Writing

The Beginning

evelinawood

When I decided to pursue my dream of melding Hudson River history and fictional romance, I never realized how overwhelming it was to put myself “out there” to my future fans.  Writing for me has always been second nature, but when I started to think about creating a full length novel, I have to admit that it overwhelmed me for quite a while.  I know I am not alone in my fears as I work on my first to-be-published story, so I created this blog to introduce myself and share my journey of writing with you.  

My real name is Yvette Temple, but I write under the pseudonym of Evelina Wood.  I am an aspiring romance author from the Hudson Valley, in New York who is also a single mom raising two teenage sons and working full time as an Assistant Vice President at a local bank.  I have an Associates Degree in Business Administration and a Bachelors in Leadership and Organizational Communication.  I grew up along the Hudson River among the opulent Guilded Age mansions of the Vanderbilts, Roosevelts, Astors and Livingstons and this proximity fed my love of history and fantasies of life at the turn of the 20th century.  

I was blessed to have several teachers along the way who encouraged that love of local history: Mr. Vinck, my history teacher in seventh grade, Ms. Troccia, who taught Hudson River History in eleventh grade and Marilyn Holst, who was my mentor the summer after I graduated from high school.  I was hired that summer as a tour guide for Staatsburgh State Historic Site, the seasonal Beaux Arts mansion of Ruth Livingston and Ogden Mills.  Working at Mills Mansion (as we called it back then) became my favorite summer of young adulthood: I had the freedom to roam the mansion and explore rooms that the public never got to see: all 65 rooms and 14 bathrooms from the attics all the way down to the furnace room below the basement.  I felt a kinship to Ruth Livingston Mills when I was at Staatsburgh as we were both the same height: barely 5 feet tall.  Tourists always got a kick out of my comparison to her when I would illustrate that she was a tiny lady who became one of the best hostesses in New York Society at the turn of the last century.

Marilyn taught me the ins and out of New York Society, the feuds between old and new wealth, the families of Mrs. Astor’s 400 and how they entertained and lived, and I also got to learn a bit about long term historic conservation as the mansion was in constant preservation and maintenance mode.  I soon discovered that Staatsburgh was my muse and the dream of writing a historical novel set in the Hudson Valley during Guilded Age was born.

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Published by evelinawood

I was lucky to have been born in the Hudson Valley, NY. My heart lies buried deep in my roots: the tract of immense acreage from New York City to the Adirondacks that is a treasure trove of American History beginning with the Native Indian tribes of the Algonquin and Iroquois to colonization, the Revolutionary War, to the Industrial Age and right up through to modern times. It is an area that has experienced profound change, yet still retains its majestic beauty. I fell in love with Hudson Valley history at a young age. My hometown alone has three historic sites: the homes of Franklin D Roosevelt, the Vanderbilts and the Livingston Mills. As a young girl I imagined myself as a part of these homes and I was lucky to have teachers who flamed my passions for local history; they created an insatiable curiosity that has followed me throughout my life; inspiring me to learn more about all of the people who came before me. My favorite time period is the Edwardian Era: the time of robber barons, railroad magnates and gilded lifestyles, encompassing the end of the Victorian Era until the First World War. Those who had money flaunted it profusely, and those who didn't suffered in unimaginable ways. The Hudson Valley experienced the contrast directly with the immense mansions built along the shores of the Hudson River to the immigrants arriving in New York City to make a new life in the United States. My blog will provide glimpses of life in the Hudson Valley during this time by drawing on the historical research I am always working with and through the snippets of stories I am writing. I hope that my blog brings you enjoyment and a new perspective on a beautiful area so important to American History. Happy reading and thank you for taking the time to visit me!

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