately burned, so we’re lucky there were any copies
left at all to hear her side of it. When I read about this,I committed to telling
Elizabeth’s story for her! And so I have.
Being fascinated by
someone like Elizabeth is one thing. Making the decision to actually dig deeper
and research about her life and fate and write a book about it another. What
you are doing is very special. You are bringing her to life and acknowledging
her legacy centuries later. So I’m wondering do you believe in reincarnation?
Do you think it is possible that you were Elizabeth Cellier or maybe related to
her?
If you’d asked me a similar question
when I was a teenager, I would have possibly answered that as ‘maybe’? I’d read
about many stories of reincarnation, and used to lap them up. Who doesn’t want
to believe we’ll have other chances? Who doesn’t want to believe in the
continuity of the soul (my University of
Lights series, as yet unfinished, explores this whole idea in the form of
magical realism)? It would be awesome to have such a connection to someone in
the past. But now, as an adult with enough reality shoved down the throat of my
beliefs, I have to answer differently. I believe I came across her story
fortuitously. When I read her story, I felt I knew her as someone I could have
been best friends with. She ‘talked’ to me. She (too ‘before her time’ to speak
out) wanted me - three hundred years later and at the right time - to tell her
story. I understood her. I am the same age as her. I empathized with her all
the way through. If the idea was reversed, and that were me back then, could I
have been her? I think yes, it’s possible, that could have been me.
As I was talking to
my mum about your book, I came up with a theory that I like to share with you
and hear your opinion about it. I often complain that we are born in a bad
century. Negativity, inhumanity, injustice, disgrace and stupidity are sadly
ruling our society. I always believe that life was better in the past. But
reading about the fate of Elizabeth Cellier and looking back at history in
general, it shows that the world was always a cruel and unjust place. So today
I was thinking maybe that’s the whole secret of Life. Looking at history,
specially women’s rights, we see some slight improvement today. Baby steps, but
for sure a little process in the right direction. Woman like Elizabeth Cellier
made it possible that in 2016 women have rights in our society. Women are
working in high positions, like Chancellor Angela Merkel in Germany or Queen
Elizabeth I and the II. So, comparing the past with today, we are in a better
place and position, but we still have a long way to go until the world is
completely and ONLY filled with love, harmony, peace and justice. Until the
world is a place we can be proud of. A place without discrimination and
prejudices. And that’s the whole reason why humans are born. To turn the bad
into good: the negativity into positivity and to destroy all the doubts with
hope. Make humans proud to be human.
What do you think
about my theory and what can we individuals do to speed the tempo to make this
world a better place for us and the next generations?
See? Isn’t that a funny thing – I’ve always
believed this was the best time to be born, and you’ve always believed it to be
the worst! Yet, here we are together, talking about life and women’s rights,
about views in the past and how different are our views now. When I wrote an Open
Letter to my MEPs re Raif Badawi, I wrote of the punishment E.C. suffered
for her crime of speaking her views and speaking the truth, and how it compared
to his punishment today:
"I am appalled to find that such abuse of power is still alive in the world and that, three centuries later, there are parallels between that awful time in London and places such as Saudi Arabia today. People are still being condemned for their thoughts."
Yes, there are still awful happenings in
the World today, and it’s far from being right even in more ‘developed’
countries, where there are many wrongs still being carried out against those
who speak their mind, or who are the wrong race / religion / sex / age /
ability / colour / species – we still have ‘-ists’ coming out of the woodwork
whenever anyone different from them dares to be themselves.
However, there is now also a world of
close connections with people from all walks, where the barriers have broken
down, and people of many countries can speak out for those at risk in other
countries. Information flows freely around much of the planet, so we might be
as aware of some catastrophe in another country as in our own. We often find
ourselves empathizing, sympathizing and mourning for people we’ve never heard
of in other towns, states or countries, to the extent where it can feel like they
are ‘one of our own’.
Yes, there are still a lot of bad things
happening in the world, but there are now more ways of combatting these things
than ever. There are organizations such as Amnesty International, charities
such as Action Aid or Oxfam or Greenpeace. There are no excuses for inaction.
It’s so easy to speak out for the things we believe in that not to do so is
virtually a crime. When there are groups for every possible action we’d like to
take, we can so easily find them and, rather than speaking up as a single
voice, we can join voices with so many other people that believe in the same
things and make our own voice count. We are no longer helpless and alone in
standing up for our beliefs. If we believe something, if we want to make a
difference, there are always others out there who believe the same. All we have
to do is Google them, and we will find them. Everybody can do this. Together we
are stronger.
I have a feeling
that many readers will be fascinated by Elizabeth Cellier’s story. Can you
imagine offering a Sightseeing-tour about her life and take people to the
places that she has been, like the Sightseeing-tours they do in England with
Shakespeare’s birth and living place? My mom and I would join the tour
immediately. I do the International PR and you do the talking. :-)
It’s funny you should say that… :-D
Actually, I’m very excited to have plans
to do just such a tour for myself with my new friend, Paul Scales, I met on Twitter. We will
meet up sometime soon, and go to all the places in London that were relevant to
Elizabeth Cellier (when I do, I shall post the journey on Script Alchemy ) Many of these places exist in
different forms. For instance, a coffee house that features in the story (yes,
and in real life too) was the Rainbow Coffee House. My research shows it now to
be a book shop – I can’t wait to go to it and see what it’s like inside! :-D
Many other places also exist, and many times over the last few years, while
I’ve been writing and editing The Popish
Midwife, I’ve planned to walk in Elizabeth Cellier’s footsteps! Soon I will
actually do it! :-D
I would love to see pictures of your Sightseeing tour. So enough of history. Let’s focus
on now and here. What can your readers expect next from you? Will you publish
more books that are based or inspired by real personalities?
Undoubtedly! I have plans to write
either two or three other seventeenth century midwife biographical novels who I
know of. Unfortunately, though I love the research, it does slow down the
telling of the story, if the events in the story are as close to the truth as
possible, and only the gaps are filled with fiction. That means it will be a
while until I finish the next historical biographical novel. So, in the
meantime, I plan to also finish writing and publishing The University of Lights series. I’m excited about this in a
different way – they are not at all based on real life, but I’ve worked on them
for so many years before The Popish
Midwife demanded to be written.
Annelisa, if you could turn back
the time and change a law that would help Woman world-wide what would it be?
Hmmm…let me think about this a moment.
Two women in British history that had this opportunity were Queen Mary and
Queen Elizabeth I, her younger half-sister. Both were in a position of power
for a while and, I suppose, could have used that power to make life better for
women. The opportunity was missed. Laws take a long time to be made and
accepted. Any change they’d made at an earlier date would have crept through
time and benefited women today.
Funnily enough, midwives were given
quite a lot of responsibility, and therefore power, throughout time. They
probably have less now than they ever did in the past. They were often the only
ones trusted
to enter the woman’s birthing chamber and for pre- and post-natal
care, and so they had the ears of many wives and were given some special
privileges others didn’t have. However, they were kept in their place by not
being allowed to be formally educated. I think this is maybe the law I’d
change. I would go back and make a law allowing women to be educated in other
places apart from the home (many women of that time only knew what their parent
or brothers, or a tutor if they were lucky, taught them). Elizabeth Cellier
proposed a college for midwives, which King James II agreed to. That would have
been the first women’s college in this country, if it had happened!
And if you could rule the world
for one day, what would you change worldwide?
I think it will take more than a day to make any
difference to anything anywhere, darn it. Can I have magical power to make it
happen quickly?
Okay, so if I had magic and I could rule the world for a day so my ruling would have to be
carried out, I would proclaim:
- Everybody – and I do mean everybody - should have 3 meals a day, water and shelter.
- Torture should stop immediately, no arguments.
- War should be totally banned and money from that should be re-channeled into medicine, science and any other research that would benefit all people, not just a few.
- Every job would be equally valued (oops, does that sound too ‘Left’? but why not, if all work is necessary?)
- Every person will have access to education.
- Eating all other species of animal – that have equal right to life and freedom as man– should be banned, and everyone should be taught there are other ways of living in harmony with our fellow Earthlings
- Destruction of our planet by thoughtlessness must stop, no messing around.
I really love your rules. You have my full support and permission to use your magical power. :-) I could continue our conversation for days but now to my last question. Ever since I work on my last book
of my trilogy “Definition of Love”, I ask all my inspirational interview
partners these two questions. What is your definition of Love in three words?
What is your definition of Love in one sentence?
Love in 3 words:
Caring about others
Love in a sentence: What
can define a parent’s love of a child, a child’s love of a parent, a sibling’s
love, the love of a life partner, the love of a pet, the love of an idea, the
love of a book, the love of nature, the love of life, the love of food, when
some loves are purely selfless and others are pure indulgence?
Annelisa I
very much look forward to read your book and wish you the best of luck. May Elizabeth’s
story inspire and encourage more Women to stand out for justice and human
rights. I also want to use this opportunity to thank you for doing a “Q&A interview with me” regarding my books. Hopefully the two of us inspire more people to
support each other on their creative journey! My best wishes for you and your
beloved family. Lily
Where can others find you?
Website: Script Alchemy
Twitter: @Alpha_Annelisa
Newsletter: Sign up for fun stuff
Facebook: Script
Alchemy - Annelisa Christensen
Source Pictures: Many thanks @Annelisa & Wikipedia
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